- Wed Jul 25, 2018 6:54 pm
#48836
Hi,
I completely understand that feeling! Keep in mind if you are getting it down to two answer choices (and one of those is correct) you are successfully eliminating 3/4 of the wrong answers in the question. That's a good way toward eliminating all 4 incorrect answer choices.
There are a few things to do when you are stuck between 2 answer choices, especially when you notice you are stuck!
1) Focus on your prephrase. Remember the work you did after reading the stimulus and question stem? Don't throw it away! By focusing back on your prephrase, you can think about the stimulus/question stem without the distraction of those tempting answer choices. The test authors are pros at luring you into an incorrect answer choice, so by refocusing on your own analysis, instead of their options, you can better direct your attention to the answer choice that bests matches that prephrase.
2) Use your tools. For many questions types, you have a test you can use to help guide you to the correct answer choice. If it's an assumption question, negate the answer choice to test it out. If it's a prove family question, remember to make sure you can find support for the correct answer choice in the stimulus. Is there conditional reasoning? Draw it out, and make sure it's accurate.
3) Pay attention to language. The LSAT is a test of reasoning, but reasoning through language. Pay attention to quantity terms, fact/opinion terminology, causal indicators, and conditional indicators.
4) If you miss one, make sure you are tracking exactly why. What mistake did you make? Did you miss a certain type of reasoning? Was it a specific question type? Should you have diagrammed it out? Did you make an unsupported assumption? Keeping track of your mistakes helps you avoid them in the future.
Overall, while I KNOW it gets frustrating, remember that mistakes during practice are actually a good thing. They are opportunities for you to learn and improve before the test. If you don't know your weaknesses, you can't be fully prepared for the test.
Hope that helps!
Rachael
