How to Prepare for TOEFL Speaking?

How much confidence or security do you feel when thinking about the Speaking section of the TOEFL? Is it an area of the exam that you have already mastered or is it the section of the exam that causes you the most anxiety? Speaking in another language is one of the activities that arouses the most insecurity in the entire process of learning another language. If in addition to this, you are faced with receiving an evaluation on your ability to give answers in English in less than a minute, nerves can undoubtedly increase. For many, the TOEFL Speaking section is the most difficult. In this article we explain what it is like and how you should prepare for the Speaking section of the TOEFL iBT.

If you are interested in the topic of how to prepare the different parts of the TOEFL, we leave you here the related articles for the TOEFL listening, TOEFL reading and TOEFL speaking preparations.

Structure of the Speaking Section

The Speaking section of the TOEFL iBT is the third part of the exam. Like the other sections, the score you can obtain ranges from 0 to 30 points. The total time to complete this portion of the exam is 17 minutes. Before telling you in detail about the best ways to prepare for this section, the first thing you should know is how it is structured and what the person who will evaluate your exam is looking for.

This section of the TOEFL consists of answering four questions: one independent question and three integrated questions.

Independent Question

The independent question seeks to examine your ability to express your ideas, opinions, or beliefs in English. In this case, ETS will not evaluate whether your opinion is socially or morally correct or incorrect. On the contrary, it will evaluate your ability to express an argued idea or opinion, that is, postulate your position on a certain statement, and present arguments that justify that position. Depending on the statement, you could even talk about a personal experience that justifies your point.

To answer the independent question you will have 15 seconds to prepare and 45 to 60 seconds to record your answer. This type of question usually poses the following model statement:

Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: people who spend more than 2 hours a day on social networks are unhappier than people who spend less time on networks?
Do you think scientists should have the freedom to explore anything they want or do you think there should be some limitations on science?
If you had to choose a special date in the year, what would it be? Explain your answer.

Integrated Question

Integrated questions are so called because they assess your ability to integrate two or more English skills. That is, to answer these types of questions, you must first listen to a 60 to 90 second mini-class and/or read an academic text. Once you have listened to and read these materials, you will be asked to present or synthesize the main idea and secondary ideas of the topic. In this way, it is about “integrating” your reading, listening, and speaking skills into a single activity, something you would do in any academic or professional context.

Preparation time for integrated questions ranges from 15 to 30 seconds (depending on the question), and the time to give your answer also ranges from 45 to 60 seconds. These time ranges do not include the duration of the audios or the time to read the academic texts.

How to Improve Your Speaking Score?

Now that we have reviewed the structure of the Speaking section, we would like to offer you a series of tools to help you prepare and improve your score in this section of the TOEFL iBT.

1. TOEFL Speaking Practice

One of the most difficult skills in the Speaking section is not speaking, but managing response time. The pressure of answering a question in a minute or less is what leads many students to freeze up, pronounce incorrectly, or speak at a speed that is difficult to understand. Even if you have an intermediate or advanced level of English, not everyone has the ability to construct answers for the TOEFL. However, just like any other skill, the more you practice, the more you will master this skill. The key is to do real Speaking TOEFL practices, counting the time to solve each of the 4 questions. Even if it seems frustrating at first, keep practicing and you will learn to manage time. It is highly recommended that these practices be guided by a TOEFL preparation specialist who knows the evaluation criteria by which this section is governed.

2. Practice Thinking About the TOEFL Speech Rater

ETS uses two methods to score your Speaking score: evaluation by a professional and Speech Rater software. This software is a system that evaluates certain “mechanical” aspects of your speech, for example, the number of repetitions, the number of pauses, the length of those pauses, the level of your vocabulary, speaking fluency, and pronunciation. Let’s say that this software is a first filter for qualifying your answer, which will then be re-evaluated by a human being taking into account additional aspects (the organization of ideas, content development, etc.). In your study plan you must emphasize correct articulation, thinking, at all times, about the filter provided by the Speech Rater.

3. Seek the Support of TOEFL Preparation Professionals

The Speaking section of the TOEFL is perhaps one of those areas where receiving the help of a specialized TOEFL instructor can generate more significant changes. The reason is that you will be able to receive immediate feedback about your strengths and weaknesses when preparing your answers in 45 or 60 seconds. For example, a TOEFL instructor can help you create a speech structure that easily adapts to various types of responses, using introductory phrases of a few seconds duration, connectors of ideas, organization of concepts, clarity of pronunciation and rhythm of speech, etc. A good professional knows the scoring criteria used by TOEFL, so they will be able to adapt your Speaking preparation depending on how you progress with the exercises they give you.

We hope this article has answered your questions. If you have any questions about your preparation, please contact us and we will be happy to explain how EPIC Prep can help you achieve your goals.