The purpose of LSAT Reading Comprehension questions is to measure your ability to read, with understanding and insight, examples of lengthy and complex materials similar to those commonly encountered in law school.
Both law school and the practice of law revolve around extensive reading of highly varied, dense, argumentative, and expository texts (for example, cases, codes, contracts, briefs, decisions, evidence). This reading must be exacting, distinguishing precisely what is said from what is not said. It involves comparison, analysis, synthesis, and application (for example, of principles and rules). It involves drawing appropriate inferences and applying ideas and arguments to new contexts.
Law school reading also requires the ability to grasp unfamiliar subject matter and the ability to penetrate difficult and challenging material.
The Reading Comprehension section of the LSAT contains four sets of reading questions, each set consisting of a selection of reading material followed by five to eight questions. Three of the four sets consist of a single reading passage; the fourth set contains two related shorter passages.
Sets with two reading passages are a variant of Reading Comprehension called Comparative Reading. Comparative Reading questions concern the relationships between the two passages, such as those of generalization/instance, principle/application, or point/counterpoint.
Law school assignments often require reading two or more texts in conjunction with each other and understanding their relationships. For example, a law student may read a trial court decision together with an appellate court decision that overturns it or must identify the fact pattern from a hypothetical suit together with the potentially controlling case law.
Reading selections for LSAT Reading Comprehension questions are drawn from a wide range of subjects in the humanities, the social sciences, the biological and physical sciences, and areas related to the law. Generally, the selections are densely written, use high-level vocabulary, and contain sophisticated arguments or complex rhetorical structures (for example, multiple points of view).
Reading Comprehension questions require you to read carefully and accurately, to determine the relationships among the various parts of the reading selection, and to draw reasonable inferences from the material in the selection. The questions may ask about the following characteristics of a passage or pair of passages:
The main idea or primary purpose
Information that is explicitly stated
Information or ideas that can be inferred
The meaning or purpose of words or phrases as used in context
The organization or structure
The application of information in the selection to a new context
Principles that function in the selection
Analogies to claims or arguments in the selection
An author’s attitude as revealed in the tone of a passage or the language used
The impact of new information on claims or arguments in the selection
Suggested Strategies and Approach to the Questions
There are a few possible ways to approach Reading Comprehension question sets. These include:
Read the passage(s) very closely, then answer the questions;
Read the questions first, reading the passage(s) closely, then return to the questions; or
Skim the passage(s) and questions very quickly, then reread the passage(s) closely, then answer the questions.
As you prepare for the test, you might want to experiment with each of these different approaches and decide what works best for you.
Strategies for Reading
When reading the passage or pair of passages, try to distinguish the main ideas from the supporting ideas, and opinions and attitudes from factual or objective information.
Here are some helpful strategies to try:
Pay attention to transitions from one idea to the next and try to identify the relationships between different ideas or parts of a passage.
Consider why an author makes certain points and how they draw conclusions. You may find it helpful to mark key parts of the passage(s). For example, you might underline or highlight the main idea or important arguments.
Highlight or underline transitional words, such as "although," "nevertheless," "however," to help you understand the structure of the passage.
You might find it helpful to underline or highlight descriptive words that help identify the author's attitude toward a particular idea or person.
Strategies for Answering
Since passages are drawn from different disciplines, you should not be discouraged when you encounter something unfamiliar. It's important that you answer the questions based on the information provided in the passage(s).
You will not have to make any inferences based on prior knowledge of the subject brought up in the passage(s). When taking the test, you may want to begin with subjects that seem more familiar and defer working on sets that seem particularly difficult or unfamiliar.
Always read all of the answer choices before selecting the best answer. The best answer choice is the one that most accurately answers the question being posed.
Respond to the specific question being asked. Do not pick an answer simply because it is a true statement.
Answer the questions only on the basis of the information provided in the selection.