Posting on Behalf of a 7Sage User: I experienced something strange with LR section. Help!

Paula --Student Service--

[I am posting on behalf of a 7Sage user. Please feel free to leave your comments below. Thank you so much for your help!]
Hello! I started studying for the LSAT March of 2021 and took it twice in August 2021 and November 2021 (had not used 7Sage to prepare). Both times, I experienced something strange with the LR section: it was as if I had never seen the section. I wasn't able to process the words or make sense of the questions or able to see the patterns associated with the question types (as I usually am during studying and practice tests). The first time around, I thought this may be happening because I am not as prepared as I should be but the second time, I felt prepared. I have been following the Core Curriculum and it has helped me tremendously. My PTs after starting the CC have been 166 and 163 respectively (as opposed to my 158 official score both times). I will be taking the test September 2022 so I have a solid 3 months to reach my goal of 172+ but I am worried about experiencing what I did for the LR section my previous two administrations. What do you think this could be and how can I ensure that this doesn't happen again during my September test? Looking forward to your response, thank you!

Matt Sorr

I could be totally wrong, but it sounds to me like you had a classic case of test anxiety, or “test day jitters,” so to speak. If you’ve been progressively increasing your score on PTs, I highly doubt that both of the official tests you took were just extremely unusual or oddly difficult. Assuming you did experience test day anxiety that greatly hindered your performance, I’d recommend a few things: always try to simulate test day conditions as closely as possible when studying and taking PTs, look up stress management tactics (perhaps even tactics specific to standardized testing), and look into meditation/breathing techniques to deal with stress. I’ve consistently heard all of these recommendations from people who overcame test anxiety.