How March Madness is Like the ACT
The March Madness tournament filled with excitement, pressure, anxiety, thrills, intensity, great highs and lows, drama and joy. Sounds just like taking the ACT! Having worked with several students I can attest to having witnessed and felt all those emotions. There are strong similarities between preparing for the big dance and the ACT.
1. Practice
A player can not just show up to the big game and expect to do their best. Improving at anything from sports to test taking takes practice. Likewise, players do not improve their skills by playing the game over and over without feedback. They can spend all day throwing shots, but if their form is bad, it won’t help on game day. We help students by reviewing practice test and pointing out areas of strengths as well as areas that need extra practice. If your aren’t practicing right now, you should be; your competition is.
2. Confidence
Every year there are several upsets in each round. If the underdog team approaches the tournament with a winning attitude, then their game performance will shine. Like a player making a clutch free-throw in a game, students need to stay calm. While mindset is an underrated aspect of ACT preparation, it contributes to a lot of success-just as in March Madness.
3. GREAT COACHES AND ACT COACHES
The ACT and March Madness are characterized by certain internal and external capabilities. I can’t think of a final four team that did not have a great coach, was well coached, and played from an outstanding playbook. A premier ACT coach is crucial to the success of a student. A premier coach knows not only the strategies to success but how to motivate and drive their students’ to championship performance.
4. PLAYBOOK STRATEGY
Great basketball coaches have a great playbook. The athletes know their roles and responsibilities, and the teams run strong offensive and defensive plays. The playbook is created to help in the instruction and learning of strategies. E3 Modern Learning’s ACT Playbook serves the same purpose – to engage, to instruct, and to empower students on how to maximize their score. Through small group, large group, and engaging program the students can learn the strategies and skills needed to score well on test day.
5. GAMES CAN BE BEAT SO CAN THE ACT
Every great basketball coach teaches the fundamentals of the game. Every successful ACT coach must do the same- Success on and off the court is based on mastering the fundamentals. Like coaches, we teach students the specific skills necessary to succeed on the ACT and work with them on their particular strengths and weaknesses until they can perform at their best. They enter the tests with a personal strategy for earning the score they want and with the only pressure that of executing their game plan.
Ever hear of a team who won March Madness without practicing or challenged daily by their coach. At the same time, no student should have to take the ACT without having a prep class It’s obvious in March Madness. It should be obvious in test preparation, too. However, for some reason, for most people, it isn’t.
That is why E3 Modern Learning created an innovative, and engaging course. Like coaches, we teach students the specific skills necessary to succeed on the ACT and work with them on their particular strengths and weaknesses until they can perform at their best. They enter the tests with a personal strategy for earning the score they want and with the only pressure that of executing their game plan.
If you have not registered yet, there is still time to improve your score. Sign up for a planning session so that we can help you prepare for success on test day.
What’s next for parents and students?
We want to help you, so we hope you do not just read this article and nod your head, we hope you also take action today!
If you like, this article be sure to sign up for our monthly newsletter and check out our other blogs.
Or use the button below to share this article with your friends on Facebook if you think they or their kids would benefit.
