How to get better with NA

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• 4 Likes

  Zachary_P Member

  June 2017 659 karma

  Something that helped me get better at NA questions was to master how to negate sentences and ideas. If you recall from the CC (The Trainer teaches the same thing), if you negate the right answer choice to an NA question, it will completely destroy the argument. If you negate an AC and it leaves the argument just as plausible as before, then we know that cannot be the right answer.

  So my strategy is to get it down to 1AC if I can based on the argument alone. If I can get it down to 2-3 AC's, that's when I run the negation test and the right answer jumps right out most of the time. But in order to do this, you have to be an expert in negation. I would suggest you spend some time working on that to improve your NA skill.
• 1 Like

  Alex Alum Member ⭐

  June 2017 23929 karma

  @Zachary_P said:
  Something that helped me get better at NA questions was to master how to negate sentences and ideas. If you recall from the CC (The Trainer teaches the same thing), if you negate the right answer choice to an NA question, it will completely destroy the argument. If you negate an AC and it leaves the argument just as plausible as before, then we know that cannot be the right answer.

  So my strategy is to get it down to 1AC if I can based on the argument alone. If I can get it down to 2-3 AC's, that's when I run the negation test and the right answer jumps right out most of the time. But in order to do this, you have to be an expert in negation. I would suggest you spend some time working on that to improve your NA skill.

  This is how I too am able to check my answer choices. Another issue is making sure you truly understand the ideas behind necessity and sufficiency and what how they logically work.
• 2 Likes

  Freddy_D Alum Member ⭐

  June 2017 2983 karma

  I've also noticed that a lot of times, especially with the harder questions, the trap answer choice is a perfect AC to a sufficient assumption question. Correct NA answer choices tend to be subtle and a lot weaker than the answer choices for SA questions.
• 1 Like

  nicole.brooklyn Alum Member

  June 2017 341 karma

  They're also quite similar to MBT questions. Because it's "required" as an assumption, the author has already committed to the right answer choice. For the argument to be good, the right answer MBT.
• 1 Like

  danielznelson Alum Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  June 2017 4181 karma

  A lot of people really liking determining whether you need a bridging or blocking assumption. The former is a lot like an SA, where two ideas need to be connected. In an NA bridging question, however, the relationship doesn't have to make for a valid argument - there just has to be a relationship. But I think in at least almost all cases, you're connecting the same ideas you would be connecting in SAs. This I think is why many NA ACs are also sufficient assumptions.
• 1 Like

  NotMyName Alum Member Sage ⭐

  June 2017 5320 karma

  Another issue is making sure you truly understand the ideas behind necessity and sufficiency and what how they logically work.

  This was the key for me. I spent a lot of time in the CC going over logical arguments, diagramming logic for questions I didn't even need to, playing with necessity and sufficiency, etc. I am much more comfortable with what these expressions actually mean now so while NA remain an odd question type to prephrase for, I find myself falling for trap answer choices far less often.
• 3 Likes

  LSATcantwin Alum Member Sage ⭐

  June 2017 edited June 2017 13286 karma

  So a lot of good advice has been given here. I want to attempt to help a bit more. Whenever I asked questions like this, people would just repeat what the CC or some book said. Which is good, but it didn't help me. I understood what I was suppose to do, but not how to practice it. So this is what I am currently doing with NA questions to help me get better.

  My method:

  • I printed out all 21 practice NA question sections from the CC.
  • I bought a spiral notebook to record my work.
  • For every questions I write down;
    1.) Conclusion,
    2.) The support (not the premise, more of what I see the premise doing to help the conclusion.)
    3.) My selected answer choice AND its negation.

  If I get it right, I read the other 4 incorrect AC and briefly tell myself why they are wrong, to reinforce this.

  If I get it wrong;

  • I write out a specific reason why the answer choice I picked is wrong.

  • I check to see if I negated the answer I picked incorrectly.

  • I check to see if I understood how the premises were trying to support the conclusion.

  • I write down every reason I can possibly see why each incorrect answer choice is incorrect. I then spend time proving to myself that the correct answer is, well, correct.

  This is a very slow process, but I believe it's the only way to help me improve on NA questions. I get practice at the negation technique, I get exposed to trick answer questions, AND I get more practice spotting the conclusion/context/premise/support.

  This might not work for you, but it is a suggestion.
• 1 Like

  rogersalexandra7 Alum Member

  June 2017 213 karma

  Thank you all for the advice!!! I am writing out before I check the answer to see if its right why I chose one of them and why I didn't choose the other 4 and it does help doing that, Im definitely going to try and negate the last two so I don't fall for the trap. Thank you all again I REALLLLYYY appreciate it!