LSAT Tutor The Best LSAT Resources, and How to Use Them

As an LSAT tutor and law school application consultant, I’m routinely asked about preparation: Where can I find additional resources, practice problems, and mock exams†¦what is the best way to direct improvements in my test score†¦.how many weeks (or months) of studying do I need to master the material†¦etc. Although the questions assume various forms, they generally address a few common concerns: 1) The availability of resources/test prep material 2) Developing a study schedule 3) Timeframe Fortunately, the first of these is a non-issue with the LSAT, as a wealth of material is easily accessible: nearly every administration of the modern exam can be purchased online (with the exception of the February LSAT, which is an undisclosed test), along with answer keys/explanations, practice sets for individual question-types, and countless test prep publications. However, the sheer amount of available material can overwhelm students, who are left to choose among various test prep companies – e.g. Powerscore, Blueprint, Manhattan LSAT, Kaplan, Princeton Review, and Testmasters – each proffering unique testing strategies. My experience has shown that competing approaches are more similar than individual companies acknowledge; in many cases, the same strategies are differentiated solely on the basis of terminology. The difference really comes down to the experience and discipline of the tutor. This leads to two pretty interesting assumptions that I’ve confronted repeatedly as a tutor, namely: 1) that consulting a greater number of resources, spending more money, and logging more study time produce better results: â€Å"more prep = better LSAT score† 2) that test prep companies convey the same information (and in a way that is equally helpful to students): â€Å"all test prep is created equal† While the patent similarities between testing approaches should usher confidence in the learnability of the LSAT, they likewise mask important differences in the material each presents. Indeed, when working with students, I push them to prioritize finding the resources that will work best for them, and maximizing their study time via ‘deliberate practice.’ 1) Finding the ‘Right’ Resources Test prep is not a one-size-fits-all enterprise. This is as true of the LSAT as any standardized test. With such an abundance of available resources to consider, how do you even begin to choose? How do you know which resources might be most helpful to you? Although the majority of LSAT resources that you will encounter are solid, individual textbooks and practice sets do vary in style and reputation. For the latter, it can be helpful to ask a tutor or to read others’ reviews to confirm that the book is clear, informative, and up-to-date. More salient, however, are content and style; whereas some LSAT companies outline strategies for individual question types, others address entire sections of the exam more generally. A second distinction involves the nature of practice questions taught throughout test prep books: are they drawn from past LSATs, or devised by a test company to resemble actual questions? My intent is not to overwhelm anyone by raising these considerations, but rather, to indicate that individual LSAT resources differ in both the information they present and how they choose to present it. Some texts are geared towards self-studiers and provide significant detail, while others have you dive into practice questions from the get-go, interspersing explanations of key concepts. When you’re beginning to study, consult with an LSAT tutor about your specific timeline and goals. If you’re having difficulty with a particular question-type or section, be mindful of that in evaluating individual resources†¦ it’s all about picking and choosing what will be most helpful to you. Here are some texts that I highly recommend to get you started: PowerScore Bibles – There is a reason that PowerScore’s ‘Bibles’ are so well-regarded: they provide consistently clear explanations, develop comprehensive approaches to individual question-types, and strike a fine balance between teaching and applied practice. I’d recommend getting all three (Logical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, and Logic Games), but foremost among them is the Logic Games Bible, which offers the most intuitive approach to diagramming of any prep company I’ve seen. Manhattan LSAT: Logical Reasoning – I found Manhattan to be an extremely useful complement to PowerScore. Though they also divide chapters by individual question-type, Manhattan injects a macro-approach that hinges on a student’s ‘process’ in understanding the patterns, assumptions, and flaws common to all LR questions. The LSAT Trainer, by Mike Kim – The ultimate guide for self-/semi-independent study. Kim lays the foundations for each section of the LSAT (all in one volume!) and then attacks recurring question-types/sources of difficulty. By dividing each chapter into a 50-75 minute lesson, Kim distills the material in a digestible and time-efficient manner. 2) The Importance of ‘Deliberate Practice’ Abe Lincoln once said that if he had â€Å"six hours to chop down a tree, [he]’d spend the first four sharpening his axe.† This captures my thinking on test preparation: by willfully focusing on the correct things – namely, by continually evaluating your ‘process,’ addressing strengths and weaknesses, and maximizing your study time – you can direct major improvements in your understanding as well as your score. In the course of LSAT tutoring and law school application coaching, I’ve been fortunate to work with some intensely motivated students, who are willing to commit countless hours to studying. Ironically, one of the greatest challenges I face lies in convincing them that this may not be the best strategy. With test preparation, it is often tempting to increase the number of hours, problem sets, or practice tests, particularly when we feel we’re struggling to understand something. But the sheer volume of questions we complete says little about what we learn from them, specifically if we are not approaching them in the correct way. Put otherwise, how you practice is as, if not more, important than how often, or how much. Indeed, one of the tendencies that I strive to help students move away from involves channeling time into strengths as opposed to weaknesses. With the LSAT, if a student is especially comfortable with logical reasoning but daunted by logic games, for example, it is much easier for him to seek the confidence boost of drilling LR questions than to attack the game section, though this is not the most efficient use of his time. A second example is the desire to blindly follow a schedule with concrete metrics for the number of questions/practice tests/mock essays to completed. Though a schedule and benchmarks provide useful guidelines as well as a sense of ‘accomplishment,’ they are only beneficial if continually evaluated alongside a student’s progress. Much more effective, I would argue, is taking the time to reconsider one’s goals and present ability, and to direct targeted improvements. By breaking down the skills necessary for particular question-types and continually revisiting your process, you will improve your ability to absorb test material, to identify strengths and weaknesses, and to address them. Surprisingly, in slowing down and focusing on how you practice, you’ll find that you study more efficiently and that you are your own greatest LSAT coach! * For more on ‘deliberate practice,’ check out Daniel Coyle’s The Talent Code. ;

Some advice for those of you disappointed with your SAT scores

I know Im posting this a day late, after some of the omigod I got my scores back hysteria has subsided, but please forgive me: Im recovering from several weeks of what can only be described as book-formatting hell (columns are a dangerous, dangerous thing when it comes to Word), and frankly I could barely stand to look at my computer yesterday. So if you are by chance scouring the Internet looking for some advice about what to do for your less-than-stellar SAT scores, here, for what its worth, are my thoughts. A couple of months back, when Debbie Stier was giving a talk about Perfect Score Project at Bronxville High School, I suggested she open her segue into the SAT-prep part of her talk with three big questions, which Im going to pose to you now: 1) Where are you and why? 2) Where do you want to be? 3) What are you realistically willing to do to get there? I ask these questions because its very tempting to assume your score was a quirk of fate, or of the curve, or of the fact that you didnt get quite as much sleep as you should have, or of the kid who sat in front of you tapping his pencil incessantly and making it just impossible for you to concentrate the way you obviously would have been able to otherwise Scores dont usually go way up on the real test; if anything, they tend to go down because youre under so much pressure. When youre convinced that your score just had to be the result of some seemingly minor external factor especially if that score was a lot lower than the ones youve been getting on practice tests the natural reaction is to jump to take the test again as soon as possible because you just want to get it over with and never have to look at another prep book again, and hey, maybe youll luck and get an easier test and your score will go way up and then youll just be done. I call these rebound tests, and unfortunately, scores on them tend to be almost identical to the scores on the original test. Now, to be clear, if you did genuinely happen to be ill or in need of a root canal (I do actually know of a kid that happened to), then yes, by all means, sign up for the next SAT so that you can get see what your score is like when youre healthy and lucid. But absent some sort of serious mitigating factor, its well worth your while to stop, take stock, and figure out what you need to work on before plunging back in to the real thing. Unless there are one or two superficial thing consistently holding you back (e.g. timing problems on CR but zero comprehension issues), there might not be a quick fix. This is especially true if youre trying to break through a major barrier (high 500s to 600+, high 600s to 700+, etc.). Those walls exist for a reason, and usually if you want to get past them, something substantial has to change. Otherwise you just end up beating your head against them. Think of it this way: although you may not find the thought of being stuck in SAT-prep land for another six months particularly appealing, youve still actually got some time. True, if you want to apply early, you should be done be October, but still thats a pretty long while. Even if youve got big gaps, you can go some way toward plugging them. This is, however, where question #3 above comes into play. I cant count the number of times parents have told me earnestly, But my child really wants do well on the SAT, as if merely  wanting to do well were enough. I cant say Ive ever worked with anyone who didnt want to do well. Thats not the point. The point is that you have to be willing to sit down and struggle, maybe for longer than youd like, and perhaps admit that you dont know everything after all. It also means that you might have to devote more of your summer than youd like to studying: if you just cant do it, thats perfectly fine, but you probably shouldnt expect your scores to skyrocket in October. Again, its about being realistic and knowing just how much you can honestly handle. Ive worked with a handful of kids who had major lightbulb moments after just a session or two: they suddenly got what it was the test was trying to do, and they saw the logic behind it. But then they went and the worked on their own. A lot. And not because anyone was forcing them to. They brought a wonderful sense of curiosity and enthusiasm because they saw studying for the test as an opportunity to actually learn something that went way beyond the SAT (one of them turned into a huge Oliver Sacks fan and wrote his essay for Columbia, where Sacks teaches, about him). So before you rush to take the test again as soon as possible, think about what you actually need to accomplish between where you are now and where you hope to be. Then ask yourself what specific steps, if any, youre actually willing to take to get there.