TOEFL stands for ‘Test Of English as a Foreign Language’. It is a standardized test administered by Educational Testing Service (ETS). The test scores are used for admission into colleges and universities situated in English speaking countries such as United States, Canada, Germany, France and Italy. These scores are also used by several professional organizations and government agencies. There are more about 6000 institutions situated in more than 100 countries which recognize TOEFL as an international standard test for English proficiency. This test has two formats- internet based called TOEFL –iBT and paper based test. The paper based test is conducted where internet based test is not possible due to technological limitations.
Eligibility-
Anyone can take TOEFL test. There is no eligibility criterion in terms of age or qualification. TOEFL is beneficial for individuals resident in non-native English speaking countries who are aspiring to study or get a job in a native English speaking country. In general, TOEFL examines one’s efficiency in understanding and communicating in English in an academic environment. There is also a TOEFL junior test which can be taken by students of age between 11 and 14. The difficulty level of TOEFL junior is of middle school.
Test Overview-
There are four sections in internet based TOEFL exam- listening, speaking, reading and writing. The listening section tests oral perception of a candidate. The speaking section examines fluency and spontaneity in speech. The reading section is based upon reading comprehension. In this section, passages from different undergraduate texts are given followed by related questions. In the writing section, presentation of views on an issue and writing skill are tested. The paper based test also has four sections- Listening, sentence structure, reading comprehension and writing.
Test Format-
In the listening section, there are six passages of which two are conversations and four are academic lectures. A conversation is between two speakers, student and a professor. Each conversation is followed by five questions. Each lecture is followed by six questions. The examinee is allowed to take notes while listening. The time allotted to this section is 60 to 90 minutes. In the paper based test, listening section has three parts. There are 30 questions related to short passages, 8 questions related to a long passage and 12 questions related to a conversation in first, second and third part respectively.
In the speaking section, test taker is given two independent tasks and four integrated tasks. In the independent tasks, examinee is asked present his/her views on given topics. In integrated tasks, first one listen a conversation or a lecture and has to answer questions based on it later. The time allotted to this section is 20 minutes. In the paper based test, the speaking section is replaced by sentence structure section. In the sentence structure section, 15 sentence completion questions and 25 error identification questions are included.
The reading section consists of passages followed by related questions. The time allotted to this section is 60 minutes to 100 minutes. In the paper based test, reading section has 50 questions related to given passages which are to be answered in 55 minutes.
In the writing section, two tasks are given. First is an integrated task in which summary has to be written of a passage given to read and discuss. The other task is an independent task in which essay on a given prompt has to be written. The time allotted to writing section is 55 minutes. The paper based test has a single essay to be written in the writing section and time allotted is 30 minutes.
In the internet based test, first is the reading section followed by listening section and 10 minutes break. Then, speaking and writing sections are offered next in the order.
Marking Scheme-
In the internet based test, each section is given a scaled score in range of 0 to 30. These individual scores are added to derive a final score in range of 0 to 120. In the paper based test, the listening and sentence structure sections are given scaled scores in range of 31 to 68. The reading section is given a score in range of 31 to 67. The total score is scaled between 310 and 677. The score of the writing section is not included in total and presented separately in a range of 0 to 6. In the score card of TOEFL, each individual score, total score and remarks of examiner are reported.
Schedule-
TOEFL can be taken any number of times with a restriction that the test can not be repeated in a weak. The registration for this test can be done online and by mail or phone. In online registration, a test date one weak from the time forth can be chosen. For registration by phone, 1-800-GO-TOEFL (1-800-468-6335) or 1-443-751-4862 are available phone numbers for candidates from United States or Canada whereas 1-443-751-4862 is phone number for candidates from other countries.
Exam Fees-
The exam fee of TOEFL varies from $140 to $150 depending on the format of test and the country where it is taken.