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1 Month : Improvements Methods

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1 Month : Improvements Methods

by farooq » Thu Jan 21, 2010 11:03 pm
Hi,

I have one more month to improve my GMAT verbal section. I gave Gmat prep twice and got 500. In both attempts, I scored 44 in Math but between 18-20 in Verbal. I encountered four RC passages with 14 questions. After analysis, I found RC is my weakest section. In all passages I assumed my answers. Result I scored 4/14 (in RC :()

Now I have only 40 days to improve my RC. Currently my accuracy in RC is below average. While doing OG's RC, I sometimes scored 40% and sometimes 0%. I'm trying my best to read well English material from Economist.com. But when it comes to RC test I failed to answers each question :(

Please suggest some quick learning methods through which I can improve my GMAT reading comprehension and increase my GMAT score.
Regards,
Farooq Farooqui.
London. UK

It is your Attitude, not your Aptitude, that determines your Altitude.
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by DanaJ » Fri Jan 22, 2010 7:01 am
The best resource for RC I've reviewed so far is in the Kaplan Verbal Workbook. However, I'm not sure if you have the time to order the book online. That being said, here are a few tips for RC:

What you need to remember is that RC passages are usually well-written. This is the reason why they have a particularly clear structure, i.e. first paragraph - introduction; second paragraph - alternate explanation to a theory etc.... The paragraphs are linked to one another in a neat way, meaning that there's usually no abrupt "rupture" in the text. You will often see connectors, such as therefore, however, moreover to signal that a different section is about to come your way - like an alternate explanation (for however) or something that strengthens the initial idea (for moreover).

I usually follow the structure of the passage by these red flags, so to speak, which enables me to understand the purpose each paragraph in the whole thing. This is another important part of RC: you must be able to spot the purpose of each paragraph. That's particularly useful when you have questions such as "What is the main point of paragraph X?".

While this is the "macro" level of the stimulus, the "micro" level concerns each phrase of each paragraph: they too are connected by similar words. Each phrase has its own little role in everything! You should look for parallelisms, enumerations, supporting ideas: this gives you a general feel for it all.

Also, an important part of your RC practice is trying to work on your vocabulary. Most of the times, the answer choices that just take whole groups of words out of the text are wrong - this is a "cheap shot" designed to test you attention. The right answer will not only test your understanding of the passage, but it will also check for the "strength" of your vocabulary, your rephrasing "capabilities". You say you've been reading stuff - well done! I'm 100% sure it will pay off!

To sum it all up: read the passage critically, just as you would if you were an established book critic! Look for the "signs" and avoid traps.
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