A lot of international students fail to score high marks in the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language). As the name suggests, the TOEFL measures the knowledge of a student in English as a foreign language. There are many reasons why students fail to score high marks in TOEFL even though the medium of teaching in their home country is English.
Most students appearing for the TOEFL have a limited English vocabulary. Knowing how to read and write English does not ensure a high score in the TOEFL. It is important to have a good vocabulary to do well. Many students also do not understand the test requirements and do not clearly estimate the amount of work required to help them secure a good score. As a result, time is not managed well during TOEFL preparation and they end up with a poor score.
The first step in TOEFL preparation is to understand the test requirements. The TOEFL has four parts — Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing:
- The Reading section tests the comprehension abilities of the student. A paragraph of about 700 words needs to be read and understood to answer the questions that follow.
- The Listening section involves listening to 6 passages that are typically 3-5 minutes long and answering questions based on those passages.
- The Speaking section tests the ability of the student to speak coherently and articulate ideas that can be understood by others.
- The Writing section tests the ability of the student to write in an academic setting.
If you have a good English vocabulary, then you may need to only brush up the English skills according to the nature of the TOEFL test. You can hone these skills by taking online practice TOEFL tests. There are many websites that will allow you to take free tests. Others may require a small fee, but these usually allow you to take unlimited online TOEFL tests. The online practice TOEFL tests are extremely useful since they will help in creating the same scenario as the real TOEFL test. As you take more and more tests, you will get accustomed to the type of questions that will appear as well as the accents of native English speakers.
You must remember that TOEFL is a time-bound test. Hence, it is important to answer questions quickly. Many a time it so happens that you will get to the answer by spending a little more time, but you cannot afford to spend any extra time in the real test. Once you get used to the accent used in the passage of the Listening section, it will not be difficult to answer the questions. Online TOEFL practice tests will gear you up for the real TOEFL test and help you achieve a good score.
If your vocabulary is not good enough but you have attended at least 5000 hours of classes where English is the medium of teaching, then you can also attend programs that help you improve your English language skills. There are programs such as business English courses that will teach you how to apply the English you already know. These programs will also include several practice tests. Any such program has to be carefully chosen since some of these programs will only include practice tests without teaching any vocabulary. Ideally, a TOEFL preparatory course should teach vocabulary, English skills, and applied grammar.
As you start your TOEFL preparation, remember that most of your time in the initial phase will be spent on improving vocabulary. The next phase will be using your newly learned vocabulary and applying it to your daily activities. The last phase will be taking online TOEFL tests, identifying weak areas, and improving on them. Adopting a systematic approach well in advance of the TOEFL exam should help you score high marks in the test.