Timing strategy

[ReginaP412]

I'm about 1.5 months into studying (just beginning the course with MP) and I'm just now starting to focus on RC. Hoping someone could shed some light on the most efficient study strategy...

The timing is KILLING my score -- I'm getting through 2.5 passage sections timed and since I'm already rushing the accuracy isn't great. But when I practice un-timed (about double the time we have) my accuracy is very high. I'm sure this is common -- the timing element is obviously what's supposed to make this challenging.

So my question -- should I continue to practice timed only and try to get better at accuracy this way OR continue to practice un-timed and focus on accuracy/get used to the questions? Additionally, I've looked into learning to speed read though I'm not convinced that this actually works. Are there any other strategies to getting faster?

I've also started practicing with the more recent tests, should I switch to the older ones first?

This section is proving to be the most frustrating for me which is surprising. Any insight is greatly appreciated!

[smiller]

Hi Regina. If you're just starting a course with Manhattan Prep, you're going to learn some very specific approaches to RC passages and questions that are designed to improve your efficiency and accuracy. You'll also learn some general timing strategies that should be helpful. If you're currently completing full sections under timed conditions, I'd recommend putting those on hold for a short time and focusing on the work that you're assigned in the course. You'll be assigned timed sections and full practice tests before long, but until then it will be helpful to focus on the targeted work that's designed to help you develop effective approaches for the questions in each section.

We generally don't recommend speed reading techniques, since we haven't seen any that are particularly useful in LSAT RC.