Digital SAT Command of Evidence Questions: Diagramming Drill Set 2
Struggling with SAT Reading & Writing? These drills will help you learn a powerful tactic for mastering SAT Command of Evidence and Inference Questions. Includes explanations and model diagrams.
Greetings, Quiz Hackers! Below you’ll find three exercises that are designed to help you become proficient at diagramming arguments. As you learned in my strategy articles on Command of Evidence Questions, this question type can be more complicated than meets the eye. Though the passages are short, their logical structure can be very hard to see with “the naked eye.”
Thus, learning to diagram arguments can come in quite handy. This is especially true if your goal is to master the more challenging Command of Evidence questions.
As a reminder, “diagramming” is simply a way to organize the key logical points of a passage in a simplified form. Essentially, it’s just a form of outlining. It helps you to see the passage’s logic clearly. It’s also a great way for you to keep track of the passage’s argument as you’re analyzing the answer choices. This eliminates the need to hold all those details in your head, which often leads to “careless errors.”
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Intro to Logical Operations: Deduction
The exercises below are specifically geared to help you conquer a type of Command of Evidence Question that I’ve dubbed “Logical Operations: Deduction” (LO:D). This just means that the passage presents you with a set of premises, from which the question asks you to draw a conclusion, or “deduction.”
Identifying LO:D questions is straightforward. The last sentence of the passage will be incomplete, ending with a blank. This sentence will often start with a word indicating that a logical deduction is being drawn, such as “consequently” or “therefore.” Most often, the question itself reads:
“Which choice most logically completes the text?”
Instructions for the Diagramming Exercises
As you work through the following exercises, your goal is to carefully evaluate each passage, identify the logical premises within, and diagram these premises in a simplified form. These steps are foundational in enhancing your ability to understand complex arguments and in preparing you for the SAT "Command of Evidence" questions, which we refer to as "Logical Operations" questions. Here's how to approach each exercise:
Read the Passage: Begin by thoroughly reading the provided passage. Pay close attention to the statements that serve as the foundation for the argument being made.
Identify the Premises: Next, identify the key premises in the passage. A premise is a statement that an argument relies on as a reason or foundation. Look for statements that support the main argument or are presented as facts or beliefs.
Diagram the Premises: Once you've identified the premises, diagram them in simplified form. This means rewriting the premises in a way that captures their essential point in your own words. Remember, there is some flexibility in how you can do this—your diagramming style might vary slightly based on personal preference, as long as the core idea of the premise is accurately represented.
Predict a Logical Deduction: After diagramming the premises, attempt to predict what could be logically deduced from them. Think about the conclusions that naturally follow from the premises you've outlined.
Compare Your Diagrams to the Examples Below: If your diagram is different from my examples, it’s not necessarily “wrong.” Keep in mind that sometimes more than one valid conclusion can be drawn from a set of premises. This means that there isn't necessarily one "correct" answer to what the conclusion might be.
Remember, these exercises are not just about finding the "right" answer but about practicing how to think critically and logically. The process of identifying premises, diagramming them, and predicting deductions is crucial in developing your analytical skills.
After completing each exercise, compare your diagrams and predicted deductions with the model diagrams provided below each exercise. This comparison will help you understand different ways of structuring arguments and see where your logical deduction skills can be refined.
By regularly practicing these steps, you'll become more adept at quickly and accurately breaking down arguments, a skill that is invaluable for the SAT and beyond. Let's begin!
Exercise 1: Recycling and Environmental Awareness
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