Reading

This section gives me an obscene amount of anxiety. I can’t fathom reading 4 passages and answering 40 questions in 35 minutes. I’ve taken the ACT numerous times and unless I’m very lucky, my composite drops because of this test.

I’ve tried every strategy under the sun, from reading each passage in-depth before answering to skimming first to not reading entirely and searching question by question. Nothing works. To get my dream composite of 34 (have a 32 currently), my reading must be consistently high.

A friend recently told me to try this in an effort to save time (which I struggle with the most): On any question where you know you won’t be able to confirm the correct answer from two possible choices, just pick the most general one and move on. Supposedly, I’ll have more time this way in the end considering I won’t have wasted time on a hopeless endeavor. Granted, my friend doesn’t fare much better than I do on this test, so I’d like other opinions about this strategy or ANYTHING anyone can come up with.

Much appreciated, and thank you guys in advance.

I wouldn’t recommend the general strategy because the most generic answer usually is too vague. Likewise, the most specific answer (on questions where it may ask you about the passage in whole) isn’t usually correct either.
The best way to improve your reading is to read books. Lots of them. Be familiar with reading about different subjects and different author styles. Second, the test will ask you the same type of questions involving main idea, details, author style/opinion, etc, and having those in mind as you are reading the passage will help you out a lot.