Let’s face it; standardized tests suck. I’ve always found it to be super ridiculous that so much of a high schooler’s fate in college relies on the scores of these tests like the ACT and SAT. Some students do well simply because they are smart, some do well out of pure luck. And, if you’re like me, you only do well after sweating your butt off.
In total, I’ve taken the ACT five times since December of my junior year. It wasn’t until I took the ACT this past February that I finally landed the score I’ve been aiming for all along. It’s certainly frustrating, but there are so many easy and worthwhile actions students can take to attain the ACT score they desire.
Take the test as many times as you can. Sure, it’s a pain and requires a lot more effort on your part, and having to pay the $30 fee to sign up is a huge nuisance, but it will be worth it in the end. A couple investments of $30 are certainly worth it if it ultimately means you can earn thousands of dollars in college scholarships. Start taking the ACT at the beginning of your junior year, so you can give yourself time before you begin applying for colleges and scholarships your senior year. Don’t expect to be a pro the first few times you take ACT; I started taking it early and it wasn’t until the third time I took it that I felt I had mastered how to take the test itself, thus allowing me to focus solely on the test’s content.
Utilize your resources. Next to the ACT prep classes offered at school, you can use the free practice ACT booklets found in the counseling office, order ACT’s official “The Real ACT Prep Guide” or check out some other test preparation materials on ACT’s official website. I found these things to be of great help. All of them help you improve your test taking abilities, and practice tests also help you pinpoint what areas you need help in. What helped me immensely was scoring my practice tests, reviewing what questions I missed and then asking teachers outside of school time to assist me in those areas. Unless you’re a genius, you can’t expect to get a high ACT score without putting some effort in; your score is solely a reflection of your persistence to do well.
Become a smart test taker. Regardless of how well of a standardized test taker you are, I’ve learned that you can improve your test taking abilities greatly simply by mentally preparing yourself. You’re told a gazillion times to eat a good breakfast, get plenty of sleep and so on – and you should ¬– but what helps me most is to get everything I need for the test ready and gathered in a pile the night before I take the test. Make sure your ticket is printed, your ID is there, you have a couple number two pencils sharpened and your appropriate calculator has fresh batteries. Fill up a water bottle, find a granola bar and some gum (it helps me concentrate a lot better), and place these with everything else by the door so you don’t forget them. The morning of the test, I like to wake up somewhat early so I’m not rushed. If I’m in a hurry, I get stressed out, which gets my morning off to a negative start and brings down my ability to perform well on the test. A motto I like to follow is “dress well, do well.” Avoid rolling out of bed and showing up to the testing center in sweatpants feeling like a slob. I’ve found that feeling good about my appearance makes me feel much more confident in myself and tricks my mind into thinking I’m more capable of doing well than I am.
Try taking the test at a different school. One of my highest ACT scores was from the test I took at Olathe Northwest, and I attribute this to the lack of distractions present. Testing in a room at school in which I’ve had a class freshman year often leads me to start reminiscing about good ol’ memories, and having friends from school in the testing room makes me want to turn around and talk to them about our weekend plans. Taking the test at a school you are unfamiliar with forces you to focus on the ACT and nothing but the ACT.
Take challenging high school courses. What has helped me immensely was taking English teacher Kristen Crosbie’s AP Language and Composition class. English and reading have always been my stronger suits in high school, yet through this challenging course, Ms. Crosbie helped me improve my abilities in this area far greater than I thought was possible. In this class, we took many practice English and reading ACT tests, and Ms. Crosbie definitely put a lot of emphasis on helping us get better at taking them. As I came closer to completing this course, I saw my English and reading scores skyrocket. Taking hard courses like these give you the opportunity to not only become smarter, but also learn how to take tests under more difficult circumstances.
Having attained the score I’ve desired, I can now be fully confident in my decision to be done taking the ACT, as I recognize I have truly given it my all. Although one might think I’d be burnt out after taking the test five times, I actually had the opposite reaction. Each time I took the test and received a score I wasn’t satisfied with, my determination to receive a higher score increased massively. It practically became a high for me to take the test again and again in order to see how much I could raise my score. While it probably sounds like I belong on TLC’s “My Strange Addiction,” what I’m trying to illustrate is that with the right preparation and persistence, the ACT no longer has to be seen as the dreaded standardized test of doom, but a challenge that one is eager to defeat.
