I desperately need help on VR. Sincere answers will be much appreciated.

[marspotter]

Hi. I desperately need help on VR. My VR scores are 4-6 currently, making me to really question my ability to read and analyze. (I probably do have problems..) If anyone has really sincere advice and good tips to start off, I would truly appreciate.

Right now, I take the test by writing down the main ideas and going back to the problems. However, it seems that the process is taking me too much time to finish off the answers. I am very detail-orientated person and it is just hard for me to let go off any answers quite uncertain. Therefore, I go back which leads me to not be able to finish all the questions.

Thus, I would really appreciate advices on either how to take notes fast, or strategically read the passages, and approach the questions.

Also, some have recommended to just practice and keep a log to figure out the question types. I have tried this numerous times, it has yet to help me anyway. Could anyone give more constructive way of doing this?

Thank you so very much.

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[cbrons]

Read a lot of different material in your leisure. DOn't read just your textbooks which you are required to read. The more you read, the quicker you will become. I've been reading the newspaper everyday since I was ten and I read fiction novels for fun. As a result, I've developed a particularly wide vocabulary (which helps to formulate good essays). I'm not a particularly astute guy when it comes to understanding math and science but I can read damn near 1000 words per minute ... I owe that speed to the fact that I read a lot and have learned to retain what I read in a passage by the first time without having to always go back. Just pick up books, articles, dissertations, etc. from all different subject matters. You'd be surprised how much you'll improve your reading speed, level of understanding, and vocabulary (yes being an avid reader certainly helps improve your writing skill).

 

[UrielSeptum]

Something that actually helps me is not trying to think too much and try too hard. It seems like thinking way too hard about some of the questions can make them seem much more difficult and complete than they are. Really understanding what you're reading in the passage is the most important aspect, in my opinion. So get that down, and everything else will come.

 

[scottyT]

I think with scores like that you may be skipping through the passage instead of really trying to grok the material. Forget wasting your time writing stuff down, just read and comprehend the passage (read EVERY WORD). Be one with the dinosaurs, constitutional framers, playwright, or whatever boring thing you're reading about. Also, try to be interested in the topic. If you can invest yourself emotionally even just a bit then you're more likely to understand what you're reading. Some of the stuff is genuinely interesting; my knowledge of woodworking, judicial theory, and ancient religions has easily tripled since I've started this process.

The questions are designed to really trip up the meticulous types. You simply have to learn to make a decision and move on. Many times there are multiple "right" answers in a selection but you have to choose the one that is "most" right. Try to not devote more than one single minute to any question unless you're finishing way early.

Lastly, if you didn't catch it earlier in my post, try to quit writing things down. Taking the time to write will break your concentration on the passage. It's adequate to take a moment at the end of each paragraph and each section and just think about what the main point was. Why did the author write this? How does this paragraph support his/her thesis? What was contained in this paragraph.

Good Luck!