Reading passages twice

[grikmok]

Everyone,

English is my second language. That being said, I need to read a passage twice before I can get a full comprehension of it. This is my tactic: I would skim the passage once and read it thoroughly the second time.

Is this a feasible tactic in the real MCAT? Do I have enough time to use this tactic in all sections -- PS, BS and Verbal?


Thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Nasem]

english is my 2nd language as well...

honestly with verbal, do whatever you think will work, majority of folks around here speak english as a first language, and from the looks of things, they tend to improve faster and better than we do...

As for the sciences, I don't think you need to read it twice, most of it will be based on sciences that your "somewhat" familiar with, and most of it will be describing a process that you... mostly likly have read about or studied during your preparation.... plus, the sciences passages are short as hell compared to those nightmarish verbal passages

 

[DrMattOglesby]

I don't tend to think you will have sufficient time available to read passages twice.

Instead, you could read the passage (highlight things that stand out to you along the way -- either with the MCAT highlighting function, or mentally) -- and then begin the questions that come with the passage.

If you find yourself not immediately knowing the answer to a question, refer back to highlighted areas of the passage to further investigate.

 

[WashMe]

Keep in mind that most test takers, myself included, won't understand most of the details in MCAT passages. They are complicated (in general) and often taken out of context (on Verbal); look for the main ideas and do what works for you. If reading twice leaves you sufficient time on your practice tests, then stick with that. I suspect it will cause you to rush through the questions or not finish sections, but I could be wrong. Work on reading efficiently and looking for key ideas/points, and take many practice tests to see how your timing works.

 

[Nasem]

Keep in mind that most test takers, myself included, won't understand most of the details in MCAT passages. They are complicated (in general) and often taken out of context (on Verbal); look for the main ideas and do what works for you. If reading twice leaves you sufficient time on your practice tests, then stick with that. I suspect it will cause you to rush through the questions or not finish sections, but I could be wrong. Work on reading efficiently and looking for key ideas/points, and take many practice tests to see how your timing works.

I am trying to pick up on the whole "main idea" thing... cause your right, I do read ALOT of garbage that doesn't usually make sense to me (or hard to underestand at least).... however, the questions always trap me, I always end up eliminating 2 out of the possible 4, and I ALWAYS end up choosing the wrong answer Im always ending up getting 2 correct out of like 7 (or 3 correct out of 6) ... this is the very norm for me, I'll admit tho, I haven't been practicing verbal everyday, just whenever I have chance (Full time semester)...

Honestly, my goal for the verbal if I get an 8 (on the real thing), I'd be the happiest guy in the world, anything below 8, and I don't think I'll stand a chance in any med school (DO or MD)

 

[grikmok]

Thanks for the insight, everyone!

What do you guys think about reading the questions first, then going back to read the passage? It's a technique I learnt in high school (secondary school) in my country. I understand the questions in the computerized MCAT is revealed one at a time, so, I don't quite know how well it'll work.

 

[DrMattOglesby]

Thanks for the insight, everyone!

What do you guys think about reading the questions first, then going back to read the passage? It's a technique I learnt in high school (secondary school) in my country. I understand the questions in the computerized MCAT is revealed one at a time, so, I don't quite know how well it'll work.

The questions are not revealed one at a time. You read the passage on the left hand side of the screen; and the accompanying questions are in a separate window on the right hand side.

I suggest you take the free practice test AAMC #3 online so you can get a better feel for how the Computer Based Test (CBT) works.

As far as reading questions beforehand...my opinion is that this would just waste time since you would have to end up reading them again. Most questions are asking for insights or themes presented in the passage. Because of this, it will be hard to scavenge for answers.

 

[beckhunter116]

I'm using the EK guide and they say not to re-read the passage. You need to train yourself to fully focus on the passage in front of you. The questions for verbal are about the main idea NOT details. And you can't remember questions while reading the passage. The key to verbal is to recognize the tricks that they throw in for the answers. I imagine any study guide will go over the usually tricks like the too simplified answer, ect. I would recommend the 101 passages in verbal EK book. Practice, Practice, Practice. Obviously, you are doing something right by eliminating two answers, now focus on why you are choosing one over the other look for clues to make the correct choice.

 

[SN2ed]

It's a waste of time to re-read the passage or read the question stems first. Try reading the passage slowly (~3-4 minutes) and only one time. You want to capture the main idea and the author's opinion. Simply put, you don't have enough time to re-read the passages. The only way you could re-read the passage is if you can easily read the passage in 2 minutes. However, since you'd be rushing to read that fast, you'd lose ALL of your comprehension. In the end, you'd be no where on the passage with only 3 minutes left for ANOTHER re-read, this time slowly, and questions.

Reading the questions beforehand can cloud your judgment and make your mind focus on remembering all of those questions. Basically, you wouldn't be reading with your full attention which would cause you miss the main idea and forget a good number of questions. Thus, your timing problems would be even worse in the long run.

 

[MBHockey]

It's a waste of time to re-read the passage or read the question stems first. Try reading the passage slowly (~3-4 minutes) and only one time. You want to capture the main idea and the author's opinion. Simply put, you don't have enough time to re-read the passages. The only way you could re-read the passage is if you can easily read the passage in 2 minutes. However, since you'd be rushing to read that fast, you'd lose ALL of your comprehension. In the end, you'd be no where on the passage with only 3 minutes left for ANOTHER re-read, this time slowly, and questions.

Reading the questions beforehand can cloud your judgment and make your mind focus on remembering all of those questions. Basically, you wouldn't be reading with your full attention which would cause you miss the main idea and forget a good number of questions. Thus, your timing problems would be even worse in the long run.

Couldn't agree more. I think you'd run out of time by reading it twice. Read it once, get a hold of the main idea (what is the author saying? Why did he write this piece? What is his opinion on the topic? What is the crux of his argument?) and you can answer most of the questions just based on really nailing those things.

The MCAT hardly ever asks for mundane details that are explicitly stated in the passage. What's the fun in that?