toefl机经-2

liushiyou

Hi,
I thought sharing some experiences and some small tips for TOEFL CBT would be helpful for future test takers. I hope it is appropriate to post here and doing it in a new topic is not annoying.

I reached the test center very early (7.15 am)for my 8.30 am exam, so I was the first person to go in, and the center (in Chicago) was almost empty except for the supervisor. So I could start my test at around 7.45 (the manager/supervisor lady allowed it). And now I think it is better to register for the earliest morning slot possible. The supervisor lady was too nice, she eased my pressure a great deal, and even laughed with me when I told her the ETS' instructi##被过滤## about not even to blink or move a muscle inside the test chamber (I thought it was more like an unfriendly chamber than a long room). I always have some problems with closed space and bad coughs, but she told me to go ahead and take the vicks drops I had, whenever I want.

I had planned to skip the mouse tutorial, but I guess I clicked the wrong button, and I had to go through it. But now I think it is a good way to reduce some tension, if you have any. So go for it.

The Listening section was much easier than I thought, except for the fact that it was hard to concentrate, mainly because there was an air-conditioner behind me, and it was sort of like telling me in a hissing sound "ohho, you are going to fail". And in one long science lecture, I almost skipped through some dialogues, mentally trying to tell the ac to shut up, and I think it cost me some points.

Structure section was a bit hard, maybe confusing. Mainly because I hadn't prepared well for it, and was mainly relying on my 'reading and making sense' ability. And by the time I finished, I had 4 mins left and no way to go back. So test takers, go slow, think twice or thrice, and take your time, because the section is small, and keep faith that you are definitely going to finish it. Out of the two sub-secti##被过滤## here, the sentence completion part was the easiest. Guess reading all those novels over the years made it easy. So people, read, read, and read whatever you could get hold of.

The five minute break went too fast. The Reading comprehension part was ok, but not great. I thought I got all of them right (wishful thinking !), I might have made some silly mistakes. Also by this time, the place was almost full, and the guy to my right was hitting the keyboard furiously and noisily, so I had to make the extra effort to read the passages again, and again. Guys and gals, be aware of this problem, prepare well to concentrate, and also the people going and coming in was a bit distracting (I had to try real hard not to stare at a cute girl who came in at this time). So do lots of reading in your home, with your friends, and keep track of the time in this section carefully. There is a lot of time, but you know, sometimes, just sometimes...

The essay topic was simple, but I took nearly two minutes going back and forth deciding on which side I should agree with.
Then it was ok, except for some hiccups midway through the essay, when I got some moral doubts about the reasoning I was giving. I think I did it reasonably well, except for a real-life example I gave, which was simply too long.

The marks I got: Lis-26, Str/Essay-12 to 28, and Reading-26.
(Low scores, but you know, you have to prepare more to do well. So now, I am really into GRE, and today bought the ETS Test Prep book from amazon. I know it is late, but I am putting all my efforts into it).

And I forgot to thank Erin before, really sorry. Erin, it is a great service you are doing to students who can't afford to take real classes, a big thanks.

arun (aka bheekaran)

Guys and gals, good luck !

[此贴子已经被作者于2003-6-27 15:14:32编辑过]