<p>I know very little about the ACT beyond people saying that lots of kids do better on the ACT than the SAT. And that most colleges will take those scores in lieu of SATs.</p>
<p>It seems that my son should test higher on the SAT than he is ... and I am wondering if it's worth trying the ACT in April. He does seem to focus on the 'guessing penalty' for the SAT and therefore leaves too many answers blank.</p>
<p>How do the two tests differ? How should he prep? He'll be prepping for the SAT in March -- and then there's a few weeks before the ACT. He'll be on school vacation two of those weeks, so he'd have time to do a little prep.</p>
<p>Get the official ACT practice guide and just do a couple tests. The ACT is so much easier. For example, I got a 35 on the ACT, and took the PSAT later and only got a 218...according to the conversion guide, I should've gotten about a 235.</p>
<p>Some kids do better on the ACT, and some better on the SAT. The ACT math section has a few trig questions (I have been told 4 per test, but I don't know if that is a fact). Lots of test takers say that ACT has less tricky questions, so it is a bit more straight forward, but time constraints are a problem, so you must work more quickly. It seems as though without practice a lot of test takers have trouble finishing the sections. I have heard that English is easiest to complete within the allowed time for most students. Science seems to be about reading graphs and charts, although there is always one reading section. They say that you do not need prior science knowledge. On the last couple of tests some students said that science knowledge was needed, or at least helped. The English section seems to be closest to the SAT's writing section. The writing consists of an essay to write and a writing prompt is given. The ACT is a bit shorter. A lot of test takers say the best way to study is by taking the tests in the Real ACT book (put out by the ACT, I think), and some kids like the Princeton Review after they complete the Real ACT book. Many like Barrons bc they say the tests are a bit harder than the actual test.</p>
<p>Downside IMO is that most schools do not superscore the ACT (take the highest seating), but they will superscore the SAT. Some schools apparently convert the ACT score to an SAT score for admisions/merit awards/financial aid determination.</p>
<p>My S did much better on Sat, but chose to take both because we heard some do better on one than the other. It was true in our case. Be sure not to automatically send scores to prospective colleges. Wait to see what you get then send scores.</p>
<p>We found most colleges accepted the "conversion" of test scores, so if one test scores way higher, then you can probably just submit that one!</p>
<p>My D1 did much better on the ACT because she's one of those people for whom fatigue really did come into play. For that reason alone, we're having D2 take both.</p>
<p>Try both and then choose one and don't fret. For my D the ACT was a much better test (and it is shorter, does not penalize a guess, and is just more straightforward.) I also think the administration/integrity of the ACT organization is better--but that is certainly subjective on my part. Very few schools insist on the SAT anymore and usually it is a requirement re SAT subject tests. ACT scores can be converted to SAT equivalents and vice versa.</p>
<p>S (who is not a good test-taker) is going to take both the March SAT and April ACT. Whichever one he seems more comfortable with he'll probably retake in June, so as to have a couple of scores under his belt. And as younghoss said, we're not going to be sending any of the scores yet, but rather waiting to see how it all turns out.</p>
<p>ACT was easier for my D. She got better score. ACT would be easier than SAT for slow reader with high comprehension, because science can pull the total score up, since it is just a slow reading. SAT does not have science.</p>
<p>Son just took the ACT on Saturday. He said the science was horrible. He has not taken the SAT yet but is thinking now that he will concentrate on SAT since the science section was, to him, impossible. Maybe he will change his mind after we see the scores. He thought that the writing and reading were really easy. I guess we will see when the scores come.</p>
<p>Each of my 3 kids got almost exactly the same score, when translated, on both.</p>
<p>Pacing is everything which is why practice tests are so crucial. My oldest, who hadn't studied or done a prep class, went up 200 points on his second SAT one month later, just from the experience of taking the test.</p>
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I also think the administration/integrity of the ACT organization is better--but that is certainly subjective on my part.
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<p>It is indeed subjective because I have never had any kind words for the administration of the ACT, which I find absolutely dismal and non-consumer friendly. As far as the test goes, I (still) consider the ACT as being a poor cousin of the SAT. However, that is entirely irrelevant, as students should try both tests. Of course, one limitation is that there is hardly any **valuable **preparation material available for the ACT. </p>
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It seems that my son should test higher on the SAT than he is ... and I am wondering if it's worth trying the ACT in April. He does seem to focus on the 'guessing penalty' for the SAT and therefore leaves too many answers blank.
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<p>Fwiw, I think that it would be a good idea to identify the reasons behind the lower than expected scores. The guessing penalty of the SAT should NOT be a crucial element since the answer to that is that students should be able to answer almost EVERY question without having to guess, and work towards that goal by developing techniques that do not really on guessing. In addition, many "lower-than-expected" scores can be trackerd directly to wild and uneducated guessing.</p>
<p>I would recommend taking the ACT but mostly concentrating on improving the SAT with a dedicated preparation.</p>
<p>While I don't usually disagree with my cyber-friend xiggi, I do believe that the ACT is more administrative-friendly than is the SAT, but that this is just on the margins. For example, the ACT will allow you to change test dates online, but Collegeboard requires you to call. Again, a small nit.</p>
<p>However, I do feel that the SAT questions are 'cleaner' in that the correct choice IS correct, and there are reasons that every other question is incorret. I've seen some ACT questions where a second choice is arguably correct in a small % of cases; yes, the second choice maybe less correct the the Book answer, but it ain't always wrong.</p>
<p>I think that bubbling errors are more common than most suspect and could account for some of large score swings and occasional surprising lower scores. Skipping a question, intending to return to it later, can ruin an entire section if the test taker isn't careful about filling in the right bubbles. The technology of these tests can actually be problem, because the test questions are on one paper and the answers are marked on another.</p>
<p>Sometimes a test taker will realize something is off during or immediately after the test and can get the problem fixed, but otherwise you need to look closely at the reported results to see what has happened. Then to correct it you need to get hand-scoring done. You may need to pay for the test booklet option to be able to see if there has been a bubbling error -- forget what option is called and it's not available for all tests, but it is always worth ordering where available.</p>
<p>My D found the duration of the SAT to be tiring, and she didn't like flipping back and forth between reading and math type sections. She liked the ACT better and did better on the ACT. Try the ACT, especially if your kid is good at math. My daughter did well after one ACT practice test (free, at the library).</p>
<p>My DS took the ACT as well as the SAT because his big interest is science and he wanted that perfect science ACT score. Also, the counselor in his west-coast high school said that midwest schools preferred the ACT.</p>
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While I don't usually disagree with my cyber-friend xiggi, I do believe that the ACT is more administrative-friendly than is the SAT, but that this is just on the margins. For example, the ACT will allow you to change test dates online, but Collegeboard requires you to call. Again, a small nit.
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<p>BB, have the good people at the ACT changed the manner in which someone registers for a second test? Have they dropped the asinine online survey one needs to fill for each registration? How many OFFICIAL tests does the ACT organization release per year? </p>
<p>However, do not get me wrong ... I would happily overlook those little details if the organization were to invest more resources in developing a better test that would not be lacking in integrity. My main beef with the ACT is that their questions are NOT as straightforward as they could be and that that organization makes no effort whatsoever to correct their ridiculous labeled "science section." </p>
<p>Perhaps they could call it Science Fiction! :D</p>
<p>When colleges look at SAT scores, they see math, CR and essay scores.
S2 took the ACT and did very well on the english and reading parts, and not so well on math and science (which pretty much mirrors his class grades as well). He will retake it in the spring.
My question is: do colleges carefully consider the scores broken down by section, as is often the case with the SAT, or are they just interested in the overall scores? Whenever we see data for admitted students, it always just lists the composite score.</p>
<p>Does anyone have experience with a test called PLAN? Our school is billing it as a pre-ACT and I'm wondering if it will be useful in the same way as the PSAT is as a predictor for the SAT.</p>