口语28分秘籍 -- 附送肖锁章口语模板（极力推荐）

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先说说口语训练， 然后再谈谈阅读，听力， 写作什么的。

很多人以为口语测试是四个部分中令中国人特别头疼的部分。其实， 对任何非英语国家的考生来说，都是问题。比如说，一同学习的有一位巴基斯坦人，原来是做医学工作的， license要求口语26分以上。他其他部分都不错，但是口语问题比较大。不仅仅是口音，关键是表达方法。

很多人不重视第1-2题，以为这两题只需要闭起眼睛胡侃就行了。况且，由于很多题目网上有披露，大同小异，或者做题前已经偷听到别人的内容，已经有了准备，所以更加放心。其实，No 1-2 往往是让很多人跌破眼镜的地方。口语的要求是必须：表达清楚、准确、流利、自然。1-2特别要求例证丰富，而且回答时必须是在“讲”，不是在“背”和“读”。

（看到一个帖子）中有网友说，她准备材料时坚决杜绝“en.." "ha.."的过渡用词，我认为是不对的。我们平时在上课时，班上的同学或老师都会有正常的“hesitance". 连电视台主持人也会有偶然失误，何况中国人。所以，假如你1-2题讲的太顺，只有三个可能：

a.  你是大牛，你中国人比美国人还美国人 
b.  你在朗读。你可能休息时将答案基本写在draft paper 上了  
c.  你在背诵。你曾经准备好了答案。

假如评分人认为你的口语不是即兴的，他就会刻意挑毛病，你的分数可想而知。

所以，我个人认为，第1-2题必须充分准备，然后最后表演时必须不留痕迹，中间偶尔的“en.." "ha.."可以存在，但是不可太多。有时甚至故意弄一个小错误，但是要立即纠正。

另外， 由于第1-2题是主观题，大家有发挥的空间，所以你在举例或细节描述时，应该尽量故意点名你的英语strong背景。比如， 已经在北美的人可以表明已经到北美读书很长时间了，没有出国的人也可以间接表达自己英语是很不错的。 （我会在下面举例说明）。这是因为现在TOEFL口语的评分人(raters)基本上都是业余人员组成的。假如你住在北美，有一定的背景，你都可以通过ets的网站申请成为TOEFL考试口语或写作的raters （http://www.toefl.org)。 这就是为什么大家必须对不满意的成绩申请rescore的原因。而在rescore时，往往是由ETS指定的专业人员重新评分的。

举例：(2007年12月7日北美口语题第1题）

Talk about a special gift you once gave to someone.Describe the gift and explain why it is special.

假如是我， 我可能会像这样回答  (具体内容应该根据自己的语速进行调整）：

I am living and studying in Canada now. I moved here with my parents about 2 years ago. Before I left China, I had a farewell party with my friends and relatives, and gifts were exchanged there. I had prepared a very special gift to my former English Teacher in my high school -- A Bible with both English and Chinese. You know, I was born into a traditional chinese family who believed in God. However, it is almost impossible to claim openly that you beleive in God in China, not to mention to read Bibles everyday. (这里请大家不要骂我卖国,纯粹为考试而说) My English teacher was my family's friend, and we had witnessed his change in his belief. However, he had been dreaming of getting a English Bible. I had one which my father gave me to improve English because this Bible has both English version and Chinese version togehther. I believed that when I went to Canada, it would be very easy to get another English Bible for myself. Therefore, I decided to give this Bible to my teacher as a SPECIAL GIFT.

我决定这样讲，并不是我不爱国，也不是因为我真的是一个基督徒，纯粹为了考试。 TOEFL考试决定不会因为你说了真话就给你高分，也不会因为你说了谎话就降分。关键在于你的论据是不是reasonable and believable.

首先点名我生活在加拿大，让评分者有思想准备给我高分。然后再告诉the rater我从小就有学习英语的热情，连读《圣经》都是英汉对照。 这样听者会被说者牵着鼻子走，至少印象上会占优势。

所以说，对于已经在北美读书的很多学生来说，虽说在口语中故意表明身份不一定总是有效果，但是肯定不会吃亏，何乐而不为呢。国内的考生也应该间接的表明自己的英语基础不同一般：

所以， 同样的题目， 假如我在中国考试， 我会这样说(具体内容应该根据自己的语速进行调整）：：

China is a country where people love offering gifts. However, the gift I gave to my girl friend this May was very speical. Her birthday was May 14th, and I knew she was expecting a large bunch of rose from me. Instead, I purchased only one rose together with a very thick dictionary: "Oxford Advanced Learner's dictionary". My girl friend is a very smart girl and she majors in Biology/pschology/... However, her only problem is English. She never wants to spend time keeping English words in mind. However, different from her, I am crazy about learning English. In fact, I won a lot of prizes while attending our university's English Test Competitions. I hope this gift could offer her confidence to learn English and English study could be as beautiful as the flower I gave her. Besides, I gave her this special dictionary because I have been using this dictionary for many years. It not only has more words than other popular dictionaries, but also has more interesting examples and appendixes. ....

  口语中第三第五题真是比较简单, 都是基于校园对话, 而且大部分普通教材编写的都跟真题没有什么出入。但是有些平时英语口语不错的人，第三题出了问题，是因为听力比较差的原因,讲得跟原对话有出入。第五题关键是时间控制，大体三部分，What is the problem? What are the solutions? And Which solution do you prefer？
    记得在课堂训练时，部分同学时间控制不好，对Which solution do you prefer，回答得太匆忙，甚至有人都没有时间说。

  第4题和第6题往往是难点。有时第四题阅读部分太难，45-50秒钟读不懂。（国内考生一般这样的问题比较少，因为他们的阅读能力往往比我们北美的中学生或国际学生要好，而且他们很多人都在同时复习GRE 或GMAT，他们的词汇量真是好了得。所以我的体会可能更适合北美跟我年龄相仿的人，17-20岁的学生）。这时，大家应该不要慌。根据我的经验，第四题基本是这么一个结构：阅读犹如是本字典，先给我们对某个Term下一个定义或说明，然后听力部分再由老师重新说一边。而老师的内容更加具体，生动，细节化。这部分我感觉ETS考试中心是在极力还原真实的大学课堂情景 --

      老师布置作业，叫同学们回去读那些那些页数。然后，第二天老师先对预习的部分用自己的理解讲述一番，然后学生跟进。

所以,我的看法是:

·  表达不准确是第3-6题的第一大忌。

·  表达不连贯是3-6的第二大忌。

·  语音语调不地道是第三大忌。

·  语法错误和发音错误是第四大忌。

 

好在第四题主要是问lecture的内容，所以即使文章有时没有完全读懂（不是经常会发生，有时文章超简单），只要能将听力内容说清楚， 一样能拿高分。

比如说，还拿2007年12月7日的题目为例，即使你没有记住文章内容，你可以这样来回答：

In the lecture, the psychology professor used his daughter as an example to explain the academic concept of chaining behavior. In order to teach his 3-year-old daughter to wash her hands, the professor divided the action of washing-hands into 5 steps. First, teach her how to turn on the water, then teach her how to wet her hands. Step three is to make her learn how to put soap on her hands, then rinse her hands, and finally, step 5, to teach her to turn off the water. He taught his daughter step one first, then after she has learnt how to turn on the water, moved on to the second step. In the next few days, after she could do both, continued teaching her step three, then step 4, until finally she learnt the whole process of washing hands. This example has very clearly demonstrated the theory of chaining behavior in the reading passage.

这样的叙述尽管对阅读非常忽略，但是假如你阅读能力比较差,或是某次考试阅读特别麻烦,这样做也是不得已而为之。不过，假如阅读不是太差的话，在开头的时候最好对听力和阅读作一个比较综合的integrated summary. 比如说，当你说完了“In the lecture, the psychology professor uses her daughter as an example to explain the academic concept of chaining behavior，”之后，后面可以接一个定语从句，对“chaining behavior” 下一个定义。这个定义来源于阅读，但是不等于照抄照搬，应该是对原文的paraphrase. 然后继续听力的例证描述。这样这个表达就更精炼、更紧凑。

当然，除了第1-2题之外，其余四题，特别是3，4，6题，切忌“凭空捏造”或“胡说八道”。假如你们读过OG的口语sample评分，所有的fair level中，都有一项这样的评语：    “The speaker identifies the concept and the two examples, but with inaccuracies. Instead of sum­marizing each experiment, he combines the summary of both experiments. This causes him to incorrectly conclude that you make more mistakes when you are being watched while tying your shoes. ”

 

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Question 4

Title – Hard Academic Terminology

?  The reading part normally gives a definition to the term. Sometimes examples may be given here. But generally speaking, the example will be different from that be elaborated by the professor in the future lecture. ?  While students reading the passage, they should try their best to summarize the whole passage in one or two sentences. If possible, write this summary down on the paper. ?  Don’t be afraid if you do not get the whole idea from the passage. If you fail to get any clear idea from the reading, then try your best to get most ideas from the listening. ?  In your response, if you have clear picture of both the reading and listening, then you can use Module 1. ?  If you have no idea about the reading, then you can use Module 2 in your response.

Module 1 (if you understand both the reading and the listening)

Based upon the reading, (xxx) means that …(here add the summary you wrote down on the draft paper)… In the lecture, the professor continues to explain this concept of “XXX”. The professor tries to elaborate this term from the following examples. The 1st example is ….. The 2nd example is …

Module 2 (if you did not understand the reading)

In the lecture, the professor talks about two (examples). One is about …. The other is about. He tries to use these two examples to elaborate the concept of “XXX” which was already explained in the reading, with means ….  and …. . The first example the professor mentioned was …. The second one is …

Question 5

?  This question seems very easy. But many students could not do well.

?  Make sure you exactly follow George’s training. Put your answers in the following THREE steps.

?  Don’t make PRONOUN or GENDER mistake.

n  i.e.  “The woman gives two suggestions. The first one is, “you can go and talk to the professor to ask him give you more time.” The second one is, “you can work hard and try to finish within short time. So I will not miss the test.”

?  Pay attention to tense

Step 1 (what is the problem) (10-15 seconds)

According to the conversation, the man/ woman has a problem: (1-2 sentences’ description of the problem – don’t go into many details)

Step 2 (what is the solution) (20-30 seconds)

The woman/man offers two suggestions/advice/solutions. First, she suggests that he do …..  (However, he’s concerned that ….. ) Her other recommendation is to…,  (while in the man’s opinion …)

Step 3 (which is better) (20 seconds)

In my opinion, the 1st / 2nd is better. (Try to use the reasons the man raised in the listening to support your opinion. If you could not remember what the man said, you can also make up some reasons by yourself.)   If it were my choice, I would choose the former/latter one, because…

Question 6

?  Similar to Question 4.

?  Pay attention to the tense while retelling the examples in the lecture. Many times you need to use past tense.

?  Pay attention to the gender of the speaker. (Woman or Man? She or He?)

?  Try your best to put the two examples into two different categories. Normally the two examples given in the lecture belong to two different groups.

?  Try to use the following verbs to start your first sentence:

Point out, present, describe, state, mention, discuss, provide, demonstrate, introduce, give, explain, talk about,

Remember: (Always try to start from the question given to you on the screen if you have no idea how to initiate your talk)

Example 1:
    

Question: Using points and examples from the talk, explain the two definitions of money presented by the professor.

In the lecture, the professor talks about two different definitions of money. One of them is based upon its broad meaning, and the other is upon narrow meaning. First, broadly speaking, money means anything people can use to buy things. That is to say, money not only refers to coins, bills, but also includes any goods or services which can be offered to others who would accept as payment. The professor gave a vivid example in the lecture. A taxi driver might exchange his ride service with a farmer for his “vegetables”. Here vegetables mean money. However, money has its narrow definition. In the United States, both coins and dollar bills are legally defined as money and no one is allowed to reject this legal “money”. That is to say, All taxi drivers must accept legal money. But he is not obliged to accept such money as “vegetables”.

Example 2

Question:
    Using points and examples from the talk, explain how the automobile and the radio contributed to a common culture in the United States.

 

In the lecture, the professor has explained how the automobile and the radio contributed to a common culture in the United States. Firstly, with the price of automobile becoming lower and lower, more and more Americans could afford to purchase cars. This revolution of transportation has greatly changed the life of the people living in the rural areas. They could afford to travel to the cities more frequently and their behaviour, their dress and even their speech would gradually be influenced by others. Thus it was possible the gap of the culture between the rural and urban areas became smaller and smaller. The popularity of radio was another tool which helped to make the American culture become more similar. That’s because radio programs made it possible for the audience in different regions to share the same news, same language patterns and even the same songs and music at the same time. Different from the news which was printed on newspapers, news broadcasted through the air was not limited to the local news any more. Instead, it covered much wider areas, even around the country.

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ibt-TOEFL 口语课堂训练
　　　　　　　Easy English Training Center  肖锁章（George Xiao)
       
Question 1
Major Type:  Which/ What / Why / Who / how

Major Type:  Which/ What / Why / Who / how

?  Which place is your favourite place to visit in summer?

?  What game you loved most while studying in elementary school?

?  Why do so many people love visiting museums?

?  Who influenced you most in the past 3 years?

?  How can a person improve English language?

l   Make sure you have detailed examples to support your argument. l   Pay attention to tense if the example happened in the past!

Personally, I would like to say that my favorite is … … And there are a couple of reasons to name here. The most important one is that … … What’s more… So that’s why I …. ….

Question 2

Major Type:  Which do you prefer/ Agree or disagree

?  Some people love eating out (such as at restaurants); others, however, prefer to eat at home. Which do you prefer?

?  Do you agree or disagree with the following: People always need to tell the truth.

l   Make sure you have detailed examples to support your argument. l   Tense is not very important for this question. (But your tense should be consistent in the whole talk)

Module 1 – Positive

In my opinion, I agree with A / I prefer A First of all,  ….   Living in the city… not only makes me…. …. but also…..brings … Secondly (Besides, More importantly),  city life … not only… but also ….

Module 2 -- Negative

In my opinion, I do not agree with A/ I prefer B First of all, Living in the countryside… not only makes me…. …. but also…..brings … Secondly (Besides, More importantly),    … not only… but also ….

Module 3 -- Neutral

This is a hard question. In my opinion, whether we need to do A or B (Whether we should agree or disagree)….,  it depends. On the one hand, A is .…………………….. On the other hand, B is …………….

Question 3

?  The man expresses his opinion about the upcoming change. State his opinion and explain the reasons he gives for holding that opinion.

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l   Make sure you have taken notes correctly l   Your response must integrate both the Reading (20-30%) and the listening (70-80%)

Girl/Woman Agree/Disagree 1. 2. 3.

Boy/Man Agree/Disagree 1. 2. 3.

 

Module 1  Reading --> dialogue

1. The school has implemented a new policy (new plan, announcement, …)  that… due to… . And the woman/man holds a positive/negative view towards the announcement. The 1st reason she/he offers is ….. The 2nd reason is …

 

2. In the reading material, there is a/an announcement/ message/ notice/ proposal about …. The university/college is going to… In the listening material, two students discuss about this announcement/ message/ notice/ proposal. The man/woman is against/supporting the… He or she feels unhappy/ less satisfied about… (He/she thinks the … is unfair/ inconvenient/ unaffordable/ wrong). He/she gives two reasons. Firstly, he/she thinks/says… Also, he/she points out that…

Module 2  Dialogue --> Reading

2. According to the dialogue, the man/woman completely disagrees with the school decision/planning/announcement. That is to say, the school decides to …. because R1 + R2. However, the man believes …

Module 3  Totally integrated

3. According to the dialogue, the man completely disagrees with the school’s decision.  From the reading, the school decides to renovate the library because they want to make it less noisy and more private for the students. However, the man believes this change will do bad for the students’ group activities. The smaller rooms may reduce noise, but nowadays group projects are very common and important. Besides, the school can reduce the noise from the outside. The other reason the school provides for the change of the library is the space. According to the school, the new arrangement will add around 50 more seats for the students. However, according to the man in the dialogue, "over-crowding" has never been a problem in the school. In fact, many times the man found many seats in the library were vacant. Therefore, the boy believes that it is a waste of money to rebuild the library rooms. If there are 5 more seconds          (optional). That’s because it is not only unnecessary but also waste of money. Not to mention is will badly affects students increasing groups projects.