Assessing Reading Comprehension

K S

I have been working on Logical Reasoning and Logic Games, and I feel pretty comfortable with them. I still end up scoring in the 150's however due to reading comp. I feel like the only way to really improve is to do them and get them wrong and try to do better next time? I feel sort of lost. I have been reading the Economist and scholarly journals on scientific information to try and hone those skills as far as reading goes. However, I am not sure why I just cant make it work.

Any Tips?

The_Rise

what books do you have for reading comp? I think the trainer is probably the best RC book.

also google, "voyagers reading comp tips" should take you to a thread on TLS which many people said helped their reading comp scores.

Nilesh S

and my two cents ...Manhattan LSAT reading strategy guide...though JY says that trainer is better, MLSAT did the job for me...down from - 10 to -1 to -3 on the tests

K S

What do you mean "trainer" am I going to have to buy the entire trainer book just for that one section? Like this: http://www.amazon.com/The-LSAT-Trainer-remarkable-self-driven/product-reviews/0989081508

What is in the Manhattan LSAT reading strategy guide that made it so effective for you?

My issue I found lat night isn't with the main point of the passage or with reading quickly. Whether I do the question fast or slow I seem to get about the same amount wrong. I trip up in the inference must be true questions usually. However, seeing as they make up around 40 % of the reading comp section. It make sense why I would be getting them wrong....

My plan is to do JY's tip of short term memory and just keep repeatedly doing it. I need a maximum of minus ten to make my goal.

EuripidesFan

Do not follow voyagers guide. It comes down to understanding the essence of what u read in under 4 minutes so that you can answer general questions quickly and have time to look back for specific questions. Little to no markings are needed.

Nilesh S

For me it was the tips and tricks that the MLSAT RC guide gave me...as in what to look for while reading the passage...how to eliminate wrong answers...how to effectively annotate the passage while reading.

Nilesh S

Trainer does the same as they are both written by Mike Kim

J.Y. Ping

Hey guys, I don't want to hog the conversation, but I have to put my (hefty) weight on the Trainer. Mike Kim is the man. He just published the Trainer, which to me, means that it's better than the old stuff he wrote for MLSAT.

You guys are so awesome for helping each other out. Seriously, every time I read the forums, I want to hug you all.

K S

Awesome, I got the book. I really hope that my reading comp goes up. I spent a significant amount of time on it today...and took some time off work to ensure its where it needs to be by the test. THANK YOU

Mike Ross

NVM my last comment, ordered the Trainer!

K S

In the meantime while I am waiting for the book, I have been going through kaplan's reading comp worksheets/drills... I feel like when I do the "memory" method I feel rushed and don't do as well as when I do the kaplan workbook and take my time.

Do you think that maybe I should just try and get through the workbook and THEN start doing the memory method? Or do you think the reason I am doing poorly is directly related to the fact that I am not retaining enough and thus should do more with the memory method?

Amir Shakoorian

I have been working through the RC sections of the trainer this week and I think it's a great book. It's approach is very well explained and makes a lot of sense... If you're having problem making improvements on RC, the trainer may be the best approach out there..

Luis89011

Know what Book im gettn

theforms

Hi KS - in response to your question, I just created a new discussion and posted a very long and very very detailed explanation of how to deal with RC passages. I also give a more conceptual explanation of why the LSAT even includes RC in the test - how thinking like a lawyer might help with this section of the test. I didn't post this in the comments because it was so long and detailed. if you are still struggling, please, please do check it out.

Basically, I wrote out this explanation because I think that the RC passages do actually lend themselves to a systematic method that can balance both speed and accuracy, but I don't think that, in comparison to LG and LR, a good, working, systematic method has been fleshed out for RC by most materials I've encountered. That said, Trainer could be better than my method - I may order it, though we're getting very close to test day, so IDK.

Anyway good luck, I hope you or someone else finds the information useful.

David Wayne

I am desperate for RC help. 7sage has gotten my LG and LR to near perfect at times but RC is consistently killing my score, i'm averageing -7 wrong per test. I am thinking of ordering Mike Kim's book - can anyone else speak to its effectiveness?

pritisharma

Is there anyone out there that benefited from Voyager's method? I think Trainer is great and I am averaging to 1 wrong per passage right now. But 1. I think I am taking to long to read the passage (4-5 min) especially considering how long I take to do the questions. My average time /passage is currently about 9 min + . I want to improve both time and efficiency. I am waiting for my Manhattan RC guide.

nicole.hopkins

@"J.Y. Ping" said:
Seriously, every time I read the forums, I want to hug you all.

fishtwentyfive

I suggest rereading the passages you've already taken. Everyone suggests reading other sources to hone their LSAT RC skills, but the truth is, none of those other sources are LSAT passages... The cool thing about RC is that near every correct answer choice is actually PRESENT in the passage. So, when you review and read the passages you've already taken, look for the credited answer in the passage, and if it's not there, then think about it really hard until you understand it. I've also noticed that RC has more 'deceptive' answer choices than any other section-- word choice is incredibly precise.

nicole.hopkins

@kylemitchellx said:
I suggest rereading the passages you've already taken. Everyone suggests reading other sources to hone their LSAT RC skills, but the truth is, none of those other sources are LSAT passages...

Agree with this! We've already got such a wealth of material; I think just laying eyes on the different subject matter helps with comfort level. Reading through a section will help you switch from subject area to subject area because ... well ... it's the real thing. And then we'll all say, "Hey, I am not afraid of passages about X because reading these RC passages in a safe context lessens my fear of them." Right?

And hey! You might learn things, too

Dr. Yamata

I find that I need to run through a few RC passages before I take my PT's to warm my eyes and brain up for the density of information I'm about to be tested on. This is really the only tactic that I've noticed a big difference using. It's just so subjective. I've hit near perfect RC's using ridiculous amounts of notation and highlighting, whereas I've hit near perfect RC's not even touching the pencil to the passage at all. I think at the end of the day, you just have to be able to understand what you read quickly and memorize it enough to answer questions about it, or have a clue as to where to jump back and find it.

Another huge piece of the puzzle is being INTERESTED in the passage. I know this may be a lot to ask. But get into it for 5 minutes. You need to be like.. "Australian Property Regulations!!!!!! YES!!!" Find something interesting about it and get engaged. Approaching the passages with fear, some mechanistic system of notation strategy, or boredom will almost invariably lead to not comprehending the passage as much.

bstew2002

You know that part of the 7Sage curriculum where you do all logic games from PTs 1-35 STRAIGHT and next thing you know you are -0 to -2 on all LG sections when PT'ing? Because you drilled the sh*t out of LG.

Just do the same for RC. It sucks but it pays off. Save a few passages for pre-PT and pre-Test Day (holy sh*t that's Monday...) warm-up like @"Dr. Yamata" says. He's right. You have to warm your brain up and RC passages are safer than sticking your head in the microwave.