that everybody taking the test receives the same questions, regardless of whether they answered previous questions correctly or incorrectly. Therefore, you don’t have a Confirm button on your computer screen during this section. Also, you can skip questions and return to them during the test, but there isn’t a device on the computer screen to show you which questions you’ve skipped (which would make it easier to return to the questions you’ve skipped). Therefore, you have to click back through the questions in order to find the questions that you’ve left unanswered. Even though you’re not required to answer each question in the Reading section before proceeding, I recommend that you do so. Each reading passage appears on the screen, and then after you’ve read the entire passage, the questions relating to that passage appear. You can’t skip any part of the reading passage. The computer system won’t permit you to skip to the ques- tions before the entire passage appears on your computer screen. Therefore, you should quickly read the entire passage before proceeding to the questions. At the top of the reading passage, the words Beginning, More Available, and End appear. These words tell you your place in the reading passage. If you see Beginning at the top of the screen, you’re seeing the very beginning of the pas- sage. If you see More Available, you’re in the middle of the text, and neither the beginning nor the end currently appears on the screen. If you see End, the last sentences of the passage appear on the screen. To proceed through the passage, click the arrow button. If you click the bottom arrow, you’ll slowly move through the reading passage. If you click within the bar that appears above the arrow, you’ll move a page at a time. Because most readings are two screens long, usually clicking in the bar will bring you to the bottom of the passage. If you read to the bottom of the first screen and then click in the bar above the bottom arrow, you’ll see the entire second screen of the passage. The time that remains for you to read passages and answer questions is shown on your computer screen. Pay attention to the time. Before you begin the Reading section, you’re told how many readings and questions you’ll have and how much time you’re given to complete the section. Divide the number of readings into the time that you’re given so you can control how much time you spend on each set of passages and questions. When you’ve finished reading a passage, click Proceed. You can still see the en- tire reading passage if you need it, and vocabulary and other questions that require you to view parts of the passage are generally presented in order. When questions that require you to review parts of the passage are asked, the area of the passage that it applies to will automatically appear to show the marked word or phrase. However, when the test asks a general question that doesn’t refer to a portion of the text, the reading passage moves back to the beginning. You can scroll through the passage at that point if necessary. In Part III of this book, you can practice answering the various types of reading questions that follow full reading passages. The following directions are very sim- ilar to those that you’ll see on the TOEFL test: 30 Part II: Analysis of Exam Areas For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org Directions: This section measures your ability to read and understand written English similar to that which you may encounter in a college or university setting. Read each passage and answer the questions based on what the passage states or implies. You’ll encounter many varieties of questions in the Reading section. For example, you may be asked to do one of several things: ■ Click on the correct answer. You must choose the single best answer to the question. On the computer screen, the answer choices are in the shape of ovals; the oval becomes filled in when you click on it. In this book, each answer choice is assigned a letter from A to D. ■ Click on the correct two answers. You must click on the two best an- swers. On the computer screen, the answer choices are in the shape of squares; an x appears in each square when you click on it. In this book, each answer choice is assigned a letter from A to D. ■ Click on words or phrases in a specific order. On the computer screen, you must click on highlighted words in a specific order. In this book, you will be asked to list answer choices in a specific order from A to D. ■ Click on pictures or drawings. You’re shown several images and asked to click on the one that depicts what the question asks. In this book, you’ll be asked to choose among answers A through D. Other questions in the Reading section require that you click on the correct answer in the passage, and you may be asked to do one of several things: ■ Click the word that means the same as another word. Some vocabulary questions require that you click on the word in the passage that means the same as a word given in the question. ■ Click the referent of a pronoun. To test your knowledge of pronoun antecedents, you must click on the noun or noun phrase in the passage to which a given pronoun refers. ■ Click the sentence in which a particular subject is discussed. In this type of question, you’re asked to identify where in the passage a particular issue is presented. ■ Click on the place in a passage where a specific sentence could fit. You’re given a sentence that does not appear in the original passage, and you must determine the most logical place for it in the reading passage. Multiple-choice questions may require you to identify main ideas, significant points, inferences, details, vocabulary words, or referents. Questions that address main ideas may include: ■ What is the passage mainly about? ■ What aspect of . . . does the passage mainly discuss? ■ What is a good title for the passage? 31 Reading Section For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org Questions that address significant points and inferences may read: ■ All the following are mentioned about . . . except: ■ All the following are reasons for . . . except: ■ According to the passage, all the following factors affect . . . except: ■ The passage supports which of the following statements about . . . ? ■ In stating . . . , the author means that: ■ The author mentions . . . as examples of: ■ The author states. . . to imply that: ■ The author mentioned . . . in the passage because: ■ What can be inferred about . . . ? Questions that deal with details in the passage may look like this: ■ The main point that the author makes about . . . is that . . . : ■ According to the passage, what/when/why/where/how . . . ? ■ According to the passage, what is one effect of . . . ? Vocabulary and referent questions may include the following phrases: ■ The word . . . in the passage is closest in meaning to the word: ■ The phrase . . . in the passage is closest in meaning to: ■ The word . . . in the passage refers to: Preparing for the Reading Section The same methods that I suggest for improving your listening and grammar skills are also great for reading. Read, read, read. Read whatever you can, whenever you can. When you don’t have time to read printed material, listening to recorded books is helpful, even for this section of the test. Read items that are as compli- cated as you are able to understand. Also, pay particular attention to new vocabu- lary words, including the use of prefixes, suffixes, and roots. Practice determining the meaning of a vocabulary word from its context. Likewise, learn to connect pronoun references to their antecedents. (Part III of this book provides detailed information about connecting pronoun references to their antecedents.) 32 Part II: Analysis of Exam Areas For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org A Patterned Plan of Attack Reading Be familiar with the section’s directions before the test begins. Mark DISMISS DIRECTIONS as soon as the directions appear. SKIM through THE PASSAGE, paying attention to the first sentence of each paragraph. READ the ENTIRE PASSAGE, trying to grasp the overall concept and identify where subtopics are presented. Answer each question slowly and methodically. REFER TO THE READING when necessary. PACE YOURSELF, paying attention to the time and number of questions remaining. If you do not know an answer, GUESS and move on. After you finish the section, if time remains, return to previous questions and REVIEW ANSWERS you were not certain about. 33 Reading Section For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org WRITING SECTION Ability Tested The Writing section measures your ability to write standard English using accu- rate grammar and vocabulary. Basic Skills Necessary To perform well on this section of the TOEFL test, you must be able to write clearly and convincingly, and you must organize the essay well and provide suffi- cient details and examples. What to Expect The Writing section, which is mandatory on the Computer-Based Test, makes up a part of your Structure score. In this section, you’re given a topic and asked to cre- ate an essay. You should organize and write the essay carefully, providing sufficient examples and evidence to support your thesis. Use accurate grammatical structures as well as proper vocabulary. Don’t try to use grammar or vocabulary with which you are not totally familiar. A mistake will cost you points. Rather, write simply and concisely. Complicated grammar and vocabulary are not required. Examples of essays provided by the Educational Testing Service indicate that you don’t need to develop an introductory or closing paragraph in as much detail as you might in a writing class, but you do need to develop the body paragraphs in the essay. Most writing teachers would say that you shouldn’t use a single sentence as an introductory or conclusion paragraph, but for the TOEFL test, one sentence for each is probably sufficient. You have 30 minutes to plan and write the essay. You may hand-write it or type it, but you’re given a computer tutorial regardless of whether you want to write or type your essay. After taking the tutorial, you’re asked a second time whether you want to type or hand-write the essay. The word processor used for the TOEFL test is rudimentary, but it’s not difficult to learn. Make up your mind before you attend the test whether you are going to hand-write or type the essay. You’ll receive scratch paper on which you may organize your thoughts; do not bring your own scratch paper to the test. What you write on your scratch paper doesn’t affect your score in any way, but you do have to leave the paper when you conclude the test. (The test administrators must ensure that you don’t take infor- mation regarding the test with you.) 34 For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org 35 Writing Section All possible writing topics are available in advance both in the TOEFL Bulletin and on the TOEFL Web Site. When you take the test, you receive only one topic; you will not have any options. There are so many possible topics that it’s not worthwhile for you to write essays in advance on every topic. Write several essays prior to taking the test, and try to have some of them scored. If you don’t know a writing instructor who can do this, you may use my Essay Grading Service. You may send an essay by mail along with a check or money or- der payable to TOEFL Preparation Course, LLC. The mailing address is: TOEFL Preparation Course, LLC 1265 West Granada Blvd. Suite 1 Ormond Beach, FL 32174 USA You may also visit www.toeflcourse.com to see whether I have added other possi- ble procedures for submitting essays for grading. The fee for reviewing one essay is $20. If you submit more than one essay at one time, you may deduct $2 per additional essay submitted. (That is, the fee for two essays is $38, for three $56, and so on.) The discount is only applicable for essays submitted together, and it does not matter whether the essays are written by the same student or different students. If you provide an e-mail address, the scoring will be sent to you via e-mail. The essay is critical to your TOEFL test score. It makes up one half of your Structure score. For this reason, you won’t receive a final Structure score immedi- ately after you take the Computer-Based Test. The Structure score cannot be final- ized until your essay is graded, which generally takes up to two weeks. In Part III of this book, you can practice constructing essays for the Writing sec- tion of the test. The following directions are very similar to those that you’ll see during the actual exam: Directions: This section measures your ability to write in standard English, in- cluding your ability to organize ideas and support your thoughts with sufficient examples and evidence. You will be provided one topic and will be given 30 min- utes in which to organize and write the essay. You may make notes on a separate piece of paper. Type or hand-write the essay. How to Prepare for the Writing Section The best way to improve your writing is to read and write as much as possible. Pay attention to what you read and how the author has organized thoughts and supported his or her thesis with details. Likewise, practice writing. Have For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org somebody review your essays by comparing your writing to the TOEFL test crite- ria, as I discuss in detail in Part III. To write a good essay, you must organize your thoughts. Before you write, make an outline showing the major topics that you’ll tackle and the examples that you’ll use to support these topics. You must address the essay question directly. The po- sition that you take in your essay doesn’t matter, but you must answer the ques- tion asked and not get sidetracked. A well developed introduction and conclusion is always helpful but not as important to your TOEFL score as well written body paragraphs. A Patterned Plan of Attack Writing READ THE QUESTION CAREFULLY. Be sure you understand exactly what is being asked, and prepare to answer it. ORGANIZE YOUR THOUGHTS in an outline or other logical way. ADD sufficient DETAILS OR EXAMPLES in the plan for each major topic. PAY ATTENTION TO GRAMMAR. Do not try to make it complicated. Just make sure every sentence is complete and logical. PAY ATTENTION TO VOCABULARY. Do not try to use words if you are not absolutely certain how they should be used. Big words are not necessary to achieve a good score. WRITE CAREFULLY, following the organization of your outline and watching the grammar and vocabulary. PROOFREAD. Make changes as necessary. 36 Part II: Analysis of Exam Areas For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org D D ET ET AI AI LE LE D R D R EVI EVI EW EW O O F F ITE ITE M M S TE S TE STE STE D D PART III For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org 39 LISTENING In this section, you get an overview of the items you should study to be prepared for the Listening section of the TOEFL test. Many grammar items are explained in greater detail in the Structure chapter that follows this one, so be sure to flip to that chapter for more information. This section treats the understanding of gram- mar structures whereas the structure section deals with the formal construction of some of the same items. For many of the items tested in the Listening section, sample questions are provided here that show you what a typical TOEFL test question might look like. If you know an English-speaking person, ask him or her to read these sample questions aloud. Hearing them will help you prepare for the test more effectively than just reading them. Tenses and Time Indicators On the Listening section, it’s important to be able to recognize the different verb tenses. Pay close attention to verb tenses, and watch for words that indicate time, such as after, before, while, when, next, once, and later. Samples Man: I haven’t heard whether John is going on the cruise. Woman: He’d made other arrangements before the cruise was planned. Q. Narrator: What does the woman mean? A. John will attend the cruise. B. John is changing his arrangements. C. John still has to make his plans. D. John is not attending the cruise. The answer is D, “John is not attending the cruise.” The past perfect tense and the word before indicate the time. For more material and information, please visit Tai Lieu Du Hoc at www.tailieuduhoc.org . their antecedents. (Part III of this book provides detailed information about connecting pronoun references to their antecedents.) 32 Part II: Analysis of. check or money or- der payable to TOEFL Preparation Course, LLC. The mailing address is: TOEFL Preparation Course, LLC 1 265 West Granada Blvd. Suite 1 Ormond