MIDTERM TEST

REVIEW
G10 C3
AGENDA
• Go over question types/background info
• Answer Templates/Practice Questions 1-4 –
Together TPO 10
• Practice Questions by self Shanmao – TPO 17
• Homework TPO
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Q1 -
What are the common question types they will ask?
What kind of topics will they ask about?
How much time do you have to prepare?
Should you write notes?
How much time do you have to speak?
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Q1 – 10/27
Some people like to play traditional table games, while others like to play video
games.
Which do you prefer, and why?
TOEFL 5

Q1
When traveling with friends, some people like to carefully plan ahead, while others
make plans when they meet or have started their trips already.
Which do you prefer, and why?
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Q1
Some universities ask their students who are majoring in math or science to take one
humanities course, such as philosophy or literature.
Do you think this is a good idea or not?
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Q1
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? In organized team sports,
children will have more social development.
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Q2
What integrated skills (reading/listening/writing/speaking) does question 2 contain?
What kind of topics will they talk about?
How much time do you have to prepare?
Should you write notes?
How much time do you have to speak?
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Q3
What integrated skills (reading/listening/writing/speaking) does question 3 contain?
What kind of topics will they talk about?
How much time do you have to prepare?
Should you write notes?
How much time do you have to speak?
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Q4
What integrated skills (reading/listening/writing/speaking) does question 3 contain?
What kind of topics will they talk about?
How much time do you have to prepare?
Should you write notes?
How much time do you have to speak?
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TOEFL

Q2-4
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Q2 – BACKGROUND
The reading part is about 100 words long, and you are given 50 seconds to read it and
take notes. 
• The changes are often related to:
• Buildings on a university campus
• Classes and majors at a university
• Transportation on a university campus
• Extra-Curricular activities at a university (sports, clubs, etc.)
The conversation is usually about 1.5 minutes long.  It is always between a man and a
woman.  The speaker seems to support the change 50% of the time, and oppose it
50% of the time. 
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Q3 - BACKGROUND
The reading is usually about a specific term or concept. It  has a clear
title.  In about five sentences it defines the term and give some basic
details. When they surveyed 500 students in 2019, students said the most
common topics were:
• Biology/Animals – 60%
• Business/Marketing – 20%
• Psychology/Learning – 10%
• Art/History/Literature – 10%
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Q4 - BACKGROUND
The lecture is usually 1.5 minutes or 2 minutes long. It generally explains
how something is done, or how some process is carried out. This is
usually illustrated using two examples. In some cases it could be
illustrated using one example.
The lecture starts with a short introduction that states and defines the
subject (3-5 sentences).  After the introduction the example(s) are given.
A survey of 600 students in October 2019 suggests the most common
topics in TOEFL speaking question 4 are:
• Biology/Animals – 60%
• Business/Marketing – 17%
• Psychology/Learning – 17%
• Art/History/Literature – 6%
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 18

“ TRUST YOURSELF. YOU

KNOW MORE THAN YOU

”
THINK YOU DO.
Shi Kun
 ANSWER
TEMPLATES
TOEFL 20

Q1
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Q2
• Reading Main Point (6 seconds)
• “According to the announcement/article/letter…”
• Reasons from Reading (6 seconds)
• “This is because ___ and ___.”
• Transition (2 seconds)
• “The man/woman opposes this.”
• “The man/woman supports this.”
• “The man/woman has a mixed opinion of this.”
• First Reason (23 seconds)
• “To begin with, he/she points out that…”
• Second Reason (23 seconds)
• “Moreover, he/she argues that…”
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Q3
Stating the Term or Idea using the Reading
•According to the reading [CONCEPT] is [DETAILS].
Transition
•“The professor elaborates on this/explains more about this.
First Example
•“First, he explains [summarize the first example]. He says [details]. 
Second Example/Second Part
•“Second, he explains [summarize the second example]. He mentions [details]

If there is just one example, omit the “second example” part of the template.
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Q3
Stating the Term or Idea using the Reading
•According to the reading [CONCEPT] is [DETAILS].
Transition
•“The professor elaborates on this/explains more about this.
First Example
•“First, he explains [summarize the first example]. He says [details]. 
Second Example/Second Part
•“Second, he explains [summarize the second example]. He mentions [details]

If there is just one example, omit the “second example” part of the template.
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Q4
• Stating the Lecture Subject
• “The lecturer explains how _______.”
• First Example (3-5 sentences)
• “First, she describes how [mini summary]” + “She notes that [details].”
• Second Example (3-5 sentences)
• “Second, she describes how [mini summary] + “She says that [details].”
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TPO 17 - PRACTICE
• Practice doing on your own. Use the templates I just sent (or anything you are comfortable with from an outside
training school).
• Anyone who thinks they answered a question well can share their answer after. I will play the recording for
everyone to hear and we will give feedback/score (this will help with your participation).
• I will choose at least 2-3 recordings for each question. No volunteers I will choose randomly.
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TPO 26
• Homework – Complete by Wednesday 11/30 11:59pm
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MID-TERM TEST REVIEW

• Strengths
• Which parts do you think you
did well on? Why do you think
you did well on them?
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MID-TERM TEST REVIEW

• Weaknesses
• Which parts did you struggle
with? Why do you think they
were so difficult?
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MID-TERM TEST REVIEW

• Plan
• What can you do to help you
improve for the final?
• What can Kurt do to help you
improve?
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MID-TERM TEST REVIEW

• Strengths
• Almost everyone able to give a
fairly complete answer for Q1
• About half students able to
understand the overall idea of
Q2-4
• Most students pronunciation was
clear and easy to understand
• Most students were able to
understand the reading passage
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MID-TERM TEST REVIEW

• Weaknesses
• Q1 missing evidence/support for
your reasons. Or you just restated
the topic, i.e. “I like modern dorms
because they are more modern.
En.”
• Q2 – 4 – Listening for detail and
taking notes during the listening
section
• Some students didn’t use enough
sentence stress, speaking in a very
monotone voice.
• Q3-4 students didn’t organize their
answers well and it was difficult to
follow what you wanted to say
next.
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QUESTION 1
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EXAMPLE OF HIGH SCORE

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QUESTION 2
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EXAMPLE OF HIGH SCORE

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QUESTION 3
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EXAMPLE OF HIGH SCORE

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QUESTION 4
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EXAMPLE OF HIGH SCORE

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HOMEWORK TPO 35
• Complete TPO 35 – Q1-2 for homework
• I will be grading on:
• Q1: Did you use evidence/examples to support your answer? Are they related to the topic?
• Q1: Did you speak for 45 seconds? (and not just uuhhh/errrr)
• Q2: How accurate are your notes from the listening?
• Q2: Did you speak using the template (or something very close to it)?
• Both: Did you use an appropriate amount of sentence stress, or was it mainly monotone? How clearly did you speak?

• Due date: This Sunday 12/11 11:59PM

• (12/18 Q3-4 of TPO 35 will be due but I won’t make available until next week) – focus on making sure Q1-2 are high quality. You
should be able to re-do the listening multiple times be exiting out). Any issues let me know.