Defining Comprehension Skills

What are the comprehension skills required for the GED Tests? Comprehension skills vary slightly from test to test.

On the Language Arts Reading Test, comprehension items require that students understand the basic meaning and intent of a passage. They must be able to

• Restate or paraphrase information
• Summarize main ideas
• Explain the implications of a given text

On the Social Studies Test, comprehension items require that students understand the meaning and intent of prose material, as well as the meaning of a graphic, chart, map, diagram, photograph, or political cartoon. They must be able to

• Restate information
• Summarize ideas included in the text or graphic
• Identify implications and make inferences based on the text or graphic

On the Science Test, comprehension items require that students understand fundamental science concepts as well as restate or summarize information provided in text or graphics.