Source for All Meetings: Listening 1; Student S Book, Adrian Doff and Carolyn Becket, Cambridge

Listening 1

Source for all meetings: Listening 1; Student’s Book, Adrian Doff and Carolyn Becket, Cambridge University Press, 2005. Situs: www.esl.com/toefl/listeningtips.

Pertemuan 1

Overview of learning orientation in listening; listening tips. Sharing the students general obstacles in listening.

Listening Tips

 Daily Listening Tips

 Test Listening Tips

 Listening Preparation Tips

Daily Listening Tips

1. If you don't understand something right away, don't give up. Keep listening. The speaker might say something later that will help you understand the main idea. 2. Listen for key words. Key words are stressed. They are louder, longer, and higher pitched than other words. These are the words that the speaker thinks are most important in a sentence. For example, notice the stress and intonation in this dialogue: o A: I went to the store. o B: Which store? 3. Think about the situation and ask yourself these questions: Who is speaking? What is the relationship between the speakers? What are they talking about? Where are they? How do they feel? 4. Pay attention to body language, gestures, and facial expressions. This may give you a better idea about what someone is saying. 5. Listen with a specific purpose in mind. Ask yourself what you are listening for. Are you listening for general understanding of the whole lecture or conversation? Or are you listening for specific information? 6. Think about the speaker's attitudes or feelings. Is the speaker certain, uncertain, angry, happy, serious, joking? The tone of voice can help you understand someone's feelings on a topic. 7. Check your understanding by asking the speaker questions. For example, use expressions like, "Could you repeat that?" or "I'm sorry, I didn't catch that when you want the speaker to repeat something". 8. Write down new words and phrases you hear. Don't worry about spelling. Then look the new words up in a dictionary or ask a native speaker to explain what they mean. 9. Notice how spoken English is sometimes different from written English. Many words and expressions, such as phrasal verbs and idioms, are more common in spoken than written English. 10. Don't worry about hearing every word. Often, English words are linked together or shortened so you cannot hear every word clearly. For example, speakers often use contractions (can't instead of cannot) and reductions (wanna instead of want to). Try to focus on the most important words and you will understand the main idea. 11. Listen to how speakers' voices go up and down. This is called intonation. What kinds of questions are they asking you? What kinds of responses do they expect from you? Listening to the rise and fall of their voices can help you understand more clearly. 12. Listen for new thoughts. When speakers finish one thought and start a new one, their voices fall to a slightly lower pitch and they may pause between the two thoughts. Also, the words within one thought are often linked together and sound like one big long word. 13. Listen for organization words such as first, then, next, after that, and finally. These words can tell you that a speaker is explaining something in chronological order. 14. Listen to songs in English. Songs can help you get a better feeling for the rhythm of the language. 15. Use closed captioning when watching English-language TV and videotapes. First listen and read the dialogue at the same time, then listen again without reading.

Test Listening Tips

1. Time: o Time limits are the number one enemy of most students. Thus try to avoid falling into the "time traps" built into the test and to use the allotted time for each section wisely.

o Don't spend too much time on any single question. You should spend only seconds on the easiest questions, and hesitate to spend more than 1/2 minute on even the hardest ones.

o Familiarize yourself with how to use the computer and the types of materials, questions, and directions that are in the test. Become familiar with the formats and requirements of each section of the test. o Learn the section directions now. Use the time saved during the test to work on questions.

2. Start Off Strong: o Successful answers to the earliest questions in computer adaptive versions of the test will lead to higher scores.

o The CAT puts much more value on the earlier questions than the later questions. The computer has to make large jumps in the estimation of your score for each of the first few questions. The later questions are used to fine-tune your score. To get the best possible score, focus more time on the earlier questions than the later questions.

o A good start can help to improve your psychological factor and overcome your nervousness.

3. Listen and Answer: o Listen carefully. You have only one chance to listen to each question or conversation. It's very important to concentrate on the computer. Do not let yourself start thinking about other things.

o Before answering a question, determine exactly what is being asked.

o Read each question carefully and thoroughly. Always read and understand all possible answers. If you do not, you may miss the important information.

o In the computer adaptive section, you cannot skip any question and you cannot go back after you've confirmed your answer. Double check your work and answer before you click on CONFIRM.

4. Guess: if you have to or it is your only option. o Guess if you don't know the answer. There isn't a penalty for a wrong answer on the TOEFL.

o Make educated guesses. Just try to eliminate one or more choices that you know are wrong before guessing.

o Learn why, when, and how to guess to your advantage through our insights. They are proven methods.

5. Psycho-status: o Develop your stamina and learn how to sit still. Keep in mind the TOEFL is a long exam. You'll need to concentrate for three hours. There are no rests or breaks between sections. Even if you're tired, don't let things distract you. Taking practice tests can help build stamina. o Reconcentrate and overcome your nervousness when you find something unexpected.

6. Practice, practice, practice! Improving your real ability is the key.

Listening Preparation Tips We provide you a preparation procedure that has been proved very effective by many students. You can adjust it based on your particular interests.

 In the early days of preparation, you may not be well based. You can make each week as a group and arrange your time as follows

o From Monday to Friday:

. Extensive listening: Use 80% of your time to listen to a wide range of materials, TV, Movie, Radio, Computer, Tape, etc. Try to be familiar with American accent and form stronger IMPRESSION of natural English in your brain.

. Practice listening: Spend the remaining time with EnglishMaster to get familiar with the special style of TOEFL listening items.

o On Saturday and Sunday:

. Take one and just one full long listening test with EnglishMaster to see how many incorrect answers you have. Don't be frustrated or mad or disappointed if the result is terrible. Just remember the number of wrong answers. That's it.

. Try to get a good rest and relax. If you still have mood, do some listening activities as you did in the weekdays.

 In the middle days of the preparation, your base has been improved and you are ready to take the test seriously now.

o Spend only 10% of your time on extensive listening of various non-test- related materials.

o Spend 50% of your time on extensive listening of test items. The method might seem weird to you, but it’s effective: Try to listen to EnglishMaster TOEFL listening section under various mood and spirit: For instance, after a long run, you haven’t even settle down, you put on your earphone and listen to it. You wake up at midnight, you pick up the earphone and listen to it. You make a phone call to your best friend or simply finish the kissing of your spouse. You pick up the earphone and listen to it. Please note that this is not the behaves of a moronic. In fact, this teaches you how to handle the nervousness with easy since you have experienced all psycho-status but still with sanity to listen to the computer and continue with it.

o Spend the remaining time on intensive listening of test items. Replay the content until you fully understand it.

o Write down your weak point and repeated errors.

o Take at least one full-length listening test with EnglishMaster every other day.

 In the late days of the preparation, you need a breakthrough now.

o Study our TOEFL listening insights and our TOEFL listening tips carefully. Try to understand everything they talk about. Remember the ones you think may work for you and try to apply them to your listening practice.

o Practice test items with all skills you learn. Find out your weak links.

o Spend some time on your weak points. For instance, you can't find out the main idea of a long discussion or lecture. So practice more on longer sections.

o Test full-length test more often. Because that kind of "authentic" tests can help you overcome the nervous in the real test.