Integrating TOEFL Preparation with Academic Language Development INTESOL November 2014 Leslie Gabriele [email protected].

Integrating TOEFL Preparation with Academic Language Development

INTESOLNovember 2014Leslie [email protected]

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Why teach TOEFL preparation?

If you are teaching in an English academic preparation course, like an IEP

•TOEFL is the most used English Proficiency test for admission in American universities

•Student motivation

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Why don’t teachers integrate TOEFL?•Teachers worry that learners' attention may be distracted

from the real business of learning the language and focused on mastering item types for the TOEFL instead (Buck, 1988; Raimes, 1990; Shohamy, 1992).

•Teachers do not believe that the TOEFL test is a good predictor of academic success, which is perhaps supported by studies showing a very weak correlation between TOEFL scores and GPA (Cho & Bridgeman, 2012)

•Teachers assume that by teaching the academic skills that are tested on the TOEFL, students will be able to successfully answer those item types

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Why integrate?• Student motivation - Students prioritize TOEFL study“I won’t be able to do the homework for this class because I am studying for the TOEFL”

• Traditional TOEFL preparation courses are minimally effective, if at all.

(Bachman et al., 1995; Liu, 2014 ; Nguyen, 2007)

• Learned or “default” test strategies, when they even exist, do not correspond to “academic skills”.

• Taught academic skills (often?) do not transfer “I just guess on that type of question”

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Steps in integration of TOEFL

1. Align class student learning outcomes with TOEFL item types

2. Determine supporting skills and align with TOEFL item types

3. Assign/Practice BOTH academic work and TOEFL questions

4. Teach SAME strategies for BOTH

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1. Align class student learning outcomes with TOEFL item types

•IEP Level 7 (high intermediate - 550 TOEFL ITP - 79 TOEFL iBT)

Reading and Writing SLOsBy the end of Level 7 Reading and Writing, successful students will be able to:TOEFL item type

Critically evaluate a source of information using multiple criteria (reliability, significance, and usefulness, among others)

N/A

Synthesize multiple sources of information in writing using conventions of format, structure, and language appropriate to the purpose of academic writing

Integrated Writing

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2. Determine supporting skills and align with TOEFL item types

IU IEP Level 7 Academic Skill TOEFL item

Main skill Synthesis Writing - Integrated

Supporting skill Written Summary of readings Skimming Identifying Topic /Main ideas

Reading -Prose SummaryReading - Fill in table

Supporting skill Written Summary of lectures Taking notes Identifying Topic/Main ideas

Listening -Gist contentListening -OrganizationListening -Connecting content

Sub-Supporting skill

Source attribution N/A

Sub-Supporting skill

Paraphrasing Reading –Sentence Simplification

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3. Assign/Practice BOTH academic work and TOEFL questionsAcademic Work TOEFL Question

Assignment: Write a 5 page synthesis of 3 sources – Required textbook reading, lecture on campus, third source

Task: write a 150-220 word synthesis of 2 sources – reading and lecture

Fall 2014 Level 7 MaterialsTopic: Eat and Drink: Food from Art to ScienceTextbook: Coffee Culture: Local Experiences, Global Connections by Catherine TuckerLecture: Themester lecture on campusThird Source: Student choice

Materials:ETS’s The Official Guide to the New TOEFL iBTDelta’s Key to the TOEFL iBT(align with content if possible)

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4. Teach SAME strategies for BOTH •Strategies for Summary

▫Skim (read last sentence of introduction and first sentence of each paragraph – read section headings, if any)

▫Determine topic▫Determine question/rhetorical mode and sub-points

Read topic sentences of body paragraphs▫Determine main idea

Location: End of introduction, Beginning of conclusion Answer to question General statement that “covers” all sub-points Clue words

TOEFL example

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4. Teach SAME strategies for BOTH •Strategies for Paraphrasing

▫Determine number of “thoughts” – clauses▫Determine relationship between thoughts – connectives▫Determine type of information in each clause

TOEFL example

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4. Teach SAME strategies for BOTH •Strategies for Synthesis

▫Summarize sources▫Build grid with topic/questions and answers for each source

▫Write synthesis on the questions that have answers across all, or most sources

▫Organize synthesis by topic/question – NOT source

End

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4. Synthesis Grid

Topic Reading Lecture

Topic/Question of Source

Main point Main point

Sub-topic/question 1

Sub-point 1 Sub-point 1

Sub-topic/question 2

Sub-point 2 Sub-point 2

Sub-topic/question 3

Sub-point 3 Sub-point 3

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Learned strategies?•Analysis of TOEFL preparation textbooks (Hamp-Lyons,

1998):“When exercises or practice tests are presented, there is no preceding material to teach the point tested by each item. …whereas learners can score themselves, they are not helped to diagnose problem areas, patterns of need, or even areas of strength. Learners are left to try to work out for themselves what to do after having counted the number of items right and wrong and worked out a weighted score. Furthermore, what the books typically offer students next is another practice test.”

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TOEFL Reading – Prose Summary•ETS’s The Official Guide to the New TOEFL iBT – No tips

or strategies

•Delta’s Key to the TOEFL iBTThe reading skill of skimming will help you summarize the important information in the passage. Skimming is reading through the passage quickly to understand its overall meaning, purpose, and organization. (page 162) A summary includes only the major ideas and most important information in a passage. (page 163)

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TOEFL Reading – Prose Summary•Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary

of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some answer choices do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.

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TOEFL Reading – Prose Summary• (ETS – page 109)The political system of the United States in the mid-nineteenth century was strongly influenced by the social and economic circumstances of the time.1. The Democratic and Whig Parties developed in response to the needs of

competing economic and political constituencies.2. During Andrew Jackson’s two terms as President, he served as leader of

both the Democratic and Whig Parties.3. The Democratic Party primarily represented the interests of the market,

banks, and commerce.4. In contrast to the Democrats, the Whigs favored government aid for

education.5. A fundamental difference between Whigs and Democrats involved the

importance of the market in society.6. The role of government in the lives of the people was an important political

distinction between the two parties. 1 2

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Academic Skills - Paraphrasing•Bottom-up approach: synonyms and grammar•Top-down approach: meaning Guidelines: A Cross-Cultural Reading/Writing Text by Ruth Spack“A good approach can be to follow these guidelines to determine meaning:

▫Think about what the writer is really saying.▫Observe how the passage fits into the entire reading selection.”

(p.280)•Chunking approachSourceWork: Academic Writing From Sources by Dollahite and Haun

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TOEFL Reading – Sentence SimplificationETS – page 43• The structure of the backbone shows, however, that Ambulocetus

swam like modern whales by moving the rear portion of its body up and down, even though a fluke was missing.

Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage?a. Even though Ambulocetus swam by moving its body up and down, it

did not have a backbone.b. The backbone of Ambulocetus which allowed it to swim, provides

evidence of its missing fluke.c. Although Ambulocetus had no fluke, its backbone structure shows

that it swam like modern whales.d. By moving the rear parts of their bodies up and down, modern

whales swim in a different way Ambulocetus swam. 1

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Sentences in a model synthesis paper•Over the past 30 years, researchers have demonstrated thatthe great apes (chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans) resemblehumans in language abilities more than had been thought possible.Just how far that resemblance extends, however, has been amatter of some controversy.•Although the ape language studies continue to generatecontroversy, researchers have shown over the past 30 years thatthe gap between the linguistic abilities of apes and humans is farless dramatic than was once believed.http://www.dianahacker.com/pdfs/hacker-shaw-apa.pdf Back

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Thank You!

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References• Bachman, L. F., Davidson, F., Ryan, K., & Choi, I. C. (1995). An investigation of

comparability of two tests of English as a foreign language. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

• Buck, G. (1988). Testing listening comprehension in Japanese university entrance examinations. JALT Journal (10), 12-42.

• Cho, Y. & Bridgeman B., (2012). Relationship of TOEFL iBT® scores to academic performance: Some evidence from American universities

• Liu, O. L. (2014) Investigating the Relationship Between Test Preparation and TOEFL iBT Peformance. ETS Research Report RR 14-15

• Nguyen, T. N. H. (2007, May). Effects of test preparation on test performance – the case of the IELTS and TOEFL iBT listening tests. Paper presented at Teaching English to Speakers of Other Language (TESOL) in the Internationalization of Higher Education in Vietnam, Hanoi, Vietnam

• Raimes, A. (1990). The TOEFL Test of Written English: Causes for Concern. TESOL Quarterly Volume 24, Issue 3, pages 427–442.

• Shohamy, E. (1992). Beyond proficiency testing: A diagnostic feedback testing model for assessing foreign language learning. The Modern Language Journal, 76, 513-521.