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One Step to Tackle “Competitive English”-CAT Verbal

1 July 2009 1 comment Posted By:Lloyd

English one of the most widely used languages is so deep, that it  is very difficult to search for its roots.British have navigated the globe many times so ENGLISH has in it influences from many others languages or almost every other languages.Because of this significance of ENGLISH most of the competitive exams test your skills in the language.Exams like TOEFL,IELTS etc test your communicative skills,understanding skills,your grammer, your accent etc.But when it comes to CAT,XAT,MAT etc they test mainly you reading and writing skills only.And when it comes to CAT we need to concentrate in 3 main sections-Vocabulary,Grammer,Reading Comprehensions.

Here i would like to share a few things about RC(reading comprehensions).Every B-school entrance exams have VERBAL sections.And every verbal ability exam will surely constitute a RC portion,which most students consider as a difficult one.But it actually is not very tough provided you do  some preparations.Firstly you need to do one thing start reading articles,magazines,newpapers,books etc.This should go in parallel with the preparations.So first approach to an RC is reading. By reading i meant two things mainly to perceive & comprehend. Perceiving means just going through the passage ,just seeing the words.Comprehension means you need to understand the essence of  it.


There are certain simple things we need to be taken care of while attempting an RC.Increase your reading speed.The average reading speed of a literate person is expected to be 250 words a minute.But for effective time management in a  CAT  exam or in any other competitive exams,we need a reading speed of  atleast 450 words/minute.But we must comprehend also as much as 450 words/minute.First i will start with techniques to enhance your  reading speed.

  • Reduce Regression

Regression means going back to a previously read sentence.Reducing regression will increase your reading speed considerably.

  • Avoid lipping

Usually speaking needs more effort and time than mentally reciting something.So if you use your lips then it will take more of your time.So better learn to read in your mind without moving your lips.

  • Framing  the text

This technique will help you to concentrate more on your passage.This can be done using two methods,first method is  underlying hand motion in which your finger tip follows every word you read.Secondly vertical hand motion where your both hand will follow a sentence from both sides of the paper.This 2 method will help you to concentrate more.

Now another important things you should keep in mind                                                                                        SQ3R-SURVEY,QUESTION,READ,REVIEW,RESTATE.

SURVEY means go through the passage in 2 or 3 seconds,just to induce a curiosity in ourselves which will surely enhance your reading speed.QUESTIONS also will do the same job for you.Three R’s will help you understand the essence of the essay.

Now things you should remember in the second phase of the reading(comprehend).

  • Skim keywords

This will help you in your second reading where by just looking at keywords you will get some idea.Thus sparing time.And this method of checking keywords only is called scanning.

  • Visualize & Mind Map

By visualizing your essay you wil have a small idea where your particular keyword in placed.So that while reading the questions it will be easy for you to find respective portions of the passage.

Try sticking to all these things and i am sure you can gain some advantage.And keep reading to enhance your vocabulary and taste in the language.Time is very precious in these type of exams.

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