ACT Exam Success - Macomb Intermediate School District

[Pages:100]L e a r n i n g E x p r e s s?' s

ACTTM

EXAM SUCCESS

In Only 6 Steps!

?

NEW YORK

Copyright ? 2003 LearningExpress, LLC.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Published in the United States by LearningExpress, LLC, New York.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

ACT success / Elizabeth Chesla . . . [et al.]--1st ed.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 1-57685-436-1 (pbk. : alk. paper)

1. ACT Assessment--Study guides. I. Chesla, Elizabeth L.

LB2353.48 .A293 2003

378.1'6621--dc21

2002015278

Printed in the United States of America 987654321 First Edition

ISBN 1-57685-436-1

For more information or to place an order, contact LearningExpress at: 900 Broadway Suite 604 New York, NY 10003

Or visit us at:

About the Authors

Elizabeth Chesla is the author of TOEFL Exam Success and many other writing and reading guides and test preparation books. She lives in South Orange, New Jersey.

Nancy Hirsch is a writer and education editor in New York, New York.

Melinda Grove is a high school math teacher from New Britain, Connecticut.

Jelena Matic is a doctoral candidate for chemical engineering at Polytechnic University, in Brooklyn, New York. She works as an adjunct instructor of chemistry and has written for McGraw-Hill's Chemical Engineering.

Kurt Haste, Julie Barker, and Carol Ivers are high school science teachers in the Cheshire Public School District in Cheshire, Connecticut.

Contents

CHAPTER 1 Introduction

1

CHAPTER 2 ACT Assessment Study Skills and Test-Taking Strategies

13

CHAPTER 3 ACT English Test Practice

31

CHAPTER 4 ACT Math Test Practice

131

CHAPTER 5 ACT Reading Test Practice

203

CHAPTER 6 ACT Science Reasoning Test Practice

249

APPENDIX Additional ACT Resources

327

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CHAPTER

1

Introduction

The ACT Assessment? is an important exam; so the more you know about it, the better off you will be in the end. This chapter will introduce you to the essentials of the ACT and all of its separate parts.

Part 1: Introduction to the ACT Assessment

Taking the ACT Assessment or SAT exam as a part of the college admissions process is a rite of passage for millions of teenagers across the country and in many parts of the world. It is probably not something you look forward to, but it cannot and should not be avoided for long.

Why the ACT, Why Me? Because of the simple fact that high school standards and quality vary widely, colleges look to standardized tests to level the playing field for all students. Unlike the SAT, the aim of the ACT is to test what you have learned in high school. It is not an "aptitude" test, as the SAT claims to be, nor is it an intelligence test. So if you have taken challenging courses in high school, you have already set the foundation to do well on the ACT. Your score on the ACT is used in conjunction with other factors including grades, application essays and extracurricular activities to help colleges decide on whom to admit. Different schools give different weight to the importance of ACT scores, but a high score can only help you get into the college of your choice.

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ACT vs. SAT

The SAT has gotten a lot of bad press in recent years, and talk has turned to altogether eliminating standardized testing from college admissions. ACT has long avoided much of this controversy, partly because it does not claim to test aptitude or forecast your ability to do well in college--both very subjective factors. For the same reason, many educators and students alike prefer the ACT to the SAT, as they judge it to be a fairer test of students' knowledge.

Subjective opinions aside, there are some concrete differences between the SAT and the ACT: I The ACT tests limited vocabulary. I The ACT tests trigonometry, English grammar, and science reasoning. I All ACT questions are multiple-choice. I Points are not deducted for incorrect answers on the ACT. I Colleges can view all SAT scores, while students can send their best ACT scores.

Who Takes the ACT? If you are planning on attending college, chances are you are going to have to take either the SAT or ACT in order to even apply to almost any school. Historically, the ACT has been more popular with schools in the Midwest and West, while the SAT has been the test of choice for students on the East and West Coasts. The popularity of the ACT all over the country has been growing, in part because it is seen as fairer than the SAT in testing students' knowledge. Today, nearly every college accepts ACT scores and many educators and students alike prefer the ACT because its content more closely matches what is actually taught in school.

When to Take the ACT The first step in preparing for the ACT is to decide on the date you want to take the test. Your application must be postmarked by the registration deadline, and the cost for normal registration is $24 ($27 in Florida and $40 outside the United States), which includes the reporting of your scores to four colleges. If you miss the deadline, you can still take the test, but you must pay an additional fee of $15. If you manage to miss both the original deadline and the late deadline, there is still hope. You can go standby and hope to get a spot by just showing up early (with an extra $40, in addition to the late fees).

2003/2004 Dates For a complete update of future dates beyond those listed below, log onto .

April 12, 2003 Registration deadline: March 7, 2003; late fee applies: March 21, 2003

June 14, 2003 Registration deadline: May 9, 2003; late fee applies: May 23, 2003

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