Reading Comprehension Question

[mickgreen58]

When reading a passage from the Reading Comprehension section of the GRE, do you all take quick notes as you read?

[sahilshah1987]

I dont take any notes...I just try to understand line of reasoning....memorise in my mind what is the main point in each paragraph and inter-relate..
have u given any powerprep test yet?

[kallal]

I read the passage at a glance.
Take no note.
After reading the question, I jump to related segment of the paragraph.

[Oldman]

It depends, for the short ones, no. I have found you can ususally just find the info in the passage without even reading it all the way through. Just look for the info, question by question.

For the long ones, yes I do. I jot down the main idea of each paragraph, the author's tone, his position, and his evidence for his position.

Looking for these as you go, helps you focus your attack. There are only so many question types for RCs. Jotting these down as you go makes sure you have found the info they are going to quiz you on. The inference questions are all based on your ability to draw out the author's position and weigh his evidence. If nothing else, I'd make sure you jot this down.

One thing that has helped me is after I have read the article, I create a title for it.

This is a good way to make sure you have the primary purpose of the passage...a pretty common question that is easy to miss. I personally think this question is weighed heavily. Also, I think missing or getting this question determines what "level" of inference questions you will get with the passage. The inference and "what evidence would weaken the author's arugement" questions are, IMO, the highest ranked questions.

[ObfuscateOften]

I've only attempted two practice verbal sections, and in the past I would skim the passage quickly and jump to the referenced lines to answer the questions. However, after getting a few questions wrong, I'm definitely changing my approach. I plan to read the passage in its entirety, and then focus on the questions. This helps ensure you pick up helpful elements like tone and gives a broader sense of context.

[mickgreen58]

I am actually changing my approach.

It is similar to Oldman's approach.

I think I will take notes on all RCs.

I just read a 55 line RC on "Meteor Achondrites" and the questions they ask and the level of extrapolation being demanded is insane .