SAT Reading section techniques, strategies & approaches

SAT Reading section

• see also:
  • SAT Writing
  • Rhetorical analysis
  • SAT Reading section historical timeline & themes

Overview

• SAT Reading Section Test Directions:
  • Students are to answer questions based upon:
    • what is stated" in the text or graphs (explicit meanings, textual and direct comprehension)
    • what is "implied" in the text or graphs (implicit meanings, inference, deduction, identification of author purpose and techniques)
• SAT Reading Test Structure
  • Students have 65 minutes to answer 52 questions
  • Reading test has five readings with 10 or 11 questions each
    • = average 13:00 min per reading passage
    • note: two readings contain 11 questions so may take longer

Difficulty level

• difficulty level is based on the passage and not the questions
  • there can be difficult questions on easy passages, but the bulk of "hard" questions will coincide with difficult passages

Big Ideas

• SAT Reading is "evidence-based" = the answer is in the text
  • = also that the WRONG answers are also in or not in the text
• "perspective shift"
  • = identifying the perspective of character, person, or idea as opposed or in contrast to another
    • the more difficult SAT Reading questions regard "perspective shift"

Strategies & techniques for Reading passages

• The test "Directions" instruct students, "After reading each passage or pair, choose the best answer to each question"
• Other approaches include:
  • read carefully and annotate
    • might include summarizing each paragraph
  • previewing questions, then reading and/or skimming
  • "cherry picking" questions and finding them in the text by skimming

Preview strategy

A+ Club Reading Section General Approach – a Suggested Process

Purpose and theory of preview strategy

Purpose

• The Preview strategy is designed to help students:

1. to know as much about the passage as possible in advance of reading it;
2. to identify what is expected of the student to know about the passage

Background

• all learning of new knowledge is built upon application of prior knowledge
  • therefore the more we know about something new to us, the better we will comprehend it
    • ex., we learn about and see more in a movie that we watch multiple times than we did the first time we say it
      • watching it again, we already know what will happen, so we can focus on details and plot intricacies, as opposed to trying to figure it out
  • see Prior Knowledge
• similarly, when taking a test, it is helpful to know what we are expected to know about it in advance
  • by previewing questions, we can
  • furthermore, all questions have information in them
    • ex. "Why is the sky blue" tells us that "the sky is blue"

Quick guide / big ideas

• read introductions for context and preview
• skim topic sentences and key words
• read concluding sentences for author summary/ main point
• preview questions and find information in them
• “keep your thumb” on the questions page while you read the text
  • go back and forth to remind yourself of information in the questions and what you are looking for
  • answer questions as you read (will be out of order)

1. Preview the introduction and apply PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

• read introduction carefully, identifying relevant information in:
• title:
  • the thesis is often in the title for Social Science or Science passages
  • titles usually contain author purpose in comparison passages
• author & publisher
  • Elsevier is a common source for academic articles
  • Nature is a common source for scientific articles
  • Harcourt is a common source for fiction and expository writing
• publication date
• apply your historical prior knowledge for context and themes
  • see the A+ Club SAT Verbal Historical Timeline & Themes

2. Skim passage

• read first paragraph and identify:
  • place, time, theme, thesis, style
• skim rest of text and:
  • quickly read topic sentences
  • identify recognizable information, such as proper names, repetitive words, author style, etc.
  • identify parenthetical information (provides explanations)
  • identify transition words and points
• carefully read the last few sentences or paragraph
  • conclusions identify author purpose, perspective, or big idea
• skim graphs
  • identify source, purpose and content
  • read captions for information

3. Review questions

• do not look at possible answers, as these are there to confuse you!
• use questions for information:
  • identify question expectations and information about the passage
  • every question contains some information about the text
• knowing question expectations in advance of careful reading will focus your reading
  • if helpful, annotate the passage with question expectations, such as vocabulary, line numbers, etc.
• identify paired questions (i.e., 2nd question is to identify source of evidence for the first)
  • identify location of the source information to get an idea of where in the passage the evidence will be
  • paired questions are often on separate pages, which previewing questions will identify them in advance

4. Read the passage carefully & “keep your thumb” on the questions

• by knowing more about the passage from skimming and preview of questions, you will approach the text more meaningfully and with more direction and awareness of question expectations
• flip back/forth to questions as you read
• annotate, mark and otherwise approach the text with “active reading”
• identifying textual purpose and techniques
• answer questions while you read
  • otherwise anticipate answers and textual sources for them
  • maintain time-awareness
• read “out loud” to yourself, even mouthing words if it helps your comprehension

5. Now proceed to answer remaining questions, reading them carefully and fully

• unless you see the evidene directly in the text eliminate for errors not correctness of possible answers
  • each wrong answer contains a specific error(s)
  • the correct answer
• summary or “main point” questions are often best left until last, as you will learn more about the passage as you answer other questions
  • always refer to the concluding sentences or paragraph when answering main point questions
  • maintain time-awareness

Additional notes

• effective preview of text and questions will yield both more accurate and quicker processing of the text
• preview strategy will vary according to passage type
• transitions and chronologies organize a reading: pay attention to them!
• unlike your typical high school essay, SAT passages DO NOT follow the THESIS - EVIDENCE - CONCLUSION structure
• instead, these readings more generally follow (fiction sometimes excepted):

1. background & introduction of the subject, problem, or argument
2. review origins of the topic
3. develop the topic and how it was been understood, studied, or interpreted by others
4. author approach and testing of the topic
5. draw a conclusion, call to action or summary of topic

Strategies & techniques for answering Reading section questions

Question type, purpose & information

• identify if questions are seeking textual (stated) or inferred evidence, or both
• read every word in the question and identify key words, qualifiers & question expectations
  • ex.: “most completely” “nearly” “best” etc.
  • possible wrong answers may address the question or passage but contain the error that they do not “most” or “best” meet the question’s premise
• identify question perspective (super important):
  • is it asking to employ the author’s argument, a counterargument (expository), character perspective (fiction), authorities or data (social science/ science)?
  • ex.: this question asks what the author might say about what study participants said: “The authors might explain survey respondents’ most frequent choice as…”
• comparison questions inherently require consideration of author perspective, but they frequently ask to infer one author’s views about the other
  • identify information contained in the question (every question provides some information)
  • restate questions in your own words and/or break them down into parts
• anticipate:
  • think of your own answer before reviewing possible answers
  • try to answer question without consulting the text (then verify if needed)

“Command of evidence” “paired” questions

• “paired questions” ask you in a subsequent question to provide evidence for the prior question
  • note that the 2nd question frequently appears on the next page, so when you preview questions mark the 1st question to remind you to look at the 2nd first
• there are two approaches to paired questions:
• Strategy 1: answer the second question first
  • convert the first question into a statement so as to clarify what evidence to look for
  • as you read through the possible sources of evidence, repeating the statement from the1st question so as to stay focused on the question: “what am I looking for?
  • if you use this approach do not look at the possible answers in the first question, which will may confuse you
  • the evidence must be in the identified lines
  • do not use evidence before or after those lines!
    • the only exception is if the evidence source contains a pronoun reference from a prior or subsequent line which may define its accuracy
  • once you find the evidence from the 2nd question, now repeat that evidence to yourself while you eliminate the possible answers from the 1st question
  • if you cannot eliminate down to one source of evidence in the 2nd question, test each possible source directly against the possible answers
• Strategy 2 (recommended by College Board): answer the first question first, then test the possible evidence from the second question
  • you must be confident of the answer here (use aggressive elimination)
• see what works for you: only practice will yield best strategies here
• we recommend Strategy no. 1

“Command of evidence” without a paired "evidence" question

• usually to find evidence for an excerpt:
  • these questions will ask you to consider a specific excerpt (ex., lines 32-34) and identify the evidence for it in the possible questions
  • you will not be given possible sources (as in paired questions)
  • try to anticipate the evidence before testing the possible answers
• draw evidence from graphs:
  • review graph sources and identify if that graph is from the same source as the passage
  • identify how graph evidence supports or is related to passages
  • some passages may be accompanied by graphs that present dissimilar information to the passage itself, and you may be asked to consider how the author would interpret it

Pronouns

• when considering evidence or identifying textual sources, give careful consideration to pronouns, and determiners
• pronouns refer to a previously or subsequently stated noun or idea (or series of ideas)
• repeat to yourself the noun or idea instead of the pronoun in order to maintain context
• determiners define a noun or pronoun or a phrase
• articles such as, “each”, “the,” “a”, etc., identify if the noun or pronoun has been previously identified in the text; if so, seek that identification; ex:
• “the professor” or “the idea” imply that the reader has already been introduced to “the professor” or “the idea” has already been stated
• that and which set up additional information about a previously stated subject or object (usually the object)

Elimination

• eliminate aggressively: there is a definitive error in three answers, make them justify themselves
  • remember that the correct answer may not be the best answer, just the one without an error
  • when questions contain two qualifiers, or descriptive words, if you can eliminate one then the possible answer is incorrect
  • ex.: “Thoreau indicates that some unjust aspects of government are:”

A) superficial and can be fixed easily

• • if you can eliminate either “superficial” or “fixed easily” then A is incorrect

Skipping

• consider skipping “main point” “passage development” questions until completing others first
• you may find that going back to long or confusing answers provides a fresh, more clear view
• reconsider prior answers as you learn from answering subsequent questions, especially “main point” or “development pattern” questions

Answering questions while reading

• with a solid preview of questions and information in them, you can now go back and read the tesxt with the questions in your mind and your thumb on the questions page
• recognize the questions in the text as you read and go back/forth to the questions
• you will answer questions out of order

Vocabulary questions approach

• reading section vocabulary possible answers may include antonyms as well as synonyms
• vocabulary is inherently contextual, so be sure to read 1-2 sentences before and after vocab words
• test unfamiliar words for connections:
• identify prefix & root, change/remove suffix and think of similar words or word forms
  • try using the word in a sentence of your own
  • if the vocab word is either a qualifier or itself being qualified, identify the “type” or “kind” of word it must therefore be, ex.:
• anticipate definitions and then test possible answers (which are designed to be misleading)
• elimination:
  • if the word appears twice (i.e., line “4 & 57”) test possible answers in both lines
  • select an unfamiliar possible answer only if you can reasonably eliminate other answers
  • don’t assume the possible answer is right simply because you don’t know the word
  • don’t force words into the sentence:
    • if you feel it isn’t quite right it probably is not
  • “high utility” words are still useful (older SAT tests had explicit vocabulary sections)
  • vocabulary knowledge will always yield higher results
  • vocabulary impacts not only question comprehension but for passages themselves

Additional Reading section techniques

• substitute the word “something” for words you do not recognize or understand
• pay special attention to parentheses & dashes, as parenthetical phrases are used by authors to explain or add important information for the reader
• pay attention to pronouns, as they refer to specific nouns or ideas
• pay attention to transition words, as they are used to set up new information or clarify previously stated information
• use nicknames to remember characters (fiction) or vocabulary (such as scientific terms). Nicknames will provide better retention, clarification, and recall
  • ex.: “Steve the brother” or “chlorophyll the green pigment”

Reading passages types and purpose

• passages are excerpted from larger texts
• there will always be the following types of readings:
  • Fiction
  • Expository
  • Social Science (academic)
  • Scientific (academic)
  • Comparison (two expository/ argument passages)

Fiction

• readings may be from 19th to 21st centuries and setting may be an earlier time period
• students are expected to engage in literary analysis for author purpose, techniques, and overall comprehension of narrative, such as:
  • plot and narrative development
  • character analysis and author construction of characters and their interactions
  • literary techniques and rhetorical devices
• track characters as you read
  • try adding a descriptor to the character in order to process more readily
  • ex.: instead of just reading, “Carolyn,” read to yourself “Carolyn the artist” so that you maintain passage context when reading about different characters
• focus on character interactions & perspective
  • questions may ask you to interpret what one character would think or say about another
• 3rd person narrators will "crawl into the head" of characters
  • identify when a narrator is describing the thoughts or ideas of a character

Expository

• = argumentative or persuasive essay, such as a newspaper editorial, published essay or political speech
• = often historical essay or speech, late 18th to 21st centuries
• will not usually state thesis statement in title or opening paragraph
• usually engages specific literary techniques for persuasion and reinforcement of ideas
• techniques:
  • identify author purpose and rhetorical techniques, including
    • repetition, alliteration, rhetorical questions (frequent!), imagery, etc.
  • identify how the language and argument are related

Social science

• usually Sociology, Psychology, or Economics
• = academic
  • = peer reviewed
• pay attention to passage titles:
  • title often contains a “hook” that reinforces passage purpose or thesis
  • title almost always contains a statement of the thesis
• Social Sciences attempt to treat human behavior as observable science, which means text will:
  • Present a thesis or argument
  • provide evidence
  • often contain an appeal to authority (an accepted prior work or theory)
  • WILL NOT BE JUDGEMENTAL (frequently wrong possible answers use judgmental words, which Social Scientists avoid)
• graphs & tables: identify if the question asks for what is stated or what is implied in the graph or table

Physical science

• = academic
  • = peer reviewed
• won’t require math except for graphs and tables
• thesis usually stated in the title and/or hook
• employs Scientific Method:
  • hypothesis, observations
  • test hypothesis, analysis, conclusion
  • may contain an appeal to authority (an accepted prior work or theory)
• structure will generally follow:

1. background & review of topic
2. how topic has been viewed by previous researchers
3. chronology of experiments and/or theories
4. author hypothesis
5. author observations and/or experiments/ testing of hypothesis
6. conclusions drawn from observations and experiments

• may discuss contrary theories
• often contains graphs/ table

Comparison passages

• two readings comparing differing or opposing views on a topic
• each will present a clear argument for you to identify
• comparison readings are not necessarily directed at the exact same topic
• some comparison selections, or one of the two, may respond to one another
• pay attention to publication dates
• pay attention to titles and introductions
• regardless of topic, comparison passages will always present an argument

Passage topics & themes

• SAT reading selections are usually aimed at the following topics:
  • global warming / climate/ environmental sustainability
  • social and political change, especially in historical pieces pertaining to social transitions from aristocratic or elitist to modern societies
  • rise of middle or professional classes
  • democratization & race and gender equality
  • industrialization, urbanization, and impact of technological change
  • DNA, biodiversity, space technology, animal behavior
  • social media and other technological challenges to modern society
  • libraries, academics, and information technology