Recognition - What is stated

NotMyNameNotMyName Alum Member Sage ⭐
in Reading Comprehension 5320 karma

I find it so strange that this should be the question type I struggle with in RC. After all, isn't this what RC boils down to? "What did that passage say?". And yet, it's by far my most missed question. I am only getting 69% of these correct, which crushes me because they are the most prevalent question type.

My other weak spot is Recognition - Main Point.

I am quite strong on all other types, but these 2 make up about 40% of my misses and What Is Stated is the lion's share of that. I haven't put much effort into RC yet and I've got 3.5 months until December. Right now I miss anywhere between 3 and 7, but usually 4-5.

If anyone has specific strategies for addressing these QTs, that would be really helpful. But I suppose I just need to develop a consistent approach to RC, which I haven't done yet. I don't like notating very much, so I guess I need to improve my internal organization for the passage. That should help me to quickly confirm on "what is stated" questions.

Comments

  • Cant Get RightCant Get Right Yearly + Live Member Sage ⭐ 🍌 7Sage Tutor
    27900 karma

    These are tough because they often pull the answer from a very high resolution level of detail. The whole point of RC is to give us more information than we can really retain in order to see how effectively we can handle volume. I use annotation to deal with detail, which allows me to get these from memory most of the time. As you're developing your strategy, I think the first thing you need to determine is how you're going to manage your time. You can give each passage about 8 minutes, so you can distribute that between passage and questions in a number of ways:

    I really take my time in the passage. I read for deep, intuitive understanding and I annotate in order to retain as much detail as possible. I give it about 4 minutes, so I've got to really fly through the questions. Reading so thoroughly allows me to do this, but if I need to glance back at the passage much, I start getting into trouble.

    At the extreme end of the other side of the spectrum would be like a two minute passage read. You won't have as good a read, but you'll have about a full minute for each question, and you'll be able to work with the questions and passage in tandem.

    There's many further strategic elements, but I do think that your time distribution will ultimately dictate a lot of it. Start there, and once that's defined, try to answer this question within the specific context of your strategy. The answer will be very different based on where you fall.

  • NotMyNameNotMyName Alum Member Sage ⭐
    5320 karma

    Thanks @"Cant Get Right"

    I can tell you already, I'll be much more comfortable taking 3-4 on a read. At present, I do some annotation but it is not uniform nor consistent. Nicol's strategy ain't for me -- just too much. But I think I do need some consistency.

  • eesLSAT2017eesLSAT2017 Alum Member
    59 karma

    @jkatz1488
    So this is a really weird strategy, and one that I haven't even seen anyone else suggest, but it worked for me, so I'm sharing it. On RC, I basically have gotten -3 every time. I pretty much missed at least one main point every time, and often an author inference one. I tried the memory method and I tried just skimming the article, etc, etc. I finally decided that my problem was concentration (I doubt that that's your problem, but it took me forever to realize that was mine). If the passage was a boring one, I was skipping around in it by accident. Skipping to the next line without fully comprehending the last one and what-not. So I started employing a strategy that I sometimes have to use when I'm reading a novel. If I know where the spoiler is (like on the last paragraph of the chapter or book) I have to cover that paragraph so I don't spoil it for myself. So I implemented this on RC. I cover the entire passage with my hand save for the line I am literally reading at the time, slowly moving my left hand down the page as I read. If I feel like I didn't totally understand it, I go back and read just that line (or sentence) again. Some note taking/circling/etc, not a lot. Boom. -0 RC, like magic. I usually wind up with time to spare, too. I can complete almost all of the questions without even referring to the passage, even for the specific line reference questions.

    Even if you don't do that ^, I hope it helps in some way. Good luck!

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