0TOEFL – How to excel in “Listening”: The Listening section of TOEFL (Internet Based Test) measures your language proficiency to understand spoken English in academic settings. In TOEFL iBT the listening is done for measuring three majors skills –
- Listening for nuances of comprehension.
2. Listening for practical and pragmatic understanding.
3. To connect and combine ideas presented in multiple information sources.
Each part of the Listening section (2 or 3 parts) consists of 1 long conversation and two lectures. The test takers hear each lecture or conversation only once. Lectures and conversations are 3-5 minutes long. During the listening the time is not running. The allotted time of 10 minutes for each part is only for answering the questions.
How to Guard against - TOEFL Listening: This required a complete holistic approach for Listening segment particularly listening section. If one looks at the pattern of the Listening samples each part of the Listening section (2 or 3 parts) consists of 1 long conversation and two lectures which is basically based on education; course enquiry, classroom lectures. These test takers hear each lecture or conversation only once. Lectures and conversations are 3-5 minutes long. During the Listening the time is not running. The allotted time of 10 minutes for each part is only for answering the questions.
“Coherent Listening” is need of an Hour: Listen to spoken English from multiple sources as much as possible. Listen to English spoken movies and English spoken TV channels, listen to the radio and as many other listening sources as you may find. It would be better if your passages are academic or close to what is in TOEFL iBT. The more you practice, the better listener you will become.
Listen for the Main Idea: It is usually found at the beginning of the listening passages, while the details are dispersed throughout the lecture. The main idea will give you understanding of what the conversation or lecture is about. Then you may listen for details. Learn to find how the ideas are presented in the listening passage. Some of the main relations between ideas include cause or effect, compare or contrast, and steps in a process. Learn to listen for signal words that indicate different part of the passage - Introduction, major steps, examples, conclusions, etc.
Build your vocabulary: While listening, try to guess the meaning of unfamiliar words from context. It is very important since there is a big chance to come across words you don't know at the real test. Then, you should guess their meaning. Write down every word you don't know and include it in your wordlist. Try to memorize it and use it in your speaking and writing. There are two ways to keep vocabulary in mind - one is connection of the words and second is visual connections with real situations.
Familiarity with different accent: Listen to conversations or lectures with variety of accents. In TOEFL iBT Listening section there is a variety of accents and pronunciations. For this reason, you should practice listening to a people with different accents and pronunciation patterns.
Inculcate Habit of Note-taking: It is allowed during all sections of TOEFL iBT. Effective note-taking may highly improve your performance. It is almost impossible to memorize all clues and details provided in the Listening section. Moreover, you can hear the passages only once. Therefore, to answer the questions you have to rely on what you remember from the passage and your notes.
Purpose of Writing: Summarize in writing what you have heard, using your notes Thus, you will learn to find the purpose and main idea of the listening, and also the most important details. You will also learn to take and use notes. It also helps in improving your writing skills. Familiarize yourself with the type of questions in TOEFL iBT. Make sure that during the preparation you learn what answers are required by the different types of question.
In nutshell, all skills; Listening, reading, writing, speaking is inevitable, particularly integrated skills needed to get the right chord of this exam. For this a proper strategy required with exam oriented mind set.
