1 Verbal Reasoning Strategies •Curriculum for Increasing Verbal Reasoning Scores
Transcript
Slide 1
1 Verbal Reasoning Strategies Curriculum for Increasing Verbal
Reasoning Scores
Slide 2
2 VR Strategies Verbal Reasoning Passage Types and Strategies.
The natural science passage. Subjects include mainly astronomy,
biology, chemistry, and physics. Dont assume youll do well on this
section because of your experience with science courses. NSPs are
challenging because they are usually lengthy and full of details.
Examinees tend to focus on details and lose track of main ideas.
Examinees expect questions that will test their recollection of
facts. Your mission is to understand the ideas and arguments of the
passage.
Slide 3
3 VR Strategies Reading strategies for the natural science
passage. Identify two or more competing arguments or ideas.
Understand who and what supports each idea, and separate that from
the authors stance. Form conclusions in your mind based on the
facts. Summarize the main idea of each paragraph as you read (Begin
by physically doing this then move on to mental mapping).
Slide 4
4 VR Strategies Question strategies for the natural science
passage. Test makers often ask for answers youd least expect.
Natural science questions often ask about hypothetical opponents or
supporters of various theories discussed in the passage. Identify
the main arguments and ask yourself which group would support one
hypothesis over another. Read answer choices A through D extremely
carefully for each question, and eliminate wrong answers as you
proceed. Note extreme, unqualified words like always, never, not,
and must because they generally indicate incorrect answers.
Slide 5
5 VR Strategies Try to recall the dates and time periods
mentioned in the passage (But not at the expense of losing the main
idea). Pay attention to which arguments the author supports or
rejects. The authors usually espouse a position on the topic. Do
not overanalyze natural science questions. Eliminate wrong answers.
Look for obvious wrong answers and use the strikethrough to
eliminate them. Usually one or two answers are obviously false.
Obvious wrong answers are clearly opposite to what is stated in the
passage.
Slide 6
6 VR Strategies The Social Science passage. Most of the
passages come from journal articles and are very challenging. The
range of topics include sociology, anthropology, economics,
psychology, political science, education and history.
Slide 7
7 VR Strategies Reading strategies for the social science
passage. Be prepared to read about cultural or political movements,
along with important dates, time periods and key arguments. Some
key strategies to employ with social science passages. Look for
comparisons made by the author. Usually, these passages present two
or more points or arguments.
Slide 8
8 VR Strategies Reading strategies for the social science
passage. Pay attention to the argument supported by the author
compared to others that he or she writes about. Identify the
assumptions of the author and look for any biases. Identify any
assumptions relevant to the arguments made by competing experts.
Consider what groups of people would support or reject various
theories or ideas presented in the passage. Read every sentence
carefully. Identify implied ideas woven into the passage.
Slide 9
9 VR Strategies Question strategies for the social science
passage. Social science questions often test your understanding of
how certain views relate to statements from the passage. Pay
attention to the tone of the author and rarely is this tone extreme
or strident. Many social science questions ask about the intentions
of the author. Read the passage first, and then answer questions.
Read each answer choice A through D carefully and twice to make
sure you understand each question completely.
Slide 10
10 VR Strategies The Humanities passage. Because pre-med
students generally have poor exposure to subjects in the
humanities, bone up on these topics by reading books and journals
dealing with them. The range of topics include art, language,
literature, communication, religion and philosophy. Be prepared for
many details and facts including important dates, time periods,
artistic or literary movements, cultural groups, etc.
Slide 11
11 VR Strategies The Humanities passage. Reading strategies for
the humanities passage. Keep track of facts and dates, as well as
key ideas. Expect to read about people who criticize certain
viewpoints. Determine the strengths and weaknesses of arguments
expressed by critics. Be sure to understand how the opinions of the
author compare to those of other experts mentioned in the passage.
Read for meaning and not just details.
Slide 12
12 VR Strategies The Humanities passage. Question strategies
for the humanities passage. Many questions test your direct
understanding of the various viewpoints found in the passage. Some
questions ask about how the author would respond to a concept in
the passage. Try to answer the question in your own mind before
reading the answer choices because answer choices are tricky and
misleading. For each point that the author makes, determine why the
author is making that point. Look for assumptions upon which the
conclusion is based because the correct assumption is one that must
be true in order for the conclusion to stand.