GRADUATE RECORD EXAMINATIONS General Test ......GRADUATE RECORD EXAMINATIONS® General Test Practice Book Listening. Learning. Leading. This practice book contains one full-length

G R A D U A T E R E C O R D E X A M I N A T I O N S®

General TestPractice Book

Listening.

Learning.

Leading.

This practice book contains

� one full-length paper-based GRE General Test

� test-taking strategies

� sample verbal and quantitative questions with explanations

� sample analytical writing topics, scored sample essays, and

reader commentary

Visit the GRE Web site at www.gre.org foradditional test preparation resources.IMPORTANT NOTICE: The test-taking strategies in this publication are appropriate for use at a paper-based administration anddo not pertain to the computer-based General Test. Individuals planning to take the computer-based General Test are advisedto prepare for the test using GRE POWERPREP ® software.

This book is provided FREE with test registration by the Graduate Record Examinations Board.

EDUCATIONAL TESTING SERVICE, ETS, the ETS logos, GRADUATE RECORD EXAMINATIONS,GRE, POWERPREP, e-rater are registered trademarks of Educational Testing Service. ScoreItNow! is a trade-mark of Educational Testing Service. Copyright © 2004 by Educational Testing Service. All rights reserved.

Note to Test Takers: Keep this practice book until you receive your score report.The book contains important information about scoring.

IMPORTANTThe verbal and quantitative sections in the GRE General Test in this publication contain questionswritten and administered prior to 1995. For this reason, some of the material covered in the questionsmay be dated. For example, a question may refer to a rapidly changing technology in a way that wascorrect in the 1980s and early 1990s, but not now. In addition, Educational Testing Service® ETS® hasrevised and updated its standards and guidelines for test questions so some questions may not meetcurrent standards. Questions that do not meet current ETS standards, and would not appear in GREtests administered today, are marked with an asterisk (see pages 35 and 44).

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Table of ContentsPurpose of the GRE General Test ...................... 3

Structure of the GRE General Test .................... 3

Scores Reported .................................................. 4

Preparing for the GRE General Test .................. 4

Test-Taking Strategies ........................................ 5

Review of the Verbal SectionOverview ................................................................ 6How the Verbal Section is Scored ......................... 6Antonyms ............................................................... 6Analogies ................................................................ 6Sentence Completions ........................................... 7Reading Comprehension Questions ...................... 7

Review of the Quantitative SectionOverview ................................................................ 9How the Quantitative Section is Scored ............. 10Quantitative Comparison Questions ................... 10Problem Solving — Discrete

Quantitative Questions..................................... 10Problem Solving — Data

Interpretation Questions................................... 11

Review of the Analytical Writing SectionOverview .............................................................. 12How the Analytical Writing Section is Scored ... 12Present Your Perspective on an Issue Task ........... 13Analyze an Argument Task .................................. 20

Taking the Practice GRE General Test ............ 27

Evaluating Your Performance ........................... 27Verbal and Quantitative Sections ........................ 27Analytical Writing Section .................................. 27Additional Preparation ........................................ 28

Practice GRE General Test .............................. 29

AppendicesA – Analytical Writing Scoring Guides and

Score Level Descriptions .............................. 51B – Verbal and Quantitative

Interpretive Tables ........................................ 54C – Analytical Writing Topics, Sample Scored

Essay Responses at Selected Score Points,and Reader Commentary .............................. 56

Answer Sheets .................................................. 63

Purpose of the GREGeneral TestThe GRE General Test is designed to help graduateschool admission committees and fellowship sponsorsassess the qualifications of applicants to their pro-grams. It measures verbal, quantitative, and analyticalwriting skills that you have acquired over a longperiod of time.

Any accredited graduate or professional school, orany department or division within a school, mayrequire or recommend that its applicants take theGRE General Test. The scores can be used by admis-sions or fellowship panels to supplement undergradu-ate records and other qualifications for graduatestudy. The scores provide common measures forcomparing the qualifications of applicants and aid inthe evaluation of grades and recommendations.

Structure of the GREGeneral TestThe paper-based GRE General Test contains fivesections. In addition, one unidentified pretest sectionmay be included and this section can appear in anyposition in the test after the analytical writingsection. Questions in the pretest section are beingpretested for possible use in future tests and answerswill not count toward your scores.

Total testing time is up to 33/4 hours. The direc-tions at the beginning of each section specify thetotal number of questions in the section and the timeallowed for the section. The analytical writing sectionwill always be first. The verbal and quantitativesections may appear in any order, including an uniden-tified verbal or quantitative pretest section. Treat eachsection presented during your test as if it counts.

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Typical Paper-Based GRE General TestSections

Section Number of Questions Time

Analytical Writing 1 Issue task* 45 min.

1 Argument task* 30 min.

Verbal 38 per section 30 min. per section(2 sections)

Quantitative 30 per section 30 min. per section(2 sections)

Pretest** Varies 30 min.* For the Issue task, two essay topics will be presented and you will choose one. The Argument task does

not present a choice of topics; instead, one topic will be presented.** An unidentified verbal or quantitative pretest section may be included and may appear in any order after

the analytical writing section.

Scores ReportedThree scores are reported on the General Test:

1. a verbal score reported on a 200–800 score scale,in 10-point increments,

2. a quantitative score reported on a 200–800 scorescale, in 10-point increments, and

3. an analytical writing score reported on a 0–6score scale, in half-point increments.

If you answer no questions at all in a section (verbal,quantitative, or analytical writing), that section willbe reported as a No Score (NS).

Descriptions of the analytical writing abilitiescharacteristic of particular score levels are availablein the interpretive leaflet enclosed with your scorereport, in the Guide to the Use of GRE Scores, and onthe GRE Web site at www.gre.org.

Preparing for the GREGeneral TestPreparation for the test will depend on the amount oftime you have available and your personal prefer-ences for how to prepare. At a minimum, before youtake the GRE General Test, you should know what toexpect from the test, including the administrativeprocedures, types of questions and directions, theapproximate number of questions, and the amount oftime for each section.

The administrative procedures include registra-tion, date, time, test center location, cost, score-reporting procedures, and availability of specialtesting arrangements. You can find out about the

administrative procedures for the paper-based Gen-eral Test online at www.gre.org, or by contactingEducational Testing Service (see the GRE Informationand Registration Bulletin).

Before taking the practice General Test, it isimportant to become familiar with the content ofeach of the sections of the test. You can becomefamiliar with the verbal and quantitative sections byreading about the skills the sections measure, how thesections are scored, reviewing the strategies for eachof the question types, and reviewing the samplequestions with explanations. Determine whichstrategies work best for you. Remember—you can dovery well on the test without answering every ques-tion in each section correctly.

Everyone—even the most practiced and confidentof writers—should spend some time preparing for theanalytical writing section before arriving at the testcenter. It is important to review the skills measured,how the section is scored, scoring guides and scorelevel descriptions, sample topics, scored sample essayresponses, and reader commentary.

To help you prepare for the analytical writingsection of the General Test, the GRE Program haspublished the entire pool of topics from which yourtest topics will be selected. You might find it helpfulto review the Issue and Argument pools. You canview the published pools on the Web atwww.gre.org/pracmats.html or obtain a copy bywriting to GRE Program, PO Box 6000, Princeton,NJ 08541-6000.

The topics in the analytical writing section relateto a broad range of subjects—from the fine arts andhumanities to the social and physical sciences—butno topic requires specific content knowledge. In fact,each topic has been field-tested to ensure that itpossesses several important characteristics, includingthe following:

• GRE test takers, regardless of their field of studyor special interests, understood the topic andcould easily discuss it.

• The topic elicited the kinds of complex thinkingand persuasive writing that university facultyconsider important for success in graduateschool.

• The responses were varied in content and in theway the writers developed their ideas.

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Test-Taking StrategiesIMPORTANT NOTE: Test-taking strategiesappropriate for the verbal and quantitativesections of the paper-based General Test aredifferent from those that are appropriate fortaking the verbal and quantitative sections of thecomputer-based General Test. Be sure to followthe appropriate strategies for the testing format inwhich you will be testing. Paper-based testingstrategies should not be used if you take thecomputer-based test.

Verbal and Quantitative Sections

When taking a verbal or quantitative section of thepaper-based General Test, you are free, within anysection, to skip questions that you might havedifficulty answering and to come back to them laterduring the time provided to work on that section.You may also change the answer to any question yourecorded on the answer sheet by erasing it completelyand filling in the oval corresponding to your desiredanswer for that question.

Each of your scores will be determined by thenumber of questions for which you select the bestanswer from the choices given. Questions for whichyou mark no answer or more than one answer are notcounted in scoring. Nothing is subtracted from ascore if you answer a question incorrectly. Therefore,to maximize your scores on the verbal and quantita-tive sections of the paper-based test, it is better foryou to answer each and every question and not toleave any questions unanswered.

Work as rapidly as you can without being careless.This includes checking frequently to make sure youare marking your answers in the appropriate rows onyour answer sheet. Since no question carries greaterweight than any other, do not waste time ponderingindividual questions you find extremely difficult orunfamiliar.

You may want to work through a verbal or quanti-tative section of the General Test quite rapidly, firstanswering only the questions about which you feelconfident, then going back and answering questionsthat require more thought, and concluding with themost difficult questions if there is time.

During the actual administration of the General

Test, you may work only on the section the testcenter supervisor designates and only for the timeallowed. You may not go back to an earlier section ofthe test after the supervisor announces, “Please stopwork” for that section. The supervisor is authorized todismiss you from the center for doing so. All answersmust be recorded on your answer sheet. Answersrecorded in your test booklet will not be counted.Given the time constraints, you should avoid waitinguntil the last five minutes of a test administration torecord answers on your answer sheet.

Some questions on the General Test have onlyfour response options (A through D). All GREanswer sheets for the paper-based test contain re-sponse positions for five responses (A through E).Therefore, if an E response is marked for a four-option question, it will be ignored. An E response fora four-option question is treated the same as noresponse (omitted).

Analytical Writing SectionIn the paper-based General Test, the topics in theanalytical writing section will be presented in the testbook and you will handwrite your essay responses onthe answer sheets provided. Make sure you use thecorrect answer sheet for each task.

It is important to budget your time. Within the45-minute time limit for the Issue task, you will needto allow sufficient time to choose one of the twotopics, think about the issue you’ve chosen, plan aresponse, and compose your essay. Within the 30-minute time limit for the Argument task, you willneed to allow sufficient time to analyze the argument,plan a critique, and compose your response. AlthoughGRE readers understand the time constraints underwhich you write and will consider your response a“first draft,” you still want it to be the best possibleexample of your writing that you can produce underthe testing circumstances.

Save a few minutes at the end of each timed taskto check for obvious errors. Although an occasionalspelling or grammatical error will not affect yourscore, severe and persistent errors will detract fromthe overall effectiveness of your writing and thuslower your score.

During the actual administration of the GeneralTest, you may work only on the particular writingtask the test center supervisor designates and only forthe time allowed. You may not go back to an earlier

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section of the test after the supervisor announces,“Please stop work,” for that task. The supervisor isauthorized to dismiss you from the center for doing so.Following the analytical writing section, you willhave the opportunity to take a 10-minute break.

Review of the Verbal Section

OverviewThe verbal section measures your ability to analyzeand evaluate written material and synthesize informa-tion obtained from it, to analyze relationships amongcomponent parts of sentences, to recognize relation-ships between words and concepts, and to reasonwith words in solving problems. There is a balance ofpassages across different subject matter areas: hu-manities, social sciences, and natural sciences.

The verbal section contains the following ques-tion types:

• Antonyms• Analogies• Sentence Completions• Reading Comprehension Questions

How the Verbal Section is ScoredScoring of the verbal section of the paper-basedGeneral Test is essentially a two-step process. First, araw score is computed. The raw score is the numberof questions for which the best answer choice wasgiven. The raw score is then converted to a scaledscore through a process known as equating. Theequating process accounts for differences in difficultyamong the different test editions; thus, a given scaledscore reflects approximately the same level of abilityregardless of the edition of the test that was taken.

AntonymsAntonyms measure your

• vocabulary• ability to reason from a given concept to its

opposite

Directions*

Each question below consists of a word printed incapital letters followed by five lettered words orphrases. Choose the lettered word or phrase that ismost nearly opposite in meaning to the word incapital letters. Since some of the questions requireyou to distinguish fine shades of meaning, be sureto consider all the choices before deciding whichone is best.

Sample Question

DIFFUSE:(A) concentrate(B) contend(C) imply(D) pretend(E) rebel

Strategies for Answering

• Remember that antonyms are generally confinedto nouns, verbs, and adjectives.

• Look for the word that is most nearly opposite tothe given word.

• Try to define words precisely.• Make up a sentence using the given word to

help establish its meaning.• Look for possible second meanings before

choosing an answer.• Use your knowledge of prefixes and suffixes to

help define words you don’t know.

Answer

The best answer is (A). Diffuse means to permit orcause to spread out; only (A) presents an idea that isin any way opposite to diffuse.

AnalogiesAnalogies measure your ability to recognize

• relationships among words and concepts theyrepresent

• parallel relationships

Directions*

In each of the following questions, a related pair ofwords or phrases is followed by five lettered pairs ofwords or phrases. Select the lettered pair that bestexpresses a relationship similar to that expressed inthe original pair.

* The directions are presented as they appear on the actual test.

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Sample Question

COLOR : SPECTRUM :(A) tone : scale(B) sound : waves(C) verse : poem(D) dimension : space(E) cell : organism


• Establish a relationship between the given pairbefore reading the answer choices.

• Consider relationships of kind, size, spatialcontiguity, or degree.

• Read all of the options. If more than one seemscorrect, try to state the relationship moreprecisely.

• Check to see that you haven’t overlooked apossible second meaning for one of the words.

• Never decide on the best answer without readingall of the answer choices.

Answer

The relationship between color and spectrum is notmerely that of part to whole, in which case (E) oreven (C) might be defended as correct. A spectrum ismade up of a progressive, graduated series of colors, asa scale is of a progressive, graduated sequence of tones.Thus, (A) is the correct answer choice. In thisinstance, the best answer must be selected from agroup of fairly close choices.

Sentence CompletionsSentence completions measure your ability to recog-nize words or phrases that both logically and stylisti-cally complete the meaning of a sentence.

Directions*

Each sentence below has one or two blanks, eachblank indicating that something has been omitted.Beneath the sentence are five lettered words or setsof words. Choose the word or set of words for eachblank that best fits the meaning of the sentence asa whole.

Sample Question

Early ________ of hearing loss is ________ by thefact that the other senses are able to compensate formoderate amounts of loss, so that people frequentlydo not know that their hearing is imperfect.(A) discovery . . indicated(B) development . . prevented(C) detection . . complicated(D) treatment . . facilitated(E) incidence . . corrected


• Read the incomplete sentence carefully.• Look for key words or phrases.• Complete the blank(s) with your own words; see

if any options are like yours.• Pay attention to grammatical cues.• If there are two blanks, be sure that both parts of

your answer choice fit logically and stylisticallyinto the sentence.

• After choosing an answer, read the sentencethrough again to see if it makes sense.

Answer

The statement that the other senses compensatefor partial loss of hearing indicates that the hearingloss is not prevented or corrected; therefore, choices(B) and (E) can be eliminated. Furthermore, theability to compensate for hearing loss certainly doesnot facilitate the early treatment (D) or the earlydiscovery (A) of hearing loss. It is reasonable, how-ever, that early detection of hearing loss is complicatedby the ability to compensate for it. The best answeris (C).

Reading Comprehension QuestionsReading comprehension questions measure yourability to

• read with understanding, insight, anddiscrimination

• analyze a written passage from severalperspectives

Passages are taken from the humanities, socialsciences, and natural sciences.

Directions*

The passage is followed by questions based on itscontent. After reading the passage, choose the bestanswer to each question. Answer all questionsfollowing the passage on the basis of what is stated orimplied in the passage.


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According to the passage, the two antithetical idealsof photography differ primarily in the(A) value that each places on the beauty of the

finished product(B) emphasis that each places on the emotional

impact of the finished product(C) degree of technical knowledge that each requires

of the photographer(D) extent of the power that each requires of the

photographer’s equipment(E) way in which each defines the role of the

photographer


• Read the passage closely, then proceed to thequestions.orSkim the passage, then reread the passageclosely as you answer the questions. You maywant to try it both ways with sample questionsto see what works best for you.

• Answer questions based on the content of thepassage.

• Separate main ideas from supporting ideas.• Separate the author’s own ideas from informa-

tion being presented.• Ask yourself...

– What is this about?– What are the key points?– How does the main idea relate to other ideas

in the passage?– What words define relationships among ideas?

Answer

The best answer to this question is (E). Photography’stwo ideals are presented in lines 7–11. The mainemphasis in the description of these two ideals is onthe relationship of the photographer to the enterpriseof photography, with the photographer described inthe one as a passive observer and in the other as anactive questioner. (E) identifies this key feature in thedescription of the two ideals—the way in which eachideal conceives or defines the role of the photogra-pher in photography. (A) through (D) present aspectsof photography that are mentioned in the passage,but none of these choices represents a primarydifference between the two ideals of photography.

Picture-taking is a technique both for annexing theobjective world and for expressing the singular self.Photographs depict objective realities that already exist,though only the camera can disclose them. And theydepict an individual photographer’s temperament, dis-covering itself through the camera’s cropping of reality.That is, photography has two antithetical ideals: in thefirst, photography is about the world, and the photogra-pher is a mere observer who counts for little; but in thesecond, photography is the instrument of intrepid,questing subjectivity and the photographer is all.

These conflicting ideals arise from a fundamentaluneasiness on the part of both photographers and view-ers of photographs toward the aggressive component in“taking” a picture. Accordingly, the ideal of a photogra-pher as observer is attractive because it implicitly deniesthat picture-taking is an aggressive act. The issue, ofcourse, is not so clear-cut. What photographers do can-not be characterized as simply predatory or as simply,and essentially, benevolent. As a consequence, one ideal ofpicture-taking or the other is always being rediscoveredand championed.

An important result of the coexistence of these twoideals is a recurrent ambivalence toward photography’smeans. Whatever the claims that photography mightmake to be a form of personal expression on a par withpainting, its originality is inextricably linked to the pow-ers of a machine. The steady growth of these powers hasmade possible the extraordinary informativeness andimaginative formal beauty of many photographs, likeHarold Edgerton’s high-speed photographs of a bullethitting its target or of the swirls and eddies of a tennisstroke. But as cameras become more sophisticated, moreautomated, some photographers are tempted to disarmthemselves or to suggest that they are not really armed,preferring to submit themselves to the limits imposed bypremodern camera technology because a cruder, lesshigh-powered machine is thought to give more interest-ing or emotive results, to leave more room for creativeaccident. For example, it has been virtually a point ofhonor for many photographers, including Walker Evansand Cartier-Bresson, to refuse to use modern equipment.These photographers have come to doubt the value of thecamera as an instrument of “fast seeing.” Cartier-Bresson,in fact, claims that the modern camera may see too fast.

This ambivalence toward photographic means deter-mines trends in taste. The cult of the future (of faster andfaster seeing) alternates over time with the wish to returnto a purer past — when images had a handmade quality.This nostalgia for some pristine state of the photographicenterprise is currently widespread and underlies thepresent-day enthusiasm for daguerreotypes and the workof forgotten nineteenth-century provincial photographers.Photographers and viewers of photographs, it seems, needperiodically to resist their own knowingness.

(5)

(10)

(15)

(20)

(25)

(30)

(35)

(40)

(45)

(50)

(55)

Sample Question

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Review of the QuantitativeSection

OverviewThe quantitative section measures your basic math-ematical skills, your understanding of elementarymathematical concepts, and your ability to reasonquantitatively and solve problems in a quantitativesetting. There is a balance of questions requiringarithmetic, algebra, geometry, and data analysis.These are content areas usually studied in highschool.

Arithmetic

Questions may involve arithmetic operations, powers,operations on radical expressions, estimation, per-cent, absolute value, properties of integers (e.g.,divisibility, factoring, prime numbers, odd and evenintegers), and the number line.

Algebra

Questions may involve rules of exponents, factoringand simplifying algebraic expressions, understandingconcepts of relations and functions, equations andinequalities, solving linear and quadratic equationsand inequalities, solving simultaneous equations,setting up equations to solve word problems, coordi-nate geometry, including slope, intercepts, and graphsof equations and inequalities, and applying basicalgebra skills to solve problems.

Geometry

Questions may involve parallel lines, circles, triangles(including isosceles, equilateral, and 30°–60°–90°triangles), rectangles, other polygons, area, perimeter,volume, the Pythagorean Theorem, and anglemeasure in degrees. The ability to construct proofs isnot measured.

Data Analysis

Questions may involve elementary probability, basicdescriptive statistics (mean, median, mode, range,standard deviation, percentiles), and interpretation ofdata in graphs and tables (line graphs, bar graphs,circle graphs, frequency distributions).

Math Symbols and Other Information

The following information applies to all questions inthe quantitative sections.

• These common math symbols may be used:x < y (x is less than y)x�y (x is not equal to y)

(the nonnegative square root of x,where x ≥ 0)

|x| (the absolute value of x, where x is areal number)

n! (n factorial: the product of the first npositive integers)

m � n (line m is parallel to line n)m n (line m is perpendicular to line n)A

B C(∠ABC is a right angle)

• Numbers: all numbers used are real numbers.• Figures:

– the positions of points, angles, regions, etc.,can be assumed to be in the order shown;angle measures are positive

– a line shown as straight can be assumed to bestraight

– figures lie in a plane unless otherwiseindicated

– do not assume figures are drawn to scaleunless stated

It is important to familiarize yourself with the basicmathematical concepts in the GRE General Test.The publication Math Review is available as a down-load on the GRE Web site at www.gre.org/pracmats.html and provides detailed information onthe content of the quantitative section.

The quantitative section contains the followingquestion types:

• Quantitative Comparison Questions• Problem Solving – Discrete Quantitative

Questions• Problem Solving – Data Interpretation

Questions

Questions emphasize understanding basic principlesand reasoning within the context of giveninformation.

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How the Quantitative Section isScoredThe quantitative section of the paper-based GeneralTest is scored the same way as the verbal section.First, a raw score is computed. The raw score is thenumber of questions for which the best answer choicewas given. The raw score is then converted to ascaled score through a process known as equating.The equating process accounts for differences indifficulty among the different test editions; thus agiven scaled score reflects approximately the samelevel of ability regardless of the edition of the testthat was taken.

Quantitative Comparison QuestionsQuantitative comparison questions measure yourability to:

• reason quickly and accurately about the relativesizes of two quantities

• perceive that not enough information is pro-vided to make such a decision

Directions*

Each of the sample questions consists of two quanti-ties, one in Column A and one in Column B. Theremay be additional information, centered above thetwo columns, that concerns one or both of thequantities. A symbol that appears in both columnsrepresents the same thing in Column A as it does inColumn B.

You are to compare the quantity in Column Awith the quantity in Column B and decide whether:(A) The quantity in Column A is greater.(B) The quantity in Column B is greater.(C) The two quantities are equal.(D) The relationship cannot be determined from the

information given.Note: Since there are only four choices, NEVERMARK (E).**

Sample Questions

Column A Column B

1. 9.82. (�6)4 (�6)5


• Avoid extensive computation if possible. Try toestimate the answer.

• Consider all kinds of numbers before deciding. Ifunder some conditions Column A is greaterthan Column B and for others, Column B isgreater than Column A, choose “the relation-ship cannot be determined from the informationgiven,” and go to the next question.

• Geometric figures may not be drawn to scale.Comparisons should be made based on the giveninformation, together with your knowledge ofmathematics, rather than on exact appearance.

Answer to Question 1

denotes 10, the positive square root of 100. (Forany positive number x, denotes the positive numberwhose square is x.) Since 10 is greater than 9.8, thebest answer is (B). It is important not to confuse thisquestion with a comparison of 9.8 and x wherex2�100. The latter comparison would yield (D) asthe correct answer because x2�100 implies thateither x�10 or x��10, and there would be no wayto determine which value x would actually have.

Answer to Question 2

Since (�6)4 is the product of four negative factors,and the product of an even number of negativenumbers is positive, (�6)4 is positive. Since theproduct of an odd number of negative numbersis negative, (�6)5 is negative. Therefore, (�6)4

is greater than (�6)5 since any positive numberis greater than any negative number. The bestanswer is (A). It is not necessary to calculate that(�6)4 �1,296 and that (�6)5 ��7,776 in order tomake the comparison.

Problem Solving – DiscreteQuantitative QuestionsDiscrete quantitative questions measure

• basic mathematical knowledge• your ability to read, understand, and solve a

problem that involves either an actual or anabstract situation

Directions*

Each of the following questions has five answerchoices. For each of these questions, select the best ofthe answer choices given.

* The directions are presented as they appear on the actual test.** The answer sheet contains five choices for the verbal and quantitative sections.

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Sample Question

When walking, a certain person takes 16 completesteps in 10 seconds. At this rate, how many completesteps does the person take in 72 seconds?(A) 45(B) 78(C) 86(D) 90(E) 115


• Determine what is given and what is beingasked.

• Scan all answer choices before answering aquestion.

• When approximation is required, scananswer choices to determine the degree ofapproximation.

• Avoid long computations. Use reasoninginstead, when possible.

Answer

72 seconds represents 7 ten-second intervals plus 2/10of such an interval. Therefore, the person who takes16 steps in 10 seconds will take (7.2)(16) steps in 72seconds.

(7.2)(16) � (7)(16) � (0.2)(16)� 112 � 3.2� 115.2

Since the question asks for the number of com-plete steps, the best answer choice is (E).

Problem Solving – DataInterpretation QuestionsData interpretation questions measure your ability

• to synthesize information and select appropriatedata for answering a question

• to determine that sufficient information foranswering a question is not provided

The data interpretation questions usually appear insets and are based on data presented in tables, graphs,or other diagrams.

Directions*

Each of the following questions has five answerchoices. For each of these questions, select the best ofthe answer choices given.

Sample Question

Number of Graduate Student Applicantsat University X, 1982–1991

In which of the following years did the number ofgraduate student applicants increase the most fromthat of the previous year?(A) 1985(B) 1986(C) 1988(D) 1990(E) 1991


• Scan the set of data to see what it is about.• Try to make visual comparisons and estimate

products and quotients rather than performcomputations.

• Answer questions only on the basis of datagiven.

Answer

This question can be answered directly by visuallycomparing the heights of the bars in the graph. Thegreatest increase in height between two adjacent barsoccurs for the years 1985 and 1986. The best answeris (B).

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,400

1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991


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Review of the AnalyticalWriting Section

OverviewThe analytical writing section tests your criticalthinking and analytical writing skills. It assesses yourability to articulate and support complex ideas,analyze an argument, and sustain a focused andcoherent discussion. It does not assess specific con-tent knowledge.

The analytical writing section consists of twoseparately-timed analytical writing tasks:

• a 45-minute “Present Your Perspective on anIssue” task

• a 30-minute “Analyze an Argument” task

You will be given a choice between two Issue topics.Each states an opinion on an issue of broad interestand asks you to discuss the issue from anyperspective(s) you wish, as long as you providerelevant reasons and examples to explain and supportyour views.

You will not have a choice of Argument topics.The Argument task presents a different challengefrom that of the Issue task: it requires you to critiquea given argument by discussing how well reasonedyou find it. You will need to consider the logicalsoundness of the argument rather than to agree ordisagree with the position it presents.

The two tasks are complementary in that onerequires you to construct your own argument bytaking a position and providing evidence supportingyour views on the issue, whereas the other requiresyou to critique someone else’s argument by assessingits claims and evaluating the evidence it provides.

How the Analytical Writing Sectionis ScoredEach response is holistically scored on a 6-point scaleaccording to the criteria published in the GREanalytical writing scoring guides (see Appendix A onpages 51–52). Holistic scoring means that eachresponse is judged as a whole: readers do not separatethe response into component parts and award acertain number of points for a particular criterion orelement such as ideas, organization, sentence struc-ture, or language. Instead, readers assign scores basedon the overall quality of the response, considering allof its characteristics in an integrated way. Excellent

organization or poor organization, for example, willbe part of the readers’ overall impression of theresponse and will therefore contribute to the score,but organization, as a distinct feature, has no specificweight.

In general, GRE readers are college and universityfaculty experienced in teaching courses in whichwriting and critical thinking skills are important. AllGRE readers have undergone careful training, passedstringent GRE qualifying tests, and demonstratedthat they are able to maintain scoring accuracy.

To ensure fairness and objectivity in scoring• responses are randomly distributed to the readers• all identifying information about the test takers

is concealed from the readers• each response is scored by two readers• readers do not know what other scores a re-

sponse may have received• the scoring procedure requires that each re-

sponse receive identical or adjacent scores fromtwo readers; any other score combination isadjudicated by a third GRE reader

The scores given for the two tasks are then averagedfor a final reported score. The score level descrip-tions, presented in Appendix A on page 53, provideinformation on how to interpret the total score onthe analytical writing section. The primary emphasisin scoring the analytical writing section is on criticalthinking and analytical writing skills.

Note: The GRE Program is investigating the use ofe-rater, ETS's ground breaking automated scoringsystem, as part of the scoring process for the analyti-cal writing section. If e-rater is incorporated into thescoring process during the 2004-05 testing year,information will be available on the GRE Web site atwww.gre.org.

Your essay responses on the analytical writingsection will be reviewed by ETS essay-similarity-detection software and by experienced essay readersduring the scoring process. In light of the high valueplaced on independent intellectual activity withinUnited States graduate schools and universities, ETSreserves the right to cancel test scores of any testtaker when there is substantial evidence that an essayresponse includes, but is not limited to, any of thefollowing:

• text that is substantially similar to that found onone or more other GRE essay responses;

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• quoting or paraphrasing, without attribution,language, or ideas that appear in published orunpublished sources;

• unacknowledged use of work that has beenproduced through collaboration with otherswithout citation of the contribution of others;

• essays that are submitted as work of the exam-inee when the ideas or words have, in fact,been borrowed from elsewhere or prepared byanother person.

When one or more of these circumstances occurs,your essay text, in ETS’s professional judgement, doesnot reflect the independent, analytical writing skillsthat this test seeks to measure. Therefore, ETS mustcancel the essay score as invalid and cannot reportthe GRE General Test scores of which the essay scoreis an indispensable part.

Test takers whose scores are canceled will forfeittheir test fees and must pay to take the entire GREGeneral Test again at a future administration. Norecord of score cancellations, or the reason forcancellation, will appear on their future score reportssent to colleges and universities.

Present Your Perspective on anIssue TaskThe “Present Your Perspective on an Issue” taskassesses your ability to think critically about a topic ofgeneral interest and to clearly express your thoughtsabout it in writing. Each topic, presented in quota-tion marks, makes a claim about an issue that testtakers can discuss from various perspectives and applyto many different situations or conditions. Your task isto present a compelling case for your own position onthe issue. Be sure to read the claim carefully andthink about it from several points of view, consider-ing the complexity of ideas associated with thoseperspectives. Then, make notes about the positionyou want to develop and list the main reasons andexamples that you could use to support that position.

The Issue task allows considerable latitude in theway you respond to the claim. Although it is impor-tant that you address the central issue, you are free totake any approach you wish. For example, you might

• agree absolutely with the claim, disagree com-pletely, or agree with some parts and not others

• question the assumptions the statement seems tobe making

• qualify any of its terms, especially if the way youdefine or apply a term is important to develop-ing your perspective on the issue

• point out why the claim is valid in some situa-tions but not in others

• evaluate points of view that contrast with yourown perspective

• develop your position with reasons that aresupported by several relevant examples or by asingle extended example

The GRE readers scoring your response are notlooking for a “right” answer—in fact, there is nocorrect position to take. Instead, the readers areevaluating the skill with which you articulate anddevelop an argument to support your position on theissue.

Understanding the Context for Writing:Purpose and Audience

The Issue task is an exercise in critical thinking andpersuasive writing. The purpose of this task is todetermine how well you can develop a compellingargument supporting your own perspective on anissue and to effectively communicate that argumentin writing to an academic audience. Your audienceconsists of college and university faculty who aretrained as GRE readers to apply the scoring criteriaidentified in the scoring guide for “Present YourPerspective on an Issue” (see page 51).

To get a clearer idea of how GRE readers apply theIssue scoring criteria to actual responses, you shouldreview scored sample Issue essay responses andreaders’ commentaries. The sample responses, par-ticularly at the 5 and 6 score levels, will show you avariety of successful strategies for organizing, develop-ing, and communicating a persuasive argument. Thereaders’ commentaries discuss specific aspects ofanalysis and writing, such as the use of examples,development and support, organization, languagefluency, and word choice. For each response, thecommentary points out aspects that are particularlypersuasive as well as any that detract from the overalleffectiveness of the essay.

Preparing for the Issue Task

Because the Issue task is meant to assess the persua-sive writing skills that you have developed through-out your education, it has been designed neither torequire any particular course of study nor to advan-tage students with a particular type of training.

Many college textbooks on composition offeradvice on persuasive writing that you might finduseful, but even this advice might be more technical

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and specialized than you need for the Issue task. Youwill not be expected to know specific critical think-ing or writing terms or strategies; instead, you shouldbe able to use reasons, evidence, and examples tosupport your position on an issue. Suppose, forinstance, that an Issue topic asks you to considerwhether it is important for government to providefinancial support for art museums. If your position isthat government should fund art museums, you mightsupport your position by discussing the reasons art isimportant and explain that museums are publicplaces where art is available to anyone. On the otherhand, if your position is that government should notsupport museums, you might point out that, givenlimited governmental funds, art museums are not asdeserving of governmental funding as are other, moresocially important, institutions. Or, if you are in favorof government funding for art museums only undercertain conditions, you might focus on the artisticcriteria, cultural concerns, or political conditions thatyou think should determine how—or whether—artmuseums receive government funds. It is not yourposition that matters so much as the critical thinkingskills you display in developing your position.

An excellent way to prepare for the Issue task is topractice writing on some of the published topics.There is no “best” approach: some people prefer tostart practicing without regard to the 45-minute timelimit; others prefer to take a “timed test” first andpractice within the time limit. No matter whichapproach you take when you practice the Issue task,you should review the task directions, then

• carefully read the claim made in the topic andmake sure you understand the issue involved; ifit seems unclear, discuss it with a friend orteacher

• think about the issue in relation to your ownideas and experiences, to events you have readabout or observed, and to people you haveknown; this is the knowledge base from whichyou will develop compelling reasons and ex-amples in your argument that reinforce, negate,or qualify the claim in some way

• decide what position on the issue you want totake and defend—remember you are free toagree or disagree completely or to agree withsome parts or some applications but not others

• decide what compelling evidence (reasons andexamples) you can use to support your position

Remember that this is a task in critical thinking andpersuasive writing. Therefore, you might find ithelpful to explore the complexity of a claim in one ofthe topics by asking yourself the following questions:

• What, precisely, is the central issue?• Do I agree with all or with any part of the claim?

Why or why not?• Does the claim make certain assumptions? If so,

are they reasonable?• Is the claim valid only under certain conditions?

If so, what are they?• Do I need to explain how I interpret certain

terms or concepts used in the claim?• If I take a certain position on the issue, what

reasons support my position?• What examples—either real or hypothetical—

could I use to illustrate those reasons andadvance my point of view? Which examples aremost compelling?

Once you have decided on a position to defend,consider the perspective of others who might notagree with your position. Ask yourself:

• What reasons might someone use to refute orundermine my position?

• How should I acknowledge or defend againstthose views in my essay?

To plan your response, you might want to summarizeyour position and make brief notes about how youwill support the position you’re going to take. Whenyou’ve done this, look over your notes and decidehow you will organize your response. Then write aresponse developing your position on the issue. Evenif you don’t write a full response, you should find ithelpful to practice with a few of the Issue topics andto sketch out your possible responses. After youhave practiced with some of the topics, try writingresponses to some of the topics within the 45-minutetime limit so that you have a good idea of how to useyour time in the actual test.

Next, compare your response to the scoring guide.Focus on seeing how your paper meets or misses theperformance standards and what you therefore needto do in order to improve.

Deciding Which Issue Topic to Choose

Remember that the General Test will contain twoIssue topics from the published pool; you must chooseone of these two. Because the 45-minute timingbegins when you first see the two topics, you should

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not spend too much time making a decision. Instead,try to choose fairly quickly the issue that you feelbetter prepared to discuss.

Before making a choice, read each topic carefully.Then decide on which topic you could develop amore effective and well-reasoned argument. Inmaking this decision, you might ask yourself:

• Which topic do I find more interesting orengaging?

• Which topic more closely relates to my ownacademic studies or other experiences?

• On which topic can I more clearly explain anddefend my perspective?

• On which topic can I more readily think ofstrong reasons and examples to support myposition?

Your answers to these questions should help you makeyour choice.

The Form of Your Response

You are free to organize and develop your response inany way that you think will effectively communicateyour ideas about the issue. Your response may, butneed not, incorporate particular writing strategieslearned in English composition or writing-intensivecollege courses. GRE readers will not be looking for aparticular developmental strategy or mode of writing;in fact, when GRE readers are trained, they reviewhundreds of Issue responses that, although highlydiverse in content and form, display similar levels ofcritical thinking and persuasive writing. Readers willsee, for example, some Issue responses at the 6 scorelevel that begin by briefly summarizing the writer’sposition on the issue and then explicitly announcingthe main points to be argued. They will see othersthat lead into the writer’s position by making aprediction, asking a series of questions, describing ascenario, or defining critical terms in the quotation.The readers know that a writer can earn a high scoreby giving multiple examples or by presenting a single,extended example. Look at the sample Issue re-sponses, particularly at the 5 and 6 score levels, to seehow other writers have successfully developed andorganized their arguments.

You should use as many or as few paragraphs asyou consider appropriate for your argument—forexample, you will probably need to create a newparagraph whenever your discussion shifts to a newcluster of ideas. What matters is not the number ofexamples, the number of paragraphs, or the form your

argument takes but, rather, the cogency of your ideasabout the issue and the clarity and skill with whichyou communicate those ideas to academic readers.

Directions*

Present your perspective on the issue below, usingrelevant reasons and/or examples to support yourviews.

Sample Topic

“In our time, specialists of all kinds are highly over-rated. We need more generalists—people who canprovide broad perspectives.”

Strategies for this Topic

This claim raises several related questions: What doesit mean to be a generalist or a specialist, and whatvalue do they have for society? Does society actuallyneed more generalists, and are specialists, in fact,“highly overrated”?

There are several basic positions you could takeon this issue: Yes, society needs more generalists andplaces too high a value on specialists. No, the oppo-site is true. Or, it depends on various factors. Or, bothgroups are important in today’s culture; neither isovervalued. Your analysis might draw examples froma particular society or country, from one or more areasof society, or from various situations. It might focuson the role of generalists and specialists in relation tocommunications, transportation, politics, informa-tion, or technology. Any of these approaches is valid,as long as you use relevant reasons and examples tosupport your position.

Before you stake out a position, take a few mo-ments to reread the claim. To analyze it, considerquestions such as these:

• What are the main differences between special-ists and generalists? What are the strong pointsof each?

• Do these differences always hold in variousprofessions or situations? Could there be somespecialists, for example, who also need to havevery broad knowledge and general abilities toperform their work well?

• How do generalists and specialists function inyour field?

• What value do you think society places onspecialists and generalists? Are specialistsovervalued in some situations, and not inothers?


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• Does society really need more generalists than ithas? If so, what needs would they serve?

Now you can organize your thoughts into two groups:• Reasons and examples to support the claim• Reasons and examples to support an opposing

point of view

If you find one view clearly more persuasive than theother, consider developing an argument from thatperspective. As you build your argument, keep inmind the other points, which you could argueagainst.

If both groups have compelling points, considerdeveloping a position supporting, not the statedclaim, but a more limited or more complex claim.Then you can use reasons and examples from bothsides to justify your position.

Essay Response* – Score 6

In this era of rapid social and technological changeleading to increasing life complexity and psychologi-cal displacement, both positive and negative effectsamong persons in Western society call for a balancein which there are both specialists and generalists.

Specialists are necessary in order to allow societyas a whole to properly and usefully assimilate themasses of new information and knowledge that havecome out of research and have been widely dissemi-nated through mass global media. As the head ofPharmacology at my university once said (and Iparaphrase): “I can only research what I do becausethere are so many who have come before me towhom I can turn for basic knowledge. It is onlybecause of each of the narrowly focussed individualsat each step that a full and true understanding of thecomplexities of life can be had. Each person can onlyhold enough knowledge to add one small rung to theladder, but together we can climb to the moon.” Thisillustrates the point that our societies level of knowl-edge and technology is at a stage in which theresimply must be specialists in order for our society totake advantage of the information available to us.

Simply put, without specialists, our society wouldfind itself bogged down in the Sargasso sea of infor-mation overload. While it was fine for early physiciststo learn and understand the few laws and ideas thatexisted during their times, now, no one individualcan possibly digest and assimilate all of the knowl-edge in any given area.

On the other hand, Over specialization meansnarrow focii in which people can lose the largerpicture.No one can hope to understand the humanbody by only inspecting one’s own toe-nails. What welearn from a narrow focus may be internally logicallycoherent but may be irrelevant or fallacious withinthe framework of a broader perspective. Further, if weinspect only our toe-nails, we may conclude that thewhole body is hard and white. Useful conclusions andthus perhaps useful inventions must come by sharingamong specialists. Simply throwing out variousdiscovieries means we have a pile of useless discover-ies, it is only when one can make with them a mosaicthat we can see that they may form a picture.

Not only may over-specialization be dangerous interms of the truth, purity and cohesion of knowledge,but it can also serve to drown moral or universall issues.Generalists and only generalists can see a broad enoughpicture to realize and introduce to the world theproblems of the environment. With specialization, eachperson focusses on their research and their goals. Thus,industrialization, expansion, and new technologies aredriven ahead. Meanwhile no individual can see thewholisitc view of our global existence in which trueadvancement may mean stifling individual specialistsfor the greater good of all.

Finally, over-specialization in a people’s daily livesand jobs has meant personal and psychologicalcompartmentalization. People are forced into pigeonholes early in life (at least by university) and mustconciously attempt to consume external forms ofstimuli and information in order not to be lost intheir small and isolated universe. Not only does thismake for narrowly focussed and generally pooprly-educated individuals, but it guarantees a sense of lossof community, often followed by a feeling of psycho-logical displacement and personal dissatisfaction.

Without generalists, society becomes inward-looking and eventually inefficient. Without a societythat recongnizes the impotance of braod-mindednessand fora for sharing generalities, individuals becomeisolated. Thus, while our form of society necessitatesspecialists, generalists are equally important. Special-ists drive us forward in a series of thrusts whilegeneralists make sure we are still on the jousting fieldand know what the stakes are.

* All responses in this publication are reproduced exactly as written, including errors, misspellings, etc., if any.

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Reader Commentary for Essay Response – Score 6

This is an outstanding analysis of the issue—insight-ful, well reasoned, and highly effective in its use oflanguage. The introductory paragraph announces thewriter’s position on the issue and provides the con-text within which the writer will develop thatposition: “In this era of rapid social and technologicalchange leading to increasing life complexity andpsychological displacement . . . .”

The argument itself has two parts. The first partpresents a compelling case for specialization, prima-rily in the field of medicine. The second part presentsan equally compelling, well-organized case againstoverspecialization based on three main reasons:

• logical (narrowly trained specialists often fail tounderstand the whole)

• moral (usually generalists understand what isneeded for “the greater good”)

• personal (specializing/pigeonholing too early canbe psychologically damaging)

The argument’s careful line of reasoning is furtherstrengthened by the skillful use of expert testimony(quotation from a prominent medical researcher) andvivid metaphor (to inspect only one’s toenails is toignore the whole body).

It is not only the reasoning that distinguishes thisresponse. The language is precise and often figurative(“bogged down in a Sargasso sea of informationoverload,” “a pile of useless discoveries,” and “special-ists drive us forward in a series of thrusts, whilegeneralists make sure we are still on the joustingfield”). The reader is constantly guided through theargument by transitional phrases and ideas that helporganize the ideas and move the argument forward.This is an exceptionally fine response to the topic.

Essay Response – Score 5

Specialists are not overrated today. More generalistsmay be needed, but not to overshadow the specialists.Generalists can provide a great deal of informationon many topics of interest with a broad range ofideas. People who look at the overall view of thingscan help with some of the large problems our societyfaces today. But specialists are necessary to gain abetter understanding of more in depth methods tosolve problems or fixing things.

One good example of why specialists are notoverrated is in the medical field. Doctors are neces-sary for people to live healthy lives. When a person issick, he may go to a general practitioner to find out

the cause of his problems. Usually, this kind of“generalized” doctor can help most ailments withsimple and effective treatments. Sometimes, though,a sickness may go beyond a family doctor’s knowledgeor the prescribed treatments don’t work the way theyshould. When a sickness progresses or becomesdiagnosed as a disease that requires more care than afamily doctor can provide, he may be referred to aspecialist. For instance, a person with constantbreathing problems that require hospitalization maybe suggested to visit an asthma specialist. Since afamily doctor has a great deal of knowledge of medi-cine, he can decide when his methods are not effec-tive and the patient needs to see someone who knowsmore about the specific problem; someone whoknows how it begins, progresses, and specified treat-ments. This is an excellent example of how ageneralied person may not be equipped enough tohandle something as well as a specialized one can.

Another example of a specialist who is neededinstead of a generalist involves teaching. In grammarschool, children learn all the basic principles ofreading, writing, and arithematic. But as children getolder and progress in school, they gain a betterunderstanding of the language and mathematicalprocesses. As the years in school increase, they needto learn more and more specifics and details aboutvarious subjects. They start out by learning basicmath concepts such as addition, subtraction, division,and multiplication. A few years later, they are readyto begin algebraic concepts, geometry, and calculus.They are also ready to learn more advanced vocabu-lary, the principles of how all life is composed andhow it functions. One teacher or professor can notprovide as much in depth discussion on all of thesetopics as well as one who has learned the specificsand studied mainly to know everything that iscurrently known about one of these subjects. Gener-alized teachers are required to begin molding studentsat a very early age so they can get ready for the futureahead of them in gaining more facts about the basicsubjects and finding out new facts on the old ones.

These are only two examples of why specialists arenot highly overrated and more generalists are notnecessary to the point of overshadowing them.Generalists are needed to give the public a broadunderstanding of some things. But , specialists areimportant to help maintain the status, health, andsafety of our society. Specialists are very necessary.

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This writer presents a well-developed analysis of thecomplexities of the issue by discussing the need forboth the generalist and the specialist.

The argument is rooted in two extended ex-amples, both well chosen. The first (paragraph 2)begins with a discussion of the necessity for medicalgeneralists (the general practitioner) as well asspecialists and moves into an example within theexample (breathing problems and the need for anasthma specialist). This extension from the general tothe specific characterizes the example in the nextparagraph as well. There, the discussion centers oneducation from elementary to high school, from basicarithmetic to calculus.

The smooth development is aided by the use ofappropriate transitions: “but,” “usually,” and “forinstance,” among others. The essay ends by revisitingthe writer’s thesis.

While the writer handles language and syntaxwell, several lapses in clarity keep this otherwise well-argued response out of the 6 category. The problemsvary from the lack of a pronoun referent (“When asickness progresses or becomes diagnosed, . . . he maybe referred to a specialist”) to an error in parallelstructure (“how it begins, progresses and specifiedtreatments”), to loose syntax and imprecise language(“Generalized teachers are required to begin moldingstudents at a very early age so they can get ready forthe future ahead of them in gaining more facts aboutthe basic subjects.”)


Specialists are just what their name says: people whospecialize in one part of a very general scheme ofthings. A person can’t know everything there is toknow about everything. This is why specialists arehelpful. You can take one general concept and divideit up three ways and have three fully developeddifferent concepts instead of one general concept thatno one really knows about. Isn’t it better to reallyknow something well, than to know everythinghalf-way.

Take a special ed teacher compared to a general edteacher. The general ed teacher knows how to dealwith most students. She knows how to teach asubject to a student that is on a normal level. Butwhat would happen to the child in the back of theroom with dyslexia? She would be so lost in thatgeneral ed classroom that she would not only not

learn, but be frustrated and quite possibly, have lowself-esteem and hate school. If there is a special edteacher there who specializes in children withlearning disabilities, she can teach the general edteacher how to cope with this student as well asmodify the curriculum so that the student can learnalong with the others. The special ed teacher can alsotake that child for a few hours each day and workwith her on her reading difficulty one-on-one, whicha general ed teacher never would have time to do.

A general ed teacher can’t know what a special edteacher knows and a special ed teacher can’t knowwhat a general ed teacher knows. But the two ofthem working together and specializing in their ownthings can really get a lot more accomplished. Thespecial ed teacher is also trained to work on thechild’s self-esteem, which has a big part in howsuccessful this child will be. Every child in theUnited States of America has the right to an equaleducation. How can a child with a learning disabilityreceive the same equal education as a general edstudent if there was no specialist there to help bothteacher and child?

Another thing to consider is how a committee issupposed to work together. Each person has a specialtask to accomplish and when these people all cometogether, with their tasks finished, every aspect of thecommunity’s work is completely covered. Nothing isleft undone. In this case there are many differentspecialists to meet the general goal of the committee.

When you take into account that a specialistcontributes only a small part of the generalist aspect, itseems ridiculous to say that specialists are overrated.The generalists looks to the specialists any time theyneed help or clarification on their broad aspect.Specialists and generalists are part of the same system,so if a specialist is overrated, then so is a generalist.


This is an adequate analysis of the issue. After asomewhat confusing attempt to define “specialists” inthe introductory paragraph, the writer presents apertinent example (the special education teacher) toillustrate the importance of specialists. The exampledominates the response and contributes positively tothe overall score of 4.

The second example, how a committee works, isless persuasive. However, it does seem to help clarifythe writer’s definition of “general” as an umbrellaterm meaning the total collection of what specialistsknow about a topic.

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Although the writer’s views about the relationshipbetween “generalist” and “specialist” are unusual,they do become clear in the conclusion of the essay.Yet, these ideas are not developed in sufficient depthor with enough logical control to earn a score higherthan 4.

The writing is generally error free. There are fewproblems in sentence structure, grammar, and usage,although the phrasing is at times imprecise andwordy. Overall, this response displays clearly adequatecontrol of the elements of written English.


To quote the saying, “Jack of all trades, master of none,”would be my position on the statement. I feel specialistsin all areas of knowledge lead to a higher standard ofliving for everyone. Specializing in different areas allowsus to use each others talents to the highest level andmaximize potential. As an example, if a person requiredbrain surgery, would they rather have a brain surgeon ora general practitioner doing the work? Clearly a special-ist would do the better job and give the patient achance at a better life.

A university education starts by laying thegroundwork for general knowledge but then narrowsdown to a specific field. General knowledge and abroad prospective are important, but if there was nofocus on specific areas, our overall knowledge as apopulation would be seriously lessened.

Another example of specialists not being overatedwould be international trade. Not every nation canprovide for themselves. They need to get productsand ideas from other parts of the world because theyare better at providing them. This allows for agrowing economy if two different nations can provideeach other with two different products. If one countrycan produce oranges better than another, it shouldtrade the oranges for the fish that it can not produce.If generalizing was the normal thing to do and bothcountries tried to produce all kinds of products, thecountries would probably survive, but not have thestandard of living they presently have.


The writer’s position is clear: specialists are importantand necessary. However, the position is not adequatelysupported with reasons or logical examples.

Paragraph 1 presents an appropriate example ofthe brain surgeon versus the general practitioner.However, the example of an increasingly narrowuniversity education in paragraph 2, contains only

two sentences and is seriously undeveloped. It doeslittle to advance the writer’s position.

Paragraph 3 offers yet another example, the mostdeveloped of all. Unfortunately, this example is notclearly logical. The writer tries to argue that the “spe-cialist” country (one that is a better producer of or-anges) is superior to the “generalist” country (presum-ably one that produces oranges as well as other prod-ucts). This generalist country, the writer tells us, wouldbe inferior to the other. This conclusion does notemerge logically from the writer’s argument, and itseems to be at odds with everyday reality.

Although language is used with some imprecisionthroughout the essay, the writer’s meaning is notobscured. The main reasons for the score of 3 are thelack of sufficient development and inappropriate useof examples.


In the situation of health I feel that specialists arevery important. For example if a person has heartproblems, choose a heart specialist over a genralmedicine Dr. However if a person is having a widerange of syptoms, perhaps choose a Dr. with a widerange of experience might be more helpful.

It also depends on the type of problem you arehaving. For example I would not suggest taking atroubled child to a theorpist who specializes inmarriage problems. In some cases have a specialistshelps to insure that you are getting the best possiblytreatment. On the other hand dealing with a personwho has a wide range of experience may be able tofind different ways of dealing with a particularproblem.

Since the quotation did not state exactely whattype of specialist we are dealing with it is also hard todetermine the importance of having a specialist is. Forexample the could be health or problems with a car, orbasically anything else. I feel that this informationshould not have been left out. I guess the bottom lineis that I feel sometimes a specialist is very important.


This is a seriously flawed analysis of the issue. Theresponse argues in favor of specialists, but neither thereasons nor the examples are persuasive. The exampleof not taking “a troubled child to see a therapist whospecializes in marriage problems” is both simplisticand off the mark since it differentiates between twospecialists, not between a generalist and a specialist.

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The sentences are so poorly formed and phrasedthat the argument is at times hard to follow. Never-theless, this is not a 1 essay: the writer presents aposition on the issue, develops that position withsome very weak analysis, and communicates someideas clearly.


I disagree with the statement about specialists, weneed specialists who take individual areas andspecialize. A generalists can pinpoint a problem. Heor she cannot determine the magnitude of theproblem. A specialist can find the root of the prob-lem. When he or she has years working in thatspecific field. For example, when i got sick i went to adoctor. He did blood work, x-ray, talk to me, ect. Heprescribed me a medicine. I got worst. So i decided togo another doctor. Now, i am doing great. A specialistknows the facts right away. Otherwise, it will takelonger or not at all.


This response presents a fundamentally deficientdiscussion of the issue.

The first sentence states the writer’s position insupport of specialists, but that position is not followedby a coherent argument. Some of the ideas seemcontradictory (e.g., “generalists can pinpoint a prob-lem”) and the example is confusing. If the essayexplained that the first (unsuccessful) doctor was ageneralist and the second (successful) doctor was aspecialist, the example would be useful. However, aswritten, the example is unclear and even misleading.The concluding statement only adds to the confusion.

Since most of the sentences are short and choppy,the ideas they try to communicate are also choppy.The writer needs to provide transitional phrases andideas to bring logical cohesion to this response. Also,basic errors in usage and grammar are pervasive, but itis primarily the lack of a coherent argument thatmakes this response a 1.

Analyze an Argument TaskThe “Analyze an Argument” task assesses your abilityto understand, analyze, and evaluate arguments andto clearly convey your analysis in writing. The taskconsists of a brief passage in which the author makesa case for some course of action or interpretation ofevents by presenting claims backed by reasons andevidence. Your task is to discuss the logical soundness

of the author’s case by critically examining the line ofreasoning and the use of evidence. This task requiresyou to read the argument very carefully. You mightwant to read it more than once and possibly makebrief notes about points you want to develop morefully in your response. In reading the argument, youshould pay special attention to

• what is offered as evidence, support, or proof• what is explicitly stated, claimed, or concluded• what is assumed or supposed, perhaps without

justification or proof• what is not stated, but necessarily follows from

what is stated

In addition, you should consider the structure of theargument—the way in which these elements arelinked together to form a line of reasoning; that is, youshould recognize the separate, sometimes implicitsteps in the thinking process and consider whetherthe movement from each one to the next is logicallysound. In tracing this line, look for transition wordsand phrases that suggest that the author is attemptingto make a logical connection (e.g., however, thus,therefore, evidently, hence, in conclusion).

An important part of performing well on theArgument task is remembering what you are notbeing asked to do. You are not being asked to discusswhether the statements in the argument are true oraccurate; instead, you are being asked whetherconclusions and inferences are validly drawn from thestatements. You are not being asked to agree ordisagree with the position stated; instead, you arebeing asked to comment on the thinking that under-lies the position stated. You are not being asked toexpress your own views on the subject being discussed(as you were in the Issue task); instead, you are beingasked to evaluate the logical soundness of an argu-ment of another writer and, in doing so, to demon-strate the critical thinking, perceptive reading, andanalytical writing skills that university faculty con-sider important for success in graduate school.

“Analyze an Argument” is primarily a criticalthinking task requiring a written response. Conse-quently, the analytical skills displayed in your critiquecarry great weight in determining your score.

Understanding the Context for Writing: Purposeand Audience

The purpose of the task is to see how well equippedyou are to insightfully analyze an argument written bysomeone else and to effectively communicate your

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critique in writing to an academic audience. Youraudience consists of college and university facultywho are trained as GRE readers to apply the scoringcriteria identified in the scoring guide for the “Ana-lyze an Argument” task (see page 52).

To get a clearer idea of how GRE readers apply theArgument scoring criteria to actual essays, you shouldreview scored sample Argument essay responses andreaders’ commentaries. The sample responses, par-ticularly at the 5 and 6 score levels, will show you avariety of successful strategies for organizing anddeveloping an insightful critique. You will also seemany examples of particularly effective uses oflanguage. The readers’ commentaries discuss specificaspects of analytical writing, such as cogency of ideas,development and support, organization, syntacticvariety, and facility with language. These commentar-ies will point out aspects that are particularly effec-tive and insightful as well as any that detract fromthe overall effectiveness of the responses.

Preparing for the Argument Task

Because the Argument task is meant to assess analyti-cal writing and informal reasoning skills that youhave developed throughout your education, it hasbeen designed so as not to require any specific courseof study or to advantage students with a particulartype of training. Many college textbooks on rhetoricand composition have sections on informal logic andcritical thinking that might prove helpful, but eventhese might be more detailed and technical than thetask requires. You will not be expected to knowmethods of analysis or technical terms. For instance,in one topic an elementary school principal mightconclude that the new playground equipment hasimproved student attendance because absentee rateshave declined since it was installed. You will notneed to see that the principal has committed the posthoc, ergo propter hoc fallacy; you will simply need tosee that there are other possible explanations for theimproved attendance, to offer some common-senseexamples, and perhaps to suggest what would benecessary to verify the conclusion. For instance,absentee rates might have decreased because theclimate was mild. This would have to be ruled out inorder for the principal’s conclusion to be valid.

Although you do not need to know specialanalytical techniques and terminology, you should befamiliar with the directions for the Argument task in

the Practice Tests and with certain key concepts,including the following:

• alternative explanation—a possible competingversion of what might have caused the events inquestion; an alternative explanation undercutsor qualifies the original explanation because ittoo can account for the observed facts

• analysis—the process of breaking something (e.g.,an argument) down into its component parts inorder to understand how they work together tomake up the whole; also a presentation, usually inwriting, of the results of this process

• argument—a claim or a set of claims withreasons and evidence offered as support; a line ofreasoning meant to demonstrate the truth orfalsehood of something

• assumption—a belief, often unstated orunexamined, that someone must hold in orderto maintain a particular position; somethingthat is taken for granted but that must be true inorder for the conclusion to be true

• conclusion—the end point reached by a line ofreasoning, valid if the reasoning is sound; theresulting assertion

• counterexample—an example, real or hypo-thetical, that refutes or disproves a statement inthe argument

An excellent way to prepare for the “Analyze anArgument” topic is to practice writing on some ofthe published Argument topics. There is no one wayto practice that is best for everyone. Some prefer tostart practicing without adhering to the 30-minutetime limit.

If you follow this approach, take all the time youneed to analyze the argument. No matter whichapproach you take, you should

• carefully read the argument—you might want toread it over more than once

• identify as many of its claims, conclusions, andunderlying assumptions as possible

• think of as many alternative explanations andcounterexamples as you can

• think of what additional evidence might weakenor lend support to the claims

• ask yourself what changes in the argumentwould make the reasoning more sound

Jot down each of these thoughts as a brief note.When you’ve gone as far as you can with your analy-sis, look over the notes and put them in a good order

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for discussion (perhaps by numbering them). Thenwrite a critique by fully developing each of yourpoints in turn. Even if you choose not to write a fullessay response, you should find it very helpful topractice analyzing a few of the arguments and sketch-ing out your responses. When you become quickerand more confident, you should practice writing someArgument responses within the 30-minute time limitso that you will have a good sense of how to paceyourself in the actual test. For example, you will notwant to discuss one point so exhaustively or toprovide so many equivalent examples that you runout of time to make your other main points.

Next, compare your response(s) to the scoringguide. Focus on seeing how your paper meets ormisses the performance standards and what youtherefore need to do in order to improve.

How to Interpret Numbers, Percentages, andStatistics in Argument Topics

Some arguments contain numbers, percentages, orstatistics that are offered as evidence in support of theargument’s conclusion. For example, an argumentmight claim that a certain community event is lesspopular this year than it was last year because only100 people attended this year in comparison with 150last year, a 33 percent decline in attendance. It isimportant to remember that you are not being askedto do a mathematical task with the numbers, percent-ages, or statistics. Instead you should evaluate these asevidence that is intended to support the conclusion.In the example above, the conclusion is that acommunity event has become less popular. Youshould ask yourself: does the difference between 100people and 150 people support that conclusion? Notethat, in this case, there are other possible explana-tions; for example, the weather might have beenmuch worse this year, this year’s event might havebeen held at an inconvenient time, the cost of theevent might have gone up this year, or there mighthave been another popular event this year at thesame time. Each of these could explain the differencein attendance, and thus would weaken the conclu-sion that the event was “less popular.” Similarly,percentages might support or weaken a conclusiondepending on what actual numbers the percentagesrepresent. Consider the claim that the drama club ata school deserves more funding because its member-ship has increased by 100 percent. This 100 percent

increase could be significant if there had been 100members and now there are 200 members, whereasthe increase would be much less significant if therehad been 5 members and now there are 10. Remem-ber that any numbers, percentages, or statistics inArgument topics are used only as evidence in supportof a conclusion, and you should always considerwhether they actually support the conclusion.

The Form of Your Response

You are free to organize and develop your critique inany way that you think will effectively communicateyour analysis of the argument. Your response may, butneed not, incorporate particular writing strategieslearned in English composition or writing-intensivecollege courses. GRE readers will not be looking for aparticular developmental strategy or mode of writing.In fact, when faculty are trained to be GRE readers,they review hundreds of Argument responses that,although highly diverse in content and form, displaysimilar levels of critical thinking and analyticalwriting. Readers will see, for example, some essays atthe 6 score level that begin by briefly summarizingthe argument and then explicitly stating and devel-oping the main points of the critique. The readersknow that a writer can earn a high score by analyzingand developing several points in a critique or byidentifying a central flaw in the argument anddeveloping that critique extensively. You might wantto look at the sample Argument responses, particu-larly at the 5 and 6 score levels, to see how otherwriters have successfully developed and organizedtheir critiques.

You should make choices about format andorganization that you think support and enhance theoverall effectiveness of your critique. This meansusing as many or as few paragraphs as you considerappropriate for your critique—for example, creating anew paragraph when your discussion shifts to a newpoint of analysis. You might want to organize yourcritique around the organization of the argumentitself, discussing the argument line by line. Or youmight want to first point out a central questionableassumption and then move on to discuss related flawsin the argument’s line of reasoning. Similarly, youmight want to use examples if they help illustratean important point in your critique or move yourdiscussion forward (remember, however, that interms of your ability to perform the Argument taskeffectively, it is your critical thinking and analytical

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writing, not your ability to come up with examples,that is being assessed). What matters is not the formthe response takes, but how insightfully you analyzethe argument and how articulately you communicateyour analysis to academic readers within the contextof the task.

Directions*

Discuss how well reasoned you find this argument.

Sample Topic

“Hospital statistics regarding people who go to theemergency room after roller skating accidents indi-cate the need for more protective equipment. Withinthis group of people, 75 percent of those who hadaccidents in streets or parking lots were not wearingany protective clothing (helmets, knee pads, etc.) orany light-reflecting material (clip-on lights, glow-in-the-dark wrist pads, etc.). Clearly, these statisticsindicate that by investing in high-quality protectivegear and reflective equipment, roller skaters willgreatly reduce their risk of being severely injured inan accident.”

Strategies for this Topic

This argument cites a particular hospital statistic tosupport the general conclusion that “investing inhigh-quality protective gear and reflective equip-ment” will reduce the risk of being severely injured ina roller skating accident.

In developing your analysis, you should askyourself whether the hospital statistic actuallysupports the conclusion. You might want to askyourself such questions as:

• What percentage of all roller skaters goes to theemergency room after roller skating accidents?

• Are the people who go to the emergency roomafter roller skating accidents representative ofroller skaters in general?

• Are there people who are injured in rollerskating accidents who do not go to the emer-gency room?

• Were the roller skaters who went to the emer-gency room severely injured?

• Were the 25 percent of roller skaters who werewearing protective gear injured just as severelyas the 75 percent who were not wearing thegear?

• Are streets and parking lots inherently moredangerous for roller skating than other places?

• Would mid-quality gear and equipment be justas effective as high-quality gear and equipmentin reducing the risk of severe injury while rollerskating?

• Are there factors other than gear and equip-ment—e.g., weather conditions, visibility, skillof the skaters—that might be more closelycorrelated with the risk of roller skating injuries?

Considering possible answers to questions such asthese will help you identify assumptions, alternativeexplanations, and weaknesses that you can develop inyour critique of the argument.

Essay Response** – Score 6

The notion that protective gear reduces the injuriessuffered in accidents seems at first glance to be anobvious conclusion. After all, it is the intent of theseproducts to either provent accidents from occuring inthe first place or to reduce the injuries suffered by thewearer should an accident occur. However, the conclu-sion that investing in high quality protective geargreatly reduces the risk of being severely injured in anaccident may mask other (and potentially more signifi-cant) causes of injuries and may inspire people to overinvest financially and psychologically in protective gear.

First of all, as mentioned in the argument, thereare two distinct kinds of gear—preventative gear(such as light reflecting material) and protective gear(such as helmets). Preventative gear is intended towarn others, presumably for the most part motorists,of the presence of the roller skater. It works only ifthe “other” is a responsible and caring individual whowill afford the skater the necessary space and atten-tion. Protective gear is intended to reduce the effectof any accident, whether it is caused by an other, theskater or some force of nature. Protective gear doeslittle, if anything, to prevent accidents but is pre-sumed to reduce the injuries that occur in an acci-dent. The statistics on injuries suffered by skaterswould be more interesting if the skaters were groupedinto those wearing no gear at all, those wearingprotective gear only, those wearing preventative gearonly and those wearing both. These statistics couldprovide skaters with a clearer understanding of whichkinds of gear are more beneficial.

The argument above is weakened by the fact thatit does not take into account the inherent differencesbetween skaters who wear gear and those who do not.

* The directions are presented as they appear on the actual test.** All responses in this publication are reproduced exactly as written, including errors, misspellings, etc., if any.

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If is at least likely that those who wear gear may begenerally more responsible and/or safety consciousindividuals. The skaters who wear gear may be lesslikely to cause accidents through careless or danger-ous behavior. It may, in fact, be their natural cautionand repsonsibility that keeps them out of the emer-gency room rather than the gear itself. Also, thestatistic above is based entirely on those who areskating in streets and parking lots which are relativelydangerous places to skate in the first place. Peoplewho are generally more safety conscious (and there-fore more likely to wear gear) may choose to skate insafer areas such as parks or back yards.

The statistic also goes not differentiate betweenseverity of injuries. The conclusion that safety gearprevents severe injuries suggests that it is presumedthat people come to the emergency room only withsevere injuries. This is certainly not the case. Also,given that skating is a recreational activity that maybe primarily engaged in during evenings and week-ends (when doctors’ offices are closed), skater withless severe injuries may be especially likely to come tothe emergency room for treatment.

Finally, there is absolutely no evidence providedthat high quality (and presumably more expensive)gear is any more beneficial than other kinds of gear.For example, a simple white t-shirt may provide thesame preventative benefit as a higher quality, moreexpensive, shirt designed only for skating. Beforeskaters are encouraged to invest heavily in gear, amore complete understanding of the benefit providedby individual pieces of gear would be helpful.

The argument for safety gear based on emergencyroom statistics could provide important informationand potentially saves lives. Before conclusions aboutthe amount and kinds of investments that should bemade in gear are reached, however, a more completeunderstanding of the benefits are needed. After all, afalse confidence in ineffective gear could be just asdangerous as no gear at all.


This outstanding response demonstrates the writer’sinsightful analytical skills. The introduction, whichnotes that adopting the topic’s fallacious reasoningcould “. . . inspire people to over invest financiallyand psychologically in protective gear,” is followed bya comprehensive examination of each of the

argument’s root flaws. Specifically, the writer exposesseveral points that undermine the argument:

• that preventive and protective gear are not thesame

• that skaters who wear gear may be less prone toaccidents because they are, by nature, moreresponsible and cautious

• that the statistics do not differentiate by theseverity of the injuries

• that gear may not need to be high-quality to bebeneficial

The discussion is smoothly and logically organized,and each point is thoroughly and cogently developed.In addition, the writing is succinct, economical, andgenerally error-free. Sentences are varied and com-plex, and diction is expressive and precise.

In sum, this response exemplifies the very top ofthe 6 range described in the scoring guide. If thewriter had been less eloquent or provided fewerreasons to refute the argument, the paper could stillhave received a 6.


The argument presented is limited but useful. Itindicates a possible relationship between a highpercentage of accidents and a lack of protectiveequipment. The statistics cited compel a furtherinvestigation of the usefulness of protective gear inpreventing or mitigating roller-skating relatedinjuries. However, the conclusion that protective gearand reflective equipment would “greatly reduce.risk ofbeing severely injured” is premature. Data is lackingwith reference to the total population of skaters andthe relative levels of experience, skill and physicalcoordination of that population. It is entirely possiblethat further research would indicate that most seriousinjury is averted by the skater’s ability to react quicklyand skillfully in emergency situations.

Another area of investigation necessary beforeconclusions can be reached is identification of thetypes of injuries that occur and the various causes ofthose injuries. The article fails to identify the mostprevalent types of roller-skating related injuries. Italso fails to correlate the absence of protective gearand reflective equipment to those injuries. Forexample, if the majority of injuries are skin abrasionsand closed-head injuries, then a case can be made forthe usefulness of protective clothing mentioned.

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Likewise, if injuries are caused by collision withvehicles (e.g. bicycles, cars) or pedestrians, thenlight-reflective equipment might mitigate theoccurences. However, if the primary types of injuriesare soft-tissue injuries such as torn ligaments andmuscles, back injuries and the like, then a greatercase could be made for training and experience aspreventative measures.


This strong response gets right to the work of critiqu-ing the argument, observing that it “indicates apossible relationship” but that its conclusion “ispremature.” It raises three central questions that, ifanswered, might undermine the soundness of theargument:

• What are the characteristics of the total popula-tion of skaters?

• What is the usefulness of protective or reflectivegear in preventing or mitigating roller skating-related injuries?

• What are the types of injuries sustained andtheir causes?

The writer develops each of these questions byconsidering possible answers that would eitherstrengthen or weaken the argument. The paper doesnot analyze the argument as insightfully or developthe critique as fully as required for a 6 paper, but theclear organization, strong control of language, andsubstantial degree of development warrant more thana score of 4.


Although the argument stated above discusses theimportance of safety equipment as significant part ofavoiding injury, the statistics quoted are vague andinconclusive. Simply because 75 percent of the peopleinvolved in roller-skating accidents are not wearing thestated equipment does not automatically implicate thelack of equipment as the cause of injury. The term“accidents” may imply a great variety of injuries. Thetypes of injuries one could incur by not wearing thetypes of equipment stated above are minor head inju-ries; skin abrasions or possibly bone fracture of a selectfew areas such as knees, elbows, hands, etc. (which arein fact most vulnerable to this sport); and/or injuriesdue to practising the sport during low light times of theday. During any physically demanding activity or sportpeople are subjected to a wide variety of injuries whichcannot be avoided with protective clothing or light-

reflective materials. These injuries include inner trauma(e.g., heart-attack); exhaustion; strained muscles,ligaments, or tendons; etc. Perhaps the numbers andpercentages of people injured during roller-skating, evenwithout protective equipment, would decrease greatly ifpeople participating in the sport had proper training,good physical health, warm-up properly before begin-ning (stretching), as well as take other measures toprevent possible injury, such as common-sense, byrefraining from performing the activity after properlighting has ceased and knowing your personal limita-tions as an individual and athlete. The statistics used inthe above reasoning are lacking in proper directionconsidering their assertions and therefore must befurther examined and modified so that proper conclu-sions can be reached.


This adequate response targets the argument’s vagueand inconclusive “statistics.” The essay identifies andcritiques the illogical reasoning that results from themisguided use of the argument’s statistics:

• that non-use of equipment may be “automati-cally” assumed to be the cause of injury

• that “accidents” may refer to minor injuries• that injuries may result from other causes —

skating in the dark, failure to train or warm-upproperly, failure to recognize one’s physicallimitations

The writer competently grasps the weaknesses of theargument. The ideas are clear and connected, but theresponse lacks transitional phrases. Development,too, is only adequate.

Control of language is better than adequate. Thewriter achieves both control and clarity and ablyconforms to the conventions of written English.Overall, though, this 4 response lacks the morethorough development that would warrant a score of 5.


The arguement is well presented and supported, butnot completely well reasoned. It is clear and conciselywritten. The content is logically and smoothlypresented. Statistics cited are used to develop supportfor the recommendation, that roller skaters whoinvest in protective gear and reflective equipmentcan reduce their risk of severe, accidental injuries.Examples of the types of protective equipment aredescribed for the reader. Unfortunately, the author ofthe argement fails to note that merely by purchasing

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gear and reflective equipment that the skater will beprotected. This is, of course, falacious if the skaterfails to use the equipment, or uses it incorrectly orinappropriately. It is also an unnecessary assumptionthat a skater need purchase high-quality gear for thesame degree of effectiveness to be achieved. Theargument could be improved by taking these issuesinto consideration, and making recommendations foreducation and safety awareness to skaters.


The first half of this generally well-written butlimited response merely describes the argument. Thesecond half of the paper identifies two assumptions ofthe argument:

• that people who purchase protective gear willuse the gear

• that high-quality gear is more effective thanother gear

These points are sufficient to constitute some analysisand thus warrant a score of 3. However, neither ofthese analytic points is developed sufficiently to merita score of 4.


To reduce the accidents from roller skating we shouldconsider about it causes and effects concurrently tofind the best solution. Basically the roller-skatingplayers are children, they had less experiences toprotect themselves from any kind of dangerous.Therefore, it should be a responsible of adult to takecare them. Adult should recommend their child towear any protective clothing, set the rules and lookafter them while they are playing.

In the past roller-skating is limited in the skateyard but when it became popular people normallyplay it on the street way) Therefore the number ofaccidents from roller-skating is increased. The skatemanufacturer should have a responsibility in produc-ing a protective clothing. They should promote andsell them together with skates. The government orstate should set the regulation of playing skate on thestreet way like they did with the bicycle.

To prevent this kind of accident is the bestsolution but it needs a coorperation among us to havea concious mind to beware and realize its dangerous.


This seriously flawed response, rather than critiquingthe argument, suggests ways for adults and skate

manufacturers to ensure that children wear protectiveclothing. In essence, the writer is uncritically accept-ing the argument.

The response exhibits serious and frequentproblems in sentence structure and language use.Errors—word choice, verb tenses, subject-verbagreement, punctuation—are numerous and some-times interfere with meaning, e.g., “. . . it needs acooperation among us to have a concious mind tobeware and realize its dangerous.”

This essay earns a 2 because it demonstrates bothserious linguistic weaknesses and failure to constructa critique based on logical analysis.


the protective equipment do help to reduce the riskof being severyly injuryed in an accident since thereare 75% Of those who had accidents in streets orparking lots were not wearing any protectivel cloth-ing. such as hemlets, kenn pads, etc. or any light-reflecting materials such as clip-on lights, glow-in-the-dark wrist pads ets. if they do have protectiveeqipment that only a quarter accident may happen,also that can greatly reduce their risk ofbeing severylyinjuryed in an accident, that can save some lives anda lot of energy and money for the treatment. theprotective equipment do help to reduce the risk ofbeing severyly injuryed in an accident since there are75% Of those who had accidents in streets or parkinglots were not wearing any protectivel clothing. suchas hemlets, kenn pads, etc. or any light-reflectingmaterials such as clip-on lights, glow-in-the-darkwrist pads ets. if they do have protective eqipmentthat only a quarter accident may happen, also thatcan greatly reduce their risk ofbeing severyly injuryedin an accident, that can save some lives and a lot ofenergy and money for the treatment. the protectiveequipment do help to reduce the risk of beingseveryly injuryed in an accident since there are 75%Of those who had accidents in streets or parking lotswere not wearing any protectivel clothing. such ashemlets, kenn pads, etc. or any light-reflectingmaterials such as clip-on lights, glow-in-the-darkwrist pads ets. if they do have protective eqipmentthat only a quarter accident may happen, also thatcan greatly reduce their risk ofbeing severyly injuryedin an accident, that can save some lives and a lot ofenergy and money for the treatment.

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This fundamentally deficient response uncriticallyaccepts the reasoning of the topic: “the protectiveequipment do help to reduce the risk of beingseveryly injuryed in an accident.” There is no evi-dence, though, that the writer is able to understandor analyze the argument; what follows, except for afew additional words, merely copies the topic. Thistwo-sentence response is repeated—verbatim—twomore times.

Language and usage are equally problematic. Thefew words that have been added, in combination withthe words of the topic, result in incoherence. In sum,this essay fits all of the scoring guide descriptors for a 1.

Taking the Practice GREGeneral TestAfter you have become familiar with the threesections of the General Test, it is time to take thepractice test in this book to see how well you do. Notonly will this help you become familiar with thedirections and types of questions, it will help youdetermine how to pace yourself during an actual test.The practice General Test begins on page 29. Thetotal time that should be allotted for this practice testis 31/4 hours. The time that should be allotted for eachsection appears at the beginning of the section. Theanswer sheets are provided on pages 63–72.

Evaluating YourPerformanceAfter you have taken the practice General Test inthis book, it is time to evaluate your performance.

Verbal and Quantitative SectionsAppendix B on pages 54-55 contains information tohelp you evaluate your performance on the verbaland quantitative sections. A table of the correctanswers to the questions in the verbal and quantita-tive sections is provided on page 54. Compare youranswer to each question to the correct answer givenin the list, crossing out questions you answeredincorrectly or omitted. You can also evaluate yourperformance by looking at how you performed oneach test question compared to others who answeredthe questions at an actual administration. In the table

on page 54, there is a number to the right of eachcorrect answer, P�. The P� is the percent ofexaminees who answered the question correctly andis based on the examinees who took that edition ofthe test. This information enables you to see howother examinees performed on each question. It canalso help identify content areas in which you needmore practice and review.

Next, add the number of correct answers inSections II and IV to obtain your raw verbal score.Add the number of correct answers in Sections IIIand V to obtain your raw quantitative score. Onceyou have obtained your raw scores, you can look upyour scaled scores on both sections. The scoreconversion table on page 55 provides the scaledscores that correspond to the raw scores on eachsection.

The score conversion table also allows you tocompare your scaled scores with those of others whohave taken the General Test. The table provides foreach scaled score, the percent of examinees whoearned lower scores, and is based on those examineeswho took the verbal and quantitative sections onthe General Test between October 1, 1998 andSeptember 30, 2001. For example, the column nextto the verbal scaled score 460 indicates 48 percent.This means that 48 percent of the examinees testedbetween October 1998 and September 2001 earnedverbal scores below 460. For each score you earnedon this practice test, note the percent of GRE exam-inees who earned lower scores. This is a reasonableindication of your rank among GRE General Testexaminees if you have taken the practice test understandard timing conditions.

It may be helpful to compare your score to scoresof examinees whose intended graduate school majorfield is similar to your own. The mean scores table onpage 55 shows you the average scores of people invarious categories of intended graduate major fieldswho took the General Test between October 1998and September 2001. You can evaluate your scores byfinding the major field category most closely relatedto your career goals and see how your performancecompares with others who are striving for similargoals.

Analytical Writing SectionOne way to evaluate your performance on the Issueand Argument topics you answered on the practicetest is to compare your essay responses to the scored

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sample essay responses for these topics and review thereader commentary for these sample essay responses.Scored sample essay responses at selected score levelsand reader commentary are presented in Appendix Con pages 56-62 for the two Issue topics and oneArgument topic presented in the analytical writingsection of the test.

The final scores on each of the two essays (Issueand Argument) are averaged and rounded up to thenearest half-point interval. A single score is reportedfor the analytical writing section. You should reviewthe score level descriptions on page 53 to betterunderstand the analytical writing abilities character-istic of particular score levels.

Additional PreparationOnce you have evaluated your performance on thepractice General Test in this book, you can determinewhat type of additional preparation you might wantto do for the test.

Services and products available from EducationalTesting Service and the Graduate Records Examina-tions Board include:

Enhanced Diagnostic Servicehttp://grediagnostic.ets.orgIf you are preparing to take the General Test and youwant feedback on your verbal and quantitative skills,you can answer a series of questions and receiveimmediate feedback on your performance on eachquestion, an assessment of your strengths and weak-nesses in the verbal and quantitative skill areas, andmuch more. To learn more about the GRE DiagnosticService, visit http://grediagnostic.ets.org.

GRE: Practicing to Take the GeneralTest—10th Editionhttp://www.ets.org/store/htmlThis test preparation book contains verbal and quan-titative sections from seven actual GRE GeneralTests (different from those in POWERPREP), includ-ing one test complete with explanations, test-takingstrategies, and score conversion tables. It alsoincludes a math review for the quantitative section.The analytical writing section contains two tests, twosample questions, test-taking strategies, scoring criteria,sample essay responses, and reader commentary.

Order online or call 1-800-537-3160 or1-609-771-7243. The book is also available in manybookstores.

GRE ScoreItNow!™ Online WritingPracticewww.scoreitnow.orgThis online service lets you test your analyticalwriting skills using authentic GRE analytical writingtopics. It provides you with immediate scores on youressay responses, general suggestions for improvingyour writing skills, and sample essay responses on thetopics you select. The essays are scored by e-rater®,ETS’s automated scoring system. Two options areavailable:

• Practice Option. Purchase two topics andspecify which type you want, “Present YourPerspective on an Issue” or “Analyze an Argu-ment.” Write your responses online or offlineand submit for scoring. You will receive a scoreand feedback for each response submitted.

• Test Experience Option. Purchase one GREGeneral Test analytical writing section. You willreceive one “Argument” task and can select oneof two “Issue” tasks presented. Write yourresponses online using the same word processingfeatures as the GRE General Test and withinthe same time allowed (75 minutes). You willreceive a score and feedback for each responseas well as a total score.

GRE Web Sitewww.gre.orgVisit the GRE Web site regularly for the most up-to-date information about GRE tests, products, andservices. The site contains information about registra-tion, test centers, test preparation, and score reports.You can also find a complete listing of test prepara-tion materials that can be downloaded for free.

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The following instructions appear on the back cover of the test book.

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SECTION 1

THE GRADUATE RECORDEXAMINATIONS®

Analytical Writing 1 PRESENT YOUR PERSPECTIVE ON AN ISSUE

45 minutes

You will have a choice between two Issue topics. Each topic will appear as a brief quotation thatstates or implies an issue of general interest. Read each topic carefully; then decide on whichtopic you could write a more effective and well-reasoned response.

You will have 45 minutes to plan and compose a response that presents your perspectiveon the topic you select. A response on any other topic will receive a zero. You are free toaccept, reject, or qualify the claim made in the topic you selected, as long as the ideas youpresent are clearly relevant to the topic. Support your views with reasons and examplesdrawn from such areas as your reading, experience, observations, or academic studies.

GRE readers, who are college and university faculty, will read your response and evaluateits overall quality, based on how well you do the following:

• consider the complexities and implications of the issue

• organize, develop, and express your ideas on the issue

• support your ideas with relevant reasons and examples

• control the elements of standard written English

You may want to take a few minutes to think about the issue and to plan a response beforeyou begin writing. Because the space for writing your response is limited, use the nextpage to plan your response. Be sure to develop your ideas fully and organize them coher-ently, but leave time to reread what you have written and make any revisions that you thinkare necessary.

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Present your perspective on one of the issues below, using relevant reasons and/or examples to support your views.

TopicNo:

C100. “Both the development of technological tools and the uses to which humanity has put them havecreated modern civilizations in which loneliness is ever increasing.”

C101. “Our declining environment may bring the people of the world together as no politician, philosopher,or war ever could. Environmental problems are global in scope and respect no nation’s boundaries.Therefore, people are faced with the choice of unity and cooperation on the one hand or disunity anda common tragedy on the other.”

Write the topic number of the issue you choose on the line at the top right corner of the answer bookletlabeled “Analytical Writing 1: Issue.”

Plan your response on this page. This page will not be scored. WRITE YOUR RESPONSE IN THEANSWER BOOKLET LABELED “Analytical Writing 1: Issue.”

S T O P

IF YOU FINISH BEFORE TIME IS CALLED, YOU MAY CHECK YOUR WORK ON THIS SECTION ONLY.DO NOT TURN TO ANY OTHER SECTION IN THE TEST.

Unauthorized copying or reuse ofany part of this page is illegal.

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THE GRADUATE RECORDEXAMINATIONS®

Analytical Writing 2ANALYZE AN ARGUMENT

30 minutes

You will have 30 minutes to plan and write a critique of an argument presented in the form ofa short passage. A critique of any other argument will receive a score of zero.

Analyze the line of reasoning in the argument. Be sure to consider what, if any, questionableassumptions underlie the thinking and, if evidence is cited, how well it supports the conclusion.

You can also discuss what sort of evidence would strengthen or refute the argument, whatchanges in the argument would make it more logically sound, and what additional informationmight help you better evaluate its conclusion. Note that you are NOT being asked to presentyour views on the subject.

GRE readers, who are college and university faculty, will read your critique and evaluate itsoverall quality, based on how well you

• identify and analyze important features of the argument

• organize, develop, and express your critique of the argument

• support your critique with relevant reasons and examples

• control the elements of standard written English

Before you begin writing, you may want to take a few minutes to evaluate the argumentand plan a response. Because the space for writing your response is limited, use the nextpage to plan your response. Be sure to develop your ideas fully and organize themcoherently, but leave time to reread what you have written and make any revisions that youthink are necessary.

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Discuss how well reasoned you find this argument.

TopicNo:

C103. Six months ago the region of Forestville increased the speed limit for vehicles traveling on theregion’s highways by ten miles per hour. Since that change took effect, the number of automobileaccidents in that region has increased by 15 percent. But the speed limit in Elmsford, a regionneighboring Forestville, remained unchanged, and automobile accidents declined slightly duringthe same six-month period. Therefore, if the citizens of Forestville want to reduce the number ofautomobile accidents on the region’s highways, they should campaign to reduce Forestville’s speedlimit to what it was before the increase.

Write the topic number of the argument on the line at the top right corner of the answer booklet labeled“Analytical Writing 2: Argument.”

Plan your response on this page. This page will not be scored. WRITE YOUR RESPONSE ON THEANSWER BOOKLET LABELED “Analytical Writing 2: Argument.”

S T O P

IF YOU FINISH BEFORE TIME IS CALLED, YOU MAY CHECK YOUR WORK ON THIS SECTION ONLY.DO NOT TURN TO ANY OTHER SECTION IN THE TEST.Unauthorized copying or reuse of

any part of this page is illegal.

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Appendix A

GRE Scoring Guide: Present YourPerspective on an Issue

Score 6A 6 paper presents a cogent, well-articulated analysisof the complexities of the issue and conveys meaningskillfully.A typical paper in this category• presents an insightful position on the issue• develops the position with compelling reasons

and/or persuasive examples• sustains a well-focused, well-organized analysis,

connecting ideas logically• expresses ideas fluently and precisely, using

effective vocabulary and sentence variety• demonstrates facility with the conventions (i.e.,

grammar, usage, and mechanics) of standardwritten English but may have minor errors

Score 5A 5 paper presents a generally thoughtful, well-developed analysis of the complexities of the issueand conveys meaning clearly.A typical paper in this category• presents a well-considered position on the issue• develops the position with logically sound reasons

and/or well-chosen examples• is focused and generally well organized, connect-

ing ideas appropriately• expresses ideas clearly and well, using appropriate

vocabulary and sentence variety• demonstrates facility with the conventions of

standard written English but may have minorerrors

Score 4A 4 paper presents a competent analysis of the issueand conveys meaning adequately.A typical paper in this category• presents a clear position on the issue• develops the position on the issue with relevant

reasons and/or examples• is adequately focused and organized• expresses ideas with reasonable clarity• generally demonstrates control of the conventions

of standard written English but may have someerrors

Score 3A 3 paper demonstrates some competence in itsanalysis of the issue and in conveying meaning but isobviously flawed.A typical paper in this category exhibits ONE ORMORE of the following characteristics:• is vague or limited in presenting or developing a

position on the issue• is weak in the use of relevant reasons or examples• is poorly focused and/or poorly organized• has problems in language and sentence structure

that result in a lack of clarity• contains occasional major errors or frequent minor

errors in grammar, usage, or mechanics that caninterfere with meaning

Score 2A 2 paper demonstrates serious weaknesses in analyti-cal writing.A typical paper in this category exhibits ONE ORMORE of the following characteristics:• is unclear or seriously limited in presenting or

developing a position on the issue• provides few, if any, relevant reasons or examples• is unfocused and/or disorganized• has serious problems in the use of language and

sentence structure that frequently interfere withmeaning

• contains serious errors in grammar, usage, ormechanics that frequently obscure meaning

Score 1A 1 paper demonstrates fundamental deficiencies inanalytical writing.A typical paper in this category exhibits ONE ORMORE of the following characteristics:• provides little or no evidence of the ability to

understand and analyze the issue• provides little or no evidence of the ability to

develop an organized response• has severe problems in language and sentence

structure that persistently interfere with meaning• contains pervasive errors in grammar, usage, or

mechanics that result in incoherence

Score 0Off topic (i.e. provides no evidence of an attempt torespond to the assigned topic), in a foreign language,merely copies the topic, consists of only keystrokecharacters, or is illegible, or nonverbal.

NSBlank

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GRE Scoring Guide: Analyzean Argument

Score 6A 6 paper presents a cogent, well-articulated critiqueof the argument and conveys meaning skillfully.A typical paper in this category• clearly identifies important features of the argu-

ment and analyzes them insightfully• develops ideas cogently, organizes them logically,

and connects them with clear transitions• effectively supports the main points of the critique• demonstrates control of language, including

appropriate word choice and sentence variety• demonstrates facility with the conventions (i.e.,

grammar, usage, and mechanics) of standardwritten English but may have minor errors

Score 5A 5 paper presents a generally thoughtful, well-developed critique of the argument and conveysmeaning clearly.A typical paper in this category• clearly identifies important features of the argu-

ment and analyzes them in a generally perceptiveway

• develops ideas clearly, organizes them logically,and connects them with appropriate transitions

• sensibly supports the main points of the critique• demonstrates control of language, including

appropriate word choice and sentence variety• demonstrates facility with the conventions

of standard written English but may have minorerrors

Score 4A 4 paper presents a competent critique of theargument and conveys meaning adequately.A typical paper in this category• identifies and analyzes important features of the

argument• develops and organizes ideas satisfactorily but may

not connect them with transitions• supports the main points of the critique• demonstrates sufficient control of language to

express ideas with reasonable clarity• generally demonstrates control of the conventions

of standard written English but may have someerrors

Score 3A 3 paper demonstrates some competence in itscritique of the argument and in conveying meaningbut is obviously flawed.

A typical paper in this category exhibits ONE ORMORE of the following characteristics:• does not identify or analyze most of the important

features of the argument, although some analysisof the argument is present

• mainly analyzes tangential or irrelevant matters, orreasons poorly

• is limited in the logical development and organiza-tion of ideas

• offers support of little relevance and value forpoints of the critique

• lacks clarity in expressing ideas• contains occasional major errors or frequent minor

errors in grammar, usage, or mechanics that caninterfere with meaning

Score 2A 2 paper demonstrates serious weaknesses in analyti-cal writing.A typical paper in this category exhibits ONE ORMORE of the following characteristics:• does not present a critique based on logical

analysis, but may instead present the writer’s ownviews on the subject

• does not develop ideas, or is disorganized andillogical

• provides little, if any, relevant or reasonablesupport

• has serious problems in the use of language and insentence structure that frequently interfere withmeaning

• contains serious errors in grammar, usage, ormechanics that frequently obscure meaning

Score 1A 1 paper demonstrates fundamental deficiencies inanalytical writing.A typical paper in this category exhibits MORETHAN ONE of the following characteristics:• provides little or no evidence of the ability to

understand and analyze the argument• provides little or no evidence of the ability to

develop an organized response• has severe problems in language and sentence

structure that persistently interfere with meaning• contains pervasive errors in grammar, usage, or

mechanics that result in incoherence

Score 0Off topic (i.e. provides no evidence of an attempt torespond to the assigned topic), in a foreign language,merely copies the topic, consists of only keystrokecharacters, or is illegible, or nonverbal.

NSBlank

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Analytical Writing Section ScoreLevel DescriptionsAlthough the GRE Analytical Writing measurecontains two discrete analytical writing tasks, a singlecombined score is reported because it is more reliablethan is a score for either task alone. The reportedscore, the average of the scores for the two tasks,ranges from 0 to 6, in half-point increments.

The statements below describe, for each scorelevel, the overall quality of analytical writing demon-strated across both the Issue and Argument tasks.Because the test assesses “analytical writing,” criticalthinking skills (the ability to reason, assembleevidence to develop a position, and communicatecomplex ideas) weigh more heavily than the writer’scontrol of fine points of grammar or the mechanics ofwriting (e.g., spelling).

SCORES 6 and 5.5 – Sustains insightful, in-depthanalysis of complex ideas; develops and supports mainpoints with logically compelling reasons and/orhighly persuasive examples; is well focused and wellorganized; skillfully uses sentence variety and precisevocabulary to convey meaning effectively; demon-strates superior facility with sentence structure andlanguage usage but may have minor errors that do notinterfere with meaning.

SCORES 5 and 4.5 – Provides generally thoughtfulanalysis of complex ideas; develops and supports mainpoints with logically sound reasons and/or well-chosen examples; is generally focused and wellorganized; uses sentence variety and vocabulary toconvey meaning clearly; demonstrates good controlof sentence structure and language usage but mayhave minor errors that do not interfere with meaning.

SCORES 4 and 3.5 – Provides competent analysis ofcomplex ideas; develops and supports main pointswith relevant reasons and/or examples; is adequatelyorganized; conveys meaning with reasonable clarity;demonstrates satisfactory control of sentence struc-ture and language usage but may have some errorsthat affect clarity.

SCORES 3 and 2.5 – Displays some competence inanalytical writing, although the writing is flawed in atleast one of the following ways: limited analysis ordevelopment; weak organization; weak control ofsentence structure or language usage, with errors thatoften result in vagueness or lack of clarity.

SCORES 2 and 1.5 – Displays serious weaknesses inanalytical writing. The writing is seriously flawed inat least one of the following ways: serious lack ofanalysis or development; lack of organization; seriousand frequent problems in sentence structure orlanguage usage, with errors that obscure meaning.

SCORES 1 and .5 – Displays fundamental deficien-cies in analytical writing. The writing is fundamen-tally flawed in at least one of the following ways:content that is extremely confusing or mostly irrel-evant to the assigned tasks; little or no development;severe and pervasive errors that result in incoherence.

SCORE 0 – The examinee’s analytical writing skillscannot be evaluated because the responses do notaddress any part of the assigned tasks, are merelyattempts to copy the assignments, are in a foreignlanguage, or display only indecipherable text.

SCORE NS – The examinee produced no textwhatsoever.

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Appendix B

Interpretive Data for the Verbal and Quantitative Sections

VERBAL ABILITY

Section II Section IV

Number Answer P� Number Answer P�

1 A 90 1 A 842 B 82 2 E 863 B 81 3 B 874 E 77 4 C 805 D 70 5 A 74

6 C 62 6 B 717 C 28 7 C 688 D 96 8 C 989 C 85 9 D 76

10 C 46 10 C 70

11 A 46 11 B 6312 D 46 12 A 6013 A 39 13 B 4814 E 36 14 B 4815 E 35 15 D 26

16 A 26 16 D 3517 C 63 17 A 5818 B 63 18 D 9719 A 64 19 B 8920 C 75 20 D 51

21 E 64 21 B 6622 D 46 22 A 3323 D 51 23 B 4824 B 62 24 C 7425 A 59 25 D 70

26 E 52 26 A 5127 B 66 27 C 4828 E 89 28 E 8929 A 86 29 B 8730 E 76 30 E 69

31 B 78 31 E 5832 C 41 32 E 3033 E 37 33 C 4434 D 36 34 A 2535 C 35 35 E 31

36 A 29 36 D 3637 A 18 37 D 2538 D 21 38 E 19

QUANTITATIVE ABILITY

Section III Section V

Number Answer P� Number Answer P�

1 A 85 1 C 942 C 84 2 A 803 B 79 3 C 854 D 76 4 B 765 C 57 5 A 64

6 D 70 6 B 677 B 69 7 B 728 D 52 8 D 699 B 52 9 A 34

10 A 50 10 C 38

11 A 42 11 D 1912 D 26 12 D 5913 C 57 13 C 4214 B 52 14 D 2815 A 35 15 B 40

16 E 75 16 B 8817 E 86 17 E 8018 D 81 18 B 7719 A 83 19 A 7420 B 63 20 C 71

21 B 92 21 B 8422 C 90 22 D 5823 B 71 23 D 5424 E 58 24 E 6325 D 71 25 A 34

26 C 47 26 D 5127 D 32 27 C 5228 E 44 28 B 3229 A 19 29 E 4930 E 47 30 D 57

* Estimated P� is based on those examinees who took the General Test between October 1, 1989 andSeptember 30, 1992.

Answer Key and Percentages* of Examinees Answering Each Question Correctly

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Score Conversions and Percents Below* for the Verbal and Quantitative Sections

* Percent scoring below the scaled score is based on the performance of all examinees who took theGeneral Test between October 1, 1998, and September 30, 2001.

Verbal and Quantitative Mean Scores Classified by Broad Intended Graduate Major Field(Based on the performance of seniors and nonenrolled college graduates**

who tested between October 1, 1998, and September 30, 2001)

ApproximateBroad Intended Graduate Number of Verbal QuantitativeMajor Field Examinees Ability Ability

Life Sciences 107,600 464 568

Physical Sciences 45,700 491 694

Engineering 46,600 474 721

Social Sciences 79,500 484 548

Humanities and Arts 39,300 541 549

Education 36,200 450 521

Business 6,500 444 570

** Limited to those who earned their college degrees up to two years prior to the test date.Note that this table does not include summary information on the approximately 45,388examinees whose response was invalid (misgrids, blanks, etc.) or the approximately17,474 examinees whose response was “undecided.” Most of the standard deviations ofthe score distribution represented by the means in this table are between 90 and 125.

39 430 39 610 5338 420 36 600 5037 410 33 580 4636 400 30 570 4435 390 27 560 4234 380 25 550 4033 380 25 540 3732 370 22 530 3631 360 19 520 3430 350 17 500 29

29 340 14 490 2728 340 14 480 2527 330 12 470 2326 320 9 450 2025 310 7 440 1824 310 7 420 1523 300 5 410 1422 290 4 390 1121 280 3 380 1020 280 3 370 9

19 270 2 350 618 260 1 340 617 260 1 320 416 250 1 300 315 240 1 290 214 230 1 270 113 220 1 260 112 210 1 240 111 210 1 220 110 200 1 200 1

9 200 1 200 18 200 1 200 17 200 1 200 16 200 1 200 15 200 1 200 1

0-4 200 1 200 1

VERBAL QUANTITATIVE

Raw Scaled % Scaled %Score Score Below Score Below

74-76 800 9973 790 9972 780 9971 760 9970 750 99

69 740 9968 730 9967 720 9866 710 9765 700 9764 680 9563 670 9462 660 9361 650 9260 640 91 800 94

59 630 89 800 9458 620 88 800 9457 600 85 800 9456 590 82 790 9155 580 80 780 8954 570 78 770 8653 560 76 760 8452 550 73 740 8051 540 70 730 7850 540 70 720 75

49 530 67 710 7348 520 65 700 7147 510 62 690 6946 490 57 680 6845 480 54 670 6644 470 51 660 6443 460 48 650 6142 460 48 640 5941 450 45 630 5740 440 42 620 55

VERBAL QUANTITATIVE

Raw Scaled % Scaled %Score Score Below Score Below

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Appendix C

Analytical Writing Topics,Sample Scored Essay Responses*at Selected Score Points, and ReaderCommentary

Issue Topic 1“Our declining environment may bring the people ofthe world together as no politician, philosopher, orwar ever could. Environmental problems are global inscope and respect no nation’s boundaries. Therefore,people are faced with the choice of unity and coop-eration on the one hand or disunity and a commontragedy on the other.”


Cooperation—or Tragedy?

The solution to the world’s growing environmentalproblems may have to wait awhile. It has been saidthat “environmental problems are global and respectno nation’s boundaries.” Unfortunately, pollution andits consequences still fall to large measure on thoseleast likely to do anything about it: poor countrieswilling to sacrifice anything in order to sit at thetable with the world’s wealthy.

As far as the industrialized nations of the worldare concerned, the world is a big place. Environmen-tal destruction taking place outside their borders maysometimes be fodder for government pronouncementsof concern, but few concrete actions. Deforestation ofthe Amazon, for instance, is of vital concern to allthose who wish to continue breathing. But the onlyeffective deterrent to this activity, the restriction ofinternational aid money to those countries showingnet deforestation, has been stalled in the UnitedNations by those unwilling to “interfere” in theinternal politics of other nations.

Because of the differential impact of pollutingactivities around the world, and even in differentregions of a single country, many governments willundoubtedly continue to promulgate only modestenvironmental regulations. Costs to polluting compa-nies will continue to carry as much weight as thebenefit of a pollution-free environment. Particularlyin the current political climate of the United States,

the well-documented expense of today’s pollution-control measures will be stacked against the unknownlong-term effects of polluting actitivities. “Whyshould I spend millions of dollars a year, which causesme to have to raise the cost of my goods or eliminatejobs, if no one really knows if air pollution is all thatharmful? Show me the proof,” an air pollutingcompany may demand.

Realistically, it won’t be until critical mass isachieved that the hoped for “choice of unity andcooperation” will be a viable one. Only when theearth as a whole is so polluted that life itself becomesincreasingly difficult for a majority of the world’speople will there likely be the political will to forceglobal environmental laws on governments world-wide. But the optimists (read: environmental activ-ists) among us continue to believe that the world canbe shown the error of its ways. They continue topoint out that the sky is probably falling—or at leastdeveloping a big hole. The world, as a whole, ignoresthem.

One would hope, however, that governments,perhaps through a strengthened U.N., could some-how be forced to realize that when the Earth reachesthe critical mass of pollution, it may be too late to doanything about it. That would be a “common trag-edy” indeed.


This excellent response displays an in-depth analysisof the issue, conveyed through the skillful use oflanguage.

While acknowledging that environmental prob-lems are serious and of global dimensions, the discus-sion explores the complexity of international coop-eration. Such cooperation, the paper argues, runs intoa variety of problems, and the writer offers persuasiveexamples to support that point:

• the unwillingness of nations to “interfere” withother nations through political measures such asrestriction of foreign aid

• inadequate environmental regulations, whichare caused both by “the differential impact ofpolluting activities” between countries andregions and by the difficulty of comparing the“long-term effects of polluting actitivities” withthe more easily documented, short-term costs ofreducing pollution.

* Responses are reproduced exactly as written, including errors, misspellings, etc., if any.

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The paper distinguishes itself in part by its excellentorganization. The first paragraph analyzes the claimand announces the writer’s position; the second andthird paragraphs provide clear examples supportingthat position. The skillful use of a quotation from abusiness person vividly illustrates the economic impactof pollution controls. The last two paragraphs bring asense of closure to the essay by continuing the themeannounced in the first paragraph—that cooperationmust wait until more dire circumstances produce thepolitical will necessary to reduce pollution.

Transitional phrases—“because,” “however,” “forinstance”—help guide the reader through the argu-ment. Also, effective sentence variety and the use ofprecise vocabulary help clarify meaning and confirmthe score of 6.


Our declining environment may bring the people ofthe world together as no politician, philosopher, orwar ever could. Environmental issues are a growingconcern in our country today. It is an issue thatconcerns every person, no one is excluded.

Facing and solving environmental issues calls forunity and cooperation. Prejudices should be put asidein this time of need. Without unity our world as weknow it will not exist in twenty-five years. People as awhole need to take action. Without unity andcooperation little will be accomplished.

There are many environmental issues we arefacing today. For example, recycling is a simple andeffective way to help the environment. If everyonedid a small part the results would be enormous.Recycling is a good example because it is somethingevery single person is capable of doing.

There are many ways people of any age, race, orsex can contribute to help the environment. Emis-sions testing for exhausts on automobiles is one wayto help keep unnecessary pollutants from contami-nating the air. Very few cities require emissionstesting for automobiles. Columbus, for example, doesnot require emissions testing. My small hometown ofAmherst, Ohio does require this test.

I believe the government needs to implementstricter regulations regarding environmental issuesand also increase the funding that is allotted for it.Mandatory recycling laws with a stiff penalty forbreaking the law is one solution. Funding for groupsto do research is imperative. Without research there

is very little we would know about anything includ-ing diseases and microorganisms.

People of the world need to understand thesituation our generation and generations to come arefaced with. This understanding needs to come fromeducation. The United States has always been aforerunner in wars, peace talks, etc. It is now time forthe United States to be the leader in solutions toenvironmental concerns. The greatest barrier in anysituation is communication. If we communicate witheach other and work together instead of apart resultswould be seen. Education is another great concern,especially in underdeveloped countries and thirdworld nations. There is a lack of education in manyof these countries. Education is the key to success.

In summary I would like to emphasize the impor-tance in unity and cooperation on global concernssuch as the environment. Also education is veryimportant in making headway. I also believe thegovernment should get more involved in these issues.


This paper presents and supports an adequate analysisof the issue. After stating the need for cooperation onthe environment, the writer proposes several veryspecific remedies for environmental problems:recycling, emissions testing, research, education, andcommunication. The detailed description of emis-sions testing is useful; however, the other remedies(recycling, research, etc.) are not developed fully orpersuasively.

In some areas the response suffers from needlessrepetition. Paragraph six, for example, moves fromeducation to communication and back to education.The conclusion, moreover, adds little, merely repeat-ing earlier statements.

The control of grammar and usage is generallycompetent, but the sentences tend to be choppy.Although most of the ideas are stated clearly, therelationship between the ideas is not always madeclear: “Also education is very important in makingheadway. I also believe the government should getmore involved in these issues.”


Environmental problems will require a joint efferctamoung people to solve, however, environmentalproblems may not cause people to come together.Should the problems continue for an extended periodof time before any effert is made to solve them, they

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will reach a point of no return no matter how peoplecome together to work on it. When this happensthere will be increased shortage in our naturalresouses. As supply of our resouces goes down anddemand remains the same or goes up there will beincreased presure to claim what resouces remain. Soinstead of people working together to solve theproblem, they will be fighting for what’s left by theproblem.

To solve this, people need to come together beforethe problem reaches a state of no return. This may behard to do since the effects of environmental prob-lems are not yet felt by a large degree (if felt at all) byeveryone. At this point in time many feel it is notthere problem to worry about since it does notimmediatly effect them. To remidy this people shouldbecome more aware of their current environment.


This response is seriously flawed. Its strongest featureis a fairly clear position: it agrees with the claim thatenvironmental problems will require cooperation andpresents a scenario for what will happen if there is nocooperation—conflict over diminishing resources.However, the writer offers little support for thatposition. Threatened “resources” and the “effects ofenvironmental problems” are mentioned but notspecified, and the paper provides no examples of howpeople might “come together” to address the problemor how they might “become more aware of theircurrent environment.”

Some of the sentences are worded clearly (“Soinstead of people working together . . .”), but othersare so flawed by imprecise word choice that themeaning is difficult to understand: “. . . not yet felt bya large degree (if felt at all) by everyone.”

Also, run-on sentences (the first sentence, forexample) and unclear pronoun references add to theconfusion, reinforcing the score of 2.

Issue Topic 2“Both the development of technological tools andthe uses to which humanity has put them havecreated modern civilizations in which loneliness isever increasing.”


Technology, broadly defined as the use of tools, has along history. Ever since Erg the caveman first conkedan animal with a rock, people have been usingtechnology. For thousands of years, the use of tools

allowed people to move ever closer together. Becausefields could be cultivated and the technology to storefood existed, people would live in cities rather thanin small nomadic tribes. Only very lately have Erg’sdescendants come to question the benefits of tech-nology. The Industrial Revolution introduced andspread technologies that mechanized many tasks. Asa result of the drive toward more efficient productionand distribution (so the ever larger cities would besupported), people began to act as cogs in the techno-logical machine. Clothing was no longer produced bygroups of women sewing and gossiping together, butby down-trodden automation’s operating machineryin grim factories.

The benefits of the new technology of today,computers and the internet, are particularly ambigu-ous. They have made work ever more efficient andknit the world together in a web of information andphone lines. Some visionaries speak of a world inwhich Erg need not check in to his office; he can justdial in from home. He won’t need to go to a bar topick up women because there are all those chatrooms. Hungry? Erg orders his groceries from anonline delivery service. Bored? Download a newgame. And yet...

Many people, myself included, are a little queasyabout that vision. Erg may be doing work, but is itreal work? Are his online friends real friends? Doesanything count in a spiritual way if it’s just digital?Since the Industrial Revolution, we have beenhaunted by the prospect that we are turning into ourmachines: efficient, productive, souless. The newesttechnologies, we fear, are making us flat as ourscreens, turning us into streams of bits ofinterchangable data. We may know a lot of people,but we have few real friends. We have a lot of thingsto do, but no reason to do them. In short, the newtechnology emphasizes a spiritual crisis that has beenbuilding for quite some time.

As I try to unravel which I believe about therelative merits of technology, I think it is instructiveto remember technology’s original result. A betterplow meant easier farming, more food, longer lives,and more free time to pursue other things such as art.Our newest technology does not give us more freetime; it consumes our free time. We are terminallydistracted from confronting ourselves or each other.We stay safe, and lonely, in our homes and officesrather than taking the risk of meeting real people ortrying new things.

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While I am certainly not a Luddite, I do believewe need to look for a bit more balance betweentechnology and life. We have to tear ourselves awayfrom the fatal distractions and go out into the world.Technology has given us long lives and endlesssupplies of information. Now we need to apply thatinformation, use the time we’re not spending conkingour dinner with a club, and find our reasons forliving.


This outstanding response displays cogent reasoning,insightful, persuasive analysis, and superior control oflanguage. The response immediately identifies thecomplexities of the issue and then playfully exploresboth the benefits and the drawbacks of technologicaldevelopments over the course of human history. Thewriter maintains that a “balance between technologyand life” is necessary if humans are going to abate theloneliness that is part of modern existence.

In contrasting the intended purpose of technologyat the beginning of the Industrial Revolution withthe end result of the use of today’s technology, thewriter skillfully expands the initial position andmakes a sound point: While technological develop-ments have helped society in a practical way, theyhave contributed to a spiritual crisis that has beenbuilding for quite some time.

The analysis is tightly organized. With well-chosen examples and a character called Erg, theresponse moves well beyond a listing of examples,developing the analysis over five focused paragraphs,each building on the previous one. The conclusion—that as a result of technology the individual begins tolose sight of the need to connect with fellow citizensin a meaningful way—follows directly from thepreceding paragraphs, while adding substantiveanalysis.

This writer is clearly in command of language andsyntax, varying the sentence structure to expressconcepts succinctly. Word choice is generally preciseand often highly effective, as in the following ex-amples: “down-trodden automation,” and “hauntedby the prospect that we are turning into our ma-chines: efficient, productive, soulless.”


Looking at the above statement, I see a lot of truth tothe statement. There are many ways that society hasused the advanced technology in order to isolate

themselves. It may or may not be a consious move,but the results are all the same. The isolation occursin a variety of ways and in all different areas. Bycomputerizing factories, there are more and morepeople working long hours by themselves, with thereonly companion as a computer monitor. Althoughthe company may be getting better production, thequestion that needs to be ask is at what cost to theiremployees.

It is not only the management of big factories thatare responsible for this isolation. This lonliness canbe seen in many other settings. With the growingpopularity of the television, the nation is seeing adecline in families talking and an increase in watch-ing the television. Not only can this result in ageneration of “coach potatoes”, it is also causes lesscommunication and a feeling of isolation fromeveryone that a person cares about.

So far technology has entered the work place andthe home, it has also entered the social relm. Whenyou go to order food in the drive-thru, who is orbetter yet what is it that you talk to? It is a machine,although there is a person on the other end, you arestill reciting your order to a machine. If it is teno’clock at night and you need money, there areATM’s. All of these gadgets may be very nice andconvient, but they result in lack of human contact.

Although it might be easy to blame technolgy forour feelings of loneliness, it is just a cop out. Bylooking at all the ways technology causes isolation, itis still people who choose to use these convenientmethods. If a person wants to have human contact,all they have to do is go inside to the bank or goinside the resturaunt to order. What it basically boilsdown to, is that it is our choice whether or not we usetechnology. It is a scary thought to think maybe oneday we might live in a society where you will neverhave to leave your house. That by using FAX ma-chines, computers, modems, and the telephone aperson would never have to have human contact toget their job done. The thing is that if that is notwhat we as a society wants, we are the ones to speakout and change the outcome.


This is a competent discussion of the issue. Theposition presented in the first paragraph—that “thereare many ways that society has used the advancedtechnology in order to isolate themselves”—isadequately sustained, but the examples are not always

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clearly relevant (e.g., in the case of paragraph one’s“computerizing” of factories, the decision to use thetechnology is not made by the individual worker.)Also, the reasoning is not developed as fully as itwould be in a response at the score level of 6 or 5.

While organization is adequate, the response lacksthe organized coherence of ideas that exemplify a 5essay. Transitions, within and between paragraphs,are not always logical. The last paragraph could bemuch more clearly focused: since several sentencesrepeat the same idea—that “it is our choicewhether or not we use technology”—and thepurpose or meaning of others (e.g., the last) is notimmediately clear.

In general, ideas are presented clearly, althoughawkward phrasing sometimes contributes to vague-ness (e.g., “By looking at all the ways technologycauses isolation, it is still people who choose to usethese convenient methods”). Lack of sentence varietyseems to inhibit the communication of ideas (e.g.,many short sentences are often used where one ortwo compound ones could make the points moreeffectively). Overall, however, this is an adequateresponse to the topic.


Computers of all shapes and sizes, p.c.’s, laptops,faxes, phones, the list never ends. All considered byour society as great technological advances. Notmany would argue that the development of thesetools has not advanced our world in some ways.However they certainly seem to be making our worldone in which contact with our fellow man is less andless necessary. Though some may be more comfort-able not having to engage in direct contact, it isquestionable whether this is beneficial to society as awhole. The very least result could in fact be a verylonely world, but it may result in more significantproblems.


This response is seriously flawed. The analysis of theissue is extremely limited, and there are seriousproblems in sentence structure. The writer’s position,never clearly stated, seems to be that as a result oftechnological developments, “contact with our fellowman is less and less necessary.” However, the implica-tions of this statement (and others) are neverexplored or developed. Furthermore, the list oftechnological advancements does not support orclarify the writer’s already tenuously held position.

Each new sentence could serve as a springboard to athoughtful analysis but instead takes the responsefurther from the apparent premise.

This response received a score of 2, not because oflanguage problems, but because reasoning, analysis,and development are extremely thin and insubstantial.

Argument Topic “Six months ago the region of Forestville increasedthe speed limit for vehicles traveling on the region’shighways by ten miles per hour. Since that changetook effect, the number of automobile accidents inthat region has increased by 15 percent. But thespeed limit in Elmsford, a region neighboringForestville, remained unchanged, and automobileaccidents declined slightly during the same six-month period. Therefore, if the citizens of Forestvillewant to reduce the number of automobile accidentson the region’s highways, they should campaign toreduce Forestville’s speed limit to what it was beforethe increase.”


The agrument is well-presented, but not thoroughlywell-reasoned. By making a comparison of the regionof Forestville, the town with the higher speed limitand therefore automobile accidents, with the regionof Elmsford, an area of a lower speed limit andsubsequently fewer accidents, the argument forreducing Forestville’s speed limits in order to decreaseaccidents seems logical.

However, the citizens of Forestville are failing toconsider other possible alternatives to the increasingcar accidents after the raise in speed limit. Suchalternatives may include the fact that there are lessreliable cars traveling the roads in Forestville, or thatthe age bracket of those in Elmsford may be moreconducive to driving safely. It is possible that thereare more younger, inexperienced, or more elderly,unsafe drivers in Forestville than there are inElmsford. In addition, the citizens have failed toconsider the geographical and physical terrain of thetwo different areas. Perhaps Forestville’s highway is inan area of more dangerous curves, sharp turns, or hasmany intersections or merging points where accidentsare more likely to occur. It appears reasonable,therefore, for the citizens to focus on these troublespots than to reduce the speed in the entire area.Elmsford may be an area of easier driving conditionswhere accidents are less likely to occur regardless ofthe speed limit.

61

A six-month period is not a particularly long timeframe for the citizens to determine that speed limithas influenced the number of automobile accidents inthe area. It is mentioned in the argument thatElmsford accidents decreased during the time period.This may have been a time, such as during harshweather conditions, when less people were driving onthe road and therefore the number of accidentsdecreased. However, Forestville citizens, perhapscoerced by employment or other requirements, wereunable to avoid driving on the roads. Again, thedemographics of the population are important. It ispossible that Elmsford citizens do not have to travelfar from work or work from their home, or do notwork at all. Are there more people in Forestville thanthere were sic months ago? If so, there may be anincreased number of accidents due to more automo-biles on the road, and not due to the increased speedlimits. Also in reference to the activities of thepopulation, it is possible that Forestville inhabitantswere traveling during less safe times of the day, suchas early in the morning, or during twilight. Work orfamily habits may have encouraged citizens to driveduring this time when Elmsford residents may nothave been forced to do so.

Overall, the reasoning behind decreasingForestville’s speed limit back to its original seemslogical as presented above since the citizens areacting in their own best interests and want to protecttheir safety. However, before any final decisions aremade about the reduction in speed limit, the citizensand officials of Forestville should evaluate all possiblealternatives and causes for the increased number ofaccidents over the six-month period as compared toElmsford.


This outstanding response begins by noting that theargument is “well presented.” It then proceeds todiscuss possible alternative explanations for theincrease in car accidents and provides an impressivelyfull analysis. Alternatives mentioned are that

• the two regions might have drivers of differentages and experience;

• Forestville’s topography, geography, cars, and/orroads might contribute to accidents;

• six months might be an insufficient amount oftime for determining that the speed limit islinked to the accident rate;

• demographics might play a role in auto accidents;• population and auto density should be consid-

ered; and• the times of day when drivers in the two regions

travel might be relevant.

The points are cogently developed and are linked insuch a way as to create a logically organized critique.Transitions together with interior connections createa smoothly integrated presentation. For the mostpart, the writer uses language correctly and well andprovides excellent variety in syntax. The minor flaws(e.g., using “less” instead of “fewer”) do not detractfrom the overall high quality of the critique. This isan impressive 6 paper.


At first look, this seems to be a very well presentedarguement. A logical path is followed throughout theparagraph and the conclusion is expected. However,upon a second consideration, it is apparent that allpossibilities were not considered when the authorpresented his conclusion (or at least that s/he did notpresent all of the possibilities). There are numerouspotential explanations for why the number of acci-dents in Elmsford decreased while the number inForestville increased. Although it seems logical toassume that the difference in the percentage ofaccidents was due to the difference in whether or notthe speed limit had been increased during the speci-fied month, this does not necessarily mean that thespeed limit should be reduced back to what it origi-nally was in Forestville. The author does not statetwo specific pieces of information that are importantbefore a conclusion such as the one the author madeis sound. The first is that it is not expressed whetherthe speed limits in the two neighboring regions hadhad the same speed limit before Forestville’s speedlimit had been increased. If they had originally beenthe same, then it is reasonable to conclude thatForestville’s speed limit should be reduced back towhat it was before the increase. However, if the tworegion’s speed limits were initially different, thensuch a conclusion can not be made. The second pieceof information that is necessary for the presentargument is the relative number of accidents in eachof the areas prior to the increase in speed limit. Forthe author to make the presented conclusion, thenumber of accidents should have been approximatelyequal prior to the increase in the speed limit inForestville. If the two missing pieces of information

62

had been presented and were in the author’s favor,then the conclusion that the author made wouldhave been much more sound than it currently is. Inconclusion, the argument is not entirely well rea-soned, but given the information that was expressedin the paragraph, it was presented well, and in alogical order.


This competent critique claims that there are “nu-merous potential explanations for why the number ofaccidents in Elmsford decreased while the number inForestville increased.” However, the author discussesonly two points:

• whether the speed limits in the two regions wereoriginally the same; and

• the number of accidents in each region prior toForestville’s raising the speed limit.

Although the response appears at first to be welldeveloped, there is much less analysis here than thelength would suggest. The first third and last third ofthe essay are relatively insubstantial, consistingmainly of general summary statements (e.g., “Alogical path . . . conclusion is expected” and “If thetwo . . . more sound than it currently is”). The realheart of the critique consists of minimal developmentof the two points mentioned above. Therefore,although two important features of the argument areanalyzed and the writer handles language and syntaxadequately, the lack of substantial development keepsthis critique from earning a score higher than 4.


The argument gives statistics of increases in automo-bile accidents since the speed limit increased sixmonths ago on the highways of Forestville. The

argument also gives a statement of how the neighbor-ing region of Forestville, did not increase or decreasethe speed limit. It remained unchanged and automo-bile accidents declined slightly during the same six-month period. The argument may appeal to thosewho have been effected by the increase in accidents,but it does not give an emotional appeal overall. Weare relying on the authors statistics but we don’tknow where they came from and if they are reliable.The argument needs more examples and illustrationsto get his point across to more people. It is suggestedthat the citizens of Forestville campaign to reduceForestville’s speed limit to what it was before theincrease, but it is usually hard to start a campaign.One person needs to take action. If the author is acitizen of Forestville, maybe he should take theinitiative.


This seriously flawed critique presents only one idearelevant to an analysis of the argument: “The argu-ment needs more examples and illustrations to get hispoint across to more people.” Everything else in theessay is either summarizing the argument, speculating,or offering advice. The result is a response that isclearly on topic but that provides no analysis of theline of reasoning in the argument.

In addition to the lack of analysis, the writing isweak. The organization is loose, although not illogi-cal, and intended meaning is sometimes unclear (e.g.,“. . . but it does not give an emotional appeal over-all.”). For these reasons, the response deserves a scoreof 2 according to the scoring guide.

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BE SURE EACH MARK IS DARK AND COMPLETELY FILLS THE INTENDEDSPACE AS ILLUSTRATED HERE: .

YOU MAY FIND MORE RESPONSE SPACES THAN YOU NEED. IF SO, PLEASELEAVE THEM BLANK.

GENERAL TEST

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DO NOT WRITE IN THIS AREA.

0

NOTES

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