ACT Exam 33 Questions with Verified Answers
Difference between normal testing and the ACT - CORRECT ANSWER ACT requires understanding a set of
... [Show More] standardized rules and patterns, then recognizing those patterns and rules in action and responding accordingly on test day, in a highly repetitive way.
Normal testing requires memorization of the material in advance and has a different skill set than that of the ACT.
The ACT must have one definite, airtight answer. Normal testing, however, sometimes promotes abstract answers in different forms.
Similarities between different ACT tests - CORRECT ANSWER - Consistent basic structure
- Same format of questions
- Same concepts tested
- Tests the same ideas with different content
- Questions always have to follow the same rules and patterns, in the exact same ways, on every test.
- Must yield to the same strategies; learning these is very beneficial
General knowledge about the ACT - CORRECT ANSWER - Doing well on the ACT isn't the same as doing well on a normal high school test.
- Every question on the ACT must be airtight.
- The ACT has to be the same in all thewa ys that matter every time it's administered.
- You must always and only use real practice ACT questions to prepare for the ACT.
Biggest weakness of the ACT - CORRECT ANSWER The multiple-choice ability is a weakness to untrained test-takers but an advantage for ones that have experience.
One important tip that should be followed - CORRECT ANSWER ALWAYS read each ACT question completely, including the answers choices, before starting to figure out the answer.
Most people read the question, answer it, and see if it matches what is on the multiple-choice. This is inefficient as the answer choices contain valuable hints and information used to get the correct answer.
Example of tricky wording - CORRECT ANSWER Explanations provided in the red book start out by saying "the best answer is. . ."
This makes someone reading the passage think that the answer is more right than other answers, even though in fact every other answer has to be objectively wrong.
Why ACT explanations are misleading, and sometimes even wrong - CORRECT ANSWER The explanations do not follow the format of the test and instead take the reader onto a misleading route that can assist in getting questions wrong
For example, an explanation may lead you to think that you need to know something in order to get the question right. But the answer will lie in the passage itself.
How reading section explanations are misleading - CORRECT ANSWER ACT's explanations for reading questions usually makes you think that someone has to be interpreted or outside knowledge is needed, but the answer will always be in the passage.
How math section explanations are misleading - CORRECT ANSWER ACT's explanations for math questions usually fail to point out the most direct and efficient ways to answer questions. Sometimes, common sense can be used, such as considering the scale of a diagram.
How science section explanations are misleading - CORRECT ANSWER ACT's explanations for science questions are incredibly formal, using large science words, even though background knowledge on things like these is not necessary.
How english section explanations are misleading - CORRECT ANSWER Uses tricky wording like "clear" and "understandable" to make you think the wrong answer choices were only less right, even though it has to be objectively wrong on the ACT.
Things to do in order to review already answered questions - CORRECT ANSWER Take a second, third, or even fourth look at the question and really re-analyze it, thinking about what makes the right answer right and what makes the wrong answers wrong, and how go to get to the right answer as quickly as possible.
Why third-party practice is bad - CORRECT ANSWER Does not necessarily follow the format of the ACT, sometimes being harder than the actual ACT practice tests. Can easily break the rules that the ACT follows.
The best way to hit a target score on the ACT - CORRECT ANSWER Master what you're already good at instead of trying to improve your weak spots (works unless you're trying to get a really high score)
This is because the higher your score, the more individual questions count towards raising it
How to train for the ACT - CORRECT ANSWER Apply the strategies of the walkthroughs to when you actually take the test
Reread the walkthroughs to get comfortable with the ACT mechanics
How to track progress of the test - CORRECT ANSWER Track based on understanding of the test
Get a general understanding of each section of the test by looking at sample questions
Know how to recognize, not fix mistakes at FIRST
After recognizing, you need to know how to fix them (i.e read more carefully, pay attention to quotation marks, etc)
Must eventually avoid mistakes in the first place
Goal is to only make mistakes if there is a concept that you are not aware of
Why training reading first is good - CORRECT ANSWER Skills from reading apply to every other section, even math
Basic way to solve math questions - CORRECT ANSWER 1. read question
2. figure out what basic math concepts are necessary
3. apply concepts
How to prepare for each section of the book - CORRECT ANSWER 1. know the patterns and strategies for that section
2. read the walkthroughs for the section
3. work on some questions on your own using drills
4. apply techniques to ACT questions by yourself
Semi Structured Stare and Ponder - CORRECT ANSWER 1. find question in the Red Book
2. take time to read and think about the question including the answer choices, passage, diagram, etc.
3. think about the right answer and everything else going on in the question
4. ask why the writers did things the way they did (why something was worded the way it is, why was every wrong answer included, what mistake is it trying to get you to make, how someone can mess up the question, etc.)
5. ask what rules it follows and how they could be found in following questions
point is to ponder on and think about every possible aspect of the question based on what you already know
if you got it wrong, think about the aspects of how you got it wrong
goal is not to get question right, but understand the structure
Practice and a Postie - CORRECT ANSWER Reviewing your practice work after taking the practice test
not just checking answer key, but going through missed questions and asking why you got them wrong
"what stopped me from being certain about the right answer?"
should take as much time as you spent doing the questions
The "Shortcut" search - CORRECT ANSWER requires the right answer already, meaning it is best used with questions that have already been completed
the point is to try and find all of the shortcuts that would allow you to get to the answer quicker
point is to use and exploit these shortcuts as much as possible during practice and the real test
What would make it right - CORRECT ANSWER Look at wrong answer choices and ask what would make it right. For example, if something was multiplied by 2, it would be right, etc.
Understanding your mistakes - CORRECT ANSWER The key to improving is to understand clearly what you did wrong. At face level, you think you do not know the concept, but it could easily be lack of execution of patterns on the ACT, or a simple mistake.
Biggest difference between ACT and normal testing - CORRECT ANSWER The ACT punishes basic mistakes way more than normal testing. A school teacher may give you partial credit for an answer that you miscalculated, or not really care if you described someone that is unhappy as desperate (even though it is not always true). The ACT, however, does not care how close you are. You need to find in the answer in the text, and you need to not make mistakes when doing so.
Three important things to know when answering a multiple choice question - CORRECT ANSWER 1. each question is worth 1 raw point regardless of how hard it is to you
2. all questions follow a certain set of rules that you can use to get the right answer
3. answer everything question as there is no wrong answer penalty
FIrst pass - CORRECT ANSWER do all the easy questions and skip ones that you think will take more time to solve/you do not know how to solve
Second pass - CORRECT ANSWER do all the time consuming questions you skipped before, leaving problems you cannot solve with the other problems you cannot solve from the first pass.
Third pass - CORRECT ANSWER try doing the rest of the problems, and if you really cant do them then guess the answer. You should get to guessing if there isnt a time for a third pass.
General gameplan for each section on the ACT - CORRECT ANSWER 1. first pass (answer questions that you have certainty on doing fast)
2. second pass (do questions skipped in first pass that you think you can solve given more time)
3. try to do all skipped questions
4. recheck work of questions you did in first pass
5. guess on questions you skipped in the third pass
NOTE: it is a good idea to mark questions so you know if you did them with confidence (1st) pass, if you need more time (2nd) pass, etc.
Fixing most timing issues in the ACT - CORRECT ANSWER find different ways to face the question. Some people do it the academic way as they would in high school and simply try to get faster at the methods they use on the ACT, but you should instead find a faster shortcut.
Why you should read the entire question and all of its answers before trying to solve - CORRECT ANSWER Gives you more information, and is a great way to help you catch your mistakes. If you get more than 1 answer that seems like it is correct, you can use methods and strategies like answer-choice patterns to find the correct one.
It is also useful for each section, because it allows you to form ideas and perhaps even get an answer without doing calculations. The answer choices should be treated as a system of ideas -- they all relate to each other in some way.
The vertical scan - CORRECT ANSWER One of the ways you can read the answer choices of a multiple choice question; it is useful when all of the answers are similar in one way, such as 5 similar inequalities with different signs. Reading horizontally should still be an idea however, as questions in sections will not always be similar.
Basically scan the questions up to down and split all 5 questions into columns in places where they differ, such as the inequality sign in 5 similar inequalities. Then note these differences and use it to your advantage. [Show Less]