RC -nothing is working!

nanabillan

RC is holding my back from getting the score I want. LG is my strongest section and LR is my 2nd best. RC however-is horrible. I am almost embarrassed to say this but whatever...I can get anywhere from -8 to a whopping -13 (and it is usually the latter number)!

I have tried just about everything from low-res notes, passage structure, slowing down, reading faster, feigning interest. It is making me feel like I will never get over this hump. I usually do an RC section a day or every other day. I took a few days off from the LSAT since the Oct-Flex to freshen up but just bombed an RC section that I took.

I keep seeing people post about RC and I implement the advice others get so I am not sure how many people will be able to suggest anything new or different, but I am open to anything at this point.

The crazy thing is sometimes I will finish a section and be like okay, this is working I think I did well-only to be super disappointed when I see my wrong Qs after BR.

PLEASE HELP!

m.i.rivas

Hi! I was in a similar position. If timing is a big issue for you like it was for me. I would suggest doing individual timed passages at a time so I got really comfortable with the time given. I figured out roughly the amount of time I need per passage (4.5 minutes) and for the questions (about 4 minutes roughly 30 seconds per question). This helped me to know when I needed to speed up or when I could slow down. Doing a passage every day for about two weeks or so really helped me so by the time I got to timed sections I pretty much always was reading at the natural pace I'm allowed (8-9 minutes per passage).
I would also really recommend a super diligent and intense blind review. That's helped me to see the patterns that exist in RC.
Also a useful tip is powerful vs. provable answer choices. Usually when there's like a suggest-type question where it might not be explicitly stated in the passage you want to look for weak/provable language and can eliminate AC's that are too strong. The Loophole by Ellen Cassidy talks this over in more detail and it works really well in LR!
Something that helped me also was being SUPER atune to opinion-reflective language in the passages. Words like unfortunately, however etc. actually hold a lot of opinion and are a guide to the author's perspective. Even just imagining the author saying this to me in person helps me to figure out the super important question in RC: "Why are you telling me this?" @Defender really helped me understand this. I would consider working with him!

It's doable to improve in RC even though sometimes it might not seem like it! Good Luck!

AAR 1292

I know it can be frustrating to feel like you're not making progress in something despite your best effort.

First, take a step back; you've said RC is the (only) section preventing you from reaching your target score. It should be a load off your shoulders that you're happy with your results in LG and LR.

You've also JUST taken an RC section you did particularly poorly on. So you're probably not in the right head space to be evaluating your improvement in the section as a whole, even if it's true that it's not where you'd like it to be.

Lastly, I'm not sure if I can give you much advice you haven't tried already in terms of practical methods for improving, but I can tell you not to give up. Don't be discouraged by your wrong answers; take them as an opportunity to learn and see where you went wrong (that's the purpose of the blind review and evaluation). Everyone struggles with something. Stay positive and confident, and try to not to fall into despair, because you'll only perform worse.

Hang in there!

brookegojazz

One thing that has really helped me is trying to understand the passage as best I can first. So instead of just 'slowing down' in general, I slow down on the parts that are difficult. If there's a sentence or two that is really hard, I slow down there. I also slow down to make connections between the paragraphs. So I take a second to see how that paragraph connects to the one before and if there's a thread that can be tied through each of them. Maybe see if you can find a specific task to 'slow down' on instead of just slowing down in general. That will increase your comprehension and help the questions go quicker; dump the time into the passage instead of the questions. These types of things helped me go from -6-10 to -2-4; you can do this! I thought RC wasn't really improvable quickly, but it is! You've got it!

Ellegoals

Have you tried doing untimed RC passages? For me doing it untimed allowed me to really analyze each question (before I knew the right answer), pay attention to my thought process while I read and during the questions, and figure out whether it was a timing issue or an understanding issue. I only did a few untimed passages (maybe 2 sections worth), but it gave me good insight and the confidence to keep at it.

Also, are you getting to every question? If not, definitely focus on this. If so then good!

VerdantZephyr

@nanabillan I am going to comment below I just made a few minutes ago on another post. At basically the same time another discussion about RC frustrations from @bellahyeon14 showed up, so know that you are not alone. I do not know if this will help, but, while I started higher on RC, I was also frustrated and symied trying to improve.
Bella, know that you are not alone either. Maybe the other suggestions in this thread would also help you.

VerdantZephyr

It is much more challenging to improve, that is for sure. It took me a long time to improve, and I don't think things clicked for me until shortly before the test. I BR'd with a partner that was quite clever at RC, and that helped. It took me from a range of -3 to -5 (average probably -4) to suddenly getting -1s. That only happened the last week before my test and was a direct result of her insight.

I am a big proponent, especially as you get to the higher scoring levels, of taking tests on your own, then either 2 step BRing where you BR on your own then again with a partner or just BRing together with a partner or partners after you both take the test. Having that debate about why they think whatever answer is wrong or right can teach you to view questions with their eyes. This person also gave me the single most helpful tip for me on the LSAT.

While I started with a pretty high RC score I just was not able to improve it at all and was getting frustrated. But, one of my big struggles was main point questions and my initial improvement came from a tip she gave me. The trick is flag every single main point question. Read them, think about the answers, maybe even answer them if you feel good, but always flag them and come back at the end of the section. A lot of times the other questions for that passage will give you a clue or reinforce what the main point is in the test writers' minds. I started doing that and I went from getting at least one Main Point RC wrong on every test to not getting a single one wrong the last 2.5 weeks of prep for the LSAT. The rest of my improvement on RC came from must learning from her reasoning. I give her and my other BR partners a lot of my credit for improvement. Find people like that to help you. For it to work best they should probably be at least in the 160's and ideally at first you might have complementary strengths. Maybe they struggle more on LG or LR than you but are solid on RC.

If you have a decent amount of time still before your test you could try reading publications like The Atlantic, The Economist, and Scientific American in your free time as well and maybe make your own summaries of articles and work really hard to understand anything difficult. That is a suggestion I have seen floating around but I do not see it being that effective if you have your test in a few weeks.

nanabillan

WOW! I can not believe all the amazing advice that was contributed! I started doing a timed passage at a time instead of a full passage and my timing alone has improved a ton! I want to keep drilling this way until I slowly progress into full RC sections. @m.i.rivas thank you for the great suggestion!

@Ellegoals thank you! I think that makes a lot of sense-especially to get the foundation reconstructed.

@AAR1292 I was under a lot of stress and did bomb it and part of it was my mindset. After a couple more passages the following day I felt much better and more attune to my dialogue with the passages. You reinstalled hope I needed to regain in myself.

@VerdantZephyr wow! I cant wait to implement all that you said-especially regarding MP Qs! Very cool approach and I appreciate you sharing that with me and everyone who reads your comment! I think having an RC buddy is a good idea as well- I will look into that and see if anyone wants to partner up!! I think that would be a great idea!

@brookegojazz YES! I have tried to implement this but with so many moving parts and breaking bad habits, this is starting to resonate with me. In the beginning, I used to read a passage and be like, "what the heck did I just read?!" I am working on slowing down to digest each sentence and idea/ask Qs/fight back/engage/ and really see the passage structure and how everything connects.

I can't thank you all enough for your responses.

If anyone is looking for an RC buddy-let me know.

Matthew-3

It may be redundant, but I highly recommend reading more educational texts. On the opposite end, I came into this test with an advantage at Reading Comprehension (I'm struggling with Logic Games currently), something I attribute to my background in English literature. Reading Comprehension certainly contains elements of Logical Reasoning, but I don't usually go into the text expecting to look for LSAT-type reasoning of any kind. What I mean to say is, when you get more comfortable reading academic texts, I suspect Reading Comprehension will come more easily.

That being said, I think it's important that you are honest with yourself when studying for the test in this regard. Are you reading every day? Most importantly, are you enjoying what you are reading? You need to be reading some sort of technical writing to get used to the writing in Reading Comprehension. Moreover, you must enjoy reading. As JY has said, you must insert yourself into the passage when reading the passages and you must form an opinion. Be passionate about the topic. In reading more, I've found that the RC passages really resonate with me. I find myself referencing their logic in everyday life (although they are by nature flawed, so I probably shouldn't). You really have to be honest with yourself when you're reading. Find a way to enjoy it. Open your heart to it, for these topics may very well be things you may have to contend with when you are a lawyer. I usually suspect that those who really find Reading Comprehension arduous have already developed an aversion to reading -- a habit that needs to be kicked immediately. Having an awful time tends to lead to a callous attitude about things.

I wouldn't beat yourself up about it though. Because I suspect Reading Comprehension is a "long-term" endeavor (opposite to something like Logic Games), you're still learning and you should treat it as such.

Defender

Thanks for the shout out @m.i.rivas !

I was where you are at right now--inconsistent and frustrated. I can tell you that two HUGE things helped me get to a -1/3 range--- slowing down/spending more time in the passage AND focusing on the author. The author is the primary player in each passage--know where they stand on whatever material they are mentioning.

Feel free to reach out with any questions--all the best!