Studying for Reading Comprehension

[Aliengod3]

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Hello Everyone,

I performed pretty well on the DAT but I am thinking about retaking it since my RC score could be better. I wanted to know if anyone had any recommendations or strategies that I could practice to help me improve in this section. Also if you know of any good articles to practice reading that you could share would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your help!

 

[Intriguing Owl]

I would like some feedback here too. I scored decent last year but definitely need to improve here. I saw crack DAT reading and Qvault have practice tests you can buy. I may do them both...

 

[chingaling]

I have a pretty vague piece of advice, but it helped me, so I figured I may as well try to help. I think there is no advice for this- everyone is different, and whatever method works for you- do it. Some people skim the paragraph first, then go to questions. This didn't work for me, as I was under pressure and didn't retain any of it at the end of the paragraph. I personally went straight to the questions then searched for my answers with key words in mind, and I felt calmer during practice tests and scored a 21 on RC on the DAT. However, this doesn't mean that my method will work for you, so you need to be careful to do what has worked for you in the practice tests so you are calm and comfortable with your personal method on test day. Try out different methods, timing yourself, and develop your own method that is tailor made for you. Hope this helps, and good luck🙂

 

[jmvt]

What I've tried is "mapping" the passage as you're reading/scanning through the passage. What I mean by this is numbering your paragraphs and writing the key words/main ideas of each paragraph. The only problem with this is that it may take some time but it does help with the questions, especially the detail questions (you'll know where to look). I'm struggling with RC too but I think doing this has helped. I just need to work on my speed (I'm a slow reader :-( )

Another thing to do is to try reading articles from National Geographic, Scientific American, etc. just to get yourself used to reading science topics. Good luck!

 

[ballyhoo]

Hi

What i do is I first skim through the passages really quickly, maybe taking 2-3 min max! And then as I'm reading, I try to think, "If I were a test maker, which fact would I test on?" So in particular, I look for things that are listed and make a mental note in my head that that is where it is, just in case I see a question on that. And then I also make a mental "block" - for each transition, I try to keep in my head a vague idea of where things are. If the first part is about TMJ and then the second part is about symptoms of jaw bone aches or whatnot, and then the third part is about how to alleviate pain, then I keep that in mind as I'm doing questions.

If I CAN'T find an answer, I don't spend time looking for it. I make a note on paper (will we have paper in the real DAT??) and make an educated guess based on my memory of the passage. And if I have time I come back to it. The key is not to run out of time, but at the same time, do the question thoroughly! It helps me to "build" up my knowledge of the passage as I do the questions.

I haven't taken the DAT yet (two weeks!!) but I have been getting scores of 22 and 20 on my Achiever tests for the RC, so I'm hoping that this strategy works!!