A.C.T. English test

Content of the English Test 45 minutes to read 5 passages and answer 75 multiple-choice questions. This averages 15 questions per essay. Designed to measure your ability to accomplish revising and editing decisions. They test your understanding of the conventions of standard written English.

Two Categories Usage/Mechanics – punctuation, grammar and usage, sentence structure. Rhetorical Skills – writing strategy, organization, style.

What it is not You are not tested on spelling. You are not tested on definitions, but rather word choice. You are not tested on grammar definitions, but rather asked to find a mistake and fix it. This is not a memorization test. All topics and questions are side-by-side for easy reference.

Usage/Mechanics Questions Focus on the conventions of grammar and usage, punctuation, and sentence structure and formation.

Punctuation Questions involve identifying and correcting the following misplaced, missing, or unnecessary punctuation marks: Commas Apostrophes Colons, semicolons, and dashes Periods, question marks, and exclamation points

Punctuation Questions not only address the “rules” of punctuation but also the use of punctuation to express ideas clearly. In many punctuation questions, the words in every choice will be the same but the punctuation will vary.

Grammar and Usage Questions involve choosing the best word/words in a sentence based on the conventions of grammar and usage. These include: Subject and verb agreement Pronoun and antecedent Adjectives and adverbs with corresponding nouns and verbs Verb forms Pronoun forms and cases Comparative and superlative modifiers Idioms

A Note on Pronouns Usually questions have to do with either: Using the proper form and case of the pronoun A pronoun’s agreement with its antecedent. *In this case, you MUST consider the entire sentence or the even the prior sentence.

Sentence Structure Questions involve the effective formation of sentences. This includes dealing with relationships between and among: Clauses, placement of modifiers, and shits in construction.

Clauses Includes: Subordinate or dependent clauses Run-on or fused sentences Comma splices Sentence fragments

Placement of Modifiers Misplaced modifiers – the description is given to the wrong noun or verb. Example: “Snarling and snapping, Juanita attempted to control her pet turtle.”

Shifts in Construction Shifts in verb tense or author’s voice. Shifts in pronoun person or number.

Rhetorical Skills Questions focus on writing strategy, organization and style.

Writing Strategy Questions focus on the choices made and strategies used by a writer in the act of revising an essay. Questions ask you to make decisions concerning the appropriateness of a sentence or essay in relations to the following: Purpose Audience Unity Focus Or the effect of adding, changing or deleting material

Organization Questions deal with the order and coherence of ideas in an essay and the effective choice of opening, transitional, and closing statements. This may be the most logical order for sentences within a paragraph or paragraphs within an essay. You may also be asked about the most logical transitional phrase or statement.

Style Questions involve effective word choices in terms of writing style, tone, clarity and economy. Sometimes a phrase or sentence that is grammatically correct is still poorly written. Sometimes a word or phrase clashes with the tone of an essay. This section asks you to eliminate poorly written, ambiguous, excessively wordy, redundant or awkward.