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Now let's try this scenario knowing the conclusion of our article:

The electrical wiring at Sydney State Library was installed over the past three decades, and appears to have circuit issues around different locations [evidence]. A linesman upon inspection found few frayed wires and blown circuit fuses [evidence]. It is apparent that, the electrical system at Sydney State Library is inadequate [conclusion].

Success in logical reasoning comes with the ability to discern precisely each sentence of the stimulus. Identify certain keyword elements or the motif and suggestion behind each sentence to isolate evidence and conclusion. I must say don't think there's unimportant parts - rather learn HOW TO recognize the important ones. This eliminates 'reading ignorance'. Words such as because, evidently, clearly, hence, thus, consequently, it can be seen usually signal a conclusion.

Previewing the question BEFOREHAND

I believe I should encourage students to read the questions briefly and a quick glance through the answers. It keeps a sound mind focusing on your initial reading.

Small digression:

One important acquired skill is reading - I'm sure some of you are aware reading say, approximately 400 words per minute [I believe it was also taught at a UMAT PREP ... :9] and extrapolating the important points immediately after, retaining knowledge improves the short term memory capacity throughout individual stimulus of the test. They call speed reading. I call it pain. Make note 400 words p/min should not be a 'law' to you but merely a guide. Practice reading newspaper articles, health journals, TIMES magazine within say 1 minute - 2 minutes initially - close your book and verbalize the keypoints without looking. I am a personal believer that using as much possible of our 5 human senses prolong(s) our memory storing capacity! Top yourself in this reading challenge if you find it lacking. This is an acquired skill and those who love reading wouldn't struggle in this area. Student who tend to cram or study last minute generally do struggle in this area. I would say, THIS IS AN IMPORTANT SKILL IN UMAT SECTION 1 AND UMAT SECTION 2.

Back to previewing question stem

I was saying, it helps you focus on your reading - a "jump-start" to your car engine! Let's look at examples, best way of learning I believe.

The author supports the point needing rehabilitation at the Sydney State Library by citing which of the following?

A quick glance, just looking at this without even needing to look at the answer selections automatically one would be scanning the text for some evidence of support to the question. Likewise, if it was asked to identify the assumption the author is relying on [or infer from the passage: another commonly used question term] immediately understand there is an important piece of argument gone missing! Thus, a preview sets you in an active position of seeking out the text and saves you time in the long run. No need to re-read over and over to understand the stimulus ... read the question once thoroughly to identify the ISSUE, and MAYBE quick SKIM through the text to re-confirm what you have read.. Honestly I find it a waste of time. But if that's your approach towards a text-stimulus and it has a proven record of success then go for it! Find out what works best for you!

Be the JUDGE OF THE TEXT

READ ACTIVE NOT PASSIVE. The moment your eyes goes flying left to right real fast and absorption not becoming effective, STOP. As we know, active conversation are fun and exciting [interactive] because one has something interesting to say and another has something to continue on the conversation; could be the latest iPhone, fashion or CIBO coffee shop. One thing I find interesting is when people talk about religion. Seriously. You put a religious person in a room with an atheist and you've got a quite a convo happening. [Tho it could get heated... lol ..]

Likewise, after an active conversation you tend to remember more of what was said. Be active: paraphrase main argument or restate the text in your own simplified words that you understand. Too often in UMAT Section 1 simple things are stated in very sophisticated ways. When people asked the great Michelangelo about his masterpiece "David", he said, "The image was always there, the only thing I did was remove some debris to discover it". By mentally translating the words into simpler forms, UMAT Section 1 becomes manageable.

Going back to the same stimulus:

The Sydney State Library will require extensive physical rehabilitation to meet new building safety hazard conducts deem necessary meeting current construction service regulations.

You would probably immediately simplify this to something like:

The library needs fixing up to meet current standards.

Short-term memory (STM) is limited in capacity keep that in mind. By the time you read through the answers there's a risk of forgetting sections of the stimulus. Reinforcing this simplification process helps you get to the point right away, but also be retained until you find the right answer.

How long did it took you to read and understand this naturally? In the test, hopefully you're reading is as natural and calm as this.

Signing off.

READ THE CONTINUATION: UMAT SECTION 1: UNDERSTANDING QUESTIONS PART ONE