Speaking Section

General speaking strategies: Independent and integrated (227-235)

After listening section we’ll have a 10-minute break.

The microphone that you speak into is attached to the headphone.

There are six tasks in the speaking section. the entire section takes 20
minutes to complete.

First two tasks: Independent ( You speak about familiar topics

without reading or listening to any passages beforehand)

Last four tasks: Integrated (you must first read and/or listen to a
passage and then speak about what you’ve read and heard)

GENERAL SPEAKING STRATEGIES: INDEPENDENT AND INTEGRATED

They are useful for all six tasks in the speaking section.

Strategy 1: Be prepared to speak from notes, not a transcript

You won’t have enough time on the actual exam to write out a
transcript of your answer.
Strategy 2: Organize your thoughts and speech as a paragraph, not a
standard essay.

Strategy 3: Use familiar vocabulary

Speak like you are in a normal academic conversation.

Strategy 4: Use short, simple sentences

Comfortable, natural speech in English doesn’t sound like written

English. Spoken English must still be grammatically correct, organized,
and detailed.

for example:

Strategy 5: Vary your vocabulary and sentence structure.

Strategy 6: Use cohesive devices effectively
Strategy 7: Use transitions appropriately
Strategy 8: Be concise

A concise answer gives a lot of information in a short amount of time. It

is brief, but informative.

Use cohesive devices is a good way to be concise.

Avoid unnecessary repetition

Avoid unnecessary clauses and using parallel structure are two common
ways to shorten your statements.
Strategy 9: Use idioms in moderation, but no slang.

If you use idioms is good, but don’t use slang, because is inappropriate
for the TOEFL.

Strategy 10: Pay attention to you pronunciation.

*Consult a book of English pronunciation patterns.

Strategy 11: Speak at an even pace and with a regular rhythm.

Strategy 12: Group words and pause appropriately.
Strategy 13: Link and glide (move with a slow and continuous
motion) smoothly between pauses.
Linking is the combination of the final consonant of one word with
the first vowel of the next word.

When a word ends with a vowel and the next word begins with a vowel,
the technique is called gliding.

do you exercise? (did ju_’ek sersaiz)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ziKkSig0jM

The six stop consonants are:

hot today - HOT Today - with a stop. hollow air.

bad dog.

OVERVIEW - The Speaking section

General Speaking Strategies: Integrated (pag 235 - 239)

In integrated we have four types of test, so, these are general

strategies that covers the basic skills.

Strategy 1: Take notes in fragments, symbols, abbreviations, and

acronyms.

Take good notes for the last four speaking questions. record several key
points, and details, the better way to do this is using fragments,
symbols, abbreviations and acronyms.
Strategy 2: Paraphrase while taking notes
Strategy 3: Recognize the basic organization of the passage.

If there is any passage, remember the basic organization, hook, body

and conclusion.

Strategy 4: Read and listen for the main idea and key points.

One conversation is about an announcement and you must paraphrase it

and the student’s opinion of it.
The other conversation is about one student’s problem and possible
solutions. You must paraphrase the opinion and also explain your
reasons for preferring one solution.

The lecture is about topic common to North American universities. You

must paraphrase the lecture’s main idea and the supporting points.
(don’t repeat isolated ideas, names, places, forth on, without connect
it them to the main idea)

Strategy 5: Connect details to the main idea

Is not enough to paraphrase an idea, a sentence or a clause about the

conversation

Speaking Task 1: Independent Description (239-244)

In this task, there are two type of question. The first involves a noun of
personal importance, for example “Describe a place that is important
to you”
The second type involves the ideal qualities of a noun, for example:
“Describe the qualities of a good parent”. Although the second type
doesn’t mention you or your personal experience, both questions can
be supported by details from your own knowledge and experience.

After you read a hook, you have 15 seconds to generate and organize
your ideas and 45 seconds to speak.

Strategies

Strategy 1: Be prepared to describe a person, place, thing, or an

event/activity

Describe these things as many as possible before taking the exam:

Strategy 2: Focus your answer and identify a specific noun.

Strategy 3: Organize your ideas before you speak.

Organized the idea as a paragraph.

1st sentence should be the main idea sentence
The rest of your answer should give details about each trait. Therefore,
prepare this kind of organization in your notes.

Strategy 4: Use concrete imagery.

Imaginery refers to descriptive detail that helps a listener ( or reader )

imagine the topic.

Strategy 5: Describe more than appearance

Too often students don’t know many adjectives for the sense, so the
say things like “it tastes good” or “ it sound bad.” Try to be more
creative and use similes

Strategy 6: Use actions and events to make ideas more concrete.

Strategy 7: Use metaphors and similes
Strategy 8: Don’t be too emotional
Strategy 9: Remember to explain the noun’s importance or your
choice of qualities.
Strategy 10: Be logical but subjective.
Question forms.

Overview Independent Description

Speaking Task 1: Independent Description on pages 239 - 244
Strategies

Strategy 1: be prepared to describe a person, place, thing, or an

event/activity

Some possibilities

Strategy 2: Focus your answer and identify a specific noun.

When they give you the holiday, place, ability, whatever, try to be
specific with the activity they are asking for.

Strategy 3: Organize your ideas before you speak.

Organize it as a paragraph

Strategy 4: Use concrete imagery

Don’t fail in the position of using abstract ideas to describe details,

because you can’t imagine enough with in. Unless, you use imagery,
that means using a relationship between abstracts nouns and tangible
situations.
For example: My father is a very calm person, it doesn’t describe a lot.
In the other hand, you may say: My father is a very calm person, i
remember one day when we went to the park in orlando, florida, and
we couldn’t have buy the tickets and he never worried about it.
Actually, he was like “we will make it guys, its all posibilities”

thats how you relate an action and a abstract noun.

Strategy 5: Describe more than appearance.

Describe using the five senses adjectives.

Strategy 6:Use actions and events to make ideas more concrete.

Give an example of every abstract idea or abstract adjective that helps

you to describe a better situation.

So, you can say things like: “he is supportive, he helps us a lot, he want
us to improve", but come one, give us an example of this situation.

Strategy 7: Use metaphors and similes.

A simile is when you compare or contrast two things using like or as.

e.g. My friend is as fast as a cheetah

My sister is like an angel

A metaphor is a simile without like or as:

Strategy 8: Don’t be too emotional

Use more concrete detail and a simile.

Strategy 9: Remember to explain the noun’s importance or your

choice of qualities.

Strategy 10: Be logical but subjective.

Question forms

OVERVIEW

Untitled.mov

Speaking Task 2: Independent Persuasive on pages 245 - 248

Strategies
Strategy 1: Be familiar with the possible topics

Although there is not set list of topics, the topics must be familiar to
most college-age students. You only need to use your own experience
to defend your position.

your goal is not to predict the topic on the exam, but instead to
practice a range of vocabulary.

Strategy 2: Organize your ideas before you speak.

In 15 seconds you have to prepare, quickly choose a position, reasons

and details.

Thesis: Opinion + two reasons

1st reason + detail

2nd reason + detail

Strategy 3: Give a clear, definite position.

Choose just one side to defend a position, because the task

assesses your ability to defend an opinion in speech

Strategy 4: Use recognizable language of opinion

Strategy 5: Organize your reasons with cohesive devices.

Strategy 6: Be specific

Depends on the word

Strategy 7: Defend your opinion logically and objectively

Focus on the benefits to other people at the time to talk about
objectively

Question forms

OVERVIEW
 Speaking test 2.mov

Speaking Task 3: Reading and Conversation Integrated on pages 249 - 256

In the third speaking task, you must first read a school notice, listen to a
conversation between two students about the notice, and then summarize the
notice and one student’s reaction to it.

You have 45 seconds to read the notice and take notes. After you listen to the
conversation, you have 30 seconds to organize your answer and then 60 seconds
to speak.

Strategies

Strategy 1: be familiar with possible topics and related vocabulary

The notice will be campus-related, and it will mention news hat a college or
university would likely announce to students. The news may affect a particular
group of students, several groups, or the entire school.

Some possibilities are listed below:

Strategy 2: take notes on just the key points of the notice.

The key points are the change, reasons, and the people most affected
by the change.

Strategy 3: Put notes on each speaker in separate columns.

When the conversation of 45 seconds starts, put the key points in

separate columns.

Strategy 4: Focus on the speaker with the pronounced or clear

opinion.

example of notes:

Strategy 5: Be prepared to infer meaning

Strategy 6: Pay attention to rhetorical function

Strategy 7: Be aware of sarcasm

Sarcasm: is a rhetorical device.

Strategy 8: Identify the key speaker in the prompt

After the conversation, the narrator will ask a question about one of
the speakers. For example, based on the following prompts, you should
focus on the man.

Strategy 9: Organize your ideas into a paragraph.

Beging by briefly summarizing the note and the announced changes in

one or two sentences. Then give the speaker’s attitute/opinion and
reasons with some detail. Finally, mention the seconds speaker only if
you have time at the end.

Strategy 10: Focus on the opinion, not the notice.

Paraphrase the key points from the notice in your first one or two
sentences only. The rest of your answer should discuss the
conversation.
Strategy 11: Summarize the students opinion in your own words.

A summary is a restatement of the key points in different words.

Strategy 12: Use reported speech, not quotes.

Reported speech is speech that has been paraphrased by someone who

didn’t say it.
Strategy 13: Use a variety of language in your summary.
Strategy 14: Don’t give your personal opinion

Because you are only required to summarize a student’s response to the

notice.

Question form

1st. A narrator will give you instructions that you can hear but not
read.

2nd. After you read the notice, you must listen to a conversation.
Again, the narrator will instruct you:
3rd. You can both hear and read the final prompt., indicating the topic
of your answer and the time. As always, a beed tells you when to start
speaking.

OVERVIEW
 Speaking test 3.mov

Speaking Task 4: Reading and Lecture Integrated on pages 257 - 262

1. Read an academic passage on a common topic in North American colleges

and universities
2. Listen to academic lecture related to the reading

Both passages have the same basic main topic but different main ideas.

In your answer, you must summarize both passages and synthesize, or combine,
information from both. The reading explains an abstract concept, and the
listening illustrates and expands on that concept with concrete details.

1. Read passage and takes notes *45 seconds

2. Listen *30 seconds
3. Speak *60 seconds

Strategies

Strategy 1: Focus on the main concept(s) and any definition in the reading
passage

You must read the passage and take the key definition or its keys definitions.
One way to do that is:

Strategy 2: Pay attention to comparison and contrast.

Similes and metaphor are commonly used to give a lecturer or listener

an idea of the topic

Strategy 3: Note any details unique to the concept

Strategy 4: Take notes on the reading.

Strategy 5: Listen for related vocabulary in the lecture.

Strategy 6: Use your knowledge of lecture organization to take good

notes.

Strategy 7: Listen actively for the main idea, purpose, and key
points.

While you listen, think about what the speaker says about the topic.
Related to that, think about what the speaker tries to accomplish in the
lecture.

Strategy 8: Listen actively for a connection to the reading.

Think about how the ideas in the lecture relate to those in the reading.
Your answer must show some understanding. It cannot simply be a list
of points.

Strategy 9: Write notes in fragments.

Strategy 10: Organize your response as a paragraph.

Strategy 11: Paraphrase both passages; don’t quote or copy.

Instead of copy, you should use reported speech, not quotes, when you
discuss the lecture.

Strategy 12: Vary your expressions.

Don’t repeat the same sentence structure too often. Avoid saying, “The
writer says that…, and the speaker says that… Variety is also part of
good speech, so alternate your sentence structure. Some possibilities
are:

Strategy 13: Use the present tense for facts.

Sometimes the things are facts that happens in the present tense, and
you have not change it. For example, puntuality, especially in
government offices, is simply not a very high priority, this remains
true, even in the present tense, so “The speaker mentions that
punctuality is not very important in India, even for government
employees”

The exception is for historical facts, because it happened in the past.

Question form

1. Hear the prompt: “now, read the passage about/on…start reading

now/immediately
2. The narrator instruct you to listen to a lecture: “Now, listen to a
professor give a lecture about/on… Now, listen to a part of a
lecture about/on…"
 3. After you listen, you hear the narrator’s final prompt for you
spoken answer: “The professor describes/discusses/explains
[lecture topic]…show how [lecture topic] relates to/expands on
[reading topic]

OVERVIEW
Speaking Task 5: Conversation Integrated on pages 263 - 268

1. Listen to a conversation between two students about

ones students campus-related problem or difficulty.
2. Spoken answer, you must summarize the student’s problem, options, and
final decision as well as give your opinion of the student’s choice
 3. 20 seconds to organize your notes and 60 seconds to speak

Strategies

Strategie 1: Be familiar with common problems for college

and university students.

Before the exam, review the vocabulary related to common frustrations for
college and university students.

Strategy 2: Be familiar with the organization of a conversation

A conversation is organized according to turns.

Strategy 3: Record notes for each speaker in a separate column.

Strategy 4: Write notes in fragments.

Strategy 5: Focus on the speaker with the problem.

Identify which student has a difficulty right away, and record the
problem.

Be aware! The problem, which is essentially the main topic, will be

mentioned early.

Strategy 6: Record the options and any reactions

Usually, the student will have two choices. One or both might come
from the other student. Neither student will be explicit or obvious
about the suggestions.
Strategy 7: Be prepared to infer.

Strategy 8: Pay attention to rhetorical function.

Strategy 9: Be aware of sarcasm.

Strategy 10: Record any final decision(s).

Strategy 11: Review your notes and form your own opinion quickly.

Take 5 seconds of your 20 seconds to think about your opinion

Strategy 12: Don’t agree or disagree without an explanation.

Strategy 13: Add your own ideas to those mentioned.

Strategy 14: Organize your answer as a paragraph.

Use the following general outline:

Speaking task 6: Lecture

You must summarize an academic lecture. After you listen to the

lecture, you have 20 seconds to organize your notes and 60 seconds to
speak

Strategies
Strategy 1: Listen actively.

You must understand the main idea, purpose, and key points of the
lecture.

Strategy 2: Be familiar with the basic organization of a lecture.

Strategy 3: Use the introduction and organization to anticipate key

points and details.

Strategy 4: Take notes on the main idea, purpose, and key points.
Strategy 5: Organize your summary as a paragraph.

OVERVIEW

IMPROVE-YOUR-SCORE STRATEGIES

Strategy 1: Work on your pronunciation

Pronunciation is often discussed using the phonetic alphabet, which is a

unique system of symbols for representing vowel and consonant sounds.
The phonetic alphabet uses one symbol for each vowel and consonant
sound.

In General Speaking Strategies, you reviewed some of the basic

elements of english speech: Stress on syllables and words, reduced
vowels, linking, sliding, and pausing.

Strategy 1A: Review vowel sounds.

Practice pronouncing difficult sounds while you look in the mirror

Strategy 1B: Practice consonants.

Consonants can be divided between voiced (vibration) or voiceless (no

vibration)

Voiced: buy, my, vie, day, go, low, no, row, zap, though, and joe
Voiceless: fee, key, te, thigh, chew, shy, and sigh

Each vowel can be short or long, depending on the final consonant.

Strategy 1: Make sure you stress the right syllables

Stress is a vital park of pronouncing a word correctly. Each word is

stressed on a particular syllable. Although there are exception to every
rule, English stress follows a particular patterns.

Review prefixes, suffixes, roots, compound nouns, and phrasal verbs.

Strategy 1D: Practice stress in sentences; get the rhythm.

As you learned in General Speaking Strategies, certain words in a

sentence receive extra emphasis on their stressed syllable.
Strategy 1E: Link words into groups, or chunks.

When one word ends in a consonant and the next begins with a vowel,
both words can be joined and spoken without a pause between them.

Prepositions and articles are often joined to a preceding word in this

way. For example, the second sentence above should contain two
linked words (Took + a )

The article a can be linked, or joined, to the verb took, and both words
should be spoken as one. Likewise, the third sentence from the list
abode should contain three linked words (went+ on+a)

The preposition on and article a should be joined to the verb went, and
the three words ought to be spoken as one word without a pause
between them.

Strategy 1F: Contract auxiliary verbs.

Strategy 2: Use transcripts and read them out load.

Strategy 3: Focus on grouping words and pausing.

Pausing is unavoidable since you have to pause to breath and think. but
grouping is a difficult skill for many students to master. It is common
for students to pause at the wrong place in a sentence, and this is
because they haven’t practiced grouping enough. English is made up of
phrases and clauses, so it’s so important to follow that organization
when you speak.

Strategy 4: Speak in English at least as often as you write, read, and

listen.

Strategy 5: Practice speaking under test-like conditions.

Strategy 6: Practice speaking from fragments and words.

Practice by thinking of a familiar noun, arguments, or concept, writing

a few key words down on a piece of paper, and speaking from just those
notes.

Strategy 7: Practice writing notes that are easy to speak from.

Strategy 8: Practice expressing ideas in a variety of ways.

Strategy 9: Note any weaknesses in your vocabulary, especially verb
choice.

Strategy 10: Be well prepared for the independent tasks.

Before the actual exam, you should describing at least one important
person, place, event, class, and possession from your life.

Likewise, you should practice describing the qualities of a good parent,

neighbor, teacher, scientist, and politician.

Practice supporting or pposing a wide variety of projects and issues:

Construction projects: roads,highways, shopping malls, theaters, etc.

Living arrangements: Country, city, roommates, co-ed,
multigenerational, stay at home until marriage.
Education philosophies: School size, home schooling, no homework, no
grades
Government involvement: Surveillance, censorship

Strategy 11: Speak about academic topics.

Strategy 12: Learn more by focusing your study and practice.