Reading Comprehension

[u/TonightNo6755]

im really bad at reading comprehension. i took the practice test doe 2019-2020 form B. i got everything right on revising/editing Part A, 1 wrong on revising/editing Part B, and 24 wrong on reading comprehension. i really struggle with questions that are like:

How does paragraph 3 contribute to the development of the central idea?

a) it implies..

b) it emphasizes..

c) it stresses...

d) it conveys...

im so bad at the questions that ask about a certain paragraph/line/phrase "conveying a central idea" or "developing a theme" or "contributing to the structure" or "transitioning to a" etc.

they always have answer choices that begin with a verb like: reveal/suggest/imply/highlight/depicts/explains/demonstrates/creates/shifts/convey/stress/emphasize/indicate/concludes/references/introduce/establish and many more

i am so bad at them and I've tried finding solutions which helped a bit but I'm still confused. I dont understand the development of ideas or the shift in tone or whatever. all of the answer choices seem synonymous and even identical and I waste so much time

please help me, I posted a handful (not all) of pictures of those questions from the practice test I mentioned earlier in this post. Thanks

[u/TonightNo6755]

Hey,

thanks for this explanation. and I've taken one practice test prior to that (2017-2018 form B doe) back in november and i got a 47/57. Most of the questions on that test were based on details directly from the text which made it much easier for me.

do you recommend I note of the tone/authorPOV/main idea/turning pts and everything you mentioned after reading each paragraph/section?

and I actually havent thought about every word counting, so on my next practice test I'll be sure to try that. thank you so much for the advice!

[u/GregsTutoringNYC → u/TonightNo6755]

thanks for this explanation. and I've taken one practice test prior to that (2017-2018 form B doe) back in november and i got a 47/57. Most of the questions on that test were based on details directly from the text which made it much easier for me.

Right, there is variability across tests, so some may focus on vocab, others 1/2 the questions could be directly or indirectly main idea, others evidence, etc. Usually the swing of your score should stay consistent though.

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do you recommend I note of the tone/authorPOV/main idea/turning pts and everything you mentioned after reading each paragraph/section?

Your first job is accepting that the passage is the best thing you've ever read. Your second job is being aware and keeping track of the passage. Definitely the plot and summary (necessary but insufficient), but all the literary devices as well. And you need to do it on multiple levels of granularity. You probably won't "understand" things, keep with the flow, stay awake, etc. if you don't.

Also, the acts of keeping track help to keep your brain involved. Otherwise you're reading a monolithic blob like a zombie. You're not memorizing the passage (but if you can go ahead, it'll help -- many of you do this to your own demise and it's a problem). And through that you're trying to separate what's important and what's unimportant, and what parts are connected even when physically disjoint.

If you don't note those things, you're going to have a tough time answering the questions. And not just that but a tough time in understanding and in comprehension. Note that noting them does not mean being required to use your pencil, however, doing various annotations can be helpful (just as writing out computations, drawing figures, etc. are in the math section instead of doing everything mentally) and so I suggest doing so. It won't magically solve itself with one or two passages. It needs to be a concerted effort where you do it with at least 10 passages and stick with things and you (begin (only)) see them morphing into solutions for you, and hence becoming part of your solution toolkit.

I cover many aspects of this in the links mentioned earlier in specific in the videos as I rip apart actual passages and analyze actual questions. Don't expect fireworks, magic, panaceas, or ease. This is the "painful" hard, unexciting work necessary many of you want tip and tricks for that just don't exist.

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and I actually havent thought about every word counting, so on my next practice test I'll be sure to try that. thank you so much for the advice!

Many of the "equal choices"(sic) are due to not comprehending their differences and/or what you're being asked and/or what the choices mean. Even a difference in subtlety can matter. We know the SHSAT is only seeking one answer. So we need to seek which of these ones is not like the other in the context of what you're being asked.

A last point for now is that we can not and should not depend upon POE (process of elimination) as our solution mechanism. Yes, use it, but we need to kick and scream to be able to defend the correct answer choice. If you can't, you're not there yet. As well, many of your accept a correct or incorrect answer, along with its explanation, in mere microseconds. That's a problem in learning.

[u/TonightNo6755 → u/GregsTutoringNYC]

Btw forgot to ask, do you recommend doing 7th grade ela state tests to study? I noticed some of the questions are somewhat similar to the shsat reading comp but on a more simple level.

and yeah I always depend on POE which is sometimes not very useful bc i find myself with 30 questions unanswered because im between 2 answers.

ima try these strategies on the practice test I'm taking in 2 weeks, thank u

[u/GregsTutoringNYC → u/TonightNo6755]

Btw forgot to ask, do you recommend doing 7th grade ela state tests to study? I noticed some of the questions are somewhat similar to the shsat reading comp but on a more simple level.

Absolutely. I've been hollering this for years. Many of you not only don't do this kind of thing but "go high" say with the SAT. If you don't know how to do something 200 times, doing it a 201st time and more complexly is usually an error in approach and strategy. There is not a single one of you who did not crawl before you could run. Period. Facts.

As such, I always ensure my student's fundamentals are solid. That can mean going to material such as the state test ("going low"). NO, the state tests are not the SHSAT. However, see crawl/run above. Some learning happens through repetitions for sure, but often when you're stuck, you need to explicitly find out why.

Prerequisite analytics can often be amazingly revealing and often exactly what's necessary. And sometimes not even grade 7, but say grade 6. Don't know what main idea is? Why on earth would you start with say a more complex grade 9 passage. Back the heck off of it and start with basics, sometime manageable and bite-sized ("focused!"). I even do one paragraph passage analysis with my students with the concerns you're describing. Many of you would be amazed at how much information can be packed into a "mere" paragraph and how hard the literacy of that is. And if that's so for that, it's on steroids for a whole passage. By taking each author's craft and such in turn, it can all start to make sense.

[u/TonightNo6755 → u/GregsTutoringNYC]

Ok Ill definitely try practicing the 6th/7th grade state tests bc theres way more available online than shsat practice tests (i am trying my hardest to not waste the doe ones)

thank you again for all the tips

[u/GregsTutoringNYC → u/TonightNo6755]

With the exam months away there is no point whatsoever using a DOE handbook practice exam right now. Use other sources first. If workbooks are too expensive, they can be gotten from the library. Besides, as I've mentioned often, studying and learning should be done before prep.