I am trying to improve my ability to justify my answer choices and also justify why I can eliminate a wrong answer choice. Specifically, I’d like to get out of the trap of picking an answer choice if it sounds good which mostly happens under timed conditions but can still happen in untimed as well.
Currently, I am using big book passages in untimed conditions (typically with ones I have already read but occasionally new ones) and for each question writing out why each answer choice is wrong using the labels of “no evidence” or “contradicts the passage” and noting down the phrase in the process that makes it so. I do the same thing for the answer I choose.
Is this a good way to improve this skill? What other processes have you all used to improve this skill? How have you scaled up your technique to account for timed conditions.
That’s a really good practice for untimed conditions. Be as specific as possible when saying something contradicts. For example, verbalize exactly how it contradicts the passage and locate the sentences/concepts in the passage that demonstrate this. Another suggestion is to also consider how an answer might be a trap. Inhabit ETS’ mind and consider why a particular incorrect answer choice was included. What sorts of misunderstandings could lead someone to choose that as the correct answer? For example, is there wording in the answer choice that echoes a phrase from the passage, but is used in a different context (meaning, was it meant to be familiar and thus to confuse someone who isn’t reading carefully)? Would someone have to make a logical fallacy in order to justify a certain answer?
Through this sort of practice, you’ll become faster at assessing the answer choices. Focus first on mastery of these skills before worrying about time. When you do introduce timed practice, start with an untimed baseline (as in, time yourself to see how long it takes without time pressure), then use that as a guide to slowly lower your time limit until you’ve reached 1x speed, and continue with giving yourself even less time than that if you really want to challenge yourself.
Thanks for your detailed answer. Do you find as you input time pressure that you are able to still go through and eliminate every wrong answer choice with evidence, in addition to finding the evidence for the correct answer?
Yes, but I don’t necessarily go back to the text every time; there are certain answers that are clearly wrong, and once those are quickly eliminated, I can spend more time on closer reading of remaining options. I also practice time management, so if a question is proving difficult I’ll move on and return to it later.