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RC Inference and Word in Context questions

Posted: Sun Sep 23, 2012 9:45 pm
by gg2
Any tips on how to answer them? I keep getting them wrong on preptests!

Also, how do you attack detail questions that don't specify the lines? It takes me way too long to scan to find that stupid reference :(

Re: RC Inference and Word in Context questions

Posted: Sun Sep 23, 2012 9:54 pm
by dowu
gg2 wrote:Any tips on how to answer them? I keep getting them wrong on preptests!

Also, how do you attack detail questions that don't specify the lines? It takes me way too long to scan to find that stupid reference :(
One method is annotating next to the passage as you go, that way, you'll be able to more quickly reference the passage that the questions talks about. Of course, this assumes you properly annotate specific points being made.

Re: RC Inference and Word in Context questions

Posted: Sun Sep 23, 2012 9:56 pm
by gaud
nmop_apisdn wrote:
gg2 wrote:Any tips on how to answer them? I keep getting them wrong on preptests!

Also, how do you attack detail questions that don't specify the lines? It takes me way too long to scan to find that stupid reference :(
One method is annotating next to the passage as you go, that way, you'll be able to more quickly reference the passage that the questions talks about. Of course, this assumes you properly annotate specific points being made.
+1. You can do it paragraph-by-paragraph. Brief word or two on the contents after you've read it, then move on.

Re: RC Inference and Word in Context questions

Posted: Mon Sep 24, 2012 12:12 am
by naillsat
nmop_apisdn wrote:
gg2 wrote:Any tips on how to answer them? I keep getting them wrong on preptests!

Also, how do you attack detail questions that don't specify the lines? It takes me way too long to scan to find that stupid reference :(
One method is annotating next to the passage as you go, that way, you'll be able to more quickly reference the passage that the questions talks about. Of course, this assumes you properly annotate specific points being made.

so do you annotate while reading or annotate only after you finish each paragraph?

Re: RC Inference and Word in Context questions

Posted: Mon Sep 24, 2012 12:12 am
by gaud
After.

Re: RC Inference and Word in Context questions

Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2012 11:26 am
by bp shinners
naillsat wrote:
nmop_apisdn wrote:
gg2 wrote:Any tips on how to answer them? I keep getting them wrong on preptests!

Also, how do you attack detail questions that don't specify the lines? It takes me way too long to scan to find that stupid reference :(
One method is annotating next to the passage as you go, that way, you'll be able to more quickly reference the passage that the questions talks about. Of course, this assumes you properly annotate specific points being made.

so do you annotate while reading or annotate only after you finish each paragraph?
I annotate extensively while reading. I pull out pieces of information I know are likely to show up in questions:
1) Widely-held beliefs/commonly-believed facts/traditional beliefs/etc...
2) Comparisons
3) Very strong statements
4) Lists of traits/characteristics
5) Causal relationships
(there are a few more, but these are the main ones)
Then, after a paragraph, I sum up its role in the passage (unless I've done this earlier).

For the word-in-context questions, I almost always go back and substitute the answers into the sentence to see what makes sense. There are usually 2 that do. I then eliminate the one that's repetitive (i.e. it just repeats the first part of the clause), as if it was repetitive it would have been edited out. Generally works, though I have to call an audible sometimes.