For law aspirants, the most important news is that the premium law entrance exam, CLAT 2020 stands postponed in the wake of outbreak of novel coronavirus. This CLAT 2020 will now be conducted on May 24, 2020 from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm. All law aspirants will be able to register for the exam till April 25, 2020.
As we all know, the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) is one of the most awaited law entrance exams in India. The CLAT exam is conducted every year to select students for admission in LL.B. and LL.M. programs offered by 21 NLUs, 53 private colleges and other participating colleges in the country. Students who are aspiring to get admission into top law colleges of the nation are therefore advised to go through CLAT 2020 syllabus and pattern carefully which has also undergone some changes this year.
The way things stand, lakhs of students appear for CLAT every year, but only a few make it to NLUs. Right preparation strategy and correct understanding of the questions in the paper can help students crack this examination with a good score. Since the exam has been delayed this year due to the unprecedent outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, candidates have got more time to replenish their preparation. Presented below is a brief CLAT 2020 Preparation Guidelines to help aspiring candidates to be better prepared for this important exam.
Basically, UG CLAT 2020 is designed to test a candidate’s necessary aptitude and skills for legal education rather than the prior knowledge. The paper will judge the candidate’s comprehension and reasoning skills.
English Language
This section carries 20% weightage in the exam. The paper will carry passages of about 450 words each, which will be extracted from contemporary or historically significant writings and fictional or non-fictional sources. The standard of the passages will be that a 12th class student will be able to read it in 5-7 minutes. The passage will be followed by questions which will aim to assess the candidate’s ability to comprehend, summarize the passage, and compare and contrast different viewpoints set out in the passage. Thus, questions can take the form of:
· Comprehension or fact-based questions derived from the passage.
· Summarization questions where identifying the main point of the passage will be the task.
· Compare and contrast questions that ask to compare two different viewpoints delivered in the passage.
To prepare for such questions, students should read newspapers and magazines religiously along with books used by question setters. They should read the editorial section of newspapers which will also help them in enhancing their GK and Current Affairs. Students should get involved in regular group discussions. They should read a passage and then discuss its variant viewpoints. They should practice grammar from some good 10th standard grammar textbooks. It is difficult to develop vocabulary at this point of time, but students should note down the words and meanings they come across while reading. Going through all practice papers and sample papers is a must for this section.
Current Affairs
This section carries roughly 25% weightage in the exam. The questions will not judge a candidate’s “Fact Knowledge” but will test their in-depth understanding of issues and events of significance. Questions may be from:
· Contemporary events of significance from India and the world;
· Arts and culture
· Historical information of Continuing significance.
The best way to prepare for this section is that the aspiring students should have a long-term habit of reading newspapers, periodicals, or may be good editorial pieces available online wherein various directions of a topic are analyzed. Another good way is to discuss the latest events with your peers, which will help you in analyzing the topic better.
Legal Reasoning
Carrying roughly 25% weightage, the complexity of this section from this year is that the principle and facts will not be supplied separately. The student needs to identify the principles set out in it. A passage may have more than one principle, and more than one set of incidents – in some instances, the questions may ask the student to apply the same principle to different fact situations, while in others, each question may relate to a different principle and fact situation.
Since Legal Reasoning, Logical Reasoning and English Language are somewhat related, preparation tips for these sections remain similar. Nevertheless, since this section format is different from that of previous years’, not attempting previous year papers will be a mistake.
Logical Reasoning
This section carries a 20% weightage and consists of questions primarily with Premises & Conclusions. Candidates here are therefore required to identify the overall theme, point, or conclusion to the passage along with premises and conclusions.
Though the format is very different from the previous years’, questions from logical games or syllogisms can be included. Aspirants are advised to get a good hold on previous year question papers along with the preparation tips suggested for English Language and Legal Reasoning.
Quantitative Techniques
The section includes reading a passage or analyzing a set of graphical information before attempting any question. Here, it is important for a candidate to have pace while reading the passage and understanding what will the question require him to answer, along with a quick calculation of speed using short tricks.
The best way to prepare for this section is to go back to 10th &12th standard books, refer to good practice material, and religiously practice the previous year questions.