Author Topic: It's worth the effort!  (Read 5305 times)

vinzvonvan

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It's worth the effort!
« on: December 02, 2009, 07:22:37 PM »
Three weeks ago, there was a TOEIC exam here in the office. Before that, I searched for different TOEIC sites on the web for a self review. I got bored reading all those questions and some words made my nose bleeding (arrgh!).Until I came across Joe Carrillo’s Practice Tests and found out the questions were challenging (wow!). Honestly, of course, I don’t want to cheat myself, I took the TOEIC practice tests and got perfect scores.I’m not bragging, I just couldn’t believe it. I only looked for the answers after I’m done.

For the result of my TOEIC test in the office,well, not perfect, but almost! The checker said I got seven mistakes.Again, I’m not bragging, just so happy because I discovered this site unexpectedly. ;)

Joe Carillo

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Re: It's worth the effort!
« Reply #1 on: December 02, 2009, 07:57:36 PM »
Many English-savvy Filipinos taking the grammar tests and reading comprehension and vocabulary tests of TOEIC and TOEFL do very well and, like you, even get perfect scores for them. I think this is largely because the use of English as language of instruction in the Philippines puts the English of many Filipinos on a level higher than the language level of this part of the tests. (These tests are much more demanding on test-takers from countries that don't have the same English-language heritage as ours.) Also, I presume that the TOEIC test you took in your office included the listening comprehension tests as well, and that it was in these tests where you made the seven mistakes. That's understandable, of course, for listening comprehension tests demand from the test-taker more than just memorized vocabulary, grammar, and applications of syntax. Listening comprehension tests require more focused attention, good hearing, and agility of understanding spoken words under time pressure. Prospective test takers of TOEIC and TOEFL therefore need more practice in this aspect of the English proficiency tests--not with written equivalents of listening comprehension tests but with actual voice recordings of the tests. This is why I was extremely hesitant to post the listening comprehension portions of TOEIC and TOEFL in the Forum along with those for grammar and reading comprehension. I was afraid that they just might lull prospective test-takers into thinking that the listening comprehension tests--when read on paper or on the computer screen--are of the same level of difficulty as the reading comprehension tests. They are not; in fact, they require an entirely different discipline--that of comprehending the meaning of spoken words that, unlike the written word that the eyes can focus on at will, impinge on the ears only for a very fleeting moment.