My notes - Reading comprehension

Question

Following are my RC notes. I keep these notes updated time to time. Hope they may be helpful for anyone in any possible way.

Due credits for notes - Magoosh official course, Creackverbal RC book, gmatclub posts

I particularly like this RC book from crackverbal. I will give a detail review for this book in upcoming post.

Important thing is that you have to have a strategy for every question type/situation. Once you start filling your mind with that you will find a significant improvement. Know your gaps in every section. Reading is always the biggest challenge, specially for non native. No one can teach you that. you have to make your own strategy and practice it daily. slowly you will find some improvement. Also, you have to have some patience.

Reading comprehension notes:

1. How to engage the RC passage better?

Quote:

- Read the first line of RC very carefully and tell yourself that you will get to know something good about "XYZ".
- now try to find out your good guy and your bad guy. no matter what process is going to be quiet easier if you find it as a story.
- take help from contrasting/supporting words. this way you can predict what is coming next.
- after every paragraph, stop and tell a summary of it. also try to connect it with previous para , if any. as mentioned in magoosh RC guide, map don't memories. This will help you to go back to specific part of the passage and reread.
- while mapping remember which example is given or something around the theory whatever you can.
- once done, tell the summary in minimum possible words.
- never use outside information while reading RC.
- always use POE for finding best/right ans.
- your imagination power and memorization is going to play a major role in this case. you really need these two things to excel in this part. understand that RC part is more like an open book exam and still people struggle in it.
- read daily, at least for 30 min. and try to solve at least 1/2 RC every day using your strategy.
- mind the time. do not take anything more than 8 min. after all it's all about time.
- before reading answer choices, you should be able to ans the question verbally or you should know where the answer could be.
- You don't need to practice the RC. you just need to practice the reading. Rest will fall on its place at right time.
- Remember this strategy is for 700 level questions. Solve even the 500 level questions with strategy. you will take some time to pick up the pace.

Typical incorrect approach:

- Spending too much time in reading the passage. Remember you have 6-8 min to complete 1 rc.
- regressing - going back and fourth on sentence that are difficult to understand.

So what are the challenges in Gmat RC?

- Ofcource time
- Tough language
- High mental stress
- at the end answering questions correctly. Well usually people have 30% rate in RC you need more then 60-70%.

Read to get GIST

GI - General information - Basically the central message of the passage.
S - structure - Organization of the passage. how many theories(For and against). What is the author's stand. What could be the next thing?
T - Tone - author's prospective regarding the main theme. For this you have to take care of this by HOW author said it.

2. How to practice for GMAT RC? - Critical reading.

- Read actively. feel connected with the paragraph.
- map things to each other, even if stuff is non-gmat.
- every time look for the words that change the meaning or give emphasis on it.
- for starts when you are done reading tell yourself the map you just made. more likely the summary of each paragraph.
- Let go your fear of missing something.

3. How to tackle main purpose questions effectively?

- answer choice must be covering whole passage not the summaries of individual parts.
- use POE to eliminate other choices.
- have a reasonable explanation of why this choice is right.

3A. Questions that you need to answer after first go.

- What is the issue in hand?
- What is each paragraph's map and on the same lines what is the paragraph's summary? Mind that paragraph's map is more important/helpful.
- How many number of theories are there ? What prevalent theories on the matter does the author discuss, and to what extent does he agree with them?
- Why does the author usually believe his theory is best?
- What is the main idea? Combine all para's summary. this need not to match one that in answer. still try to do this.

4. How to approach detail/Inference question?

Note - Do not try to remember every detail in first read. even try to remember where particular detail is. Paragraph map is going to be useful in that.
- before reading the answer choices, try to answer it yourself.
- if you are not able to answer it yourself, read on sentence prior to the intended content and then try to answer it in your own words.
- use the process of elimination. you must know why any choice is wrong.
- Understanding the author’s word choice requires grasping both the author’s overall purpose and the function of the word itself in context.

5. How to answer about author's tone?

- gmat passage's tone can never be extreme. always remove choices that are as such.
- consider all part of the passage, just like main purpose.
- Following post is quiet helpful in understanding it. Although you don't have to go through so much of the jargon. still understand the meaning of all these words is definitely important/helpful.
https://gmatclub.com/forum/people-find- ... 97999.html

6. RC vocab: when these words appear in front of you ask yourself, if something like this is happening.

analyzing - getting into details to understand a concept and find conclusion.
explaining - facts and explanation of that.
providing - justify or prove a point.
establishing - trying to reach for a conclusion.
criticizing - finding the faults and condemning theories.
Discuss - 2 or more prospective of a situation makes it discussion.
describe - it can be monologue.

RC Post that are very well explained. Reading these explanations are lessons in itself

Quote:

Important blog posts on RC

https://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/gmat-rc-e ... g-answers/
Project RC butler
Guide to Reading Comprehension
ALL GMAT PREP RCs-COLLECTION
Reading-comprehension_Oldy but goldy question banks
Learning RC through Youtube Videos
Exclusive 700 to 800 level GMAT Reading Comprehension (RC)
What NOT to read on Reading Comprehension passages
Ultimate Reading Comprehension Encyclopedia

Learning RC on Youtube

5 tips to solving Reading Comprehension question on GMAT
5 Secrets about GMAT Reading Comprehension
GMAT Reading Comprehension

Kevin Rocci on youtube

PrepScholar GMAT - Reading Comprehension

The Only 20 GMAT Vocabulary Words You Must Know
The 9 Best GMAT Reading Comprehension Practice Resources
The 11 Best GMAT Reading Comprehension Strategies
Online Lesson: GMAT Reading Comprehension Question Types [Video]
GMAT Reading Comprehension Trick: How to Avoid Trap Answers [Video]

So, What to do if you are still not improving?

First of all do not loose any hope, Like everything else, RC can also be improved. Here are few things you must work on.
1. Make your plans and notes: Make notes from whatever source you are referring to. Basically, you must be ready for any question type. your mind should be ready to react correctly on the basis of questions. This will help you to save time too.

2. Practice as much as possible: Practice at least 3-4 RC daily. While doing that follow your notes. Whenever you make mistake, look for the key mistake you have made. Think of the steps you should have taken to not to make this mistake again.

3. Solve all official RCs: GMAT RCs are completely different from general day news articles. They are more composed then any other sources. So solve all official RCs. and no matter what your answer was, read the OE. While doing this recognize the pattern among these question and OEs. This way you can make your mind set in better ways. Find your gaps and try to fill them.

DarkHorse2019 · Accepted Answer

Thank you so much for this  aragonn  
Is it actually helpful if we can identify the type of questions before answering them - this is for those (like me) who can't understand a particular passage...

I got this below pointers from byju website

Main Idea 
Almost every passage in the GMAT has this question. The main idea is generally present in the in the opening or the last line of the first paragraph of the passage. Else, it’s found in the opening lines of the last paragraph. Rarely is the main idea present elsewhere. And on other rare occasions, the main idea is left to be inferred by the reader. It is crucial to figure out what the main idea is for the passage since this will help you to answer questions related to the same. The main idea of the passage helps you to comprehend the purpose of the passage and what the author is trying to convey.

Tone 
The author’s attitude towards 19th century feminist literature can be described as…? Now, this is a question on tone. Where do you find the answer to this? It needs a handle on the entire passage. If the author mentions two opposing views and does not state that one is what he prefers, he is unbiased. If he mentions a theory proposed by someone else and lists his apprehensions about it, he is skeptical about the validity of the theory. Remember that the answer is rarely extreme terms like dismissive or vengeful. You will have to pay close attention to all the sentences in the passage so that you are able to decipher the tone of the passage. It is certain to assist you in answering questions regarding the author’s opinions and views.

Specific data 
These are questions like ‘According to the passage, the author finds the movement to be…’. Match phrases from the question to the location in the passage where it occurs. Read a couple of lines above and a couple of lines below the data match to get the picture. That’s where your answer lies. This is the easiest kind of question in the greater scheme of GMAT Reading Comprehension passages and questions. These are the easiest questions for you to answer since the questions point at a specific part of the passage. You can practice taking notes to help you answer these types of questions so that you don’t have to refer back to the passage each time. When you are accustomed to reading long passages you automatically tend to look out for elements of the passage which define the concept which the author is trying to convey. Ensure to not spend too much time on the same since you have limited duration which you can spend for each section in the exam.

Inference 
What do you infer from the passage? What is implied in the passage? What does the author suggest? These questions are all inference based questions where you need to make use of information in the passage to arrive at a conclusion yourself. So, eliminate options that repeat what is explicitly stated what is mentioned in the passage. Another technique you can employ is to read the questions prior to reading the passage. This will help you gain a better idea of exactly what you will be looking for in the passage. You will be able to read in an objective manner since you are now aware of the particular set of information which you will be asked in the exam.

Structure 
Which of the following best describes the structure of the passage? What would be the ideal title for this passage? To answer these questions, look at the logical flow of the passage. Words like Moreover, Although and Ironically help you understand the structure of the passage. Alternatively you could also visualize the passage in your mind. This has helped candidates to relate to the passage in a better manner than reading it as just theory. This method while it may seem uncommon is actually more helpful to recall the passage and the information mentioned in it. It aids you in deciphering the content of the paragraph in a simpler manner.

Extended Scope 
These questions expect you to extrapolate ideas and data given in the passage to instances outside the passage and make a comparison. These require a logical understanding of the context of the passage. In this case, pick an option that resonates with the author’s conclusion. The option has to mirror the idea presented in the passage. Pace yourself when you are reading the passage and practice this strategy to help you to allocate sufficient time to each RC passage. Time yourself on a regular basis so that you are aware of how long you usually take to attempt this section. You can accordingly work on it to improve your efficiency. Finally do remember that even if they have asked a question in the extended scope do not make the mistake of using data which is not present in the passage. Always stick to whatever information you have within the passage and infer details only from the same.

Please help with your suggestions

LordStark · Answer

aragonn  
great work. keep it up!
One quick question. How relevant are "tone" questions in GMAT?

aragonn · Answer

PeepalTree  - So tone questions are not very frequent in GMAT, but still one must look for the tone related words. it sets your mind set and many times other questions and their vocab depends on the tone of the passage.

AakankshaArora · Answer

Hi

As you mentioned we should maintain notes for every topic, so what do you mean by "notes"?
what exactly should notes contain? can you please briefly describe

VerbalBot · Answer

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My notes - Reading comprehension

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My notes - Reading comprehension

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