INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale for the study
Research aims and research question
The original aim of this study is to gain an insight into how test-takers employ different reading strategies in TOEIC Reading comprehension As the first attempt to explore the ongoing thinking processes during performing reading tasks, once finished the paper could serve as a useful source for TOEIC candidates who are planning to sit for the test as well as TOEIC trainers who want to have a closer look at how their trainees would actually perform in the real test for better TOEIC preparation instruction To achieve this aim, the following research questions will be addressed:
1) Which test-taking techniques became more effective for TOEIC Reading Comprehension test to the students at Vietnam Maritime University?
2) What are differences in reading strategies among high proficiency and low proficiency students at Vietnam Maritime University?
This study aimed to document the test-taking techniques of 100 students who are taking TOEIC preparation course at Vietnam Maritime University in Haiphong 50 students are at Elementary level, 50 students are at Intermediate level
Investigating the “test-taking techniques for TOEIC Reading Comprehension test to students at Vietnam Maritime University”, this study is expected to make certain contributions to the related populations including students taking TOEIC test, teachers teaching TOEIC, and researchers of the same subjects
First of all, through the problems pointed out and the suggestions made, the students may improve their performance in reading TOEIC test
Similar to the students, the study would help TOEIC teachers to realize their problems in guiding their students in sitting for a test in order to achieve the best results Moreover, by noticing the students’ difficulties in reading, teachers can have their in-time consideration and correction in teaching reading effectively
In addition to the benefits given to the two above subjects, the study may serve as the foundation based on which further related research would be carried out
Particularly, future research could be made better after the limitations of the study are considered
In the current study, the researcher decided to employ immediate retrospective verbal report approach to explore the test-taking strategies of 100 students as well as the cognitive processes underlying their performance in reading TOEIC comprehension Retrospection is a data-collecting method in which participants are asked to report their mental processes after solving a matter
Firstly, apart from the surveyed 100 students, 15 students were chosen to participate in the semi-interviews as soon as they finished taking TOEIC Test With the aim of making the responses more confident in the interview, all the questions are simple and understandable for students to answer
Secondly, questionnaires are delivered to the students after they take the TOEIC test They were offered to tick or circle the answer that best reflects their viewpoints
The rest of the study includes two parts as follow:
Chapter 1, Literature Review, presents related theoretical background of the study in which concepts of reading and test-taking strategies for TOEIC Reading Comprehension test would be discussed
Chapter 2, Methodology, covers four major parts, namely, participants, instruments, data collection, data collection procedures, and data analysis
Chapter 3, Results and Discussions, presents, analyzes and discusses the findings in order to answer the research questions of the study
Part 3, Conclusion, provides summaries of the main findings, suggestions for better results, limitations of the study, and lastly, recommendations for further related researches.
Method of the study
In the current study, the researcher decided to employ immediate retrospective verbal report approach to explore the test-taking strategies of 100 students as well as the cognitive processes underlying their performance in reading TOEIC comprehension Retrospection is a data-collecting method in which participants are asked to report their mental processes after solving a matter
Firstly, apart from the surveyed 100 students, 15 students were chosen to participate in the semi-interviews as soon as they finished taking TOEIC Test With the aim of making the responses more confident in the interview, all the questions are simple and understandable for students to answer
Secondly, questionnaires are delivered to the students after they take the TOEIC test They were offered to tick or circle the answer that best reflects their viewpoints.
Organization of the study
The rest of the study includes two parts as follow:
Chapter 1, Literature Review, presents related theoretical background of the study in which concepts of reading and test-taking strategies for TOEIC Reading Comprehension test would be discussed
Chapter 2, Methodology, covers four major parts, namely, participants, instruments, data collection, data collection procedures, and data analysis
Chapter 3, Results and Discussions, presents, analyzes and discusses the findings in order to answer the research questions of the study
Part 3, Conclusion, provides summaries of the main findings, suggestions for better results, limitations of the study, and lastly, recommendations for further related researches.
DEVELOPMENT
METHODOLOGY 2.1 Settings
After reviewing a theoretical basis for the study in the previous part, in this chapter, the researcher will discuss the methodology used to implement the research The chapter will cover four major parts, namely, participants, data collection instruments, data collection procedures, and data analysis procedures
This study was conducted at the Center of Foreign Languages, VMU At VMU, students have to take sit for a TOEIC-test which includes Reading and Listening comprehension for the final examination Therefore, in each English class, normally ranging from 25 to 30 students per class, there is a mixture of different students- that means students came from different departments and levels of English Often, students coming from Maritime Economics Department are better in English than the other Departments, and Navigation students are normally worse To make the situation better, CFL held the placement test to classify students into different levels Low proficiency students took part in TOEIC Level 1 that TOEIC score ranged from 200 to 300, high proficiency ones did in TOEIC Level 2 that TOEIC score ranged from 350 t0 450 At the end of 50 classes, they are asked to sit for a full TOEIC- based test
They must get scores of 450 as one of the conditions to graduate To meet the requirements for a TOEIC 450 course, students should be at intermediate level of English in order to catch up with advanced curriculum However, the English abilities of students are different, using strategies is the most effective way to get the score The subject is mainly taught in formal settings according to the nationwide course distribution
The number of participants in the study was 100 who had been chosen from 4 TOEIC preparation classes at the CFL Most of them were second year students in the academic year 2013-2014 at VMU They came from different departments at different levels Most of them were ranging their age from 19 to 20 Of the 100 students, 50 were at elementary level whose current TOEIC band scores ranged from 200 to 300, attend TOEIC Level 1, the other 50 were at intermediate level whose TOEIC band scores ranged from 350 to 450, attend TOEIC Level 2 The band score 450 was then considered as the level border line
2.3 The research method 2.3.1 Data collection instruments 2.3.1.1 Immediate retrospective account of strategy use
Immediate retrospective interviews will be conducted and audio recorded with the use of semi-structured guiding questions so that it encourage the participants express their thoughts while performing reading tasks The questions will be changeable in advance but still flexible enough to encourage the participants to talk of their thinking processes and they will be mostly “what” questions rather than
“why” to enable the participants recall more information relevant to their test-taking processes (Xiangdong & Chunyan, 2012) and to collect a direct report rather than just interpretation (Someren, Barnard & Sandberg, 1994)
A questionnaire for students who had finished TOEIC courses (see Appendix 1) with items relating to the subjects’ strategies , current level of English as well as their English learning experience will be used to provide the researcher with a comprehensive knowledge of the subjects’ experience in learning English and their understanding of different reading strategies In order to help the participants to understand the questionnaire completely, Vietnamese was used
The reading tests include one full TOEIC Reading Test administered by the center which the researcher learn about the subjects’ current English reading proficiency marked in accordance with the TOEIC marking scale and two other partial tests
These two tests are carefully chosen from TOEIC Preparation materials so that they include three parts: Incomplete Sentences, Text Completion, Reading comprehension
Also, the test paper with the marks that the subjects make during the reading process would serve as useful data for further analysis Every notes or marks on the paper will be kept to help the researcher trace back the subjects’ cognitive process as they perform the reading tasks
The procedures of data collection went through three main phases in chronological order: delivering questionnaires, holding semi-structured interviews and carrying out the observations
120 questionnaires for students were randomly distributed to four classes having students from different levels in foreign language center at VMU The reason to deliver such number of questionnaires was to eliminate the invalid ones and get back 100 most comprehensible ones, and to avoid losing the questionnaires made by the students
On the day of giving questionnaires, the researcher asked for the help of the teachers teaching those periods to deliver the papers to the students after introducing the purposes and explaining some necessary information in case of having any problems The reason to let the teachers send out the questionnaires was that under the “authority” of the teachers, students would complete the papers seriously
2.3.2.2 Holding the semi-structured interviews
One-by-one interviews for the students were done in their dormitory rooms The first part of the interviews was to introduce and establish the close rapport between the interviewer and the interviewees Then, the researcher started the interviews and asked the permission to the use of tape-recording along with the confirmation of confidentiality of the interviews Under a friendly and open atmosphere, the respondents were encouraged to express their views and share their opinions towards the questions raised by the researcher During the interviews, in addition to asking for the respondents’ point of views, the researcher also let them chances to clarify and explain what strategies they used A part from the use of tape-recording, the researcher took notes on some important information through the interviews for the sake of later transcription
The data collection procedure will include three phases Firstly, the participants who are asked to join the research will be informed of the purpose as well as instructed on the procedure of the study At this phase, they will also take some reading tasks and perform pilot immediate retrospection afterwards At the second phase, they will do the reading and their immediate retrospection protocol will be collected
Finally, the transcription phase of data will be conducted
As the data collected from immediate retrospection is transcribed, it will be categorized and analyzed to reveal the answers to the focused research questions concerning
1) Which test-taking techniques became more effective for TOEIC Reading Comprehension test to the students at Vietnam Maritime University?
2) What are differences between the reading strategies employed by high proficiency and low proficiency students at Vietnam Maritime University?
For the first category, the descriptive statistics of frequency method was employed to illustrate the most strategically-planned strategies and the most popularly- exploited practical experience among the students
For the second category, the researcher also exploited the descriptive statistics between the reading strategies by high proficiency and low proficiency students
The second chapter gave a clear view on the methodology of the research including participants, data collection instruments, data collection procedure and data analysis procedure Based on the aims of the study, using triangulation of questionnaires, observations and semi-structured interviews was considered as the best choice to collect the thorough and in-depth information from the respondents and can make the data gained afterward reliable and comprehensive All of those findings are as follow in the next chapter.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 3.1 Research question 1
The data, after being collected from the questionnaires, the observations, and the semi-structured interviews, would be analyzed and interpreted to answer the two research questions
Which test-taking techniques became more effective for TOEIC Reading Comprehension test to the students at Vietnam Maritime University?
The results collected from 100 students towards the first research question are conveyed into figures and tables as follows:
3.1.1 Types of Reading Passages and Topic texts often exploited a Priority in Reading Passages
The above figure is showing whether single passages or double passages should be completed first And as can be seen it shows that Single Passages are much more paid attention In 100%, 87% chose to work on single passages first The most convincing reason for students’ strategies of doing single passages before double passages displayed in the 3 rd figure It was sad to say that the percentage got by the
Figure 2: Priority in Reading Passages
Double Passages is only 13% because students do not give much more focus if there are lots of passages to read Thirteen of 100 students who chose double passage to exploit first have the same opinion that “Double passages take more time to do than single passages However, we can answer effectively when we have strong interest and careful attention” The other part of students liked to do single passages which are both shorter and easier One student added to the interview “In order to get high score and greater fulfillment of test, test-takers must follow the order of completion and time allowed as they had experienced”
Reasons for Reading Single Passages First
As seen from the figure 3, it further indicates that in a percentage of 100% students top reason in reading single passages is that Single Passages are short and easy so that is why it got a big part of this section with a percentage of 64%, second reason is Single Passages are familiar so that is why it got a percentage of 15%, third reason is Single Passages have fewer questions so in this part it got a percentage of 13% And the very last reason is that Students can use reading strategies better so that is why it only got a percentage of 8%
Figure 3: Reasons for Reading Single Passages First
SP are short and easy
Sts can use reading strategies better
In this case students’ comprehension ability can only fall under single passages and that is why students give much more attention and focus in single passages than to double passages b Types of Topic Texts often exploited
TYPES OF TOPIC TEXTS PERCENTAGES
Table 1: Types of Topic Texts often exploited
Based on the data from survey questionnaire collected in Table 1, it shows the
“Types of Topic Text often Exploited” it further indicates that Letter is the highest percentage in this table with a percentage of 43%, Advertisement which is the second to the highest percentage in this table and Type of the Topic texts with a percentage of 41% So that means there are lots of types of topic texts to use in reading comprehension in TOEIC but the students much often exploited through the use of type of topic texts which is the Letter and Advertisement In regard to the questionnaire’s result, the first interviewed student said: “Letter and Advertisement look easier and clearer to do than the other types Besides, some kinds of letter such as thanks-giving letter, refusal or asking for information letter were carefully taught in TOEIC class As the result, we got familiar with letter Whenever I did these types of reading, I felt confident and accurately sure” One of the Types of Topic Texts which is Notice got a percentage of 28%, Report got a percentage of 15%, 12% as the percentage for Form, next is Manual with a percentage of 10% As you seen in this table Memorandum is the lowest percentage in this table with a percentage of 4%, and the last but definitely not the least in Type of Topic Texts is the News and Article with a percentage of 14%
According to students, Memorandum and Manual are difficult for them to do because given information in these types are extremely complex and misunderstanding That is the reason why these types got lowest percentage
The figure above is the “Reading Approach” it shows and indicates the different approaches used in reading a particular text The biggest part of this section got a highest percentage of 43% and that is the Bottom-up Approach This approach is much used by the students is that because it was from part to whole meaning students wants to read a certain text part by part before they go to whole story of the text, next to that is Interactive Approach with a percentage of 39% and the second to the highest percentage in this section This approach means that students give sort of focus using this approach maybe because there is some cases that the story that they read is much needed to use both Top-down and Bottom-up approach Lastly, the lowest part of this section is the Top-down approach with a percentage of only 18% is that because some students cannot easily understand a certain text or story if
Top-down approachBottom -up approachInteractive approach the teacher started to discuss the story from whole to part of a particular story or text
In this case teacher must be aware of the reading approach that they are going to use in dealing with a certain texts or stories
3.1.3 Strategies to Deal with Reading Text
Students’ strategies to deal with reading text N S O A
A Read questions before looking at the texts 10% 17% 43% 30%
B Read instruction to know reading passage types and question numbers
C Adjust structures/patterns to know the organization of reading texts
D Watch out synonyms or paraphrases and implied answers
E Classify question types to arrange in order of priority
F Watch out too general, too vague or too specific answers
G Choose B/C if I can’t find the answer 23% 56% 11% 10%
Note: N= never (0%), S= sometimes (30%), O= Often (70%), A= always (100%)
Table 2: Strategies to Deal with Reading Text
The above table is shows the result on the survey that is already done and that is students’ strategies to deal with reading text and there is a rating use N=Never (0%), S= sometimes (30%), O= Often (70%), A= always (100%)
In section A, students always and often read questions before reading text Being interviewed, these students said that they could focus on what they needed to read and save time to do the tasks As you can see in section B, only six percent of students always read instruction to know reading passage types and question numbers first while 39 percent students never did One student revealed that she had known the instruction so it was waste of time doing that The number of students sometimes read the instruction to know reading passage types and question numbers is 45%, they answered that it was not necessary to read because the instructions in TOEIC tests are the same In section C, half of students never adjust structures to know the organization of reading texts, they said: “It’s no use adjusting structures to know the organization of reading text” Next, Section D are the same as C Look at section E, nearly three-forth often and always classify question types to arrange in order of priority, only four percent of students never do this One of the students who belonged to category always answered: “Classify question types is extremely necessary, it plays an important role in doing test When you classify well, your choice will be correct And in our class, our teacher focused in this lesson” In contrast to section E, more than three-forth students never or sometimes watch out too general, too vague or too specific answers In fact, researcher observed in test room, students had to control the time doing test and they had no time to evaluate whether the answers were general, vague, specific or not Finally, over a half of students sometimes choose B or C if they can’t find the answer while one-forth never do this One student said: “In case of doing nothing, I choose B or C because our teacher advised to do that”
3.1.4 Reading strategies in taking TOEIC reading comprehension
A Skimming the text for general information 34%
B Scanning the text for specific information 31%
C Guessing new words in the context 4%
D Predicting the content of the texts 11%
E Reading quickly to answer quickly 19%
F Summarizing the content of the texts 4%
Table 3: Reading strategies in taking TOEIC reading comprehension
As can be seen in table 3, the most frequently used strategy is skimming the text for general information, three interviewed students answered: “Our teachers advised us to use all reading strategies and we think skimming and scanning are the most important to all reading passages In TOEIC class, we are taught all strategies but some of them such as guessing new words in the context and summarizing the content of the texts are too difficult for us to follow, that is the reason why these strategies are rarely used”
Are there any differences in reading strategies among high proficiency and low proficiency students at Vietnam Maritime University?
3.2.1 A Comparison about the Priority of Reading Passage
Figure 5: Comparison about the Priority of Reading Passage
This figure shows “A Comparison about the Priority of Reading Passage” and the highest percentage is seen that top priority in reading passages is fall under the Single Passages with a percentage of 94% as Low Proficiency and 80% as High Proficiency This number proves that students are afraid of texts that have more
Low proficiencyHigh Proficiency passages However, students who chose double passages are very good at English and they didn’t mind any types of exercises
Reasons for Reading Single Passages First
Figure 6: Reasons for Reading Single Passages First
It can be seen from the above figure, there’re only a few differences between two groups It further indicates the students top reasons is that SP are short and easy so it gains a percentage of 60% as Low Proficiency and 68% as High Proficiency The lowest reason is Sts can use reading strategies better and this only gain a percentage of 10% as Low Proficiency and 6% as High Proficiency
3.2.2 Types of Topic Texts often exploited by Low Proficiency and High Proficiency Students
Types of topic texts Low Proficiency High proficiency
SP are short and easy
Sts can use reading strategies better
Table 4: Types of Topic Texts often exploited by Low Proficiency and High
The above table clearly indicates the different types of topic text, Letter is the highest percentage in this table with 46% as Low Proficiency but the High Proficiency got a percentage of 40% and it is second to the highest in High Proficiency, the highest percentage in this table as high proficiency was advertisement 42% and 30% as low Proficiency Memorandum got a percentage of 6% as Low Proficiency and 2% as High Proficiency and the lowest percentage of all the percent in High Proficiency
Figure 7: A Comparison about Reading Approach This figure shows and clearly indicates “A Comparison about Reading Approach” and as seen above, there is a big difference in Interactive Approach 32% as Low Proficiency and 46% as High Proficiency use interactive approach in and reading
Top-down approach Bottom-up apprach Interactive approach
Low proficiencyHigh Proficiency comprehension Nearly half of students at TOEIC Level 2 use interactive approach because they said “It is complex skill and useful for doing reading comprehension
Both groups share the common thing in Bottom-up Approach
Reading strategies Low Proficiency High Proficiency
A Skimming the text for general information
B Scanning the text for specific information
C Guessing new words in the context 4% 4%
D Predicting the content of the texts 12% 10%
E Reading quickly to answer quickly 18% 20%
F Summarizing the content of the texts 2% 6%
Table 5: Comparison about reading strategies
While high proficiency group most frequently use skimming for general information, low level group like to use scanning for specific information Both groups have the common things about guessing new words in the context that they have the same data 4% and they rarely use strategy summarizing the content of the texts.
CONCLUSION 1 Summaries of the major findings
Pedagogical Implications
The previous parts showed that VMU students use strategies in reading TOEIC tests; hence, this part was done to propose some implications for bettering the situation These implications fall into three categories, namely, implications for teachers, implications for students, implications for test-designers
The study found that most of the students were afraid of TOEIC reading test and they normally did not have good strategies when doing such kind of test Therefore, in the period of studying English, teachers should guide students about the format of the tests as well as the tactics to do the test well Apart from helping students get familiar with the test, teachers should spend time letting students practice it as much as possible
In addition to format and strategies introduction, it is suggested to help students overcome the linguistic matters happened while they reading
Moreover, it is important to help students widen their vocabularies and structures which are always their obsession Together with new words and structures given before or after each reading period, it is essential for teachers to provide more topic- based words and expressions for students
With the problems of fast speed during the reading, it is advised to let students practice read as much as possible Particularly, with the improvement of language ability such as good grammar and rich vocabularies, the students can deal with the problem of speed, which was also agreed by Buck (2001)
There is no doubt that the role of teachers in helping the students to overcome their difficulties in achieving better TOEIC reading results is very important; however, there will not have perfect results if the students themselves do nothing Together with teachers’ help, students should try their best to practice what teachers provide
Firstly, it is worth noticing the role of reading comprehension in reading section because it accounts 50% of the TOEIC reading section test Therefore, students can’t help using reading strategies to succeed in doing test
Moreover, for the purpose of familiarizing the students with a rich of variety of reading text such as manual, memorandum, notice which were not popular to students
In addition to that, it is vital for them to self study effectively by seeking for reliable references It is great that there is a variety of hard references available as learners can look for these following TOEIC sources to improve their skills
Apart from the recommendations for the study, the TOEIC-based reading test itself also needs adjustment Since many of the students claimed for the difficult level of the test, the teachers should make it easier for the students and raise the difficulty level by level.
Limitations
After completing the study, there still exist a number of limitations regardless of the contribution of time and effort
On the first place, the limited number of participants with only 100 students could not best represent for the whole second students at VMU, hence the reliability and validity of the general conclusion could be affected
It is obvious that there are numerous factors that could influence the process of TOEIC reading as well as the final reading result; therefore, it was hard to point out all the elements contributed due to the time constraints
4 Recommendations for further related study
Limitations are unavoidable when conducting the study However, through highlighting the shortcomings of the study, the recommendations for further related studies could be offered
Under the light of limitations exposed, some recommendations for further related research could be made
Being aware of the restriction on the number of participants, the future related studies should involve a larger number of them to confirm the validity as well as reliability Moreover, if possible, further studies should focus on certain levels of the students to find out their real difficulties and their needs for improving their reading results Apart from focusing on the 2 nd students, these studies could widen the scope of the research to the superior students of the third year, for example In addition, further research on strategies in TOEIC Listening could be a good idea
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APPENDIX 1: PHIẾU ĐIỀU TRA DÀNH CHO HỌC VIÊN
Tôi là Nguyễn Thị Thi, giáo viên Trung tâm Ngoại ngữ Hàng hải, Trường Đại học Hàng hải Việt Nam Tôi đang thực hiện một nghiên cứu về chiến lược đọc hiểu TOEIC (Full-Test) dưới sự hướng dẫn của TS Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Quỳnh Mong các em dành chút thời gian trả lời các câu hỏi trong phiếu điều tra này
Hiện tại em đang học lớp nào: TOEIC Level 1 TOEIC Level 2
Cách sử dụng chiến lược trong việc làm bài thi đọc hiểu TOEIC và sự khác nhau trong việc sử dụng chiến lược làm bài thi giữa các sinh viên trình độ Elementary với các sinh viên trình độ Intermediate
1 Em thường đọc những dạng bài đọc nào dưới đây?
A Báo cáo E Hướng dẫn sử dụng sản phẩm
C Mẫu đơn G Bản ghi nhớ, giao dịch
D Thông báo, nhắc nhở H Bài báo
2 Em đã sử dụng cách thức đọc nào sau đây?
A Top-down approach (đọc từ trên xuống dưới, sử dụng kinh nghiệm để đoán nội dung, đoán cấu trúc bài đọc trước khi đọc câu hỏi)
B Bottom-up approach (đọc câu hỏi sau đó mới quay lại đọc bài đọc)
C Interactive approach (kết hợp cả 2 phương pháp trên)
3 Khi làm bài, em thường đọc phần nào trước
B Những đoạn văn đôi Nếu em chọn “những đoạn văn đơn”, trả lời tiếp câu hỏi 5 Nếu em chọn “những đoạn văn đôi”, trả lời tiếp câu hỏi 6
4 Tại sao em lại chọn làm những đoạn văn đơn trước?
B Số câu hỏi ít nên trả lời nhanh
C Có thể dùng kĩ năng đọc tốt hơn
5 Tại sao em lại chọn làm những đoạn văn đôi trước?
B Nhiều câu hỏi nên được nhiều điểm
C Có thể dùng kĩ năng đọc tốt hơn
6 Khi làm bài đọc hiểu, em:
Học viên vào 1 trong 4 cột bên cạnh tương ứng N S O A
A Đọc câu hỏi trước khi đọc bài đọc
B Phân loại câu hỏi từ dễ đến khó để đọc
C Đánh giá cấu trúc, bố cục bài đọc trước khi đọc
D Khoanh vùng từ đồng nghĩa với từ chính trong câu để sàng lọc đáp án
E Sử dụng phương pháp loại trừ
F Cảnh giác với câu trả lời “quá chung chung”, “quá cụ thể” đối với câu hỏi nội dung chung của đoạn đọc hiểu
G Sẽ chọn đáp án B hoặc C nếu không biết chọn đáp án nào Ghi chú: N= chưa bao giờ (0%), S= đôi khi (30%), O= thường (70%), A= liên tục (100%)
7 Các em thường sử dụng kĩ năng đọc nào dưới đây?
A Đọc lướt để lấy thông tin chung, hiểu chủ đề
B Đọc quét để lấy thông tin chi tiết
C Đoán từ mới trong văn cảnh
D Đoán nội dung của bài đọc
E Đọc nhanh để trả lời nhanh
F Tóm tắt nội dung bài đọc
APPENDIX 1: SURVEY QUESTIONAIRE FOR STUDENTS
I am Nguyễn Thị Thi, a teacher of English at Vietnam Maritime University In support of Dr Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Quỳnh, I am conducting a research on TOEIC Reading Comprehension Strategies I would like to ask for your help in participating in the interview
You are in class: TOEIC Level 1 TOEIC Level 2
Regarding strategies in taking TOEIC reading comprehension and differences between the reading strategies employed by high proficiency and low proficiency students
1 Which types of reading text below do you often read to practice TOEIC reading comprehension?
2 Which reading approach do you use in TOEIC reading comprehension?
3 Which do you read first?
If you read single passages first, answer question 5
If you read double passages first, answer question 6
4 What are your reasons of reading single passages first?
A Single passages are short and simple
B There are fewer questions in single passages
C I can use reading skills better
D Single passages are familiar with me
5 What are your reasons of reading double passages?
A Double passages’ questions are easier
B Double passages have more questions, it means more points
C I can use reading skills better
D Double passages are familiar with me
Students mark in one of four columns N S O A
A Read questions before looking at the texts
B Read instruction to know reading passage types and question numbers
C Adjust structures/patterns to know the organization of reading texts
D Watch out synonyms or paraphrases and implied answers
E Classify question types to arrange in order of priority
F Watch out too general, too vague or too specific answers
G Choose B/C if I can’t find the answer
Note: N= never (0%), S= sometimes (30%), O= Often (70%), A= always (100%)
7 What reading strategies do you use in taking test?
A Skimming the text for general information
B Scanning the text for specific information
C Guessing new words in the context
D Predicting the content of the texts
E Reading quickly to answer quickly
F Summarizing the content of the texts
APPENDIX 2: SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
I am Nguyễn Thị Thi, a teacher of English at Vietnam Maritime University In support of Dr Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Quỳnh, I am conducting a research on TOEIC Reading Comprehension Strategies I would like to ask for your help in participating in the interview
B A few specific questions used in the interview
1 Which reading approach do you follow? (Top-down approach, Bottom-up approach, Interactive approach) And give your reason?
2 What are your strategies while taking TOEIC reading comprehension?
3 Single passages or double passages should be read first? Why?
4 Why do you prior letter and advertisement text?
5 Why don’t you like memorandum and manual text?
6 What are your steps to do a reading text? Why?
7 For reading skills, which do you use frequently? (Skimming, scanning , guessing new words in the context, predicting the content or summarizing the content)
8 Do you choose the answer B or C when you don’t know what is correct?
Note: The interview questions would be flexible when addressed?
APPENDIX 3: SAMPLE OF TOEIC READING COMPREHENSION
Skimming and scanning are good strategies for reading advertisements You will quickly look for the answers to these questions:
Reading fast is a very important skill to develop Reading every word in an advertisement is not necessary When you skim advertisements for the general idea and scan them for specific information, you will learn to read faster
SKIMMING Look quickly at the advertisement to answer these questions
2 Who is the sale for?
(A) Men (B) Women (C) Both men and women
McGruder’s Department Store announces its biggest sale of the year You’ll find fantastic savings throughout the store
25% off all men’s and women’s business suits
25% off all men’s and women’s shoes
50% off all women’s summer clothes
Don’t miss out on this great opportunity to get stylish designer items at bargain prices
With prices like these, you can’t afford not to shop
Now through Saturday at all McGruder’s locations:
Park Avenue Mall Springfield Center Downtown
SCANNING Mark the words that appear in the ad, and circle them in the ad
6 Find and circle these days in the ad Some may appear more than once
CONTEXT Find these words and phrases, and guess their meanings in this advertisement
(A) It costs $25 (B) It costs one quarter less than the usual price
8 What does “Now through Saturday” mean?
(A) Beginning today and ending on Saturday (B) Beginning on Saturday
READING COMPREHENSION Mark the best answer
9 What is not on sale?
(A) Men’s shoes (B) Women’s business suits (C) Men’s summer clothes (D) Women’s shoes
10 What is the first day of the sale?
(A) Today (B) On Saturday (C) On Sunday (D) Next week
11 How much do women’s summer clothes cost?
(A) $50 each (B) $50 less than the usual price (C) Half the usual price
(D) One quarter of the usual price
12 The word “Mall” in the line 12 is closest in meaning to (A) Shopping area (B) Parking lot (C) Food stall (D) Pedestrian track
What is the advertisement about?
Who is the advertisement intended for?
When will the offer be effective?
Where will the conference be held?
Who are invited to the event?
What are the requirements for the job?
SKIMMING Look quickly at the advertisement to answer this question
1 What kind of information does this advertisement give?
(A) A list of things for sale (B) An explanation of an event
SCANNING Look quickly at the advertisement to answer these questions
2 What is the name of the bank?
(A) State Street Bank (B) City Bank
3 What is the name of the airport?
The State Street Bank is opening a new full-service branch at the City Airport Now it will be easier than ever to take care of all your banking needs as you leave or return from your trips
Join us at our new location for our
There will be food, music, and a variety of entertainment activities for the whole family
Representatives of local TV station WXYZ will be there to report on the event So come on by and bring the whole family Customer service specialists will be on hand to explain all the services our bank has to offer
The special benefits of opening a State Street checking or savings account
How to qualify for our special low-interest loans
State Street’s custom-designed financial planning services
There will be prizes for the first 50 customers to open a checking or savings account at the new branch In addition, all Grand Opening guests will be automatically entered in our Grand Prize Drawing You could win a Caribbean Cruise for two!
ENTERTAINMENT ACTIVITIES FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY
CONTEXT Find these words and phrases and guess their meanings in this advertisement
5.Branch (A) Part of a tree (B) A business location
6 Grand opening (A) A special celebration for a new business (B) The hours that a bank does business
READING COMPREHENSION Mark the best answer
(A) A bank (B) A restaurant (C) A concert (D) A travel agency
8 Where will the grand opening take place?
(A) On State Street (B) At the airport (C) At a TV station (D) In a park
9 The word “Representatives” in paragraph 2, line 2, is closest in meaning to
10 When will the grand opening take place?
(A) In the morning (B) In the afternoon (C) In the evening (D) At night
1 What kind of position is advertised?
(A) Director of Human Resources (B) Lawyer
2 What is one skill required for this job?
(A) The ability to talk pleasantly on the telephone (B) The ability to write legal documents
(C) The ability to develop computer programs (D) The ability to find new clients
3 What is a benefit of this job?
(A) They will pay for your vacation expenses
(B) You can make all the phone calls you want
(C) You only have to work from 10-4
(D) They will pay for your health insurance
4 The word “Duties” in line 8 is closest in meaning to (A) Taxes
1 What kind of computer paper is on sale?
Computer paper (white only) 25% off
Envelopes (all colors, including pink, purple, and gold) 50% off
Notebooks – buy five, get one free
Pens (blue, black, and red ink) 12 for $1
Sale ends Saturday Store closed Sunday
2 How can you get a free notebook?
(A) Pay one dollar (B) spend $25 on computer paper (C) buy colored envelopes (D) Buy five notebooks -
(A) All weekend (B) On Sunday only (C) All week
4 On Saturday only What is this ad for?
(A) an airline (B) a travel agency (C) a vacation place (D) a sports club
5 What is one thing you cannot do at Sea Island Resort?
6 The word “private” in line 5 is closest in meaning to
(A) not public (B) large (C) sandy (D) personal
7 How can you make reservations for Sea Island Resort?
(A) Call a travel agent (B) Write a letter to the resort owner (C) Call the airport
Spend your next vacation with us
It's easy to get here
Quickly read through the passages and the questions Select the easy questions to answer first Questions that require careful reading of the whole passages should be answered later
Quickly read through the questions and the answer choices to grasp the key information
Identify the passage that contains the key information
Focus on that passage and choose the correct answer Pay attention to paraphrasing
Answer the remaining questions from step 1
Exercise 1: Questions 1-5 refer to the following letter and form
Identifying the passage that contains the keywords/ the information needed
317 Adelaide St W., Suite 705 – Toronto, Oritario, Canada – MSV 1Pg
Tel: 617.323.9521 Fax: 617.323 9301 www.environmentaldefense.ca April 6, 2006
49 Brennan Drive Shelburne, ON L9P 7R4 Dear Mrs Rose, Thank you for being an Environment Defender and supporting Environmental Defense with monthly donations from your credit card
Our records show that the credit card number you have given us is expiring in May 2006 To assist us in processing your valued contributions, we are enclosing a new monthly donation form Please complete and return it in the enclosed envelope
If you have any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me at (617) 323-9521, ext 250
Again, thank you for your continued generous support
1 Why did the group send this letter?
(A) To request she become a member (B) To ask for more money
(C) To defend the environment (D) To continue receiving her support
2 Why does Mrs Rose support this group?
(B) She likes to grow flowers
(D) She has questions and concerns
3 How much is Mrs Rose giving each month?
4 How is Mrs Rose making her donation?
(A) By check (B) VISA (C) MasterCard (D) American Express
5 Why might this form be rejected?
(A) They don’t accept her credit card
(B) She has been a member for too long
(C) Her credit card has expired
(D) She forgot to sign it
ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE MONTHLY CREDIT CARD DONOR FORM
Types of credit card: VISA _√ _ MasterCard American Express Name appearing on card: Henrietta Rose-Williams
Credit card number: _5446 7809 3343 1002 Expiry date: (MM/ YY): 07/09 Monthly contribution amount:
APPENDIX 4: THÔNG BÁO TUYỂN SINH LỚP TOEIC
Khóa luyện thi TOEIC đảm bảo đầu ra 350+, 450+ (học viên chỉ nộp học phí 1 lần duy nhất) là khóa học Trung tâm Ngoại ngữ cam kết học viên sẽ đạt theo đúng nhu cầu Trường hợp học viên chưa đủ điểm sẽ được tiếp tục học miễn phí cho đến khi đạt điểm chuẩn
- Học viên được trang bị đầy đủ kiến thức cơ bản về từ vựng, ngữ pháp, các kĩ năng làm bài thi TOEIC đạt kết quả như mong muốn
- Các bài tập luyện sát đề thi TOEIC quốc tế
- Giáo viên đặc biệt chú trọng luyện các kĩ năng nghe, đọc tiếng Anh cần thiết để học viên đạt kết quả cao trong kỳ thi TOEIC quốc tế
- Tài liệu luyện thi TOEIC cập nhật được phát miễn phí
- Liên tục làm các bài test trước kì thi chính thức để rèn luyện kĩ năng làm bài và tự tin bước vào phòng thi
*Mức học phí phụ thuộc vào trình độ đầu vào của sinh viên:
Khóa học Trình độ đầu vào Thời gian Điểm đầu ra Học phí
Giờ học: Sáng: 8h00 - 10h00 Chiều:14h30 - 16h30 Tối:17h30 - 19h30 (sinh viên chỉ được chọn học trong 1 ca cố định) Để biết thêm thông tin, liên hệ trực tiếp:
Văn phòng Trung tâm Ngoại ngữ - P.102 Nhà A5 & P.101A Nhà C1 - ĐHHH - 484 Lạch Tray, Ngô Quyền, Hải Phòng Điện thoại: 0316.280.167
TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC HÀNG HẢI VIỆT NAM
TRUNG TÂM NGOẠI NGỮ HÀNG HẢI Add: P.102 Nhà A5 – Trường Đại học Hàng Hải Việt Nam
Tel: 0316.280.167 Facebook: Trung tâm Ngoại ngữ Đại học Hàng Hải