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Difficulty with newer LR questions?

Leah M BLeah M B Alum Member ⭐
in Logical Reasoning 8392 karma

I haven't taken very many full prep tests yet, but so far I'm noticing in my trends that I am overall improving in LG and RC, but my LR gets worse when I'm working in newer PT's (tests in the 60s and maybe 50s also). It's really frustrating because as I'm doing the questions, I feel ok about them. But then during BR I'm seeing how many I got wrong and it's not usually any particular question type or any one reason I'm getting it wrong. I'm a little all over the board. I don't seem to have this problem with earlier tests though (30s and 40s). Any insight to the evolution of the LR questions? Have they just gotten harder? More sneaky answers? It's so frustrating to see my score actually going down over time because I'm bombing those so hard! Argh.

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  • Victoria14Victoria14 Alum Member
    edited August 2017 776 karma

    Have you finished the CC yet? I was all over the board until I finished the CC in LR and became pretty consistent. I do know the tests get harder as time go on but you shouldn't have a truly severe downward trend. It's suggesting your basics aren't nailed down.

  • AlexAlex Alum Member ⭐
    23929 karma

    @"Leah M B" said:
    I haven't taken very many full prep tests yet, but so far I'm noticing in my trends that I am overall improving in LG and RC, but my LR gets worse when I'm working in newer PT's (tests in the 60s and maybe 50s also). It's really frustrating because as I'm doing the questions, I feel ok about them. But then during BR I'm seeing how many I got wrong and it's not usually any particular question type or any one reason I'm getting it wrong. I'm a little all over the board. I don't seem to have this problem with earlier tests though (30s and 40s). Any insight to the evolution of the LR questions? Have they just gotten harder? More sneaky answers? It's so frustrating to see my score actually going down over time because I'm bombing those so hard! Argh.

    I think having a bit of a downward trend is normal when it comes to newer LR.
    I think the classic flaws and classic moves are less disguised on the new LR which can make them seem a bit harder. Just remember that our job for the questions remain exactly the same for every question type. There's just more nuance and misdirection that make some of the questions seem harder. Also there is just more fluff and longer stims which can make it appear superficially more hard. Again, I believe that more or less all of the changes are superficial. Many people actually end up preferring to like the newer LR and find it simpler once they get used to them.

    If you're bombing LR on the newer tests you may just need more practice with newer tests. Have you done older tests for learning and drilling? Older tests are great for the learning process because it allows us to master things on a simpler level.

  • TheMikeyTheMikey Alum Member
    4196 karma

    Newer LR is def a bit different than older LR. I think the thing to keep in mind most is that whatever you pre-phrase with new LR, just keep an open mind in the answer choices. You may have the perfect pre-phrase, but the correct AC may word it very subtly or in the wrong way. also, they may even pick up on something completely different than what you anticipated.

  • Maddie D.Maddie D. Alum Member
    325 karma

    @TheMikey said:
    Newer LR is def a bit different than older LR. I think the thing to keep in mind most is that whatever you pre-phrase with new LR, just keep an open mind in the answer choices. You may have the perfect pre-phrase, but the correct AC may word it very subtly or in the wrong way. also, they may even pick up on something completely different than what you anticipated.

    I second this. Once I got to newer tests I really had to develop a new relationship with prephrasing in LR, since the test writers will take many opportunities to anticipate exactly what you're thinking and provide an AC that sounds like what you were searching for but with a subtle error. That's not a new concept, of course, but I personally feel like that test writing tactic is really common on newer exams. I think it's totally normal to experience a dip when you're first diving into new material but if your fundamentals are solid, you'll improve with exposure.

  • Leah M BLeah M B Alum Member ⭐
    8392 karma

    Sorry I didn't respond folks, but thanks for all your insight! I think it was a combination of things for me... the pre-phrasing I think is very true. It seems like there are more frequently answer choices that are very subtly different from each other, and that was throwing me off. Thinking that one answer choice fit and not reviewing the other options left me not seeing the actual correct choice. Also I do think they've gotten overall longer and wordier and is squeezing my timing. And I also realized that I think I was frying my brain working extra hard that week and taking a couple days off to let things settle a bit helped. Fresh eyes and fresh brain! Still not making as much progress as I had hoped, but I think I'm over the dip in score at least.

    Thank you all again!

  • Paul CaintPaul Caint Alum Member ⭐
    3521 karma

    Heh I was the complete opposite of you. I really got wrecked in LR in the 40s, but I'm doing well in the LR for 60s and 70s.

    There's definitely a difference between the 40s and more recent exams. You'll have to adapt :(

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