As you’ll recall from Chapter One, one feature of a standardized test is its predictability. The ACT writers can’t pick any random piece of writing and create ACT Reading questions for it. Only a passage that has a clearly discernible organization and internal logic will appear as one of the three nonfiction passages on the ACT. (See the section on prose for information about the structure of a fiction passage.) Determining this structure is your task in Step 1 of the Kaplan Method.
On your first read-through, you should read actively, asking yourself questions about the writer’s purpose and viewpoint. Understanding the structure helps you to determine the writer’s purpose. Therefore, you should get in the habit of noticing key words and phrases that are clues to the passage’s structure. Two key organizational structures to keep in mind are the outline structure and the chronological structure. By outline, we don’t mean the highly structured notes you may have had to prepare before writing a paper for school. For our purposes here, outline structure simply means that one broad topic is divided into several narrower aspects. A chronological structure is in place when a writer treats the topic in terms of development over time, most often starting with an earlier time period and moving toward more recent time periods.
Here’s an exercise to help you think about the organizational structure of a passage. Consider each sentence and decide whether it points to a chronological or an outline structure. Underline key words or phrases that help you decide.
In the middle ages, few ordinary people knew how to read and write.
Three American writers exhibited this fascination with nature in their poetry.
By the early twentieth century, various groups had become interested in promoting women’s right to vote.
A turning point came in 1859 when Charles Darwin published Origin of Species.
By the beginning of the next decade, the vaccine had become almost universal.
Another aspect of residential architecture to be considered is the use of stained glass windows.
The second factor in the education debate is funding.
The time period of the musician’s works can be classified as one of three major eras.
This exercise should have you thinking about which words to pay attention to on a first reading in order to help you identify a passage’s structure.
Of course, not every ACT Reading passage you encounter will have a simple outline or chronological structure. A writer might combine the two or use a different kind of organizational format that allows for an effective development of the topic. Still, you should always be alert on your first read-through for any time-related words, phrases, and key words that indicate a writer is dividing a larger topic into smaller subtopics. In addition, words that express contrast and logic can also provide quick clues about a passage’s organizational structure.
While some ACT passages feature a strictly chronological flow or follow a basic outline format, not every passage can be described so simply. However, you can expect each nonfiction passage to have its own internal logic. To determine this internal logic, you need to pay attention to words and phrases that express relationships between ideas. The very same words and phrases described under the connections heading in the English introduction also appear in passages in the Reading test. When you spot these words in your first read-through of an ACT Reading passage, take note. It’s even a good idea to underline them. They provide important clues about the author’s purpose and the structure of the passage. Refer to the following table for a list of some of these words:
Key Words That Indicate Cause and Effect or Contrast
| Cause and Effect | Contrast |
| as a result | but |
| as shown by | claims (may suggest that a “claim” isn’t true) |
| because | difference |
| consequently | however |
| evidence shows | in contrast |
| for this reason | nevertheless |
| it follows that | on the other hand |
| so | some…others |
| therefore | whereas |
| thus | while |
Of course, the words in the table don’t form an exhaustive list, but they do give you an idea of the kinds of words to pay attention to when you need to determine the logical flow and notice what contrasts the writer presents. One thing to notice is that these words are not subject-specific. This is precisely why connections words and phrases are so important. They show up repeatedly in all three nonfiction ACT passages, no matter what topic the passage discusses. You can’t predict the exact content of the Reading passages you’ll see on test day, but you can be certain that cause-and-effect and contrast words and phrases will be present and crucial to your understanding of the passage.