Reading Comprehension Studying

Notes from the RC Bible

VIEWSTAMP

• VIEW - Different viewpoints in the passage

• S - Structure of the passage

• T - Tone of the passage

• A - Arguments in the passage

• MP - Main point

Premise

a fact, proposition, or statement from which a conclusion is made

Most common premise indicators

Because, since

Conclusion

a statement or judgement that follows from one or more reasons

Most common conclusion indicators

Thus, therefore

Additional premise indicators

Furthermore, moreover, in addition

Counter-arguments

introduce a new viewpoint

Most common counter-argument indicators

But, yet, however

Assumption

• The same as an unstated premise

• What must be true for the argument to be true

Inference

something that must be true based on the information presented

Complex Argument

has a main conclusion and sub-conclusions

Five primary ways that alter perception of passages and overall section difficulty:

1. Challenging Topic or Terminology

2. Challenging Writing Style

3. Multiple Viewpoints

4. Difficult Questions/Answers

5. Order of Passage Presentation

Two categories for unknown words

1. Concept under discussion

   1. Will be explained to some degree in the text

2. Unknown vocabulary words

   1. Use context clues to help determine meaning

Passage elements that generate questions

• (Things to highlight/make note of)

• Viewpoint-specific elements

• Text-specific elements

Viewpoint-specific questions

Questions about the main point, authorities cited by the author, perspective of any player in the passage

Text-specific questions

1. Initial/Closing information

2. Dates and numbers

   1. Generally, the more dates you see in a passage, the more important it is to make note of them

3. Definition

4. Examples

   1. Ex: for example, for instance, a case in point is, as shown by, as demonstrated by

5. Difficult words or phrases

6. Lists and enumerations

   1. Lists of premises & examples

7. Questions in the text

Two broad reasoning structures

1. Casual Reasoning

   1. Cause and effect

2. Conditional Reasoning

   1. Sufficient and Necessary Conditions

Casuality in RC usually discusses…

The context of why certain events occurred

Conditionality in RC is usually a type of reasoning that occurs…

while discussing or supporting other points

Traps of similarities and distinctions

• Occurs when, in a continuous section of text, and author discusses in detail items that have both similarities and differences

• Make simple notes or highlight key points

• Return to the passage if asked for details

Trap of separation

Inserting a section of text about a related but a distinct topic within a long discussion of a topic

Trap of proximity

Just because two ideas are presented in close proximity of each other in a passage does not mean that they are related

Trap of order

An item discussed before another doesn’t mean it predated the other unless explicitly stated or inherently obvious

Trap of cause

An item discussed before another doesn’t mean it caused the other unless explicitly stated or inherently obvious

Passage topic trap

Ex: science topics

What to underline

words or phrases that give decisive information or indicate a turning point in the passage

What to highlight

• Yellow: author’s relevant points

• Orange: opposition’s view

What to write on scratch paper

• V = viewpoint

• MP = mainpoint

• CC = compare and contrast

• Location of each

Specific Reference (SR)

• Refer you to a specific line, sentence, or paragraph

• Answers are not always found in the exact place referenced

Concept Reference (CR)

Refer you to ideas or themes within the passage

Global Reference (GR)

• Ask you about the passage as a whole, or they fail to identify a defined area or isolated concept within the question stem

• If it’s not SR or CR, it’s GR

• Most frequent

Must Be True/Most Supported questions

• Asks for the answer choice that can be properly inferred from the passage

• Most frequent (up to 75% of all questions)

• SR: return to the passage and start reading 3-5 lines before the reference

• CR: quickly review the referenced information

• GR: only refer back to the passage to eliminate or confirm individual answer choices

Main Point questions

• Ask you to find the primary focus of the passage

• Most often appear at the very first question in each passage set

Purpose/Function questions

• SR/CR: ask why the author referred to a particular word, phrase, or idea

  1. Refer to the context around the reference

• GR: almost always phrased around the words “primary purpose”

  1. Correct answer is often an abstract version of the main point

Author’s Perspective questions

Ask you to select the answer choice that best reflects the author’s views on a subject or the author’s attitude toward the subject

Subject’s Perspective questions

Ask you to select the answer choice that best reflects the views or attitudes of another person/group mentioned in the passage

Organization questions

• SR: asks you to identify how pairs of lines, sentences, or paragraphs relate to each other

• GR: asks you to describe the overall structure of the passage

Expansion questions

• Requires you to project ideas from the passage to determine one of three elements:

  1. Where the passage was drawn from/how it could be titled

  2. What sentence/idea could come before the passage

  3. What sentence/idea could follow the passage

Strengthen questions

Ask you to select the answer choice that provides support for the author’s argument or strengthens it in some way

Weaken questions

Ask you to attack or undermine the author’s argument

Parallel Reasoning questions

Ask you to identify the answer choice that contains reasoning most similar ins structure to the reasoning presented in the stimulus

Cannot Be True Questions

• Ask you to identify the answer choice that cannot be true or is most weakened based on the information in the passage

• Appear with the modifier “least”

Must Be True subtypes

Main Point, Purpose/Function, Author’s Perspective, Subject’s Perspective, Organization, Expansion

Correct answers in Must Be True questions/subtypes

• Paraphrased Answers

  1. Restate a portion of the passage in different terms

• Combination Answers

  1. The sum of two or more passage statements

  2. Any answer choice doing this will be correct

Incorrect answers in Must Be True questions/subtypes

• Could or likely to be true answers

• Exaggerated answers

• “New” information answers

• Shell Game

• Opposite answers

• Reverse answers

• The wrong view

• Hidden answers

Shell Game answers

An idea or concept in an answer choice is very similar to one raised in the passage, but’s it’s changed just enough to be incorrect

Reverse answers

• Often flip the wording from the passage

• Ex: Many people have some type of security system in their home → Some people have many types of security systems in their home

The Wrong View answers

Answers that agree with other groups in the passage that the question didn’t ask for

Incorrect answers in Strengthen questions

• Opposite answers

• Shell Game

• Out of scope answers

Out of Scope answers

1. Answers that miss the point of the argument and support issues that are either unrelated or tangential to the argument

Comparative passages question types

• Point at Issue

• Point of Agreement

Incorrect answers for Point at Issue questions

• Ethical vs. factual situations

  • If the passages address an ethical issue, the correct answer won’t be strictly factual (and vice versa)

• Dual agreement/disagreement

• View of one speaker is unknown

Common passage themes

• Diversity

• Law-Related

• Science