Your Guide to the New TOEFL® test

Your Guide to the New TOEFL^® test

In September 2005, ETS will roll out a new TOEFL. Touted as the "next generation" TOEFL, it will assess four basic language skills: Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking.

ETS has made several changes to the test with the goal of making the TOEFL a more accurate gauge of the English skills needed for academic success. The test material will have a more academic context and is designed to more closely mimic the academic environment.

• Reading passages will be more academic in nature to better reflect college reading assignments
• Listening passages will mimic college lectures and follow more "natural" speech patterns, including pauses, corrections, and grammatical errors

The structure of the new TOEFL will test two "inputs", reading and listening, and two "outputs", writing and speaking.

• After reading a passage, students will:
  • Write their answers, including short written answers and multiple choice
  • Speak their answers into a recorder
• After listening to a passage, students will:
  • Write their answers, including short written answers and multiple choice
  • Speak their answers into a recorder

Later this year, students will be able to take a full-length practice exam at www.TOEFL®.org. However, schools will only accept scores taken after the new TOEFL is officially rolled out in September 2005.

Because the next generation TOEFL test includes a speaking test, schools will no longer require the TSE for admissions.

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InternationalTOEFL@teacher ^®

TOEFL^® test The international standard for 40 years

For more than 40 years the Test of English as a Foreign Language TOEFL^® test has been the leading academic English proficiency test in the world. Each year nearly 800,000 individuals worldwide register for the exam that helps open a new world of possibilities for a new generation of achievers.

Overview

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) measures the ability of nonnative speakers of English to use and understand North American English as it is spoken, written and heard in college and university settings. Most people who take the TOEFL test are planning to study at colleges and universities where instruction is in English. In addition, many government agencies, scholarship programs, and licensing/certification agencies use TOEFL scores to evaluate English proficiency.

Currently more than 4,400 two- and four-year colleges and universities, professional schools, and sponsoring institutions accept TOEFL scores.

The TOEFL test measures English language proficiency in reading, listening and writing and is offered on computer in most regions of the world. In areas where access to computer-based testing is limited, a paper-and-pencil version of the test is administered.

Paper-Based TOEFL

Once test takers arrive at the testing center, they are given a test book and a paper answer sheet on which to record their responses.

The paper-based test has three sections:

• Listening Comprehension measures the ability to understand spoken English.
• Structure and Written Expression measures the ability to recognize standard written English.
• Reading Comprehension measures the ability to read and understand nontechnical material.

The paper-based TOEFL test takes about 3.5 hours to complete.

The Test of Written English (TWE^®) is also required for everyone taking the paper-based test. Test takers are given 30 minutes to write a short essay on an assigned topic. The essay is evaluated on the test taker's ability to organize and support ideas, and to use standard written English. Special knowledge of the topic is not needed to write the essay.

Computer-Based TOEFL

The computer-based TOEFL test is offered at institutional sites such as colleges and universities, and at testing centers operated by Prometric, a division of Thomson Learning.

The computer-based TOEFL test has four sections:

• Listening measures the ability to understand English as it is spoken in North America.
• Structure measures the ability to recognize language that is appropriate for standard written English.
• Reading measures the ability to understand short passages that are similar in topic and style to academic texts used in North American colleges and universities.
• Writing measures the ability to write in English on an assigned topic.

InternationalTOEFL@teacher ^®