Education Unlimited Inc.

Education Unlimited Inc.
27 B, Park Street
Flat F, 1st Floor
Kolkata (Calcutta) 700016
India
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alt: +9133 46027272
counsellor@educationunlimited.in

IELTS

TOEFL iBT v/s IELTS - Part 1

Shekhar Niyogi enumerates the differences between the TOEFL and the IELTS

For all students hailing from countries where English is not the native or primary language, it is mandatory to take either TOEFL iBT or IELTS test when they apply for admission. Since universities abroad need to ensure you have the English language skills necessary to study in their classrooms, almost all institutions require you to take either test to determine proficiency in English. And TOEFL iBT and IELTS are the two most popular standardized tests of the English language. I will try to illustrate the differences between the two tests so that you can decide which one suits you best.

Acceptability

It is used by British universities, as well as New Zealand and Australian universities to determine the language capability of foreign students. TOEFL is administered by ETS, a US-based organization and is used widely by American and Canadian universities. However, these days, in order to make it easy on international students, many universities all over the world accept TOEFL and IELTS. While you should check with the specific university you want to apply to, in general all universities in Australia or New Zealand will need the IELTS test score and other countries accept both, although the U.S and Canadian ones prefer the TOEFL score. Pick the test you think will be applicable to your goals. To do that, you need to know the structure of each test.

TOEFL iBT test structure

TOEFL is almost universally taken in the iBT (Internet Based Testing) format. It consists of four sections:

Reading

The TOEFL Reading section asks you to read 4-6 passages of university level and to answer multiple-choice questions about them (multiple-choice means you choose the answer from provided options). Questions test you on comprehension of the text, main ideas, important details, vocabulary, inferring, rhetorical devices and style.

Listening

The Listening Section presents long 2-3 conversations and 4-6 lectures. The situations are always related to university life ie a conversation between a student and a librarian about finding research materials or a lecture from a history class. The questions are multiple choice and ask you about important details, inferences, tone, and vocabulary. The conversations and lectures are very natural and include informal English, interruptions, filler noises like "uh" or "um" as in normal conversation between people.

Speaking

The Speaking section is recorded. You will speak into a microphone and a grader will listen to your answers at a later date and grade you. Two questions will be on familiar topics and ask you to give your opinion and/or describe something familiar to you, like your city, your favorite teacher or a memorable holiday. Two questions will ask you to summarize information from a text and a conversation and may ask your opinion as well. Two questions will ask you to summarize information from a short conversation. Again, the topics of the conversations are always university-related.

Writing

Finally, there are two short essays on the TOEFL. One will ask you to write your opinion on a broad topic, such as whether it is better to live in the country or the city. One will ask you to summarise information from a text and a lecture--often the two will disagree with each other and you will need to either compare and contrast, or synthesize conflicting information.

IELTS test structure

The IELTS contains the same four sections, Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing, but the format is very different.

Reading

The reading section of the IELTS gives you 3 texts, which may be from academic textbooks or from newspapers or magazines, but all at the level of a university student. One will always be an opinion piece, that is, a text arguing for one point of view. The variety of questions on the IELTS is quite broad, and not every text will have every question type. One question type asks you to match headings to paragraphs in the text. You may be asked to complete a summary of the passage using words from the text. Or you may have to fill in a table or chart or picture with words from the text. There may be multiple-choice questions that ask you about key details. One of the hardest question types presents statements and asks you whether these statements are true, false or not included in the text. You may also be asked to match words and ideas. Finally, some questions require short answers but the answers will be taken directly from the text itself.

Some questions come before the text and may not require careful reading to answer. Others come after the text and may expect you to have read the text thoroughly.

Listening

The IELTS has four listening sections. The first is a transactional conversation in which someone may be applying for something (a driver's license, a library card) or asking for information (say calling for more details about an advertisement or a residence to rent). The second section is an informational lecture of some kind, possibly a professor explaining the rules of the university. Third is a conversation in an academic context and the final section will be an academic lecture. For all sections you may be asked to fill out a summary, fill in a table, answer multiple-choice questions, label a diagram or picture, or classify information into different categories. You will be expected to fill out answers as you listen.

Writing

There are two writing tasks on the academic IELTS. The first asks you to summarise a table or chart in about 300 words. You will have to identify important information, compare and contrast different figures or maybe describe a process. The second task asks you to present your opinion on a statement about a fairly open topic such as: "Women should look after children and not work" or "Too many subjects are taught in high schools and students are suffering."

Speaking

Finally, the speaking section will be held on a different day from the rest of the test and in the presence of a trained interviewer, usually the day after the written test. The questions are the same for all examinees but some parts may be more in the form of a conversation than a monologue. The first part of the test will be a brief introductory conversation followed by some short questions about familiar topics. The interviewer may ask your name, your job, what kinds of sports you like, what your daily routine is, and so on. In the second part, you will be given a card with a topic and a few specific questions to address. You will have to speak for two minutes on this topic, which may be about your daily routine, the last book you read, your favorite city or a similarly familiar topic. In the last section, the interviewer will ask you to discuss a more abstract side of the topic like, why do people prefer to watch sport? Why do people like reading books? How does travel affect social life?

This is article is Part one of a three article series. There are other differences outlined in the next article.

(The author is an education and career consultant and counsellor for studies abroad. )

TOEFL iBT v/s IELTS - Part 2

Shekhar Niyogi tells us how the TOEFL and the IELTS are different

You have spent many hours learning English, whether in school or college. Now you need to prove that you do, in fact, know the language as well as you need to for the program you are entering. How can you do this? You can ascertain your proficiency in English by taking a test. Two of the most popular are the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) http://www.ielts.org and the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) www.ielts.org. While both tests will prove that you know English, they are different in many ways.

Difference in intent

One difference in the two tests is in the intent. The main intent of the TOEFL is to determine whether or not the test taker can speak, read, understand, and write English well enough to attend college in an English-speaking program. The questions, reading material, and listening material are all designed on a college level.

While there is one version of the IELTS that is designed for college applicants, the Academic Version, the IELTS also comes in a General Training Version. This is used for those who are looking to head to an English-speaking country for work or immigration. Many companies who are looking to hire non-native English speakers need to know that their employees can speak and understand English, and they require a test to show this. Also, Australia and Canada require those who are immigrating to their countries to pass the test as part of their citizenship requirements.

Difference in focus

Another difference between the two tests is the focus. The TOEFL is designed for North American speakers and hearers. The spoken portions are read by native North American speakers. The questions of form and style are based on North American English. On the other hand, the IELTS is designed to fit a variety of accents and situations. The writing styles and accents incorporated into the test are designed to mimic the accent and style of many different countries. This makes this test ideal for those who are looking to test their ability to speak and read English, but do not necessarily need to speak and read North American English.

IELTS - structure

Candidates who are taking the IELTS are required to complete four modules. These are speaking, reading, writing, and listening. Once complete, the applicant will receive a band, or score, which will be displayed on the IELTS Test Report Form. The highest possible score is a 9 band score, which means the individual is completely competent in all tested areas.

The Listening and Speaking Modules are the same for both the academic and general versions of the exam, but the Reading and Writing Modules are not. The test takes 2 hours and 45 minutes to complete. The Listening, Reading, and Writing Modules must be completed in that order on the same day without a break. The Speaking Module can be completed within a week prior to or following the written portion of the test.

TOEFL - structure

The TOEFL can be taken online or at a testing center. When taken online, the applicant has four hours to complete the Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing sections of the test. Each section has its own time limit. The Internet based version has a highest possible score of 120 and a lowest possible score of 0. While the TOEFL and the IELTS have significant differences, both are good ways to judge whether or not an English speaker truly knows the language. If you are trying to decide which test to take, contact the university to which you are applying to see which test is mandatory.

(The author is an education and career consultant and counsellor for studies abroad.)

TOEFL iBT v/s IELTS - Part 3

Shekhar Niyogi tells about the differences between TOEFL and IELTS

TOEFL or IELTS - which one is for you?

So now that you have some understanding of what each test contains and requires of you, you will have to decide which is better for you. While reading about the test structures, you may have instinctively felt that you prefer one more than the other. This is a good sign as it is likely that one test will be easier for you than the other. You should dwell upon these core differences between the two tests.

American versus British English

While both the UK and the US accept both tests, and while British English and American English are not as different as some think, the fact of the matter is the IELTS tends to use British English and the TOEFL uses exclusively American English. On the IELTS, this difference will have a larger effect because spelling counts, and that is one area where Britain and the US do not coincide. Obviously if you have problems with the British accent (and the test may include a wide variety of accents, including Australian, New Zealand, Irish, Scottish and Jamaican). On the other hand, American accents may throw you off. Certain terms are also different and you don't want to waste time in your speaking test asking what a lift or a lorry is. So whether you are used to British or American English is a consideration. If you are more comfortable with US English, the TOEFL is a good bet but if you are used to British English and accents, you'll probably do better on the IELTS.

Copying Down versus Multiple choice

For the reading and listening sections, TOEFL gives you multiple-choice questions, whereas IELTS generally expects you to copy down words from the text or the conversation word-for-word. Multiple-choice questions will tend to require slightly better abstract thinking, but the IELTS favours people who have good memory and think more analytically. The good thing about multiple-choice is that it is easy to pick out wrong answers, whereas the good thing about copying down is that the answer is sitting there in the text. You just have to find it and repeat it. So, analytical thinkers will tend to do better in the IELTS and abstract thinkers will tend to excel in the TOEFL.

Predictable Pattern or Variety Each Time

Of course, the TOEFL is also more predictable than the IELTS. The IELTS throws lots of different question types at you, and the instructions are often slightly different every time. That makes it harder to prepare for. The TOEFL, on the other hand, is pretty much the same test every time, pick options A, B, C, D, or E. On the other hand, the IELTS certainly keeps you on your toes and that can necessitate you being more alert.

Speaking to a Computer or a Person?

Another large difference is in how the speaking section is carried out. For some people, it's very relaxing to just record your answers into a computer because it feels like no one is listening. You just try your best and forget about it until you get your grades. Because the IELTS test is done in an interview format with a native speaker of English present, you might get nervous or feel you are being judged. And they take notes so you may be distracted into wondering if he wrote down something good or negative? On the other hand, you might feel more relaxed in a conversation, with someone present there to explain if you don't understand a question, or simply having an individual to look at, instead of a computer screen. Getting feedback from a native speaker can be helpful too, in order to correct mistakes and improve during the test. So it depends on what you are more comfortable with. If you like talking to people, the IELTS is a better bet. If you just want to be alone and not feel judged, the TOEFL will be more comfortable for you.

Holistic versus Criteria

Finally, the speaking and writing sections of the TOEFL are graded holistically. The grader gives you a score based on the overall quality of the essay, including vocabulary, logic, style, and grammar. The IELTS by contrast is marked by individual criteria and you are scored individually for grammar, word choice, fluency, logic, cohesion, and several other criteria. In other words, if you write well but have a lot of small grammatical mistakes, your TOEFL score might be quite good because graders will ignore small mistakes if the overall essay is logical and detailed. The IELTS will not overlook bad grammar. On the other hand, if your grammar and vocabulary are strong but you have trouble expressing your thoughts or organising an essay, you could end up with a low TOEFL score but the IELTS will give you good marks for language use. So while it may sound like the IELTS is much tougher since it grades you on everything, in fact you can get quite a good score if you are strong in a number of areas. The TOEFL emphasizes the ability to put together a logical and detailed argument (or summary) and looks at clarity, word selection, and style. If you don't feel comfortable writing essays but you think you have excellent grammar and vocabulary and overall are a competent writer, the IELTS will probably be easier for you.

Finally, the crucial choice is yours. Good luck.

(The author is an education and career consultant and counsellor for studies abroad.)

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Education Unlimited Inc.
27 B, Park Street
Flat F, 1st Floor
Kolkata (Calcutta) 700016
India
ph: +9133 22271173
alt: +9133 46027272
counsellor@educationunlimited.in