Learning Reading comprehension

Question

Hi

Can someone please suggest me a book to prepare for reading comprehension? I want to know what kind of mistakes most people make and how to overcome it, how to approach a question, and any strategies to crack reading comprehension. This helps me to understand what am I supposed to do in a given question otherwise I do random approach and it looks like I'm just guessing the answers. Can someone please help.

Thanks in advance

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EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Bhuvie0035,

Since the GMAT is a CAT (Computer-Adaptive Test), you have to be careful about how much of your training is book-based. The physical 'mechanics' of working through RC in a book are significantly different from the mechanics of working through RC on a computer. Since you're clearly interested in improving in RC, we can certainly discuss that - but there might also be other issues that you need to work on. Before I can offer you the specific advice that you’re looking for, it would help if you could provide a bit more information on how you've been studying and your goals:

Studies:
1) How long have you studied?
2) What study materials have you used so far?
3) How have you scored on EACH of your CATs/mocks (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for EACH)?

Goals:
4) What is your goal score?
5) When are you planning to take the GMAT?
6) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
7) What Schools are you planning to apply to?

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

Bhuvie0035 · Answer

Hi Rich,

Thanks for your reply.

Im only expecting the book to give me information on what kind of answer a question is expecting from me, and what is the trap answer choice present and how to avoid it.

Please find answers to your above questions below 
Studies:
1) How long have you studied?
I've been studying for past little over a month, 2hrs a day. 
2) What study materials have you used so far?
I've used ARISTOTLE for sentence Correction and manhantan prep for critical reasoning. Haven't used any books for quants. Solved 100 questions in each topic in OG'19 except RC. 
3) How have you scored on EACH of your CATs/mocks (including the Quant and Verbal Scaled Scores for EACH)?
I have not taken any mocks. I don't know whether my gmat error log accuracy would be of any help but I'm sharing it anyway. Quants below 600 my accuracy is 100%,600-700 accuracy is 80-90%, and 700+ accuracy is 50%. Verbal below 600 my accuracy is 80-90%, 600-700 accuracy is 50%, and 700+ accuracy is 30%.the accuracy in verbal is without considering RC, I'm expecting it to drop further in above 600 levels when RC is taken under consideration. Im planning to take a mock at the end of 2 weeks from now. I'll update you on it.

Goals:
4) What is your goal score?
I'm expecting to score above 700+
5) When are you planning to take the GMAT?
I'm planning to take it on May or July depending upon my progress in my mocks. I'm planning to take one after getting basic understanding of RC and solving some problems in it. 
6) When are you planning to apply to Business School?
If I score as expected I'll be applying for 2020, Otherwise I'll be postponing it to 2021. 
7) What Schools are you planning to apply to?
I've not decided on it yet. I've very low score in undergrad probably between 2.7 and 3.0 in US standards. I'm trying to compensate for my scores also I've only 2 years of work experience. So, everything depends on how I progress.

Thanks 
Bhuvanesh

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ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

Hi Bhuvie0035,

To improve in Reading Comprehension, you need to focus on understanding what you are reading. When you incorrectly answer Reading Comprehension questions, it’s partly because you do not truly understand what you have read, right? Thus, you likely have to slow down in order to (eventually) speed up. At this point, your best bet is to focus on getting the correct answers to questions, taking as much time as you need to see key details and understand the logic of what you are reading. You have to learn to comprehend what you read, keep it all straight, and use what you are reading to arrive at correct answers. If you don't understand something, go back and read it one sentence at a time, even one word at a time, not moving on until you understand what you have just read. There is no way around this work. Your goal should be to take all the time you need to understand exactly what is being said and arrive at the correct answer. If you can learn to get answers taking your time, you can learn to speed up. Answering questions is like any task: The more times you do it carefully and successfully, the faster you become at doing it carefully and successfully.

Another component of understanding what you are reading is being “present” when reading. Don’t worry about how things are going at work, or what you will eat for dinner, or even how long you are taking to read through the passage. Just focus on what is in front of you, word by word, line by line. Furthermore, try to make reading fun. For example, even if you are reading about a topic that bores you, pretend that you are the person making the argument. By doing so, you will make the passage more relatable to YOU, and ultimately you should be able to read with greater focus.

As you indicated, one final aspect of Reading Comprehension that you have to learn to handle is that RC questions contain one or more trap answers that seem to answer the question but don't really. So, a key part of training to correctly answer RC questions is learning to notice the differences between trap answers and correct answers. You have to learn to see how trap answers seem to follow from what the passages say, but don't really, while correct answers fit what the passages say exactly. Learning to see the differences between trap answers and correct answers will be another consequence of practicing answering RC questions by working slowly and carefully at first. Spend time carefully analyzing questions, learning to define exactly what makes each incorrect choice incorrect and each correct answer correct. You have to analyze question after question to develop this skill. There is no shortcut.

If you have any further questions, feel free to reach out. Also, you may find it helpful to read this article about  how to score a 700+ on the GMAT .

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Bhuvie0035,

Unfortunately, the only way to properly assess your 'ability level' is to take a FULL-LENGTH CAT (including the Essay and IR sections) under realistic conditions. If you've been studying consistently for the last month, then you really MUST take a FULL CAT sometime soon (perhaps this weekend). While I understand that you might want to learn more about RC first, that initial diagnostic CAT is incredibly important - it helps to define your current strengths and weaknesses and gives you a basis for comparison as you continue to study. Many Test Takers are not happy with that first CAT result, but that's not a big deal - the extra months of available study time are there so that you can IMPROVE on this initial practice result. Once you have that first CAT result, you should post back here and we can discuss the results and how best to proceed.

In addition, many Test Takers who use a 'book heavy' study approach end up getting 'stuck' at a particular score level - and since your studies so far have been book heavy, it's possible that you've gotten stuck and not even realized it. This is an another reason why it's important to take CATs at regular intervals during your studies. With a Score Goal of 700+, you will likely need to invest in some new, non-book study materials.

From what you describe, you have plenty of time before you plan to apply to Business School - which is good. As such, you can approach your studies however you choose; if you want to be efficient with your time though, you would likely benefit from investing in a GMAT Course of some type (either Guided Self-Study or instructor-led).

1) Going forward, how many hours do you think you can consistently study each week?

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

gmat1393 · Answer

Hi Bhuvie0035 You can visit this thread and follow it https://gmatclub.com/forum/verbal-questi ... 95438.html. It has almost everything you would need for RC. Thanks

Bhuvie0035 · Answer

Hi ScottTargetTestPrep,

Your words have given me insights that RC is somewhat similar to Critical Reasoning itself but on broader terms, and the only way to score higher marks is to understand them and it might be a slow process.

I'll critically analyze each question and make sure not to make any mistakes twice.

Thanks a lot, your words have reduced my fear that I had towards RC.

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Bhuvie0035 · Answer

Hi Rich,

Im completely in terms with you. But I know my scores dont reflect my actual ability as I don't apply my knowledge under pressure and tend to make mistakes. Having said that, I can solve them during my analysis. I think the only way to overcome this is to take as many mocks as possible and practice a lot of questions, if you mean otherwise I'd like to try it out.

Yes, I'll take a mock at the earliest and update you. I'd like to do self guided study because that helps me to comprehend what i study better and enables me to retain the information. But I do need help with analyzing my mocks and my mistakes to streamline my approach.

I can easily spend at least 27 hours a week(3 - 4 hours in the weekdays and 6 hours in the weekends). I can study upto 10 hours a day in the weekends but it's not possible for every week.

Thanks 
Bhuvanesh

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Bhuvie0035 · Answer

Thanks gmat1393, I'll definitely look into it.

egmat · Answer

Hi Bhuvie0035 , You have understood it right that you need to follow a structured approach for scoring high. A structured approach towards any question is important to get it right repeatedly. Same goes for Reading Comprehension. Once you understand the meaning of the passage in the first read itself and apply a tried and tested process, solving questions become easy and less time-consuming. The ability to comprehend effectively comes from mastering the right reading strategies for which you will need to stick to a course and learn all the techniques. You will understand this better from the experience of successful students. See how Arjun overcame the struggle with RC and reached a V41. Sushant could also improve his RC ability from a 50 percentile to 90 percentile . I am sharing a few free resources to help you with RC prep. You can get access to a lot more of these videos and practice questions once you sign up for the Free Trial . 1. Main Point Concept 1 2. Main Point Concept 2 3. RC Application Quiz 1 Have you created a systematic plan yet for your GMAT prep? A Personalized Study Plan can help you reduce your prep time by 40% and double your chances to reach your target score. Feel free write to us at support@e-gmat.com if you would like one such plan tailored to your strengths and weaknesses. Regards, Zinnia

ScottTargetTestPrep · Answer

My pleasure! Good luck!

EMPOWERgmatRichC · Answer

Hi Bhuvie0035,

While there are certain aspects to Test Day that you can really only train for by taking realistic, FULL-LENGTH CATs, once you've learned those things, it's important to remember that taking lots of CATs will NOT make you a better Test Taker. A CAT is really a 'measuring device' - when used correctly, it will give you a realistic score and help define your strengths and weaknesses, but it will NOT help you to fix any of those weaknesses. To raise your scores, you have to learn the necessary Tactics and put in the proper practice and repetitions. The CAT will show you whether your studies are helping you to improve or not. As such, you really shouldn't take more than 1 FULL CAT per week.

From what you describe, you have lots of potential study time - which is great - but you have to be careful about confusing "quantity" of study with "quality" of study. I've never asked anyone to study for 10 hours a day; that type of 'volume' greatly increases the chances that you will 'burn out' before Test Day (and that is something that we want to avoid).

Once you have your initial CAT Score, we can create a proper Study Plan for you.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made, 
Rich

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