Not Seeing Results

[cdbaker97]

Hello

The more I study the more I gain knowledge about the test for instance sufficient vs necessary and the method of how to solve the various types of problems. I have a powerscore tutor and he has been amazing.

My problem is pretty much my drill sets and practice problems do not translate for reading comp and lr. For example I took a test today and got a 157. I went 4/8 on must be true problems. I drilled some must be true problems on the powerscore drill set page and went 10/10. How do I make my practice problem accuracy translate over to the real exam?

I think maybe I am rushing and not understanding the stimulus as clearly in the test environment vs drilling but I am not sure.

[Adam Tyson]

If you think you are rushing, cdbaker97, you probably are! That was my first thought as I read your post - I bet that when that clock starts ticking, the pressure of the time constraint is causing you to abandon some of the strategies and techniques you have been learning in favor of just trying to go faster.

Try this on a time section of LR: give yourself permission to just answer the first 15 questions, guessing on all the rest. Take that pressure to finish off your shoulders! Then, with each question, go thoughtfully and meticulously through your process. Read the stimulus and determine if there is an argument or not. If there is, find the conclusion, and identify the evidence the author used to support it. Find the problem in the argument (there is almost always a problem, after all). Why are these premises not good enough to prove this conclusion?

Then, move to the question stem. Make sure you know what it is asking you to do, and then craft your prephrase. Know what the correct answer should say, or do, or contain, BEFORE you look at any answer choices. Resist the temptation to rush this part! Make sure you know what you are looking for.

Finally, go to the answers and sort them into losers - answer choices that clearly do not provide what you are looking for - and contenders - those that look good, as well as those you are not sure about. If you have multiple contenders, apply the strategies you have learned in your studies to determine which is best. It doesn't have to be perfect! It just has to be better than the other options. Use tools like the Assumption Negation Technique, and the Variance Test, and the Fact Test. Use diagrams to dissect Conditional Reasoning. Look for indications of Causal Reasoning. If needed, re-read the stimulus and the stem to clarify your thinking.

Through all of this, take your time! There is no prize for answering quickly, only for getting correct answers, so make accuracy your primary goal.

And when time is almost up, stop what you're doing and guess on all the remaining questions. Just choose a letter and select it for all remaining questions without stopping to read anything. Pick up a point or two (or three?) just from random chance that way.

Give that a try on LR, and then do something similar with the other sections, and let's see if that gets you moving forward and upward. Your speed will improve on its own once you stop trying to go faster and focus on getting better, as you get more comfortable and familiar with the material and the process.

Give us a shout back later and let us know how that's working for you!