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1) Don't practice speaking in a quiet room free of distractions! If you want realistic TOEFL Speaking practice, then get your laptop or recording device and sit in a busy room with lots of audio distractions, and practice making your responses with plenty of distractions around you. Why? It's simple. On test day, TOEFL test takers are all speaking their responses at the same time in one big hall or classroom. You may be very distracted by the other students making their responses on all sides of you, if you are not prepared for this. Some people are literally paralyzed by it! Instead of complaining about distractions at the exam center (which so many people do), why not prepare for it, and make your practice Speaking responses in a busy room instead of a quiet place? Being able to filter your intake of information is actually agreat skill for TOEFL and beyond! 2) Don't write out your TOEFL Speaking Section answers - EVER. Just begin practicing for the Speaking Section with real, natural spoken responses. Remember - REALISTIC pracitce is best. Practice using the 15, 20, or 30 seconds to prepare, along with the real 45 or 60 second response time. 3) Never give yourself a few extra seconds to prepare a TOEFL Speaking response. This takes discipline. It's honest and realistic preparation that pays off, not cheating and bending the rules during practice. Keep to the letter of the time limits in all sections of the TOEFL. 4) Never think about the Speaking questions before beginning preparation. Realistic practice means getting the topic and then starting your preparation time immediately, just like on the real TOEFL. (Specific to Questions 1 & 2) 5) Don't select the questions you like from a list of practice TOEFL Speaking questions. If you have such a list, then cover it up, and only uncover one question at a time. MAKE YOURSELF answer each one, and do not select the ones you like. This gives you real practice, since the TOEFL Speaking questions will hit you as they are, and you will not have the option to choose this one or that one. (Specific to Questions 1 & 2)

I'm a little worried that the claimed changes in the TOEFL Speaking Section may not be what some are claiming. Let me be clear: I am referring to the claim that Question #1 has become limited to a set number of choices and is no longer an open, free choice. Moreover, it has the added difficulty of including a negative meaning, like: Which of the following activities would you least like to do on your weekend outing...A, B, C, or D? And why? And a similar added difficulty to Question #2 is also claimed. I'm worried that these are not actually changes in the format of the Speaking Section. I feel they may be - quite simply - a more difficult question that comes under the generality of what is expected on those question types. I mean, not all TOEFL tests are equal in terms of level of difficulty. There is a small level of variation in difficulty in all four sections. I am afraid that someone may have observed some difficult questions, and jumped the gun a bit by assuming that the TOEFL format has changed. I suggest this because of the following ideas: It doesn't seem widely reported. I teach the TOEFL speaking questions according to the ETS guide, and my students say that the questions come as they expected, no surprises. ETS has not made any announcement about this, while they have announced some changes recently. Looking for some valuable input from TOEFL teachers... (Thanks in advance!)

While experts recommend TOEFL test takers to be as creative as they can in their responses to the TOEFL Speaking Section questions (Types #1 and #2 specifically), there is sometimes a need to have fallback standard responses to the speaking questions, because sometimes: The test taker may not like the question. The test taker may not feel comfortable with the nature of the question. The test taker may be experiencing a mental block. The test taker may not have any “creative juices” flowing. For these reasons, there is a need for a “safety net”, or a basic, fallback set-up to use for the foundation of the response. The following blueprint could be used for the first question about significant people, places, events, or objects: 1) The Introduction “I thinkX is/was a _____ (adj.) thing/person/event, because of three basic reasons – A, B, and C.” You may replace “I think…” with: “To me,…” “I’d say that…” “In my opinion,…” “I believe…” 2) The Body “Regarding A, I’d say that it is/was so ______ (adj.) because… To me, that is really _______.” “As for B, then I believe…” “And finally, C is, to me,…” 3) The Conclusion “For these reasons, I feel that…” (Restate your original opinion in different words.) Remember to keep it simple and clear, connecting your ideas, using language you are comfortable with. Here is a sample of how the blueprint above can be used. Question: What is the best place to go for a vacation, and why? Response: To me, the best place to go for a vacation is Taif, Saudi Arabia, because of the attractions, the weather, and the low costs involved. Taif has many unique and exciting attractions, like the Hada cable cars that take you down through the mountains, and the beautiful parks in Shafa. As for the weather, the cool winds of Taif provide a much-needed break from the heat of most cities in Saudi Arabia. And finally, a vacation to Taif is not expensive. As many people in our current economic slowdown look for cheaper alternatives to international destinations, I feel that Taif provides a great local experience without the heavy expenses. These are the reasons why I think that Taif is the best vacation spot. I timed this response at exactly 43 seconds. The total time allowed for a response to this question type is 45 seconds.