<p>I took my first SAT as a junior on the December SAT. Here are my scores:</p>
<p>CR : 650
M : 770
W: 790
Total: 2210</p>
<p>I'm confident for an 800 in Math and Writing on my next and final test, but it's the critical reading that really upsets me. I really was hoping for a 2300+, so basically a 740 in CR the next time would do that. Personally, I think I misinterpret the passages even though I knew that all the answers are EXPLICITLY in the text! Does anyone have any tips that can help me recognize any patterns on the critical reading passages and find the correct answer?
Any help is much appreciated!</p>
<p>when are you taking your next SAT? i think i’m gonna take it during the march one… maybe june. and how are you gonna prepare for the CR? like vocab lists and prac tests? i mainly want to know the strategy that the highest scorers use to actually read the passages and find the answers.</p>
<p>Your score in CR is mostly a function of your method of reading the passages (assuming your vocabulary (the achievement part of the test) is sufficient). I read one paragraph at a time and answered any corresponding questions that pertained to that material. As soon as I came across a question that was beyond what I had read, I would return to the passage and repeat the cycle until the passage was completed. Moreover, I did not bubble in any answers on the scoring sheet until the entire passage was complete (bubbling one at a time continually breaks one’s concentration). On my first SAT practice test I annotated the text before reading the passage and bubbled one question at a time which was wholly inefficient. Consequently, my CR score was in the low-600s simply because I could not finish within the alloted time. In essence, it was not my reading comprehension that was the issue, but rather my strategy. After revising my method and taking an additional seven practice tests, I completed each CR section in about 12-15 minutes. I took the SAT thrice and had an 800 on the CR every time.</p>
<p>Hi again mifune! I’m just curious - the way you worded that sentence made it seem like the questions for CR passages are asked in the order of the ideas of the passage (i.e. the first question will most likely be dealing with something from the first few paragraphs, while the last question will most likely be dealing with something from the last few paragraphs). Is that true? I’ve taken several CR practice tests from the 1st edition Blue Book, but I guess I was just so focused that I didn’t realize this trend, haha.</p>
<p>this sounds like a very possible solution… i’ll try it. has anyone else gone through this same process and fixed it by changing the way you approach the passages?</p>
<p>Oh, sorry fledgling. I apologize for not rechecking the thread for any posts in response. The questions for CR will be posted in a convenient way so that students will be tested on their reading comprehension rather than their ability to locate questions. So a methodical approach, such as the strategy I personally utilized, is very effective. I simply answered any “general” questions (often the first question pertaining to the passage and the last few) at the very end.</p>
<p>For reading, read the blurb first, then just jump to the questions. Mark any ‘on this line’, ‘this paragraph’ etc. references in your passage, and write a short note beside the mark indicating what the question is, and the question number. Like, if question 17 is, ‘Why does the author mention this word in this line?’, just put parantheses around that line, underline the word, write ‘17’ beside it and write ‘WHY?’. Do this for all questions. Any questions that don’t have a clear reference or are about the ‘whole passage’ or such, circle 'em.</p>
<p>Only then start reading the passage. Answer questions to marked areas as you encounter them. Then, do the circled questions. This way you only have to read the passage once, and you can only quickly skim through areas that aren’t that important.</p>
<p>This approach has helped my improve my CR score a lot (apart from doing vocabulary flash cards obviously).</p>
<p>It helps to actively read the passage and just write five words about each paragraph while reading the passage. Also, keep in mind the “wrong-answer patterns.” A lot of the wrong answer choices follow similar patterns, ex. misused detail, out-of-scope of the passage, opposite answer, extreme (uses words like ALWAYS, NEVER), or distortion of passage information. Most importantly, just remember that the answer is always in the passage.</p>
<p>Well mook32, my first SAT was this January 23rd, didn’t get the scores yet. That thing helped me improve CR on the practice tests though. Moved from 620 or 630 or so to 720. It certainly reduces the time you waste.</p>
<p>And no I actually got that idea from a post here on College Confidential. :-)</p>
<p>Skim it the first time through, answer specific questions first, then answer general questions. This way, you don’t waste extra time reading the passage and by the time you get to the general questions you already have a great feel for the whole passage.</p>