LR Question 20 Explanation
QUESTION TEXT: Dana: It is wrong to think that the same educational…
QUESTION TYPE: Point at Issue
ARGUMENTS: Dana argues that we shouldn’t use the same educational methods with all children. Many children have been raised in communal environments and would do better in group settings. Dana argues that a child’s accustomed style of learning is the style that should be used.
Pat disagrees that we should always let a child’s accustomed style dictate the method to be used. Children should learn to be flexible and work in either setting.
ANALYSIS: Pat may think that some kids learn better alone and some learn better in groups. But he thinks that all kids should learn to function in both settings because those skills will be useful later.
He therefore disagrees with Dana that we should always teach children in the style that will allow them to learn best. Pat is willing to sacrifice some learning for more skill acquisition.
___________
- Pat says yes. Dana might think that children could learn from individual activities, but think that they would learn better from group activities.
- CORRECT. Pat thinks children should be flexible. Dana thinks education should change to suit the preferences of the child.
- Dana says yes. Pat might agree but thinks that it is important for children to learn individual skills too (even if they would learn better in group settings.)
- Neither Pat nor Dana say what the main purpose of education is.
- Dana says yes. Pat might think that it is sometimes desirable. He just doesn’t think it is always desirable.
More Resources for Point at Issue Questions
- Intro Course lesson: This intro course lesson covers Point at Issue questions.
- Mastery Seminar lesson: This LR Mastery seminar lesson covers point at issue questions.
Please ignore my previous question. I checked the dictionary and found that various can indeed mean 2.
I eliminated (B) because of the word “various”. Since Pat only mentioned two skills (group learning and individual learning), isn’t it a bit unclear whether Pat would agree with the term “various”?
In some cases, these language traps feel so subjective to me…like…we can only learn them through mistakes.
(I can understand that “various” might include “two”, but isn’t that a bit inconsistent with the normal use of the word “various”? How can we know that this is the standard in the minds of the test makers? When I was practicing this question, I was thinking that LSAT might tell me: “NO. You won’t say there are various methods if only “two” methods were mentioned”).
The LSAT always uses dictionary definitions of words. The definition of various is “more than one; several”. So in this case, the answer is just saying “All children should learn to adapt to more than one educational method”, which is exactly what they disagree about.
Generally, if it is one word you are unsure about, don’t let that derail you entirely. B is still the best answer even if you’re not entirely sure where the range of “various” starts.
But in terms of the meaning of words, the LSAT always uses dictionary definitions.
B was my first instinct here, however I got tripped up by the following;
Dana: “A child’s accustomed style of learning should always dictate what method is used”
Pat: “No not always”
Answer B states “All children should learn to adapt to Various educational methods.”
Its the ALL CHILDREN
Got it, ha maybe I should review like so in the future.
I agree that it’s subtle. The key is Pat’s second sentence: flexibility is invaluable. This implies all children should be flexible. I agree B is perhaps less than 100% supported (not much less though). But the stem only says “most supported”, so the answer doesn’t have to be ironclad.