New to the board

[SegLiv]

Hi everyone,

I am new on here and after reading a few of the posts I feel completely lost on a starting point.  Here is my background:

I have written the lsat twice so far.  Once back in 2004.  My mark was 133.  TERRIBLE.  I had no guidance, no plan, nothing.  3 years later, 2007, I decided to try again.  That time I studied hard. Took a course and studied every night, timing every test.  My mark...148.  I am so discouraged with how hard I studied only to get a 148.  Now, it's 2011.  I just don't feel like I have accomplished what I can and what I want to. 

I recognize one major error I made in my studying for the lsat the last time. I did not really go over the questions I got incorrect to understand why I got them wrong and why the correct answer was well,  correct. 

The LG was the easiest for me.  The LR seemed to be the one I stuggled on.  RC, I did ok with, but, room for improvement.  I noticed that some of you mention doing "timed" and "untimed" testings.  I did not do "untimed" testing before and I can see how that is beneficial.  Basically, it makes sense that if you cannot answer the questions untimed, how can you answer them timed?  Is there anyone out there that could help and guide me in a direction to start studying again and write the lsat again in the near future.  I was hoping for February, but I do not anticipate being able to prep intime with the posts I have been reading here. 

I appreciate any help or tips that you can provide.

[Julie Fern]

julie just hope you not numbnuts.

[Julie Fern]

you numbnuts?

[SegLiv]

Thanks for the posts.

Searching through the forum, I noticed Princeton Review is not a favorite among people on this board. I currently have a Kaplan book and Barron's book.  I am going to look into Powerscore books as I see those particular books seem to have a positive review. Any other recommendations?


 

[fortook]

Use powerscore. Those books work you through question groups and timing isn't done til whole practice tests.  Master the LSAT is good too.

LG is your best and LR is your worst?  That's unusual, usually that's reversed.  Personally, LG just pisses me off.  I'd suggest some logic stuff, but f you're doing well in LG it probably isn't necessary.

[Julie Fern]

Thanks for the posts.

Searching through the forum, I noticed Princeton Review is not a favorite among people on this board. I currently have a Kaplan book and Barron's book.  I am going to look into Powerscore books as I see those particular books seem to have a positive review. Any other recommendations?


 

yes.  shower liner go on inside.

[IClawstud]

If you are thinking about taking a class, I highly recommend Testmasters. As a preface, with any of these books, and classes its all about the time and effort you can commit to studying. I was scoring in the low 140's before I took this class and scored a 157 on the actual lsat. I think what helped me the most was towards the end of the class, after I had already learned the basics of how to take this test, I was taking three to four practice tests a week in test like scenarios. This was very time consuming because like you said sigliv, you have to go back and review all the questions you got wrong and see why you got them wrong. But once I started to do that I was seeing the most improvement in my scores.
So as a final word, depending on where you are in comfortability in knowing how to find the right answer, you might just want to do as many practice tests as you can. I have heard that powerscore books were good though, they will definitely help you if you are having trouble understanding why the specific answer is the right answer and more importantly, why the other answers are specifically wrong.

[KapTeacherBobby]

Hi Segliv!

Sounds like you've had a long, arduous journey prepping for this test.  I note that you took a course and scored 15 pts higher than the first time you wrote it.  I know 148 is not your score goal.  But I suggest that that you were able to improve that much proves a) that the test is learnable; and b) that YOU can learn it.

That's a good starting point.  Next, if you want to nail this test, you have to understand it for what it is: a test of skill.  People may or may not be naturally adept at any given skill, true.  Regardless, any given skill can be practiced, cultivated, mastered.  And since the LSAT is a test of skill, it is so important to have a positive attitude and a clear mindset. 

I see that you've already recognized that this time around, you need to do a more thorough job of reviewing your wrong answers.  That`s great.  One of the biggest mistakes I see students make is practicing a ton but not really self-reflecting on their reasoning process.  You've gotta think about your habits.  HOW are you answering the questions? For example, in logical reasoning, do you understand each question type, what skill(s) the test-maker is trying to  test with each question type, and then know how to use those skills?  Do you go into the answer choices with a strong sense of what the right answer should look like?  Or, do  you rush to the choices, maybe even thinking that they will help you out in understanding the argument?  While prepping, you want to react to your mistakes positively, being future-oriented, figuring out the nature of the mistake and how it can be avoided NEXT time out.

To get big changes in score, we need big changes in habits.  We need to change the WAY we do the test.  What goes along with that is knowing the test: the question types, the skills any question is trying to test, whether it be analysis of an argument, a chain of conditional reasoning, the ability to infer a viewpoint or draw an inference from a set of facts, etc.

Whichever way you prep, be sure to be active in your prep process, think hard about your reasoning process and habits and the design of the test, and trust yourself.

[SegLiv]

ICLaw and Kaptest, thank you both so much for your advice. It is greatly appreciated.  I have been looking at the questions I have been getting wrong and it is consistantly the "strengthen/weaken" questions. Does anyone have tips on how to tackle these particular questions?  I will have to look into the online course for testmasters as it is not offered in the part of Canada I live in.  ICLaw, did you do the online version or the live course?