ACT case studies
ACT · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The ACT is a college admissions test taken by high school students and used by U.S. colleges in admissions and scholarship decisions. The ACT case studies are 5 cases and about 2,447 words.
1The Run-On That Isn't
A student is revising this sentence for an ACT English passage about urban beekeeping: "The hive inspection went smoothly the beekeeper noted that the colony had stored nearly forty pounds of honey before the first frost." The student's first instinct is to insert a semicolon after "smoothly," producing: "The hive inspection went smoothly; the beekeeper noted that the colony had stored nearly forty pounds of honey before the first frost." A classmate argues this is wrong because "the beekeeper noted" sounds like it should be joined with a comma, and that semicolons should only appear in lists. The student also wonders whether "smoothly" should be followed by a comma instead, since it is an introductory adverb.
476 words, about 2 min2When Rounding Changes the Answer Choice
A pump fills the tank at a constant rate of 22 cubic feet per minute. To the nearest whole minute, how long does it take to fill the tank completely?
515 words, about 3 min3Two Readers, One Passage
A Reading passage describes a biologist, Dr. Okonkwo, who spent years arguing that a certain songbird's population decline was caused by habitat fragmentation.
496 words, about 2 min4Reading a Data Table Under Time Pressure
A Science passage presents a table of enzyme activity (product formed, in micromoles per minute) at five temperatures for two enzyme variants, X and Y: Temp (°C): 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 Variant X: 2, 8, 15, 9, 1 Variant Y: 1, 5, 12, 14, 3 A question asks: "Based on the table, which statement is best supported?" Choices: A) Variant X has a higher optimum temperature than Variant Y. B) Both variants show maximum activity at 30°C.
469 words, about 2 min5Choosing a Position Under a Word Limit
A Writing prompt asks students to argue whether their school should replace its traditional letter-grade system with a pass/fail system for senior-year courses. The essay must take a clear position and address a counterargument.
491 words, about 2 min