Read the Passage First

The Problems with Skimming and Question-First Approaches

There are two somewhat popular approaches to dealing with the complexity of the RC section: skimming the passage and jumping straight to the questions. These are appealing because most students believe that they will be able to save time by not having to read the whole passage.

The Illusion of Time-Saving

The idea that skimming the passage saves time is enticing. After all, the LSAT is a timed test, you’re generally always rushing and finding yourself not having enough time with the questions. However, this supposed time-saving strategy is an illusion. The passages in the LSAT are complex, often dealing with intricate, nuanced, and complex arguments. This demands a level of comprehension that skimming simply cannot provide. When you skim, you are likely to miss out on essential details, subtle arguments, or even the overall structure of the passage. This lack of understanding not only leads to errors when answering questions, but a lot of times you won’t be able to evaluate any of the answer choices, forcing you to go back to the passage multiple times, thereby negating any time you might have initially saved.

Loss of Context

Skimming also leads to losing context. LSAT passages are complex, combining multiple perspectives, arguments, and counterarguments. Skimming can result in a fragmented understanding, making it very difficult to grasp how different elements of the passage connect. This lack of contextual awareness can be a serious problem when you’re answering questions that require an understanding of the relationships between various components of the text. For example, questions may ask you to identify the author’s attitude, the purpose of a particular paragraph, or the function of specific evidence. Answers to these questions are not surface-level details that can be easily picked up through skimming.

Information Overload

Reading the questions before you read the passage also has its problems. While this approach may seem like it provides a roadmap to the passage, it can be more misleading than helpful. Reading the questions first makes things more difficult for you because you now have a bunch of information that you’re keeping track of before you even get to the passage, so you’re effectively juggling a lot of information at once. When you subsequently read the passage, this scattered focus can make it difficult to gain a coherent understanding. Additionally, questions often contain phrasing or terms that may not be directly referenced in the passage. This can lead to confusion and the incorporation of irrelevant or misleading information into your understanding of the text.

Distractions

Moreover, the question-first strategy can be a significant distraction. LSAT questions are designed to test your comprehension and analytical skills, not your ability to search for keywords. When you focus on the questions first, you shift from comprehension to a form of ‘information hunting,’ which is not the skill the LSAT is testing you on.

The Importance of Careful Reading

In contrast to skimming and the reading the questions first, taking the time to carefully read the passage is probably the best approach that you can take in order to come away from the passage with the understanding that you need in order to evaluate the answer choices appropriately.

Improved Understanding

The most immediate benefit of careful reading is, unsurprisingly, an improved understanding of the passage. LSAT passages are designed to test your ability to comprehend complex arguments, multiple viewpoints, and subtle details. A careful initial reading allows you to grasp the structure of the passage and how everything fits together.

Understanding the vocabulary and context is also critical. The LSAT will use specialized terminology or refer to complex concepts that require a nuanced understanding. A thorough first read allows you to understand these terms in the context in which they are used, reducing misunderstandings that can lead to incorrect answers.

Furthermore, a detailed reading enables you to see the relationships between different parts of the text. Whether it’s the contrast between two studies mentioned or the cause-and-effect relationship underlying an argument, you’ll need to be able to see connections and an overall structure that isn’t obvious from a superficial reading.

Time Efficiency

Contrary to what you may think, a careful initial reading can actually save you time overall. When you understand the passage deeply, you reduce the need for frequent back-and-forths between the questions and the text. This not only saves time but also mental energy, as you’re not constantly shifting your focus. Additionally, it saves you from re-reading in the passage itself.  Time is usually lost when a student has to go back and re-read what they didn’t understand because they weren’t engaging with the text carefully.

Better Answer Accuracy

And it’s also really important to highlight that the answer choices can be tricky.  Very tricky if you don’t have a clear picture of what’s going on in the passage. When you have a deep understanding of the passage, you’re less likely to be tricked by questions designed to exploit superficial readings. The test-makers love to include choices that will repeat information from different parts of the passage but incorrect because the context is all wrong.  Or choices that sound right but use slightly different concepts.

So, while it may be tempting to skim through passages or jump directly to the questions, the benefits of a careful initial reading are much much greater. You have a better understanding of the passage, actually spend less time if you’re doing it right, and are far less likely to get tricked by the choices.

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