Need Help On Verbal

[nhernandez4]

I am struggling with verbal. I am scoring anywhere from a 6 to a 12. I just seem to better when I am not burnt from studying too much. But what are some practical strategies to do better on this section? Thanks

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[apumic]

I suspect it would help if you told us some of what you are and/or have already done. Your post doesn't really provide sufficient information to provide good, customized help. Where do you think your weak spots lie? How might you target them? What has/hasn't worked?

 

[SN2ed]

Check out Vihsadas' Verbal Guide: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showpost.php?p=6022602&postcount=96

Also, make sure you're giving yourself enough breaks. You don't want to be in a constant battle against burning out.

 

[Vanguard23]

Yeah, take the EK method. Spend 5 seconds between passages(30 seconds total) to just clear your thoughts of the previous passage. Your mind just had 500 words of text crammed into it and was given 5-7 questions asking any number of minute details about those 500 words and anything they may infer. All within 7-9 minutes.
Your brain needs cool down time. Practice on gaining speed in reading to compensate for that lost time, if it helps you.

 

[nhernandez4]

I have used the kaplan strategy of passage mapping, keywords, and etc. This strategy just seems to slow me down. My verbal score has not improved with this stradegy. Actually gotten worse at times. What strategies have people actually seen improvement with? Thanks

 

[Omni]

Practice is the best way.
What I do is that I try to do 3 VR passages everyday in the morning, and then move on to studying the core.

 

[dexs]

Based on your range it seems that you know how to do well. If you've scored 12's I wouldn't worry about your strategy, unless those 12's were when you guessed 10 questions and got lucky!

What really helped me was using the 10min break to read. I don't mean read your favorite magazine or novel. Grab a New Yorker or London Review of Books. Find the worst, boring article and during the break take a few minutes (1-3, no more) to scan some paragraphs. Helps me switch from PS to VR.

Also, check your scores on practice tests. I always felt rushed but found I scored much better taking my time and guessing a couple than rushing and finishing early.