Skills for the Toeic test: Listening and Reading

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English fo r Exams

SKILLS FOR

THE TOEIC TEST

Listening and Reading

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Collins

English fo r Exam s

SKILLS FOR

THE TOEIC* TEST

Listening and Reading

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Collins

SKILLS FOR THE TOEIC® TEST - Listening and Reading

Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 2012

Published in Vietnam, 2013

This edition is published in Vietnam under a license Agreement between HarperCollins Publishers

Limited. UK and Nhan Tri Viet Co., Ltd., Vietnam.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,

or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording,

or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.

Contents

H o w to U se T h is B o o k 5

O verview of the TOEIC® Test 6

Guide to the TOEIC® Test Listening Section 10

Overview

Challenges and Solutions

P art 1 Photographs 16

Walk Through

Get It Right: Tips and Tasks for Answering Correctly

Progressive Practice: Get Ready

Progressive Practice: Get Set

Progressive Practice: Go for the TOEIC® Test

P a rt 2 Questions & Responses 38

Walk Through

Get It Right: Tips and Tasks for Answering Correctly

Progressive Practice: Get Ready

Progressive Practice: Get Set

Progressive Practice: Go for the TOEIC® Test

P a rt 3 Conversations 53

Walk Through

Get It Right: Tips and Tasks for Answering Correctly

Progressive Practice: Get Ready

Progressive Practice: Get Set

Progressive Practice: Go for the TOEIC® Test

P art 4 Talks 76

Walk Through

Get It Right: Tips and Tasks for Answering Correctly

Progressive Practice: Get Ready

Progressive Practice: Get Set

Progressive Practice: Go for the TOEIC® Test

Listening Practice Test 94

fw w .n h a n trriv ie t.c o rr 3

Guide to the TOEIC® Test Reading Section

Overview

Challenges and Solutions

P art 5

Part 6

P art 7

Reading Practice Test

Answer Key

Audio Scripts

Sentence Completion

Walk Through

Get It Right: Tips and Tasks for Answering Correctly

Progressive Practice: Get Ready

Progressive Practice: Get Set

Progressive Practice: Go for the TOEIC® Test

Text Completion

Walk Through

Get It Right: Tips and Tasks for Answering Correctly

Progressive Practice: Get Ready

Progressive Practice: Get Set

Progressive Practice: Go for the TOEIC® Test

Reading Comprehension

Walk Through

Get It Right: Tips and Tasks for Answering Correctly

Progressive Practice: Get Ready

Progressive Practice: Get Set

Progressive Practice: Go for the TOEIC® Test

4 w w w .ih a r r m iet.co n

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

How to Use This Book

Collins Skills fo r the TOE1C® Test: Listening and Reading and its com panion edition, Speaking

and Writing, offer a comprehensive guide to the TOEIC (Test o f English for International

Com m unication). If you use this series to prepare for the test, you will be able to improve your

score on the TOEIC test and dem onstrate your skills in using English in a business setting.

No m atter the level of your English, Collins Skills fo r the TOEIC® Test provides you with all the

tools you need to succeed on the test. H ere’s a glimpse o f the learning tools included in this

book.

» Skill-specific Challenges and Solutions sections. These sections offer strategies and

suggestions to help you learn how to overcom e the m ost com m on challenges in each section

o f the test.

» Q uick G uide question overviews. Each lesson provides a brief sum m ary o f a specific part of

the test in an easy-to-read chart. This allows you to quickly understand w hat is im portant to

know in order to answer the questions correctly.

» Walk Through sam ples. Clear, visual and/or audio examples show you th e types o f questions,

passages, and answer options you can expect to find on the test. Knowing w hat to expect is an

im portant part o f preparing for the test.

» G et It Right presentations. These presentations give an overview o f the m ost im portant

steps, skills, and language needed for doing well on each part o f the test. They include useful

vocabulary and expressions that are needed when answ ering the questions and provide tips

and tasks for noticing and understanding the im portant elem ents o f each question type.

» Progressive Practice. For each part o f the test, these carefully designed activities gradually

prepare you to take the actual TO EIC test. This step-by-step practice builds th e knowledge

and skills you need for a good score and encourages independent learning while working up

to TO EIC testing levels.

• Get Ready activities require you to listen or read for certain pieces o f inform ation, practice

structured activities, and notice why answers are correct or incorrect

• Get Set activities allow you to respond to TOEIC-style test questions m ore independendy

but still offer additional support an d models to help you as you go.

• Go fo r the TOEIC® Test activities put you in an authentic test situation and allow you to

practice w hat you have learned in a simulated test environm ent.

» A nsw er A nalysis presentations. A nsw er analyses offered throughout th e book teach you how

to elim inate incorrect answer options and select the best answers for various question types.

» Skill-specific Practice Test sections. At the end o f each section, you’ll be able to put your

skills for the test to use by taking a tim ed practice test. These practice tests will help you

identify your weaknesses so you can know w hat areas to focus on before the real test.

» Q uick Tips. Throughout the book, you’ll see Quick Tips, which offer best-practice strategies

and useful advice on how to approach certain activity types and perform b etter on the test.

» D ictio n ary definitions. Collins COBUILD Advanced Dictionary definitions are provided

throughout the book to help you understand words and build your know ledge o f vocabulary

that may be found on the TOEIC test and in business settings where English is the language of

com m unication.

» A nsw er Key an d A udio Scripts. Found at the back o f this book, these tools will help you

check your answers and improve your listening com prehension as you prepare for the TOEIC

test.

w w w .n h a m triv ie t.o rr 5

SKILLS FOR THE TOEIC* TEST: LISTENING AND READING

Tips for Success

Start getting ready to take the TOEIC test by following these tips.

» F ind o u t w here you can take th e test. Begin by asking the organization requiring the test

inform ation if the TOEIC test can be adm inistered on its prem ises. There are also test sites

around the world with specific test dates available. Finally, if neither of these options is available

in your country, you o r your organization can contact ETS to find out how the test can be made

available.

» Find o u t th e score req u irem en ts for yo u r o rg an izatio n . Your organization will decide how to

use the score you receive on the TOEIC test.

» S tart to study early. The m ore you practice, the m ore you will im prove your skills. Give yourself

at least one or two m onths to review the m aterials an d com plete all of the practice activities in

this book. Try to spend at least one hour a day studying. Remember, by using this book, you are

on your way to good scores on the TOEIC test!

» T im e yourself. W hen you do exercises and Practice Test sections in this book, track th e tim e

used to m atch TOEIC test requirem ents. By practicing in a tim ed setting, you will feel more

com fortable w ith the tim e limits o f the actual test.

» Listen to th e audio. For practice activities, you can listen to the audio as m any times as you need

to in order to understand the concepts taught in this book. As you listen, or after you listen, read

along in the scripts. This can help im prove your listening com prehension. However, w hen you do

the Listening Practice Test section, stay with the audio and listen only once. You cannot go back

in the actual test, so this will help you get used to th e process.

» C om plete all th e exercises in this book. The practice activities have been designed to develop

specific skills that will help you perform better on the test. Also, don’t be afraid to m ake your own

notes on the page. For example, writing dow n the definitions of w ords you don’t know will help

you rem em ber them later on.

Overview of the TOEIC® Test

The TO EIC test m easures your proficiency in the type o f English used in business settings around

the world. The test does not evaluate your knowledge of th e English language. Rather, it measures

your ability to ii££ English in a variety o f business settings.

The TO EIC test is divided into two smaller, tim ed tests: Listening an d Reading, and Speaking and

W riting. The Listening and Reading test is a paper-and-pencil test. The Speaking and W riting test is

adm inistered on a com puter. Each test evaluates key skills that you will need in o rder to use English

in a business setting, regardless o f where in the w orld this m ight be. You can choose to take either

test first and the other second. You may also opt to take only the test that is needed to gauge your

skills in a specific area, Listening and Reading or Speaking and W riting.

Listening and Reading

The TOEIC Listening and Reading test takes approxim ately 2.5 hours to complete.

• Listening Section = 45 minutes

• Reading Section = 75 minutes

• Filling out form s = approximately 30 m inutes

6 w w w .n h a n triv ie t.c o m

OVERVIEW OF THE TOEIC® TEST

For the Listening and R eading test, you will receive an answer sheet and a test booklet. The TOEIC

test for Listening and Reading is a multiple-choice test. You will m ark each answer by filling in the

oval on your answer sheet, not by marking the test booklet. You m ust fill in the oval completely.

Look at the example. This test taker has m arked (B) as the answer.

You m ust use a #2 pencil to m ark your answers on the answer sheet. For security reasons, you may

not use a mechanical pencil. You may not use a pen, either.

You can erase an answer if you decide a different answer is the correct one. If you change your

m ind, be sure to erase the answ er completely. Never cross out an answer. The m achine that scores

the test will count that as tw o answers, and two answers are always wrong.

You may not m ark your answers in the test booklet.

Listening Sectio n

The Listening test com es first on the TOEIC paper-and-pencil test. The Listening test consists of

four parts w ith 100 questions in total. The Listening test lasts 45 minutes. You cannot go back during

any of the four parts and listen again, and you cannot go back between the parts or at the end.

Part 1: Photographs 10 questions

Part 2: Q uestions & Responses 30 questions

Part 3: C onversations 30 questions (10 conversations w ith 3 questions each)

Part 4: Talks 30 questions (10 talks w ith 3 questions each)

Reading Section

The Reading test com es last on the TOEIC paper-and-pencil test. The Reading test consists o f three

parts w ith 100 questions in total. The Reading test lasts 75 m inutes. Because the reading m aterial is

in the test booklet, you can go back to check or adjust your answers during the Reading test.

Part 5: Sentence C om pletion 40 questions

Part 6: Text C om pletion 12 questions

Part 7: Reading Com prehension

Single Passages 28 questions (7-10 passages w ith 2 -5 questions each)

Double Passages 20 questions (4 pairs o f passages w ith 5 questions per pair)

Sco rin g fo r the Listen in g and Reading Test

You will receive a score for each section o f the Listening and Reading test. A raw score — th e actual

num ber o f correct answers — is converted to a scaled score by the testing center using statistical

analysis. The scores for th e Listening and Reading test are all done by com puter. The raw score

ranges per section are as follows.

Listening 0-100

Reading 0-100

/v w w .n h a n ttriv ie .c c m 7

SKILLS FOR THE TOEIC4 TEST: LISTENING AND READING

Speaking and Writing

The TO EIC Speaking and W riting test takes approxim ately 2 hours to complete.

• Speaking Section = 20 m inutes

• W riting Section = 60 m inutes

• Filling out form s = approxim ately 30 m inutes

For the Speaking and W riting test, you will be tested on a computer. You will com plete each task by

responding into a m icrophone or typing your response onto the com puter. You cannot go back and

rerecord o r retype m ost task responses.

S peaking S e ctio n

The Speaking test com es first on the com puter-based TO EIC Speaking and W riting test. The

Speaking test consists o f 11 tasks in total and lasts about 20 minutes.

Q uestions 1-2: Read a Text Aloud

Q uestion 3: D escribe a Picture

Q uestions 4-6 : Respond to Q uestions

Q uestions 7-9: Respond to Q uestions U sing Inform ation Provided

Q uestion 10: P ropose a Solution

Q uestion 11: Express an O pinion

You will w ear a headset with b oth earphones and a m icrophone during th e test. You should speak

clearly an d carefully to be sure your speech is heard correctly by the scorers. You will be given the

oppo rtu n ity before you start to check that your m icrophone is in the best position and at the best

levels to record your responses. Should you have any technical issues before or during the test, you

will be able to call an adm inistrator for help.

You will be expected to speak for a specific am ount o f tim e on the tasks given and will be given a

specific am ount o f tim e to prepare for som e o f th e tasks. The audio program will indicate when

preparation an d speaking tim es begin an d end. A n on-screen tim er may also be used to help you

gauge how m uch tim e you have used an d how m uch tim e you have left to speak.

W riting S e ctio n

The W riting test com es last on th e com puter-based TO EIC Speaking and W riting test. The

W riting test consists o f 8 tasks in total and lasts about one hour.

Q uestions 1-5: W rite a Sentence Based on a Picture

Q uestions 6-7 : R espond to a W ritten Request

Q uestion 8: W rite an O pinion Essay

The test is given on a standard English-language keyboard. You should, therefore, practice typing and

working w ith this type o f keyboard (called a QW ERTY keyboard) if possible to ensure that you will

be able to perform well on the test day. A QW ERTY keyboard is the m ost com m on English keyboard

layout, and you can check to see if you have this version by looking at the first six letters that are

located at the top left edge o f the keyboard. The letters should read Q-W-E-R-T-Y. If you do not have

a QW ERTY keyboard, you may wish to find one on w hich you can practice before you take the test.

In the W riting test, you will be expected to com plete specific tasks in a certain am ount o f time.

W hen your tim e is over, a p o p-up w indow will notify you that your tim e is finished and that you

need to m ove to the next question. As with the Speaking section, the on-screen tim er may also be

used to help you gauge how m uch tim e you have used and how m uch tim e you have left to write.

8 w w w .n h a n triv ie t.c o m

OVERVIEW OF THE TOEIC* TEST

If a any given point during th e test you are unsure how to do a task, you can click on the “Help”

buton to get inform ation about how to do the test. You can also call an adm inistrator for help with

technical issues.

Scaring fo r the S peaking and W riting Test

Yoi will receive a score for each section o f th e Speaking and W riting test. Each score is based

on i scale o f 0-200, given in increm ents o f 10. The individual task scores, w hich are m ost often

referenced in this book, are rated based on perform ance and range from 0 -5 for th e task types

listtd below.

Speaking

Ouestions 1-2: Score range 0 -3

Ouestion 3: Score range 0 -3

Ouestions 4-6 : Score range 0 -3

Ouestions 7-9: Score range 0 -3

Ouestion 10: Score range 0 -5

Ouestion 11: Score range 0 -5

W rting

Ouestions 1-5: Score range 0 -3

Ouestions 6-7 : Score range 0 -4

Ouestion 8: Score range 0 -5

In sddition to this scaled score, you will receive an indication o f y our general skills and abilities

in he skills. The Speaking test has 8 levels o f proficiency, an d the W riting test has 9 levels o f

pnficiency. These proficiency levels are based on com m on general English skills for speaking and

w rting an d are assigned according to the total scaled scores a test taker receives.

Gflieral Test Information

O rth e day of the test, you m ust present an original, valid photo ID w ith a signature. The ID m ust

be urrent, and the photo m ust be a recent one. O th er types o f ID m ay be required as well.

Yoi m ay n o t bring any personal item s, food, cell phones, o r o th er electronic devices into the test

ro<m. You may not bring in any books o r paper, either.

S o re R eport

Alltest takers receive a TO EIC Score Report, w hich lists th e test taker’s nam e, b irth date,

identification num ber, test date and location, individual scores an d total score, score descriptions,

abaties m easured, and so on. It can also include a photo o f the test taker, if requested. If you take

thttest through an organization or employer, a report will be sent directly to th at organization or

eroloyer, and it will report the score to you.

C e tif icate o f A chievem ent

Tet takers in som e parts o f the w orld can request a TO EIC C ertificate o f A chievem ent, which lists

thttest taker’s nam e, test date and location, individual scores and total score, and adm inistering

orpnization. This certificate is suitable for fram ing.

Guide to the TOEIC® Test

Listening Section

The first section of the TOEIC Listening and Reading test is the Listening section. It consists

of four parts with a total of 100 questions. It is a test of your ability to understand spoken

English in a business context. You will listen to audio recordings and answer questions.

fli i|[H;iHi]|i] j i I istening Section

Definition The Listening section tests your comprehension of English statements, questions,

conversations, and talks. There are four parts to this section. You will choose the

best descriptions of photos and the best responses to questions, and you will

answer comprehension questions about conversations and talks.

Targeted

Skills

In order to do well on the Listening section, you must be able to:

• understand basic vocabulary pertaining to business and everyday activities.

• identify objects and activities in photographs of common business and

everyday scenes.

• respond to common questions or statements in business and everyday

conversation.

• understand the main ideas and details of conversations and talks.

• make inferences about information you hear in conversations and talks.

• keep pace with the audio recordings and answer questions within the time given.

Parts of the

Listening

Section

Part 1: You will see photographs and hear statements about them.

Part 2: You will hear questions or statements and possible responses to them.

Part 3: You will hear conversations and answer comprehension questions about

them.

Part 4: You will hear talks and answer comprehension questions about them.

(See on the next page for more detailed descriptions of each part of the Listening

section.)

Question

Types

Each part of the Listening section has different types of questions.

Part 1: Choose the statement that best describes the photo.

Part 2: Choose the most appropriate response to the question or statement.

Part 3: Answer main idea, detail, and inference questions about a conversation.

Part 4: Answer main idea, detail, and inference questions about a talk.

Timing The Listening section of the TOEIC test takes a total of 45 minutes. After you

hear each question, you will have a short time to choose your answer. Then you

will hear the next question. You have five seconds to choose each answer in

Part 1 and Part 2 and eight seconds to choose each answer in Part 3 and

Part 4. No part of the audio will be repeated. You cannot control the audio,

and you must keep pace with the audio.

1 0 w w w .n h a n triv ie t.c o n

Parts of the TOEIC®Test Listening Section

Part 1

LISTENING SECTION OVERVIEW

In Part 1 of the TOEIC Listening test, you will see photos and hear statements about them. There is a total

of ten photos. For each photo, you will hear four statements about the photo. One of the statements gives

true information about the photo. The other three statements are incorrect in some way. These incorrect

answer options are called distractors. You must choose the statement that gives the correct information.

You will see the photos, but you will only hear the statements. The statements are not written anywhere

on the test page, so you must listen to them carefully.

The photos show scenes of everyday life in places such as:

• Offices • Hotels

• Restaurants • Stores

• Airports and airplanes • Streets

• Train stations and trains • Parks

The photos may focus on objects and their location or on people and their activities. Photos of people

show them involved in everyday and business activities, such as:

Meetings and conferences

Desk work

Phone conversations

Eating

Shopping

Traveling

Checking into a hotel

Playing sports

Part 2

There is a total of 30 items in Part 2 of the TOEIC Listening test. For each item, you will hear a question or

statement followed by three possible responses. You must choose the most appropriate response to the

question or statement. You will not read the questions or statements and the responses; you will only hear

them. They are not written anywhere on the test page, so you must listen carefully.

The questions and statements are things you would hear in normal business or everyday situations,

such as:

• Requests for information (wh- and yes-no •

questions) •

• Requests for help (polite requests)

The questions and statements deal with topics such as:

• Personal information •

• Office procedures •

• Weather •

• Everyday objects

Statements of opinion

Statements about problems

Schedules

Plans

Preferences, needs, and wants

Part 3

In Part 3 of the TOEIC Listening test, you will hear conversations and answer questions about them. You

will hear a total of ten conversations and will answer three comprehension questions about each one, for

a total of 30 questions in this part of the test. Each conversation is between two people and is fairly short,

usually with four lines of dialogue. Unlike in Parts 1 and 2, in Part 3, you will see the questions and answer

options written on the test page. The questions ask about the main ideas and details of the conversations

and may require you to make inferences, or logical guesses, about the information you hear.

v w w .n h a n ttri'je t.c c m 11

SKILLS FOR THE TOEIC® TEST: LISTENING ANO READING

The conversations are about things you would hear in normal business or everyday contexts in places

such as:

• Offices • Theaters

• Stores • Banks

• Hotels • Post offices

• Restaurants

The conversations are about normal business and everyday topics, such as:

• Office issues • Ordering supplies

• Travel plans • Giving directions to a place

• Making purchases • Giving instructions

• Ordering in a restaurant • Making appointments

• Planning events • Leaving messages

Part 4

In Part 4 of the TOEIC Listening test, you will hear short talks and answer questions about them. You will

hear a total of ten talks and will answer three comprehension questions about each one, for a total of

30 questions in this part of the test. Each talk is fairly short, lasting approximately 30 seconds. As in Part 3

in Part 4, you will see the questions and answer options written on the test page. The questions ask about

the main ideas and details of the talks and may require you to make inferences about the information you

hear.

The talks are about things you would hear in normal business or everyday situations, such as:

• Announcements • Reports

• Speeches • Voicemail messages

• Tours • Lectures

• Advertisements • Introductions

The talks deal with topics such as:

• Travel Information • Store information

• Tourism • Appointments and schedules

• Weather • Meeting agendas

• News

• Business advice

• Office procedures

Listening Section Challenges and Solutions

» CHALLENGE 1: “Some of the words I hear on the test are completely unfamiliar to me.”

SOLUTION: Listen to English as much as possible - including in advertisements, notices, and

instructions - to get used to the language. TV and radio programs are good places to hear English.

Internet sites, such as video hosting sites and various news sites, are also good places to find listening

material. Watching movies in English will also help you improve your general listening vocabulary. When

you are watching by yourself, replay parts you don’t understand.

SOLUTION: Learn vocabulary related to common topics found on the TOEIC test, including words

associated with specific business tasks, occupations, travel and transportation, banking, sports and

entertainment, dining out, hotels, and so on. Make a list of these common topics and words often

associated with them to help you study. Look at some examples on the next page.

12 w w w .rh antriviet.co rr

LISTENING SECTION CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS

Business tasks

Occupations

Travel and transportation

Banking

Sports and entertainment

Dining out

Hotels

A ssociated W ords

submit, review, evaluate, supervise, duplicate, organize, project

accountant, lawyer, dentist, engineer, physician, event planner

reservation, transfer, luggage, fare, passenger, gate, boarding pass

deposit, withdraw, account, teller, loan, mortgage, interest rate,

percentage, balance

player, ticket, performance, program, applaud, musician, entertainer

waiter, server, appetizer, beverage, menu, course, chef, check, tip

check in, check out, front desk, room service, bellhop, concierge

SOLUTION: Remember that you don’t have to understand every word to understand the audio or to

answer all the questions. Focus on what you do understand and on getting the overall meaning.

SOLUTION: Recognizing homonyms (words that are spelled differently but sound alike) is key to

finding correct answers in the TOEIC Listening test. Look for lists of common homonyms and learn to

distinguish among them. Here are a few examples.

by She is waiting by the car.

buy Where did you buy that computer?

billed Have you billed the client?

build The company plans to build a new m all

blew The wind blew the roof o ff the building,

blue ■ ,, ^ room painted in blue can be calming,

read The assistant read the report yesterday,

red The light on the machine is flashing red.

know ( Do you know what time it is?

new Several new employees were hired,

hear The workers didn't hear the alarm,

here When did they get here?

H om onym s

» CHALLENGE 2: “I sometimes have no idea what answer option to choose!”

SOLUTION: Answer options are often paraphrased, or reworded, versions of words and phrases from

the audio. Study the paraphrasing skills on pages 57-63.

SOLUTION: Quickly eliminate answer options you know aren’t correct. Each section in this book helps

you become familiar with the types of questions found in each part of the test and ways to identify

correct and incorrect answers. Every answer option you can eliminate improves your chances.

SOLUTION: If you really don't know what the answer is - guess! On the TOEIC test, incorrect

answers are simply not totaled with your score. You do NOT lose points for wrong answers.

» CHALLENGE 3: “Listening is really difficult for me. I just can't understand everything that the

speakers say.”

SOLUTION: Understanding varieties of native-speaker pronunciation is often part of the problem. You

can use the scripts at the back of this book as you listen to the audio. This will help you connect sound

and meaning. Get used to native-speaker English by listening to news reports from different English￾speaking countries. Watch movies and TV programs from different English-speaking countries while

you’re at home or online. Have conversations with native speakers as much as possible.

w w w .n h a n trM e t.c o n i 1 3