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What kind of notations do you make on the passages during your PT's/actual test, and does it actually help you?

I haven't made an effort to make any notations and range from -3 to -0, but I'm wondering if it would be worth it to start making small notations of arguments, viewpoints, tone, etc. to consistently get my reading comp sections down to -1 or -0.

I'll probably start on a few PT's just to see how it goes, but I'd appreciate any insight, especially from anyone who found themselves in a similar situation.

Notation style is completely subjective, there is no one way that fits all. Personally, I have found that I do best when I underline what I think is important, circle people's names, circle transition words, circle a word that seems to be key, and write out viewpoints/reasons/explanations/structure of the passage in the margin.

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I just got Manhattan RC in the mail today. Already read through quite a bit of it. Not the longest book, but I think that is a strength. It gets you to focus on the structure of the passage, rather than focusing on little details, like I feel I was doing. I still have a little ways to go before I can actually review it, but I like it so far.

No on notations! Read it, answer the questions.

I'm still trying to figure out the best notation style for me, but I generally underline theses and other obviously important terms and note in the margin when a critical viewpoint is raised, examples are given, or the argument generally takes a turn. One thing that I have found helpful is writing 4-5 word descriptions of what each paragraph is about in the margin after I finish each one. It helps me internalize the structure of the passage and aids when I have to return to the text during the questions.

I've been notating using the "read actively" list from Velocity, but I find that I never really go back and reference most of these markings. I'm really slow at reading the passage but I take in all the details (which I know I shouldn't be doing), so when I get to the questions I can usually answer almost all of them without referring back to the passage.

Any tips on how to get away from this method and start focusing more on structure? I'm spending far too much time reading the passage such that I don't even come close to finishing on time.

I underline like half the passage lol, and bracket the main point/argument. Sometimes I note the structure by short notes by each paragraph - like a one word classification (eg. Pros, Cons, A's opinion, B's opinion). If there is a sentence that is particularly revealing about the author's attitude, I will put a star by that, so I can reference that on any questions about the author's opinion.

Part of it also depends on how much time it takes you to complete a section. I used to complete RC with about 4 minutes to go, and that's not really enough time effectively review answers from previous passages since my grasp on them wasn't as clear. I realized I was using no notations and my score would range widely from -2 to -6.
I decided those four minutes were better spent notating, since I was wasting them anyway.
I starting bracketing sections and writing "Thesis," "Examples," "Counterpoint," etc. in the margins, do some underlying, mark off where a list of things is in case a question asks "The author mentions all of the following except."

Since I started doing that I've been better about keeping my score closer to -2 (have still never gotten a perfect RC score ).
As said before, I think it helps me focus and retain info more than I actually go back and read the notes.