reading comp help!

_kizilbash

I really struggle with reading comprehension, and have been thinking of ways to improve. I have a few months before I write the LSAT and was wondering what some of you would recommend to get better.
I was thinking about subscribing to the economist and reading random articles that I find hard on a daily basis and using the 7sage reading comprehension method to really understand those articles. But I'd really like to hear from some of you who are killing the reading comp section. What works??

Alex

@_kizilbash said:
I really struggle with reading comprehension, and have been thinking of ways to improve. I have a few months before I write the LSAT and was wondering what some of you would recommend to get better.
I was thinking about subscribing to the economist and reading random articles that I find hard on a daily basis and using the 7sage reading comprehension method to really understand those articles. But I'd really like to hear from some of you who are killing the reading comp section. What works??

I think there are more than enough real RC passages to practice on, so I would just focus on practicing doing those. I read the Economist weekly and I think people overestimate how similar it is to most RC passages. Besides, I think the questions themselves are what causes problems for a lot of students.

RC has always been my jam! I started off missing -5 and after tons of hard work have finally got myself down to a consistent and reliable -2 with the occasional -0/-1 here and there.

What's worked for me is treating it much like an LR section with a super long stimulus.

Here are some very basic things I began doing that I think have the potential to help you.

-I have strategies for each and every question type I may encounter.

-I definitely recommend spending as much time as you need upfront to understand the passage so you can avoid going back. Re-read something if you need to. If you look back at my past posts on RC I actually used to advocate trying to read the passage as fast as possible. Sage @"Cant Get Right" inspired me to slow down when he went -0 on his September 2017 LSAT. Now, I almost never go back to the passage unless they give me a line cite. I mean almost never.
This is a complete 180 (hehe!) from what I used to do when I was plateaued missing -5. I used to always be trying to find support for my answers because I had read too quickly and didn't do a good job understanding the key elements of the passage the first time.

-I notate/circle important or key elements. (More on this below)

-I always eliminate answer choices first.

-I always focus on asking myself "why?" not "what?"

-There's usually one word that makes a question right/wrong on RC. More so than on LR, so be on high alert for when a question extends the scope of a modifier too far. For example, "All nematodes develop in similar ways to other embryonic organism" vs. "Most nematodes develop in similar ways to other embryonic organisms."

-Use the questions as a way to judge how well you understood the passage. If you are having trouble with main point question, then you should probably consider going back and taking a minute to re-read the passage.

Lastly, I just did a lot of RC passages. Did about 80 passages over the past couple of months. The more you do, the more I feel like you get a sense of what they're going to ask and how the passages tend to proceed.

Something I've noticed is that sometimes you come across a word or sentence that just feels like ... it doesn't quite belong. I kind of can't explain it. But, for example, instead of simply saying an inventor built something they may use a dumb word like "cobbled" and I just have a sense based on the tone and language it doesn't quite fit. So I'll just take note of what they mean then and there what they're referring to.

Those are just some strategies/observations. I think the most important thing is having a consistent approach to RC. I went far too long on intuition and "reading for structure," but each RC passage felt like a crap shoot. You want to be able to feel like each RC passage is a logic game; something that if you approach correctly, you can walk away from confidently knowing you nailed it. Do what you need to do to feel like that.

paulmv.benthem

Well, can't really say I'm "killing" it; I'm sure others are doing significantly better than I am. Nevertheless, on my diagnostic I got about a -8 on RC and after practicing for the past few months, I typically go either -2/-3.

Probably the biggest indicator of how I will perform on RC is how consistently I am able to maintain my focus on a passage. My undergrad was in social sciences/philosophy, so the natural sciences passages are usually where I have the hardest time staying focused and following the structure and main point of the argument. To work on this, I began thinking about how it is I typically process information. During university, I was always trying to get in on discussion/study groups because I processed information best verbally and in a conversational context. So, where I began seeing my RC score significantly increase was after I began hosting brief dialogues in my head while reading the passage...almost as though in my effort to understand the passage, I try to explain it to myself in the third person within my imagination (no doubt, people watching me at the library suspect I'm having a nervous breakdown ).

Is there a way that you know you process information more easily? If so, try and build on that and integrate into your RC approach/strategy.

That being said, three months is a fine amount of time to continue improving. How long have you been working on RC? One of the most beneficial things is exposure to RC passages and to become comfortable with the types of argumentative turns they often take. If you stay dedicated, your scores will improve!

Do the right way

Hi @"Alex Divine" , the points you mentioned are quite helpful. I will try to follow those as I am also struggling with my RC scores. I usually read articles from Aeon.co. I have a doubt regarding my reading practice. When I go through the article, I encounter certain words which I don't understand. I try to conceptualize them and get an overall meaning of the sentence. After I am done with the article, what should be my next step? Should I re-read the article and write down those troubling words in a notebook and write their meaning.Then revise the notebook on a weekend. Is this a good way to do things as it will take a bit more effort and time?

Alex

@"Do the right way" said:
Hi @"Alex Divine" , the points you mentioned are quite helpful. I will try to follow those as I am also struggling with my RC scores. I usually read articles from Aeon.co. I have a doubt regarding my reading practice. When I go through the article, I encounter certain words which I don't understand. I try to conceptualize them and get an overall meaning of the sentence. After I am done with the article, what should be my next step? Should I re-read the article and write down those troubling words in a notebook and write their meaning.Then revise the notebook on a weekend. Is this a good way to do things as it will take a bit more effort and time?

First, I think you should use real RC passages for practice. There are over 350 unique passages to use. I also think you need to practice doing the actual questions rather than just reading a passage. Otherwise, you're left with very little to test whether you've done a good job at reading for the right things.

When I come across a word I don't know, I just look it up and keep it in a long running list in the notes section of my iPhone. However, when that happens on the test, do your best to use context to try to get a sense of what the word means. Perhaps you won't be able to define it exactly, but you can usually tell whether it's a positive/negative thing or something generally about the word. This should give you at least an idea.

Broccoli

I have a question too... If you're in the process of learning how to do reading comprehension. Should I time yourself?

joycool9567

For me it was the way I read that troubled me. I agree with above in that reading economist certainly could help but doubt how much it would help.

I personally think my problem was in two areas.

1. Speed reading didnt work for me.

Due to excessive time pressure I often skimmed the entire passage within two minutes and tackle the question right away trying to fill in the gap by going through questions. While this technique works for some passages I think it is worth spending more time actually understanding the passage its structure and central argument.

By solving more and more questions youll start to see the pattern. I think you can in a way expect what questions would be asked. For instance they will always ask about rhetorical purpose on certain paragraph or why certain example popped up. If you read and mark the relationship some questions would take less than 10 seconds.

1. Reading and LR are in the same vein. Improvement in LR naturally improved my RC.

Rc for me is essentially an extended version of LR. I think it is rarely the case that someone great at LR is poor at Rc. Game is a different story but I think if RC questions are unbearably difficult maybe it is because one is thinking RC and LR have seperate disciplines. Do POEs and make inference as you do in LR. I think applying same principle and process of LR in Rc definitely helped me improve

Alex

@Broccoli180 said:
I have a question too... If you're in the process of learning how to do reading comprehension. Should I time yourself?

Yes, I think you should time yourself. After you finish, you can review it untimed during your blind review.

Having said that, always focus on getting good before getting fast. So try to push the pace during your RC drilling, but don't sacrifice accuracy for speed. Remember, your timing is just a reflection of how good you are at solving the questions. So focus on getting good above all else.