<p>I AM HELPLESS IN THIS SECTION!! Please help me learn how to prepare for the science part...I am desperate!</p>
<p>mm … this section has always been a problem for all kids (unless you are science genius) and the thing is that missing a few brings down the score a lot. </p>
<p>what i’d do is just do a lot of review and practice tests with it. and also, pay attention a lot in your science classes because having those constant diagrams, graphs, pictures, and what not can directly help you prep for the test. </p>
<p>that’s all i have to say about it.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t necessarily say that science geniuses will score best at this. The content itself, I find quite easy, but what brings me and many others down are the time constraints. It’s about pacing yourself - you have to skim the paragraphs (you almost don’t need them) and focus on the graphs. I didn’t do this when I did the practice test because I was new to it, but if you read lots of science magazines then you might get used this format of reading and understanding.</p>
<p>My advice is don’t read the passages except in the conflicting view point section. It allows for more time to do the questions. Look to the right graph for the answer. This strategy got me a 34 on my first time.</p>
<p>No, you don’t have to be “a science genius” to do well on this test. It tests your reading and graph comprehension skills, and is less of a measure of your generic science knowledge (Chemistry, Biology, Physics, etc…) Never read the entire section. Read questions, refer to graph/table, and repeat. Pace yourself so that you have an adequate amount of time for the comparative viewpoint section. This section actually requires you to read the articles. (The battling scientists portion.) I got a 36 on the Feb. science section.</p>
<p>you don’t have to be any type of genius to do well on any part of the ACT/SAT/AP tests.</p>
<p>i haven’t took physics yet and my act is in april. am i in trouble?</p>
<p>I wouldn’t worry too much. </p>
<p>Checklist:
[ ]Can you read graphs?
[ ]Can you read tables?
[ ]Can you read?</p>
<p>No, but in all seriousness, the test doesn’t test your science knowledge at all, every question can be answered from the tables/graphs/paragraphs. It is, despite what anyone else tells you, a reading/graph comprehension test. However, some base knowledge could help you read the graphs faster.</p>
<p>thank you.</p>
<p>What you really need to work on is your speed in comprehending graphs and tables. It’s not really science. It’s interpreting vague science concepts using illustrations basically, and the time constraints are the killers. </p>
<p>Work on perfecting a skimming and quick interpretation technique. That’s what I’m working on the most. Forget it’s even labeled “science.” Practice according to the format and time limits.</p>
<p>Depending on what class you are in, I would take double science classes if I were you. Even though it’s all comprehending graphs, you can’t tell me physics and chemistry can’t help. I’m a sophomore and got a 31 in the math section because I was taking two math classes. Now I’m going to take physics and honors chem so I should raise my science from a 27. Noneheless, everyone needs some luck so good luck :). And sorry for any typos, on iPod lol.</p>
<p>Galib, most likely, taking physics and chemistry will have little to no impact on your science score. Again, practice on speed reading and technique.</p>
<p>Im not sure if someone has said this already but, the science test used to be called the Science Reasoning test. I took a course through Kaplan ACT prep and they said, honestly, you dont need anything beyond BASIC scientific knowledge to take this test. They said pay careful attention to the GRAPHs and the UNITS of Measurement. Some girl in the class increased her score from a 20 to a 30 just by paying attention to the units of measurement. Also, practice is key. Take a TON of practice tests. I have taken so many english practice tests that its not so much a test to me anymore, its more of a challenge. I went from a 25 to a 34. Just practice, pay attention, relax, say a few prayers and I think you should be set. haha</p>
<p>Background knowledge helps confirm your answers. For instance, I’m in AP Chem and Bio, and several of the questions dealt with topics I was pretty familiar with. I still needed the graphs of course, but it was comforting to at least know what the concepts at least were (and I knew some without even looking it up.) Science definitely has a big intimidation factor on the test since they throw a lot of big, unnecessary, words at you.</p>
<p>yeah i hated the science part until my friend gave me this advice:
tackle the questions ONLY, and ignore all the unnecessary info. </p>
<p>before, i would always read into things, and over-analyze graphs and get stuff from it that i didn’t even need to know for the ACT. but i guess if you just read the question and interpret what it asks you to, you should be fine, just watch your timing</p>
<p>The science section doesn’t actually test science skills. As everyone is saying, it’s mainly comprised of just graphs…I got a 33 on the science section in 8th grade without knowing what the hell anything was; I basically walked in blindly and interpreted the graphs as best as I could. Ignore the science and just look at the pretty pictures. It will help.</p>
<p>This section used to screw me up too, and I used to get below 20 on it. Now I’m up to mid-twenties, here’s what to do:</p>
<p>Do not even look at the information. The question always refers you back to where the information you need is. From there it’s simple graph and table deciphering. XD</p>
<p>hmmm I have the same thing… what did you do to get from a 24-34?? thats crazzy!! (david C)</p>
<p>I got a 33 on the Science, first try. Don’t read any of the prologue information, just the question itself, and its corresponding graph. That’s all there is to it. Don’t think about it, because you’ll over think and do poorly.</p>
<p>I’m usually one of those people that advocates reading the whole passage before answering any questions. I totally abandon this idea for the ACT (well, it’s obvious that reading the whole passage is useless on the writing section, I mean for the science section). I took a practice test (the one that comes in the registration booklet) last week. At first I was reading the whole science passage prior to answering the questions. This made the questions so hard! Finally, against my guy instinct, I stopped dreading the passages. I read the questions, looked for the answer, checked off the answer, and moved on. I did considerably better on those two passages than the first two passages I did. Try this on a practice test and see if it works for you. I never would have thought…</p>