Universities are aware that you are prepared to succeed, which is a clear advantage of taking the TOEFL iBT (Test of English as a Foreign Language) test to help you confidently stand out in English.
Because of this, more than 11,500 universities and other institutions in more than 160 nations, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, the United Kingdom, and throughout Europe and Asia, accept it. Every year, almost a million people worldwide take the exam. A high exam score is required for admission to college programmes in the United States and other English-speaking nations.
The TOEFL iBT test is available in 3 formats, so you can select the one that best meets your requirements and preferences:
• Test on a computer at a testing centre for the TOEFL iBT exam.
• Test on a computer at home with the TOEFL iBT Home Edition.
• Test in two sessions for the TOEFL iBT Paper Edition: speaking on a computer at home and reading, listening, and writing on paper at a test center.
It is the only exam that evaluates each of the four academic English skills—reading, listening, speaking, and writing—in the context of a classroom. In this way, the TOEFL results accurately represent individual skills and demonstrate to admissions committees that you have what it takes to succeed.
Preparation tips for the TOEFL exam
• Understand the format.
• Grab a study guide.
• Plan a study schedule.
• Outside of TOEFL, read and listen to English.
• Speaking abilities (even to oneself)
• Timed writing exercises
• Practice taking notes.
• Practice on a sample test
• Play a game with it.
• Remember to bring the QWERTY keyboard!
Understand the format.
Even if you have excellent English, a test’s format could nevertheless cause you to make a mistake. Spend some time on the TOEFL website to familiarise yourself with how it operates and to gather any information you require. The internet-based test, often known as the iBT, and the paper-based test, are the two ways you can take the test. The former is probably what you’ll do because it’s currently a lot more common. However, here is how each is presented just in case.
The format of the internet-based test is as follows:
• Reading (36-56 questions; 60-80 minutes)
• Listening (34-51 questions; 60-90 minutes)
• Speaking (6 tasks; 20 minutes)
• Writing (2 essays; 50 minutes)
On the other hand, the paper-based exam is structured as follows:
•Listening (50 questions; 30-40 minutes)
•Writing (40 questions; 25 minutes)
•Reading (50 questions; 55 minutes)
•English writing test (1 essay; 30 minutes)
Simply by becoming more accustomed to the exam’s arrangement, you might feel much better prepared and have a better idea of what to expect on test day.
Grab a study guide.
Obtaining a study guide is a great approach to further your TOEFL preparation. An excellent TOEFL book will guide you through each area, including helpful tips, hints for strategies, sample questions, and answers. There are many excellent TOEFL books available, as well as many mediocre ones.
Plan a study schedule.
You’ll save so much time and accomplish so much more if you create a timetable and follow it. Put your head down and study for one or two hours rather than putting off work for five. If the test is for a few months begin with just an hour every day, and as the date approaches, you might increase this to two or three hours. You can ease up on the plan once more in the last week leading up to the exam by only spending an hour or so polishing your abilities.
Outside of TOEFL, read and listen to English.
The TOEFL revision doesn’t have to be entirely TOEFL-specific. After all, this exam measures real-world English proficiency, not only grammatical correctness. You’ll find yourself engaging in a lot of “passive learning” if you expose yourself to ordinary English. Try listening to music, viewing YouTube videos and movies, and reading novels or comic books. In addition to being enjoyable, you’ll unintentionally learn a lot.
Speaking abilities (even to yourself).
For most of us, the most difficult element of learning a language is speaking it. It’s not technically tough, but if we lack confidence, it might be embarrassing. Additionally, speaking leaves us with less time to consider, which makes mistakes more likely.
But here’s something to keep in mind. Every single speaker in the world makes mistakes, regardless of their language. In light of that, make an effort to practice speaking. Talk to yourself if you don’t feel comfortable speaking with someone else. You will be speaking into a microphone during the TOEFL iBT, but no one will be watching you in real-time.
Timed writing exercises.
Writing with a deadline can be challenging. Exams at school and university will require you to spend the majority of the time just mulling over ideas before you have to scramble to finish the essay in fifteen minutes in order to meet the deadline.
Setting time restrictions when practicing writing is something you should always try. By giving yourself enough time to plan your writing, compose the piece, and then review it after you’re done, you’ll be able to manage your time more effectively.
Practice taking notes.
Prior to answering questions or needing to speak about them during the TOEFL test, you only get one chance to listen to each audio clip. You’ll need to make notes while the video plays in order to keep track of what was said in light of this. However, very few people are able to write at the speed of speech, so learning to take good notes is essential.
You only need to take down the essential details; the rest may be put together rationally in your thoughts.
Start by tuning in to short audio clips on YouTube or other websites. Practice writing down the important details and make sure you still comprehend the entire clip. Try to use these notes to reassemble the story or clip when you have finished listening.
If it’s simpler for you, you can also make notes in your own tongue. Increase the difficulty as you practice more and watch how you do.
Practice on a sample test.
Set up some time to finish a full practice test rather than just practice questions once or twice a week, or even more frequently. This is another way to get more comfortable with the exam process and to give a chance to improve your technique and competence.
The finest preparation is in fact practice. You’ll get so accustomed to the experience by the time your actual test arrives that you won’t be put off by anything about it.
Play a game with it.
It doesn’t have to be constant pressure, focus, and discipline to study for tests. Take advantage of any opportunity to ease the workload a little bit!
The benefit of making learning fun is that it becomes more memorable and has a bigger impact than merely reading from a study guide.
Play some Scrabble, Pictionary, or 30 Seconds to help you learn new words. Try to learn a song’s lyrics for speaking practice, then videotape yourself. Do whatever will make it enjoyable and enduring!
Remember to bring the QWERTY keyboard!
Getting habituated to the QWERTY computer keyboard is very important because if you’re taking the TOEFL iBT, you’ll be using one of these keyboards, so make an effort to practice as much as you can. The last thing you want is to finish an essay late because of inefficient typing!
TOEFL exam day instructions
You should arrive at the TOEFL testing facility at least 30 minutes early to settle in, as is customary for exams. To ensure that you know where to go, visit the center’s address a day in advance.
• You shouldn’t worry about the TOEFL score because, if you’ve been learning English since you were a young child, you shouldn’t have any difficulties doing well.
• Spend a few seconds gathering your thoughts before beginning the Reading part.
• On test day, avoid studying. It won’t help you at all; it will only make you more stressed.
• Complete a lot of practice exams.
• Wear comfortable, warm clothing because the majority of computer testing facilities have air conditioning. On test day, you don’t want to get “cold feet.”
• You only have 20 minutes to complete the writing portion. Although they might seem sufficient, they are merely enough to check the essay once. So act quickly!
• The Speaking and Listening sections require intense focus. You will need to pay close attention because the accompanying headphones won’t be noise-canceling ones.
Conclusion
The TOEFL iBT presents a variety of difficulties in the reading, listening, speaking, and writing parts. Therefore, each section of the TOEFL exam preparation requires a different approach from the student. One may enhance their listening skills to prepare for the hearing section, for example, by paying attention to radio and television broadcasts as well as viewing movies. In addition to listening to broadcasts, one should practice speaking because the speaking phase will need the student to have a solid command of English and a good vocabulary.
