The TOEFL iBT assesses a taker’s ability to use and understand English at the university level. It focuses on and evaluates listening, reading, speaking, and writing skills in an academic context. Passing the TOEFL iBT test is not an easy task. If you plan to take the test, it is good to prepare yourself before the actual exam. This article will share some valuable tips that will help you do well in the speaking and writing parts. If you are interested, keep reading!
📝 TOEFL iBT Versus Revised Paper-delivered Test
The TOEFL exam is available in 2 formats – the one delivered via the internet and a paper test.
🖇️ TOEFL Sections Overview: Speaking & Writing
TOEFL Speaking Section
The TOEFL iBT Speaking section is designed to evaluate your ability to speak English in academic settings. It consists of 4 tasks and 2 parts.
Independent Task
The first part is called an “independent speaking task,” and it includes two questions. In this part, the participants must rely entirely on their ideas, opinions, and experiences while giving answers. You will be asked to provide your opinion on a particular topic. There are 15 seconds for you to prepare the response. Then you would record yourself speaking for 45 seconds.
When you answer the two questions, you should clearly state your opinion. After that, you should give reasons that support your opinion. Giving an example is always a good idea, as well. The example should be detailed and relevant. It is also good to keep in mind that there is no right or wrong answer. The most important thing is to support your idea and develop the thought.
Integrated Tasks
The second part of the section is called “integrated speaking tasks.” It consists of four questions. Subjects for integrated tasks are usually course topics or campus situations. The four questions require participants to combine their English-language skills — listening and speaking, or listening, reading and speaking.
You’ll get around 30 seconds to get ready for your answer and from 45 to 60 seconds to record the answer. The responses should be recorded using the microphone in your headset. The answers are later sent to ETS, where they are scored using AI scoring and certified human raters to ensure quality and efficiency.
TOEFL Writing Section
The Writing section of the test lasts 50 minutes. The Writing section is designed to assess your ability to write in English. Based on reading and listening tasks, you will have to write two essays. You will need to express and present your ideas in a clear, well-organized manner.
TOEFL Integrated Writing
The first part of the section is known as an “integrated writing” task. The students should write an essay based on a short reading passage and spoken lecture excerpt. Typically, the recommended length for the essay is 150 to 225 words. The participants have 20 minutes to complete this task.
Your response is judged based on the quality of the writing. It is necessary to keep in mind that the essay should summarize the points made in the lecture and explain their relationship to the reading passage.
TOEFL Independent Writing
The second part of the section is usually referred to as an “independent writing” task. The students will have to write an essay based on their personal experience or opinion in response to a writing topic. The time limit for this task is 30 minutes.
There is no maximum word count, but the essay should be at least 300 words in length. To earn a high score, you should develop a multi-paragraph essay. According to a survey, the questions are usually related to education, work, and lifestyle topics.
✔️ Speaking & Writing Strategies for the TOEFL iBT
Top 5 TOEFL Writing Tips & Strategies
Below is a list of tips that will help you with preparing for the TOEFL writing section.
Tip #1 Learn the TOEFL iBT Writing Format
It is no secret that getting a high score for a test like TOFEL is not an easy task. To do well in the written part of the exam, the knowledge of the English language is not enough. It is crucial to understand the structure of the test. This article has mentioned some good points that will help you familiarize yourself with the exam format. Remember that the writing section lasts 50 minutes and consists of two parts: integrated and independent writing.
Tip #2 Plan before You Start Writing
Planning is essential when it comes to the writing part of the exam. It’s always good to make a small plan or an outline before writing your TOEFL response. Don’t immediately start writing. First, try coming up with the arguments and writing them down on paper.
Tip #3 Create a List of Key Vocabulary
Apart from planning, vocabulary plays an important role. If you want to score well, you need to consider paying attention to your vocabulary. The more words you have stored, the easier it is to understand or write a text and express your thoughts. While writing an essay, you can use more expressions and powerful words to showcase your vocabulary. It will help you score more points, as well as make the writing process more manageable.
Your list of key vocabulary can look like this:
- Sustainable
- To adopt
- To receive
- Consumers
- To expose
- Motivated
- To cater
- To obtain
- Advertising
- Recycling
It is best not to use the same words too many times. For that reason, studying synonyms is a good idea. Moreover, it is better to avoid using boring words such as ‘thing,’ ‘good,’ ‘bad,’ ‘nice,’ etc. Instead, try using transitional words like ‘firstly,’ ‘secondly,’ ‘moreover,’ ‘therefore,’ etc.
Tip #4 Practice TOEFL Writing Topics
The writing section requires the participants to write two essays. The topics of essays may differ. There are five essay categories in general. While practicing, make sure to study and write works from each of the five categories. It will help you to get ready for any type of TOEFL essay topic on exam day.
Tip #5 Don’t Forget about Structure
To score high on the exam, you need to pay attention to your answers and their structure. Each answer should include an introduction, the main idea, and a conclusion. It is important to remember that the main objective of the Integrated Writing Task is to summarize and compare main points from reading and listening materials.
In the Independent Writing Task, the objective is to state and defend an opinion by providing reasons and examples. Don’t forget to use transition phrases. In the second essay, especially, it is good to divide the body part into at least three paragraphs.
Top 5 TOEFL Speaking Tips & Strategies
Tip #1 Check the TOEFL iBT Speaking Format
If you want to do well in the speaking part of the test, it is better to prepare yourself using the TOEFL iBT speaking format. That way, you will mentally prepare for the actual exam and familiarize yourself with the test structure. There are two parts in the speaking section. You will have around 20 minutes to finish the whole part. Not a lot of time is given to prepare the answer, so try to stay focused and practice as much as possible before the examination.
Tip #1 Learn the Time Management
The TOEFL iBT exam is taken online; that’s why it is extremely important to keep track of the time. While answering the question, the participants will have limited time to prepare and record the response. Usually, 15 to 30 seconds is given to prepare the answer and 45 to 60 seconds to record the response. If you are studying for the exam, it is highly recommended to use a timer to track the time.
Tip #1 Use the TOEFL Speaking Template
Time is limited during the actual exam and every second count. That’s why it is better to study some speaking templates before the test.TOEFL speaking templates can increase your score in all four of the speaking questions.
Tip #4 Don’t Neglect Notes
To do well on the TOEFL, simply being good at English is not enough — you also need to know how to take clear and effective notes. During the test, you are allowed to take notes for every section of the exam, so use it. It’s important to use the space on your scratch paper wisely; try to save as much space as possible on your scratch paper. It is also essential to keep your notes neat and clear.
Tip #5 Learn the TOEFL Speaking Topics
Before going into the exam, it is important to familiarize yourself with TOEFL speaking questions that may come up during the test.
Use Free Websites for Practicing
Using the right resources to prepare for your exam is extremely important. Here are some resources that will help you prepare for the exam:
On these websites, you can find mock tests and example questions. You can also work on your reading and listening skills using TED and BBC.
Getting a high score on TOEFL might not be an easy task, but nothing is impossible if the right strategies are applied. This article introduces some of the valuable tips for writing and speaking sections that can help you tremendously with the exam. If you use them, we guarantee that your results will improve. Leave comments and share some of your favorite tips and strategies.
