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8 Likes
advice about following curriculum from an impatient student
skaplan9190
Alum Member
I just wanted to put this out there for anyone who might have done/is doing what I just did in my study process. Just to give a small preface, I'm generally a pretty impatient person and I also set extremely high standards for myself. Sound familiar?
That being said when I started 7Sage I was so eager to get through it and start cranking out PTs to see how I was performing, sure that as soon as I knew some of the material that would somehow manifest in immediate and remarkable improvement. Needless to say I quickly saw the huge flaw in making that kind of mistake. Even though I initially did see improvement from my diagnostic (152), after about the 6th PT of getting the same score (160, 159, 161, etc), I realized I must be doing something wrong. What I did wrong was that I rushed through a lot of the Core Curriculum. Because many of the concepts made sense to me I didn't see it as necessary that I really spend time drilling them into my brain to make them second nature. The impatience got the best of me. I now realize there is a reason to spend your sweet ass time on the curriculum - it actually makes you better at this test. Who woulda thought?!
I know this all seems logical and for many of you perhaps it would seem ridiculous I would do that, but I figure that if I did it there are probably others who have or who are doing it as well, and keeping themselves from a true opportunity for growth simply because of a lack of patience. I stopped taking PTs because I saw it as pointless to waste precious tests if I wasn't getting out of them what I should, and went back to the CC. I started to review lessons I skimmed over and really did the drills in full. Instead of just answering the questions (kind of doing BR but not really), checking my answers and then moving on, I began to do the questions, BR them, then watch the videos - and this is important - EVEN if I got the answers right. There is so much in these videos that helps in solidifying being able to recognize the patterns of this test that anyone who has invested in this program would be doing a huge disservice to themselves to not take advantage of. Before I only watched the videos, if I did at all, for the questions I got wrong. I missed a great opportunity in doing that to learn so much valuable information that can be gained from different question types.
Again I'm putting this out there because even though I it's embarrassing to admit not doing something the way it's meant to be done and thereby making the mistake I made, it's something that I'm sure plagues many eager students who want to see quick and big results. All I can say is go to a yoga class, take a few deep breaths and say Goose Fraba - it'll all be okay. Learn as much as you can, soak in the CC, then march into those PTs and start getting the scores that are more reflective of your potential. The only reason you would not be scoring where you'd like is because somewhere along the line you cut corners (or at least that's what I think).
Hope this helps someone out there struggling with the same issues I have been struggling with.
That being said when I started 7Sage I was so eager to get through it and start cranking out PTs to see how I was performing, sure that as soon as I knew some of the material that would somehow manifest in immediate and remarkable improvement. Needless to say I quickly saw the huge flaw in making that kind of mistake. Even though I initially did see improvement from my diagnostic (152), after about the 6th PT of getting the same score (160, 159, 161, etc), I realized I must be doing something wrong. What I did wrong was that I rushed through a lot of the Core Curriculum. Because many of the concepts made sense to me I didn't see it as necessary that I really spend time drilling them into my brain to make them second nature. The impatience got the best of me. I now realize there is a reason to spend your sweet ass time on the curriculum - it actually makes you better at this test. Who woulda thought?!
I know this all seems logical and for many of you perhaps it would seem ridiculous I would do that, but I figure that if I did it there are probably others who have or who are doing it as well, and keeping themselves from a true opportunity for growth simply because of a lack of patience. I stopped taking PTs because I saw it as pointless to waste precious tests if I wasn't getting out of them what I should, and went back to the CC. I started to review lessons I skimmed over and really did the drills in full. Instead of just answering the questions (kind of doing BR but not really), checking my answers and then moving on, I began to do the questions, BR them, then watch the videos - and this is important - EVEN if I got the answers right. There is so much in these videos that helps in solidifying being able to recognize the patterns of this test that anyone who has invested in this program would be doing a huge disservice to themselves to not take advantage of. Before I only watched the videos, if I did at all, for the questions I got wrong. I missed a great opportunity in doing that to learn so much valuable information that can be gained from different question types.
Again I'm putting this out there because even though I it's embarrassing to admit not doing something the way it's meant to be done and thereby making the mistake I made, it's something that I'm sure plagues many eager students who want to see quick and big results. All I can say is go to a yoga class, take a few deep breaths and say Goose Fraba - it'll all be okay. Learn as much as you can, soak in the CC, then march into those PTs and start getting the scores that are more reflective of your potential. The only reason you would not be scoring where you'd like is because somewhere along the line you cut corners (or at least that's what I think).
Hope this helps someone out there struggling with the same issues I have been struggling with.
Comments
Of course, you don't need to watch the videos for every question in every PT later in your prep, but in the curriculum stage it makes absolute sense.
Thanks for bringing it up!
I have just finished re-doing the curriculum and can promise that it is very exciting getting to the point where "I know what I do not know." Now I can focus on shoring up my weaknesses and work on timing/skipping strategies.
Thanks for sharing and hopefully we can all keep other people from joining our club!!
and @twssmith the goal is definitely to do just that. Not a fun club to be in, but isn't recognizing you have a problem the first step to overcoming it? me: "Hi my name is Samantha and I'm an impatient LSAT learner." group: "Hi Samantha" lol... anyways very happy you're starting to seeing the improvement you've very much earned.
"Hi my name is Tyler and I am an impatient LSAT learner."
With that being said. I started from scratch. This go-round my required hours/week is ~20. Allows me (and somewhat forces me) to put the books down and go exercise or do just about anything else. It's kinda like re-learning the ABCs but that's totally OK. Working on the fundamentals has actually made me more confident and I've gotten a lot more questions correct doing the drills in the core curriculum.
Moral of the story: patience is key.
and @KevinSage that's really good to hear. I know exactly what you mean. I've been forcing myself to stop and go to yoga or take the dogs for a long walk when I notice that I'm starting to get ahead of myself. Great way to combat the 'rushed' feeling that does nothing but harm. It's so amazing how much really goes into this test - I never would have guessed before deciding to take it really just how much it demands from you. It's great to get a taste though because as JY says in the first lesson, if you think the LSAT is hard Law School is harder. Woohoo!!!
1) Test where you stand in terms of your understanding of the LSAT.
2) Allow you the chance to figure out what you need to improve on.
3) Provide you with the most ideal way of experiencing what it will be like when you actually sit the exam.
Unless you understand what you are doing, taking PTs is pointless. You're pretty much just bubbling in answers and hoping that you have enough knowledge to do well. If you have to hope that you have enough knowledge to do well, set aside the PTs, and crack open the books (or computer in this case).
Always watch the 7Sage explanations. I can't tell you how many times I knew that my answer was right and that my rationale was fine...only to find out that the 7Sage explanation would come in handy on another question.