The Reading Test

Knowing the variety and the amount of reading that awaits you in college, the ACT has included a reading test.

It’s all about your ability to read and understand what you have read.

Prose fiction: novel or story 10 questions

Social Studies: anthropology, archaeology, economics, geography, political science, psychology, sociology, etc.

10 questions

Humanities: architecture, art, dance, film, language, literary criticism, music, philosophy, theater

10 questions

Natural science: anatomy, astronomy, biology, botany chemistry, etc. 10 questions

Each passage is about 750 words (2 pages)

No specific order

Scoring is grouped into (1) prose/humanities; (2) social studies/natural science

Questions are not written to stump, trick, or frustrate you.

Yet, they are not totally transparent either

You will need to read carefully and thoughtfully, being alert to all the facts and ideas they contain.

Everything you need to know is right in the passage.

You might have a slight advantage if you happen to know the topic.

40 multiple choice questions

14 questions test what the passages say explicitly--called referring questions because they refer precisely to what is stated in the passage

The other questions are called reasoning questions: you must reason out by interpreting ideas, making generalizations and drawing inferences and conclusions.

The 10 questions about each passage are arranged according to level of difficulty: easiest questions first, and the hardest last.

The questions ask what the author of the passage thinks and says--- not what the reader believe the author ought to think or say.

TEST TACTICS

Pace yourself

9 minutes per passage

5 minutes reading

4 minutes to answer 10 questions---25 seconds per question

Understand The Test Directions

4 passages with 10 questions each

Fill in the spaces on your answer sheet making sure they correspond

Refer to the passage often and mark it if needed

Decide on reading technique: 3 ways

#1 Read the passage carefully from start to finish. (Takes longer at the start, but allows you to make up the time later)

Don’t try to remember every detail

Ask yourself what the passage is about

Get the general idea in 2-3 lines

After reading, state the author’s main point

#2 Skim the passage for its general idea (Saves time and keeps your mind free of needless details)

Read fast and decide what type of passage

Try to sense what the author is saying

Don’t expect to keep details in mind

Refer to passage as you answer the questions

# 3 Read the questions first , then read the passage (alerts you to the content of the passage)

The questions will guide you in reading

You can check a sentence when you think it is an answer to a question

Concentrate on Paragraph Openings and Closings

Basically consists of 2 or more paragraphs

Except for fiction passages, most will have a topic sentence supported by specific detail

Topic sentence is generally located near the beginning of the paragraph

Sometimes, final sentence will restate main idea (Good check for you!)

Focus on these opening/closing sentences

Use Paragraphs as Clues

Writers generally take pains to organize writing

Paragraphs are used to build the main idea

Usually a logical order, but sometimes written to build suspense or surprise reader

Each paragraph in some way will reinforce the writer’s point

Don’t try to find the main idea of each paragraph

Suspend Your Prior Knowledge

Because all questions are derived from the passage in front of you, all your answers should be too

Cast aside your prior knowledge

Read both the passage and questions with an open mind

Identify Each Question

Referring questions: “What does the passage indicate? According to the passage; The passage clearly indicates; The passage says”

Reasoning questions: “On the basis of information in the passage; Infer from the passage; The passage implies; The passage suggests; Probably means that; One can conclude; The main idea; The primary purpose”

Once you identify the question, you can find the right answer

When referring question, search the passage for explicit material

When reasoning question, perhaps reread the passage’s opening and closing paragraphs and infer the author’s purpose

Answer General QuestionsBefore Detail Questions

General questions will ask you to identify the author’s point of view or the main idea of the passage

General questions can usually be answered without rereading the passage

Detail questions require you to reread for a fact or interpretation of a word or phrase--- this takes time. Be careful of these questions

Do the Easy Passages First

If natural science is your thing and fiction is a problem, find the natural science passage

Keeping track of numbering is IMPORTANT; don’t miss questions because you got off track

If you are equally comfortable with all 4 types of passages, stick with the order of the test

Stay Alert for Switchbacks!

These are the words that alert you to shifts in thoughts--- most common? “but”

“But” can become a trap: “Candidates for public office do not need to be wealthy, but money helps.”

Other words: although, however, nevertheless, on the other hand, even though, while, in spite of, regardless of