Question:
I guess I should say right out that I don't know a whole lot about the
TOEFL test because it is not a requirement for entry to my university.
Or rather, to be more precise, it is only a requirement for students
who arrive as *foreign students*, rather than immigrants. The vast
majority of our ESL population are immigrants (who are treated as native
born for the purpose of university applications). In any case, all our
students are tested in English reading and writing and in math when they
enter the university, and are placed in classes according to the results
of these tests, with native English-speakers placed in one stream of
"remedial" courses (to help them pass the tests) and non-native students
placed in the ESL stream. We even have ESL math classes.
I currently have a student in my ESL class - the lowest level class we have -
who is shocked to find that he will probably fail my class. He is shocked and
surprised because he got 547 on the TOEFL test. His reading and writing
are really weak, and he can't really understand anything that is said.
He is failing BOTH the ESL class that he is in, AND his electrical
engineering courses (where he was placed on the strength of his TOEFL
score). He says that he simply can't understand a word of what is going
on in his EE courses and he can't keep up with the reading.
So, my question is this: Is it possible for the TOEFL to have been so
completely "wrong" in this student's case? I mean, isn't TOEFL supposed
to be able to predict with reasonable accuracy the chances of a student's
potential for success in an English-speaking academic environment? Or is
it that my university accepts TOEFL scores that are too low for the kind
of work the student wants to do (we allow students with 540 or above into
introductory science and engineering courses)?
Obviously, this student is just one example. I am wondering if others have
faced similar problems and what they have done about it.
Answer:
Anthea asked about TOEFL as a measure of actual language ability . . .
Part of the problem with the TOEFL is that many countries have developed
subindustries of TOEFL Cram Schools - at least they're very common in
Asia. In Taiwan, there are specialist budinesses which run students
through example test after example test - cramming testing habits and
strategies into students as well as forcing rote memorization of
vocabulary words. The sole goal of the institutions and the students is
for the students to score higher on the TOEFL.
Unfortunately, as with most cram-style learning situations the retention
curve is very poor. While a student may score well (or at least at a
passing level) she or he doesn't retain the information over time. Thus,
the TOEFL score doesn't really reflect actual language skills.
When I was teaching public speaking in the US, I ran into several
students from Taiwan with high TOEFL scores but low language skills.
Since teaching and living in Taiwan for the last six or so years, I am
now painfully aware of the "why" of that particular "what."
Without a major overhaul of the system, this phenomenon will persist.
However, I suspect that overall TOEFL is still a fair indicator for most
people. Perhaps the student in question is simply too far down on the
scale to be ready so that particular conundrum needs to be addressed.
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