Depressed about Weakening Questions

Comments

• 3 Likes

  corgimeister Member

  October 2016 36 karma

  I definitely understand where you are coming from. I can always find the conclusion and premise...I also know to target the support of argument. However, when I look at the answers, I convince myself that more than one can weaken the argument, even though I know there is only answer that even remotely weakens the argument. Thanks for starting the discussion!
• 8 Likes

  twssmith Alum ⭐

  October 2016 5120 karma

  Hi Penny:)
  To allay any concerns you have, weaken questions can be wicked!! Their deception lies in the level of difficulty that LSAC will throw at you on especially this question type. Just as you think you are starting to conquer them, you hit a curve ball that makes you question your confidence and ability - but this is a part of the psychology of the test. Weaken questions can be easy but can also be some of the hardest curve breaker questions for even the 175+ scorers with vague or ambiguous answer choices.
  
  Many times Weaken/Strengthen questions will expose a problem with a specific flaw type rather than the question type. It might be a good idea to revisit the one's that stumped you to see if you can identify a specific trend and/or maybe find a different perspective on why you struggled on different questions.
  
  Check out Nicole's Webinar on Stregthen/Weaken question types - I actually attended that webinar live and still revisit it for reinforcement of the concept she presented about 3 common types of Weaken/Stregthen argument structures -
  
  https://7sage.com/webinar/weaken-strengthen/
  
  If you have any specific questions - let us know!!
• 1 Like

  PennyroyalT Member

  October 2016 40 karma

  @corgimeister Thanks for responding! I think this is definitely not a unique problem I'm struggling with and I'm glad we can discuss it openly!
  
  @twssmith Thank you so much for your input. Funny enough, I actually happened across Nicole Hopkins' webinar on Strengthen and Weaken questions right after I made this post. I'm planning on sitting down today and going over it, while taking some serious notes.
  Also, I think that the general trend in the ones I'm missing is that I was just fatigued yesterday. I started missing even things I shouldn't have been and that's when I knew I had to put the books down. I had great sleep last night and I'm going to meditate this morning, eat a wonderful breakfast, and get to work. I really appreciate the input and I'll be sure to let you know of any new developments!
• 4 Likes

  Alex Alum Member ⭐

  October 2016 23929 karma

  @PennyroyalT said:
  Nicole Hopkins' webinar on Strengthen and Weaken questions right after I made this post. I'm planning on sitting down today and going over it, while taking some serious notes.
  

  This! Take good notes and review the lessons/webinar. A big problem I had with weaken questions was attacking the premises instead of the support those premises give to the conclusion. As @twssmith said, these questions can be wicked!
  
  If I remember correctly, that webinar was a BIG help when I still wasn't understanding Strengthen/weaken questions.
• 3 Likes

  PennyroyalT Member

  October 2016 40 karma

  @"Alex Divine" I just finished the webinar and my, was it helpful! I am very excited to use it and see where it takes me. It helped to clear up a lot of things and made Weakening/Strengthening questions not appear as daunting. I love the "cookie-cutter" method that was proposed. Very insightful! I also love that only difficult questions were used as examples
• 3 Likes

  zkchrumz Free Trial Member

  October 2016 164 karma

  I get bummed out by Strengthen/Weaken questions alot. I just remind myself that they can be some of the toughest LSAT questions they can make. There are really no shortcuts for beating these questions like there are for sufficient/necessary assumptions, main point, parallel, role in argument, or MBT. So just take them with a grain of salt, is my advice, and keep hammering away.
• 3 Likes

  monica123 Member

  October 2016 90 karma

  http://lsatblog.blogspot.com/2009/04/steps-solving-weaken-logical-reasoning.html I found this really helpful!
  
• 1 Like

  desire2learn Member

  October 2016 1171 karma

  Don't get down about weaknesses. Just use them as an opportunity to learn. Many of us have struggled with specific types of questions (including weakening). Ultimately you have to fight through and keep to it. Don't give up!
• 2 Likes

  PennyroyalT Member

  October 2016 40 karma

  Thanks everyone for the advice and the encouragement! I have been meditating the past few days and my outlook is slowly improving. We can do this!
• Farabian-Platonist Alum Member

  June 2017 54 karma

  Excellent thread with some very helpful material. Thanks for all of your previous input.