TOEIC Booster / Decisiveness key to reading aloud
Lynn Stafford-Yilmaz Special to The Daily Yomiuri
In the last column (Jan. 12), we looked at the TOEFL test. This week, we turn to the TOEIC test, which has been revamped lately, with the addition of two new sections: speaking and writing. Today, we will look at one particular section of the new speaking test: reading aloud.
In the read-aloud part of the TOEIC test, test-takers see a reading passage. They have 45 seconds to prepare. Then, they have 45 seconds to read the text aloud. This reading is recorded for later scoring.
Let's look now at a sample reading passage.
Example
Goat milk is gaining in popularity. Indeed, after cows, goats are the most popular source of commercial milk for humans. Goat milk is different from cow milk in certain ways. Goat milk has more calcium--3 percent more than cow milk. It's also higher in other key vitamins: A, B2, and B3. Goat milk is often recommended for babies, because fewer babies have allergies to goat milk. one of its drawbacks is the price. It takes 10 goats to produce the milk of one cow, and milking goats is much more labor intensive than milking cows.
The 45 seconds of preparation that are given to test-takers are vital, because it is during this time that they can set themselves up to perform their best.
First, in their preparation, test-takers should read the passage aloud to themselves. The key advice here is that test-takers read the passage aloud. They should not read the passage silently, because this will not offer them the oral practice that they need.
In addition, test-takers should manage their practice time to cover the whole reading passage. They must avoid the temptation to work on just the first sentence or two. They need to go over the entire reading from start to finish.
The grading of TOEIC read-aloud tasks looks at three main areas: pronunciation, intonation, and stress. Test-takers should understand how to prepare for these three elements in order to score at their highest level during the exam.
Defined loosely, intonation is the pattern of pitch changes in flowing speech. Correct intonation is tied to the meaning of what is being said. In order to use good intonation, test-takers need to understand the basic ideas in the reading passage. Test-takers should try to grasp this meaning during their initial, practice read-through. As TOEIC read-aloud passages do not tend to be very complex, most test-takers should readily be able to catch the main ideas. They should keep in mind that it is these main ideas, rather than each individual word, that they need to understand.
While pronunciation and stress are different things, in a testing setting, they pose test-takers with a similar challenge. For these reasons, I will treat them here as one topic. With pronunciation and stress, the challenge arises when a test-taker does not know a word well. In this case, I recommend three simple tactics: test-takers should do their best, trust their basic instinct about the word, and stick with it consistently through the reading.
In your practice reading of the example passage, for example, you may realize that you are not sure how to pronounce the word cow. If this is the case, say the word aloud. If you are unsure between two or three different pronunciations, try each one out loud quickly. Then decide which sounds the best to you. Do not dawdle over this decision, because the seconds are ticking.
Next, have faith in the choice you make. Even though you may think that you "don't know the word," it is possible that you have heard the word before and simply forgotten this exposure. In a testing situation, trusting your own ear is the best available option. Having confidence in yourself and in the choices you make will help you to proceed.
To illustrate the importance of this point, let me share my experience with you as a frequent test-grader. on many occasions, I have graded read-aloud tasks where test-takers stumble repeatedly over a word.
In their effort to pronounce the word correctly, they repeat the word in a variety of ways, hoping that one will be correct. This kind of stammering draws attention to the test-taker's problem, and it does not help their score in any way.
On this same topic, once you have made your choice about how to say a word, continue with this pronunciation throughout your reading. The word cow, for example, appears five times in this reading passage. Practice time is limited and you must use it evenly over your preparation of the whole passage. So, for example, once you have determined how you will say cow, stick with it.
If test-takers can make efficient and decisive decisions as needed during their practice reading, that person should be able to practice the entire reading passage in the 45 seconds that are given. Then, when it comes time for the actual, recorded reading, test-takers should have the key information they need to read through the whole passage smoothly. That is, the test-taker will know the main ideas of the passage and will have a plan of action for uttering each and every word. As we have seen, a quick review of the reading passage can arm test-takers to perform at their highest level.
The first TOEIC speaking test in Japan was administered on Jan. 21. It is an Internet-based exam containing 11 questions and lasting about 20 minutes. Two of the questions are read-aloud tasks.
At present, both the speaking and writing sections of the exam are optional and must be registered for separately.
The next Booster column will feature the TOEFL test. If you have questions or comments about the TOEIC test, or about this column, please e-mail Lynn Stafford-Yilmaz at dy-edu@yomiuri.com.
Lynn Stafford-Yilmaz is a former TOEIC test-question writer. She has taught TOEIC courses in Japan and in the United States. She is also the author of several English textbooks.
(Jan. 26, 2007)