Self-study
I was wondering if anyone has any tips for reviewing wrong answers on LR sections. I feel like whenever I go to review I find myself writing that my mistakes were due to reading errors or because of timing, which sometimes is true but not always. Does anyone have any tips on how to more accurately assess mistakes when writing your wrong answer journal?
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I use my WAJ a little differently than described on 7 Sage. There's nothing wrong with doing it the way they suggest, but for me, it's been more helpful to drill down to the 'why, why, why' of it all.
First, I write out an explanation for 'why' every single WRONG answer choice is wrong. My thought is that, if I don't really know why an AC was wrong, I'll just keep repeating the same mistakes.
Then, I write out, in detail, 'why' the CORRECT answer choice is right. Again, if I don't truly understand why the AC was right, then I know this is a weak spot, and I have more work to do if I'm going to improve.
Lastly, I ask myself 'why' did I make this mistake, look to see if there are patterns, and then try to implement solutions. For example, if I repeatedly have reading errors, I know I have to slow down and re-phrase to ensure understanding before answering the question. If I'm weak on diagramming and CR, maybe I'll go back to the core curriculum for a refresher and then drill CR. And so on, and so on.
After I get the answers to my 'why' questions, I move on. Over time, I've found that my error rate has gone down significantly and my timing has gotten faster. I'm not where I want to be, but I'm seeing meaningful results.
Lastly, you mentioned timing. I didn't time myself in the beginning and still don't if I'm trying to master a concept that I'm shaky on. Once I truly learn a concept, my timing naturally quickens, so I go slow early on to enable me to go fast later, when it counts.
Everybody has a different way of finding the method that works for them, so best of luck with whatever method you choose!
Hi Hannah! Whenever I get an LR question wrong, I read the analysis provided for the question and the explanation provided for why each answer choice was either incorrect or correct. This allows me to understand what didn't click for me. Once I do this, I watch the question explanation video to reinforce my understanding of the question. As for my wrong answer journal, I make sure to write down the question number (PT #, S #, Q #) and write an explanation in my own words for why the correct answer is right. I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any more questions. Feel free to DM too! Good luck studying (: