Note-Taking Instruction with

TOEFL-iBT Integrated Writing and

Speaking Tasks

Shiao-Chen Tsai

The Ohio State University

tsai.239@osu.edu

Why International Students Need to Learn

How to Take-Note?

• Because international speakers need more response time than native speakers to

understand the input in English before they decide how to jot it down, they “need

to learn not only how and when to take notes but also what in the incoming

linguistic stream is important to note down” (Cubilo & Winke, 2013, p.377).

• Thus, teaching non-native speaking students note-taking strategies has been

emphasized by many educators (e.g., Hayati & Jalilifar, 2009; Kirkgöz, 2010).

Why we should use the Integrated Tasks in

TOEFL-iBT to do this kind of practice?

• 1. The integrated tasks in TOEFL-iBT are the most difficult parts for many

international students.

• 2. The lecture and conversation used in integrated writing and integrated speaking

sections are shorter and have more clear structure clues than the longer lectures and

conversations used in pure listening section (measured with multiple-choice items).

• 3. Skill-integration is very common in real classroom settings, so teaching students

how to prepare for this kind of test questions will also help them get oriented to

the classroom norms and culture of the US more easily.

The 6 Speaking Tasks in TOEFL-iBT:

• Q1: Listen for a question about a familiar topic. (P: 15s, R: 45s)

• Q2: Listen for a question that asks your opinion about a familiar topic. (P: 15s, R: 45s)

• Q3: Read a short passage and listen to a talk on the same topic. (P:30s, R:60s)

• Q4: Read a short passage and listen to a part of a lecture on the same topic. (P:30s, R:60s)

• Q5: Listen to a short conversation between two speakers and then provide your

suggestions based on the information provided in the listening passage. (P: 20s, R:60s)

• Q6: Listen to a part of a lecture. (P: 20s, R:60s)

How to Effectively Use Notes in the 6

Different Speaking Tasks:

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 Q6

outline/concept

map for your

story to provide

enough details

for in

explaining your

experiences

Compare your

opinions toward

the two choices

(advantages/dis

advantages)

Summarize the

speaker’s

reasons to

explain the

connections

between the

ideas presented

in reading and

the listening.

Same with Q3,

but pay

attention to

definition and

examples of

terms/topics

discussed and

summarize

them in your

own words

(paraphrase)

Summarize the

thoughts from

two speakers,

explain what

would you do if

you were the

woman/man

who has a

problem.

Summarize the

main ideas and

supporting

exmaples in the

lectures in your

own word

(paraphrase)

Using the Integrated Speaking Q2 for

Practicing Independent Writing

• Q: Some students prefer to take a test, but some students prefer to write a

paper. Explain which way of assessment you prefer and provide details and

examples to support your choice.

• 1. Ask students to take notes in 15 sections while preparing their speech for

this speaking task.(P: 15 seconds, R: 45 seconds)

• 2. After practice speaking, let students discuss their notes and use the ideas

to make an outline for practice independent writing on the same question.

Student B’ Note:

Let’s do a practice of listening and note-taking

with an integrated speaking task (Q3)!

• 1. Read the short reading passage for Q3 (health insurance) first.

• 2. Listen carefully to the short talk given by a foreign student advisor.

• 3. The Question for Speaking:

• The foreign student advisor express his opinion of the policy for health insurance.

Report his opinion and explain the reasons that he gives for having that opinion.

• Preparation time: 30 seconds

• Recording time for speaking: 60 seconds

What Students Tend to Write down before

Receiving Note-Taking Instruction:

• 1. Minor details from the lecture:

• E.g. 1000 dolloar +

• 2. Write down the whole word instead of using abbreviation

• 3. Taking notes based on the sequence of how each part of the information is presented rather than trying to synthesize some parts of the information. Hence, there is no clear relationship among the words written and the key concept presented as a whole.

After Receiving Note-Taking Instruction:

The Key Questions that will help students be

selective in taking notes during the listening & limited

preparation time:

Why

How

Who, What, When, Where

How Note-Taking Instruction Can Be

Integrated into Writing& Speaking Instruction?

• 1. Organize one’s thought based on the relevance of examples and the importance of each

reason.

• 2. Prepare a clear and concise outline for writing/speaking in a short time.

• 3. Let students exchange their notes and outlines during the brainstorming stage and

then discuss what they have found in comparing different types of notes and outlines.

• 4. Students’ notes are indicators of their comprehension and strategy uses. Some

students may need more basic training, such as scanning over the content to find key words

and guessing the definition of words based on content, before they can take good notes.

Students’ notes for explaining their finding in reading FAQs about TOEFL-iBT Speaking

5 Key Strategies for Lecture Listening - summarized from Sharpe (2012): Outsmart TOEFL Test Strategies and Tips

• 1. Distinguish the signal words of importance of lecture content from the

signal words of classroom business.

• 2. Write down notes after hearing those signal words of importance.

• 3. Understand the rhetorical questions asked by the professor.

• 4. Make Connection between the concepts and explanation or illustration.

• 5. Use lists and charts for notes.

Strategy 1: Distinguish Lecture Content from

Classroom Business

• From Lecture Script:

• 1.Signal Words: Before we begin

• 2.Topic for Classroom Business:

Presentation

• 3.Transition Words: Good. Okay

then. Let’s turn our attention to …

• 4.Topic for this lecture: Web design

• From Reading Example Script:

• 1.Signal Words: Before we begin

today

• 2.Topic for Classroom Business:

the syllabus, clarify misunderstanding

• 3.Transition Words: Okay. Let’s turn

our attention to …

• 4.Topic for this lecture: Immune

system

Strategy 2-1: Write down notes after hearing

signal words

• Reading Example Script:

• 1. Signal Words for previous lecture:

As you will recall from last week’s lecture

• 2.Topic for Previous Lecture:

oral tradition

• 3. Transition Words: Okay. That brings us to today’s topic.

• 4.Topic for Current lecture: trickster

• Lecture Script:

• Signal Words for previous lecture: Yesterday we concluded our discussion, As you will recall, We talked about

• Topic for Previous Lecture: Preindustrial societies

• Transition Words: With that in mind, let’s talk about

• Topic for Current lecture: Modernization

Strategy 2-2: Write down notes after hearing

the signal words before a restatement

• Reading Example Script:

• Signal Words: 1) explain it in a

different way, 2)Let me repeat that,

3) In other words, 4) To say that

another way, 5)By that I mean

• Restatements (main ideas explained

more than one time): ?????

Lecture Script:1. Signal Words: In other words

Restatement: ?

2. Signal Words: Let me repeat that

Restatement: ?

3. Signal Words: And by that I mean

Restatement: ?

4. Signal Words: To say that another way

Restatement: ?

5. Signal Words: Let me say that againRestatement: ?

Strategy 3: Understand the Rhetorical

Questions

• Reading Example Script:

• 1.Rhetorical Question: But what if I have two thoughts that don’t go together? What if I want to be healthy, but I smoke?

• Answer: ?

• 2. Rhetorical Question: Okay, so how can the smoker resolve the conflict? How can he deal with the cognitive dissonance?

• Answer: ?

Lecture Script:

1. Rhetorical Question: So how does that happen?

Answer: ?

2. Rhetorical Question: But the cones are sensitive

to light, especially yellow light. What does this mean?

In real world?

Answer: ?

3. Rhetorical Question: But what if it’s important

to keep both systems active?

Answer: ?

Strategy 4: Make Connection between the

concepts and explanation or illustration

• Reading Example Script:

• Topic: The Fixed Wing Aircraft

• References: A bird’s wings flapping to produce lift

• Reason for the References: Explain how the production of lift in aircraft is different from a bird’s case

Lecture Script:

Topic: The relationship between

languages

References: The references to brother

and sister as well as to cousins

Reason for the References: Making a

comparison between relationships among

family members and relationships among

languages

Strategy 5: Use Lists and Charts for Notes

• Let’s compare teachers’ notes with 2 students’ notes about the same lecture!

• 1. Please use the backside of the handout (the backside of the 10 week syllabus) as

your note paper if you do not have any notebook with you.

• 2. Imagine that you are a student taking the official TOEFL test in the pure listening

section (tested with only multiple-choice items).

• 3. After doing note-taking for this lecture, please pay attention to the difference you

find in your notes and the 2 students’ notes (which will be shown in next 2 slides)

and tell me what you find.

Student A’s Note:

Student B’s Note:

The Cornell Method (CM)-cited from a study conducted by Hayati and Jalilifar (2009)

This method is designed to

be used in listening to real

classroom lectures, not in

TOEFL-iBT test condition!

Student’s

Study Plan

References (Course Materials)

• 1. Educational Testing Service. (2013).Official TOEFL iBT tests with audio. New York: McGraw-Hill.

• 2. Sharpe, P. J. (2013). Pass key to the TOEFL iBT [Pass key to the TOEFL] (8th ed.). Hauppauge, N.Y.: Barron's Educational Series.

• 3. Sharpe, P. J. (2012). Outsmart the TOEFL: Barron's test strategies and tips. Hauppauge, N.Y.: Barrons Educational Series Inc.

• 4. Stirling, B. (2010). 500 words, phrases, idioms for the TOEFL iBT plus typing strategies. Los Angeles, CA: Nova Press. (This is an e-book).

References (Research)

• Cubilo, J., & Winke, P. (2013). Redefining the L2 listening construct within an integrated writing task: Considering the impacts of visual-cue interpretation and note-taking. Language Assessment Quarterly, 10(4), 371-397.

• Hayati, A., & Jalilifar, A. (2009). The impact of note-taking strategies on listening comprehension of EFL learners. English Language Teaching, 2(1), 101-111.

• Kırkgöz, Y. (2010). Promoting students’ note-taking skills through task-based learning. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2(2), 4346-4351.