Oops, the dreaded RC's. Ruhi, I doubt if there is any silver bullet solution to getting RC's right. The emotions you have outlined is the most heard from one and all I have met thus far. Eventually, I think all of us develop a model that will suit their need.

Few tips seem good though
1. Read paragraph wise, Find what flows from para1 to the next to the next
2. Read at your highest pace
3. Close your eyes(for less than 15 secs) after reading each para to quickly assimilate what you have read
4. Read the question that you will see to find the answer while you read.
5. Any keywords - however, on the other hand, contrary, paradox, firstly, secondly, etc may be looked little more carefully
6. Skip details. How will u find them -parenthetical element, anything that you think is a 'description', that is only adding additional info can be neglected. This is not easy though - practice is key.

You might try Hjort's Polite Conversation Rule. Whenever you are reading a passage approach it as you would a polite conversation with a high ranking boss or elder. Do not think of it in terms of what interests you but what interests the speaker (ie the author). Whatever the boss says interests you and you better be listening closely enough so that if the boss asks you what s/he was just talking about you can provide a rapid summary.

It sounds dumb but it actually works . . .

Hjort

Hey ruhi, indeed, RC is the most dreaded topic of the GMAT. It is difficult to score good without a good mastering of this aspect. Did you go through the OG in detail? When you analyze the answers, do not just move on and say "oh yes, I got this one right" or "oh, so it is C instead of B". You have to find exactly where the answer is in the passage. Go through the OG in detail first. Next, although they may be more difficult, LSAT passages did me some good. It did keep my concentration to a maximum level because the passages are just very long, much longer than GMAT passages. It will give you good practice. You may want to read this link as it will give you further advice: http://www.gmatclub.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=11274
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Best Regards,

Paul

Hi ruhi - I had similar problems with RC. The Kaplan strategy of skimming through passages didn't work for me.

So, based on some advice from this forum members, I changed the strategy

1. Started reading in detail
2. Taking notes for each paragraph - really scribbling down few key words or concept in the passage. It made a big difference in dealing with complex passages
3. And as others have indicated, after reading the passage, think about it - because definitely there will be some questions about the central theme.
4. Practice at least 2-3 passages from OG or Kaplan 800 everyday. Make it a routine.

See if you want to try this approach.

Towards the end, I used to take about 3.5 - 4 min reading the science passages and 2.5 - 3.5 min for 3-4 questions.
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Thanks !

Aspire

Hi, I just have to agree to aspire that the Kaplan and PR skimming method did not work for me neither. Those books told us to skim through the passage but before, go to the first question first and then look right away for the answer in the first reading. The problem with that method is that you will do a first reading with that narrow perspective in mind in that you are looking for a specific answer. You really need to broaden up your view and make sure that you have an overall understanding of the passage, its tone and intent. Hence, I would suggest not to stick to that method. Do not read the first question outright. Read the whole passage but as Venksune said, paraphrase. After each paragraph, pause for a few seconds and get the main ideas. What did the intro wanted to let you know about? Were there two theories being presented and one is being refuted or is there a third theory which now prevails?

I remember that caffeine RC from the OG with neurotransmitters binding on nodes. The first time I read that 1.5 year ago, I had no clue what I was reading! When I went over that 1 month ago, I really nailed that passage. What I did in those science passages is not getting bogged down by delusive science words and replaced them by X, Y or Z. Also, I stopped after paragraphs and told myself, what the hell did I just read? I tried to mentally picture those neurotransmitters actually binding to the nodes as a gift wrap around a present box. Make it sound simple and picture what you are reading. Do not rush through it too quickly simply because you want to have read it as fast as possible as you could miss some crucial information. But again, do not get bogged down by details. Only practice will tell you the fair amount of time that you need to put in to get a good grasp of those dreaded science passages.
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Best Regards,

Paul

Awesome thread. Made it a sticky. god bless all of you who volunteer to help

Praetorian

Budweiser, your reaction and experience with those type of RC is typical of most test takers vis-a-vis science passages. Your struggle with social science passages stems from the fact that you have a total disinsterest for those passages and easily lose focus while reading them, especially long and convoluted ones. LSAT passages will give you plenty of those Knowing your weakness, you will have to pound on it. As I previsouly mentioned, you HAVE to read it with the writer's intent in mind. You have to tell yourself that you LOVE the topic and want to read more about it. This is the only way to keep your concentration level at a maximum. Clear your mind and do not think about anything else that could make you lose focus. Sometimes, in those long passages which I hated, I would tend to think about what I would have done that night after that brutal study session or where I would have been instead of studying in that coffee shop. Don't! Under no circumstance should you think about anything else. In the end, no matter what I say, you know that the burden all lies on your own shoulders but what we can do here is give you very general tips that often times test takers may overlook.
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Best Regards,

Paul

The two LSAT books I used are ARCO LSAT and Peterson LSAT. I found ARCO LSAT to be very realistic questions whereas Peterson's LSAT is very abstract and I wonder if it can be compared to real LSAT or GMAT material. Peterson's RC is also brutal. Since I did not work with Official LSAT guide, I cannot tell you how representative the latter is. IMO, ARCO LSAT is good enough and will give you a good backbone for CR.
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Best Regards,

Paul

Thanks Paul for your input
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Praveen

The new link for the above Testmagic URL is:

http://www.urch.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12306