Table of Contents - How To Get Better At TOEFL Listening
Listening to podcasts
Podcasts offer a wealth of listening material across various subjects. Many podcasts provide transcripts, and for those that don't, transcription tools can be utilized.
Using podcasts with transcriptions is an effective method for improving your TOEFL listening skills. Here's a step-by-step guide:
1. Select relevant podcasts: choose podcasts that cover a variety of topics typically included in TOEFL, such as science, psychology and others. My recommendation would be the Skeptics Guide (popular science), Psychology in Seattle (psychology).
If a podcast has transcripts, like NPR, TED Talks and BBC podcasts sometimes do, then great. If not, that's fine too, as there are many tools out there that can transcribe the audio for you.
2. Listen actively: start by listening to the podcast without reading the transcription. Focus on understanding the main ideas, the structure of the conversation, and the speaker's tone and intonation. Some people love listening to the whole episode at once, but I recommend to listen to a podcast in 10-minute chunks.
3. Optional - note-taking: practice taking notes as you listen, just like you would during the TOEFL exam. This helps improve your ability to identify key points and details.
4. Summarize and discuss: after you are done listening, summarize the podcast in your own words and identify the key ideas.
5. Optional - Use transcriptions: if, after listening, you realize that you didn't understand big parts of the episode, listen to the podcast again while reading the transcription. This helps to reinforce what you heard and clarifies any parts you didn't understand initially.
If there are no transcripts, you can use transcription tools and software, such as Whisper Desktop, FreePodcastTranscription.com, Otter.ai, Google Live Transcribe, or other speech-to-text applications
6. Review vocabulary and phrases: highlight new vocabulary and phrases in the transcription. Look up their meanings and practice using them in sentences.
7. Repeat regularly: consistent practice is key. Incorporate this method into your daily study routine to steadily improve your listening skills.
Transcribing podcasts and videos yourself
Another good way to practice and improve your TOEFL listening, is to transcribe a podcast episode or a video yourself. This exercise sharpens your listening accuracy and attention to detail. Afterwards, you can compare your transcription with the transcript provided by creators, video subtitles or transcripts generated by one of the tools mentioned above. When you practice transcribing a video, please do not watch, just listen to the audio.
1. Choose a relevant podcast or video: you should go for something that is pretty similar to TOEFL content-wise. In addition to podcasts mentioned above, you could check out Kurzgesagt on YouTube - their videos are pretty short, engaging and cover relatively advanced topics.
2. Listen and transcribe: listen to a sentence, pause, and write down what you heard. If needed, rewind once. If you miss something, don't worry - move on to the next sentence.
3. Check your work: after transcribing 10 minutes of content, compare your transcription with the official or AI-generated version.
4. New words: written down new words and phrases and practice them by using them in sentences and making up short stories.
5. Optional - listen some more: if you have time, transcribe another 10 minutes. If not, do this again the next day.
6. Practice regularly: as always, do this daily for best results.
Using videos
Similar to podcasts, videos can be used to practice listening. Here is how you can go about using them:
1. Pick a YouTube channel: as always, choose channels that cover a bunch of topics you might see in TOEFL, like science, psychology, and other interesting stuff. I would recommend channels like Vsauce (science), CrashCourse (for a bit of everything), or SciShow (for quick science bites).
2. Listen actively: to make this more challenging, listen instead of watching. Start by listening to the video without captions. Try to get the main ideas, how the video is structured, and what the key takeaways are. Some people like to binge-watch entire videos or playlists, but I would suggest sticking to videos around 10 minutes long.
3. Optional - jot down notes: if taking notes works for you, do this while you listen, just like you would in the TOEFL exam. It's great for spotting key points and important details.
4. Sum it up: after you are done, try to explain the video in your own words and point out the main ideas. It's like giving your friend a quick rundown of a movie you just saw.
5. Optional - use captions: If you feel like you missed a lot, watch the video again with captions on. It helps reinforce what you heard and clears up any confusing parts.
6. Learn new words and phrases: highlight any new vocabulary or cool phrases you come across in the captions. Look them up and try using them in your own sentences.
7. Keep at it: consistency is key! Make this part of your daily study routine to level up your listening skills over time.
Listening to audiobooks
By now, you probably already know the drill, but let's go over it one more time.
1. Choose an audiobook: choose audiobooks that encompass a range of topics typically found on the TOEFL exam, such as science, psychology, and more. Titles like "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson or "Thinking, Fast and Slow" by Daniel Kahneman are great for listening practice.
2. Don't be a passive listener: begin by listening to the audiobook without following along with the text. Focus on grasping the main ideas, the narrative structure, and the narrator's attitude. While some prefer listening to entire chapters at once, I recommend listening in 10-15 minute segments.
3. Optional - note-taking: practice taking notes as you listen, if this helps you get a higher score.
4. Recap: after listening to a segment or chapter, summarize it in your own words and pinpoint the key ideas.
5. Optional - use text versions: if you find that you didn't understand significant portions after listening, listen to the audiobook again while reading along with the physical book or e-book version. This reinforces what you heard and clarifies any initially confusing parts.
6. New words: learn new words and practice using them in sentences.
7. Do this daily: you already know this but I will repeat it anyway, because it is pretty important - consistency is crucial. Even if you can only spend 5 minutes on this, it is still better than nothing.