“CLAT is a test of legal aptitude and one of the foremost qualities a lawyer should have is the ability to read, understand and analyze tough texts. Thus, reading a lot is the first thing I’d suggest to any CLAT aspirant.” We said that in the Gyan Central article on CLAT published here.
“Read at lot” is a great advice for anything. Reading improves your vocabulary, comprehension skills, critical reasoning skills, general knowledge etc. Reading thus improves your chances of cracking CLAT.
Lets go beyond just “Read a lot” and tell you how to read.
a. Speed Reading
Speed reading works. We love the craft.
An average man reads around 300 words per minute. With some practice you can get your speed up to 900 words per minute (that happens in our coaching class). The maths is simple: you’ll read thrice of what others are reading.
Consider this: CLAT has 10,000 words. You read it in 10 minutes. Your competition reads that in 30 minutes. We know many a CLAT aspirant who’ll sacrifice an organ of theirs for this extra 20 minutes.
Now, you might wonder that whether while speed reading, you comprise on comprehension. You do not. While reading normally, your mind sometimes wanders; it strays for a while, repeatedly. Speed reading doesn’t afford you that luxury. It’s like driving a speeding vehicle. You tend to be more concentrated.
You can buy Tony Buzan’s book on Speed Reading. Evelyn Wood’s book too is just as good. Do invest in this craft.
b. Eclectic
Do not read one style, one medium, one author or one type of writing. That will hamper your intellectual development.
Read eclectically. Read poetry. Read English poetry. Read Hindi poetry. Read editorials. Read classics. Read Chetan Bhagat. Read history. Read travel.
Well, for CLAT, focus on good newspapers and magazines. And focus on editorials. NOTE: “Focus” does not mean “stick”.
c. Engaging
Read in an aggressive, engaging way.
Underline.
Take notes.
Use a dictionary.
Advice meted to us in class five, still holds true.
Hope this helps.
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CLATapult is a CLAT Coaching institute based out of Kolkata and Bhubaneswar. It was started in 2012 by some students of NUJS.