<p>My critical reading score is always around 600-700. I miss about 10-15 problems. For the ones I miss, I eliminates down to two answers. But in the end, I always pick the wrong answer of the two!
Looking back, I can see why my answer was just a little bit off, but during the practice tests I still end up choosing the wrong one!
Is there a technique or something to do when it comes down to two answers?
Most of the time I can understand the passage fine, it is just that sometimes the two answers are so close that I have trouble telling which one is right.
Thanks all!</p>
<p>Concentrate on why one of them is wrong. Look for the wrong parts in the answer choices.
- Maybe there is one inaccurate word in one of the choices, maybe there is an extreme word in it;
- Maybe the answer choice is too general, usually the answer should be specific, about some specific thing;
- Maybe one of the choices is not explicitly stated in the passage but just looks like a logical inference. Do not give in to the suggestions! Be cruel and get rid of anything that isn’t enough precise. The choice must be entirely accurate and you can prove its correctness by pointing to a certain line in the passage. </p>
<p>Example of how you shouldn’t infer too much. You read:
“After finishing the last stroke, Tom sat in the chair to relax. The table was almost finished. <code>Maybe I need to polish the legs more?</code>, he thought. <code>Nah, I will do that tomorrow. I deserve some rest today</code>, thought Tom, feeling proud of his work of art. Suddenly the chair squeaked and collapsed on the floor. Tom sat disappointed, examining the bruises on his arm. <code>The day is not over yet,</code> he thought, sighing loudly. He took some tools from the shelf.”</p>
<ol>
<li>From the paragraph, what can be inferred about the chair?</li>
</ol>
<p>a) it was one of Tom’s disappointing creations
b) Tom forgot to put the screws in some parts of it
c) Tom will spend the rest of his day repairing it
d) Tom bought it from a second-hand shop
e) it was of bad quality</p>
<p>The correct answer is C. Why other answers cannot be true:
A - Do not give in to the suggestion that Tom made this chair. Even though we can assume that Tom just made a table, we can’t infer that Tom made the chair. There was no mention in the paragraph that the chair was made by Tom. We don’t know where the chair came from.
B - We don’t know where the chair came from, then we can’t infer that Tom had anything to do with it and forgot to put the screws. Screws are not mentioned anywhere in the passage.
D - we don’t know where the chair came from. We can’t infer that either.
E - it looks logical and true. A perfect trap. It could be our best choice if C wasn’t there. We should give this up because C is more specific and supported by the passage.</p>
<p>C - this answer is correct and we can prove it by pointing at these lines: <code>The day is not over yet,</code> he thought, sighing loudly. He took some tools from the shelf.
These lines say to us that Tom is going to repair the chair.</p>
<p>I hope this helps.</p>
<p>AimingAt750 has good advice. I just want to add that I missed less problems when I have the mindset that I can only choose an answer if I can underline a line in the passage that proves the answer right.</p>