Today, I observed Ron Garren's listening class--but I didn't know it was going to be a TOEFL practice session. Ron apologized and told me I could leave, but I decided to stay, since it might be useful to understand what the listening section of the TOEFL was like in order to better prepare students for it. The students were warmly greeted, and I was introduced, although I'm sure they were wondering what all I could be observing--since most of them seemed to have known about today's agenda coming in. We were handed an answering sheet, told the structure of the test (conversations, lectures) and to take notes as we listened, since each segment would only be played once.
Not having a clue as to what the listening section on the TOEFL would be like, I made some interesting observation. First, all the recorded segments were all education-themed (ex: a professor's lecture for a government class, conversation between a student and a teacher). The conversations were a tad slower than "natural pace" with exaggerated pronunciations. The speakers' tones were at times, a bit dramatic, and it was clear these were staged conversations. However, for the purposes of an exam, I think these elements can be excused, since clarity is probably the most crucial. The "professor" giving the government lecture had a voice akin to a radio announcer and didn't sound as though he were talking a live audience--but again, it seems the test is aiming for clarity more than authenticity.
After each section, Ron would read the questions aloud. Questions ranged from checking comprehension of actual data to understanding tone and purpose--such as, "Why does the professor say this?"
Most of the students seemed prepared, but I observed a few puzzled/struggling expressions. I wondered how I would be reacting to such a test, and definitely felt some empathy when I thought about my own struggles in understanding spoken Spanish (as opposed to simply reading it).
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