The two content areas of Science and Social Studies are presented in GED as Project in the Learning Project and Inquiry Activities format established in Pathways to Passing the GED: Introduction. Test questions taken directly from the 2002 Official GED Science and Social Studies Practice Tests form the basis of most of the Inquiry Activities found in this section. The organization of the Inquiry Activities moves the learners across both science and social studies and back to math, reading, and writing in an integrated approach.

In the GED 2002, the questions in both the science and social studies tests have an increased proportion of visual-based questions as compared with the earlier GED. Somewhere between 50 to 60 percent of the questions will include maps, charts, tables, graphs, diagrams, political cartoons, advertisements, or photographs. The use of these materials reflects the role graphic images play in presenting information in today's world. These visuals are not new, but have taken on increasing importance in our information-driven age, where they serve to attract our attention and allow us to make sense of the increasing masses of information necessary to succeed in work and at home. Consequently, the first three Learning Projects are focused on questions that include maps, charts, tables, diagrams, and other visual items.

Reading in the content areas is not so much about learning basic reading skills as it is about making students aware that reading is a tool for thinking and learning. In the content areas, learners need to make connections between what they know and what is presented on the page. Nothing is more important to making sense of subject matter than the reader's prior knowledge. In order to learn new information, the learners must be able to bring forth what they already know and fit the new information into some sort of order, or schema. If their knowledge framework is well organized, they can accommodate new information readily. The more extensive their knowledge and skills in the area about which they are reading, the more they will learn and remember. Later Learning Projects focus on techniques to improve the learners' reliance on such skills when reading in the content areas.

There are a variety of sources for materials beyond the test items in Practice Test A for the GED. You are encouraged to modify any of the materials you are accustomed to by using the Inquiry Template. Repetition plays an important role in the meta-cognitive process. Therefore, similar thinking/process questions are asked throughout the Learning Projects. It is through following the familiar process that learners begin to understand how they learn and to develop their own learning skills.