Reading Toefl 2

Read the short passage. The reading is followed by several questions about it. There are four possible answers (A-D) for each question. Choose the best answer and click the button next to it. When you have finished, click answers.

Benjamin Franklin

Few people can embody the spirit of early America as much as Benjamin Franklin. He lived through almost the whole of the eighteenth century, being born six years after it began, and dying ten years before it ended. In this time he saw the American colonies grow from tiny settlements into a nation, and he also contributed much to the development of the new state.

At the age of 17 Franklin ran away to Philadelphia. He had already received some training as a printer’s apprentice, and this helped him seven years later, with his first publication, the Pennsylvania Gazette. He also received a contract to do government printing work, which helped him to rise from his poor background to become a successful entrepreneur. Some of his experience in business was shared in his famous Poor Richard’s Almanak, which established his reputation throughout the American colonies. In another ofhis works, the Autobiography, which was written toward the end of his life, he shows the same quiet common sense.

He was deeply interested in science and natural history, and his experiments with electricity and lightning led directly to the invention of the lightning rod. He was also interested in improving the conditions of his fellow men. He was involved in a number of projects in his native Philadelphia, including the setting up of a library, a university, a philosophical society, and - because he was a pragmatic man - a fire prevention service. In 1753 he became Postmaster-General of the colonies. Through this experience he began to develop the idea that the colonies of North America should be a single nation. Later, he went to London to try to persuade the British government to change the conditions, especially the taxes, that later led the American colonists into rebellion.

Whatever Benjamin Franklin’s personal feelings about the rebellion of the American states, he worked hard to make it succeed. As ambassador to France, he encouraged the French to help George Washington. After the war he attended the American constitutional congress. This was his last contribution, for he died later that year. He is still fondly remembered by Americans as one of the creators of the United States.

1. What is a good description for this text? a. An autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. b. The life of Benjamin Franklin c. The works of Benjamin Franklin. d. Franklin and American Independence.	5. Which words best describe his character? a. Egotistical and selfless. b. Philosophical and diplomatic c. Spirited and rebellious d. Sensible and inventive
2. When was Benjamin Franklin born? a. 1806 b. 1794 c. 1717 d. 1706	6. Which of these did he not help to create? a. The lightning rod. b. The Postmaster General of the colonies. c. A university. d. The United States.
3. Which of these happened first? a. Franklin trains as a printer. b. Franklin runs away to Philadelphia. c. The American colonies rebel. d. Franklin starts his first publication.	7. How did Franklin feel about the British government? a. It should change its policies. b. It should help the French. c. It should have never governed America. d. It should make the colonies into a nation.
4. What was Poor Richard’s Almanak about? a. Franklin’s reputation. b. How to succeed in business. c. How to do government printing. d. The text does not say.	8. In which countries did Franklin live? a. England and France. b. Philadelphia and England. c. London and America. d. England, America and France.

Sumber: http://www.englishonline.org.uk/toeflfolder/toeflread2.php?name=TOEFL%20Reading%20test%202

TIPS AND TRICK TO ANSWER THE LISTENING TOEFL TEST

I Made Indra Sanjaya

3EB25/23211421

In the listening section of TOEFL IBT, there are a variety of conversations and lectures, each of which lasts from 3 to 6 minutes. The questions are designed to assess your understanding of the main idea, factual information and inference. You will not be asked questions regarding vocabulary or sentence structure.

The Listening section of TOEFL iBT measures your ability to understand spoken English in academic settings. In TOEFL iBT the listening is done for 3 major purposes:

1.      Listening for basic comprehension.

2.      Listening for pragmatic understanding.

3.      To connect and combine ideas presented in multiple information sources.

Each part of the Listening section (2 or 3 parts) consists of 1 long conversation and two lectures. The test takers hear each lecture or conversation only once. Lectures and conversations are 3-5 minutes long. During the listening the time is not running. The allotted time of 10 minutes for each part is only for answering the questions.

PREPARATION STRATEGIES

Listen to spoken English from multiple sources as much as possible. Listen to English spoken movies and English spoken TV channels, listen to the radio and as many other listening sources as you may find. It would be better if your passages are academic or close to what is in TOEFL iBT. The more you practice listening, the better listener you will become.
Listen for the main idea. It is usually found at the beginning of the listening passages, while the details are dispersed throughout the lecture. The main idea will give you understanding of what the conversation/lecture is about. Then you may listen for details.
Learn to find how the ideas are presented in the listening passage. Some of the main relations between ideas include cause/effect, compare/contrast, and steps in a process.
Learn to listen for signal words that indicate different part of the passage - introduction, major steps, examples, conclusions, etc.
Build your vocabulary. While listening, try to guess the meaning of unfamiliar words from context. It is very important since there is a big chance to come across words you don't know at the real test. Then, you should guess their meaning. Write down every word you don't know and include it in your wordlist. Try to memorize it and use it in your speaking and writing. Flashcards could be a great way to improve your vocabulary.
Listen to conversations or lectures with variety of accents. In TOEFL iBT Listening section there is a variety of accents and pronunciations. For this reason, you should practice listening to a people with different accents and pronunciation patterns.
Practice note-taking. Note-taking is allowed during all sections of TOEFL iBT. Effective note-taking may highly improve your performance. It is almost impossible to memorize all clues and details provided in the Listening section. Moreover, you can hear the passages ONLY ONCE. Therefore, to answer the questions you have to rely on what you remember from the passage and your notes. See also our Effective Note-Taking Strategies.
Summarize in writing what you have heard, using your notes. Thus, you will learn to find the purpose and main idea of the listening, and also the most important details. You will also learn to take and use notes. It also helps in improving your writing skills.
Familiarize yourself with the type of questions in TOEFL iBT. Make sure that during the preparation you learn what answers are required by the different types of question. Some questions may ask you to provide two answers, others to click in a chart box. If you are familiar with the question types, you may save important time.

AT THE EXAM STRATEGIES

Forget about the Reading section. Now it is time to fully concentrate on the Listening section.
The clock is ticking only when you are answering the questions and not when you are listening to the passages. So, when you listen, forget about the clock.
Prepare for note-taking. Before the section starts, write down the words 'main idea', 'major points', and 'important details'. Under which word you will place your notes from the listening passage.
Do not be distracted by the speaker's accent, speaking style and delivery. Focus on the content and flow of information the speaker(s) deliver.
Listen to find clues that will help you understand what the speaker's purpose, attitude and degree of certainty is. Listen for words that show relationship between ideas.
Pay attention to the visual materials. Some of the visual materials in the Listening section bring important information. Blackboards show important words or phrases that are discussed during the lecture. Illustrations and graphics support the information presented in the lecture. They are available only when the lecturer refers to them.
Answering is different. In the Listening section you may not return to the previous questions to correct your answers. Nevertheless, you have to confirm twice that you want to move to the next question. First, when you provide your answer you have to press the NEXT button. After pressing the NEXT button you may alter you answer. To move to the next question you have to press OK button. Sometimes test takers forget this and lose important time. Please, set your mind that you have to press two buttons.
Take a guess. There is no penalty for an incorrect answer in TOEFL iBT. It doesn't bring any points. If you see you are running out of time, just take a guess and mark answers for all remaining questions. There is 25% chance to guess the right answer.

Section 2 — Structure and Written Expression

This section is designed to measure your ability to recognize language that is appropriate for standard written English. There are two types of questions in this section, with special directions for each type.

Structure

Directions: Questions 1–4 are incomplete sentences. Beneath each sentence you will see four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one word or phrase that best completes the sentence. Then, on your answer sheet, find the number of the question and fill in the space that corresponds to the letter of the answer you have chosen.

Look at the following examples:

Example I

1.      Geysers have often been compared to volcanoes _______ they both emit hot liquids from below the Earth's surface.

A.    due to

B.     because

C.     in spite of

D.    regardless of

The sentence should read, "Geysers have often been compared to volcanoes because they both emit hot liquids from below the Earth's surface." Therefore, you should choose answer B.

2.      During the early period of ocean navigation, ________ any need for sophisticated instruments and techniques.

A.    so that hardly

B.     where there hardly was

C.     hardly was

D.    there was hardly

The sentence should read, "During the early period of ocean navigation, there was hardly any need for sophisticated instruments and techniques." Therefore, you should choose answer D.

A.    Practice Questions

1.      Refrigerating meats ________ the spread of bacteria.

A.    retards

B.     retarding

C.     to retard

D.    is retarded

2.      Throughout the animal kingdom, ________ bigger than the elephant.

A.    whale is only the

B.     only the whale is

C.     is the whale only

D.    only whale is the

3.      The fact ________ money orders can usually be easily cashed has made them a popular form of payment.

A.    of

B.     that

C.     is that

D.    which is

4.      The first article of the United States Constitution gives Congress ________ to pass laws.

A.    the power

B.     has the power

C.     the power is

D.    of the power

Written Expression

Directions: In questions 5–10, each sentence has four underlined words or phrases. The four underlined parts of the sentence are marked A, B, C and D. Identify the one underlined word or phrase that must be changed in order for the sentence to be correct. Then, on your answer sheet, find the number of the question and fill in the space that corresponds to the letter of the answer you have chosen.

Look at the following examples:

The sentence should read, "Guppies are sometimes called rainbow fish because of the males' bright colors." Therefore, you should choose answer A.

The sentence should read, "Serving several terms in Congress, Shirley Chisholm became an important United States politician." Therefore, you should choose answer B.

Now begin work on the questions.

Practice Questions

Sumber :

http://seckinesen.hubpages.com/hub/Toefl-Listening-Strategies

http://i-courses.org/listening-tips

http://httethas882.blogspot.com/