English World

The TOEFL iBT, according to the ETS website, is going to be changed starting August 1st, 2019. The number of questions on the present exams will be compressed, making the test a bit shorter. The types of questions, for example, in the reading, will not be decreased, but the number of questions in total will be. You can use the links in this entry to read the information yourself; I will quote the  information from Magoosh : TOEFL 2019 Format Changes to Timing, Pacing, and Content Below is a side-by-side comparison of the old test and the new test, after August 1, 2019. Changes have been noted in  bold . Old TOEFL vs. New TOEFL SECTION OLD TOEFL NEW TOEFL TOEFL Reading 3-4 passages (standard length of 3 passages) 12-14 questions per passage 60-80 minutes Average of 1 min. 40 sec. per question 3-4 passages (standard length of 3 passages) 10 questions per passage 54-72 minutes  Average of 1 min.

In Today's class we practiced the relative clause. In this case it was An architect is a person who designs buildings . A computer is something I use that helps me write emails or create plans for class. We were using them in a way to help define words that the student might not know. You go into a store and you might need an item and you don't know what it is called. These structures will help you become more flexible with speaking. I need something that will clean dirty floors. Do you need a broom? A mop? I need the thing that I can use to present my PowerPoint. It's not always perfectly clear what you might want, but it limits the answer to something very specific. I don't need a toothbrush to present my PowerPoint! I probably need a 1) Computer 2) Projector

“without grammar little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed.” -David Wilkins And without a doubt, vocabulary stands as one of the most important parts of learning a language; not only words, but variations of the same words. This means synonyms, antonyms, synonyms, word forms, word lists, word families, and so on. Let's look at some these words. Synonyms Webster's Dictionary : one of two or more words or expressions of the same language that have the same or nearly the same meaning in some or all senses. Synonyms are important when you speak or write because it adds variation and melody to language. Sure, you can use the same word again and again, but how boring is that? For example: The puppy had filthy paws and a dirty coat. In this sentence, filthy and dirty are synonyms; the use of these words adds variations to the sentence and makes it more interesting. As a side note (for you more advanced people), a synonym can also be a word

Crossword puzzles make a good student-centered activity. It's a way of using synonyms to create more vocabulary (important), and create definitions of words without having to resort to the translator. I have two ways of doing crosswords - 1) The empty crossword with clues given. That's what we did today. 2) A Crossword divided into two pages: one has half of the answers, the other has the other half of answers written in. Then the students give the clues to each other and the answer must be guessed. N.B. We also use a translator in class  - the Google translator. It's not a bad one, but like most of these, they aren't perfect.