Speaking Practice

On today’s Question & Answer call on Skypecast (my skype names are greg.davis and the.ideal.school), Martin from Slovakia asked about speaking. He wanted to know how to practice speaking English more. Many students take English classes, but they want more practice with their actual production of the language. They can study vocabulary and grammar on their own. They can practice listening to various audio sources on the Internet, on TV, and in movies.

The problem is that they need an English speaker to talk with. Many fluent English speakers are willing to chat, but most of them will not correct your grammar or help you choose more appropriate vocabulary. Most students I work with say they are happiest and get the best results when working with a professional language educator, someone who is trained in teaching foreign languages, who does that for their full-time profession.

You can use the free internet phone service Skype to make free phone calls to other computers all over the world. Now, learners of English have access to fluent English speakers all over the world. Although the phone service is free, you will need to pay the teacher for his/her time with you. In some countries, you have to pay over $100 per hour for private tutoring. Where I live, on the west coast of the United States, the range for someone with a Master’s degree is $25 to $50. People who have a Master’s degree are highly trained professionals who have invested a significant amount of time, energy, and money into their professional education. Tutoring over the Internet is typically less expensive.

How much do students of English as a Foreign Language usually pay for one-on-one tutoring? I would like to hear from you. What is the most you have paid? What is the least you have paid? Have you been satisfied? Explain.

 

Next iBT TOEFL Question and Answer Session

On Monday, March 3, TOEFL Greg will be available for questions about the iBT TOEFL. See sample questions from my earlier post here.

The time for the call is as follows:

PST	EST	Sao Paulo	Frankfurt,Barcelona	Moscow,Riyadh	Bangkok,Jakarta	Beijing,Taipei	Tokyo,Seoul
5:30	8:30	10:30	14:30	16:30	20:30	21:30	22:30

If you do not see your city or country listed, go here to see a more complete listing.

 

3 Areas for Improving TOEFL scores

There are three main areas that you need to focus on if you want to improve your TOEFL score.

1. General language skills

   These skills are reading, writing, speaking, listening, and grammar. Wait a minute? The TOEFL doesn’t test grammar any more. Why do you include grammar? Good question. Grammar is tested on the iBT TOEFL based on how well you communicate in speaking and writing. Without complex grammar and sophisticated vocabulary, you will not get the scores you are trying to get. There are many ways to improve your language skills. The most important thing to remember, however, is to use English every day. There are numerous websites you can go to for listening and reading practice. TOEFL Tip: Search for a listening passage that discusses a similar topic as a reading passage you find to practice the speaking and writing integrated questions.

2. Test-taking strategies

   These are the strategies you use to best approach the questions on the iBT TOEFL. For example, in the Reading section, should you first read the whole reading passage and then answer the questions about it or just begin answering questions? TOEFL Tip: A strategy many students use is to simply begin answering the reading questions without reading the passage since we know that the questions follow the order of the reading passage. When they use this strategy, students find they can answer the questions well even if they don’t ever fully understand the whole reading passage.

3. Time management

   In order to finish all the questions in the time given, you will need to pay attention to the clock on the screen or your own watch (Don’t use your cell phone for a timer!). In the reading section, the 1^st section of the iBT TOEFL, you have 20 minutes to answer 11-13 questions. That is approximately 1 ½ minutes for each question. Some questions will obviously take less time, but you should 3-4 questions in each 5 minute period. Check the clock regularly to make sure you are staying on pace. TOEFL Tip:: Be sure you leave enough time for the last question on each reading passage. It is worth more points, so be sure to give yourself plenty of time to complete it.

Which of these 3 do you or others you know have the most trouble with? Did you already know these TOEFL Tips? Do you have any other TOEFL tips you would like to suggest? Your comments and/or questions are welcome.

 

Introduction to TOEFL Tips

Many international students need to take the TOEFL in order to enter universities in the US. However, students are often confused about this test. What is it? How do I best prepare for it? Can I study by myself? Maybe you have taken the TOEFL and you can’t seem to get a high enough score.

There is a lot of information out there about the TOEFL. In this blog, you will learn about proven tips that help you score higher.