The ACT & SAT: A Comparison 4/9/15

What’s The Difference? SAT is more of an aptitude test, testing reasoning and verbal abilities ACT is an achievement test, measuring what a student has learned in school. We have seen College Forward Students tend to do much better on the ACT.

Test Format SAT Critical Reading: 2) 25-min sections and 1) 20-min section Math: 2) 25-min sections and 1) 20-min section Writing: 1) 25-min section, 1) 10-min section, and 1) 25- min essay ACT English: 1) 45-min section Math: 1) 60-min section Reading: 1) 35-min section Science: 1) 35-min section Writing: 1) 30-min essay

Test Style and Scoring SAT tricky, questions can be phrased in ways that make them difficult to decipher Math, Critical Reading, and Writing scores will each range between a ; total SAT score ranges between ACT straightforward, questions may be long but are usually less difficult to decipher English, Math, Reading, and Science scores will each range between Composite ACT score is the average of your scores on the four sections; ranges between 1-36

Penalty and Difficulty Levels SAT yes – you lose ¼ of a point for incorrect answers (except on the grid- in math questions) SAT = Stop And Think questions increase in difficulty level as you move through that question type in a section (except reading passage questions, which progress chronologically through the passage) ACT no – you do not lose points for incorrect answers ACT = Always Complete the Test difficulty level of the questions is random

When are these Tests Offered? SAT seven times per year: January, March or April, May, June, October, November, December ACT six times per year: February, April, June, September, October, December

ACT English Strategies & Practice

Basic info English is ALWAYS the first section of the ACT 5 prose passages 75 questions 45 minutes Which allows you 9 minutes to read and answer all questions per passage.

What does it test? Usage and Mechanics 40 questions total Usage and Mechanics questions are testing your ability to recognize errors in and the best usage of punctuation, basic grammar, and sentence structure. Rhetorical Skills 35 questions total Rhetoric: effective and persuasive use of language. Rhetorical questions are testing your ability to analyze language and choose the most effective way for the author to communicate with the reader.

ACT Math Strategies & Practice

ACT Math Section: What’s In It? The ACT Math Section is comprised of: 60 Algebra, Geometry, and Trigonometry Questions in 60 Minutes 14 Pre Algebra Problems Numbers, Linear Equations, Simple Probabilities, Simple Statistics 14 Plane Geometry Problems Angles, Line Segments, Triangles, Quadrilaterals, Polygons, Circles 10 Elementary Algebra Problems Polynomials, Exponents, Quadratic Equations 9 Intermediate Algebra Problems Rational and Algebraic Expressions, Inequalities, Logarithms, Sequences, Matrices 9 Coordinate Algebra Problems Graphs, Linear Equations, Assorted Curves 4 Trigonometry Problems Sine, Cosine, Tangents

ACT Math Section: How Do I Solve It? Pace Yourself: 60 questions in 60 minutes provides you roughly 1 minute for each question If you’re struggling with a question: circle it, move on, and return to it later Solve the Section In 2 Go-Arounds: Your first time through the test, do the problems you know how to do! The second time through, do the problems you think you know how to do! Running Out of Time at the end of a section… Make an educated GUESS Use Process of Elimination to give yourself better odds Double, Triple, Quadruple check your answers if you still have time! Use your booklet as scratch paper Using the booklet allows you to come back to a problem you may have skipped as well as providing insurance in case you become confused/blank Make sure you’re filling in the ovals that correspond to each question If not, it won’t matter how hard you’re trying

ACT Math Section: Calculators A calculator is permitted on the Math Section You will have to provide your own calculator for the exam I highly encourage you to borrow a calculator for the exam if you don’t have one. Having a calculator will help ease your stress and save you time Plus the more you practice with a calculator, the more comfortable you will feel using it! Permitted Calculators: Any four function, scientific, or graphing calculator except for… TI-89 or TI-92 *Use your calculator Wisely

ACT Reading Strategies & Practice

ACT Reading Basics 40 questions, 35 minutes. 4 passages with 10 questions each. 8.5 minutes per passage. Passage types: prose fiction, social science, humanities, and natural science. Each passage is approximately 750 words, with every 5 lines labeled.

Types of Passages Prose Fiction Usually excerpts from novels or short stories, but could also be from poetry. Social Science Can cover a variety of subjects ranging from anthropology to economics to politics. All the subjects that might be covered in a social science passage have to do with the ways societies and civilization work. Most of them have a political context. Humanities Cover cultural matters, particularly in art and literature. Usually written analytically or journalistically (sometimes can be an excerpt from a personal essay.) Non Fiction. Natural Science Non fiction, Discuss scientific topics., These passages present scientific arguments/ experiments and explain the reasoning behind them and their significance.

ACT Science Strategies & Practice

The Quick Details for the Science Section This is the last section of the test (Minus the writing section) How many passages are there? 7 Passages How much time do you get? 35 Minutes How many questions? 40 Questions

Content Earth Sciences (geology, meteorology, oceanography, astronomy, and environmental science) Biology (cell biology, botany, zoology, microbiology, ecology, genetics, evolution) Chemistry (properties of matter, acids/bases, kinetics and equilibrium, thermo-chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, and nuclear chemistry) Physics (mechanics, thermodynamics, electromagnetism, fluids, solids, and optics) The subject of the content doesn’t really matter, it’s all about the data provided. This is basically reading comprehension II.

Types of Questions Data Representation Questions– These questions will require you to read data from graphs and tables and draw inferences based on this data. Research Summaries– These questions will require you to understand the way experiments are designed and what they prove. Conflicting Viewpoints– These questions will require you to understand an observable phenomenon discussed in the passage and be able to explain the varying viewpoints (i.e. differences and similarities).