I just took the 2015-2016 practice ACT an did very well on all the parts except English. I also took the New SAT and the the writing part was my lowest by far. How easy is it to study the grammar for the ACT and SAT English/Writing parts? And what books are the best to study for? Also, how similar is the ACT practice test to the real thing?
Thanks
The new SAT format will not have a writing section and will have an optional essay.
The New SAT has an English part that is based on grammar.
Writing is really easy to correct. There are certain grammar rules you need to know.
ACT English and SAT Writing and generally the easiest and fastest sections to improve. There is only a limited number of rules to learn. For ACT English, you also have to learn rhetoric more in-depth too (transitioning, essay organization, fulfilling specific tasks like “which of the following best conveys a specific sense of physical pain?”) than for SAT Writing. You also have to learn more punctuation for the ACT.
However, knowing the grammar rules is not enough. Too many of my students can explain the rules perfectly to me, yet they still get questions wrong. That’s because they are relying too much on their natural ear/eye to hear/see the error. They are not being systematic enough about rooting out the error so that there’s no chance of falling for careless traps.
If you use officially released ACTs as practice, then they are identical to the real test because they were once real tests given to real students. But if you use Princeton Review or other prep books, then they may not be so accurate. The ACT has been slowly changing their recent tests though, so older tests may not be entirely accurate anymore.
For example, the new reading section now contains dual passages (much like the SAT’s combo passage). And the science section used to have 7 passages, but for the past few ACTs, there have been 6 passages. Also, starting in Sept 2015, the ACT will have a completely different essay format (you get 40 minutes now too instead of 30).
@USPanther Really? I didn’t know that. In that case, I would recommend looking into Erica Meltzer’s SAT Grammar book. I did not use it, but I have heard great reviews.
ACT English is very easy to improve. I found that taking multiple practice tests constantly did not necessarily help raise my English grade, but fundamentally learning the grammar rules did. You absolutely NEED to get this book: it’s called Erica Meltzer’s Guide to ACT English. It’s kind of pricey but definitely worth it if you want a good English score. I literally read it in about 4 days, and I was able to raise my English score from a 28 to a 35. Good luck!
Maybe I’m a bit late 
But I found that correcting my mistakes helped me more than actually getting questions correct. That way you start learning grammar rules that you could’ve forgotten just by reading them online. It stays with you because the fact that you got it wrong makes you remember. Also taking a break for about 1-2 weeks helped me. I kept on getting 27-28 on English and was very frustrated. After I took a break my english score skyrocketed up to a 34, I just got a 33 from the one I did yesterday. Hope I’m not late and I hope that this will help you