Law
Law Enforcement Exam - Strategies For Reading Comprehension Questions
By George Godoy
Many law enforcement candidates react to reading comprehension questions by thinking, "This part of the test is going to really slow me down." And, to a degree this part of the test will slow you down. However, if you follow the strategies described in this article you will be able to complete your test at a steady pace and gain valuable points.
Most police entrance exams emphasize reading comprehension. Why? Because to properly perform their jobs, law enforcement officers are expected to understand and comprehend what they read.
Reading comprehension questions will typically be based on one or more situational paragraphs, or require a candidate to determine the proper course of action to take based on reading police rules and procedures.
Firstly, I would suggest you do a lot of reading before taking the test. Newspaper and magazine articles can improve your concentration and your ability to understand what you read. Read with purpose. Underscore details and ideas that appear crucial to the meaning of the articles. Identify the writer's point of view and their supporting information. When you finish with an article, summarize it. Ask yourself, what was the author's purpose in writing the article? What was the main idea. What was the article's focus, key information and words?
Another suggestion is to take practice law enforcement exams. The best practice exams will include reading comprehension sections taken directly from actual exams used by law enforcement agencies.
Here are seven proven strategies to help you pass the reading comprehension part of the law enforcement written exam:
1. Skim the answers before reading the passage. This will let you know what to look for while reading. As you read the passage, mark or circle anything that answers a question. Continue reading that passage until you're done. Don't answer the question until you've read the entire passage because you'll break your concentration.
2. Ask yourself after you read a paragraph, "What exactly did that paragraph say?" Spend a couple of seconds summarizing the contents of the paragraph. While doing this look at the paragraph to help you remember where important information is located.
3. Without fail there will be one or more questions asking you to identify the main idea. Usually a passage will have a few sentences stating the author's main idea. While reading, underline these sentences. This will save you valuable time.
4. Underline key words, phrases and facts, such as dates, names and events.
5. If you are totally confused by a sentence or phrase in the passage, read the sentence before and after the difficult sentence to clarify its meaning. If you're still confused, move on. Don't dwell too long or you'll lose valuable time.
6. Try to visualize by forming a mental picture of the events described in the passage as you read. When you are able to visualize something, it's easier to comprehend.
7. Answer the questions based on the information in the passage, not prior knowledge. If you don't agree with something stated in the passage this is not the time to argue your point. Remember your goal is to get the highest score. In this part of the test, you are being tested on your ability to read and comprehend, not your knowledge of the subject.
Do's and Don'ts
Do read actively, not passively. Pause briefly after each paragraph to think about the points made by the author. Jot down a brief outline as you go.
Don't get too concerned with details as you read a passage, especially long passages. Just take notes of where the details were in the passage. You can quickly list statistics, numbers, dates, names titles, etc.
Do pay attention to the passage structure. Is it organized chronologically, by comparison of two or more arguments, or was there some other classification system? This will help you locate details later.
Do summarize the passage. Take a few seconds to recap the main idea of the passage. This may help you answer several questions quickly.
In summary, if you follow these simple tips and strategies you will find reading comprehension test questions far easier to answer correctly. Remember read with purpose. By far the most effective method to help you hone your skills and build your confidence, besides reading newspaper and magazine articles, is to take actual practice exams used by law enforcement agencies.
January 3, 2011
4:36 pm
I completely believe so. Law schools will not focus just on the law of a particular country, but it will teach values and concepts applicable to many countries.
January 8, 2011
7:31 pm
Law of Multiple Proportions, enunciated by John Dalton.
January 12, 2011
7:25 pm
Law?………..?
When the same two elements make up more than one compound the mass ratio of the elements in one compared to the other will always be small whole number This is a staement of wich law?
Law od Coservation of Matter
Law of conservation of energy
Law of Multiple Proportions
Law Definite Proportions
January 16, 2011
4:22 pm
law??????????????
can i get my degree in law from a foreign country n practise it in my home country???
me an indian..i wanna do law in UK but then i dun wanna settle in UK..i wanna get back to india n be a lawyer here…so is it possible or i have to study n practise law in da same country..???
January 20, 2011
3:09 pm
What law career should i pursue to be able to use languages: International Law?
I am interested in law school once I finish college, but I want to practice some kind of law where I would get to use languages. I am working on my French fluency and am also studying Chinese. What is the best field? I am not particularly interested in Public International Law, but am interested in International Business Law. I am not interested in living abroad or travelling every week of the year, but more of something where I would travel once in a while to other countries to negotiate deals,etc. Do most firms have lawyers who specialize in dealings abroad, and would they actually use languages?
January 20, 2011
3:15 pm
In New York, criminal law fills the bill………………people who speak 100 different languages live here , probably the same in most big cities………….
January 21, 2011
4:46 am
The term common law is ambiguous. It can be used to describe the entire system or it can be used to refer to the case law within a common law system, to refer to the system as a whole a better term might be the ‘adversarial system’. This is what we have in England, the United States, Australia, Hong Kong and South Africa amongst others. The main feature of this system is that there are TWO types of law which are binding (case law and legislation) whereas in the civil system, past cases can be taken into account but they are not binding. Another significant difference is that in civil law countries the judge plays a much more important role in determining proceedings, they form part of the case. The Adversarial system emphasizes the debate between the two parties and the judge merely directs the jury and ensures that etiquette is followed. Also, in a civil system academic articles can be considered whereas in our adversarial system an academic article is essentially useless until it is included in legislation. These are the most significant differences.
January 21, 2011
5:56 am
trust and estate law, followed by tax law,
January 21, 2011
8:07 pm
What is the best profession in Law that an Economics graduate can pursue?
As we all know there is no “typical lawyer.” There are many “professions” within the profession of law. I have a degree in Economics and I would like to know where my training in the discipline would be maximized. Would it be when i specialize in criminal law, family law, personal injury or defective product litigation, trust and estate law, business transactions and litigation, tax law, employment or labor law, environmental law, patent and trademark law, civil rights litigation, or in other specialized areas?
January 21, 2011
8:08 pm
What is the difference between common law systems and civil law systems?
The difference between common law systems and civil law systems seems a little fuzzy to me. The United States is considered to be purely a common law system, but aren’t our codified Constitution and the United States Code, in addition to binding judicial precedent, more indicative of a combined common/civil law system? If not, then what exactly sets civil law systems (as in Europe) or combined common/civil systems (as in Louisiana, Quebec, and Scotland) apart from common law systems?