เทคนิคการเตรียมตัวสอบ toeic ภายใน 16 วัน
TOEIC Day 11 - Listening 3 (Short Conversations)
In this part, you will hear two people having a conversation and answer three questions based on what you hear. Now, the conversation has a very specific purpose. So, every line matters. Typically, the choices are clear. If you can catch up with the audio, then you have a good chance to get the right answer.
It's more difficult than the first two parts because the audio is longer. The very first thing that you have to do is READ THE QUESTIONS BEFORE THE AUDIO BEGINS and highlight the keywords. You won't be able to do this if you're still filling out the answers of previous questions. That was my mistake during the first time I took the test. So, the second time, I just marked the circles with dots and went back to fill them out during the gap time between the two tests and the beginning of the reading test. You may waste five minutes of the second part, but trust me, reading the questions first is significantly helpful.
Then, there are two ways to tackle this part. I want you to try both techniques when you practice and find out what suits you the best.
ONE. Pay attention to the audio from the beginning to the end, and then answer the questions. When I do this I usually close my eyes so I can focus on the sound and imagine that I'm listening to two of my friends talking. It's a very short and easy conversation. So, with your normal ability of comprehension, you should be able to answer the questions.
For example, you're listening to two friends talking about a party. What is the important information? It's simply who, what, when, where, why.
TWO. For those who have bad memory or easily distracted, I suggest you listen to the audio and answer the questions simultaneously. This is very easy because the questions are in the same sequence as the story from the audio. Don't fill out the circles in the answer sheet right away. Just make a mark. Reading the questions first is highly useful for this strategy.
I don't know which strategy will be the right one for you. So, try them yourself with these 200 sample tests.
Check this out : http://www.english-test.net/toeic/listening/short_business_conversations.html
I'll show you how to identify keywords and how to rule out the wrong answers by this example.
Talking about self-employed
Here are the questions and the underlined are the keywords. Remark! The questions usually don't mention the name directly but rather using descriptive nouns such as man, woman, customer, client, interviewer, interviewee, or shop owner.
1). What are the speakers talking about?
2). How many clients does the woman have?
3). What does the woman say about self employment?
Then you'll hear this conversation.
| The man: | Hey, Cindy. How are you doing with your new business? |
| The woman: | Hey, Greg. It's going well. I signed up two new clients last week, |
| and now I have five total. | |
| The man: | Wow, five already. That's great! How do you like being self-employed? |
| The woman: | Oh it's wonderful. I can work from home, and even from the coffee shop. |
| And I can set my own hours. I did a conference call last week while | |
| I was wearing my night gown and bathrobe. |
As you can see that the subjects in the conversation are in the same order with the questions; the new business in general, the numbers of clients, and thought about self-employed.
| 1). What are the speakers talking about? | |||
| a. The man's job | b. The man's salary | c. The woman's business | d. The woman's clients |
You can rule out the first two choices because the man is the one who's asking the questions. Now, you can judge from the very first line of the conversation that they are talking about the woman's business. The numbers of client is just minor detail.
| 2). How many clients does the woman have? | |||
| a. Two | b. Three | c. Four | d. Five |
There are only two numbers mentioned in the audio; Two and Five. Now if you can't catch what she is saying exactly, there's a fifty-fifty percent chance that you'll get the right answer. The word 'total' at the end of the line is the indicator. Five is the correct answer.
| 3). What does the woman say about self employment? | |
| a. She loves it. | b. She has mixed feelings. |
| c. She can sleep until noon. | d. She cannot set her own hours. |
Since her answer is quite long, even if I have no idea of what she said, I'll go with choice a. because the first sentence suggests positive opinion. In case your listening skill is well enough, you know that she didn't mention anything about sleep time or other negative comments. So, a. is the correct answer.
You can find more practice exercise here.
