How
to prepare for GRE, GMAT logical reasoning?
Let’s face reality. Few college books prepare
you to think critically. But critical thinking skills are extensively tested in
both GRE and GMAT. Critical reasoning (referred to also as logical reasoning or
analytical reasoning) constitute an array of thinking skills that involve,
analysis, synthesis and evaluation of numerical, verbal or non-verbal data.
Numerical reasoning questions measures your ability to apply reasoning in a
math setting whereas non-verbal reasoning involves interpreting symbols and
pictures, the latter skills hardly tested in higher order aptitude tests. A
majority of reasoning questions tested in these exams are text-based
(verbal
reasoning).
Logic is the science of correct reasoning. It
is integral to mathematics and philosophy. There are many logic concepts that
originate from the above disciplines and applied in GRE and GMAT tests. The
common test areas, viz. critical
reasoning (short passages that
present arguments), argument essay and integrated reasoning draw immensely from
philosophy and logic. These questions
requires you to analyze issues, reason logically, and argue effectively. These
skills are essential to succeed in higher studies as well as in careers.
How to build reasoning skills
1. Using
test prep resources
A common practice among test
aspirants is to seek help from coaches, preparatory test guides and online
discussion forums in order to learn tips and strategies to crack reasoning
questions. No doubt some of these are useful sources to make you motivated and
test ready. However exercise caution; desist from using these indiscriminately;
do quality check.
2. Reading
varied texts
Those who are habituated to
reading will over time become critical thinkers, and thereby succeed in many
areas of aptitude tests. It is to be noted that the question stimulus in
reasoning tests are drawn from everyday knowledge rather than from academic
disciplines. Being well-read will make you familiar with the content of these
problems.
3. From principles of logic
A third and highly
productive way to build your logical reasoning is to master elementary logic
theory. What is logic theory?
Here’s a basic concept in logic.
Statement : Whenever Sara
goes to the supermarket, she buys cookies.
You saw Sara this morning
carrying a jar of cookies. Can you then infer that Sara has gone to the super
market?
No. this is wrong reasoning, because the
supermarket is not the only place where Sara buys cookies from.
Let’s consider the scenario:
Sara did not buy cookies, can we infer
that she did not go to the supermarket? Yes, we can.
In logic theory terms, the original
statement can be expressed as,
If
A, then B; If not B, then not A. This expression can
be applied to a class of problems. Many such formulae can be learnt and applied to logical
reasoning. Merely common sense will not work.
There are many books on
elementary logic suitable for beginners
that can give you solid foundation in
critical thinking. You may make use of such sources for your test preparation.
A good book on critical
reasoning
One book I would recommend
is Critical thinking: A Student’s
Introduction by Gregory Basham,
William Irwin et al. Online edition of
this book is also available.
This book provides all
basics consistent with the reasoning historically assessed in tests of
reasoning and aligned with the content areas covered in global admission examinations. Hence a good
reference source for aptitude trainers too. The
real-world examples and proven step- by- step approach to answering questions
that this book provides can significantly improve the way you look at
reasoning problems. The concepts that you need are;
structure and components of arguments,
inductive and deductive arguments, method of evaluating arguments and ways to spot common errors in arguments.
Let your preparation involve
understanding the logic behind problems and not merely seeking solutions.
Becoming a critical thinker is both an
adventure and hard work. Practice. Make mistakes. Learn from them.
Improve. In the coming test season, be
equipped with a workable set of thinking tools.
Contributed by
Dr. Vijayakumari
Instructor at semantics, Chennai
Email: vijaya@semanticslearning.com
