How to get faster at RCs?

Tanvira.chaudhury

Hi,

A newbie here. I am really, really slow at reading RCs and LRs and I can never finish them timed and have a good deal of questions unanswered ( like about 9-10 per section). Since I am like really slow, how do I get faster with time? I know it is hard to get fast and good at these sections but any specific tips that you guys think are good/ have worked for you/worked for others etc. could be helpful for me. I really don't have a lot of ideas about this.

Pacifico

@Tanvira.chaudhury A few questions I have for you before I can give you some targeted answers: How much prep have you done so far? What did you use for prep? Have you started full timed PTs yet? Is English your first language?

Tanvira.chaudhury

Nope English is not my first language.
I have been doing LSAT for about a month and I try to prep three times a week. I have been mostly focused on RC and LR. I am using the Powerscore books, the Actual LSAT ones and 7Sage. I have tried doing these sections under timed conditions and I couldn't finish a lot. However, I do use blind review every time I am practising or doing a timed section. I have only done two PTs- 19 and 20. I don't really have much of a clue as to whether I should even be doing these old tests as PTs or simply use them as practice.
I know this might sound like I want really quick results( since I am really new) but I really want to start off in a way so that I can target my weaknesses( such as slow reading) really early.I know that something like this takes a long time to improve.
It is also not that I do not get the passages- I do get them but it takes me a lot of time. It is like more difficult for me to retain and process all that information in such a short time.

harrismegan

If you're only a month in....... know that speed will come with ability. The better you get at answering the questions and kind of "knowing" the question type, the faster you become.
I would say, get through the 7Sage material/lessons, do all the practice sets that they offer, start prep tests, and drill cambridge for weaknesses.

c.janson35

Especially with RC, I think a lot of times there's an instinctual urge to really rush through the passage to get to the questions. I've found it's useful to approach the RC like the games in that you have to spend a proper amount of time up front before moving on, which will not only help you better understand the passage but will help you with question-specific recall. In the end, the questions are a much bigger time-suck than the actual reading of the passages, so trying to tackle them without the proper "base understanding" is going to leave you wondering how 35 minutes went by so fast. And, as others have said, the more familiar with the test you become, the faster you'll be able to go through the sections. No worries, get a good read of the passages and keep on studying hard!

Pacifico

I would ditch powerscore, pick up a copy of the LSAT Trainer, then finish both the Trainer and 7Sage before you start worrying too much. A lot of the prep you do for LR will actually help immensely in your RC. I recently advised someone in a very similar situation (non-native speaker with RC issues). Check out the advice I gave here: http://7sage.com/forums/discussion/3162/do-i-hit-a-wall-any-advice-would-be-appreciated-thank-you#latest

Your English is really good, you just need to commit to reading a lot more outside your LSAT prep to get your speed up. I would recommend any of the same reading I did in that thread. And audiobooks are another invaluable tool to improve comprehension and learn about new topics. As others mentioned, speed will come with time, but as a non-native speaker, it will be easier if you're not simply relying on your LSAT prep work to help improve your actual reading speed and retention.

If after reading that thread you have any additional questions feel free to hit me up anytime.