The SAT tends to be seen as an immutable barrier that all students must overcome before getting into college. But standardized testing is a business, and the College Board has its own motivations behind maintaining the status of the SAT as the definitive test for college readiness.
In this article I'll take a look at SAT history, its successes and failures, its motivations, and how it might evolve in the future.
Like most ACT Science questions, Interpreting Experiments don’t require you to understand the hard science behind the experiments. Instead, these Interpreting Experiments questions will give one interpretation of part of the passage and ask you whether that interpretation is true or not, using the data from the experiment. These questions have a predictable pattern to the question and answers, which you can use to your advantage.
In this article, I'll cover the general format of Interpreting Experiments Questions, solve several ACT Science practice questions, and provide ACT Science tips to answer these questions.
Many students struggle with ACT Science. Students, who came to me for tutoring after taking their first official ACT test, typically performed worst on this section. It is very fast and unlike any other science test. This section more than any other is about pacing and strategy. I was able to boost my ACT Science score 5 points with a few tips. So, what simple tips and tricks can you use to boost your ACT Science score right now?
Every day you have a plan: whether it’s going to school or the movies. You make plans if you don’t already have a plan. Scientists / Researchers are major planners and control-freaks (get it science nerds?).
The ACT Science section asks you to figure out what that plan was and how it could hypothetically change. These two types of questions are typically found in Research Summaries Passages.
Interpreting trend questions can sometimes feel like looking into a crystal ball and predicting the future. Thankfully, no psychic powers are necessary to answer these questions. These questions do require you to interpret the data you are given, going beyond the basic factual questions. Interpreting Trends questions only appear in Data Representation and Research Summaries Passages. For more information about these types of passages and the other types of questions, check out the 3 types of ACT Science passages.
Think of the Conflicting Viewpoints Passages as a debate: two or more parties state their conflicting beliefs. Sometimes they agree on one point but disagree on others. Conflicting Viewpoints Passages present this argument and expect you to identify the Scientists’/Students’ beliefs and the similarities and/or differences in beliefs.
There will only be 1 Conflicting Viewpoints Passage on the ACT Science section (out of 7 total passages). It can appear at any point throughout ACT Science. To read about the other types of passages, check out our article on the 3 Types of ACT Science Passages.
ACT Science is really a misnomer. The test should be called the “reading with very confusing big words and tricky visuals” section. The reason ACT Science does not force you to memorize AP level Bio or complete IB Physics HL problems is that not everyone takes all of that math in high school. For ACT Science to be a fair standardized test for all high school students, the test asks you about basic science concepts in tricky or confusing ways.
If you're one of those people who runs away from Math and Science Questions or considers themselves a writer or artist rather than a scientist or mathematician, do not fear! You can still get a 36 on ACT Science.
In these questions, math meets science. You might be thinking, “Wait, but the ACT Science section doesn’t let you use your calculator!” This is true! And this means the ACT Science questions that require calculations will only require very simple math that you can do by hand or in your head.
Calculation questions require you to find a specific value based on the figures provided. However, the value will not be shown in the figure. Using the information you are given, you will need to predict what would happen past the edges of the graph or between values on a table. In this article, I'm going to cover interpolations and extrapolations, along with tips and realistic ACT Science practice questions.
No one likes to make mistakes. However, you cannot ignore the questions you miss, or you will not improve. In this article, I will help you figure out the mistakes you are making on ACT Science questions, and I will give you some ACT Science tips and ACT Science strategies to fix your mistakes.
We've written at length about the June 6 SAT misprint snafu and SAT testing center problems. Our SAT experts who took the SAT on June 6th noted major problems in how the test was administered, leading to potential imbalances in test performance and equality.
Pronoun case is a grammar rule that tends to be broken by most English speakers. Perhaps of more concern to you, questions that test your knowledge of pronoun case often appear on the ACT. Master this rule and you'll be one step closer to mastering the ACT English section.
There are multiple pronoun rules that are tested in ACT English. This one is relatively straightforward and tends to be tested less often than ambiguous antecedents or pronoun antecedent agreement. However, if you are aiming for that 30+ score, you should be ready if you encounter a pronoun case question.We get to add to our grammar knowledge. Get excited! Parallel structure questions on the SAT Writing section are fairly common. Fortunately, parallel structure is a somewhat easy to comprehend grammatical rule. Once you understand the rule, you should be able to correctly answer any parallel structure question on the SAT.
So, let’s master another rule and boost your SAT Writing score with these tips and strategies.
Idiom questions on the SAT are different than most of the other grammar questions. Why? Idiom questions can't be figured out by applying a specific rule. You have to rely on your general knowledge of English and your familiarity with certain phrases. Because you’re likely to encounter a couple of idiom questions on the SAT Writing and Language subsection, I’ll provide you with some information about idioms that should help you raise your SAT score.
Idiom questions on the ACT are different from the other grammar questions on the ACT. Why? Idiom questions don’t conform to specific rules. You have to rely on your intuitive grasp of English and your familiarity with certain phrases.
Because you’re likely to encounter at least a few idiom questions on the ACT English test, I’ll provide you with some information about idioms that should help you raise your ACT English score.
The format of the ACT English is pretty weird and unusual, compared to most of your high school English tests. If you want to succeed on this section, you have to know how to approach its unique passage-based structure.
"And how," you ask, "do I do that?" Always, always, have a plan.
In this guide, I'll show you the best way to read and answer ACT english questions when you attack the passage. These strategies come from my experience working personally with nearly a hundred students. You should apply them in your own ACT English practice to help you prepare thoroughly for test day.
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Holly R.
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