Drill vs PT

cest_la_vie

I've been plateauing in the low 160s - mid 160s for almost 6months. I went through all the popular prep books and have started re-reading them recently to check if I missed any fundamentals. To be honest, I think I am weak in all three sections. Usually, when I drill (timed mode), I don't get as many questions wrong as I do in PTs. For example, when I recycle my old PTs, including those I don't even remember the questions, I usually get 0-2 wrong in games, 3-5 wrong in LR, and 4-6 wrong in the RC. For the PTs I do remember, I tend to score better.
Whenever I try new PTs, the problem is that my score always returns to the low 160s. I missed so many questions that I think I could have gotten right. Recently, I get around 160-164 as scaled score while my blind review score is around low 170s. I feel extremely pressured when solving new PTs, but I don't know why this is constantly happening. Is it just because I didn't practice enough? I get disappointed in myself every day and feel totally lost. What should I do to break out of this endless plateau?

mikalyn.greenzweig

Not sure if you have tried using a wrong answer journal for the questions you are getting wrong, but I have found this method to be gold. At one point I also found myself plateauing in the same score range and I found that using a wrong answer journal consistently showed me where my weaknesses were for certain questions type.

cest_la_vie

Yes, I've been writing it since day one. I categorized them by question type and logic and have been reviewing them regularly. I'm feeling helpless

Mike_Ross

Hey there--adding some thoughts here from the POV of someone who tutors LSAT and have been at this spot at one point:

1) A lot of this comes down from having standardized LR-question-specific strategies that you execute every single time. This takes away the anxiety of not knowing what to do in the moments you freeze up.

2) once you have strategies you trust because you keep seeing positive results, I recommend you start applying a skipping strategy consistently. This is a major step to take. If you are consistently in the 165 range, chances are you know the test pretty well but aren't really managing your time well. One thing we've all experienced at one point is stalling on a question and not knowing when to move on. Skipping strategies help preempt these moments by ensuring you already have an answer for when to move on!

3) Finally, totally agree with @"mikalyn.greenzweig" about the Wrong Answer Journal. It helps you see trends emerge and forces you to examine why you chose certain ACs and how to strategize for similar questions

Doing these 3 things has been the major plateau-breaking strategies I consistently see. I hope it helps! And of course, happy to share more thoughts if anyone else has questions