"Fact Testing" (Looking Back) for RC Must Be True Questions Forum

[ZombiesAhead]

Do 170+ people look back at the RC passage to answer most must-be-true questions? I try to read for structure instead of detail but I think I waste a lot of time returning to the passage to confirm/negate AC's. You do look back to the passage for these questions, right? Maybe I just need to read for structure better to know where to look?

[Atlas LSAT Teacher]

I hope that I can recall most things, but almost always have to check back. However, I usually can A) know where to look, and/or B) can eliminate a few answer choices before looking back.

I think you should continue to read for structure, as that should also buy you a bit of time to look back for detail questions. It also seems that having a "mission" can help you recall facts better (as it sets up categories into which you "slot" information).

During review -- and this applies to most any RC question, not just details ones -- it can be helpful to go back and find the lines that support the correct answer. This can help attune your mind to how the LSAT tests RC.

Hope that helps.

[tomwatts]

Unless I'm 100% sure that I remember the relevant part of the passage (rare), I check back on every question before looking at the answer choices. Knowing where to look is a big deal, though, and that's a big part of what people mean when they talk about reading for structure.

[cubswin]

I try to save time for these questions by not looking back at the passage on as many of the other questions that I am confident about as possible. I also eliminate as much from memory as possible, so that I'm checking back to the passage for 2 or 3 things instead of 5.

And you are right, reading for structure is key for knowing where to look. After you finish each paragraph, think for a second what the main idea of that paragraph was and how it ties into the larger main idea of the section.