🧐 Overview: ACT English Section

The ACT English section is arguably one of the most stressful sections of the exam. Answering 75 questions in 45 minutes (36 seconds per question, including bubbling time!) seems near impossible 😰 ! But fear not, because this study guide will "guide" you to achieving the score your hard work deserves.

This section is further divided into categories to test you on various aspects of the English language. These include:

Production of Writing (29-32%) ❗❗

• • Topic Development
• • Organization, Unity, and Cohesion ❗❗ Knowledge of Language (15-17%)

Conventions of Standard English (52-55%)

Knowing the approximate percentage of each category is important because you need to be able to prioritize your studying. Production of Writing (POW) accounts for about 21-24 of the 75 questions in the English section, so it's a pretty huge deal. POW is split up into 2 parts, but this guide will only focus on Organization, Unity, and Cohesion. It sounds complex but just think of it as the barebones of an essay. Are there transitions from idea to idea? Are they correctly used? Is the paragraph organized, or does it sound like a rough draft someone typed up while they were half-asleep? Is there an introduction and conclusion that actually introduce and conclude? Does it flow smoothly❓ 

-----

📝 Types of Questions

Here are some of the common types of questions you'll be seeing as you study for this section:

1. • Sequencing: If you are already familiar with the ACT or SAT English section, these are probably the most annoying questions to encounter 😒. Essentially, you have to figure out where a specific sentence belongs in a paragraph (or if it doesn't belong at all). Sometimes, they ask you to reorganize all the sentences in a paragraph.
2. • Transition phrases: These questions require you to look at a transition phrase and figure out whether it's being correctly used in context. These are a personal favorite because they're straightforward and relatively simple.

Going along with this category, they may also ask to select the best sentence that transitions from one idea to the next. It's pretty much the same concept.

1. Effective introduction/conclusion: These questions ask you to select the best introducing/concluding sentence. This can be for either one paragraph or the entire passage.

4. Primary purpose: These questions are different because they test your comprehension skills. They usually give you the purpose of the passage and ask whether the writer did a good job of accomplishing it.

Primary purpose questions are associated with the Topic Development portion of the POW category, but it's still a good idea to know what it is. The practice questions below won't cover this part.

Unfortunately, these do not cover all the types of questions that you will be asked to answer in this category. However, mastering the skills required to answer these will most definitely help you answer all the questions sent your way 😎.

-----

🤗 Tips and Tricks 

📖 #1: Read Everything

This is the single most important thing to remember while answering this section. Do not focus only on what's underlined in the text. You have to read the entire passage to understand what the context is. Test writers expect students to do this, so they add questions that seem correct when out of context but are actually wrong.  With certain types of questions, like sequence questions, you honestly have no choice but to read everything (probably more than once). However, a lot of people panic because of the pressure of time and end up choosing an answer without even glancing at the words directly before and after the underlined portion. This is totally normal and totally okay! But reading everything ensures a higher score because you can quickly answer the question while having a higher chance to get it right.

📋 #2: Prioritize

If you want to maximize the amount of time you'll have left at the end of the English section (you definitely do), prioritization is key. If you keep zoning out, rereading the same sentence countless number of times, or just don't understand what's being asked of you, skip to the next question. Sometimes, you may even need to skip a whole passage. You should especially allot only 30 seconds to sequencing questions because these tend to be confusing and complex, and it's really easy to waste time with these ⏳.

❌#3 Eliminate

Mark up your test and physically cross out answers that contain an error. When you're under stress, it's so easy to get lost in rereading all 4 options. Even when there's one that makes absolutely no sense. Elimination is important when you're coming back to questions you skipped, especially sequencing questions. If you crossed out the obvious wrong options, it's less pressure on you because you'll have less to choose from. This is such a small thing to do, but it truly is impactful. 

Also, do not be afraid to put "NO CHANGE." Never take this option out of consideration because this is how many students get tricked! ☺

🔎 #4 Find resources

ACT resources are very limited, especially compared to SAT resources. If you have money you're willing to spend, definitely purchase an official ACT textbook. However, if you don't want to buy a textbook, there are plenty of other things you can do. Specifically for the English section, read a lot of books, or just official publications. You'll start to pick up on grammar rules, transitions, and organization naturally. The official ACT website provides a practice test, which is something you should take to find your skill level. Also, the SAT Writing and Language section is pretty similar to the ACT English section, so doing practice questions on Khan Academy is a great idea. Finally, social media has a lot more tips and strategies, so following accounts focused on ACT prep will both help you academically and put you into the right mindset.

A general tip for any timed test with a scantron: print out a bubble sheet and make sure to time yourself as you fill out the bubbles. Bubbling time is something that should be accounted for, especially if time is a weak point for you. The official ACT website provides a printable scantron 😊.

✋ #5 Breathe

The standardized testing environment is extremely stressful 😓. It's scientifically proven that stress can reduce your academic performance, so before you begin the ACT, take a deep breath and calm down. Even though this might sound corny, it's a great habit to form and will help clear your brain. Also, do not take the ACT on an empty stomach!! You'll start thinking about food and how you want your stomach to stop growling 🧇. 

-----

Practice Questions

So, what exactly are POW questions? Here are some sample questions below from the official ACT website:

#1 Sequencing

[1] Often, my brother and I joined our mother on her adventures into tidal lands. [2] At the very low tides of the full moon, when almost all the water was sucked away, we found the hiding places of crabs, snails, starfish, and sea urchins. [3] Sometimes we would dig with shovels in the mud, where yellow and white worms lived in their leathery tunnels. (1)

1. Which of the following sequences of sentences makes this paragraph most logical?

A. NO CHANGE

B. 2, 1, 3

C. 2, 3, 1

D. 3, 1, 2

#2: Transition phrases

Bar Codes: A Linear History 

In 1948, graduate students Norman Woodland and Bernard Silver took on a problem that had troubled retailers for years: how to keep track of store inventories. Inspired by the dots and dashes of Morse code, however, Woodland and Silver created a system of lines that could encode data. Called a symbology, the pattern created by the spacing and widths of the lines encodes information by representing different characters.

2. A. NO CHANGE 

    B. in other words, 

    C. consequently, 

    D. DELETE the underlined portion. 

#3 Effective Introduction

(3) Today, there are one- and two-dimensional bar codes using numeric and alphanumeric symbologies. Bar codes are used not only for a pack of gum or an airline ticket, but also for research. In one study, for instance, tiny bar codes were placed on bees to track their activities. Shaping the way we gather, track, and share information, we have almost certainly exceeded even Woodland and Silver’s expectations.

3. Which of the following true statements, if added here, would most effectively lead into the new subject of the paragraph? 

A. In the 1940s, Woodland and Silver were graduate students at the Drexel Institute of Technology in Philadelphia. 

B. Woodland and Silver were granted a patent for their bar code on October 7, 1952. 

C. Bar code equipment has been available for retail use since 1970. 

D. Bar codes themselves have advanced as well. 

Answers, Explanations, and Strategies

#1 Sequencing

A. NO CHANGE

For sequencing questions, you should first figure out where one specific sentence should go. For example, the last sentence should definitely stay last. It starts with "sometimes", and this is usually means that context must be present so the reader can understand why "sometimes" is different from every other time. This eliminates both options C and D (eliminate whenever possible!! ❌). With sequence questions, flow and organization are extremely important. Usually, you start with a main vague idea, then divulge into detail. It's always context first. With that said, the first sentence has very little detail and only introduces the action of going to tidal lands. However, the second sentence gets into detail about these tidal lands and what going to them involves. All three sentences should stay where they are to keep the flow. 

If you have extra time after completing this section, you should prioritize double-checking these questions. Go back and rearrange the sentences (or place a sentence somewhere else, if that's what the question is asking) to make sure that the other options don't make sense. ✔

#2: Transition phrases

D. DELETE the underlined portion. 

Remember: Conciseness is key. Most questions, if not all, look for concise answers. Using a transition phrase is not necessary here, because you're not really transitioning. The only reason there is a comma is because this sentence is technically "backward." This just means that this sentence can be written as "Woodland and Silver created a system of lines that could encode data because they were inspired by the dots and dashes." "Because" is not a transition word because it serves to show reason. With questions like these, compare both parts of the sentence. Can it be rewritten without a transition and still flow smoothly? Is there something that needs to be transitioned, or can it be left as it is? What is the relationship between both parts of the sentence? 👏

#3 Effective Introduction

D. Bar codes themselves have advanced as well. 

This one may be a bit tricky. In your English class, you might've learned that an example of a hook is a fun fact, so maybe you picked Option C. However, remember that it is important to pick an option that is on topic with the rest of the paragraph, flows smoothly into the next sentence, and just makes sense. The next sentence after the introductory one is "Today, there are one- and two-dimensional bar codes using numeric and alphanumeric symbologies." Which option provides the best context for this sentence? By using the word "today", this sentence would have to show the difference between the present and the past. Based on the details that follow, it's definitely a good type of difference. So, which of the options provides a way to highlight the "good difference", or advancement, from the past to the present? Of course, every question cannot be analyzed this way, but you really have to look at the entire paragraph, especially the following sentence, in order to keep the flow, and select an option that flows well. 🌊

A way to keep the flow is to ensure that there is parallelism, especially with a list of words. It just means that a sentence uses a consistent grammatical pattern. For example, "He rode his bike, played with friends, and did his homework." All of the verbs in this sentence are in the same tense, so it flows well and sounds more coherent. "He was riding his bike, played with friends, and then did his homework." This sentence sounds off because "playing" is in a different tense.

-----

Conclusion

That was a lot, but you made it! Hopefully, you've learned what skills you need to master for the POW category of the ACT English section, and are now ready to "pow" your way through this test 💥! Remember, make sure the option you choose is concise and flowy. Pace yourself properly, and if you start overthinking, move on to the next question. Good luck with the ACT, you got this! 👋(●'◡'●)