depend in b. depend on depend to d. depend with

I T G O E S W I T H O U T saying that your success in college will depend heavily upon your ability to under- stand what you hear. As carefully as you may read your textbooks, handouts and other course mate- rial, you won’t do well if you don’t comprehend what is said in the classroom. That’s why the TOEFL exam includes a section that measures your listening comprehension skills. T h e T O E F L E x a m L i s t e n i n g S e c t i o n : W h a t t o E x p e c t The Listening Comprehension section tests your understanding of the kinds of conversations you might hear on an American college campus. While the reading comprehension passages on the TOEFL exam are gener- ally formal, the listening passages are often quite informal and heavily idiomatic. They will typically include expressions and grammatical structures common in everyday speech. For example, you are not likely to see C H A P T E R Listening Comprehension Another key to your success in an American school is listening com- prehension. How well can you understand what you hear? This chap- ter prepares you for the Listening Comprehension section of the TOEFL exam. You will learn exactly what to expect from the exam, including important differences between the computer- and paper- based versions of the test. You will also learn active listening strat- egies and how you can use them during the exam. Finally, you will find tips for each kind of listening comprehension question and helpful practice exercises. 4 8 9 the greeting “What’s up?” in a reading comprehension passage. But you might hear something of the sort in one of the passages on the listening test. On the actual exam, you will hear three types of recorded passages in this section: ■ short conversations Part A on the paper-based exam ■ longer conversations and class discussions Part B ■ mini-talks and lectures Part C The passages are grouped in these three categories and presented in this order. Thus, you will begin with short conversations two people speaking, then move into longer conversations and class discussions two or more people speaking, and finish with a talk or lecture one person speaking. K i n d s o f L i s t e n i n g C o m p r e h e n s i o n Q u e s t i o n s o n t h e T O E F L E x a m You will be asked several different kinds of questions about the passages you hear in this section. They can be divided into the following categories many of which are very similar to the kinds of questions you will see in the Reading Comprehension section of the exam:

1. Main topic of conversation. These questions ask you to identify the main subject of the conversa-

tion—who or what the conversation is about. Here’s an example: Woman 1: What are the hours for the computer lab? There’s no sign on the door. Woman 2: It’s open Monday through Friday, 9 A . M . to 9 P . M ., and weekends 10 to 6. Question: What are the women talking about?

a. the location of the computer lab b. when the computer lab is open

c. the best time to use the computer lab d. weekend computer lab hours

Answer: b. Tip: Make sure your answer is the main topic—the general subject or issue being discussed. Keep in mind the difference between a main topic and a main idea see the next section. Remember that a main topic should be somewhat general. Do not choose an answer that refers to a specific fact or detail from the passage such as d.. – L I S T E N I N G C O M P R E H E N S I O N – 9 0