Improving at RC for Low Scorers

grantcarmann42

I’ve been studying for the LSAT for about 7 months now. I’ve seen pretty significant improvements on LG and LR. Right now I’m usually at around -1 to -3 for LG and -5 to -7 for LR. Studying RC has been very difficult for me. I have repeatedly been getting -12 to -15 on RC sections despite putting a lot of effort into the core curriculum and drills. I know RC is one of the harder sections to improve on, but I really just want to improve so that I’m getting around -8 consistently. Does anyone have any strategies for low scorers on RC to improve by a few points? Is it worth it to try skipping the last passage all together and just focus on the first 3?

applejacks

Hey! I can answer your last question in regards to skipping the last passage all together. In my experience, going into a RC section with the mindset of going at 3/4 passages lowers my stress which in turn helps to avoid unnecessary wrong answers in the first 3 passages. As I mentioned, this approach has lessened my stress in RC sections and now after lots of practice and attacking RC this way, I am now much quicker and most of the time I can get to the 4th passage and knock out a few questions. For some context, I started out getting anywhere from -12 to -18, but now I sit consistently around -8 in this section. I hope this personal experience may help you!

yhtkim

Hi! I have three tips that I think compliment each other very well. I'll keep it brief.

1. Invest time in the passage. If you have a clear understanding of the passage, you'll be surprised to see how fast the questions go--and how accurate you are! It's a lot like LG.

2. This tip applies to the entire test, but I think it's especially relevant for RC: "Uncertainty is part of the game." You're rarely going to be 100% certain about an answer. If you're even 70% sure, move on! Don't waste time confirming answers.

3. Low-res, low-res, low-res. Low-res is what gets me through the harder passages.

Let me know if you'd like more advice! Eager to help. (I average -2 on RC.)

mikalyn.greenzweig

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OliverHP

Hey! RC is my weakest section. For one I was an engineering major in college and didn't have much complex reading assignments then. I have seen improvements after doing the following things. However, I am not where I want yet. I went from finishing 2.5 passages a prep test (-15) to finishing all four passages (-10 - -8).

If you have time, studying for RC should be your first priority and the first thing you do. Moreover, studying for RC improved my LR score as well; Reading LR stimuli became easier and faster.

Think about why you are weak in RC and narrow it down. I narrowed down one of my biggest problems to unfamiliar vocabulary. English is my second language. So a lot of words don't follow through with their connotations the same way they do in my native language. I started keeping a vocabulary journal with translations of any unfamiliar words I come across. I noticed that words in the conceptual categories of rejecting, reducing, impeding show up a lot.

Do RC passage(s) everyday. I started from the first PT doing 1 RC passage every day in addition to whatever else I am doing. Then I bumped it to 2 RC passages every day. Untimed. Some other trends appeared again. Passages discussing how scholars have been ignoring oral cultures. Economic passages about human factors. Passages about undermined role of women in history and literature. Passages about US laws discriminating against native Americans.

PT every week. I do a PT every Saturday so that is my timed practice and pressures me to complete RC in the allotted time.

I recommend listening to the RC episodes on the 7Sage podcast.

Connect the dots between RC passages and the real world. After reading a passage about some weird animal like Okapi look it up so it's less abstract for you. I liked the youtube videos on the RC passage pages that discuss the passage subject. You need to become interested in the topic of the RC passage and somehow resonate with it.

Watch how JY does his passages with the idea of pushing back, calling out loud all the referential phrases and creating fast and silly examples whenever he comes across abstract ideas. It helps to listen to JY's advice on how to approach RC. But there is a lot of value in watching him do RC.

RC is not unteachable. No offense to anyone, but I believe no one has cracked the code to RC teaching yet. 7Sage does the best job of teaching RC though. I tried Blueprint and I like their method in combination of the 7Sage method.

When I hear people spend 2.5 - 3 minutes on a passage, I believe it's not mainly that they are better at RC, it is the fact that they are doing it differently. I still haven't figured out what's the best way to read passages but I think that's the key to get to the next level.

Happy to chat more about RC!