Many of the trickiest questions on the ACT Science test ask you to do more than just identify details and trends in the data, they ask you to make inferences about the presented scientific situations and experiments. Sometimes they ask you what would happen if something changed about the scientific situation or what the results might be of an additional experiment. It goes without saying that these questions can be quite taxing on your poor little brain.
Many of these inference questions fall into a category I call “Yes/No, because…” questions because they look something like this:
1. Question-blah-blah-blah-blah?
A. Yes, because x.
B. Yes, because y.
C. No, because x.
D. No, because y.
where the x’s and y’s above are standing in for different reasons in the answer choices.
These “Yes/No, because….” questions are two-part questions. You have to get both parts right (what comes before the comma and what comes after) in order to get the correct answer. Because these questions can be quite complex, many students spend a lot of time reading and rereading them without getting very far.
So you need to find a better strategy. The video below will walk you through a simple and effective approach to tackling these questions that will make them MUCH easier for you. Check it out!
Watch more videos about the ACT Science Test on our MagooshACT YouTube channel!
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About Kristin Fracchia
Dr. Kristin Fracchia currently focuses on our MCAT and LSAT Prep, but she also has expertise in a wide range of standardized tests, including the ACT, SAT, GRE, and GMAT, as well as college and grad school admissions. With a PhD from UC Irvine and degrees in Education and English, she’s been working in education since 2004. She enjoys the agony and bliss of long distance trail running, backpacking, hot yoga, and esoteric knowledge.
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