I took the ACT this past February, and I was foolishly unprepared to say the least.
I won’t go through the list of excuses I hold, but rather I’ll explain the ways in which I was not ready to take the exam (feel free to skip through).
I signed up for the exam in January, and forgot the test date until the Wednesday before the exam.
**I did not study, review, or consider any material to help achieve the highest score for myself.
I could not find my calculator to bring to the test day.
I was recovering from the flu.
I didn’t know the format of the test (I had never taken the ACT or SAT, and I did not look over the formatting).
I assumed that I would have more time than I actually did (I only finished 32/75 questions on the English portion, and the other parts held similar fates).
I thought I would receive a formula sheet.
I was not taking my anxiety and ADHD medicine (of which I was recently prescribed).
I even forgot to bring a pencil to the testing room.
All in all, I was not ready to take the February ACT. Since then, I’ve organized many aspects of my life, school included. I am taking the ACT again in April as it will be required to all juniors of my high school. I believe that with some work I can boost my “not-trying-so-hard score” of a 25 to something that will accurately portray my abilities of a student–30 or above.
How could I go about studying and preparing for the ACT? What are effective tools that I can use to my advantage to score a 30 or higher on the test?
My question is open to discussion. I will take into account all advice, and hope to achieve my goal. Thank you.
I was overwhelmed my first time in December but worked hard all of February for my school’s test. I got a 26C 26E 24M&S 30R in December and didn’t get my results for March 3rd yet.
What I did was work hard with practice tests to familarize myself with the sections. I focused primarily on English & Math though as they were the easiest to improve upon since Reading & Science is basically comprehension. Before I did anything, I took a timed English & Math to mimic the environment. Quiet with a #2 pencil on the ACT answer sheet. I used Princeton’s Review 1,296 questions and multiple ACT practice tests. http://wannabe-blairwaldorf.■■■■■■■■■■/post/111423077788/act-masterpost
Make a study schedule and put aside time everyday for a practice section with a diagnosis after. Time yourself for each section. It’s very important to go through your answers and explain why they were wrong. For English, seperate Mechanical from Rhetorical skills - write down rules you forgot for Mechanical & write down what you should keep in mind during a passage for Rhetorical. For Math, REDO THE PROBLEM - you’ll improve so much rather than writing down a formula. You’ll be able to point out predictable concepts. Also, make a Excel sheet or Google Sheets with your scores to keep track of improvement. I used lined paper to write my answers as well for my diagnosis so they were easily stored in a binder. A week before your test, go over what you commonly missed. I used Barron’s ACT 36 and made flashcards but you could also use Sparknotes ACT prep & other online resources. Also, go over a section with a friend and talk them through it. The day before my ACT, I went through a Math section with an ACT released practice test. I did each problem and explained them without checking the answers. I finished the rest at home & after checking all the answers, I ended up getting my highest score of 30.
Good luck on your test!
My daughter and her friends who took the test a second time all had scores that increased by at least two points. They didn’t do much to prep for it. They felt that just being familiar with the test made a difference. Since you want to increase your score by 5 points, I’d recommend that you work your way through a practice book or two before you take the test. It does sound like you were a bit of a mess on testing day and I think just by having yourself together you’ll be able to bump up a couple points. Good luck!
@Fourthmom I think you’re right, thank you for the advice. Hopefully I will have a better grip on the test this go round. It’s going to be held at my school this time, and maybe a more familiar environment will also help.
@kerrycake I have made a schedule to study for this test, which should help balance out my time between the ACT and AP exams. I’m going to take a practice exam as you said to gauge what I need to study. I will be taking it April 28th, and I hope I wont have to take it again!