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* NOTE: This article appears in the 2019 Private School Handbook.
“Remain calm.” That’s the first bit of advice in the official ACT prep guide—a directive you might also find in a pamphlet on how to handle an encounter with a bear. Stress can make you rush or cause confusion, the test guide explains, so keeping a cool head is essential. It’s fitting advice for high school students, but staying calm is just the first step.
1. PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT.
Washington University professor Andy Butler is an expert on memory in educational environments. Although he says summative tests such as the ACT and SAT have a lot of moving parts, many of the same test-taking strategies apply. His first bit of advice: Practice time management and understand the format of the test. Knowing what to expect can help you focus on the actual content. “It’s important, because you don’t want to get in there and be distracted by things that aren’t on the test,” says Butler. Practice tests can also help you recall the information in different ways. “The things that you repeatedly practice retrieving come more easily,” he says.
2. SET GOALS.
Last year, students in public schools statewide scored an average of 20 on the ACT, according to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. At Saint Louis Priory School, the average was 32. Although none of Priory’s courses is taught to the test, 50 to 60 percent of the school’s juniors take prep courses before trying the ACT for the first time. “Just psychologically and emotionally, it’s better for our students and families to do better on their first or second sitting,” says Priory associate headmaster Jared Rashford. He recommends that students and parents figure out early the college of choice—be it a state school, a private university, or an Ivy League institution—and know the target score. “We want our students to do well in the college admissions process,” says Rashford, “but we also want them to be well wherever they end up.”
3. GO TO THE SOURCE.
Although Missouri stopped paying for juniors to take the ACT in 2017, most juniors still take the test. Like other testing companies, the ACT offers test prep booklets, sample questions, and practice tests on its website. There are also free daily questions to help students understand the test’s format. Most schools offer additional resources.
