Hi!
Every drill, section, prep test etc I do - I always do so well on the blind review, but can't seem to get it right the first time when it counts. Any tips to trust your gut more? Or does anyone know why it just seems to click the second time around?
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8 comments
This was a really big issue with me (and I am still trying to improve). One way that has helped me was to be very strict on changing the answer choice. I would ask myself what makes this answer choice wrong and if that can be supported by the stimulus or if I was just plugging in my own assumptions that cannot be supported by the stimulus. Hope this helps!
@j_w180 Plugging in my own assumptions is a big one I think, thank you!
Hey, you should take blind review with a grain of salt, or even better shouldn't regard it at all. BR is unreliable measure of your potential, if however when you do untimed sections and you are scoring around the same when you do blind review of timed sections, then your issue might be second guessing. Otherwise I'd say your main issue is with understanding, whether its the stimulus, question, or answer choices.
@user4343 Fair! Thanks!
it was helpful for me to give myself rules to adhere to before doing a section or test. often in the form of "i will not make x mistake no matter what." i would be perfectly happy to make new mistakes. if this a general issue of yours, force yourself to go with the first answer you select or something. it will also force you to think longer about it, which is good. untimed work is fine. your primary goal should be to make your first instinct correct. when i was studying i would still be disappointed in myself if i ended up correct but i didn't notice the pattern at first, and being harsh on your own process is helpful towards becoming very very accurate!
@MickeyClaffey makes sense, appreciate it!
Hey!
I find that with blind review, the pressure is off, and typically if you recognized a question you got wrong, you can easily eliminate the answer you picked the first time around (which was likely the biggest trap answer).
Second guessing yourself IS a real thing, but it’s likely not the MAIN culprit in this situation. For the questions that you didn’t get right the first time… blind review AND regular review them.
Before watching/reading the explanation, work on an active wrong answer journal. You want to really break down the questions and try to understand every part of it, then you can learn how you think, and see exactly where you’re going wrong. Either write down, say out loud, or do both for the answers to these questions:
Stimulus:
What is the conclusion of the argument, and what is the support for it?
How does the support connect to the argument? What is missing/assumed?
If there is any conditional or causal logic, what is this actually saying, and what is the chain of events?
Question Stem:
What is this question asking of me?
What kind of answer could be right (make a prediction of what the answer could potentially be)?
What kind of answer would definitely be wrong?
Answer Choices:
First, find the one that best matches your prediction (If your logic is sound that’s usually the right answer… just keep an eye out for those traps).
Now… for the wrong answer you chose…
Why did you choose it/what made it an attractive answer choice to you?
What makes this answer choice wrong?
For the correct answer:
Why is this answer choice correct?
How does this answer choice compare to the incorrect one I picked?
Why did I not pick this answer?
I know this seems like a LOT to do… and I’m not a tutor, so I’m not going to tell you to do this for every single question you got wrong. But try it out. You’ll start noticing the patterns in the wrong and right answers, and you’ll be able to better identify traps and avoid them in the future!
Happy studying! 🤪📚
@MikaStudies Thank you!!