Now lets look at Body Paragraphs 1-3 and the “Development and Support” section, which reads: Development of ideas and support for claims deepen insight and broaden context. An integrated line of skillful reasoning and illustration effectively conveys the significance of the argument. Qualifications and complications enrich and bolster ideas and analysis.
First, let’s look at good transitions. The quality of transitions matters, as you want your essay to be different from other people’s essays. 90% of people are going to say “in conclusion”, first, second, third, etc. Don’t do that. Have pre-planned transitions for each paragraph. Some good transitions include: One school of thought says…" “In the final analysis…” Don’t be afraid to address the perspectives themselves in the essay. What I mean is to just come out and say “Perspective 1” ––that’s totally fine.
Body Paragraphs:
ACT scoring rubric for Development and Support: Development of ideas and support for claims deepen insight and broaden context. An integrated line of skillful reasoning and illustration effectively conveys the significance of the argument. Qualifications and complications enrich and bolster ideas and analysis. I don’t see a strong reason to pre-plan your examples; if you want to, go ahead. But it’s not necessary.
Body Paragraph 1:
0. Have a transition.
- Quickly address what the perspective is saying (One school of thought, Perspective One, claims that machines have had a negative impact on society.
- I like adding one more sentence that illustrate theses people’s incorrect viewpoint. (They argue that supercomputers, automatic clothes generators, and UPS (United Parcel Service) sorting robots have stolen human jobs and even redefined the human race.)
- Say: (What these people fail to understand is that machines have, indeed, made humans better off.
- Now, your job is to offer an example that refutes Perspective 1. Something about automation in phone calls would work well.
- Clearly tie your example back into the paragraph. This is key. No need to be overly fancy either. Just say something like "This example clearly shows that machines have made life better for humans.
- At the end of reading this paragraph, the reader should know that you don’t like this perspective and why.
Body Paragraph 2:
0. Have a transition.
- Quickly summarize the viewpoint of this perspective.
- Clearly state that you agree partially with it. (I partially agree with Perspective 2).
- Now, address what you don’t like about it. (On one hand, I disagree with this perspective because I don’t feel that machines are only useful for low-skill and repetitive work).
- Offer an example that corroborates (that’s a good word to use by the way) point #3 (I participate in robotics, so saying something about robot manufacturing would work, anything that sounds complex and not repetitive basically).
- Go on to say what you like about this perspective. (However, I feel the perspective offers insight when it says that machines work better than humans and lead to a more innovative society.
- Again, think of a quick example that supports #5.
- Summarize.
- After reading this paragraph, the reader should know that you resonate more with this perspective and that you partially support this perspective.
Body Paragraph 3:
0. Have a transition.
- Summarize the viewpoint.
- Clearly state that you support it.
- Clearly state that you want to take your support to a level that transcends the perspective (i.e. economic growth and scientific discoveries).
- Give some examples as to why machines are so great. Make sure these examples coincide with #3. Show how a machine can spur economic growth and cause soaring stock prices. Name a time when a machine delivered unprecedented economic growth. Maybe a 3-D printer or something, etc?
- After reading this paragraph, the reader should know that this is what you agree with. You like Perspective 3 and have even taken it a little further. You’ve qualified the argument.
Conclusion:
- Keep it simple stupid. Start with “In the final analysis.” Then just re-state your thesis with tweaked words.
- Quickly summarize your position on each perspective. On my ACT, I went as far as to say (Therefore, I strongly disagree with perspective 1, partially accept perspective 2, and strongly support perspective 3). Now, time permitting, I’d use the rest of the space to talk about the perspective you agree with and your slightly tweaked version of it.
One category of the scoring rubric I left out was Language Use. To get a perfect grade on this category: The use of language enhances the argument. Word choice is skillful and precise. Sentence structures are consistently varied and clear. Stylistic and register choices, including voice and tone, are strategic and effective. While a few minor errors in grammar, usage, and mechanics may be present, they do not impede understanding.
Check off these boxes for each essay:
- Use parenthesis.
- Use semicolon.
- Use exclamation point.
- Use a varied sentence structure once per paragraph.
- Use an acronym.
- Use two vocabulary words per body paragraph. Don’t have this essay read as a dictionary. I recommend having some words in mind that you may want to use (corpulent, profound, resonate, facile, jovial, terse, etc).
- As long as you write decently well and have a good sense of the ACT essay, you should be fine here.
Comment on Length: My ACT essay was 2.75 pages. I write quite small (so this was probably 4 pages in normal handwriting). A long, disjointed essay will not score better than a concise, well-written one. I’d aim for writing at least 3 pages. That being said, longer essays have been statistically shown to score higher. Therefore, I advise the following time allocation:
-Preparation and Deriving Thesis: 1 minute (yikes!)
-Introduction: 4minutes
-Body Paragraph 1: 9 minutes
-Body Paragraph 2: 9 minutes
-Body Paragraph 3: 9 minutes
-Conclusion Paragraph: 4 minutes (A conclusion doesn’t need to be this long, but I think having a finished product is important to score in the perfect score range).
-Revise Essay and Read: 4 minutes
It might seem impossible to only plan for 1 minute. However, I would google “ACT Writing Prompts” and practice with them. Imagine they were your test prompt. Once you get more familiar with the style, this should get faster. Ideally, you want almost all of your time spent on the body paragraphs.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
1.I think the new essay rewards organization and deemphasizes coming in with pre-planned examples and writing as fast as you can. If you have an essay template ready, you can approach the prompts all in a similar fashion. The template I have presented I think works, but feel free to tweak it and make suggestions. Don’t overcomplicate this essay though. You want it so well-organized that the reader can follow after reading 500 essays without a problem.
2. Getting a solid thesis is imperative. Without a solid thesis, you’ll probably score in the 20s. Read the perspectives and translate them. Then, see how they’re related and different. Generally, one is strongly positive, one is strongly negative, and one is in the middle (though it usually tilts to one side). Identify such a relationship, then craft your thesis.
3. Organize from disagree —> partially agree —> agree (with the slightest nuance).
4. Don’t go overboard on vocabulary…just intersperse a couple words here and there.
5. Don’t panic. Many colleges aren’t valuing the writing as much anymore, but I mainly wrote this guide so that people will stop reporting writing scores that are significantly lower than their composite scores. PM with any questions or suggestions for the guide.