Strengthen, Justify the Conclusion, and Assumption Identify The Question Stem Drill
The following items contain a question stem from a recent LSAT question. In the space provided,
categorize each stem into one of the three Logical Reasoning Question Types: Strengthen, Justify the
Conclusion, or Assumption. Answers on Page 290
1. Question Stem: “Which one of the following, if true, most strongly supports the statement above?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
2. Question Stem: “Which one of the following is an assumption on which Patti’s argument depends?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
3. Question Stem: “The conclusion drawn by the professor follows logically if which one of the
following is assumed?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
4. Question Stem: “Which one of the following is an assumption required by the argument?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
5. Question Stem: “Which one of the following, if assumed, would allow the conclusion to be properly
drawn?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
6. Question Stem: “Which one of the following, if true, does most to justify the apparently contradictory
conclusion above?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
Strengthen, Justify the Conclusion, and Assumption Identify The Question Stem Drill
Answer Key
1. Question Type: Strengthen
Stem drawn from the December 2003 LSAT. The presence of the phrase “most strongly supports”
indicates that this question stem is a Strengthen.
2. Question Type: Assumption
Stem drawn from the October 2003 LSAT. The presence of the word “assumption” without any sufficient
condition indicators classifies this question as an Assumption. Further, the phrase “depends upon” indicates
the answer will have a necessary quality, a hallmark of assumption questions.
3. Question Type: Justify the Conclusion
Stem drawn from the December 2003 LSAT. The presence of the words “if” and “assumed” indicates that
this question stem is a Justify.
4. Question Type: Assumption
Stem drawn from the October 2003 LSAT. The key words in this stem are “required” and “assumption,”
making this an Assumption question. You must be careful when you see the word “assumption” because
that word can also be used in Justify the Conclusion questions.
5. Question Type: Justify the Conclusion
Stem drawn from the October 2003 LSAT. The presence of the words “if” and “assumed” indicates that
this question stem is a Justify, as does the phrase “allow the conclusion to be properly
drawn.”
6. Question Type: Strengthen
Stem drawn from the December 2002 LSAT. The presence of the phrase “does most to justify” indicates
that this question stem is a Strengthen. The presence of “most” opens the door to an answer that does not
100% justify the conclusion, hence the question is not a true Justify the Conclusion question.
The following items contain a question stem from a recent LSAT question. In the space provided,
categorize each stem into one of the three Logical Reasoning Question Types: Strengthen, Justify the
Conclusion, or Assumption. Answers on Page 290
1. Question Stem: “Which one of the following, if true, most strongly supports the statement above?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
2. Question Stem: “Which one of the following is an assumption on which Patti’s argument depends?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
3. Question Stem: “The conclusion drawn by the professor follows logically if which one of the
following is assumed?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
4. Question Stem: “Which one of the following is an assumption required by the argument?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
5. Question Stem: “Which one of the following, if assumed, would allow the conclusion to be properly
drawn?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
6. Question Stem: “Which one of the following, if true, does most to justify the apparently contradictory
conclusion above?”
Question Type: _________________________________________________________________
Strengthen, Justify the Conclusion, and Assumption Identify The Question Stem Drill
Answer Key
1. Question Type: Strengthen
Stem drawn from the December 2003 LSAT. The presence of the phrase “most strongly supports”
indicates that this question stem is a Strengthen.
2. Question Type: Assumption
Stem drawn from the October 2003 LSAT. The presence of the word “assumption” without any sufficient
condition indicators classifies this question as an Assumption. Further, the phrase “depends upon” indicates
the answer will have a necessary quality, a hallmark of assumption questions.
3. Question Type: Justify the Conclusion
Stem drawn from the December 2003 LSAT. The presence of the words “if” and “assumed” indicates that
this question stem is a Justify.
4. Question Type: Assumption
Stem drawn from the October 2003 LSAT. The key words in this stem are “required” and “assumption,”
making this an Assumption question. You must be careful when you see the word “assumption” because
that word can also be used in Justify the Conclusion questions.
5. Question Type: Justify the Conclusion
Stem drawn from the October 2003 LSAT. The presence of the words “if” and “assumed” indicates that
this question stem is a Justify, as does the phrase “allow the conclusion to be properly
drawn.”
6. Question Type: Strengthen
Stem drawn from the December 2002 LSAT. The presence of the phrase “does most to justify” indicates
that this question stem is a Strengthen. The presence of “most” opens the door to an answer that does not
100% justify the conclusion, hence the question is not a true Justify the Conclusion question.
No comments:
Post a Comment