Maintaining Focus on each passage

[pacer]

I find that my performance varies from passage to passage where I can get most of the questions correct on some passages and most of the questions incorrect on some other passages. I don't have a specific problem with any particular subject area. I am using the techniques for underlining and marking the passage as I read.

From self assessment, I think my problems are

- I am having a hard time maintaining focus on all passages.

- I am also struggling with timing so often times I am just forcing myself through the passages without pausing to think how the different paragraphs tie in together.

- Due to the same timing issue, I am skipping prephrasing answers when it comes to the questions. Instead I am jumping into the answer choices and actively looking to eliminate incorrect answers by labeling them as (out of scope, opposite, extreme, narrow etc) by writing a little note (like N for narrow) beside an answer choice. I end up eliminating the correct answer choice for a variety of reasons (i.e. I thought it was out of scope, or too narrow, or distortion of the author's idea). Maybe I am wasting my energy and time at focusing on labeling answers as incorrect rather than predicting what the correct answer should be and looking for that instead?

I am feeling very frustrated because I think that I know all the techniques and know what I should do in order to succeed but I am unable to apply them when I sit down to do practice questions.

For instance, I have been reading articles from a variety of sources on a daily basis to improve my reading comprehension. As I read those articles, I stop after each paragraph to think what the main point of the paragraph was, what was the purpose and how it ties in with the rest of the passage. At the end of the passage, I write down a sentence on the main point of the passage and a sentence on the primary purpose in my notebook. If there are different viewpoints presented or people mentioned, I make a note of who the authors agrees or disagrees with.

Can you please offer some advise and guidance for my specific problems?

Thanks!

[Emily Haney-Caron]

Hi pacer,

It seems like you've put a lot of thought into where you're struggling, which is really great. For Reading Comprehension, I find that often when students rush to save time, they actually end up wasting time. You're better off reading the passage AND the questions carefully once and understanding them than rushing through and not giving yourself time to process. If diagramming the way you're doing it now is not keeping you engaged in the passage, maybe think through how you might be able to change your diagramming strategy a bit. Not only is diagramming helpful for giving yourself reminders for when you begin to tackle the questions, but it can also ensure that you are actively reading, rather than passively skimming the words without processing them.

I also think you would be better off taking the time to prephrase. At first, you may find that it takes a little more time, but you will probably be more accurate. Prephrasing is critical, and with practice, it will be much faster - you just need to put in some time and practice to get good at it. Fast performance is no good if it means you lose your accuracy!