The ACT Writing Test is changing! The old essay, according to the ACT, was “an exercise in classic persuasion,” while “the enhanced ACT writing test presents students with a rhetorical purpose that is more broadly argumentative.” What does this mean? Essentially, the old essay prompt presented students with an issue relevant to them and their experiences, such as whether classes should be separated by gender or whether teenagers should be required to engage in community service. In 30 minutes, students had to plan and write an essay that took “a position” on the question, using concrete examples to support that position and considering (and rebutting) any opposing viewpoints.
The new essay’s task is slightly more involved. It presents students with a much broader issue, one relevant not just to teenagers but to humanity as a whole. The sample prompt the ACT has released is found here and asks students to think about “the implications and meaning of [intelligent machines’] presence in our lives.” With that broader prompt come three perspectives on the issue, which students are meant to address in their essays. The new essay’s instructions are as follows: “analyze and evaluate the perspectives given, “state and develop your own perspective on the issue,” and “explain the relationship between your perspective and those given.” Students can fully or partially agree with one or several of the perspectives or disagree entirely. “Whatever the case, ” the prompt tells us, “support your ideas with logical reasoning and detailed, persuasive examples.”
While the new essay seems to expect more from students than the old one, the good news is that the new essay actually gives students three ideas to work with in their body paragraphs. Furthermore, while the old essay was 30 minutes long, the new one is 40 minutes, offering students a whole ten minutes extra with which to plan and write!
Lastly, it’s important to consider the new scoring rubric, which you can see here. The rubric focuses on four main areas: ideas and analysis, development and support, organization, and language use and conventions. Make sure you spend some time reading and understanding the rubric, so you can best deliver what the markers are looking for.
As always, we’re here to help! We’ve got tips on how to ace the new writing test and have several sample prompts your student can practice with. We would love to work with your student in strengthening and shaping his or her writing. Your student can join us in our ACT summer boot camp, come to some of our weekend prep sessions, or book a one-on-one session with our Writing Coach and ACT Instructor, Marisa.
For more information about our programs, please refer to our calendar or contact the front desk at info@options-wp.chhdev.com or (604) 922-8456.
