The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is set to undergo a revamp from August with the duration shortened and scores mentioning the best sections of an individual’s test if the exam is taken more than once.
The Educational Testing Services (ETS), known for conductingthe global TOEFL and GRE tests, is working on making changes in the test insync with the changing demands of the educational institutions.
“A growing number of institutions are acknowledging thevalue of seeing applicants’ best section scores when they take a standardisedtest more than once. We also know that our test takers want an English languagetest that helps them stand out to admissions officers,” said ETS’ SrikantGopal, Executive Director of TOEFL Programme.
“The changes which will come in effect from August willprovide a significantly better testing experience for students, whileinstitutions can widen their pools of qualified applicants that meet theirEnglish language requirements,” he added.
The duration of the test will be shortened by 30 minutes andthe number of questions in three sections — reading, listening and speaking —will be reduced. Currently, the duration of the test is three-and-half hours.
“We are also introducing a feature called ‘MyBestscores’ which will combine test takers’ best scores for each section from allvalid TOEFL scores from the previous two years. The option will allow testtakers to show their best overall test performance to institutions makingimportant admissions decisions,” Gopal said.
“All TOEFL iBT score reports sent after August 1,regardless of the test administration date, will automatically include ‘MyBestscores’ along with the traditional scores from the test taker’s selected testdate,” he added.The TOEFL, a global test for English language,is welcomed by more than 10,000 institutions in over 150 countries and isuniversally accepted in popular destinations like the United States, Canada,Australia, and New Zealand, and by over 98 per cent of universities in the UK.