GRE Reading Comprehension section

[Soheila]

To those students who has already take the GRE;I just wanna be sure about how do deploy a technique to deal with RC. 

The Manhattan book does not recommend not to read the entire passage while in some GRE prep blogs I have read that it can be quite deal with as TOEFL test, that is, read the first paragraph carefully to get main idea and then read just the topic sentence of each paragraph and that will suffice. Do you agree with the second tip? Do you think the second tip will work for RC questions, considering that RC section in GRE is really more difficult that TOEFL? Has anyone here try?

[Brent@GreenlightGRE]

I recommend reading the entire passage. While doing so, be sure to identify and summarize: 

- the theme of each paragraph (4 to 8 words)

- conflicting points of view (4 to 8 words)

- main idea (4 to 8 words)

So, we're talking about 20 to 30 words altogether (and you can use shorthand and acronyms to use fewer words). 

If you take good notes, you won't have to go back and re-read the passage. More importantly, when you're looking for specific pieces of information to summarize, you will better engage with the passage (which is a HUGE factor in RC success). 

If others are interested, we have a free set of videos that cover all sorts of Reading Comprehension strategies: https://www.greenlighttestprep.com/module/gre-reading-comprehension 

Cheers,
Brent
 

[Vince Kotchian GRE Prep]

I agree with Brent. Why doesn't just reading the first paragraph and then topic sentences work? Because GRE passages aren't high school essays; they're complex, nuanced passages written by professional writers who aren't always predictable in the way they structure things. Another good example of why tricks and "cracking" don't work very well for GRE reading.

With that said, topic sentences are useful places to look for what the writer is trying to accomplish with the paragraph.

[MrsGrad]

The passages used on the RC portion of the test are complex and so are the questions. There are questions that offer answers very close to each other, and it would be easy to select the wrong option without a strong understanding of the entire content of the passage. If you want to try out the two methods, go to a test site (or use a book) and try ten questions with the first method, and then ten where you read the entire passage. You'll quickly see which one works best for you, but I cannot imagine someone getting a good score without reading the whole thing through.