5 Things to Know for the ACT Writing Section

Now that you've made it to the ACT Writing Section, you'd like to know how to do your absolute best on test day. That's awesome! However, the first thing we recommend you do is make sure that you are aware of what is expected of you in this section of the ACT. If you are not, don't worry, you can check out this helpful guide. Once you've gone through that, or if you already know what to expect, jump into the following tips that will help you crush the ACT Essay 💯!

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📝 1. You DON'T need a template!

Some students fall into the trap of writing in a strict template format for timed essays. While loose templates and formats can be helpful, you can score a perfect score without a template of any sort. Templates often lead to students writing in a formulaic and ultimately boring manner. If you want to convey your argument as effectively as possible, it will likely not be able to fit into an exact format. So, be flexible! Sure, using a general format for your essays is definitely not a bad idea, but don't get locked into writing in a cookie cutter format that will cloud your argument and potentially hurt your score. Every prompt is different, so every essay should be as well!

📖 2. Evidence is Key

As you write your essay, it is extremely important that you back up your claims. Otherwise, the graders won't know why they should believe you. For example, if I were to say that chocolate ice cream is better than vanilla ice cream and leave my argument at that, I wouldn't convince anyone of the validity of my opinion because I've only established that I prefer one over the other. However, if I explain why I believe chocolate tastes better, or how it might be more environmentally friendly, or how polls indicate that most people prefer it (these were just examples; none of them are necessarily accurate), then you'd be much more likely to agree with me or at least see where I am coming from with such an opinion.

Given the importance of evidence as explained above, it's important that you know how to go about integrating it. Ultimately, evidence should drive your argument, meaning that your overall claim (thesis) and subclaims (topic sentences) should be based on the evidence you are familiar with that contributes to your perspective. To be clear, your perspective should be evidence-based. An evidence-based perspective is stronger than a perspective you choose before finding any evidence to back it up.

Also, know that you won't be expected to be able to cite academic articles or any specific sources for that matter. On the other hand, having evidence in the forms of common knowledge, facts your are aware of, logical extensions of arguments, hypothetical outcomes, etc. all can serve as a strong base of evidence for the ACT essay.

Image Courtesy of The Blue Diamond Gallery.

📚 3. Examples are awesome!

Think back to the best lecture, argument, speech, or even textbook chapter you've ever heard or read. Odds are that if you can think of one off the top of your head, it used plenty of examples. Take, for example, Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have a Dream" speech. Part of its incredible effectiveness came from his references to his children and his hopes for how they will be treated. Instead of simply saying that policies were unfair as a blanket statement, he listed some of them out and explained how he would never want his children to be treated how he or other African Americans were at the time. The key thing to note here is that he believes the same thing whether he explains his perspective using the blanket statement or the specific examples, but the specific examples get to the core of the "Why?"; they humanize the sentiment that is articulated by the blanket statement, strengthening the argument.

Notice what I did right there to convince you of the power of examples? I used the example of Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech. So, if you're convinced by that, you should be convinced of the power that examples can have on the effectiveness of an argument. They make your argument real and enable your audience to feel and understand it more clearly, giving them more reason to believe you and to agree with you, meaning your argument is ultimately stronger and more effective. That's why we highly recommend that you employ them in the ACT Writing Section!

💬 4. You are NOT graded on your opinion

It is extremely important for you to know as the writer of the ACT essay, that you are not graded on the opinion/perspective you share in your essay. Rather, you are graded on your ability to articulate your opinion compellingly through engagement with perspectives, nuance, development of ideas, strong organization, and rhetorical skills according to the rubric. So, while you are trying to convince your grader of your perspective, you will not be punished for voicing a perspective just because the reader does not agree with you. 

Knowing that, you should argue what you believe based on the perspectives provided and the knowledge and evidence you have at the ready in your mind.

🧠 5. Your perspective should be complex!

A lot of what you will do in your essay will be agreeing/disagreeing with the given perspectives and explaining your rationale for your opinions. This means that there is no correct answer but that there is room to do better or worse based on how clearly and effectively you articulate your perspective. 

A clear perspective will almost inevitably agree with some perspectives and some parts of others and still no parts of others. This means that with three given perspectives, you might agree with one perspective 20% and another 85% and the remaining one 45%. You won't be able to completely agree with all three since the perspectives will conflict with each other, and it is very unlikely you will completely disagree with all three, as they will cover the main perspectives. So, it is likely you will be mediating, bringing different parts of different perspectives together and explaining the shortcomings of other parts, carving out why your perspective makes the most sense.

Avoid oversimplifying the essay to make it easier and truly represent your perspective. Odds are, this will result in you writing a coherent yet complex essay that tackles a number of nuances, ultimately making the essay both more interesting to read and more compelling.

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Conclusion

Keeping these 5 things in mind among others as you practice and take your ACT Essay will help you to do your best work. Nothing beats practice though! So, great work making it through this guide, keep it up, and happy studying 🥳!