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Austin
Community College has served as the primary sponsor of the Adult Education
Program in Travis County since September 1973. It is funded through federal, state and local
(ACC) funds. As a result,
most people know that students can come to ACC to take free classes to prepare
for and take the GED test to get their High School Equivalency
Certificate. The GED test has been
around since the 1940’s, and was originally set up to help U.S. soldiers coming
back from the war. Over the years, it became nearly synonymous with
“high school equivalency.” But now in the
last few years, options for students to get a high school equivalency diploma have
changed dramatically.
The GED test
was completely rewritten and the new version premiered in 2014. The new test was more rigorous than the older
version, and for the first time, the tests could only be taken on
computer. Around 2014 some new players
entered the testing market too. States
across the country have been adding these tests as paths to a High School
Equivalency Certificate. In fact, in Texas the State Board of Education voted
January 29, 2016 to award contracts to three separate companies to provide high
school equivalency assessments.
Test takers may now select from one of the
following three assessments:
GED
test
HiSET
exam
TASC
test
You can find
out more about the three tests and their differences at “Test Information at a
Glance” on the TEA website.
In 2013, by
legislative action, the adult education program in Texas was transferred from
the Texas Education Agency to the Texas Workforce Commission. While the TWC now oversees Adult Education
and Literacy, the TEA continues to oversee the testing part and issues the Texas Certificate of High School Equivalency (TxCHSE). This seems to be a better alignment for many
of the students who are trying to get their high school equivalency certificate
in order to get a better job. That
better job may even enable them to go on to college.
So, while
the TWC Adult Education and Literacy program has oversight over
high school equivalency educational programs, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) still
manages the high school equivalency testing operation in Texas. You can learn
more about Texas Certificate of High School Equivalency on
the TEA website at Certificate of High SchoolEquivalency Information.
ACC offers two locations for students to sign up for
and take the tests through the ACC Business Assessment Testing Center at the
Highland Campus or Round Rock Campus locations.
In addition to helping students prepare for the test to
get their high school equivalency diploma, theAdult Education Department also helps students
through free classes in:
ESL
Career Pathways
College Prep Program
The ACC
Libraries support Adult Education students through materials available in print
and online. Study guides for all three
test assessments are available. There is
a Research Guide for Adult Education that gives students tips on places to find
help in studying for the different test sections, especially for Reading and
Writing and Math. It includes sources for ESL students and information on study skills and careers too.
Furthermore, the libraries provide study material and practice tests through two Databases.
One is Learning Express.
.
Learning Express in particular covers all aspects of Adult Education, more than just study material to prepare for a High School Equivalency test. It also covers ESL (preparing for the TOEFL), study skills and career exploration. Additionally it has study material available in Spanish.
The Testing and Education Reference Center covers all three high school equivalency exams as well as tutorials in reading, writing and math. It too covers ESL (preparing for the TOEFL) and career exploration.
