LSAT question types can be deceptive.

Today a student asked me about a “strengthen” question (practice test 81, LR 2, question 12). This question is about improvements to computer simulations of automobile crashes. The author believes that manufacturers will use fewer test crashes if computer simulations improve enough to provid as much reliable information as test crashes do about the effectiveness of automobile safety features.

I wanted to write a little about this question because it reminds me of why I don’t teach question types, and why it’s so frustrating to me as a tutor that students plateau and think it’s because they need practice with a particular “type” of question. (Don’t even get me started about how serving these questions outside of the context of a full practice test section ruins the exams for students. Drilling is not a good idea for students who want a very high score.)

Back to the question: the LSAT wants you to identify which of the following statements (if true) most strengthens the argument.

The argument here is that manufacturers will use fewer test crashes if computer simulations can collect equivalent reliable information about the effectiveness of safety features. There are a few interesting answer choices here, but they are only really interesting if you accidentally eliminate the correct choice.

Students who obsess over what question type this is tend to breeze past the correct answer, because the correct answer is actually a necessary assumption. The thing that most strengthens the argument in this case is something that must be true for the argument to hold water. This feels horrible to students who are primed to look for a piece of evidence supporting a thesis.

Questions like this are also why I advise against reading the question first. Some tutors and books suggest this, but I have yet to meet a high scorer who uses this method.

If you read the stimulus actively, you’ll have a good grasp on reasoning flaws and the assumptions the author is making by the time you see the question before you see the question. Then, even if you haven’t taken enough practice tests to know that sometimes a necessary assumption is an ok answer to a “strengthen” question, you still can read the question carefully, see that nothing else quite fits, and come back to the correct answer.

If there are any questions that have perplexed you, let me know: between me and Dear Kerry, we’ll get them answered.

Happy studying,

- Anita