Hello. I know many prep tests base their curriculum on the latter half of the PTs. Because I originally planned to take the June 2014 LSAT (I will now take it in September), I have already taken PTs 30-55 and currently have PTs 1-30 & PTs 56-68 left.
Is it worthwhile to do the first 30 PTs? Or will it harm me more because the questions are that different from the LSAT questions administered nowadays?
Thank you in advance!
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- gaheexlee
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Elle Woods
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Atticus Finch
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Re: Should I do PTs 1-30?
Excellent question, gaheexlee, and one that I hear a lot!
First, you should know that even though you have already taken PTs 30-55, you aren't done with them! Indeed, there's still a wealth of value you can and should glean from those exams. Unless you understand precisely how every single question ticks, and why every single wrong answer is wrong, and could explain each question to your 12 year old kid sister - you're not done with them!
There's a lot of value in retaking PTs you've already done. No, the score won't be entirely reflective of how you would do on test day, but that's ok - that's only a tiny fraction of the value of a PT. Don't make the mistake that all too many students have made before you and think that taking a full length PT is the most effective way to learn - far from it! In fact, it's a spectacularly inefficient way to learn.
As a colleague of mine is fond of saying, taking a PT to learn the LSAT is kind of like stepping on the scale to lose weight. What you really need to do is get to the gym! The scale is just a measure of where you are right that second. Taking a PT is the same.
The learning comes from deep and extremely rigorous review. Start an Error & Takeaway log for yourself from questions that you were unsure about (even if you got them correct). Build yourself a 'pile' of LR questions that you don't own 100%. Print out the question, cut it own, and actually make a physical pile that you can carry around with you. Don't remove anything from the pile until the penny drops, and you feel confident you could efficiently and accurately demolish another question based on the same concepts.
Now, on to your actual question about PTs 1-30. These earlier exams have a somewhat different feel to them than later exams, and the overall construction of sections is a bit different. There are some odd question stems, there are no comparative reading comprehension passages, and there are a few weird questions lurking about. However, they are still an infinitely valuable source of practice and review opportunities. They will likely be more valuable to you as a source for targeted drilling work on particular question types, though, than they will be as full-length exams.
As for PTs 55-68 (and you should get yourself a copy of PTs 69-72*), don't feel the need to start in on those right away. You should take the time now, at the beginning of this new cycle for study, to engage in some reflection on your strengths and weaknesses, and some targeted review and drilling in question sets. Only begin taking PTs again when you've gotten some serious review/analysis under your belt, and plan to take more of them closer to test day.
I hope this helps you plan your studies!
*When PT 72 comes out later this summer.
First, you should know that even though you have already taken PTs 30-55, you aren't done with them! Indeed, there's still a wealth of value you can and should glean from those exams. Unless you understand precisely how every single question ticks, and why every single wrong answer is wrong, and could explain each question to your 12 year old kid sister - you're not done with them!
There's a lot of value in retaking PTs you've already done. No, the score won't be entirely reflective of how you would do on test day, but that's ok - that's only a tiny fraction of the value of a PT. Don't make the mistake that all too many students have made before you and think that taking a full length PT is the most effective way to learn - far from it! In fact, it's a spectacularly inefficient way to learn.
As a colleague of mine is fond of saying, taking a PT to learn the LSAT is kind of like stepping on the scale to lose weight. What you really need to do is get to the gym! The scale is just a measure of where you are right that second. Taking a PT is the same.
The learning comes from deep and extremely rigorous review. Start an Error & Takeaway log for yourself from questions that you were unsure about (even if you got them correct). Build yourself a 'pile' of LR questions that you don't own 100%. Print out the question, cut it own, and actually make a physical pile that you can carry around with you. Don't remove anything from the pile until the penny drops, and you feel confident you could efficiently and accurately demolish another question based on the same concepts.
Now, on to your actual question about PTs 1-30. These earlier exams have a somewhat different feel to them than later exams, and the overall construction of sections is a bit different. There are some odd question stems, there are no comparative reading comprehension passages, and there are a few weird questions lurking about. However, they are still an infinitely valuable source of practice and review opportunities. They will likely be more valuable to you as a source for targeted drilling work on particular question types, though, than they will be as full-length exams.
As for PTs 55-68 (and you should get yourself a copy of PTs 69-72*), don't feel the need to start in on those right away. You should take the time now, at the beginning of this new cycle for study, to engage in some reflection on your strengths and weaknesses, and some targeted review and drilling in question sets. Only begin taking PTs again when you've gotten some serious review/analysis under your belt, and plan to take more of them closer to test day.
I hope this helps you plan your studies!
*When PT 72 comes out later this summer.
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