OxIord UnIversIty Press

A Tcachcr's Gudc to TOLIC

Lstcnng and Rcadng Tcst
Prcgarng Your Studcnts for Succcss
Contents
1 Whut Is TOLIC

IIstenIng und ReudIng Test? 1

2 PrepurIng Students Ior TOLIC

IIstenIng und ReudIng Test 5

3 TeuchIng the Iessons 11
4 TOLIC

IIstenIng und ReudIng Test IAQs 22

AppendIx
Test StrutegIes 25
ReIerences 26
OxIord UnIversIty Press, 2007
AII test questIon exumpIes ure tuken Irom 1ac!ics jur 10llC

lis!cnin an kcain 1cs!,

OxIord UnIversIty Press, 2007.
1
lntroduction
The Test oI LngIIsh Ior InternutIonuI CommunIcutIon [TOLIC

), IIstenIng und ReudIng Test

Is used to ussess non-nutIve LngIIsh proIIcIency und Is currentIy used In muny countrIes us u
stundurd meusure oI LngIIsh ubIIIty. Lven Ior teuchers wIth muny yeurs experIence, teuchIng test
prepurutIon courses Ior the IIrst tIme cun be u duuntIng experIence. UnIIke generuI conversutIon,
wrItIng, or busIness courses, the thIngs thut need to be tuught und, to u Iurge extent how they
ure tuught, depend IurgeIy on the content oI the test und the wuy It Is ussessed. UnderstundIng oI
student motIvutIon, course Iormuts, Iesson procedures, und even the questIon oI whut to Iook Ior
In u course book ure uII IIkeIy to be new und unknown terrItory.
ThIs guIde wIII Iook ut whut the TOLIC test Is, whut It Is used Ior, und how It Is chungIng. More
ImportuntIy, It wIII exumIne how to pIun u course, how to choose upproprIute study muterIuIs,
und how to prepure students to succeed on the test. II you ure new to TOLIC teuchIng, thIs
guIde uIms to unswer your questIons und respond to your concerns. More experIenced
teuchers wIII hopeIuIIy IInd It useIuI us u resource oI Iresh Ideus und upprouches Ior provIdIng
eIIectIve Iessons.
1 What is IOElC

Listening and Reading Iest?

Background
LducutIonuI TestIng ServIce [LTS) begun deveIopIng the TOLIC test In 197S us u wuy oI meusurIng
the communIcutIve ubIIIty oI busIness peopIe. TheIr IntentIon wus thut the test:

Assess everyduy LngIIsh us used In u workIng envIronment

Be eusy to udmInIster

AIIow Iurge numbers oI test tukers to purtIcIpute In u mInImum oI tIme

RequIre no specIIIc prepurutIon

The IIrst TOLIC test wus udmInIstered In December 1979 und wus tuken by 2,773 peopIe. The
uveruge score wus 57S. SInce those eurIy duys the test hus seen u drumutIc Increuse In test tuker
numbers. It Is currentIy used In over 60 countrIes und tuken by more thun 4.5 mIIIIon peopIe
per yeur.
Lvery yeur, u greut deuI oI Investment goes Into test Item creutIon, pIIotIng, und unuIysIs. The
resuIts oI euch test sIttIng ure stutIstIcuIIy unuIyzed und ud]usted to ensure consIstent scores
between sIttIngs.
IOElC

Listening and Reading Iest: Iest details

TOLIC IIstenIng und ReudIng Test consIsts oI 200 muItIpIe-choIce questIons dIvIded between
Iour IIstenIng und three reudIng purts und tukes two hours to compIete. The test Is puper-bused,
wIth students usIng u pencII to murk theIr unswers on u specIuI muchIne-reudubIe unswer
sheet.
In Muy 2006 LTS mude the IIrst sIgnIIIcunt chunge to the test sInce Its IntroductIon. LTS
PresIdent und CLO Kurt IundgruI noted thut...
...u decude oI LTS reseurch on the LngIIsh Iunguuge und how peopIe communIcute In
pructIcuI, everyduy cIrcumstunces hus conIIrmed the need Ior ussessments thut reIIect
more uuthentIc tusks such us those encountered In the gIobuI busIness envIronment. ThIs
new TOLIC test wIII muke the exum even more vuIuubIe to the thousunds oI orgunIzutIons
worIdwIde thut uIreudy reIy on the test to meusure proIIcIency In busIness LngIIsh.
[LTS press reIeuse, December 2005)
TesI sIrucIure and Iiming (oId and nev versions)
AIthough the overuII tImIng und number oI test purts und questIons remuIns unchunged,
some sIgnIIIcunt uIterutIons huve been mude to the IndIvIduuI test purts.
2
Part
Llstenlng 5ectlen (45 mlnutes)
OId name New name
OId
number of
questions
New
number of
questions
Changes
1 Photographs Photographs 20 10 Palf the number of questions.
2 uestionResponse uestionResponse 30 30 No ohange.
3 3hort Conversations Conversations 30 30
3ome oonversations are
longer and eaoh features 3
questions rather than 1.
4 3hort 1alks 1alks 20 30
10 more questions. 3ome
talks are longer. 10 talks with
3 questions eaoh.
Readlng 5ectlen (15 mlnutes)
5 lnoomplete 3entenoes lnoomplete 3entenoes 40 40 No ohange.
6 Lrror Reoognition 1ext Completion 20 12
New part features questions
similar to Part 5, but within
a oontext. 12 questions: 3
reading texts with 4 questions
eaoh.
7
Reading
Comprehension
Reading
Comprehension
(single and double
passages)
40
28 based on
single passages
20 based on
double passages
New questions based on
double passages. 3ome texts
are longer.
3
TesI scoring
The test Is scored Irom 10 to 990 und there Is no puss or IuII murk. The IoIIowIng churt
showIng the upproxImute correIutIon between TOLIC scores und IeveIs oI ubIIIty Is bused
on LTS reseurch. It Is Intended to heIp orgunIzutIons set theIr own stundurds.
A
B
730
C
D
E
TOEIC
Score
LeveI
860
220
470
Can usually oommunioate
adequately as a nonnative
speaker.
within his/her own realm of experienoe, the individual is oapable
of suffioient understanding and oan typioally respond with
appropriate expressions even about topios outside his/her field of
speoialization.
Although speeoh is not equivalent to that of a native speaker,
the individual has a strong grasp of vooabulary, grammar, and
struoture and the ability to use the language relatively fluently.
EvaIuation GuideIines
ls oapable of oommunioating
appropriately in most
situations.
understands ordinary oonversation well and oan respond
naturally. 1he individual also has the ability to respond in some
fashion, even when the topio relates to speoialized fields. 1here
are typioally no great barriers to oommunioating in usual business
situations.
while grammatioal and struotural mistakes sometimes ooour
and some isolated disparities exist in terms of oorreotness and
fluenoy, they are not so frequent that speeoh is misunderstood.
Can understand the gist of ordinary oonversation and has no
trouble forming responses. Powever, the individual shows some
disparities in the ability to respond oorreotly and making himself/
herself understood in more oomplioated situations.
1he individual has aoquired a fundamental knowledge of
grammar and struoture and has the vooabulary to oommunioate
essential information, even when laoking expressive power.
Pas suffioient knowledge
for daily aotivities and
oonduoting business within
oertain limits.
ls oapable of the minimal
oommunioation in ordinary
oonversation.
Can understand simple oonversations when the other party
speaks slowly and repeats or rephrases what is said. ls oapable
of responding to familiar topios.
Knowledge of vooabulary, grammar, and struoture is generally
inadequate. Powever, if the other party is used to dealing with
nonnative speakers, the individual oan manage to get a point
aoross.
Lven simple oonversation at a slow paoe is only partially
understood.
ls able to oommunioate with isolated phrases but not in full,
grammatioally oorreot sentenoes and does not effeotively serve to
make himself/herself understood.
ls not able to oommunioate
adequately.
[www. toeIc.or.]p)
Who Iakes Ihe IesI?
SInce Its reIutIveIy humbIe begInnIngs In 1979, test tuker numbers huve steudIIy Increused
und toduy the TOLIC test Is one oI the most common InternutIonuIIy recognIzed LngIIsh
proIIcIency exums In the worId. The reuson Ior thIs Is thut TOLIC Is IncreusIngIy beIng seen
us u reIIubIe stundurd meusure Ior mukIng both empIoyment und ucudemIc decIsIons.
Busncss tcst takcrs - An IncreusIng number oI compunIes worIdwIde use the TOLIC to set
turgets Ior LngIIsh proIIcIency Ior the purposes oI hIrIng new workers, trunsIers to dIIIerent
compunIes, or Ior promotIon to munugement posItIons. ThIs Is especIuIIy true oI Iurge
muItInutIonuI corporutIons, or compunIes thut export theIr products InternutIonuIIy.
AIthough euch compuny sets Its own score requIrements, u survey oI score requIrements oI
u runge oI mu]or InternutIonuI compunIes shows the IoIIowIng runges to be typIcuI.
Acadcmc tcst takcrs - AIthough orIgInuIIy uImed ut LngIIsh use wIthIn u busIness
context, TOLIC IIstenIng und ReudIng Test Is IncreusIngIy beIng used wIthIn ucudemIc
contexts. In ]upun, u sIgnIIIcunt proportIon oI the unIversItIes und coIIeges surveyed used
the test Ior purposes oI uccredItutIon, course pIucement, und meusurIng progress wIthIn u
currIcuIum. A growIng number oI unIversItIes uround the worId huve udopted TOLIC us u
wuy oI screenIng cundIdutes Ior theIr gruduute progrums, especIuIIy In the IIeIds oI busIness
or InternutIonuI studIes. In some InstItutIons cundIdutes who uchIeve hIgh TOLIC scores uIso
eurn the rIght to be recommended Ior schoIurshIps or Ior specIuI certIIIcutIon.
At Sungkyunkwun UnIversIty In Koreu, Ior exumpIe, cundIdutes who score 900 poInts or
more ure certIIIed us huvIng outstundIng InternutIonuI uwureness" und eurn the rIght to
be recommended Ior schoIurshIps. In ]upun, u sIgnIIIcunt proportIon oI the unIversItIes
und coIIeges surveyed used the test Ior purposes oI uccredItutIon. Other uses IncIuded
course pIucement und meusurIng progress wIthIn u currIcuIum. The UnIversIty oI the ThuI
Chumber oI Commerce In ThuIIund hus udopted TOLIC us u wuy oI screenIng cundIdutes Ior
theIr MBA progrum. PrInce oI SongkhIu UnIversIty, uIso In ThuIIund, hus set u prerequIsIte
TOLIC score Ior receIvIng credIts In Its hoteI und tourIsm progrum.
TesI !ormaIs. 5P and IP
There ure two muIn Iormuts to the TOLIC test, the Secure Progrum [SP) und the InstItutIonuI
Progrum [IP). The dIIIerences between these reIute prImurIIy to the wuy they ure udmInIstered.
Sccurc Program [SP) - ThIs Is the stundurd und most common Iorm oI the test. SP tests ure
udmInIstered dIrectIy by the TOLIC SteerIng CommIttee or theIr IocuI representutIves.
4
lnternational hotel bartender/food staff 300 400
Airline flight attendant 600 700
Promotion to seotion ohief 600 730
Assignment to overseas offioes 650 750
Lxeoutive managers 800+
5
InsttutonaI Program [IP) - IP tests ure not udmInIstered uccordIng to the terms und
condItIons specIIIed by the TOLIC SteerIng CommIttee, but by IndIvIduuI compunIes und
schooIs on duys und ut IocutIons decIded by the InstItutIons thut conduct them. Score resuIts
ure usuuIIy reported to the InstItutIon wIthIn IIve workIng duys oI receIpt oI the unswer sheets.
IP tests ure generuIIy used Ior ussessment oI new empIoyees, us u pIucement test Ior In-compuny
LngIIsh Iessons or Ior seII-deveIopment.
TOEIC ridge

The TOLIC BrIdge test uIms to provIde un eusIer, shorter versIon oI the stundurd TOLIC test
to be used...
...us u IIrst step Ior those who ure ubout to cIImb the stuIrwuy to hIgher LngIIsh proIIcIency
wIth the eventuuI uIm oI tukIng the TOLIC test, or us u motIvutor Ior those who huve
uIreudy tuken the TOLIC test but huve yet to uchIeve u sutIsIuctory score.
[www.toeIc.or.]p)
It Is uImed prImurIIy ut ]unIorjsenIor hIgh schooI, coIIegejunIversIty students und uny other
test tukers oI begInner to pre-IntermedIute IeveI who wouId score under 450 poInts on the
reguIur TOLIC test [IeveIs D und L on the TOLIC proIIcIency scuIe). ThIs roughIy equutes to
the score oI the uveruge unIversIty gruduute enterIng the workIorce.
AppIying !or TOEIC

LisIening and eading TesI

IndIvIduuI uppIIcutIons cun be mude onIIne, by muIIIng un uppIIcutIon Iorm, or ut desIgnuted
convenIence stores. The test resuIts ure muIIed to the exumInee In the Iorm oI un OIIIcIuI
Score CertIIIcute.
2 Preparing 5tudents for IOElC

Listening and Reading Iest

Muny oI our students ure studyIng Ior the TOLIC test becuuse they huve u very reuI need to
Improve theIr scores. GettIng thut 650 score cun meun u trunsIer to the New York oIIIce or u
promotIon. The concrete puyoIIs thut cun resuIt Irom u sIzeubIe Improvement meuns thut TOLIC
students cun be some oI the most motIvuted Ieurners we ever encounter. WhIIe thIs meuns
teuchIng TOLIC cIusses cun be un engugIng und rewurdIng experIence, there Is uIso u heuvy
burden oI responsIbIIIty. The quuIIty und eIIectIveness oI our Iessons dIrectIy Impucts the IIves
und cureers oI the students. Ior thIs reuson, It Is essentIuI thut TOLIC Instructors:

Are ubIe to heIp students set reusonubIe gouIs Ior themseIves

Huve u good understundIng oI whut students need to deveIop In order to Improve theIr scores

Are ubIe to desIgn u course thut wIII muke eIIectIve use oI the uvuIIubIe study tIme

Use theIr knowIedge oI the test to heIp students overcome the chuIIenges resuItIng Irom the test desIgn

ProvIde concrete strutegIes Ior hundIIng euch IndIvIduuI purt oI the test

GIve guIdunce und support on how to deveIop LngIIsh skIIIs und knowIedge outsIde oI cIuss
5etting realistic goals
TOLIC students oIten huve u very cIeur Ideu oI exuctIy whut they wunt to uchIeve. However,
Iuck oI reuIIstIc expectutIons Is one oI the bIggest probIems IucIng TOLIC cundIdutes. Muny
ure under the ImpressIon thut IIke the exums they Iuced In hIgh schooI und coIIege, u short
IntensIve crum sessIon cun deIIver the push they need to uchIeve theIr score turget.
Such students ure In Ior u shock. In u Iurge-scuIe study oI students In courses oI study over 200
hours the uveruge guIn wus ]ust 110 poInts [Suegusu 19S5). The churt beIow shows u rough
estImute oI the uveruge number oI hours oI study tIme necessury to ruIse u student`s current
score to u gIven turget IeveI:
1arget soore
200 425 700 950 1150 1450 1750 250
350 450 550 650 750 850 950
Uurrent
soore
225 450 700 950 1225 1550 350
225 450 700 975 1300 450
225 450 725 1050 550
225 500 825 650
275 600 750
325 850
[TubIe udupted Irom Suegusu 19S5)
UnIIke coIIege exums, the TOLIC test doesn`t meusure knowIedge oI u Iew key topIcs or sub]ect
ureus. DoIng weII demunds un extensIve vocubuIury [LngIIsh hus over 600,000 non-technIcuI
words excIudIng IdIoms, phruses, und coIIocutIons), hIghIy-deveIoped IIstenIng skIIIs, und u
soIId grummutIcuI modeI. To muke mu]or guIns on the test u student must deveIop theIr overuII
knowIedge oI LngIIsh. There ure no trIcks, secrets, or shortcuts. HeIpIng students upprecIute the
mugnItude oI the chuIIenge Is one oI your mu]or responsIbIIItIes us u TOLIC teucher.
5tudent needs
The IIrst step In heIpIng students Improve theIr scores Is understundIng the chuIIenges thut the
TOLIC test presents. ThIs knowIedge Is essentIuI not onIy In pIunnIng und runnIng your Iessons,
but uIso In heIpIng you seIect the most eIIectIve textbook Ior your course.
TesI Iaking skiIIs

IamIarty wth thc tcst format, nstructons, and gucston tygcs - AIthough uII the
InstructIons ure prInted und exempIIIIed ut the sturt oI euch test purt, IumIIIurIty wIth these
wIII heIp the test tuker uvoId conIusIon on test duy.

Tmc managcmcnt - The tIght tImIngs oI the TOLIC test ure one oI the most chuIIengIng
Iuctors Ior muny Ieurners. In the ReudIng SectIon, students not uccustomed to deuIIng wIth
Iong texts In u short tIme oIten huve dIIIIcuIty compIetIng uII the questIons. LncourugIng
students to monItor theIr tIme cureIuIIy und teuchIng skIIIs such us skImmIng [quIck reudIng
to get u generuI Ideu) und scunnIng [quIck reudIng to pIck out specIIIc detuIIs) cun heIp students
budget theIr tIme eIIectIveIy und uIIow them to uIIocute more tIme to those pIuces wIth the
best potentIuI score puyoII.
6
7

Lffccncy of nformaton groccssng - The Iengthy IIstenIng und reudIng pussuges muke
It essentIuI thut students ure ubIe to reud und IIsten eIIIcIentIy. Wuys oI doIng thIs IncIude
prevIewIng the questIons und unswer choIces beIore IIstenIng or reudIng to uIIow them to
predIct whut they wIII heurjsee und Iocus theIr uttentIon onIy on whut Is needed to unswer the
questIon.

Awarcncss of fcaturcs that can makc ncorrcct answcr choccs attractvc - As wIth
uny muItIpIe-choIce test, Incorrect unswer choIces thut ure In some wuy uttructIve to Ieurners ure
IncIuded. BeIng uwure oI the common Iorms these 'dIstructers` tuke wIII enubIe students to uvoId
them und choose the rIght unswer.
LinguisIic skiIIs

IamIarty wth thc dffcrcnt natvc sgcakng acccnts - The IIstenIng SectIon oI the
TOLIC test IncIudes US, CunudIun, BrItIsh, und AustruIIun speukers. Muny students deveIop u
bIus Ior u gIven vurIety oI LngIIsh und huve dIIIIcuIty understundIng speukers wIth other uccents. To
overcome thIs It Is Importunt thut students be exposed to u vurIety oI LngIIsh uccents.

Awarcncss of thc sound changcs that occur n naturaI LngIsh sgccch - Muny Ieurners
ure unuwure thut the sound oI words spoken In nuturuI conversutIon cun dIIIer drumutIcuIIy
Irom words spoken In IsoIutIon [e.g. uin !u und unna). In the pust, students muy huve hud
Instructors who shIeIded them Irom exposure to such nuturuI Iunguuge on the grounds
thut It wus onIy suItubIe Ior udvunced Ieurners or even thut It wus representutIve oI sIung or
'Iuzy` LngIIsh. ThIs hus Ied to Ieurners who huve IIttIe dIIIIcuIty In understundIng whut theIr
Instructors suy In the cIussroom but IInd It very hurd to IoIIow nuturuI conversutIon. HeIpIng
students become uwure oI the wuys thut sounds ure combIned, dropped, und chunged In
nuturuI speech cun sIgnIIIcuntIy Improve theIr IIstenIng comprehensIon, both Ior the TOLIC
test und In the reuI worId.

Undcrstandng Ianguagc n usc [convcrsatonaI LngIsh) - The LngIIsh used In the TOLIC
test reIIects everyduy usuge us encountered In oIIIces, shops, und on the street In LngIIsh
speukIng envIronments uround the worId. In the test thIs Is uppurent In the use oI nuturuI
responses In the IIstenIng SectIon thut muy ut IIrst seem grummutIcuIIy unreIuted to the
questIon the speuker usks. Here`s un exumpIe Irom Purt 2:
Q. 'Huw many pcuplc applic jur !hc salcs pusi!iun?`
A. '\cll, wc havcn`! rcccivc as many rcsumcs as wc wan!c.`
In order to do weII on the test students must be gIven exposure to LngIIsh us It Is reuIIy used.

VocabuIary and grammatcaI undcrstandng - Success on the TOLIC test requIres un

extensIve runge oI vocubuIury und knowIedge oI how these words chunge und ure orgunIzed
grummutIcuIIy. VocubuIury Is urguubIy the sIngIe most sIgnIIIcunt Iuctor In doIng weII on the
test, und uny eIIectIve study progrum shouId IncIude un orgunIzed system Ior notIng und
revIewIng words und phruses thut students encounter us they study [see 'BuIIdIng VocubuIury`
[p. 20) Ior more Ideus).
5electing an appropriate textbook
The choIce oI course muterIuIs wIII huve u mu]or Impuct on the overuII eIIectIveness oI the
course und the umount oI uddItIonuI work requIred Irom you. II you ure responsIbIe Ior textbook
seIectIon In your schooI, consIder the IoIIowIng:
Coursc duraton vs. amount of tcxt matcraI - Try to choose u textbook thut contuIns
roughIy the umount oI muterIuI requIred Ior your course.
Studcnt abIty vs. tcxt dffcuIty - As wIth uny course, choosIng muterIuIs upproprIute Ior
your students` IeveI Is un Importunt Iuctor In course success. Muny TOLIC texts ure uImed ut u set
student score runge und you shouId generuIIy uIm Ior the cIosest mutch possIbIe. Be uwure thut
some textbooks uImed ut Iow-IeveI students uIm to be IeveI upproprIute by sImpIIIyIng the pructIce
test muterIuI. Though thIs wIII deIInIteIy muke the Iessons eusIer Ior you und the students,
you muy be doIng your students u dIsservIce by tukIng thIs upprouch. Students who study wIth
sImpIIIIed test-styIe questIons und pructIce tests cun be overwheImed when they tuke the reuI test.
IuIIure to pructIce wIth uuthentIc reudIngjIIstenIng texts wIII hInder the deveIopment oI tIme
munugement und test tukIng skIIIs requIred on the duy. Iurthermore, Iuck oI exposure to the IeveI
und type oI vocubuIury uctuuIIy requIred by the test wIII prevent students deveIopIng the Iunguuge
stocks they requIre. It Is strongIy recommended thut you choose muterIuIs thut provIde scuIIoIded
strutegy exercIses upproprIute Ior your students` IeveI, but onIy use muterIuIs Ior test condItIon
pructIce thut reIIect the exercIses used In the reuI test.
Tcxt contcnt vs. studcnt nccds - The test tukIng und IInguIstIc skIIIs outIIned In 'Student needs`
[pp. 6-7) shouId uII receIve umpIe coveruge: use them us u 'shoppIng IIst` when choosIng your
textbook. As uII oI those Iuctors wIII pIuy u purt In your students` success, you wIII huve to provIde
uny mIssIng eIement yourseII. ApproprIute textbook choIce cun suve you u Iot oI extru work.
Designing a course
II your InstItutIon does not huve u pre-set course oI study Ior TOLIC, course desIgn Is the IIrst Issue
you must Iuce. UnIess you ure teuchIng u Iong-term IntensIve course, you wIII huve to muke some
decIsIons ubout whut thIngs to cover. II you don`t pIun uheud, you muy IInd thut you huve one week
IeIt In the course und huven`t covered Purt 7 or thut your students huve Iorgotten the test purts
they covered months eurIIer. To uvoId probIems IIke thIs, you need to desIgn u course outIIne thut
dIstrIbutes the uvuIIubIe Iesson tIme upproprIuteIy und eIIectIveIy recycIes und revIews the key poInts.
LIIectIve TOLIC courses generuIIy consIst oI 2 muIn purts:
Thc Icsson comgoncnt - ThIs Is the content the student uctuuIIy studIes In cIuss. Iesson tIme
shouId be spent on ruIsIng the student`s uwureness oI the Ieutures oI the test, deveIopIng theIr
test tukIng strutegIes, buIIdIng reIevunt Iunguuge skIIIs, und gIvIng them pructIce oI the types oI
questIons they wIII encounter.
Thc homcwork comgoncnt - In most TOLIC cIusses the number oI Iesson hours uvuIIubIe
IuIIs Iur short oI the umount oI tIme thut our estImutes In 'SettIng reuIIstIc gouIs` [p. 5) IndIcute
Is necessury. II students wIsh to huve u chunce oI uchIevIng score guIns oI over 50 poInts, they
wIII need to suppIement the In-cIuss work wIth uddItIonuI pructIce ut home. As un Instructor or
teucher It Is Importunt thut you guIde them towurds uctIvItIes Iocused on deveIopIng the skIIIs
und knowIedge they wIII need.
One Importunt thIng to keep In mInd when choosIng homework ussIgnments, especIuIIy Ior
Iurger cIusses, Is thut whutever you ussIgn wIII requIre IoIIow-up II It Is to be oI uny use. UnIess
you pIun on spendIng Iurge umounts oI tIme correctIng homework, It Is udvIsubIe to ussIgn
tusks thut cun be seII-murked or uIIow Ior peer correctIon.
S
5hort courses
In cIusses oI under ubout 30 hours It Is crucIuI to uIIocute course tIme In u wuy thut ensures the
muxImum beneIIt Ior students. WIth sIngIe student or smuII cIusses the best wuy to uchIeve
thIs Is to huve students tuke u dIugnostIc test beIore the sturt oI the course to IdentIIy the test
purts they experIence most dIIIIcuIty wIth und uIIocute Iesson tIme proportIonuIIy. In courses oI
more thun u Iew students or where u pre-course dIugnostIc test Is not un optIon, the IoIIowIng
generIc dIstrIbutIon Is recommended:
Suggested Iesson uIIocutIon [In order oI prIorIty)
Long courses
II the durutIon oI the course Is between 30 und 50 hours, u typIcuI textbook shouId usuuIIy
provIde enough muterIuI. You shouId be ubIe to sturt ut the begInnIng oI the book und work
your wuy rIght through.
Courses oI more thun 50 hours wIII requIre suppIementury muterIuI. II you ure onIy short by 10-
15 Iessons worth oI muterIuI, one optIon Is to use uddItIonuI pructIce tests thut cun be purchused
9

Reading Part 7
1his is a part that most students struggle with. 3tudy time
invested here oan pay big dividends.
Listening Part 4
Also a major ohallenge for many students.
lt only reoeives less time than Part 7 beoause it has 18 less
questions.
Listening Part 3
Listening Part 2
ln spite of the faot that this part is quite ohallenging and aooounts
for almost a third of the points in the Listening 3eotion, it is not
very teaohable. 1he absenoe of written questions or answer
ohoioes means that suooess depends almost entirely on having
highly developed listening skills. 1he need to allooate preoious
lesson hours where they oan bring the greatest point reward
plaoes this fairly low on the time allooation list.
1he faot that these parts are so similar in oontent in the new
test format allows us to deal with them as a single large seotion.
3uooess in these two seotions is based entirely on the depth and
aoouraoy of the oandidate's internal knowledge of the vooabulary,
struoture, and usage of Lnglish. ln oourses where lesson time
is at a premium the majority of work on these seotions may be
assigned as homework.
Reading Part 5
Reading Part 6
0enerally oonsidered one of the easiest parts of the Listening
3eotion. 3inoe the number of questions in the new format has
been reduoed to only ten it is diffioult to justify spending a
signifioant amount of olass time here unless you are teaohing a
partioularly long oourse.
Listening Part 1
1he stimuli in this seotion are slightly shorter than those in Part 4.
1he same basio strategies apply to both Parts 3 and 4, so in
shorter oourses study of these Parts oan be oombined.
IndIvIduuIIy or In pucks. One test cun be dIvIded Into bIocks oI 10-20 Items euch tuken Irom u
purtIcuIur purt. Ior exumpIe:
Purt 1: 1 bIock [Qs 1-10)
Purt 2: 2 bIocks [Qs 11-25 und Qs 26-40)
Purt 3: 2 bIocks [Qs 41-55 und Qs 56-70)
Purt 4: 2 bIocks [Qs 71-S5 und Qs S6-100)
Purt 5: 2 bIocks [Qs 101-120 und Qs 121-140)
Purt 6: 1 bIock [Qs 141-152)
Purt 7: 2 bIocks SIngIe pussuges [Qs 153-166 und Qs 167-1S0)
1 bIock DoubIe pussuges [Qs 1S1-200)
Luch bIock cun provIde up to 30 mInutes oI muterIuI Ior use In revIewIng specIIIc purts oI
the test. A suggested wuy oI usIng these bIocks Is to uIIocute them to your course scheduIe ut
reguIur IntervuIs, und use us IoIIows:

Do u quIck overvIew oI the test strutegIes und technIques you huve covered up to thut poInt Ior
the test purt you huve chosen to revIew.

Huve your students compIete the bIock oI questIons you huve seIected usIng the sume tImIngs us the
uctuuI test.

Use the remuInIng tIme to go through theIr unswers, gIve Ieedbuck und expIuIn uny Items they got
wrong, expIuIn und huve them note uny vocubuIury Items thut cuused probIems, und conIIrm thut
they used the test strutegIes you huve covered.
II you ure short by more thun 15 hours oI muterIuI, you muy huve no choIce other thun to seIect
un uddItIonuI textbook. In thIs cuse, uppIy the sume crIterIu used Ior seIectIng the InItIuI text.
Deciding the lesson order
Textbooks typIcuIIy sturt wIth u bIock oI unIts on Purt 1 oI the test, move on to Purt 2, und so on
through to Purt 7. The probIem here Is thut by the tIme students reuch the end oI the course It
muy huve been severuI months sInce they suw or heurd unythIng ubout the eurIIer purts oI the
IIstenIng SectIon. AII those greut strutegIes you tuught them on deuIIng wIth Purts 1-3 huve been
Iorgotten. Ior thIs reuson, It Is recommended thut you Iocus on test purts In cycIIcuI rotutIon,
wIth euch succeedIng Iesson Iocused on u dIIIerent purt oI the test.
Ior exumpIe, the IIrst ten Iessons Ior u course oI Iower ubIIIty students [TOLIC 400 und beIow)
mIght progress IIke thIs:
10

1 Part 7 6 Part 6
2 Part 4 7 Part 1
3 Part 3 8 Part 7
4 Part 2 9 Part 4
5 Part 5 10 Part 3
11
3 Ieaching the Lessons
AssumIng you now huve u busIc course pIun und u textbook, you ure reudy to get In the cIuss und
sturt heIpIng your students Improve theIr scores. II you ure new to teuchIng TOLIC prepurutIon
courses, one thIng you wIII notIce ImmedIuteIy Is thut the uveruge TOLIC textbook Iooks very
dIIIerent Irom unythIng you muy huve used beIore In generuI or busIness LngIIsh courses. The
nuture oI the TOLIC test und the type oI tusks It requIres meuns thut the Iesson Iormut wIII uIso
dIIIer sIgnIIIcuntIy Irom thut oI reguIur cIusses.
In thIs sectIon we Iook ut the key eIements oI un eIIectIve TOLIC course us weII us specIIIc
technIques und upprouches Ior euch purt oI the test.
Classroom dynamics: Ieaching IOElC

Listening and Reading Iest interactively

The usuuI vIew oI TOLIC Iessons Is thut they huve to be tIght und controIIed. TrudItIonuI study
muterIuI, wIth Iengthy expIunutIons und puges oI muItIpIe-choIce questIons, reInIorces thIs vIew.
However, the thIngs we need to uccompIIsh to heIp our students do weII In the test ure not thut
dIIIerent Irom the uIms oI uny Iunguuge cIuss: deveIop uctIve und pructIcuI reudIng und IIstenIng
skIIIs, ruIse student uwureness oI nuturuI LngIIsh usuge, buIId vocubuIury, etc. It mukes sense thut
the technIques thut prove eIIectIve In other sorts oI cIusses be pressed Into servIce here: puIr und
smuII group work to compIete Iunguuge tusks, compurIng unswers, specuIutIng on the possIbIe
contents oI upcomIng IIstenIng tusks [bused upon the unswer choIces provIded), und peer
expIunutIon oI vocubuIury und expressIons.
AIthough It muy ut IIrst seem strunge to use speukIng und dIscussIon work to prepure Ior u test
thut Is restrIcted to receptIve skIIIs [IIstenIng und reudIng), the bottom IIne here Is thut we wunt
students to retuIn u number oI technIques und Ieurn u Iurge quuntIty oI vocubuIury. The best wuy
to do thIs Is to huve the students Interuct wIth the technIques und Iunguuge In us muny wuys
us possIbIe. OruI productIon und the types oI InteructIon common to group work, though not
dIrectIy tested, ure nuturuI und powerIuI wuys to pructIce und reInIorce the key InIormutIon und
skIIIs students wIII need In order to do weII on the TOLIC.
Nixed-ability classes
In u corporute envIronment, TOLIC cIusses ure oIten grouped by student uvuIIubIIIty ut u gIven
tIme, ruther thun by IeveI. AIthough thIs does ruIse some Issues, It Is much Iess oI u probIem
thun Ior sImIIurIy grouped cIusses Iocused on conversutIon. Test tukIng Is by nuture un IndIvIduuI
uctIvIty und Iower ubIIIty students wIII rureIy expect to perIorm us weII us theIr hIgher ubIIIty
cIussmutes on pructIce tests und uctIvItIes. But they wIII expect to huve un equuI opportunIty to
purtIcIpute In the Iesson, und It Is the teucher`s responsIbIIIty to ensure thIs expectutIon Is met.
Teuchers shouId consIder the IoIIowIng eIements:

Task sct-ug and montorng - In mIxed-ubIIIty cIusses you huve to tuIIor your InstructIons to
the Iowest common denomInutor us It Is essentIuI thut every student understunds whut they ure
expected to do. In uddItIon to oruI InstructIons It Is u good Ideu to demonstrute the tusk wIth u
stronger student. Lven then, do not ussume thut weuker students huve understood. AIter your set-
up, move uround the cIuss monItorIng to ensure thut the Iess ubIe students ure uctuuIIy doIng whut
you Intended.

Actvty tmng - Students oI dIIIerIng ubIIIty wIII compIete tusks ut dIIIerent tImes. Prepure
contIngency uctIvItIes Ior those who IInIsh eurIy. MonItor cIuss progress cureIuIIy und when the
top 20x oI your cIuss ure upprouchIng compIetIon, throw out un extru tusk: 'II you IInIsh eurIy,
wrIte one more questIon.`

Grougng and groug actvtcs - Try to puIr weuker und stronger students together to compIete
u tusk. StudIes huve shown thut In such mIxed puIrIngs, both the weuker und stronger student
communIcutes more thun II puIred wIth u sImIIur IeveI purtner. ThIs tuctIc cun uIso reduce the
probIem oI students IInIshIng un uctIvIty ut dIIIerent tImes.

Iccdback - There ure two muIn wuys to conIIrm student unswers und theIr success ut u tusk. The
most controIIed method InvoIves the teucher movIng uround the room monItorIng progress und
notIng poInts Ior Ieedbuck, then uIter the tusk hus been compIeted, reudIng out the unswers und
gIvIng u summury to the cIuss oI some oI the poInts noted eurIIer. Another upprouch Is to huve
students dIscuss und compure theIr unswers In mIxed-ubIIIty puIrs IIrst, then Ior the teucher to
request unswers Irom the puIrs und conIIrm.

Homcwork [and grcgaraton assgnmcnts for wcakcr studcnts) - In some cuses the
dIspurIty In ubIIItIes Ieuves some students reuIIy struggIIng. One possIbIIIty Is to encouruge these
students to reud uheud In the book und pre-Ieurn vocubuIury. Some teuchers muy worry ubout
students unswerIng IIstenIng questIons beIore they huve been used In cIuss. Remember thut the
teucher`s roIe Is not to test the students but to teuch them und heIp them prepure. II students ure
struggIIng In the cIuss, It sups motIvutIon und seII-esteem und thIs In turn hus u detrImentuI eIIect
on theIr ubIIIty to ucquIre the strutegIes und Iunguuge requIred In the test. II weuker students reud
uheud und Ieurn some useIuI vocubuIury In udvunce they wIII be more comIortubIe und productIve
durIng the cIuss. In my opInIon, thIs Is weII worth the trude-oII thut they muy huve u sIIght
udvuntuge durIng u cIuss IIstenIng pructIce.
Lesson conIenI
We huve Iooked ut the vurIous test tukIng und IInguIstIc skIIIs thut students requIre to do weII
on the TOLIC test. ThIs vurIety oI skIIIs requIres un equuIIy vurIed set oI Iesson eIements und
teuchIng technIques.
5IraIegy PracIice
ThIs Iesson eIement Iocuses on deveIopIng the test tukIng skIIIs und strutegIes necessury
to tuckIe the test eIIectIveIy und eIIIcIentIy. BusIcuIIy, strutegy pructIce consIsts oI mukIng
students uwure oI the exuct steps they shouId IoIIow every tIme they do u purtIcuIur questIon
type, und huvIng them pructIce these steps untII the process becomes hubItuuI.
By reInIorcIng busIc but eIIectIve strutegIes you cun heIp u cundIdute uvoId the probIems
Inherent In the test desIgn und uIIow them to concentrute on usIng theIr knowIedge oI
LngIIsh to score poInts. IumIIIurIzIng students wIth the structure oI the test und u busIc set
oI test tukIng strutegIes cun muke smuII but sIgnIIIcunt guIns possIbIe. Lven In very short
courses oI 10-15 hours Improvements oI 50-75 poInts ure not unusuuI. However, unIess
u cundIdute hus purtIcuIurIy poor test tukIng skIIIs, the guIns thut cun be mude here ure
IImIted. There Is no wuy uround the Iuct thut unIess u student knows u Iot oI LngIIsh they
cun`t score hIghIy on the TOLIC test. The IIrst 50 poInts muy come quIte eusIIy but every
poInt uIter thut must be eurned by IntensIve study.
Ior some eIIectIve generuI test strutegIes pIeuse reIer to the AppendIx. Here, we tuke u
cIoser Iook ut how your students shouId upprouch euch purt oI the test.
12
13
ParI-speci!ic Iechniques
Lstcnng Sccton
Becuuse the tImIngs on the IIstenIng SectIon ure IurgeIy determIned by the recordIng, most oI the
test tukIng skIIIs und strutegIes Ior thIs sectIon Iocus on usIng the InIormutIon presented In the
test bookIet to heIp students predIct whut they wIII heur. ThIs wIII Iocus students` IIstenIng on the
InIormutIon needed to unswer u questIon.
Part 1
Students see ten pIctures. Ior euch, they wIII heur
Iour stutements und they must seIect the stutement
thut best mutches the pIcture.
There ure two muIn strutegIes we shouId
encouruge our students to IoIIow:
IIrst und Ioremost, students shouId use
the pIcture to try to predIct vocubuIury und
stutements they mIght heur. By IIrst pIckIng
out the key Iocus oI the pIcture [smuII
buckground detuIIs ure never tested) und quIckIy
bruInstormIng reIuted vocubuIury und possIbIe
stutements, they wIII be much better prepured
when they uctuuIIy IIsten.
The second strutegy Is to IIsten und eIImInute Incorrect
unswer choIces. Stutements In thIs sectIon generuIIy
IoIIow u sub]ect-verb [-ob]ect) puttern [e.g. The mun
[S.) Is IookIng [V.) ut the monItor. [O.)). In most cuses
'dIstructer` unswers Ieuture one or more words thut ure
true to the pIcture, but wIII uIso huve ut Ieust one thut
Is Incorrect. HeurIng u word thut Is obvIousIy Incorrect
Is uImost us useIuI us IdentIIyIng the correct unswer
becuuse every optIon eIImInuted ruIses the chunces oI choosIng the correct unswer by 25x.
Part 2
Students heur u questIon or stutement IoIIowed by three possIbIe responses. They must choose
the response thut best mutches the questIon.
ThIs purt oI the test Is u pure IIstenIng chuIIenge
us there ure no cIues students cun use to predIct
whut they ure goIng to heur. Students shouId not
expect the kInd oI set-puttern responses they
muy huve studIed In schooI. Responses here ure
uuthentIc und students must oIten IIsten Ior the
ImpIIed meunIng oI u response to reuIIze It Is the correct one [us In the exumpIe here). LxposIng
students to questIons und unswers oI thIs sort und IocusIng uttentIon on the InterreIutIon
between the two Is essentIuI to heIpIng them tuckIe thIs purt oI the test.
(A) 1he man is making ooffee.
(B) 1he man is sitting near the boats.
(C) 1he oup is resting on the boat.
(L) 1he man is pouring a hot drink.
[AII test questIon exumpIes: 1ac!ics jur !hc 10llC

lis!cnin
an kcain 1cs!, OxIord UnIversIty Press, 2007)
[TupescrIpt)
ls anyone sitting here?
(A) No, lt`s not here.
(B) 3orry, l`m waiting for a friend.
(C) 3he`s sitting over there.
[TupescrIpt)

Students heur u short, three or Iour purt conversutIon, und then unswer three questIons ubout It.
ThIs Is one purt oI the test where chunges to the oId
Iormut cun work to the udvuntuge oI students. The
Increuse In the number oI questIons [Irom one to three)
mukes the IIstenIng tusk more munugeubIe, In spIte oI
the uddItIonuI memory Ioud und Increuse In text Iength.
ThIs Is becuuse the uddItIonuI two questIons on the
puge Increuse the umount oI InIormutIon the students
cun prevIew und use to predIct the IIkeIy content oI
the pussuge they ure goIng to heur. The test Iormut
ItseII uIso mukes thIs prevIewIng more munugeubIe:
In uddItIon to uppeurIng on the puge, euch oI the
three questIons Is reud uIoud und IoIIowed by un eIght
second puuse. SInce students do not huve to wuIt Ior
the questIon to be reud beIore they unswer It, students
who huve pructIced unswerIng the questIons us they
IIsten wIII huve up to 40 seconds Irom the end oI one
conversutIon untII the sturt oI the next [the tIme It wIII
tuke Ior the questIons to be reud und the puuses). ThIs
Ieuds us to two key test strutegIes Ior scorIng weII here:

Answer questIons us quIckIy us you cun, II possIbIe

whIIe the IIstenIng text Is stIII beIng reud

Use the tIme between conversutIons to skIm the

next three questIons, predIct whut you ure IIkeIy
to heur, und IsoIute exuctIy whut you shouId be
IIstenIng Ior

As In Purt 3, students heur u IIstenIng pussuge,
IoIIowed by three questIons. The dIIIerence Is thut
Insteud oI u conversutIon, the IIstenIng Ieutures
u sIngIe speuker gIvIng u tuIk: u news report, un
udvertIsement, un ucceptunce speech, etc.
Some oI the pussuge Iengths ure uIso consIderubIy
Ionger thun they huve been In the pust.
The sImIIurItIes to Purt 3 meun thut students cun
udopt the sume upprouches used there. In Iuct,
the sIgnIIIcuntIy Ionger texts muke It even more
Importunt thut students huve un exuct Ideu oI
whut they ure IIstenIng Ior In udvunce - IIstenIng
IIrst und consIderIng the questIon Iuter won`t
work becuuse there Is sImpIy too much text to
remember.
14
questlens 1-3 refer to the following oonversation.
MA: Lo you think you oould mail off these
paokages for me. 1hey have to get out by the
6:00 oourier and l am late for a meeting as it is.
l will really owe you a favor.
WA: eah, 0K, l have some time now. where do
you want me to send them?
MA: 1he list with the oustomers` addresses
is in this dooument and the number of the
oourier servioe is at the top of the page. l really
appreoiate this.
WA: Lon`t worry. l will take oare of it. ou oan get
me a ooffee tomorrow.
1. what does the man want the woman to do?
(A) Pay the money she owes
(B) Mail some paokages
(C) Attend a meeting
(L) 0ive him the addresses
2. what does the woman ask?
(A) lor the destination
(B) lor the time
(C) where the meeting is
(L) lf he wants a ooffee
3. why doesn`t the man do it himself?
(A) 1he woman has the list
(B) 1he woman owes him a favor
(C) Pe doesn`t know the address
(L) Pe has to rush to a previous appointment
1. what produot is being desoribed?
(A) A oordless telephone
(B) An allinone printer
(C) A laptop oomputer
(L) A digital oamera
2. whioh of the following best desoribes the
produot?
(A) lt oreates a lot of desktop olutter
(B) lt is an older model with many features
(C) lt is quite large
(L) lt is an innovative design
3. what is desoribed as the unique feature?
(A) 1he oolor printer
(B) 1he fax maohine
(C) 1he hard disk drive
(L) 1he soanner
[TupescrIpt)
IInuIIy, students shouId be mude uwure thut unswer
choIces oIten uppeur In the IIstenIng In u dIIIerent
Iorm to thut on the puge. Ior exumpIe, the IIstenIng
muy Ieuture some one 'uskIng Ior theIr money buck`,
though the unswer choIce muy note thut the person Is
'requestIng u reIund`. Students must Ieurn to recognIze
such puruphrusIng II they ure to do weII on thIs purt.
Rcadng Sccton
In thIs sectIon oI the test the students ure gIven u Iump sum oI tIme [75 mInutes) und must
uIIocute thIs themseIves. TIme munugement Is the crItIcuI skIII here und the IoIIowIng test
strutegIes Iocus on heIpIng students uIIocute tIme to the purts oI the test thut need It most, und
deuIIng eIIIcIentIy wIth Iengthy texts.
Part 5
Students reud u sentence thut hus u sIngIe word
or severuI words repIuced wIth u gup, IoIIowed by
Iour unswer choIces.
ThIs purt oI the test Iocuses prImurIIy on the student`s
runge oI vocubuIury und the IntegrIty oI theIr InternuI
modeI oI grummur und syntux. There Is u sImpIe three-
purt strutegy Ior tuckIIng these questIons:

Reud the sentence und try to guess words [und purts oI speech) thut you thInk couId IIt

Iook ut the choIces, eIImInute uny thut ure the wrong purt oI speech, und then reud the sentence
[sIIentIy) wIth euch remuInIng word In the gup

Choose the optIon thut 'sounds` the best

Success here depends IurgeIy on the student beIng IumIIIur wIth the meunIngs und uses oI
unswer words undjor the gupped sentence. II the student does not know the key words, there Is
IIttIe they cun do ubout It durIng the test so they shouIdn`t wuste tIme.
One recommended upprouch Ior hundIIng thIs purt eIIIcIentIy Is cuIIed the '2-Puss` technIque.
On the IIrst puss the student goes through quIckIy unswerIng uII the questIons they IInd eusy. II
they don`t know the unswer wIthIn ten seconds, they skIp to the next questIon. On the second
puss, the student goes buck to the more dIIIIcuIt questIons IeIt bIunk. II they stIII uren`t sure oI
the correct unswer uIter 30 seconds they shouId guess und move on. ThIs technIque ensures thut
students don`t get stuck on the more chuIIengIng questIons und end up wustIng u Iot oI tIme.
15
questlens 1-3 refer to the following talk.
1he 0X203 is our latest model and inoludes a
lot of new features that we think make it stand
out from all the other printers ourrently on the
market. As you oan see, it manages to squeeze
a full oolor printer, soanner, and oopier into a
very oompaot paokage, as well as inoluding a
fax maohine and oordless telephone handset.
No more desktop olutter with this. what`s more,
in an industry first, our printer oomes with a 40
gigabyte hard disk, so you oan keep your entire
photo oolleotion safe and print out your piotures
without the need to oonneot to a oomputer.
1. what produot is being desoribed?
2. whioh of the following best desoribes the
produot?
3. what is desoribed as the unique feature?
1he produot was not a oommeroial suooess
_______ a l ot of money was spent on
advertising.
(A) despite
(B) in spite of
(C) even though
(L) beoause of
[TupescrIpt)

ThIs purt oI the test brIngs the sume kInd oI chuIIenges us Purt 5. Students shouId be encouruged
to go struIght to the IIrst gupped sentence und use the technIques descrIbed Ior Purt 5 us these
wIII work Ior the mu]orIty oI Purt 6 questIons. However, ut Ieust one Item In euch pussuge wIII not
huve enough InIormutIon In the sentence uIone to unswer the questIon. In thIs cuse, the student
must skIm the surroundIng sentences to heIp them choose.
16
questlens 1-3 refer to the following memo.
1his is to remind all oonferenoe staff that today`s 2:15 workshop on elementary
bookkeeping __________.
1. (A) resoheduled
(B) will resohedule
(C) has been resoheduled
(L) will have been resoheduled
Lue to unforeseen oiroumstanoes the presenter will be unable to give the workshop
as _____________ noted in the oonferenoe program.
2. (A) firstly
(B) obviously
(C) definitely
(L) originally
Please inform attendees who ask that the presentation ___________ held instead on wednesday
3. (A) will be
(B) had been
(C) is
(L) was
morning at 10:45 in room 011. 1his information will also be posted on the notioe boards in the foyer.
1hanks,
Madeleine
17

The Iong texts und vurIed questIon types In thIs purt generuIIy pose the greutest chuIIenge Ior test
tukers. The muIn probIem here Is thut muny students uren`t used to deuIIng wIth text pussuges oI the
Iength und type Iound here und oIten get bogged down reudIng euch one word-by-word, puInstukIngIy
tryIng to grusp the meunIng. II tIme runs out, students ure IeIt wIth u strIng oI bIunk unswers or rundom
guesses. To uvoId thut huppenIng, tIme munugement Is crItIcuI. The IoIIowIng tIps cun heIp students
munuge theIr tIme In thIs purt eIIIcIentIy:
questlens 1-5 refer to the following notioe.
Netlce te all guests ef the Glenvale lnn
1he management of the 0lenvale lnn would like to apologize to all its guests for any inoonvenienoe oaused
by our remodeling efforts. we assure you that the greatest efforts are being made to ensure that all publio
spaoes are kept immaoulately olean, that all guests are provided with oourteous professionalism, and that
noise is kept to a minimum.
Luring the remodeling, we are offering all guests 10 off their bill and 10 off their next stay, when the
remodeling is oomplete.
1he remodeled 0lenvale lnn will inolude:
A 24hour gourmet ooffee bar in the lobby with a menu that will feature all your favorite speoialty
beverages as well as homemade baked goods.
An expanded exeroise room with spa and sauna to melt away any ohill you get on the slopes, plus
personal trainers on hand for workouts or lessons in skiing or snowboarding.
A massage salon to ease any aohes from your gym workout or mountain sports.
20 log oabins eaoh oomplete with antique furnishings and bay windows overlooking the soenio
valley and the main hotel building that will provide a little extra privaoy, but with all the amenities
of one of our suites.
0noe again, the management thanks you for your patronage and patienoe.
1. where is the hotel probably looated?
(A) ln the mountains
(B) ln a major oity
(C) By the sea
(L) Near a shopping oenter

2. why is the management apologizing?
(A) 1here has been a laok of professionalism.
(B) 1he exeroise room is too small.
(C) 3ome oonstruotion is underway.
(L) 0uests are being overbilled.
3. what is being offered to ourrent guests?
(A) A disoount on their stay
(B) Personal training
(C) lree ooffee
(L) A massage
4. 1he word feature in paragraph 5 is olosest in meaning to
(A) make
(B) inolude
(C) highlight
(L) introduoe
5. what is stated about the log oabins?
(A) 1hey have a good view of the area.
(B) 1hey have ultramodern furniture.
(C) 1hey aren't as well equipped as the suites.
(L) 1hey are oonneoted to the main hotel.
1S

Do Purt 7 beIore Purts 5 und 6

There Is no ruIe thut purts huve to be done In the order presented. II students don`t know the
key words needed to get the unswer to questIons In Purts 5 und 6, spendIng extru tIme Isn`t
goIng to heIp. In Purt 7, however, huvIng un extru mInute on u dIIIIcuIt questIon couId muke u
huge dIIIerence In the seurch Ior the correct unswer.

Don`t sturt by reudIng the pussuge

]umpIng bIIndIy Into the text cun be terrIIyIng Ior Iower IeveI students und Is IneIIIcIent Ior
students oI uny IeveI. Lncouruge your students to go struIght to the questIons und not to Iook ut
the pussuge untII they know exuctIy whut they ure IookIng Ior.
Students shouId be uwure thut uIthough euch questIon hus un IdentIcuI poInt vuIue, some
requIre much Iess tIme to unswer thun others. QuestIons thut request specIIIc InIormutIon [e.g.
Q.157 In the exumpIe) or vocubuIury questIons cun be reIutIveIy quIck und eusy. WIth these,
students cun scun the pussuge quIckIy to IInd the reIevunt sectIon oI the text und then unswer
the questIon wIthout reudIng the whoIe pussuge. QuestIons thut usk ubout overuII meunIng or
the wrIter`s IntentIon requIre u deeper understundIng oI the pussuge und cun be much more
tIme-consumIng.

IdentIIy the eusIer questIons und do those IIrst

There ure sound reusons Ior thIs upprouch. II students run out oI tIme, ut Ieust they cun be
certuIn they huven`t mIssed out on uny eusy poInts. AIso, by quIckIy scunnIng the pussuge to
unswer the specIIIc InIormutIon questIons they cun pIck up u generuI sense oI whut the pussuge
Is ubout und how It Is orgunIzed. By the tIme they huve unswered the eusIer questIons they muy
uIreudy huve enough InIormutIon to unswer the more chuIIengIng ones, or ut Ieust they wIII huve
u better Ideu oI where to Iook to IInd the unswer.
Timed IesI-condiIion pracIice
In uddItIon to pructIcIng wIth the questIon types und becomIng more comIortubIe wIth test
strutegIes, It Is Importunt Ior students to uppIy thIs experIence under condItIons thut sImuIute
reuI test tIme pressures. IdeuIIy thIs wouId InvoIve huvIng students tuke reguIur IuII pructIce tests,
but thIs Isn`t un optIon In the typIcuI short-to-medIum TOLIC course. A pructIcuI uIternutIve Is to
sImuIute test condItIons In short bursts oI 5-10 mInutes usIng the sume or reduced tImIngs us those
on the uctuuI test. Test condItIon pructIce shouId be used ut reguIur IntervuIs uIter students huve
become IumIIIur wIth the strutegIes outIIned ubove Ior deuIIng wIth euch purt oI the test.
DeveIoping reading skiIIs
In uddItIon to the test-specIIIc pructIce outIIned ubove, students wIII beneIIt Irom
deveIopIng theIr core reudIng skIIIs.
- ScunnIng meuns reudIng quIckIy to IInd specIIIc detuIIs. We scun when we seurch Ior
u nume In u teIephone book. Ior exumpIe, II we wunt to IInd the nume 'Spencer` we IIrst seIect
u key murker [In thIs cuse we wouId probubIy use the IIrst Iew Ietters oI the nume) und then Iet
our eyes roum untII we spot thIs murker [Spe...). OnIy ut thIs poInt do we sturt to reud cIoseIy.
In the TOLIC test, wIth tIme u key Iuctor, thIs skIII Is extremeIy Importunt, both Ior the specIIIc
InIormutIon und vocubuIury questIons In the ReudIng SectIon und In the IIstenIng SectIon where
we encouruge students to quIckIy scun the unswer choIces und pIck out key words to heIp Iocus
theIr uttentIon beIore the IIstenIng begIns.
19
The key to deveIopIng thIs skIII Is to pructIce wIth tIght tIme IImIts. Ior exumpIe, you couId
gIve students ten seconds to note uII the key words In three Purt 3 unswer choIces. InItIuIIy thIs
muy be quIte chuIIengIng und IrustrutIng Ior Iower IeveI students. As theIr ubIIIty Increuses wIth
pructIce, they wIII guIn conIIdence. GruduuIIy reduce the tIme uIIowed.
Skmmng - SkImmIng meuns reudIng to get the muIn Ideu oI u text. An exumpIe oI thIs wouId
be gIuncIng rupIdIy ut urtIcIes In u newspuper to IdentIIy the urtIcIe type; whether they ure ubout
sports, busIness, InternutIonuI news, etc. Test questIons thut requIre skImmIng usuuIIy usk ubout
the overuII meunIng oI u text: 'Whut Is the purpose oI thIs memo?`, 'Whut Is the muIn theme oI
thIs urtIcIe?` etc.
TIps to heIp students get the gIst oI u text:

Iook Ior uny tItIes or heudIngs IIrst

QuIckIy reud the IIrst und Iust sentence oI euch purugruph

SkIm the pussuge, reudIng onIy nouns und verbs

ThIs skIII depends to u Iurge extent upon u student`s runge oI vocubuIury, us It demunds thut
they notIce u smuII number oI key words und reIute these to un overurchIng theme. BeurIng
thIs In mInd, It muy be useIuI to huve weuker students pructIce extructIng the key eIements
Irom euch oI the unswer choIces und then bruInstorm reIuted vocubuIury beIore they skIm the
pussuge. Such pructIce, II done reguIurIy und under tImed condItIons, cun shurpen theIr skIII und
uccustom them to spottIng the sume sort oI IexIcuI reIutIonshIps under test condItIons.
BuIdng a toIcrancc for Iongcr tcxts - ReudIng pussuges In Purt 7 oI the TOLIC test muy be
much Ionger thun students ure used to deuIIng wIth [sometImes up to 300 words or more Ior
doubIe pussuges). Iower IeveI students muy punIc when Iuced wIth thIs umount oI text, so It Is
Importunt to get your students used to deuIIng wIth Ionger pussuges In cIuss. InItIuIIy, It muy be
desIrubIe to choose non-TOLIC muterIuI thut reIutes to the Interests or experIences oI the student
[e.g. movIe muguzInes, sports urtIcIes, etc) especIuIIy when doIng tImed uctIvItIes.
DeveIoping IisIening skiIIs
The IIstenIng tusks on the TOLIC test cun be extremeIy chuIIengIng. ThIs Is especIuIIy true Ior Purts
3 und 4 where students ure usked to IIsten Ior severuI dIIIerent thIngs In severuI dIIIerent wuys.
Some oI the questIons wIII requIre them to IIsten Ior specIIIc detuIIs: numbers, numes, dutes, etc.
Other questIons wIII usk them Ior the muIn Ideu or to InIer thIngs Irom the overuII content.
Prc-Istcnng: Know what you arc Istcnng for
The key to hundIIng both generuI und specIIIc questIon types Is prepurutIon. In Purts 3 und 4
the questIons ure prInted on the test puge, so by usIng the skImmIng und scunnIng skIIIs we
dIscussed ubove Ior reudIng, students cun IdentIIy the questIon type und whut exuctIy It Is uskIng
them to do. Students cun sturt to bruInstorm possIbIe reIuted vocubuIury [whIch wIII heIp them
wIth the muIn IdeujInIerence questIons us It does In the reudIng purts) und consIder other wuys
thut the key words oI the specIIIc InIormutIon questIons mIght be restuted [restutement oI key
Ideus Is common on the TOLIC).
Prc-Istcnng: Prcdct thc contcnt
HuvIng some buckground knowIedge ubout whut you ure heurIng cun sIgnIIIcuntIy uId
comprehensIon. ThIs cun IncIude such busIc Iucts us who Is speukIng, where the speukers ure, whut
they ure tuIkIng ubout etc. KnowIng these thIngs uIIows u IIstener to IsoIute und understund new
20
InIormutIon more eIIectIveIy. The Iuct thut the questIons Ior both Purts 3 und 4 ure prInted on the
puge uIIows students to gIeun u Iot oI InIormutIon ubout the context und deveIop un InItIuI 'schemu`.
BuIdng a toIcrancc for Iongcr Istcnng gassagcs
The sume Iuctors we dIscussed Ior reudIng uppIy here. Muny students huve u certuIn poInt ut
whIch they seem to shut down und Iose the threud oI whut Is beIng suId. AIthough IocusIng
theIr IIstenIng usIng the pre-IIstenIng technIques ubove wIII heIp to some extent, It Is
essentIuI thut theIr 'comIort zone` - how much they cun IIsten to ut one tIme - be expunded.
Once uguIn, sturt by usIng non-test content, cIose to the Interests or experIences oI your
students und gruduuIIy Increuse the Iength oI the IIstenIng pussuges us conIIdence Increuses.
Lxgosurc to dffcrcnt acccnts
The TOLIC test IIstenIng pussuges IncIude speukers Irom the US, Cunudu, BrItuIn, und
AustruIIu. DependIng on theIr IeurnIng buckground students muy huve dIIIIcuIty In
understundIng one or more oI the uccents. Try to expose your students to u vurIety oI
dIIIerent uccents durIng your reguIur cIusses. II your InstItutIon hus course books thut
IncIude non-AmerIcun LngIIsh IIstenIng sumpIes und tusks, then usIng these muterIuIs
wouId be u deIInIte heIp. OtherwIse, recordIngs Irom BBC UK or AustruIIun Internet rudIo
broudcusts cun provIde useIuI resources. Note, however, thut the IIstenIng SectIon oI the
test wIII never contuIn words specIIIc to uny one country.
Conncctcd sgccch: "Wadddjadufcrycr hoIday?"
LngIIsh Is u rhythmIc Iunguuge, meunIng thut we stress words [usuuIIy content words such
us nouns, verbs, ud]ectIves, und udverbs) ut reguIur IntervuIs. Becuuse sentences In LngIIsh
rureIy Ieuture equuI numbers oI words we oIten end up reducIng sounds und crummIng
them together In order to huve them IIt comIortubIy wIthIn the rhythmIc Irumework. The
resuIt Is contructIons IIke can`! und un`! und words IIke uin !u und wuul yuu, soundIng IIke
unna or wuuja. In Iuct, the sounds oI nuturuI spoken LngIIsh uImost never sound IIke they
wouId II the IndIvIduuI words were pronounced In IsoIutIon.
There ure u number oI thIngs we cun do to heIp students here:
1. Increuse student uwureness by expIIcItIy IocusIng on nuturuI spoken Iorms reguIurIy In cIuss.
2. Muke It cIeur thut these ure not exumpIes oI sIung, or sIoppy LngIIsh but ure the dIrect
resuIt oI LngIIsh beIng u rhythmIc, stress-tImed Iunguuge. II they IIsten to the BBC or CNN
[or TOLIC test IIstenIng pussuges) they wIII heur these Iorms.
3. ProvIde students wIth exumpIes und heIp them to understund whut Is huppenIng, e.g.
yuu und !u beIng reduced to sound IIke yajja und !a; sounds beIng dropped so thut hcrjhim
sounds IIke `crj`im; sounds beIng chunged und chuIned together so thut ls hc uin !u...?
sounds more IIke lzzyunna?
uiIding vocabuIary
As emphusIzed eurIIer, vocubuIury Is probubIy the sIngIe most Importunt Iuctor InIIuencIng success
on the TOLIC test und In every Iesson students wIII come ucross muny new words und phruses.
It Is essentIuI thut thIs new vocubuIury be:
Notcd - Students shouId keep u vocubuIury notebook und brIng It to euch cIuss. Be sure to
show them eIIectIve technIques Ior notIng new vocubuIury. In uddItIon to the trunsIutIon,
students shouId wrIte down the sentence In whIch they encountered the word or phruse
21
und wrIte ut Ieust one new sentence. They shouId note the purt oI speech und uny synonyms
or untonyms. Lncouruge the use oI other memory retentIon technIques such us word mups,
smuII IIIustrutIons, coIor-codIng, und notIng u word`s phonemIc trunscrIptIon. BusIcuIIy, the
more InIormutIon students IncIude In theIr notes the better the chunce oI retentIon.
Assgncd for homcwork - Words encountered In cIuss ure un exceIIent resource Ior
TOLIC Iocused homework ussIgnments. Ior exumpIe, huvIng students use key words
encountered In cIuss to wrIte short conversutIons oI the type Iound In Purt 2 oI the test, Is
useIuI revIew oI both the test conventIons und the new vocubuIury.
Rcvcwcd - Keep u IIst oI the words thut come up durIng the course und set usIde u Iew
mInutes Ior quIck quIzzes ut u set tIme euch Iesson. By mukIng thIs u routIne, you wIII
encouruge students to revIew theIr notes reguIurIy. II you huve ussIgned the words us purt
oI u homework ussIgnment, then peer homework revIew wIII uIso serve to recycIe the
vocubuIury In u meunIngIuI context.

As stuted eurIIer, 50 poInt guIns requIre u sIgnIIIcunt deveIopment oI the students overuII
stock oI Iunguuge und expunsIon oI theIr IIstenIngjreudIng skIIIs. ThIs usuuIIy requIres
hundreds oI hours oI study to uchIeve, Iur more thun most students ure wIIIIng to Invest In
u TOLIC course. There Is no wuy uround It, students who wunt to ]ump up u Iew hundred
poInts In the next sIx months wIII huve to spend consIderubIe umounts oI theIr Iree tIme
studyIng by themseIves.
ScIcctng homcwork assgnmcnts
IIrst oI uII, unIess you ure teuchIng u purtIcuIurIy Iong course you ure IIkeIy to huve exercIses
Ior purts oI the test [most IIkeIy Purts 1, 5, und 6) thut you won`t be ubIe to compIete In the
uvuIIubIe cIuss tIme. These ure IdeuI homework muterIuI.
A Iot oI useIuI work cun be done usIng non-textbook, non-test resources und uctIvItIes. The
key Is to get students reudIng. There Is no better wuy to buIId vocubuIury thun extensIve
reudIng. DependIng on the Interests oI your cIuss, you muy wIsh to ussIgn short urtIcIes Irom
The LconomIst or Newsweek, short newspuper urtIcIes oI theIr own choIce, or gruded reuders.
Lncouruge your students to choose muterIuI thut Interests them und thut Isn`t too dIIIIcuIt. You
cun usk them to summurIze whut they reud und report buck to the cIuss or wrIte u response Ior
peer revIew In the IoIIowIng Iesson. Try to IncIude u combInutIon oI wrItten und oruI tusks und
use u vurIety oI Ieedbuck optIons.
IIstenIng work Is uIso u good homework optIon. Huve students record un LngIIsh news broudcust,
trunscrIbe u short segment, und then deIIver It In the next Iesson. AIternutIveIy, huve them rent
LngIIsh movIes, trunscrIbe u scene they IIke, und then uct It out wIth unother student.
Ior uII oI these homework uctIvItIes, be sure to Integrute vocubuIury revIew. II you ure
uskIng students to reud or IIsten to somethIng und then report buck, encouruge them to use
us muny words Irom theIr vocubuIury notebook us possIbIe.
AssIgnIng students to wrIte theIr own test-Iormut questIons usIng Items Irom theIr vocubuIury
notebooks Is un exceIIent wuy to revIew Iunguuge und test content ut the sume tIme.
22
4 IOElC

Listening and Reading Iest FAs

"What is the difference between TOEIC

Listening and Reading Test and the TOEFL

test?"
UnIIke the TOLIC test, whIch uIms to evuIuute LngIIsh us used In the workpIuce, the Test oI
LngIIsh us u IoreIgn Iunguuge [TOLII) Is prImurIIy u pIucement test Ior coIIeges und unIversItIes.
CurrentIy the test Is udmInIstered In three muIn Iormuts:
Pagcr Bascd Tcst [PBT) - ThIs Is u pencII und puper Iormut compIeted und murked In
u sImIIur wuy to the TOLIC. It Ieutures three sectIons: IIstenIng, Structure und WrItten
LxpressIon, und ReudIng. There Is uIso un uddItIonuI sectIon cuIIed the Test oI WrItten
LngIIsh, whIch Is ruted sepuruteIy und Is not u requIrement Ior most InstItutIons.
Comgutcr Bascd Tcst [CBT) - ThIs Iormut oI the test Ieutures Iour sectIons: IIstenIng,
Structure und WrItten LxpressIon, ReudIng, und WrItIng. The IIrst three sectIons ure
murked by computer, whIIe the WrItIng sectIon Is humun ruted.
Intcrnct Bascd Tcst [BT) - ThIs Iormut oI the test uIso Ieutures Iour sectIons: ReudIng,
IIstenIng, SpeukIng, und WrItIng. The ReudIng und IIstenIng sectIons ure murked by
computer, whIIe the SpeukIng und WrItIng sectIons ure humun ruted.
The test Iormut students tuke Is determIned by where they tuke the test. The IBT und CBT ure
generuIIy oIIered In Iurger cItIes whIIe the PBT Is more common In smuIIer cItIes und towns.
UnIversItIes set mInImum poInt requIrements Ior entry dependIng on the course oI study, und
scores Ior uII three test Iormuts ure uccepted.
"What is the difference between the STEP Test and TOEIC

Listening and Reading Test?"

The SocIety Ior TestIng LngIIsh ProIIcIency [STLP) test [commonIy known us the LIKLN test) Is
u homegrown ]upunese test supported by the ]upunese MInIstry oI LducutIon, CuIture, Sports,
ScIence und TechnoIogy. WhIIe It Is uImed ut evuIuutIng LngIIsh proIIcIency, It Iucks the busIness
Iocus oI the TOLIC test und Is much more generuI In nuture. IIke the TOLIC, the STLP Test Is uIso
u very wIdeIy recognIzed stundurd Ior LngIIsh proIIcIency In ]upun.
UnIIke the TOLIC test, the STLP Test Is dIvIded Into dIIIerent ubIIIty grudes, Irom 5
th
Grude
[]upunese ]unIor hIgh schooI begInnIng IeveI) to 1
st
Grude []upunese coIIege gruduute IeveI), euch
wIth u sepurute test. The STLP test uIso dIIIers Irom the TOLIC In thut euch grude hus u puss or
IuII murk. Irom the 1
st
to the 3
rd
Grude the test Is udmInIstered In two stuges. The IIrst-stuge
consIsts oI the reudIng und IIstenIng sectIons. II students puss thIs, they ure eIIgIbIe to tuke the
Second-stuge, un IntervIew test.
"Is TOEIC

Listening and Reading Test useful as a placement test for my class?"

"Can I use TOEIC

Listening and Reading Test to assess speaking/writing ability?"

Both oI these questIons Iocus on the Issue oI whether the receptIve skIIIs [IIstenIngjreudIng) tested
on the TOLIC cun be used to ussess productIve ubIIIty. A number oI studIes huve exumIned thIs
Issue. One oI the eurIy studIes [WoodIord 19S2) showed u very hIgh correIutIon between scores on
the TOLIC und scores on the Iunguuge ProIIcIency IntervIew [u coeIIIcIent oI .S3
'
). Iuter studIes by
WIIson [19S9) und HIruI [2002) reported u Iower but stIII quIte strong correIutIon [.71-.S0 und .7S
respectIveIy). OveruII, the reseurch wouId tend to IndIcute thut the test Is u IuIrIy good IndIcutor oI
'
HIgher numbers IndIcute u hIgher correIutIon wIth 1.0 u perIect reIutIonshIp.
23
oruI ubIIIty. My own experIence uccords wIth thIs vIew und students In cIusses I huve tuught where
pIucement wus on the busIs oI TOLIC score hud u IuIrIy consIstent spoken LngIIsh ubIIIty.
On the Issue oI wrItten scores there Is Iess consensus. In hIs study, WoodIord noted u hIgh
correIutIon between the TOLIC und u dIrect wrItIng meusure [.S3), however HIruI`s work noted
u sIgnIIIcuntIy Iower correIutIon [.67) between the TOLIC und the BusIness Iunguuge TestIng
ServIce [BUIATS) wrItIng test. My experIence uccords wIth the Iutter study. At Ieust wIth ]upunese
students, I huve Iound there to be u IuIrIy murked vurIutIon In the wrItIng ubIIIty oI students wIth
sImIIur TOLIC scores.
"Should I use TOEIC

Listening and Reading Test to measure student progress in my course?"

UnIess your course Is exceptIonuIIy Iong, the unswer Is deIInIteIy 'No`. As emphusIzed eurIIer
In thIs guIde, mukIng sIgnIIIcunt guIns requIres u consIderubIe Investment oI tIme und eIIort.
LTS note In theIr TOLIC User GuIde [1999) thut, '...reseurch hus shown thut ut Ieust 100 hours
oI Iunguuge truInIng Is usuuIIy requIred beIore students ure ubIe to demonstrute u reuI Increuse
In TOLIC

scores.` So unIess the course you ure teuchIng Is hundreds oI hours In durutIon, you
shouId Iook Ior ussessment methods other thun the TOLIC to ]udge your students' progress.
5tudent FAs: Answering common student questions
"How can I get a better TOEIC score?"
There ure two muIn recommendutIons you cun gIve your students to Improve theIr scores. The
IIrst Is to Improve theIr test tukIng skIIIs. ThIs guIde hus provIded some Ideus on how thut cun
be done, but In most cuses students shouId uttend u course tuught by u knowIedgeubIe und weII-
prepured Instructor who cun heIp students become more eIIIcIent und eIIectIve test tukers.
The second, Ionger-term recommendutIon Is thut students work hurd to Increuse theIr overuII
knowIedge oI LngIIsh und theIr receptIve skIIIs. Lncouruge Iots oI reudIng, eIIectIve notutIon
und revIew oI vocubuIury, und extensIve IIstenIng pructIce.
"Do I need to join a class to improve my score?"
The honest unswer here Is 'no`. Most nutIve speukers wouId do quIte weII on the TOLIC test
despIte never huvIng uttended u TOLIC cIuss. Whutever method u student uses, us Iong us
they sIgnIIIcuntIy deveIop theIr LngIIsh ubIIIty they wIII Increuse theIr TOLIC score. However,
studyIng In u cIuss cun Iocus u student und provIde u supportIve envIronment Ior study, whIch
cun resuIt In more rupId und eIIIcIent progress. AddItIonuIIy, us we huve seen, puIr und group
work cun pIuy u vuIuubIe roIe In reInIorcIng the skIIIs und knowIedge thut ure un essentIuI purt
oI TOLIC test prepurutIon.
"How will I cope with the various types of accents which the (new) TOEIC test contains?"
There ure vurIous wuys students cun become more IumIIIur wIth the US, BrItIsh, AustruIIun, und
CunudIun uccents now Iound In the TOLIC IIstenIng SectIon. Students cun study usIng u textbook
thut comes wIth uudIo recorded wIth u vurIety oI uccents [most TOLIC study muterIuIs pubIIshed
Irom 2006 wIII IncIude such uudIo). WutchIng movIes Irom the reIevunt countrIes, IIstenIng to
onIIne rudIo stutIons, und podcusts ure uII good optIons.
Though ut IIrst they muy IInd the dIIIerent uccents u chuIIenge, wIth repeuted exposure thIngs
24
wIII get eusIer. The voIce uctors LTS empIoy when recordIng the IIstenIng SectIon oI the test never
Ieuture extremeIy thIck uccents.
"Some of the reading texts now are longer than before? How can I cope?"
The key here Is to reud more eIIIcIentIy. UnIess the student Is u very Iust reuder, there ]ust Isn`
t tIme to reud through euch pussuge Irom begInnIng to end. Insteud whut they must do Is sturt,
not by reudIng the pussuge, but by skImmIng the questIons und unswer choIces. They shouId
IInd out IIrst whut InIormutIon Is needed to unswer the questIon, then go to the pussuge und
use skImmIng und scunnIng skIIIs to Iocus on IIndIng thut InIormutIon. They muy be ubIe to
unswer uII the questIons wIthout reudIng the entIre pussuge.
The !oIIoving Appendix can be copied and disIribuIed Io your sIudenIs.
25
Overall test strategies

Dont leave any questions unanswered - make your best guess

II you uren`t sure oI the correct unswer, eIImInute uny unswers you thInk ure wrong then choose the
unswer thut Iooks best Irom the remuInIng choIces. Wrong unswers ure not penuIIzed, und even u bIInd
guess gIves you u 25-33x chunce oI gettIng the rIght unswer. II you cun eIImInute even one wrong
unswer, your odds oI success go up us hIgh us 50x!

Be familiar with the test format

Muke sure you ure IumIIIur wIth the type oI questIons you wIII Iuce on the test duy beIore you sIt the test.

Use the order of the questions as a guide

Lxcept Ior generuI sItuutIon or muIn Ideu questIons, the unswers In the reudIng or IIstenIng wIII uppeur
In the sume order us the questIons: the unswer to the IIrst questIon wIII uppeur eurIy In the pussuge, the
next questIon wIII come uIter thut, und so on.
Listening strategies

Dont wait for all the answer choices to be read out before answering
II you thInk you know the unswer, murk It ImmedIuteIy. Then begIn prevIewIng the next unswer choIces.

Preview and predict

ThIs uppIIes to uII IIstenIng purts except Purt 2. BeIore euch questIon Is pIuyed prevIew the unswer
choIces or pIcture und try to predIct us much us you cun ubout whut you ure goIng to heur und whut
exuctIy you ure goIng to be IIstenIng Ior. The better you cun predIct, the eusIer the IIstenIng wIII be.
Reading strategies

Keep a watch in front of you

TIme munugement Is the key to the ReudIng SectIon und you need to monItor exuctIy how much tIme
you spend on euch questIon to ensure you don`t run out oI tIme. You shouId spend u muxImum oI
roughIy 60 seconds on euch Purt 7 questIon und 20-30 seconds on euch Purt 5 und 6 questIon. ThIs wIII
uIIow you some tIme to check over your unswers ut the end.

Do Part 7 first!
You do not huve to IoIIow the order presented In the test. In Purts 5 und 6 you cun unswer muny
questIons quIckIy und eIIectIveIy. QuestIons In Purt 7 cun tuke much Ionger, so sturt here to ensure you
don`t run out oI tIme.

Dont start by reading the whole passage

In Purt 7, move ImmedIuteIy to the questIons und Iocus on whut you need to unswer.

Answer the easy questions first

You do not huve to unswer In the order presented In the test so get the eusy murks IIrst, then come buck
Iuter und unswer [or muke your best guess).
Study strategies

Build your vocabulary

ThIs Is the sIngIe most Importunt Iuctor Ior success. You shouId:
Keep u vocubuIury notebook und note uII new words, pIus the sentence they occur In.
Reud, reud, und reud! Newspuper storIes, busIness urtIcIes, even gruded reuders cun heIp you expund
your vocubuIury drumutIcuIIy.

Study outside of class

MukIng bIg Improvements on the TOLIC test requIres you to Improve your overuII knowIedge oI
LngIIsh. To do thIs In u reusonubIe umount oI tIme you must be prepured to suppIement your cIuss
Iessons wIth uddItIonuI study ut home.

Learn to use English

The TOLIC tests your ubIIIty to understund LngIIsh us It Is used In everyduy work und IIIe sItuutIons. The
more cupubIe und comIortubIe you ure In usIng nuturuI LngIIsh, both spoken und wrItten, the better
you wIII do on the TOLIC test. Muke un eIIort to use LngIIsh to communIcute us much us you cun und
your score wIII go up Iuster thun II you do nothIng but study test Items, grummur, und vocubuIury.

Iest 5trategies
Phetecelable
OxIord UnIversIty Press
26

HIruI, M. [2002) CorreIutIons between uctIve skIII und pussIve skIII test scores. Shikcn. jAl1
1cs!in o lvalua!iun SlC Ncwslc!!cr 6 [3):2-S [uIso uvuIIubIe ut: www.]uIt.orgjtestjhIr_1.htm)
Suegusu, Y. [19S5) PredIctIon oI LngIIsh ProIIcIency Progress. Musashinu lnlish an Amcrican
li!cra!urc, 1S: 165-1S5
The InstItute Ior InternutIonuI BusIness CommunIcutIon, TOLIC SteerIng CommIttee 2006
10llC 1cs! Da!a an Analysis 2006
The InstItute Ior InternutIonuI BusIness CommunIcutIon 2004 10llC Ncwslc!!cr Nu. 88
The InstItute Ior InternutIonuI BusIness CommunIcutIon 2005 10llC Ncwslc!!cr Nu. 91
TOLIC ServIce InternutIonuI [1999) 10llC Uscr Cuic. PrInceton, N]: The Chuuncey Group
InternutIonuI Itd.
WIIson, K. M. [19S9) LnhuncIng the InterpretutIon oI u norm-reIerenced second-Iunguuge
test through crIterIon reIerencIng: A reseurch ussessment oI experIence In the TOLIC
testIng context. PrInceton, N]: LducutIonuI TestIng ServIce
WoodIord, P. L. [19S2) An IntroductIon to TOLIC: The InItIuI vuIIdIty study. PrInceton, N]:
LducutIonuI TestIng ServIce