TOEFL Preparations

Hi, me here! Just reposting my old posts from Medium.
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After an acceptable performance in the GRE, I was feeling confident (read ‘complacent’) about the TOEFL, which is less than a week away. This complacency is not entirely of my own making. Right since discussions about why the TOEFL is important began, the general opinion was that the TOEFL was easy peasy as far as exams go. I mean, it is the Test of English as a Foreign Language! I’ve been learning English since pre-school. I’m arguably better at English than my native — not very proud of that though.

I should have seen it coming. The only other ‘real’ language proficiency test I’ve been subjected to (by my own will) was for German: the Deutsch (pronounced close to doysh) Start 1 which, on passing, will give you the bragging rights to the ability of not getting lost in a German-speaking country. As basic language proficiency tests go, it included speaking, listening, reading and writing.

I write often— hey, I’m writing now! Playing TV series, watching YouTube videos from all over the world and making the Adobe PDF reader actually read passages out loud (i.e. usual pastimes) make me feel quite relaxed as far as the listening part goes. Did I forget to mention that these ‘listening exercises’ are usually at accelerated speeds? With my role as Editor — officially or unofficially— in multiple college-level events and club(s), I’m used to reading a lot too (I do those jobs ). Of course, I correct grammar and sentence structure, and also provide suggestions and comments.

Note one thing in common? — In none of those activities am I put on the spot. That, now, manifests into a big problem. As I had trouble with my Deutsch speech despite having practised countless times in class (a crash course in addition to 2 years of German in junior college), I can see my road to a good TOEFL speaking experience disfigured into … umm … a very badly maintained road!

When I speak IRL, it’s usually about technical topics. Small talk is usually limited to curt responses with a “Don’t you see Reddit is more interesting?” tone mixed in. The TOEFL is going to ask me to talk about a generic life experience for 45 seconds! Damn, I can’t remember the last time I talked continuously for a whole half-minute. Thankfully to my convenience, the TOEFL also throws in tasks about technical topics — not many worries there — and general student-related conversations. At least that’s relatable. Thanks, TOEFL, for reminding me I don’t have a life! :)

A friend suggested an app which simulates the TOEFL speaking format. My first try, in solitude, resulted in me having a mini-panic attack. “Hmm. That should be fine …right? I covered what I wanted to say, I think. How much time is left? … 20 seconds!! WTH!” Yep, that is an accurate representation of my thoughts. Pathetic.

I realised I not only need to make proper, comprehensive notes of whatever associated material was provided, but also need to speak freely and slowly and enunciate properly. Note-taking is no issue. I’m well-versed in the art of noting things down on paper, trained by a few faculty who have tendencies to almost ‘rap’ through bits of classwork — you know, theoretical bases for physical phenomena, differential equations and the sort. Not being hopped up on coffee might just help with slowing down a bit. Would meditation and visualisation help with freeing myself up? Social anxieties and knowing that I’ll be in a relatively silent room with other test-givers aside, I’ve been told I don’t pronounce stuff very clearly. Great. Also, fun fact, at this point, I have, like, 3 evenings left to prepare. Really great.

Let me remind you that I write to relieve stress. These thoughts qualified that criterion easily enough for me to spew them at my keyboard in the cruel act of typing fervently. So, now that I’m at a better place, mentally, let me get back to studying.