improve Accuracy on the Lsat Test

Simple mistake or understanding?

Simple mistakes are those that occur because of something minor, such as not seeing the subtle distinctions between two words (e.g., "same" and "similar"), or not reading the question stem fully, or bubbling in the wrong selection on the write back sheet. These uncomplicated mistakes can add up and have a vital negative result on your score. Suppose you got 73 questions correct for a score of 158 on Lsat PrepTest 50, yet made five uncomplicated mistakes. Correcting those five would result in a 161. Or, for high scorers, suppose you got 91 questions correct for a score of 171 on the same test. Correcting those five would result in a 177. On the other hand, mistakes due to a lack of understanding occur because you did not understand the question, passage, or write back choices, i.e., you were stumped. On the next full-length practice Lsat PrepTest that you take, try categorizing the mistake for each incorrect selection as either uncomplicated or understanding. That data will let you know what you need to address.

Correcting uncomplicated mistakes

Simple mistakes are easy to make yet somewhat difficult to avoid. Try the following:

Do fewer questions

Suppose you got eight questions incorrect: five because of uncomplicated mistakes, three due to understanding. The five uncomplicated mistakes probably could have been avoided had you spent an extra thirty seconds on each of those questions, and thus would need an extra two and a half minutes total. And, you likely spent at least two minutes on each of the questions that you got wrong because of understanding mistakes. Had you instead cut your losses after a miniature into those questions, guessed, and moved on, then you would have had an extra three minutes to spend on the questions that you got incorrect because of uncomplicated mistakes, and thus might have avoided those uncomplicated mistakes.

Know when to cut your losses

Certainly this is easier said than done, but reconsider a few scenarios that can key you off to when you should bail out of a question:

Inability to write back question: A tasteless time leech is jumping to the choices before adequately knowing what a correct selection should do. For example, for conference buildings questions you should be able to express the buildings in your own words before analyzing the choices. If you can't do this for a single argument, then you'll likely just waste time reading the choices trying to find one that seems right yet pick an incorrect choice. You're much great off cutting your losses by not reading the choices at all, guessing, and exciting on.

Question type: If you have gotten 80% of a single question type incorrect on past tests, then you may wish to avoid that same question type on the next test. As soon as you've read the question stem and have identified it as a problem question type, guess and move on.

Passage content: If you're terrible at understanding a definite type of content, e.g., science, then even if you're great at the type of question, your lack of understanding of the article can ruin things. For example, suppose you're great at support conference questions, but miserable at article about fossil fuels and/or profitability. Thus, for Lsat PrepTest 50, Section 2, Question 13, you might want to bail out after reading the passage (or even after the first sentence or two, once you recognize article that is difficult for you).

Read for details

The variation between getting a selection correct or incorrect often boils down to seeing the variation between two details. For example, on logic games, distinguishing either the question asks for what could be true or what must be true; on logical reasoning, distinguishing between "can" and "will"; on reading comprehension, distinguishing between questions that ask for explicit data and those that ask for inferences. These and many other details appear throughout the Lsat and your recognition of the subtle differences may lead to a vital score improvement. If you have problem with details, try using diagramming techniques to keep track of details that often make the variation between correct and incorrect choices.

Correcting understanding mistakes

Many Lsat test-takers do not have backgrounds in logical mental and thus may have an incomplete understanding of a idea tested on the Lsat. They may try to learn these concepts purely through Lsat making ready material and Lsat PrepTests. But, keep in mind that the Lsat did not produce logic or reading comprehension, and thus you may heighten your skills through other sources. For example, you may have a partial understanding of causality, and thus may have difficulties with more complex causal arguments on the Lsat. If so, try working through Richard Feldman's calculate and Argument, episode Ten, which is devoted to causal arguments.