#1 - A student has taken twelve courses and received a B

[8scn]

Why is B not correct? For B, my reasoning is: having a broad range of knowledge is irrelevant to succeeding in this particular course. I eliminated A because shouldn't it increase the student's chances of succeeding with a B in the course if he is receiving extra help from smarter students?

[Steve Stein]

Keep in mind that the four wrong answer choices will successfully strengthen the argument that the student is likely to get a B in the present course, much like she has in the majority of past cases.

If she is getting extra help, as answer choice A provides, this does not strengthen the argument--in fact, it seems to make it less likely that her current performance will be consistent with her past performances.

Answer choice B, on the other hand, does strengthen the author's argument, since previous broad subject coverage makes her past twelve performances a more accurate basis for predicting the grade she'll earn in the course that she's currently taking.

Tricky! let me know if that makes sense--thanks!

~Steve

[8scn]

Thanks very much, I understand now. I agree that it is quite tricky, especially for a first logical reasoning question.

[queenbee]

Hi
Not sure I follow the reasoning. If the student is studying with other smart students, should that increase her chances of doing well? If the 12 previous courses she took were broad in nature, that doesnt guarantee that this course is broad in nature.
Any chance you can provide more clarity?
Thanks!

[Adam Tyson]

You're right about answer A, queenbee - studying with a bunch of outstanding students rather than studying alone should improve her chances of getting a better grade, maybe an A this time. That's exactly why this is the correct answer! This is an "Except" question, so we want the one answer that will not strengthen the claim that she will probably get another B. Every other answer choice helps to support the claim that this course will turn out like the majority of other courses, so they all strengthen that claim and are, therefore, wrong answers. Answer A doesn't help that argument, and may in fact weaken it, so it's the exception we are looking for!

[lounalola]

How does answer D strengthen the argument?

[Adam Tyson]

Getting a B in the majority of 12 classes could mean just 7 of them, lounalola. That wouldn't be nearly as convincing as getting Bs in 11 of the 12 classes. D helps the argument by strengthening the evidence that was offered in favor of the conclusion.

If it helps, imagine that it was 100 classes instead of just 12. What would be more convincing to you: getting a B in 51 of those classes, or getting a B in 99 of those classes?