How do I improve on RC? Forum

[Angie85]

So I've been doing terrible on the RC section of the LSAT. Not necessarily because I don't understand the questions or the passages but because it takes me forever to read each passage. In each PT I usually only finish half of the RC section. This has me REALLY worried. Any thoughts on how I could improve? Also, has anyone here been where I'm at now but were able to get better at this? If so, how?

[ilikebaseball]

then you arent reading for structure. It shouldnt take longer than 2:15 to get through the passage. You dont have to remember everything from the passage, you just have to know what paragraph each is talking about

[ilikebaseball]

For example, usually paragraphs will be about different things:

Author's opinion
Other's opinion (critic, scientist, etc)
background information
1st point, 2nd point etc
contradicting point
experiments
history.

What I do, is I circle all years, underline all proper nouns, and also underline anywhere I can find someone making an opinion. Then, by the side of each paragraph I'll put two to three word captions descriping the main idea of each. Even doing that, I rarely take over 2 minutes

[schmooky]

.

[BillPackets]

For example, usually paragraphs will be about different things:

Author's opinion
Other's opinion (critic, scientist, etc)
background information
1st point, 2nd point etc
contradicting point
experiments
history.

What I do, is I circle all years, underline all proper nouns, and also underline anywhere I can find someone making an opinion. Then, by the side of each paragraph I'll put two to three word captions descriping the main idea of each. Even doing that, I rarely take over 2 minutes

This is pretty good advice, but imo RC is pretty individualistic. Some people may take, longer to read the passages and blow thru the questions, while others get thru the passage quickly and spend more time on the questions.

Regardless of that, you do need to spend less time reading, and reading for structure is tcr to your question. Try and think about the purpose of each paragraph; think about the first sentence of each paragraph, and if it is setting up what the paragraph is going to talk about (While others think...).Try and think about the overall purpose of the passage.

Notation is whatever you want. I notate very little (sometimes I mark the author's opinion, and that's about it), and others notate quite a bit. You just have to see what works for you.

[dontdoitkid]

Are you starting fresh, have you read up on any strategies/approaches/methods. Advice in here is solid too. There a lot's of different strategies and approaching RC is certainly very individualistic but you'll have some luck by applying different approaches and seeing what works for you, or by pulling parts from each strategy that work well together for you.

[archangel326]

Just wanted to provide some encouragement here (no real advice, since I am currently in law school and haven't looked at the LSAT for years)! When I first begun the LSAT, I was terrible at RC, but eventually I was able to do decently in that section (I got a -2 or -3 in the real test). So just keep studying!

[Adrian Monk]

Just wanted to provide some encouragement here (no real advice, since I am currently in law school and haven't looked at the LSAT for years)! When I first begun the LSAT, I was terrible at RC, but eventually I was able to do decently in that section (I got a -2 or -3 in the real test). So just keep studying!

do u remember any particular thing that you did that made you improve?

[archangel326]

I think that the RC in the LSAT I took was relatively easy. I took the testmasters class, and I did every test and I think I decided that I'm not going to do any difficult annotations or anything complicated and just read the passage like a normal person. But it's also been a long time.