- What is the TOEFL Exam Pattern?
- What are the Reading Question Formats?
- How is the TOEFL Reading Section Scored?
- What are Some Tips for TOEFL Reading Section?
- What are Good Books and Websites for TOEFL Reading Preparation?
- What are General Tips for TOEFL Preparation?
- What are Tips for TOEFL Reading Section for One Week before the Exam?
- What are the Tips to Keep in Mind on the Day of the Exam?
- Number of Passages: 3 - 4
- Number of Questions: 10 questions each
- Time: 54 - 72 minutes
- Questions having 4 choices and one answer in the traditional multiple-choice format.
- Questions having 4 choices and a single answer asking you to "insert a sentence" where it fits best in the passage.
- Questions on “Reading to Learn” with more than four choices and more than 1 correct answer.
- Skills - Reading
- Score Range - 0 - 30
-
Level -
- Advanced (24 - 30)
- High-Intermediate (18 - 23)
- Low-Intermediate (4 - 17)
- Below Low-Intermediate (0 - 3)
- Increase your vocabulary by creating a journal of new words: organize word lists by academic subject areas such as biology, psychology, and geology and build flashcards to periodically revisit the terms.
- Understand the meanings of common roots of words, suffixes, and prefixes.
- Look for the main ideas and pay attention to their relationship. Notice how one sentence's end is related to the start of the next sentence.
- Note the important points in a passage and write a summary depicting the trends present in the passage, for example, a comparison or argument between two opinions.
- Read any academic text. Think about each paragraph's main idea and then write for each paragraph a short "headline" to capture the paragraph's main idea. Then write a description of the whole passage from 5-to6-sentence.
- TOEFL reading practice can be best done by pacing yourself when you read to increase your reading speed. Read a short text (article or short passage from a newspaper or text) once and record the time you need to read it. Then read it again and try to improve the pace of your reading.
- Learn how to read to find information. Scan for the key facts (dates, numbers, and terms) and information to find and highlight passages.
- Pick up words from a passage with similar meanings and notice how the words have been used by the writer in the passage.
- Practice skimming a paragraph quickly to get a general impression of the main idea rather than reading each word and sentence carefully. Develop the ability to quickly scan and recognize key points.
- For general vocabulary, try solving different puzzles or crosswords.
- Pick up unfamiliar words from the passage, and try to guess their meanings from the context.
- Identify the type of the passage while reading (description, narration, cause/effect, classification, compare/ contrast problem/solution).
- TOEFL Practice Sets
- Full-Length Official TOEFL Practice Test
- TOEFL Go!® Official App
- TOEFL Planner
- The Official TOEFL online course from EdX
- TOEFL Talks
- TOEFL TV
- Kaplan’s TOEFL iBT Premier
- Princeton Review Cracking the TOEFL iBT
- Cambridge Preparation for TOEFL
- Barron’s TOEFL iBT
- TOEFL Reading Section Practice Questions
- TOEFL Reading Section Practice Questions - Test Planner
- Start off with the preparations in advance. It is advised that you start preparing for the TOEFL around the time you start looking for universities.
- Make a time-table and study according to it. Create your time-table in such a way that you are able to devote more time to your weaker areas or sections which are tough.
- Practice daily using TOEFL practice questions and exercise. Always review your mistakes and clarify your doubts to extract the maximum benefit out of your practice.
- Focus on conceptual clarity. Strengthen your basics in such a way that you are able to solve any question, irrespective of the difficulty level.
- Make your own time-management strategies to finish the syllabus on time. Decide how much time you need to spend on each section on the basis of your level of preparation and aptitude. Make similar strategies for the exam day also, so that you are able to attempt the test in a systematic and orderly fashion.
- Practice tons of mock tests to form a stronger grip on the exam pattern and difficulty level. Also, do a SWOT analysis of your performance in all the mock tests and find out the areas where you need to work on more.
- Network with students who took the exam to learn from their success and mistakes.
- Join online chat rooms, forums, or websites for social networking.
- Spend more time on strengthening your weak areas in the section.
- Take as many mock tests as you can. For the reading section, in particular, you can practice section tests. But it is advised that you practice a full-length test so that you learn how to ace the specific section along with other sections as well.
- Ask a mentor/teacher to give you feedback on your performance.
- Keep all your documents ready well in advance.
- Know the routes to your exam center and also keep a track of your online account on ETS to be updated with any changes in the dates or timings.
- Carry all the required documents to the exam center.
- Reach the exam center on time.
- Stay calm and don’t panic.
- Cheating leads to disqualification, so refrain from indulging in such activities.
- Read each question carefully and understand what it really asks. Some questions need more than one answer.
- Concentrate on the present question instead of focusing on the questions you could not answer or questions you are yet to answer.
- Keep a track of the time. Be particular about the amount of time you should be devoting to each question. If you are not able to solve a question, instead of lingering on it, move on to the next question.
- You can go back and review/change the answers in the Reading section. However, it is recommended to go back to the section only when you are done with the test.
- There is a toolbar that shows how many questions are done and how many are left to be answered. You could use this toolbar to determine if you should quicken your speed or maintain the existing speed to finish the test on time.
Updated on: 07 Sep 2023
8 min read
TOEFL reading section is designed to test your ability to comprehend academic reading material, including passages you are likely to find in a college textbook. All the fields of study ranging from chemistry to literature to psychology may be the subjects of the passages. The reading section is likely to be more complicated than most other exams you've taken, because not only is the grammar complex, but the texts often deal with very specific topics that are likely to be new to you.
TOEFL reading section is designed to test your ability to comprehend academic reading material, including passages you are likely to find in a college textbook. All the fields of study ranging from chemistry to literature to psychology may be the subjects of the passages. The reading section is likely to be more complicated than most other exams you've taken, because not only is the grammar complex, but the texts often deal with very specific topics that are likely to be new to you.
Table of Content The question ‘how to improve your reading skills’ has a simple answer - reading in English as much as possible. The internet is one of the best resources for reading material, but it is also helpful to read books, magazines, or journals of any kind. It is better to include more academic type of content, the kind that would be used in university courses. The pattern of the TOEFL was revised on August 1, 2019. As per the revised pattern, the exam is for a duration of 3 hours. The TOEFL reading section will have 10 questions for each of the 3-4 passages instead of 12-14 questions. The section will be for 54-72 minutes instead of 60-80 minutes. Revised TOEFL Test Pattern These passages cover a variety of topics. You don't have to be familiar with the passage topic. The passage itself will contain all the information you need to answer the questions. The passages will often present multiple perspectives about its main subject. This is something you should note when reading because you will be usually asked at least one question that allows you to demonstrate that you have understood the general organization of the passage. Read more about TOEFL Examination in more detail, click here. There are 3 question formats in the Reading Section: Each passage is accompanied by a question about ‘Reading to Learn." Such questions test your ability to recognize how the passage is structured and grasp the connections between facts and ideas. You are asked to sort out information for these questions and place them in a category chart or description. The summary questions are worth up to 2 points each. The chart questions are for up to 3 points if the number of options is 5 and 4 if the number of options is 7. The section is first scored in raw points (i.e., the total of the number of points you receive per question). The raw score is then converted to a scaled score of 30. A good reading score varies depending on where you are applying, but something above 22 (the 50th percentile) is generally considered good. ETS Resources (Free Resources) Good Books for TOEFL Preparation Sample Questions for TOEFL Reading Section Practice - Given below are links that contain sample questions for the TOEFL reading section given by the official body of ETS.
General TOEFL Exam Day Tips Exam Day Tips for TOEFL Reading Section The TOEFL Reading Section is indeed complicated, however, good preparation and rigorous practice can help you achieve your target scores in the section. Additionally, if you need further assistance, you can contact GyanDhan and we will connect you with the best TOEFL preparation institutes for free.
What is the TOEFL Exam Pattern?
What are the Reading Question Formats?
How is the TOEFL Reading Section Scored?
What are Some Tips for TOEFL Reading Section?
What are Good Books and Websites for TOEFL Reading Preparation?
What are General Tips for TOEFL Preparation?
What are Tips for TOEFL Reading Section for One Week before the Exam?
What are the Tips to Keep in Mind on the Day of the Exam?
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