Time management can be challenging for students taking the optional ACT writing test. Rather than asking an open-ended question or for an opinion on a particular statement, the ACT writing section gives three diverse perspectives on a specific contemporary issue that must be discussed and analyzed.
Many students struggle to properly brainstorm, organize, write and edit their essays in the brief 40 minutes that they are allotted. For help, consider the timeline below that offers guidelines on how much time to allot to each particular writing task. This is based on a sample ACT writing prompt entitled, “Public Health and Individual Freedom,” available on page 54 of this ACT prep document.
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Brainstorm and Free-Write (10 Minutes)
Once you have read the prompt — which in this example asks a student to consider how best to balance conflicts between public health and individual rights — take the first 10 of your 40 minutes to determine your outlook on the issue. Brainstorm your arguments and their supporting details. Remember to consider all possible arguments: those that support your opinion, and those that do not.
Also use this time to organize your thoughts and develop an outline of how you will write your essay. Your outline should be as detailed and specific as possible, but it is more important to adhere to your time limit than it is to decide where every argument and counterargument will fit in your response.
For instance, I might choose to support the first perspective, which says “Our society should strive to achieve the greatest good for the greatest number of people. When the freedom of the individual interferes with that principle, freedom must be restricted.” I would need to consider examples that agree with this perspective, as well as those that support and oppose the other two perspectives.
Anticipating arguments from the second perspective, which is most directly opposed to my own opinion, would be especially important; this perspective says, “Nothing in society is more valuable than freedom. Perhaps physical health is sometimes improved by restricting freedom, but the cost to the health of our free society is far too great to justify it.”
I could write in more detail about one of the examples from the prompt, like the societal benefits of laws that prohibit smoking in public places.
Keep in mind that you do not need to select one of the three provided perspectives. You may partially agree with several, or agree with none.
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Compose an Introduction (5 Minutes)
At this point, 30 minutes remain, and you should devote as much of that time as possible to writing. Set aside five of those minutes for an introductory paragraph that clearly states your stance — your thesis statement, in other words.
For example, I would explain that I agree with the first perspective: “Like Perspective One, I believe that the health of the general public is more important than individual freedom when the two clash.” I might also preview my arguments, but only in general terms, with specifics left for the rest of the essay: “Taking into account argument A, argument B and argument C, I believe this stance makes the most sense and is best supported.”
I might then wrap up with a transitional sentence that leads into the body paragraphs and how they will discuss the details of those arguments.
Complete Body Paragraphs (20 Minutes)
This task should be split evenly between explaining and rebutting arguments for the other perspectives, and presenting arguments in favor of the chosen perspective.
As noted earlier, in this case, I should likely first address arguments for the second perspective, since it directly disagrees with what I have chosen to support. I should discuss arguments for the third only after that, because it does not necessarily disagree with the perspective I’m defending; this third view says, “The right to avoid health risks is a freedom, too. When we allow individual behavior to endanger others, we’ve damaged both freedom and health.”
This perspective is a more extreme version of the one I’m supporting, and an example where individual freedom has been lessened unnecessarily should be discussed. After 10 minutes of rebutting arguments, I should spend the next 10 minutes expanding upon points that are in support of my preferred perspective.
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Write a Conclusion (3 Minutes)
While you do not need to spend much time on the essay’s conclusion, you do need to ensure you have one. The conclusion can be as simple as restating your thesis and providing a brief summary of your arguments.
Given the allotted essay time, that may be sufficient, as long as you provide some form of summation at the end of your response for the benefit of the reader.
Proofread (2 Minutes)
Do not plan on rewriting your essay during this time. Rather, anticipate skimming your work to ensure you have not left out or misspelled any words, or that there are any other glaring mistakes in your response.
To practice the above timeline, find other sample ACT essay prompts and complete them at home. In-class essays in school — especially in English and history classes, where arguments can be made for multiple perspectives — can also be useful settings for practicing this timeline.
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Manage Time Wisely on the ACT Writing Test originally appeared on usnews.com
