Official ACT English Guide (eBook)

ACT (Iowa City, IA) is a not-for-profit organization providing assessment, research, information, and program management services to support education and workforce development. Known most widely as the makers of the ACT exam--the college readiness and placement assessment taken by some 1.8 million high school students each year--ACT produces a number of assessments and services reaching more than 10 million people along the kindergarten through career continuum. ACT's rigorous research informs policy decisions and helps develop programs that boost lifelong learning potential in schools and workplaces around the world. To learn more, visit www.act.org.

Introduction ix

Chapter 1 An Overview of the ACT English and Writing Tests 1

The Structure of the English Test 1

Content of the ACT English Test 4

The Content of the Writing Test 7

How to Use This Guide 7

Chapter 2 Taking the English Test 9

Approaching the Questions 9

Checking Your Answers 10

Types of Questions 11

Chapter 3 Conventions of Standard English: Sentence Structure, Formation, and Usage 37

Sentence Structure 38

Verbs and Verb Phrases 38

Indefinite Pronouns 41

Collective Nouns 42

Relative Clauses 42

Using the Relative Pronoun "Which" 43

Which versus That 44

Chapter 4 Conventions of Standard English Concepts and Sample Questions: Sentence Structure and Usage 47

Parallel Structure 48

Correlative Conjunctions 52

Pronouns and Antecedents 53

Sentence Fragments 58

Who versus Whom 61

Run-on, or Fused, Sentences 64

Modifiers 66

Subject-Verb Agreement 80

Verb Tense 84

Chapter 5 Conventions of Standard English and Sample Questions: Punctuation 99

Commas 100

Dashes 120

Parentheses 121

Colons 124

Semicolons 126

Apostrophes and Possession 128

Chapter 6 Production of Writing 135

Topic Development 135

Transitions between Sentences 136

Transitions between Paragraphs 144

Paragraph Placement 149

Conclusion Questions 153

Chapter 7 Knowledge of Language 171

Redundancy 171

Wordiness 178

Word Choice 181

Developing an Ear for Collocations 184

Chapter 8 An Overview of the ACT Writing Test 187

Subject Matter 189

Scoring 190

The Scoring Rubric 190

Chapter 9 The Setup of the Writing Test 193

Introductory Paragraph in the Prompt 195

Perspectives in the Prompt 195

Essay Task Box 196

Planning Page 196

Directions 199

Chapter 10 The Essay Structure 205

Organization 205

Addressing the Counterargument 208

Knowing What is Expected for the Rubric Categories 210

Chapter 11 Writing Your Essay 213

Purpose and Point of View 215

Intended Audience and Tone 217

Prewriting 217

Timing During the Actual Test 219

Revising 220

Basic Strategies for Improving Your Writing 221

Revising Your First Drafts 222

Chapter 12 Strengthen Your Essay with Vocabulary, Writing Mechanics, and Other Strategies 223

Vocabulary 224

Varied Sentence Structures and Punctuation 224

Rhetorical Questions 224

Avoiding Simplistic Thinking 225

Brainstorming about Your Values 225

Building Your Fund of Knowledge 226

Avoid What You Don't Know 227

Chapter 13 Sample Prompts and Essays with Analysis 229

Writing Test: Innovation 230

Writing Test: Students and Sleep 241

Chapter 14 Practice Questions 261

Chapter 15 Answers and Explanations 291

Answer Key 292

Explanatory Answers 293

Appendix: English Test Glossary 363