ACT Reading

The ACT reading section measures the reading comprehension skills of a student. The reading section for the examination has four prose passages with multiple choice questions based on the passage. It begins with the general questions before going in for the detailed ones. You can always come back to hard questions later rather than wasting time with them. Don’t waste time sticking to one hard question for a long time. Always read through the passage thoroughly before you answer. Mentally work out possibilities and make notes if necessary. Pay utmost attention to story and the characters involved for fiction passages. Relate events in the passage and also characters too. Compare your thinking and this will help you find the right answers. The topics are varied and can be anything from

  • Social studies
  • Natural sciences
  • Fiction
  • Humanities

The division of questions is as follows

  • Prose Fiction: novels, short stories – 10 questions
  • Humanities: art, music, dance, Architecture, theater, philosophy – 10 questions
  • Social Sciences: sociology, psychology, economics, political science, history, anthropology 10 questions
  • Natural Sciences: biology, chemistry, physics, space science, earth science – 10 questions

The reading passages are given in a way that the easier ones come first and the harder ones come later on. There is no specific order in which these passages are placed. The passages are usually taken from books, articles or any publications of interest. The reading section is divided into two sub-sections and hence the scores are also sub-scores.

ACT Reading – Arts and Literature

This sub-section is based on Arts and Literature. It measures the students’ performance level in arrears of

  • Prose
  • Fiction
  • Humanities

ACT Reading – social studies and sciences

The students knowledge and know-how on subjects like social studies and sciences are tested through passages in the English section.

Score retrieved in these sub-scores play an important role in the composite score evaluation.

First go through the passages given thoroughly and don’t waste time in this. Get a vivid idea of what the ACT English passage is all about. For questions involving graphs and tables, concentrate on the passage clearly. If the answers are based on numerical calculation don’t waste time by using longer methods of solving them. All the questions asked are based on

  • Understanding
  • Psychoanalysis
  • Estimations