The Official June 2015 Study Group Forum

gamerish · Post by **gamerish** » Wed Jan 28, 2015 11:15 pm

Post removed...

Rigo · Post by **Rigo** » Wed Jan 28, 2015 11:16 pm

JackelJ wrote:
Dirigo wrote:So I totally didn't follow through with my "starting on Monday" thing.
Okay sign me up for the backseat ban if I don't start February 2nd.
Seriously? Start now. There is no reason you need to wait until the beginning of a week to start, that's stupid
#toughlove

179orBust · Post by **179orBust** » Wed Jan 28, 2015 11:18 pm

gamerish wrote:Results for redos today:

Simple Ordering
Pg. 4 (Redo)
-1; 6:10
Pg. 5 (Redo)
-0; 6:20
Pg. 6 (Redo)
-0; 6:20
Pg. 18 (Redo)
-0; 6:59
Pg. 19 (Redo)
-0; 6:09
Pg. 21 (Redo)
-0; 7:00

Complex Ordering
Pg. 5 (Redo)
-0; 6:05
Pg. 7 (Redo)
-0; 7:01
Pg. 15 (Redo)
-0; 6:59
Pg. 18 (Redo)
-0; 7:01
Pg. 21 (Redo)
-0; 7:02

I'm fucking thrilled with that.

Might do a couple more Grouping Distribution redos but it's late and I have homework.

Great job gamer. When was the last time you saw those games?

RZ5646 · Post by **RZ5646** » Wed Jan 28, 2015 11:22 pm

I need to get back into drilling. Last week I had a project that took up a lot of my time and I've yet to get back to LSAT mode, besides reading that Manhattan book.

gamerish · Post by **gamerish** » Wed Jan 28, 2015 11:23 pm

Post removed...

Shakawkaw · Post by **Shakawkaw** » Wed Jan 28, 2015 11:27 pm

179orBust wrote:
Shakawkaw wrote:
179orBust wrote:Hardest part about studying is actually getting yourself to start. Been telling myself all day that I'll study and I just started now lol. Once I start though, I can go like 6 hours straight. Anyone agree?

Also, how do you guys drill RC? I'm in a quandary right now. I drill individual passages and I typically finish them in 10-11 minutes. Accuracy is around 85%. I'm thinking about forcing myself to finish the level 1 and 2 passages in around 7 minutes and the level 3 and 4 in 8-9 minutes. Is this a good strategy at this point? I know my accuracy will dip, but it may help me out in the long run. What do you guys think?
What approach do you use when you're doing RC? Do you do a cursory 2 minute skim, or do you spend more time up front? I've seen some TLSers advocate for doing every passage in 8 min. You've definitely got plenty of time between now and June to figure out your footing and decide which approach works best for you. 10-11 minutes per passage is definitely a long time at this point - your accuracy should be more than 85% if you're spending that much time. Do you notate when you're reading? If you give a break down of how you approach RC, we might be better able to give you suggestions.
Thanks, really appreciate it. I think my main problem is that I don't have a firm grasp of the passage before attacking the questions. Then when it comes to the questions that focus on the details, I spend way too much time on them. And I always say to myself that I'll spend more time on the passage upfront, but I never do because I'm afraid that I'll spend too much time on the questions also. I really have to find the right balance. In addition, I read somewhere that the RC section basically tests your short-term memory and my STM sucks. Not gonna lie, that really worries me.

I think something that helps in RC is anticipating language cues. I remember Dave Hall mentioning this in one of his videos. Whenever there's a word that sounds out of the ordinary - whenever it's followed by a definition, is a good clue - you should anticipate that a question is going to be asked about that. What I like to do is just underline the word and not focus too much on the definition because it leads, in my case at least, to me getting bogged down trying to remember the details. In local questions, they will always refer to a specific point in the passage, so there's no need to memorize every detail. As long as you get the general flow of the passage and the main point, you're golden. Most materials suggest (referencing the Trainer, off the top of my head) suggest doing a summary of each paragraph to the side of the paragraph. It can even be as short as a word. It helps anchor your focus later, when you need to zone in on a certain topic.

179orBust · Post by **179orBust** » Wed Jan 28, 2015 11:51 pm

Shakawkaw wrote:
179orBust wrote:
Shakawkaw wrote:
179orBust wrote:Hardest part about studying is actually getting yourself to start. Been telling myself all day that I'll study and I just started now lol. Once I start though, I can go like 6 hours straight. Anyone agree?

Also, how do you guys drill RC? I'm in a quandary right now. I drill individual passages and I typically finish them in 10-11 minutes. Accuracy is around 85%. I'm thinking about forcing myself to finish the level 1 and 2 passages in around 7 minutes and the level 3 and 4 in 8-9 minutes. Is this a good strategy at this point? I know my accuracy will dip, but it may help me out in the long run. What do you guys think?
What approach do you use when you're doing RC? Do you do a cursory 2 minute skim, or do you spend more time up front? I've seen some TLSers advocate for doing every passage in 8 min. You've definitely got plenty of time between now and June to figure out your footing and decide which approach works best for you. 10-11 minutes per passage is definitely a long time at this point - your accuracy should be more than 85% if you're spending that much time. Do you notate when you're reading? If you give a break down of how you approach RC, we might be better able to give you suggestions.
Thanks, really appreciate it. I think my main problem is that I don't have a firm grasp of the passage before attacking the questions. Then when it comes to the questions that focus on the details, I spend way too much time on them. And I always say to myself that I'll spend more time on the passage upfront, but I never do because I'm afraid that I'll spend too much time on the questions also. I really have to find the right balance. In addition, I read somewhere that the RC section basically tests your short-term memory and my STM sucks. Not gonna lie, that really worries me.
I think something that helps in RC is anticipating language cues. I remember Dave Hall mentioning this in one of his videos. Whenever there's a word that sounds out of the ordinary - whenever it's followed by a definition, is a good clue - you should anticipate that a question is going to be asked about that. What I like to do is just underline the word and not focus too much on the definition because it leads, in my case at least, to me getting bogged down trying to remember the details. In local questions, they will always refer to a specific point in the passage, so there's no need to memorize every detail. As long as you get the general flow of the passage and the main point, you're golden. Most materials suggest (referencing the Trainer, off the top of my head) suggest doing a summary of each paragraph to the side of the paragraph. It can even be as short as a word. It helps anchor your focus later, when you need to zone in on a certain topic.

Thanks, will try working on that. Appreciate the help.

179orBust · Post by **179orBust** » Wed Jan 28, 2015 11:53 pm

gamerish wrote:Most of them I haven't seen for 3-4 weeks. I don't date my drills though (well, I do as of today) so I can't put it exact.

Then really good job, especially with the timing. I remember you saying a few weeks ago that you struggled with timing so this must feel really good.

RZ5646 · Post by **RZ5646** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 1:06 am

What do you guys think of Powerscore's guessing advice at the end of the LGB? I had always assumed that the testmakers randomize the answer choices... is that not true? Is the order of the ACs actually intentional/meaningful, even if only slightly?

Shakawkaw · Post by **Shakawkaw** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 1:10 am

RZ5646 wrote:What do you guys think of Powerscore's guessing advice at the end of the LGB? I had always assumed that the testmakers randomize the answer choices... is that not true? Is the order of the ACs actually intentional/meaningful, even if only slightly?

This is valid advice. Towards the end of the section or game, I like to test ACs from back to front. The idea is that testmakers put TCR later in the ACs because students generally brute force and waste time.

The Abyss · Post by **The Abyss** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 3:05 am

gamerish wrote:Results for redos today:

Simple Ordering
Pg. 4 (Redo)
-1; 6:10
Pg. 5 (Redo)
-0; 6:20
Pg. 6 (Redo)
-0; 6:20
Pg. 18 (Redo)
-0; 6:59
Pg. 19 (Redo)
-0; 6:09
Pg. 21 (Redo)
-0; 7:00

Complex Ordering
Pg. 5 (Redo)
-0; 6:05
Pg. 7 (Redo)
-0; 7:01
Pg. 15 (Redo)
-0; 6:59
Pg. 18 (Redo)
-0; 7:01
Pg. 21 (Redo)
-0; 7:02

I'm fucking thrilled with that.

Might do a couple more Grouping Distribution redos but it's late and I have homework.

Well done Gamerish!

bnssweeney · Post by **bnssweeney** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 11:17 am

Any recommendation for a RC prep book? I've been looking into PowerScore but I don't want to purchase it if it got mediocre reviews. And if you did use PowerScore, did you just get the Bible or did you also purchase the workbook?

RZ5646 · Post by **RZ5646** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 11:38 am

bnssweeney wrote:Any recommendation for a RC prep book? I've been looking into PowerScore but I don't want to purchase it if it got mediocre reviews. And if you did use PowerScore, did you just get the Bible or did you also purchase the workbook?

The conventional wisdom regarding RC is to drill passages and pray. Beyond that nothing will help you except everyday reading.

peppermint · Post by **peppermint** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 11:40 am

bnssweeney · Post by **bnssweeney** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 12:18 pm

Ok, thanks peppermint and RZ. I've only been working on LG. It think it's time to now do RC and LR.

RZ5646 · Post by **RZ5646** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 2:14 pm

Odds that Obama will bring back debtor's prison to pass his free community college initiative in another ham-handed compromise with big business?

The idea of prisons filled with young law grads constantly filing appeals is amusing, frightening, and disturbingly plausible.

JackelJ · Post by **JackelJ** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 10:09 pm

ugh I wish the whole test was LG because thats all I feel like studying

lawjag2015 · Post by **lawjag2015** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 10:14 pm

peppermint wrote:
bnssweeney wrote:Any recommendation for a RC prep book? I've been looking into PowerScore but I don't want to purchase it if it got mediocre reviews. And if you did use PowerScore, did you just get the Bible or did you also purchase the workbook?
I liked the Trainer for RC. I also read Manhattan RC which was pretty good too & it's a quick read.

I think the best way to get better at RC though is to drill tons of passages.

ETA- scooped by RZ

How goes it, Pepper? Just starting my study day. Hoping to put in 3 hours.

RZ5646 · Post by **RZ5646** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 10:20 pm

JackelJ wrote:ugh I wish the whole test was LG because thats all I feel like studying

Be grateful you feel like studying anything lol

TheWalkingDebt · Post by **TheWalkingDebt** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 10:24 pm

Managed to drill a full LG section today and go -2 through the first three games. Then completely botched the diagramming on Game 4 and got -4 on that game. Still an improvement from -15 on my diag a week ago. Also way over the 35 minute time frame, but still need to tighten diagramming up first before focusing on pace/timing.

Also, everyone involve in the previous discussion. I solved my PT 52-56 dilemma. Ordered the cambridge packets to drill, going to drill the LG/RC sections out of 52-56 and keep 38-51, 57-73 for testing, which will also let me space out my PTing over the last two months to 3-4 a week. I feel like today was a giant step in organizing my schedule.

When did you all start enjoying drilling games? I can't even begin to fathom getting to that point.

gamerish · Post by **gamerish** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 10:26 pm

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RZ5646 · Post by **RZ5646** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 10:30 pm

campaignraiser wrote:When did you all start enjoying drilling games? I can't even begin to fathom getting to that point.

For me LG ranges from excruciating to just kinda terrible.

The Abyss · Post by **The Abyss** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 10:31 pm

LG is by far the section I enjoy studying for the most. I did 15 sequencing games today and went -5 total. None of the questions that I missed genuinely stumped me, just dumb mistakes. However, missed questions are all equal in the end. I definitely need to be doing the games faster, though. I'll be redoing all the same games tomorrow along with some LR and RC drilling.

TheWalkingDebt · Post by **TheWalkingDebt** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 10:43 pm

gamerish wrote:
campaignraiser wrote:When did you all start enjoying drilling games?
lmao

I share your sentiment. I've just seen several people on here say they enjoy it the most. (Maybe the relativism is understated in that question). I still can't see enjoying it the most. They are awful.

lawjag2015 · Post by **lawjag2015** » Thu Jan 29, 2015 10:47 pm

Starting my serious prep today. Proper prep time, and analysis of every single piece of this exam.

Just learned something very significant from my only mistake in 14 games. In the past, I would definitely have ignored it!