How To Prepare For TOEFL Speaking Section?

 The Speaking Section has 2 Types -

• 
  Independent - The first task, consists of an independent speaking task involving students’ own ideas and opinions.
• 
  Integrated - The remaining tasks are integrated ones that require the student to read and listen, and then speak.

TOEFL speaking section is marked on a scale of 0-4 for each task, which is then scaled to a value of 30.

What are the TOEFL Speaking Section Topics?

For the first task, there will be a reading passage of about 75-100 words followed by a 60-80-second listening passage. The student will have to summarize the speaker’s opinion given in the reading passage. The passage will be related to campus-based issues (situations/events related to university/college).

Read more about: TOEFL Syllabus

The next task is related to the academic course. There will be a reading passage of 75-100 words, which broadly defines an academic term, concept or process. This will be followed by a 60-90 seconds lecture excerpt that illustrates the academic topic in the reading passage. The student will have to combine and convey the important information from both, reading passage and lecture excerpt.

The last task is again related to the academic course. There will be a 90-120-second lecture passage about an academic topic with concrete examples to illustrate the topic. The student will be required to summarize the lecture and demonstrate an understanding of the link between the overall topic and the examples.

NOTE -TOEFL Speaking section requires candidates to listen to the question via headphones and speak their answer in a microphone. Since the question is not written down, most students stray off-topic during answering, and this lowers their score considerably. Preparing certain topics beforehand would help you stay on topic and answer as skillfully and correctly as possible. There are 4 tasks, which are to be done in order. It is imperative to keep your headphones on at all times as there will be instructions from the narrator. 

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How To Prepare For TOEFL Speaking Section?

TOEFL Speaking Exercises to Prepare for the Section

General Speaking Activities - General prep for the TOEFL Speaking section involves communicating with your friends and family in English. This would help you in forming a broad understanding of the language by forming your opinion in English or translate it as you speak. Try to learn idiomatic and informal speech by listening to a native English speaker. Focus closely on their expressions, pronunciation, word stress, intonation pattern, and pauses. The more you get used to talking in English, the better your response will be during the exam.

Targeted Preparation -

• 
  Independent Speaking - Independent Task requires the candidate to make or defend a personal choice. To practice for this section, you can make a list of familiar topics - it could be academic or non-academic - and speak about them. Practice speaking about how your day went and what your plans for the next day are.. Describe images more than once using different adjectives, adding more detail each time and try to do it faster. Narrate a story to several people each time aiming for different word-choices. For more fluency, you should prepare certain topics that would require you to collate and present some information to support your opinion. Make recommendations or state your opinions and give a detailed explanation as to why your idea is the best. Repeat your responses to build fluency.

• 
  Integrated Speaking - Integrated Speaking tasks include reading, listening and speaking on campus situations and academic topics. To prepare for the Read/Listen/Speak section, there are some general methods to practice. You can read a newspaper article or listen to a talk on any topic that interests you and form a 1-minute speech on it. Try forming an opinion, think of 2 reasons to support your opinion and 1 reason/detail to support each point. Start by preparing familiar topics and gradually move on to unfamiliar topics. Read English lessons from literature books and try answering questions at the back of the chapter. To practice the Listen/Speak section, you can find listening and reading material on the same topic. The views expressed in both materials can be different. Try preparing separate summaries on both the material or combine the information and explain how they relate. Practice paraphrasing the material in your own words several times using a different grammatical structure each time.

What are the TOEFL Speaking Section Resources to Prepare from?

TOEFL Speaking Practice Questions 

To ace this section, it is important to practice as much as you can. Given below are links to TOEFL sectional practice questions and mock test which you should practice to strengthen your grip over the section -

• 
  https://www.ets.org/toefl/ibt/prepare/free_practice_test
• 
  https://www.ets.org/toefl/ibt/prepare/practice_sets/

How is the TOEFL Speaking Section Scored?

How to Prepare for TOEFL - General Tips

• 
  It is important to start the preparation for the exam well in advance. The TOEFL Exam syllabus is quite vast, and the candidate should start the preparation at least 3 to 6 months in advance.
• 
  Devote time to each section equally. It will be beneficial to set up a time-table to focus on each section. Personalize your time-table. Focus on your weak points.
• 
  Be regular in your practice. Achieving a good TOEFL score will require you to revise and practice the topics regularly. Use high-quality resources to practice.
• 
  Solve as many TOEFL speaking samples as you can. This will help you evaluate your preparation and highlight your weak and strong points.
• 
  Consult teachers/mentors for doubts. Have clarity on basic concepts.

Preparation Tips one Week Before the Exam

• 
  Keep the intensity of your preparation constant.
• 
  Do a mix of mock tests and specific reviews.
• 
  Revise your basic concepts.
• 
  Rest is important. Don’t tire yourself out before the exam.

Points to Keep in Mind During the Exam

1. 
   It is important to be well-rested before the exam.
2. 
   Reach at least 30 minutes before the exam.
3. 
   Read all of the choices in Multiple Choice Questions.
4. 
   Take copious notes for each section.
5. 
   Answer every question. There is no negative marking. So even if you have to guess, there is still a 25% chance of choosing the right answer.

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Conclusion 

To ensure a good TOEFL score, it is essential for students to prepare every section thoroughly. There are no right or wrong answers as it is a subjective section, and therefore, it becomes all the more crucial to practice the Speaking section as much as you can. The difficulty of the question depends on your understanding of the language, your vocabulary, and how correctly you use the grammar. So practice and practice as much as you can.

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