HS Spanish Guide

ACT English Test Connections with Utah Core State Standards

Questions & Answers

1. What determines student success on the ACT English subtest? The skills measured on the ACT English subtest extend across grade levels. Students begin studying the foundational rules of usage, punctuation, and sentence composition in the early grades. In the upper grades, students hone these skills as they compose sentences and paragraphs with more complex structures to convey more sophisticated ideas. Students’ ability to manipulate language for different purposes, audiences, and styles is crucial for communicating their ideas effectively. 2. Did you know that the ACT has separate sections for English and reading? The ACT assesses English and reading separately. The English section consists of five essays or passages, each of which is accompanied by a sequence of multiple-choice questions that ask students to revise or edit the passage as needed, measuring their mastery of usage, mechanics, and rhetorical skills. The reading subtest blends text from four major disciplines and measures students’ ability to read closely, discern key ideas, analyze craft and structure, and integrate information. 3. Did you know the ACT English subtest covers three major topics and six separate skills? The English subtest is a 45-minute test with 75 questions divided into three major categories: Production of Writing (e.g., organization, cohesion, and topic focus), Knowledge of Language (e.g., rhetoric and style), and Conventions of Standard English Grammar (e.g., sentence structure, usage conventions, punctuation conventions) . 4. When should we begin preparing students for the ACT English subtest? Early grades are incredibly important to a student’s academic journey. In the elementary grades, students learn the foundational rules of usage and mechanics. In fact, many of the ACT benchmark standards for English are aligned to Utah Core State Standards found in the elementary grade levels. For example, the English benchmark standard USG 302 Ensure straightforward subject-verb agreement is aligned with a Utah standard found in grade 3 ( 3.L.1.f Ensure subject-verb and pronoun-antecedent agreement ). Please note: This document is intended to highlight connections between the Utah Core State Standards and the ACT College and Career Readiness Standards, but it is not an exhaustive document that details every standard or every connection. Many of the ACT standards are aligned to the Utah cornerstone standards, which spiral through each grade level. Instead of listing every applicable standard, this document may list the cornerstone standard, when appropriate, or a single grade-level standard as an example. For instance, the skill assessed in the ACT standard SST 201 Determine the need for punctuation or conjunctions to join simple clauses is encompassed within the Utah standards L.1 and L.2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking, and demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. However, the skill is also referenced specifically in a grade 4 standard ( 4.L.2.c Use commas before coordinating conjunction in a compound sentence) .

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