Verbal: is it worth it to mentally summarize the main idea after reading the passage?

[tdod]

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What are people's thoughts about mentally summarize the main idea after reading the passage? Have people found it helpful, or just a waste of time?

 

[sillyjoe]

What are people's thoughts about mentally summarize the main idea after reading the passage? Have people found it helpful, or just a waste of time?

It depends. You will find that verbal eventually clicks in that you kind of get a handle of what the AAMC wants which is the main idea. If you are struggling still, maybe it would help to do that in the beginning. I did and I found that as time went on it sort of "happened" less consciousness than what you are describing.

I also suggest you check out @TBRBiosadist verbal strategy which really helps hone in on the main idea:

"Spend the bulk of your time reading. Up to 3 minutes per passage.

• Read the first and last paragraph thoroughly to begin with. Understand what the authors main point will be because 90% of questions require nothing more than a general idea.
• After this, read the entire passage slowly enough where you dont feel like you need to reread sentences for understanding.

Next is just answer questions, there is a few tricks here that work about 90% of the time

• Unless the passage is asking you about a specific detail, dont look back. READ EVERY ANSWER THOROUGLY AND THEN Answer what makes sense from the general point of the passage. Its very easy to prove a wrong answer to be somewhat correct if you dig hard enough, dont. Answer what your gut says and move onto the next question, dont contemplate to much. With that being said...
• Answer like you were dropped on the head as a child. Alot of times if Im arguing between two answers, there is the answer that is 100% correct, and one that is 90% correct. Be an idoit and choose the one that seems like it is correct. However.....
• "Always" is a word to avoid. If an answer uses this word, or definites like it, it is something to avoid. I would say 80% of the time the wishy washy answer is more correct then the highly affirmative one. This leads to my final point....
• 100% of the time you are not actually looking for the "right" answer in verbal, this isnt PS or BS where 1+1 almost always equals 2 (unless we are talking about the different sedimentation values for Ribosomes). In verbal you are looking for the answer that isnt wrong. Often times an answer will seem very "right" but one aspect of it is clearly wrong, as compared to an answer that isnt wrong, but doesnt seem as right as that answer, these are meant to fool you. Choose the answer that isnt wrong.

I understand that I few of these tips may be at odds with each other. Ultimately you must adjust slightly for each passage, but it comes down to one thing. Read thoroughly. Read every sentence in the passage. Read every question. Read every answer. Then the correct answer will be fairly obvious. This may seem like it takes longer, but it takes much less time than skimming, and then trying to find the correct information later."

 

[TBRBiosadist]

Your lacking of the final line is.....disturbing

 

[smpbound]

Your lacking of the final line is.....disturbing

TBR Sadist's verbal strategy is right on the money.

My 2 cents. If you don't know what the main idea of the passage is before answering questions, you're screwed! You're better off guessing bc at least you have more time for the other passages.