How to Write a Top-Scoring ACT Essay

In the fall of 2015, the ACT underwent quite a bit of a change. The single prompt and response essay task of the past was  replaced by a single, somewhat controversial prompt with three different perspectives on the Enhanced ACT Writing Test. The ACT writers also started including probing writing questions and pre-writing space to help inspire thoughtful, organized, and analytical essays by ACT test-takers across the United States. So, how do you nail this thing? How do you ensure a top score on the ACT Essay? Well, first, go back and read through the Enhanced ACT Writing Test details and click on a few of the writing prompts so you know what Im talking about below. Then, get back here and keep reading.  Ã‚   Enhanced Writing Test Expectations Your essay will be graded on whether you can complete these three tasks: â€Å"evaluate and analyze† the given perspectivesâ€Å"state and develop† your own perspectiveâ€Å"explain the relationship† between your perspective and those given 1. Critique as You Read the Prompt (5 minutes) Read the prompt with your pencil in your hand. Evaluate means to judge or critique and analyze means to break down into parts. So, basically, youre going to need to find the strengths and weaknesses of the initial argument and the three perspectives quickly before you write anything. Here are some easy ways of doing just that: Underline the premises of each perspective. Premises are the statements that present the evidence.  Since President Jones raised taxes on businesses, business owners have had to fire employees because they cant afford to pay both.Circle the conclusions of each perspective. Conclusions are the claims the perspectives are making. Its what they say will or did happen because of the premise.  Since President Jones raised taxes on businesses, business owners have had to fire employees because they cant afford to pay both.Poke holes in each perspective as you read. Familiarize yourself with logical fallacies like post hoc, appeal to pity, etc., so you can accurately determine if the logic is sound within the perspectives.   Some perspectives will be logically inaccurate and you can use that as fuel for your own ideas. (Do business owners rely on the President for all financial decisions? Where is the personal responsibility of management? Fiscal responsibility? The President is not r esponsible for a small business owners poor budgeting skills.)   Create alternatives instead of the conclusions offered by the premises. (Instead of firing people, business owners could reduce bonuses, stock options and salaries of top executives. Instead of firing people, business owners could offer buy-outs to dissatisfied employees as incentives to leave voluntarily.) 2. Create a Supportable Thesis (1 minute) Now that youve thoroughly evaluated and analyzed the initial issue paragraph and each of the three perspectives, its time to state your own idea. Its important that you come up with a firm thesis or main point, here. Your perspective may completely agree with an offered perspective, partly agree with a perspective, or be completely different. Whatever the case, you must choose. You may not, under any circumstance, write an essay where you waffle back and forth between agreeing and disagreeing and end up saying nothing at all. 3. Sketch a Quick Outline (10 minutes) Heres where you get organized so your essay develops your idea and explains the relationships between your perspective and others, both of which youll be scored on. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP. Youll dip into your personal experience, knowledge and values to prove your points. In your quick outline, youll scratch out where those points will go so you have a roadmap for your essay. Youll also make sure to add in the strengths and weaknesses of the given perspectives, adding in that analysis and evaluation you did when you read the prompt.   It does not have to, but your outline could look something like this: Introduction with thesis A. Point 1 which strongly supports my thesis. My support for Point 1 - development of your ideaHow Perspective 3 supports Point 1 with a strong argument, but Perspective 2 potentially weakens it until you realize that Perspective 2 is using faulty reasoning.   Ã¢â‚¬â€œ explanation of the relationship between their ideas and yours B. Point 2 which strongly supports my thesis. My support for Point 2 – development of your ideaHow Perspective 1 opposes Point 2, but Perspective 1 fails to consider my stellar personal experience and values. – explanation of the relationship between their ideas and yours   Conclusion with challenge 4. Write Your Heart Out (25 minutes) Go for it. Take your outline and dig deep into the task using your very best language and grammar. Vary your sentence structure and language. Make your introduction stand out. (For heavens sake, dont start with a question.) For the body, present just two arguments instead of the standard three youre often taught in the five-paragraph-essay format. Why? Because you need to get into those perspectives to present counterarguments, implications and complicating factors. Youll need to use facts, experience, and authority. Logic. Appeal to emotions. Youll need to move between general statements and specific reasons, examples and details with transitions. You simply do not have enough time to do all that for three separate ideas! 5. Proofread (4 minutes) Try to set aside a few minutes at the end of your essay to proof your essay. I know its tough, but youll save yourself some points if you catch a major logical flaw and have a chance to rewrite a few sentences.Youll be scored on your  ideas and analysis, development and support, organization, and language use on a 2-12 point scale. Ensure you get every point you deserve. Practice Your Essay There is no better way to prepare for this exam than by practicing for it. Try a few of these prompts with your timer on so you know what youll face on test day.   Enhanced ACT Writing Prompts

Animal Testing The Best Option For Medical Progress Essay

Most arguments in favor of the use of animal testing for scientific use lead to the benefits it has for humans. Animal research has contributed to virtually every major medical advancement - for both human and veterinary health. From antibiotics to blood transfusion, from dialysis to organ transplantation, from vaccinations to chemotherapy, surgery and joint replacement, virtually every current treatment, cure and restraint of disease is based on understanding attained through research with lab animals. For example, dogs and fish were used for the development of insulin, which is now able to help control diabetes. The House of Lords Select Committee, the Parliamentary Animal Procedures Committee and the independent Nuffield Council on Bioethics all agreed that testing on animals is a scientifically sound method, has developed great results and is important for future advances (Pro-Test). Animal testing is viewed as the best option for medical progress, since it has had much success i n the past. Robert Koch, a Nobel prize winner, conducted experiments on animals and stated, â€Å"Think you’re in the running for a future Nobel prize in medicine? You may want to consider using animals in your studies†¦ More than two-thirds of all nobel prizes in medicine have been awarded for discoveries that involved animal research† (Hayhurst 21). Animal testing was essential in the development of many life-saving surgical procedures that were once unimaginable. With the medical advances throughShow MoreRelatedThe Horror that is Animal Testing 970 Words   |  4 Pages do you know what animals have gone through to get it on the shelves? It is something we’ll never have to imagine going through, so why should animals? Animal testing is not necessary. Animals simply don’t have a choice if they want to be experimentd on. 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Clinical trials are essential to developmentRead MoreAnimal Testing Should Be Banned2359 Words   |  10 Pages Animals Save Human Lives Mahatma Gandhi, preeminent leader of Indian independence movement, once said that â€Å"the greatness of nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.† In the light of it, animals rights have been dealing for a long time in means of morality. It is not a surprise that animals are engaged many parts of human as animals have been live with human from the beginning. Beyond whether animal testing is right or wrong, animal testing should beRead MoreH1N11606 Words   |  7 Pagesenvironmental samples that cause threats to the public’s health. Has a filling between 51-75% in laboratory IDHS policy-making as it assumes all risks of human testing, animals, and the environment to determine pesticides, pollutants and all the dangers to which humanity is exposed through routine testing. For the assessment of progress, there have not yet been developed exercises and tests to check the capacity of the laboratory, but these critical activity requirements still work. QuantitativeRead MoreThe Pros and Cons of Animal Testing2973 Words   |  12 Pagescabinet has been tested on an animal at one point or another. A government funded corporation called the Food and Drug Administration, abbreviated as the FDA, is in charge of making sure that all drugs, cosmetics, biological products, and more are efficient, secure, and safe for human usage. The FDA will not allow any drug to be released or sold to the human population if it has not first been tested on animals. In fact, when a drug is first created it is tested on animals before humans are even allowed

Paintball Essay Thesis Example For Students

Paintball Essay Thesis Paintball Misrepresented SportWhen you here about paintball in the news, its always a story of someone losing an eye or committing a crime. Is this what paintball is about? Definitely not!Lets first start off by saying, that accusing the sport of paintball, for criminals vandalizing property with paintball markers (They are actually classified as markers, not guns, because they mark people, like in a game of tag), is like blaming the sport of baseball, for people that fight or injure people with bats. Its like accusing football for encouraging people to fight. Of course though, football is never blamed for that. Some people also would like to say that paintball is too dangerous, and people get injured way too often because its unsafe to play. The fact is, those people couldnt be more wrong. Paintball requires a mask to be worn on all public fields. Neck protectors and vests are also optional if you feel like it. Most people would probably be surprised to learn that players and referees take extra care to make sure that all the players are safe in a game. National averages even show that paintball has a lower injury rate than bowling and golf!So how did those kids in the news loose an eye? Simple, they didnt wear the right protection and were probably playing on their own field, without refs and proper marker testing. Playing paintball without masks is the equivalent of playing tackle football with pads and helmets, which means someone could get hurt. Is football ever criticized for severe injuries? Almost never. So why should paintball be any different?So, before you decide to criticize pain tball, first go to you local field (here in Utah, you can go to Paintball Planet or Army Navy Surplus) and try a game. Then create your opinion. Most people who go actually find it very fun. It gets your adrenaline pumping and has a frantic (but fun) feel to it. It also has some value. Playing the game a lot develops excellent hand-eye-coordination, teaches teamwork, trust, and careful planning. Some people will still criticize it, and say that paintball is not a sport. If it isnt a sport, then how come it is played in over 20 countries, and holds many tournaments including a World Cup?If you want to find out more about paintball, you can find many sites on the Net, ask a local ref (or player), or pick up a magazine like Action Pursuit Games. In conclusion, please judge paintball carefully and play a game or two; you might have fun. Words/ Pages : 422 / 24