GMAT Strategy

Ok,so I totally messed up my study plan. My exam is 3 weeks away and I attacked the OG first and then the MGMAT verbal books. Anyhow, thats water under the bridge.
Right now my question is geared towards Critical Reasoning strategy provided in MGMAT to draw the
"T bone diagrams" for every question. The strategy works great but I am struggling in drawing it within less than 60 seconds. Please help. Am I the only one who is facing this issue?
Did anyone else face the similar problem? If so, what did you do?

Thanks
Nakul

I like the T-bone approach, but you'll need to practice to get it down in the pacing guidelines. It may be you're writing too much -- consider using as much shorthand as possible. I do a slightly different CR approach, where I do the Conclusion, Evidence, Assumptions, a Question Rephrase, then a Prediction. I usually write about a dozen words down only total.

Here's a list of my 10 favorite CR strategies, for what it's worth!

1. Identify the Conclusion, Evidence & Assumption(s). This should be your first step for all of the Critical Reasoning question types. The conclusion and the evidence will be explicitly stated in the passage, while the assumptions will require you to sit and consider the author's point of view. What needs to be true in order for the conclusion to be correct based on the given evidence?

2. Find the purpose of each sentence. Sometimes CR questions will ask what the function is of a part of the argument. You may see questions that ask "which role" a sentence plays. Try to place it into one category: conclusion ,or evidence? If the sentence was removed from the paragraph, what would be lacking?

3. Know the overall flow. Arguments have a tendency to follow one of two shapes: a triangle or an inverted triangle. Does the author start by making a specific conclusion and then provide more general evidence, or does he begin with observations and then get to a thesis? Use variables to describe the structure. "Y leads to X which leads to Z" is different from "Y turns into Z unless Y is prevented." Be on the lookout for "If X, then Y" relationship.

4. Paraphrase the argument. Dumb down the complexity of the argument as you read, as if you were explaining it to a child. You may want to write down a few short notes to help you. The idea is to ignore the petty details and see through to the author's main point and to the evidence he provides to support his point.

5. Choose a verb. Questions about argument structure often ask about the "methods" an author uses. You already know the flow of the overall argument, now give it an overall purpose and label as an infinitive verb. Common verbs:

to explain to dismiss to theorize to strengthen
to demonstrate to revise to assert to suggest
to interpret to reconcile to challenge to predict

6. Look for transitions. Transition words and phrases are like signposts pointing your way through the logic of the argument. They tell you what is coming next. "Specifically..." means a more detailed example will follow. "Thus," means a summation is to be expected. "While this may be true..." is a phrase that shows a concession is about to be made. Keep a study sheet of transition words and divide them into categories: Examples, Adding, Contrasting, Emphasis, Resulting In, etc. It's an ongoing process to familiarize yourself with these, but a worthwhile one.

7. Determine what is missing for Complete the Passage Questions. What does the blank represent? Often it will be either a restatement of the conclusion, or another supporting piece of evidence, but it could also be an action advocating by the author, or an example of the author's argument applied to the real world.

8. Make a prediction (and write it down)! This is the most important strategy for CR. You've got to trust that you understand the argument enough to know what should be the correct answer. Don't worry about making it perfect - just get something down on paper! If you think of your prediction but don't write it down, you risk forgetting it or twisting it to fit the answer choices.

9. Eliminate out-of-scope answers. While the correct answer may not perfectly match your prediction, the simple fact that you took the time to think critically while you came up with a prediction will help you understand the author's focus and the flow of his argument. Eliminate answer choices that would NOT follow the gist of the paragraph. Especially look for those that are outside the scope of the author's focus, a favorite CR wrong answer type!

10. Try the Negation Technique. An assumption is something that needs to be true and is required in order for the Evidence to lead to the Conclusion. If we negate the answer choices then the correct choice will weaken the argument the most. This is an excellent strategy to try for Assumption questions.

Good luck!

Hello

Could someone please explain how the T-bone digram is made?

check in LSAT Examkrackers LR book , seems to be valid for variation test/negation test