While there are always complaints about the TOEFL, there may be other reasons why your students aren't getting better scores. I used to be a grader of Speak tests made by ETS (I think they're called something else now), and students were marked down for "canned" answers which it sounds like your students may give. In fact, I don't think there is a speaking part on the TOEFL, just listening, so I'm assuming they are taking a new version of the SPEAK test. Although they may have practice questions, that does not mean these are the actual questions on the test. Your students have to show they can understand and answer any kind of question fluently and reasonably accurately. I say understand because sometimes students who had studied review questions were so much expecting a certain question, that they would give an answer that didn't actually answer the question well. The students aren't just being evaluated on their grammatical correctness. In fact, they
 would probably be marked down more for a canned or off-topic answer than small grammar errors.

My recommendation would be to get them away from focusing just on the questions, and do activities that improve their actual listening and speaking skills overall. This might include some sort of speaking/listening activity that they do with other native speakers. We ESL teachers are sometimes so used to hearing non-native English that we can understand our students better than most people can. You might also have them listen to podcasts so that they get used to hearing information electronically.  

Do they already have pharmacy degrees? Or do they need the scores to get into a pharmacy program? Have they taken college classes yet in the US? If they don't need the score right now, they would be better served by taking some college classes first where they will get real live experience in listening. 

Terry Pruett-Said
EAPP coordinator
Macomb Community College
Warren, Michigan




________________________________
From: Debbie Yoho <yohogclc at earthlink.net>
To: The Adult English Language Learners Discussion List <englishlanguage at nifl.gov>
Sent: Thursday, March 19, 2009 5:53:58 PM
Subject: [EnglishLanguage 4047] certification of pharmacists via TOEFL

I want to air an issue regarding the TOEFL to see if others are observing the same dynamic. I am currently teaching three advanced ESL learners who are all professional pharmacists in their own countries of S. Korea and China.  Each is a woman married to a spouse with permanent residence.  All of them have  successfully completed ESL classes through and including the advanced level, so that there are no more courses for them to take through adult ed.  All are seeking to become licensed to practice their profession in the US, and all three expect to remain in the US indefinitely. I am told that to become licensed,  each must obtain a 26 on the oral section of the TOEFL. I understand this standard was set by the national pharmacists' professional association. While I would not label these learners as thoroughly fluent in English, all of them are able to converse freely and communicate anything they wish in English, albeit with some grammar errors, and
 their accents are not really troublesome.  What I find incredible is that all three expect to take the TOEFL over and over in order to obtain a 26.  One said her friend took the test 50 times.  All have reported to me many issues in taking the oral test, from microphones that are hard to use to the distraction of many murmuring voices speaking too loudly all around them.   One testing center is so notorious that friends advise driving to another city two hours away to take the test rather than go to this local site.  Each of my three learners have taken  the test many times, and the results are maddening.  Their scores go up and down in a random pattern,  usually coming out somewhere between 20-24.

Each learner came to me already studying hard using the following method (and they did not know each other):  The oral questions (from past versions of the test) are available on the internet.  The learners download the questions, draft written responses, then memorize their writing.  They were often studying with friends.  Now they bring their writing to me to correct before they memorize.  So sitting side by side  we correct  the writing.  I just  explain the reason why a given phrase or word is incorrect. They take copious notes, correct their writing, bring it back to me for a final review,  and then move on to another question.  We have been doing this since October, each continuing to take the test about twice a month.

As their teacher I am fast reaching a frustration level, although it amazes me how determined they are, and they are really not discouraged, just puzzled about what else they can do.  The popular wisdom is that "it is very hard to get a  26" but they will not give up.

Call me crazy, but I am beginning to smell a rat.  It is a fact that pharmacists are in very short supply in this country. It is also a fact that a pharnacist can demand a higher salary than even an engineer.  Is it possible that :  a.   the pharmacists' association has set the oral standard unreasonably high so as to discourage immigrants getting these jobs, thereby keeping salaries high in a market clearly with a labor shortage    and/or   b. that the reliability and validity of the TOEFL oral test might be questionable because of the chance of inconsistency in administration and scoring    and/or   c.  That the commercial developer of the TOEFL has a vested interest in crafting a product that needs to be taken over and over, (with a charge each time) in order to master it?  

I need a reality check.  Anybody else out there observing anything like this?  Many thanks, Debbie Yoho, Columbia, SC


Division Director
Turning Pages/VOAC
Columbia, SC
office:  803-765-2555
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