Angiotension Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 I have tried several techniques, practised with over 100 passages (i do at least 5 each day) and i am getting mediocre marks. I am reaching a point of frustration! I have been keeping track of common mistakes or any trends in my errors but I feel like i am making the same mistakes over and over (degree of mistakes varies by the passage type i.e. a harder passage vs easier passage). I feel like i am not adequately prepared to deal with most of the passages and I just don't know what to do next. Sometimes while reading, I lose track of understanding i suppose and then back read (which takes time). 2 questions: a) How do I improve my comprehension skills? (I am getting similar scores regardless of the timing constrain so it has to be my reading that is flawed) What to do next? I need results or my motivation is going to crash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MCATwannabe Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 I had the similar problem last year. I was doing 7+ per day and no improvement. I think MCAT verbal is beyond comprehension skill. It's a combination of reading speed, luck and then reading comprehension. I never scored anything above 9 in the MCAT verbal in the real thing, but scored 21 on the DAT reading comprehension section on my first attempt. I know for a FACT that verbal is highly based on luck. All you need is a little bit of good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bpatient Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 Maybe your doing too much in one day, try 2-3 a day since your making the same type of mistakes over and over again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr.Henderson Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 I'd be hesitant to attribute higher scores to luck, unless of course you were outright guessing on some. I tried several different strategies before finding one that consistently scored me in the 10-12 range, wound up with 11 on the real thing. My strategy was to read the passage once and answer the questions without hesitation/going back. I found when I second guessed myself I wound up doing much worse. Some people read the questions first, then the passage, others refer back to the passage, try different approaches and settle on what works for you. I would also recommend lightening up on the amount you're practicing, it can definitely lead you to do worse as you start to burn out. I practiced 4-6 passages every third day or so. Try taking a break for a few days and then take some practice passages, see if you notice an improvement at all. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinre Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 One thing that my mcat teacher for verbal suggested to me was to always read actively, almost like you're competing in a sport. Pay full attention to the meaning of each sentence and look carefully for key words and phrases. Don't get hung up if you can't catch the main point of a particular paragraph. I decided to read through the questions before reading the passage, but I didn't actually read then, I just scanned them for key words which I scribbled on paper. I then searched the passage for the key words I wrote down, or words relating to them and tried to remember where they were while reading each paragraph. The point is you don't need to understand everything, just the parts you're being asked questions about. Also, don't freak out if on the real test things don't go as planned. On my real test I ended up getting hung up on one passage, realizing I had 5mins left to do an entire passage, pretty much guessed all of that one (educated guesses of course by scanning the passage) and still got an 11. Don't forget verbal is hard and it frustrates lots of people while they study, because you can't just memorize a formula and get the answer. Relax in between practicing and if you're consistently doing poorly, take a break or study something else for a bit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharpshooter Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 I'd be hesitant to attribute higher scores to luck, unless of course you were outright guessing on some. I tried several different strategies before finding one that consistently scored me in the 10-12 range, wound up with 11 on the real thing. My strategy was to read the passage once and answer the questions without hesitation/going back. I found when I second guessed myself I wound up doing much worse. Some people read the questions first, then the passage, others refer back to the passage, try different approaches and settle on what works for you. I would also recommend lightening up on the amount you're practicing, it can definitely lead you to do worse as you start to burn out. I practiced 4-6 passages every third day or so. Try taking a break for a few days and then take some practice passages, see if you notice an improvement at all. Good luck! Dr. Henderson, If I feel I don't remember the context in which some words/phrases were used for vocabulary/structure type questions, I usually go back to the passage to look for the words/phrases. Would you still recommend not going back to the passage in such a case? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
healthscigrad09 Posted June 7, 2012 Report Share Posted June 7, 2012 Hey Angiotensin, My MCAT verbal teacher told me to read stuff I wouldn't normally read in my spare time (I know, spare time is a joke for some premed people) to get comfortable reading prose in different styles. If you haven't heard of it already, try going to thebrowser.com which highlights new interesting articles from different fields each day. For me, I made myself read anything that came up on philosophy, art criticism, and economics (which historically I haven't given a crap about). I found it really helpful to read that stuff not under time pressure. I got used to reading dense material and when I would practice passages I didn't freeze or second guess myself as much. It might help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angiotension Posted June 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2012 Thank you for the valuable suggestions everyone! Maybe I just need a break from verbal, but I am keenly trying some of these ideas. Will update if I find that something worked for me. I am certain that many people might be in the same situation and perhaps my experience might be helpful to them. Hopefully no more frustration on my way.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holiday1001 Posted June 8, 2012 Report Share Posted June 8, 2012 Dr. Henderson, If I feel I don't remember the context in which some words/phrases were used for vocabulary/structure type questions, I usually go back to the passage to look for the words/phrases. Would you still recommend not going back to the passage in such a case? Thanks! unless the question asking specifics like "which of these arguments did the author present in the passage"- that kind of question you can go back and get the answer for sure. if not, dont' go back! do NOT analyze how individual words/phrases are put. it WILL mislead you and you will get the question wrong. One thing that my mcat teacher for verbal suggested to me was to always read actively, almost like you're competing in a sport. Pay full attention to the meaning of each sentence and look carefully for key words and phrases. Don't get hung up if you can't catch the main point of a particular paragraph. excellent advice there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr.Henderson Posted June 8, 2012 Report Share Posted June 8, 2012 Dr. Henderson, If I feel I don't remember the context in which some words/phrases were used for vocabulary/structure type questions, I usually go back to the passage to look for the words/phrases. Would you still recommend not going back to the passage in such a case? Thanks! Holiday gave great advice on this one. Try it both ways anyways when practicing, you'll probably be surprised that you get more correct when not going back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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