2017 年 2 月

立教女学院短期大学紀要第 48 号（2016）抜刷

Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

原田 慎一
Shinichi HARADA
 Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

Shinichi HARADA*

Abstract

The present study investigated the effects of the TOEIC course at a junior college in Tokyo. In order to
examine the effectiveness of the 2014, 2015, and 2016 classes, the TOEIC scores of 60 first-year students
were analyzed by administering one-way ANOVAs and t-tests. The relationship between the vocabulary
test and TOEIC scores was estimated using Pearson product-moment correlations. The results showed that
the TOEIC course was effective in improving students’ TOEIC scores. In addition, the study discovered
that the section-balanced teaching method was more effective than the section-focused one. Furthermore,
the results also suggest that the use of vocabulary tests contributed to TOEIC scores; however, a new
method for students to memorize vocabulary could be used in tandem with the vocabulary test.

Keywords: TOEIC, teaching method, section-balanced, section-focused

Introduction

Research Background
The following five important points will be reviewed as part of the research background: class for
examination, listening, grammar, reading, and vocabulary.
Concerning class for examination, Burgess and Head (2005) state that exam courses need to be
carefully planned in advance to ensure that there is adequate coverage of various exam tasks and sufficient
practice of exam techniques, as well as time to review and consolidate knowledge of grammar and
vocabulary and to build reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. Moreover, on an exam course, it is
easier to persuade students of the importance of homework, and of practicing the skills in which they are

＊ Assistant Professor, Department of Contemporary Communication, St. Margaret’s Junior College

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 立教女学院短期大学紀要 第 48 号（2016）

weakest. Most students in the TOEIC course have a strong desire to achieve their goals. Therefore,
teachers should give appropriate stimuli to students and motivate them to continue to study hard for
examinations (Trew, 2007).
With respect to listening, it is said that repeating, reading aloud, and shadowing are good practices for
improving listening skills. Suzuki and Kadota (2012) conclude that teaching with listen-and-repeat practice
is effective and a great amount of oral reading practice will enhance students’ listening and reading skills.
As good teaching methods for reading aloud, Kadota (2007) introduces parallel reading, reading and
looking-up, and recitation. Such teaching methods enable students to internalize vocabulary and
understand what they listen to more easily. Shadowing is a practice wherein students repeat the speech
soon after they listen to it. It is extremely difficult for most students; therefore, they need some preparation.
Repeating and reading aloud can be good preparation. If students can do shadowing, they will obtain high
scores in the listening section of the TOEIC. Teachers should incorporate repeating, reading aloud, and
shadowing into listening exercises so that students can improve listening skills.
As for grammar, many of the students to whom the author taught TOEIC lacked grammatical
knowledge. Thornbury (1999) emphasizes that without some attention to form, learners run the risk of
fossilization. Even in junior college, teachers must provide students with basic grammar that students have
already learned but did not understand fully in junior and senior high school. If teachers just have students
answer questions without explanations, they will not master grammar. Also, students should do grammar
exercises immediately after they learn particular grammatical points in order not to forget them. Mastery of
grammar will not only facilitate listening and reading skills but also boost TOEIC scores. With
explanations and exercises, teachers should have students become familiar with grammatical items that
appear frequently on the TOEIC.
With regard to reading, Anderson (2001) explains some principles for teaching reading: teaching
reading strategies, working on increasing reading rate, and building a strong vocabulary base. In particular,
students need to be able to scan a text for certain bits of information they are searching for, and to skim a
text to gain a general idea of what it is about (Harmer, 2007). Torikai (2001) regards sight translation,
where students translate a sentence one by one immediately after they read it, as an excellent method for
increasing their reading rate. Because many students are short on time during the TOEIC, teachers should
have students acquire reading skills to finish answering questions by the session’s ending time, keeping the
above three principles in mind.
Regarding vocabulary, Nation (2001) points out that learners should focus first on the most useful
vocabulary, namely, the most frequent 1000 word families of English. The TOEIC, however, mainly
focuses on business English, so teachers should have students learn high-frequency words on the TOEIC.

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 Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

Learning high-frequency words as well as the 1000 word families will enable students to better understand
listening and reading questions on the TOEIC. Harada (2005) examined 110 students to investigate
whether or not vocabulary tests are effective in vocabulary acquisition by university students, and
recommended that vocabulary tests be used as a means to increase students’ vocabulary. Whether students
are willing to prepare for the vocabulary test or not, teachers should conduct this test.

The TOEIC Course

Students take one 90-minute TOEIC course per week during their first undergraduate year. The target
TOEIC score in winter is 400. They are encouraged to obtain 500 by graduation because the average
TOEIC score of new employees who graduated from university in 2015 was 494 (The Institute for
International Business Communication, 2016).
The course features (1) contents in order of priority, (2) repeating/shadowing practice, (3) review of
basic grammar, (4) reading practice, (5) exam skills, and (6) vocabulary tests. These six features are
described below.
First, contents are listed in order of priority so that students can improve their TOEIC scores
effectively. For example, when the author teaches Part 2 questions, the class starts with WH-questions that
appear most frequently in that part. Similarly, Part 5 picks up parts of speech, which are the highest-
frequency questions. It is quite obvious that studying what is covered very often results in higher scores.
Conversely, questions that appear rarely are left for later because they are not time-effective.
Second, repeating/shadowing practices are remarkably effective in enhancing listening skills. In class,
after students answer listening questions, the following exercises are performed:

1. Students read each sentence aloud in chorus sentence by sentence, while listening to a CD.
2. They make pairs.
3. One student reads aloud one by one, looking at the script, and the other student repeats what she
listens to without looking at the script.
4. They take turns.
5. Students do shadowing in chorus, while listening to the CD.

In tandem with repeating/shadowing practices, students improve their TOEIC scores.

Third, students review basic grammar items that they learned in junior and senior high school.
Students with a TOEIC score of 300 do not have enough grammar knowledge for answering TOEIC
questions. Without explanations as to basic grammar, students could not answer most of the questions.

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 立教女学院短期大学紀要 第 48 号（2016）

However, after they completely understand grammar items, they can choose the right answers.
Understanding grammatical points covered frequently on the TOEIC one at a time will increase students’
TOEIC scores.
Fourth, students learn the structure of each type of documents as well as words and phrases specific to
documents. TOEIC reading questions are time-consuming. For this reason, they practice reading the
questions before reading a passage, and search for keywords in the passage in order to choose the right
answer in a short time frame. At the same time, they conduct sight translation without reading backwards
to increase their reading rate.
Fifth, students learn exam skills that help boost their TOEIC scores. In the opinion of the author,
learning exam skills is not good because if students who simply learn common distractor types increase
their scores, it does not necessarily mean that they have improved their English skills. However, students
really like to learn exam skills. Some important TOEIC exam skills are as follows:

･ Part 1: avoid choosing a choice including similar-sounding words

･ Part 1: choose a choice with wearing, not with putting on

･ Part 2: avoid choosing repetition of question words

･ Parts 3, 4, 7: choose a choice paraphrased from a keyword

･ Parts 5, 6: check the ending of the word to determine the part of speech

･ Part 7: search for specific information in the passage

(Hilke, Wadden, & Maeda, 2006; Lougheed, 2013 ; Morita & Rosvold, 2010; Princeton Review, 2003)

The author tells students that just learning exam skills without other practices is meaningless in terms of
improving English skills. Whether learning exam skills is good or not, it can definitely increase TOEIC
scores.
Lastly, students take a vocabulary test 10 times a semester. They read important words and phrases
aloud during class. However, this is not sufficient to increase vocabulary, for students’ vocabulary is very
limited. Vocabulary tests function as a pacemaker that facilitates their vocabulary learning. At the
beginning of each semester, they are provided with a list of 1000-high-frequency-words that appear on the
TOEIC. Every week, they must memorize 100 words. A vocabulary test consists of 10 multiple choice
questions that are similar to the Part 5 questions on the TOEIC. Most students seem to be motivated by the
test to learn vocabulary. Since Parts 5, 6, and 7 contain numerous vocabulary questions, a large effect can
be expected from the use of the vocabulary test.

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 Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

Teaching Method
Each class featured the above six points, but classes varied to some extent in terms of teaching method
and syllabus. The syllabi are shown in the Appendix.

2014: Section-balanced
The 2014 class was a section-balanced class. The class balanced the Listening section with the
Reading section. During the spring semester, they learned one listening part and one reading part in each
class; on the other hand, during the fall semester, they learned all parts at once.
Spring and fall Semester
Listening (40 min.) + Reading (40 min.) + Vocabulary Test (5 min.) + Others* (5 min.)
*calling the roll, announcements, and so on

2015: Section-focused
The 2015 class was a section-focused class. The class mainly focused on the Reading section during
the spring semester and the Listening section during the fall semester. The author used handouts to
consolidate the section that students did not learn twice before the TOEIC test. For example, in June
students learned with listening handouts for two weeks.
Spring semester
Reading (80 min.) + Vocabulary Test (5 min.) + Others (5 min.)
Reading (45 min.) + Listening (45 min.) + Vocabulary Test (5 min.) + Others (5 min.)*
*twice before the TOEIC test
Fall semester
Listening (80 min.) + Vocabulary Test (5 min.) + Others (5 min.)
Listening (45 min.) + Reading (45 min.) + Vocabulary Test (5 min.) + Others (5 min.)*
*twice before the TOEIC test

2016: Section-balanced
The 2016 class was a section-balanced class. The 2016 class syllabus was the same as the 2015 class
syllabus. However, handouts were utilized in almost all classes. Since class time was limited, unnecessary
reading exercises were omitted.
Spring semester*
Reading (50 min.) + Listening (30 min.) + Vocabulary Test (5 min.) + Others (5 min.)
*This paper was written in August 2016, so the fall semester had not yet started.

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 立教女学院短期大学紀要 第 48 号（2016）

Research Questions
The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of the TOEIC course through the
analysis of TOEIC results. The following three research questions were posed:

RQ1: Were the three TOEIC classes effective in improving students’ TOEIC scores?
RQ2: Was the balanced teaching method more effective than the focused one?
RQ3: Was the vocabulary test effective in improving students’ TOEIC scores?

Method

Participants
Participants included 60 Japanese first-year female students in a junior college in Tokyo. A total of 66
first-year students attended the author’s TOEIC classes. However, six students were excluded from the
analysis because they failed to take the TOEIC Institutional Program (TOEIC IP) test. The participants
majored in English, Chinese, or Psychology. There were three groups: the 2014 class, the 2015 class, and
the 2016 class. The number of students in each class was 15 in the 2014 class, 22 in the 2015 class, and 23
in the 2016 class. All participants were lower-intermediate students whose average TOEIC score was
336.1, with a range from 315 to 360.

Material
The TOEIC IP test is a standardized test that consists of 100 listening questions and 100 reading
questions. TOEIC scores range from a total of 10 to 990. Participants were required to take the TOEIC IP
test three times a year during their first year: spring, summer, and winter. In the author’s TOEIC class,
students took the vocabulary test, which was a 10-question multiple choice test, 10 times per semester.

Procedures
For the analysis of the effectiveness of the 2014 and 2015 classes, differences in TOEIC scores were
analyzed using a one-way ANOVA. For the 2016 class, a comparison of TOEIC scores was made with a
repeated measures t-test. In addition, the difference in TOEIC scores between the 2015 class and the 2016
class was examined using an independent t-test. In order to analyze the relationship between the
vocabulary test and TOEIC scores, bivariate associations among variables were estimated using Pearson
product-moment correlations.

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 Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

Results

The 2014 Class

Data were analyzed using simple descriptive statistics. Table 1 presents the means and standard
deviations for the TOEIC scores of participants in the 2014 class. Figure 1 shows average TOEIC scores in
spring, summer, and winter. The average TOEIC total scores increased by 117.7 points from spring to
winter.

Table 1. Descriptive Statistics for the TOEIC Scores of Participants (2014)

TOEIC Total Listening Reading

Spring Mean 340.6 212.0 128.6
(n = 15) SD 11.317 17.505 20.307
Maximum 360 250 160
Minimum 325 185 90
Summer Mean 420.0 274.3 145.7
(n = 15) SD 71.863 41.225 36.246
Maximum 570 360 210
Minimum 310 200 95
Winter Mean 458.3 285.0 173.3
(n = 15) SD 61.894 45.512 34.623
Maximum 575 355 230
Minimum 355 225 105

500
450
400
350
300
Total
250
Listening
200
Reading
150
100
50
0
Spring Summer Winter

Figure 1. TOEIC Scores of the 2014 Class

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 立教女学院短期大学紀要 第 48 号（2016）

Results from a one-factor ANOVA are given in Table 2. The differences were statistically significant
(F (2, 28) = 24.985, p < .01). For comparisons between groups, a multiple comparison was conducted
using the Bonferroni correction. There was a significant difference in the means between spring and
summer, and between spring and winter (p < .01, respectively).

Table 2. Results of the Repeated Measures ANOVA (2014)

Source SS df MS F
Between Subjects 108043.333 2 54021.666 24.985**
Error 60540.000 28 2162.142
Within Subjects 67186.666 14 4799.047
Total 235770.000 44
**p < .01

The 2015 Class

Descriptive statistics from the 2015 tests are presented in Table 3. The average TOEIC scores in
spring, summer, and winter are shown in Figure 2. The average TOEIC total scores increased by 99.8
points from spring to winter.

Table 3. Descriptive Statistics for the TOEIC Scores of Participants (2015)

TOEIC Total Listening Reading

Spring Mean 333.6 214.5 119.0
(n = 22) SD 4.923 18.251 18.685
Maximum 340 250 170
Minimum 325 165 90
Summer Mean 382.5 238.8 143.6
(n = 22) SD 67.042 37.062 44.055
Maximum 490 315 240
Minimum 275 170 75
Winter Mean 433.4 266.5 166.8
(n = 22) SD 70.885 45.470 34.865
Maximum 555 365 220
Minimum 295 185 110

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 Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

500
450
400
350
300
Total
250
Listening
200
Reading
150
100
50
0
Spring Summer Winter

Figure 2. TOEIC Scores of the 2015 Class

The one-way ANOVA was conducted on TOEIC score differences in 2015. Table 4 shows that the
results were statistically significant (F (2, 42) = 24.418, p < .01). Multilevel analysis using Bonferroni
correction showed statistical significance. A significant difference was observed between spring and
summer, summer and winter, and spring and winter (p < .01, respectively).

Table 4. Results of the Repeated Measures ANOVA (2015)

Source SS df MS F
Between Subjects 109515.909 2 54757.954 24.418**
Error 94184.090 42 2242.478
Within Subjects 106231.818 21 5058.658
Total 309931.818 65
**p < .01

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 立教女学院短期大学紀要 第 48 号（2016）

The 2016 Class

Table 5 illustrates the mean and standard deviation for the pretest (spring) and posttest (summer) in
2016. Participants improved their TOEIC total scores by 88.7 points in three months. Figure 3 indicates the
average TOEIC scores in spring and summer.

Table 5. Descriptive Statistics for the TOEIC Scores of Participants (2016)

TOEIC Total Listening Reading

Spring Mean 335.6 213.0 122.6
(n = 23) SD 13.509 21.885 21.578
Maximum 355 250 175
Minimum 315 170 80
Summer Mean 424.3 273.4 150.8
(n = 23) SD 67.711 50.304 42.417
Maximum 530 350 235
Minimum 280 150 105

450
400
350
300
250 Total

200 Listening
Reading
150

100
50
0
Spring Summer

Figure 3. TOEIC Scores of the 2016 Class

Results from the t-test are given in Table 6. A paired t-test was utilized for the analysis. The t-test
showed that the results were significantly different (t = 6.558, df = 22, p < 0.01).

Table 6. Results of the t-test (2016)

TOEIC Mean SD t
Spring 335.6 13.509
Summer 424.3 67.711 6.558**
**p < .01

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 Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

Difference between the 2015 Class and the 2016 Class

Table 7 presents descriptive statistics for the mean TOEIC total scores of the 2015 class and the 2016
class in the spring semester. Figure 4 shows the average TOEIC total scores in 2015 and 2016. The 2016
class average TOEIC total scores increased by as much as 88.7 points from spring to summer, whereas the
2015 class average increased by 48.9. The 2014 class was excluded from this analysis because the 2014
class was statistically different from the 2015 class and the 2016 class in terms of TOEIC total scores in
spring.

Table 7. Descriptive Statistics for TOEIC Total Scores in 2015 and 2016

Spring Summer
2015 Mean 333.6 382.5
(n = 22) SD 4.923 67.042
Maximum 340 490
Minimum 325 275
2016 Mean 335.6 424.3
(n = 23) SD 13.509 67.711
Maximum 355 530
Minimum 315 280

500

450

400 2015
2016

350

300
Spring Summer

Figure 4. TOEIC Scores of the 2015 Class and the 2016 Class

To analyze the difference in TOEIC score gains from spring to summer in 2015 and 2016, an
independent t-test was employed for the analysis. Table 8 shows the results of the t-test. As of spring, both
classes were not statistically different. The t-test showed that the results were significantly different (t =
2.034, df = 43, p < 0.05).

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 立教女学院短期大学紀要 第 48 号（2016）

Table 8. Results of the t-test (2015 and 2016)

Class Mean SD t
2015 48.864 66.528
2016 88.696 64.864 2.034*
*p < .05

Relationship between the Vocabulary Test Score and the TOEIC Score
In order to explore the relationships between the vocabulary test and the TOEIC score, Pearson
product-moment correlation coefficient analysis was employed. Figure 5 illustrates the correlations
between the vocabulary test and the TOEIC score. The vertical axis represents the TOEIC score; the
horizontal axis represents the vocabulary test score. A weak positive correlation was found (r = 0.357, p <
.01).

250

200

150

100

50

0
0 2 4 6 8 10
-50

-100

Figure 5. Correlations between the Vocabulary Test Score and the TOEIC Score

Discussion

The first research question addressed whether the three TOEIC classes were effective in improving
students’ TOEIC scores. As the results of the ANOVA and post-hoc test showed, the classes were effective.
In 2014 and 2015, TOEIC scores increased by approximately 100 points in nine months. In 2016, scores
rose by around 90 points in just three months. All of the results were statistically significant. As for
listening, a large amount of output practice, such as repeating and shadowing, was adopted during class.
For example, participants conducted repeating and shadowing in pairs. The practice was not one of passive

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 Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

learning, where students simply listen to explanations and answer questions, but active learning, where
students read aloud to each other, do shadowing, and learn important expressions. Participants worked on
their tasks earnestly. With regard to grammar, they also started over learning basic grammar from scratch.
After that, they answered TOEIC questions. For a small number of students who did not understand
grammar points fully, the author taught them grammar on a one-to-one basis outside of class. With respect
to reading, the participants learned how to search for necessary information, paying attention to the
structure of each reading passage. As stated before, during TOEIC exercises, the classes dealt with were
similar to the real ones in the TOEIC. Participants learned what kind of distractors there were on the
TOEIC and also deepened their understanding of TOEIC questions. As a result, their TOEIC scores soared.
According to the results of course evaluation questionnaires, they were extremely satisfied with the classes.
The findings together suggest that the participants were highly enthusiastic about TOEIC learning.
The second research question concerned whether or not the balanced teaching method was more
effective than the focused one. The t-test results showed that in terms of TOEIC scores, the 2016 class
adopting the balanced method was better than the 2015 class employing the focused method. Let us look at
the transition in the three classes. In 2014, the class dealt with both listening and reading evenly; however,
the reading scores did not increase as much as the listening scores. Therefore, in 2015, the class mostly
focused on one section. For instance, the class dealt with reading mainly in the spring semester, and
listening in the fall semester. Consequently, the TOEIC scores of the 2015 class did not increase much in
comparison with those of the 2014 class. For this reason, in 2016, two-thirds of the classes dealt with both
sections in the spring semester, using handouts for listening. In other words, the 2016 class also used the
balanced method. The t-test showed that the average TOEIC score for the 2016 class was superior to that
of the 2015 class. It follows from what has been discussed above that the balanced method was better than
the focused one.
The third research question addressed whether or not the vocabulary test was effective in improving
students’ TOEIC scores. Since the vocabulary test and TOEIC scores were significantly correlated, it
seems correct to presume that the vocabulary test has an effective impact on participants’ TOEIC scores.
However, weak correlations suggest that a better method for vocabulary acquisition should be adopted.
One possible solution might be to use a smartphone application. In fact, some students asked the author
how to memorize vocabulary. These students were pleased to discover that there are various applications
for vocabulary learning that enable them to memorize words and phrases easily. With such applications,
they will learn vocabulary comfortably even when they commute. Providing students with traditional study
skills as well as newer skills might lead to vocabulary acquisition.

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 立教女学院短期大学紀要 第 48 号（2016）

Conclusion

The present study investigated the effects of TOEIC classes in 2014, 2015, and 2016. Analysis of
TOEIC scores led to the following conclusions:

1. The three TOEIC classes were effective in improving students’ TOEIC scores.
2. The balanced teaching method was more effective than the focused one.
3. The vocabulary test was effective in improving students’ TOEIC scores.

To summarize, the present study suggests that the TOEIC course had a significant influence on
improving students’ TOEIC scores. Additionally, the study suggests that a new method for vocabulary
learning ought to be taken, such as the use of applications.
It should be pointed out that there are some limitations to this study. Because the number of the
participants was only 60, the results cannot be generalized. Moreover, six students, who did not take the
TOEIC IP test, were removed from the analysis. If these students had taken the test, the TOEIC scores
might have been lower than those of the present study.
In 2017, the TOEIC IP test will adopt a new question style. Some modifications for a better teaching
method should be made to allow students to improve their TOEIC scores more effectively. Further research
will be necessary to strengthen the conclusions drawn here.

References
Anderson, N. (2001). Reading. In D. Nunan (Ed), Practical English Language Teaching (pp. 67-86). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Burgess, S. & Head, K. (2005). How to Teach for Exams. Tokyo: Pearson Japan.
Harada, S. (2005). Daigakusei no goishutoku ni okeru tangotesuto no koka: Johogakubuichinensei wo taisho toshite.
[Effectiveness of Vocabulary Tests in Vocabulary Acquisition by University Students: A Survey of First-year Students in
Faculty of Information and Communications at Bunkyo University.] Information and Communication Studies of the
Faculty of Information and Communication, 33, 369-380. Chigasaki: Bunkyo University.
Harmer, J. (2007). How to Teach English. Essex: Pearson Education.
Hilke, R., Wadden P., & Maeda H. (2006). Shin TOEIC Test chokuzen no Technique. [Last Minute Techniques for New TOEIC
Test.] Tokyo: ALC.
Kadota, S. (2007). Shadowing to ondoku no kagaku [Science of Shadowing and Oral Reading.] Tokyo: Cosmopier.
Lougheed, L. (2013). Barron’s TOEIC: Test of English for International Communication (6th ed.). New York: Barron’s
Educational Series.
Morita, T. & Rosvold K. (2010). Shin TOEIC Test sogotaisakutokyu seikai rule 55. [Comprehensive Preparation Express for
New TOEIC Test: Rule 55.] Tokyo: Asahishimbun Shupan.
Nation, I.S.P. (2001). Vocabulary. In D. Nunan (Ed), Practical English Language Teaching (pp. 129-152). New York:

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 Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

McGraw-Hill.
Princeton Review. (2003). Cracking the TOEIC. New York: Princeton Review.
Suzuki, J. & Kadota, S. (2012). Eigo ondoku shido handbook. [Handbook for Teaching of English Oral Reading.] Tokyo:
Taisyukan.
The Institute for International Business Communication. (2016). TOEIC Program Data & Analysis 2016. Tokyo: The Institute
for International Business Communication. http://www.toeic.or.jp/library/toeic_data/toeic/pdf/data/DAA.pdf
Thornbury, S. (1999). How to Teach Grammar. Essex: Pearson Education.
Torikai, K. (2001). Pro eigo nyumon. [Introduction to Professional English.] Tokyo: Kodansha.
Trew, G. (2007). A Teacher’s Guide to TOEIC Listening and Reading Test Preparing Your Students for Success. Retrieved
from https://elt.oup.com/elt/students/exams/pdf/elt/toeic_teachers_guide_international.pdf

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 立教女学院短期大学紀要 第 48 号（2016）

Appendix A
The 2014 syllabus
Spring Semester
(1) guidance
(2) table/ form, person’s action
(3) letter/email, WH-question, vocabulary test (VT) 1
(4) parts of speech, telephone conversation, VT2
(5) verb-form, telephone message, VT3
(6) advertisement, object’s position, VT4
(7) dabble passage, basic sentence, VT5
(8) pronoun/relative pronoun, transportation, VT6
(9) conjunction/preposition, announcement, VT7
(10) reading review, Yes/No question, VT8
(11) grammar review, conversation in store, VT9
(12) tense/pronoun/vocabulary, radio program, VT10
(13) transition/conversation in office
(14) check test
(15) consolidation

Fall Semester
(1) guidance
(2) countable/uncountable noun, understanding topic & purpose
(3) noun, question pattern, VT1
(4) verb-form 1, document’s topic and purpose, VT2
5) verb-form 2, writer’s and reader’s guess 1, VT3
(6) prefix, writer’s and reader’s guess 2, VT4
(7) noun 1, guess about next action 1, VT5
(8) noun 2, guess about next action 2, VT6
(9) adjective/adverb, paraphrasing, VT7
(10) gerund/infinitive, table, VT8
(11) participle, dabble passage, VT9
(12) subjunctive mood, notice, VT10
(13) auxiliary verb, advertisement
(14) check test
(15) consolidation

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 Effects of the TOEIC Course on Students’ TOEIC Scores

Appendix B
The 2015 & 2016 syllabus
Spring Semester
(1) guidance
(2) subject-verb agreement, parts of speech
(3) modification, pronoun, VT1
(4) present/present progressive, past/present perfect, VT2
(5) future, conjunction, VT3
(6) preposition, voice, VT4
(7) gerund, infinitive, VT5
(8) causative verb, intransitive verb/transitive verb, VT6
(9) comparison, relative pronoun, VT7
(10) subjunctive mood, participle, VT8
(11) preposition, conjunction, VT9
(12) TOEIC exercise 1, VT10
(13) TOEIC exercise 2
(14) check test
(15) consolidation

Fall Semester
(1) guidance
(2) action expression, person/object
(3) position/state, active voice, VT1
(4) WH-question, Yes/No question, VT2
(5) negative sentence/tag question, suggestion/request/offer, VT3
(6) alternative question/statement, gist, VT4
(7) conversation in store, telephone conversation, VT5
(8) routine, problem, VT6
(9) telephone message, speech/talk, VT7
(10) announcement, guided tour, VT8
(11) advertisement, VT9
(12) TOEIC exercise 1, VT10
(13) TOEIC exercise 2
(14) check test
(15) consolidation

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