Get 26+on TOEFL Speaking GuideBy Paul Austin – the TOEFL Speaking Teacher
www.toeflspeakingteacher.com
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Hi TOEFL Speaking student!
In this brief guide, I’m going to share with you…
• WhymostTOEFLtesttakersneverget26+(hint:it’sNOTthereasonyouthink…)
• Twoalmostunknownsecretsfor“tricking”TOEFLevaluatorsandsoundinglikeanativespeakingAmerican.
• WhyevaluatingyourownresponsesIs100%necessarytoimprovingyourTOEFLscore
• MypersonalandhighlyeffectivestudyplanformasteringtheTOEFLSpeakingSectioninlessthan1month…
• 6words/phrasesyouMIGHTbepronouncingincorrectlyandwhytheyarepreventingyoufromgetting26+
• OnesimpleandeasywaytoperfectyourAmericanintonation
• And,asaBONUS,the7Grammarmistakesyoumustfixtoget26+onTOEFLSpeaking
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Why Most TOEFL SpeakingStudents Do Not 26+
PronunciationandIntonationaretheprimarytworeasonswhymanyTOEFLtesttakerscannotget26+ontheTOEFLSpeakingsection.
If,asaTOEFLstudent,youlearnalltheimportantinformationrelatedtoTOEFLSpeaking(likehowtotakenotes,howtoorganizeyourresponsesandyouhavedecentgrammar),thenpronunciationand/orintonationislikelypreventingyoufromgettingthe26+scoreyouneed.
InmyTOEFLSpeaking26+course,Ilayouttheexactmethodsyoumustusetoimproveyourintonationandpronunciationsoyoucanget26+.
Justrememberonething:bothoftheseskillareastakequiteabitoftimetodevelop.
Unlikereducingyourumm’sanduhh’sorfixingasinglegrammaticalproblem,pronunciationandintonationoftentakeweeks,ifnotmonths,toperfect.
ThisiswhymanyTOEFLtesttakersdonotget26+onTOEFLSpeaking:theydon’tspendtherequiredtimestudyingintonationandpronunciation.
Thelastandfinalreasonwhymanytesttakerscannotearn26+isbecauseoftheirwordchoice.
TOEFLEvaluatorsawardscoresof26+tostudentswhoexhibittheabilitytohavenatural,free-flowingconversationsjustlikeanativespeakerwouldinAmerica.
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WhenyoulistentoanativespeakerfromAmerica,you’llnoticetheyusecertaintypesofwords.
Thisiswhatwecall‘spoken register’.
Itismuchdifferentthan‘written register’.
Onereasonmanystudentsstrugglegetting26+isbecausetheyuse‘written register’ whenspeaking,insteadof‘spoken register’.
Someexamplesofwrittenregisterinclude:States,Holdsthat,AsI’vestated,Moreover,Furthermore,Additionally
Comparethistoexamplesofspokenregister:saysthat,thinksthat,likeIsaid,sothat’swhy,theotherthingisthat
WhenyougiveresponsesontheTOEFLSpeakingsection,it’scriticallyimportanttousewordsfromthe‘spoken register’.
Thisisoneofthewaysto‘trick’TOEFLevaluatorsintothinkingyou’reanativespeaker.
Thesecondwayto‘trick’TOEFLevaluatorsintothinkingyou’reanativespeakerisbyusingadverbsinyourresponses.
Wordslike‘basically’,‘completely’,and‘definitely’allhelpyoutosoundlikeanativeAmericanspeaker.
So, how do you improve all three of these skills?Well first you start by evaluating your TOEFL Speaking responses…
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Evaluate Your TOEFLSpeaking Responses
Now,it’stimetoevaluate(orhaveafriendevaluate)yourTOEFLSpeakingresponsesusing3criteria:
1. Language Use2. Topic Development3. Delivery
ThesearethethreeareasTOEFLEvaluatorsjudgeyouonfortheTOEFLSpeakingsection.
Herearethequestionsyouneedtousetoevaluateyourself:
1. Language Use b. Doyoumakeanymajormistakeswithgrammar?Ifyes,whichones?Writedownthe
specificgrammaticalmistakesyoumade.
c. Doyouhaveanytypicalpronunciationmistakeswithspecificsounds?Writedownthespecificsoundsyouhaddifficultywith.
2. Topic Development:c. Areyoursentenceslogical?Isiteasyordifficulttounderstandthemeaning?
d. Tasks1and2:i. Didyougivesomekindofpersonalexperience–summarizeastoryor
discussafutureplan?ii. Didyoumakecomparisons?iii. Didyoumakean“if”sentence?
c. Tasks3,4,5and6:iv. Howmanymainpointsdidthespeakersdiscussinthisdialogueorlecture?v. Didyouclearlyexplainallofthosethemainpointsofthedialogueorlecture?vi. Didyouaccuratelysummarizetherelationshipoftheoriginalinformation?
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3. Delivery
a. Task1---2shouldbe45seconds.Alltheothersshouldbe60seconds.Didyoufinishearly?Late?
b. Didyousoundenergeticorroboticanddepressed?
c. Didyousay“uhh”morethanfourtimes?
d. Didyoutakelongpausesbetweensentences?
Onceyouanswerallofthesequestions,youwillhaveamuchbetterideaastowhatyoumustfocusoninthecomingchapters.
Ifyoustrugglewithpronunciation,thenspendmoretimeonpronunciation.Ifyoustruggledwithgrammar,spendmoretimeongrammar.
IfyoudidGREATwithyournote---taking,thenspendlesstimeonnote---taking.
InthefollowingchaptersIwilltellyouexactlyHOWtoimprovealloftheseskills.
Themostimportantpartofthisself---evaluationistodeterminewhichskillsyou’vemasteredandwhichskillsyoustillstrugglewith.
Focusonthethreewetalkedaboutabove:intonation,pronunciationandnaturallyspokenphrases.
AndthencreateyourTOEFLSpeakingstudyplan….
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Effective TOEFL Speaking Study Plan
How Many Hours You Need to Study
Iwantto______asascoreontheTOEFLSpeakingsection.Lasttime,Ireceived_____..ThismeansIneedtoimprovemyscoreby_____points.
ForeverypointthatIwanttoincreasemyscore,Ishouldspeakoutloudforatleast10hours.
So…
Ineedtofind______(10xnumberofpointsyouwanttoincrease)hourstospeakEnglishandstudyforthespeakingsectionofTOEFLbefore_________________.(insertdateyouplantotakeTOEFL)
Deadline
ItaketheTOEFLon__________________.So,mydeadlineis_____weeksfromtoday.Ihave_____weekstospeakeveryday.
_____(totalnumberofhours)÷______(numberofweeksuntiltest)=_____hoursisthenumberofhoursIneedtospeakeveryweek.
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
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Example From a Previous Student
Iwanttogetascoreof26ontheTOEFLSpeakingsection.Ireceived23onmylastspeakingsection.ThismeansthatIneedtoimprovemyscoreby3points.
ForeverypointthatIwanttoincreasemyscore,Ishouldspeakoutloudforatleast15hours.
So…
Ineedtofind30(10xnumberofpointsyouwanttoincrease)hourstospeakEnglishandstudyforTOEFL’sspeakingsectionbeforeJune 2, 2015.
Deadline
ItaketheTOEFLonJune 2, 2015.Therefore,mydeadlineis6weeksfromtoday.Ihave6weekstospeakeveryday.
30(totalnumberofhours)÷6(numberofweeksuntiltest)=5hoursisthenumberofhoursIneedtospeakeveryweek
Icanfind5hoursforspeakingpracticeon…
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
1 hour between 7 and 8 p.m.
.5 between 6:30 and 8 p.m.
1 hour between 7:00 and 8:00
1 hour between 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.
0 hours
1 hour between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.
.5 hours between 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m.
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Stay Accountable
IwilluseTWOofthefollowingtechniquestomakesureIfollowthroughonmystudyschedule:
1. Gmail’scalendarfunction+addingthewidgettomyinbox,soIalwaysseemyschedule2. Mysmartphone’sagendaapplication3. ApapercalendarthatIwillputonmyfridge/bathroomdoor/bathroommirror
Fail Proof Daily TOEFL Study Plan
1. (3---4minutes)Reviewnewwordsorgrammarfromthepreviousday’sstudysession.So,ifyouworkedonusingadverbsinyourresponsesthenpracticethenewadverbsbyfollowingthedirections.
2. (2---3minutes)Reviewconceptsfromyesterday’slessonor“newmaterial”studytime.
3. (15---20minutes)Studynewconceptsfromasectionyoustrugglewith–includingstrategies,grammarorphrases.Eachday,chooseaclearnewtopic(intonation,pronunciation,naturalphrases,etc.),gotothelocationoftheinformationandstudythatthing.
4. (20-30minutes)–Practicethenewmaterial
Simulate Exam Conditions
1. Carefullymonitoryourtime
2. Donotuseadictionaryoranywebsitetohelp
3. LimitdistractionbyloggingoutofFacebookandturningoffyourphone
4. Gotoapublicplace(e.g.LoudCafe)andpracticeanentireTOEFLSpeakingexam(moreonthislater)
Nowthatyou’vecreatedaneffectivestudyplan,you’vegottoknowwhatissuestofix.Remember,wewanttofocusonpronunciation,intonationandusingnaturallyspokenphrases.
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Master the Pronunciationof These Six Groups of Words
1. Because:YoutubeVideo
2. This and These:YoutubeVideo
3. Woman, Women, Man, Men:YoutubeVideo
4. Say, says, said:YoutubeVideo
5. Professor, Her, Research:YoutubeVideo
6. Advantage/Disadvantage:YoutubeVideo
Onceyou’vemasteredthepronunciationofthesesixwords/phrases,youwillsoundevenmorelikeanativespeaker.
ThereasonIpickthesesixwords/phrasesisbecausetheyaresomeofthemostcommonwordsandphrasesusedontheTOEFL,andtheyoftenpreventhugeproblemsfornon-nativespeakers.
Onceyou’veperfectedyourpronunciationofthesewordsandphrases,youshouldworkonintonation.
How?
Goontothenextsection…
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How to Quickly Improve Your Intonation
AssumingthatyoucanspeakEnglishwell,butyourintonationisoff(whichusuallyimpliesthatyourrhythmisofftoo),thefixissimple:justsingalot.
Here’s the big secret:thesimplerthesong,thebetteritistopracticewith.
Inthebeginning,usenurseryrhymes.SingalongtothisYoutubevideoforexample:
Nursery Rhymes Youtube Video
(Iknowyou’reolderandyou’vegrownup.ButIwanttodoEVERYTHINGIcantohelpyouget26+onTOEFLSpeaking.AndsingingnurseryrhymesWILLhelpyoumasterAmericanEnglishintonation.)
Feelthemelodyandrhythm!Embraceit.Absorbit.Letitflowintoyou.
Onceyoufeelcomfortablewithintonation,moveontoincorporatingsome‘spokenregister’phrasesintoyourvocabulary.
Here’show….
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Natural Phrases You Can UseThesearesomephrasesyoucanusetointroducetopics,examplesandtoconcludeyourresponses:
Adverb Phrases To Use
Adverbsarewordsthatmodifyverbs.Inotherwordstheygivecomparativeorrelativemeaningtocertainverbs:“Themanranquickly”,“Johnspeaksloudly”,“Maryliveslocally”.Andsoon.
ButadverbscanALSOmodifyadjectivesANDotheradverbs.
Forexample:“Heisreallyhandsome”,“Thatwasextremelykindofyou”,“Hedrivesextremelyfast”.
Nowlet’sgettosomeexamplesyoucanuseonTOEFL.
General Adverbs to Sound More Natural:
• Pretty• Just• Really• Extremely• Actually• Probably• Especially
Introduction Phrases Ways to Introduce How to Conclude
Ifmyfriend…Iwould Like SoIthinkthat..
Idoagreethat… Afewdays/weeks/years SoIthinkif…
Personally,Iusedto… Ifoundinmyownexperience Sothat’swhy
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BONUS: Master 7 Major Areas of Grammar
Asabonusforthis26+guide,I’mgivingyouoneextrapart:the7areasofgrammaryoumustmastertoget26+.
Althoughgrammardoesn’tusuallypreventpeoplefromgetting26+,therearerarecaseswhereitmight.
Ifyoustrugglewithanyofthebelowgrammarrules,doyourbesttoperfectthembeforetakingtheTOEFLagain.
1. “she’,‘he’,‘his’,‘her’,‘him’
2. Final‘s’–bothforpluralnounsandpresentsimple,positive(with‘verb-s’/is)andnegative(doesn’tverb/isn’t+adjective)
3. Pastsimple–includingtheright‘pastsimpleverb’orpronouncingthe‘ed’correctlyattheendofeachverb–andnegative(didn’tverb/wasn’t+adjective)
4. ‘If’sentences–Itisnoproblemifyouignorethirdconditional.However,youmustbeaccuratewithfirstandsecond.
5. Comparisonswith‘although’,‘eventhough’,‘however,’and‘but’
6. Basicuseof‘the’
7. Correctlyusingshould/must/haveto/can
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What Are the Next Steps?
Ifyouneedmorehelpinordertoget26+,Irecommenddoingafewdifferentthings.
1. Checkoutmy Youtube channel.IhavedozensoffreevideosabouthowyoucanmastertheTOEFLSpeakingsection.Besuretoclick‘Subscribe!’soyoucangetallthenewupdates!
2. Take Private Lessons-IfyouhavetakenTOEFLseveraltimes,andstillhavenotearnedyourgoalscore,thenIrecommendprivatelessons.Ihavehelpedmanystudentsearnscoresof26+onTOEFLSpeaking-includingstudentswhohavetriedEVERYTHINGelse(likeNotefull)withoutsuccess.Also,ifyouneedahighTOEFLscoreassoonaspossible(likeifyou’reapplyingforyourMBAorLLM),thenIalsorecommendPrivateLessons.Youcangetstartedwithprivatelessonsbysigning up for a TOEFL Speaking Evaluation.
3. Joinmy‘Master TOEFL Speaking’ Facebook Group.InthisexclusiveFacebookgroup,youcanconnectwithotherTOEFLstudentswhoarealsopreparingfortheTOEFLtest.ItisanexcellentcommunitytokeepyoumotivatedinyourTOEFLstudying.
Thanks for reading through this Guide to 26+ on TOEFL Speaking.
If you have any questions, or just want to say Hi, send me an email.
Talk to you soon and good luck!
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