Tutoring Plan for a 34+ on the ACT

California is an SAT-centric state. Students start with the PSAT and naturally progress to the SAT. That means that California is also a reading comprehension-centric state, since the redesigned SAT is known for difficult Critical Reading passages, tricky vocabulary questions, and complicated word problems.

The ACT, on the other hand, is a test of speed and accuracy. Reading is involved, but most students struggle with simply finishing on time.

Since it's easier to improve speed than reading comprehension, my students tend to improve about twice as fast on the ACT as they do on the SAT. Consequently, if you want an elite score of 1520+ on the SAT, consider going for the equivalent 34+ on the ACT instead.

Here's the plan I follow with students who want elite ACT scores:

ACT English

ACT English requires two skills: punctuation  and vocabulary. It's similar to SAT Writing, but it doesn't have any vocabulary questions, and you get less time per problem.

Punctuation is straightforward to learn. The ACT recycles the same kinds of English questions over and over again, and if you practice the rules, you'll eventually get all of the questions right.

You'll need to bring in your ACT Reading skills to do questions involving adding/deleting sentences, modifying phrases to make them more relevant, and putting sentences in order. ACT Reading is easier than SAT Reading, so you might need to study a little harder for ACT English to compensate.

If you need an elite score of 34+ on the ACT, we'll set your English goal at 34 or higher.

ACT Math

ACT Math is a race against time. Students often tell me that they could do almost every problem on the test if the time limit didn't exist.

Paradoxically, the time crunch can work in your favor. Almost everyone feels rushed, so ACT Math often has a lenient grading scale. If you increase your speed a little bit, your score will go up dramatically.

Because the ACT is a standardized test, it has to use the same kinds of tricky questions over and over. After some practice, the test will seem more familiar, and you'll be able to work faster.

Every ACT Math question is multiple-choice, and you can always use a calculator. Once the problems start to seem familiar to you, you'll often be able to eliminate three or four of the five answer choices and pick your answer in less than ten seconds. Getting through the first two-thirds of the Math section this way will leave you with plenty of time to tackle the hard questions near the end.

Because the Math section has a generous curve, more of my students score at a perfect 36 than on any other section of the ACT.

ACT Reading

I regularly see students get large, quick score gains on the Reading section. The passages are all eighth-grade level, unlike the SAT's historical-document passages, and the questions themselves are also easier.

The problem with ACT Reading, as with the other sections of the ACT, is limited time. Fortunately, everyone else is struggling with the same problem, so if you practice to increase your speed and accuracy, your score will go up faster than you think.

Obtaining background knowledge is another way to read faster. A passage about Louis Armstrong will be much easier to work with if you know something about jazz, for example. If you regularly struggle with the fiction and humanities passages, read novels and biographies. If you'd like to improve on the social science and natural science passages, read the economics- and science-related articles in Newsweek and The Wall Street Journal.

If you want an elite 34+ on the ACT, go for a 35 or 36 in the Reading section.

ACT Science

Every time I open a scientific journal, I have the same feeling you probably get with ACT Science: "What am I supposed to do with all these charts and tables? How am I supposed to get through this article in a reasonable amount of time?"

The fact that an M.S. from Stanford feels this way should encourage you. ACT Science passages are taken from cutting-edge research that even tenured professors have to work to understand. Everyone feels challenged, even students who get perfect scores. Small improvements in speed will eventually put you in front of the crowd and within reach of the scores you want.

The answers to ACT Science questions are in the passages, but having background knowledge will still help you find information in those passages more quickly. If you haven't had biology or chemistry in high school, you may want download a science podcast or pick up a related book at the library.

I teach note-taking techniques that will help you avoid information overload on the test. If you need a very high score on the ACT, shoot for a 34 or higher in the Science section.

It's possible to achieve large score gains on the ACT if you're organized and disciplined. I've hand-picked the best ACT books on the market to help you do just that. 

While you're at it, see how some of my current students are doing!