PAT angles help!!!!

[waitingame]

Hey so I am finally doing well in all sections except the angles because I cant tell the difference in them on CDP at least the last two tests I have taken (4/5). I got a 21 on the last test but only got 7 correct on the angles. So it is really hurting my score. I was just wondering if anyone had any tricks that they could share because I know on the real test they are very difficult. Right now I am just trying to look at the vertexes and tell the difference or look at the trends in the answers.

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[vlct0ria]

Hey so I am finally doing well in all sections except the angles because I cant tell the difference in them on CDP at least the last two tests I have taken (4/5). I got a 21 on the last test but only got 7 correct on the angles. So it is really hurting my score. I was just wondering if anyone had any tricks that they could share because I know on the real test they are very difficult. Right now I am just trying to look at the vertexes and tell the difference or look at the trends in the answers.

I was the exact same way with angles on CDP...I got 21s on the first 3 tests, and got like 14 or 15 out of 15 on every section except angles. It's crazy- whenever I reviewed my answers, the angle degree measurements were all within like 3 degrees of each other! I tried a new method yesterday and took two full-length PAT tests and got a 22 and a 23.

What I did was look at the answer choices first...generally, of the 4 multiple choice options, the smallest ranked angle will be one of two choices (say your 4 choices are 4123, 4132, 1432, 1243...the smallest angle is thus going to be angle 4 or 1). Compare just those two angles and decide which is smaller- now you've already increased your chances of getting the right answer to 50%. Do the same for the largest angles...ie) for the 4 options I listed, the largest angle has to be 3 or 2. This method doesn't work every single question, but it definitely helps narrow it down so that you are only comparing 2 angles at once instead of 4. I went from 8/15 to 14/15 on angles with this....its worth a shot!

 

[datdat]

you got my problem. i also want to know 'the way i practice to differentiate angles with only 3 degree difference' looking the choices definately good but still you need to tell which one is bigger b/w the two choices

 

[vlct0ria]

you got my problem. i also want to know 'the way i practice to differentiate angles with only 3 degree difference' looking the choices definately good but still you need to tell which one is bigger b/w the two choices

Oh believe me, I know it seems too simple to work, but it really helped me out yesterday...you'd be surprised to see that many times the options for the smallest or largest angle are easy to distinguish between...and it really reduces the stress too by allowing me to focus on comparing just two angles at a time instead of being overwhelmed by 4 angles that all look the same.

 

[ZzZzSleepyhead]

If you're getting 7 wrong on the angles, how many are you getting wrong in each of the other sections to get a 21?

 

[navneetdh]

I was the exact same way with angles on CDP...I got 21s on the first 3 tests, and got like 14 or 15 out of 15 on every section except angles. It's crazy- whenever I reviewed my answers, the angle degree measurements were all within like 3 degrees of each other! I tried a new method yesterday and took two full-length PAT tests and got a 22 and a 23.

What I did was look at the answer choices first...generally, of the 4 multiple choice options, the smallest ranked angle will be one of two choices (say your 4 choices are 4123, 4132, 1432, 1243...the smallest angle is thus going to be angle 4 or 1). Compare just those two angles and decide which is smaller- now you've already increased your chances of getting the right answer to 50%. Do the same for the largest angles...ie) for the 4 options I listed, the largest angle has to be 3 or 2. This method doesn't work every single question, but it definitely helps narrow it down so that you are only comparing 2 angles at once instead of 4. I went from 8/15 to 14/15 on angles with this....its worth a shot!

I have been doing that from the beginning. But I still keep getting them wrong . Ok when I am trying to figure out which one is the smallet out of the choices I sometimes even mess up there. Usually I get it down to 2 choices left and mostly miss. I am using the method you mentioned but never got more than 11. Mostly stay around 9. Any other methods you can suggest?

Or any one else. because seriously angles are still terrible for me too.

 

[vlct0ria]

If you're getting 7 wrong on the angles, how many are you getting wrong in each of the other sections to get a 21?

On my last CDP before trying the new angle ranking method, I got 14/15 on all the sections except pattern folding (11/15) and of course angles were 8/15.

 

[Redhead32788]

Yes, definitely try and determine the smallest and largest angles, and see if only one choices matches. A lot of times this is the case. If that leaves you with a few choices left, try covering up the legs of each angle, making each one have the same length legs with your hand. The length of the legs is one of the the main distortions on our perception of the size of the angle. I would not suggest touching the screen or holding anything up to it, just hovering your hand in front of the screen. You are watched by camera when taking the DAT, and I have heard that some centers do not allow you to touch the screen.

Another great tip I received is: many problems have angles that are smaller than 90 degrees and some that are larger. This is an easy distinction to make, and with that one determination may eliminate numerous wrong answers, or even give you the right one. I hope this helps!

 

[MowgliR]

On the real DAT, are you able to use your mouse as a reference?