-
TOEFL iBT Enhancements 2023 - All you need to know
- 21-7-2023
- Posted By : Admin
Test of English as Foreign Language (TOEFL) is an English proficiency test. The TOEFL iBT test, measures the ability to communicate by using the four language skills and combining them all – Reading, Listening, Writing and Speaking. The test is academically focused, measuring the proficiency in English as it is used in academic settings. TOEFL ensures it provides fair and objective scoring.
Why the TOEFL test?
The TOEFL test provides several advantages to students to get into their dream school.
- The TOEFL test measures academic English skills the way they are actually used in the classroom.
- The TOEFL test provides truly fair and unbiased scoring.
- The TOEFL test gives students a real head starts over their peers.
- The TOEFL test helps students get noticed.
ETS makes changes to the TOEFL after listening to the test-takers and score users about their needs and after doing a thorough research to ensure the proposed changes won’t affect the reliability, validity or fairness of the test.
For years, ETS continue to enhance the TOEFL iBT test experience. A few are as follows,
- TOEFL iBT Paper edition and Home edition
- Shorter Test
- Instant Reading and Listening scores
- Faster official score reporting
- My Best scores
- Enhanced Speaking scoring
- Increased capacity with weekday and afternoon testing
- Extended registration deadline
- Reduced retest wait time
- TOEFL iBT Free Practice test
TOEFL iBT is changing effective from 26th July 2023 administration. ETS, the test writers of TOEFL had ensured that all the improvements are made without sacrificing test quality, validity or security.
New TOEFL iBT Test Structure:
| Section |
Duration |
No of questions |
| Reading |
35 minutes |
20 questions; 2 reading passages |
| Listening |
36 minutes |
28 questions; 5 sets |
| Speaking |
16 minutes |
4 tasks |
| Writing |
29 minutes |
2 tasks |
Let us see TOEFL iBT section wise changes in detail.
TOELF iBT Reading
- The task is to read the passages and respond to questions.
- 2 passages from academic tests, followed by 10 questions each passage.
- Passages are approximately 700 words long.
- Most questions are worth 1 point, but a few worth more than 1 point (directions for each question indicate when this is a case)
- The text types include typical academic genres: Expository, narrative, argumentative.
- Abstract patterns of information organization: Description, definition, sequence, procedure, cause-effect, classification, compare-contrast, problem-solution.
Tips to improve accuracy and time taken on the TOEFL iBT Reading section:
- Read the passage casually.
- Read and understand the question carefully, slowly.
- Don't look at answer choices.
- Go back to passage and find your answer.
- Compare your answer with the answer options.
TOEFL iBT Listening Section
- Types of Listening stimuli are either Lectures or Conversations.
- Academic lectures:
- 3-4 academic lectures, some with classroom discussion.
- Approximately 5 minutes long.
- Each lecture followed by 6 questions.
- Lectures can be Monologue or Interactive.
- Informal campus conversations:
- 2-3 conversations.
- Approximately 3 minute long.
- Each conversation followed by 5 questions.
- Conversations can be discussions with professors, Service encounters such as Librarian, foreign student advisor, lab/teaching assistant.
- All questions are worth 1 point.
Tips to develop TOEFL iBT Listening abilities:
- Grasp the main ideas and the supporting details.
- Understand the relationship between ideas.
- Understand the speaker's attitude and purpose.
- Follow the organization of the lecture.
- Comprehend the implications of the conversation.
- Work on more exposure - by talking to friends, teachers and relatives.
- Work on watching programs with CC - especially British programs.
TOEFL iBT Speaking Section
- Test takers respond to 4 tasks.
- 1 independent task about familiar topics
- Responses based on personal experience
- 3 integrated tasks
- 2 Reading/Listening/Speaking tasks (1 academic, 1 campus based). Responses based on what was read and heard.
- 1 Listening/Speaking task (academic).
Integrated Speaking Task:
- A Reading/Listening/Speaking campus situation topic
- Consists of a short reading, a conversation and a single question
- The test taker reads one paragraph (often a proposal or an announcement) from a campus source such as a newspaper, website or e-mail)
- The test taker hears a conversation between two students about the reading; one will state his or her opinion.
Tips to improve TOEFL iBT Speaking abilities:
Concentrate on
- Understand the demands
- Speak according to the context of question or as a response
- Organize your thoughts
- Confident and assertive
- Say what you have to
- Not worrying about fluency, grammar, pronunciation while speaking
Work on
- More exposure - by talking to friends, teachers and relatives
- Practice and self-assessment - talking on topics
- Watching programs with CC - especially British programs.
TOEFL iBT Writing Section
- 1 Integrated Task
- Test taker sees a 230-300 word reading passage for 3 minutes.
- Then test taker hears a 2-minute lecture about the same topic from a different perspective or with additional information.
- Test taker sees the reading passage again and also a prompt.
- Test taker has 20 minutes to respond to the prompt.
- Integrated writing rubrics is based on quality of writing, completeness and accuracy of response.
- Ratings are 0-5 from rubrics; converted to a scaled score of 0-30.
- 1 writing for Academic Discussion
- Response based on personal experience or opinion.
- 10 minutes duration.
- The test taker is expected to respond to or build on ideas expressed in other text, clearly state or elaborate on a position or argument.
- And to show accurate and meaningful use of a range of grammatical structures and vocabulary in the academic context.
- This task demonstrates proficiency in a shorter time the same high level of reliability and validity.
- Ratings are 0-5 from rubrics; converted to a scaled score of 0-30.
TOEFL iBT enhancement features and test takers’ experience:
- Reduced test time: Take the new TOEFL Test in less than 2 hours!!!
- TOEFL iBT administration starting from 26th July 2023 have a total test duration 1 hour 56 minutes while the previous version was 3 hours plus 30 minutes check in time.
- Overall test time was reduced by,
- Removing unscored items
- Streamlined test instructions
- Removing one reading passage and associated questions
- Replacing the ‘Independent writing’ task with ‘Writing for an academic discussion’ task
- Streamlined registration process
Beginning July 2023,
- Register in less time
- Clearer scheduling experience
- Intuitive navigation
- Enhanced usability
- Mobile responsive design
- Enhanced score reporting
- Instant unofficial reading and listening scores
- Official score availability date communicated on test day
- Real-time notification of score status change
- More specific and ongoing communication with test takers
- Free AI – scored mobile practice sets
- Improved ‘At Home’ experience
- Improved technical preparation and support.
- Streamlined communication with testers.
- INR payment options
- Book your TOEFL test in INR with more payment options.
- India based customer support
- New Toll-Free Contact center in India.
- Support 7 days a week, including holidays, 8 am to 8 pm (IST)
Erisha EduSupport is a market ambassador of TOEFL which enables us connect with the test administrators for first-hand information and preparation materials. Please reach out to us to know more about the new TOEFL iBT.
