LR timing Strats: when to skip and why

Comments

• J.H. Song Alum Member

  December 2015 201 karma

  For the longest time, I read the stimulus over and over again, and so I always had difficulties finishing LR sections. I saw a dramatic improvement with timing when I decided to just read the stimulus once, eliminate obvious wrong answer choices, then quickly glance at the stimulus one more time. If I am still unsure by then, I pick one of the two or maybe three answer choices and move on. A fresh second look is much more likely to lead you to the right answer, so I would suggest focusing on finishing with some time left to go back to those questions.
• 2RARE2CARE Member

  December 2015 248 karma

  @"J.H. Song" im gonna try that out, was thinking I should be doing something closer to that, I think I am too used to re reading the stimulus over and over.. But I had a feeling I shouldn't
• J.H. Song Alum Member

  December 2015 201 karma

  Yes, try and train yourself to make that a habit, preferably through timed lr sections, not PTs.
• 2 Likes

  nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  December 2015 7965 karma

  We are discussing doing a webinar on this very topic ... Stay tuned!
• 1 Like

  poohbear Alum Member

  December 2015 496 karma

  would love a webinar on this!!!
• 1 Like

  twssmith Alum ⭐

  December 2015 5120 karma

  Sorry you had to leave the workshop today. During the Q&A portion, skipping questions came up with a lively discussion between @"Quick Silver", @"Nicole Hopkins" & @DumbHollywoodActor and we are hoping that they work out a new workshop for this strategy. Please!!!
• nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  December 2015 7965 karma

  @twssmith said:
  Please!!!
  

  Haha ... the people have spoken!!
• 1 Like

  GSU Hopeful Core ⭐

  December 2015 edited December 2015 1644 karma

  @2RARE2CARE For me, its simple. If I read the stimulus once and I'm left with that "WTF" thought in my mind, its a skip. Right there. Come back. Certain questions just don't jive and this feeling is a huge indicator that I have hit one of those questions. If I read it the first time and have trouble parsing out the grammar or identifying the argument parts, I will allow myself one more quick read through to see what I missed. If I still don't have a grasp on the argument or the flaw (if there is one)... its a skip. I'll have a better idea when I come back. I'll never hit it a third time on the first run through. It wastes too much time and prevents you from getting to other low hanging fruit. Those are the rules I have set out for myself. The more simple I keep it, the less I have to think about during the test. I just default to those rules.
  
  @nicole.hopkins I think a workshop on this would be great!
• Pacifico Alum Inactive ⭐

  December 2015 8021 karma

  Never read a stimulus more than twice during the first go round... The curvebreakers that need 2+ minutes can be dealt with after you finish the section... If you can't find the conclusion (and there is one), skip it... If you can't see the flaw/gap (and there is one), skip it... The former is the most important factor and the latter is the second most important in my opinion... Sometimes you can let the ACs feed you as long as you know what the conclusion is, so there is hope if you can't identify the flaw/gap right away or put it into words... But if you can't see the conclusion you're just grasping at straws in the dark...
• c.janson35 Free Trial Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  December 2015 2398 karma

  @Pacifico said:
  If you can't see the flaw/gap (and there is one), skip it... The former is the most important factor and the latter is the second most important in my opinion... Sometimes you can let the ACs feed you as long as you know what the conclusion is, so there is hope if you can't identify the flaw/gap right away or put it into words... But if you can't see the conclusion you're just grasping at straws in the dark...
  

  Great advice here. As long as you can find the conclusion, you have a chance; but if you can't, then your best bet is to move on (assuming there is one). Now, the chance is smaller on certain question types, like strengthening/weakening, and larger on others, like flaws, so the strategy often differs depending on your task. If you read the stimulus once or twice, the flaw can often seem obvious in retrospect once you've come across the correct answer, so I like to give myself this opportunity, at least, before skipping the question right off the bat. Your strategy will also vary depending on where you're at in the section, and how much time you have remaining.
• 2RARE2CARE Member

  December 2015 248 karma

  Unfortunately I was in the Hofstra library during that webinar and the guest wifi is garbage and got thrown out. A webinar would be awesome on this.
• nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  December 2015 7965 karma

  @2RARE2CARE said:
  A webinar would be awesome on this.
  

  We've got it cookin'!
• nye8870 Alum ⭐

  December 2015 1749 karma

  @c.janson35 said:
  so I like to give myself this opportunity, at least, before skipping the question right off the bat.
  

  Now on test day, if you do this but still feel you must skip, do you bubble in a guess just in case you never do get back to it?
• Pacifico Alum Inactive ⭐

  December 2015 8021 karma

  I say always bubble so you decrease the chances of a bubbling error and so you can ride that 20% chance in case you don't get to go back.