MSS Most Strongly Supported Questions Forum

[ngogirl12]

I am having a lot of trouble with this question type. I went through the 7Sage lesson already, I'm reviewing the last couple questions I got wrong, then I will read the corresponding chapter in the Trainer book and try drilling the questions again. I am wondering if anyone can give me some advice on how to improve this question type.

It is making me very frustrated. I have always had trouble with this question type (postponed from December to June), and for the December test I skipped over drilling these questions bc I felt really frustrated.

If someone can give me some constructive advice, I would be most appreciative.

[seashell.economy]

Some tips from the Powerscore LR Bible that helped me with MSS:
1) Select an answer choice that is proven by the information presented in the stimulus.
2) You cannot bring in new information from outside the stimulus to answer the question.
3) Correct answers paraphrase/restate a portion of the stimulus in different terms. When these answers mirror the stimulus, they are correct.

The Bible has a list of MSS common incorrect answer choices, too. I recommend reading the whole Bible series.

[Clearly]

Weak answer choices are your friend.

[somethingElse]

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[JazzOne]

This question type is fundamentally different from a majority of arguments questions. Most of the arguments questions require you to understand the conclusion and structure of the argument, whereas the structure is entirely irrelevant for MSS or "inference" questions. I don't think the questions are inherently difficult, but I did find it frustrating to switch back and forth between reading for structure and reading for detail. I fixed my issue by simply skipping all the MSS questions and doing them all together as a group toward the end of the time limit. Also, I treat MSS arguments like a miniature logic game. My job is to learn the facts and the rules and then make deductions. Many times, the correct answer is simply a paraphrase of something that is directly stated in the stimulus, which annoys me since that is somewhat contrary to my notion of an "inference," but LSAC considers a paraphrase to be a legitimate inference, so don't overlook the simple answers.

[ngogirl12]

This question type is fundamentally different from a majority of arguments questions. Most of the arguments questions require you to understand the conclusion and structure of the argument, whereas the structure is entirely irrelevant for MSS or "inference" questions. I don't think the questions are inherently difficult, but I did find it frustrating to switch back and forth between reading for structure and reading for detail. I fixed my issue by simply skipping all the MSS questions and doing them all together as a group toward the end of the time limit. Also, I treat MSS arguments like a miniature logic game. My job is to learn the facts and the rules and then make deductions. Many times, the correct answer is simply a paraphrase of something that is directly stated in the stimulus, which annoys me since that is somewhat contrary to my notion of an "inference," but LSAC considers a paraphrase to be a legitimate inference, so don't overlook the simple answers.

Thank you for this. I think I will try this approach since LG is my stronger suit.

[ngogirl12]

Thank you everyone who responded to this post, your advice is very valuable and I am going to take heed of it!