PART A: INTRODUCTION

1. Rationale for the study

There is no doubt that English has been playing an important role in the modern world

of highly advanced technology, information and business. Facts have shown that the

English language has become an indispensable element for success in the rapidly

changing, competitive world.

Understanding its importance in individual educational and occupational career, users

of English worldwide in general and in Vietnam in particular have had a growing

demand for mastering this international language. In addition, a widely accepted

English certificate such as TOEIC is a desire of many learners of English. In fact, today

the TOEIC test is one of the most common international recognized English

proficiency exams in the world. This is because TOEIC is now one of the most popular

assessments used by schools and employers to evaluate the English abilities of students

and employees (Tokunaga, 2008). To be specific, there has been a rising number of

companies in Vietnam and all over the world using the TOEIC for the purposes of

hiring new employees, and for promotion to higher positions. Apart from that, TOEIC

is gradually being used within educational situations. Specifically, according to Trew

(2008) a significant quantity of Vietnamese and international universities and colleges

used the test for the purposes of accreditation, course placement, and measuring

progress within a curriculum. Additionally, TOEIC has been adopted as a way of

screening candidates for their graduate programs, especially in the fields of business or

international studies by a growing proportion of educational institutions worldwide and

in Vietnam. In some cases, high TOEIC scores even bring candidates the right to apply

for scholarships or special certifications.

The desire for a satisfactory score makes TOEIC candidates put a great deal of effort in

preparing for the test. In Vietnam, some of them spend hours of self-learning at home

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while the majority attends English courses for their test preparation. These courses

have various length and syllabi depending on the levels and the goals of learners, but in

general they provide participants with both linguistic skills and test-taking skills.

TiengAnh123 English center, Hanoi is one of such places which provide learners with

instructions on how to achieve their desired scores. Courses have been given for

several years, and it is claimed by TiengAnh123 that its learners have made great

improvements after their courses. However, there has not been any investigation on

how much progress its participants have made so far.

The aforementioned reasons have brought the researcher a chance to carry out a

research project entitled A study on the improvements of learners studying TOEIC

preparation classes at TiengAnh123 English center.

2. Aims and objectives of the study

The research project is aimed to investigate the improvements that TOEIC learners

have made after a preparation course at TiengAnh123 English center. The specific

objectives of the study are to identify the extent to which learners have improved their

test-taking strategies and their scores after attending a TOEIC preparation course

provided by this center.

3. Research questions

In order to achieve the research aims and objectives, the study is to find answers to the

following research questions:

1. To what extent do learners improve their TOEIC test-taking strategies after

attending TOEIC preparation classes at TiengAnh123 English center?

2. To what extent do learners improve their TOEIC scores after attending TOEIC preparation classes at TiengAnh123 English center?

4. Scope of the study

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Although TiengAnh123 is known as an English-teaching website in Vietnam, the

participants in their online courses are excluded from this project as they are all around

the country; therefore, it would be impossible for the researcher to get them involved in

the project due to the obstacles in time, duration and expense. Instead, the sample of the

study is composed of learners at face-to-face classes only because their profile and

course length and treatment are controlled.

Moreover, at the time of the research, TiengAnh123 was offering two kinds of TOEIC

preparation, one for getting learners to achieve at least 450 points in the achievement test

and the other is for the target of at least 650 points. Nevertheless, this study is only

aimed at the first kind of preparation because this one is more popular among learners

due to the fact that a TOEIC score of 450 points is a requirement for graduation given by

many colleges and universities in Vietnam.

Next, in terms of the improvements made by learners, the study focuses on the following

two aspects, i.e. their TOEIC test-taking strategies and their overall TOEIC scores at the

end of the course.

5. Significance of the study

The study is hoped to offer the researcher an insightful understanding of the effects of

the teaching and learning at TOEIC preparation classes at TiengAnh123 English

center. The findings of the study are expected to help the researcher identify what

aspect of TOEIC preparation is doing well and vice versa in this center. Accordingly,

suggestions can be made to enhance the strengths and improve the limitations.

6. Methodology of the study

To fulfill the research aims and objectives, a qualitative methodology was employed;

specifically, it conducted survey questionnaires on TOEIC learners. In addition, the

results from the pre-tests and the post-tests taken by these learners were compared and

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contrasted. The detail of the methodology applied in the study is discussed in Chapter 2

of Part II.

7. Organization of the study

The study consists of three parts which discuss the following matters.

Part A: Introduction presents a brief introduction of the rationale, the aims and

objectives, scope, significance, methods and organization of the study.

Part B: Development is composed of three chapters as follows:

Chapter 1: Literature Review provides the theoretical knowledge and results from the

recent studies for the issues relevant to the field under investigated.

Chapter 2: Methodology describes the processes of sampling, designing research

instruments, collecting and analyzing data employed in the study.

Chapter 3: Results and Discussion presents the discussion of the findings of the study.

Part C: Conclusion summarizes the main findings, presents the limitations of the study,

and suggestions for further studies.

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PART B: DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW

I. Language tests and language test preparation

1. The need for language tests

As for Hughes (1989) although language tests are mistrusted by many teachers and

alternative types of assessment are suggested, they are still considered a powerful tool

for evaluating language users’ abilities and achievement. To begin with, tests are

needed within language teaching systems because they help provide information about

the achievement of learners in a second or foreign language. Furthermore, without

tests, British and American universities would find it almost impossible to select

students from non-English-speaking countries. The same is true for international

organizations hiring employees whose native or first language is not English. It is

commonly accepted that score reports from such tests as TOEFL, IELTS, or TOEIC

are one of the major requirements that applicants have to enclose in their application.

2. Kinds of language tests

In his book entitled Testing for Language Teachers, Hughes (1989, p.9) mentions four

kinds of tests namely proficiency tests, achievement tests, diagnostic tests and

placement tests.

Initially, proficiency tests are defined as a measurement of people’s ability in a

language regardless of any training they may have experienced in that language. As a

result, the content of a proficiency test is not based on the content or objectives of

language courses which test takers may have attended. Instead, it is based on a

specification of what candidates have to be able to do in the language in order to be

considered proficient. Some typical examples of this kind of tests would be the Test of

English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), The International English Language Testing

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System (IELTS), or the Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC).

Hughes (1989, p.10) says the function of these tests is to determine whether candidates

have reached a certain standard with respect to certain specified abilities. Such

examining bodies are independent of the teaching institutions and so can be relied on

by potential employers, etc. to make fair comparisons between candidates from

different institutions and different countries. This study focuses on TOEIC test whose

details can be found in the later section of this chapter.

In contrast to proficiency tests, achievement tests are directly related to language

courses, their purpose is to measure the extent to which individual students, groups of

students or the courses themselves have made progress in achieving objectives.

Examples of this kind of tests can be seen in many teaching situations such as a test

given to students after an English reading comprehension course to check the

participants’ improvements after studying the course.

Another kind of test is diagnostic tests which are used to identify students’ strengths

and weaknesses in language learning and help teachers decide what should be taught to

the learners. For example, at the beginning of a course, the teacher gives the learners a

diagnostic test to see what areas of language need to be included in the syllabus. Or, in

the classroom, progress tests given during the course can also act as diagnostic tests as

they help the teacher and learners identify what areas will be looked at next on the

course.

Lastly, placement tests are to provide information which help place learners in a certain

teaching program which is appropriate to their abilities. In other words, they are used

to form equal level groups which are expected to better teaching and learning qualities.

For instance, an English teaching center may require registrants to do a placement tests

before putting them into classes suitable to their levels.

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As can bee seen, the four kinds of tests mentioned above are different in their purposes

and characteristics. In addition, the amount of preparation varies among them, too.

Proficiency and achievement tests, especially proficiency tests are those which

typically need more revision and preparation because they are tests with higher stakes;

therefore, the desire for guided test preparation and practice is greater. The next part

will be discussing the various aspects of test preparation.

3. Test preparation

3.1. Definition of test preparation

The well-known website Wikipedia defines test preparation as an educational course,

tutoring service, educational material or a learning tool designed to increase students’

performance on tests1. In fact, test takers tend to spend time preparing for the tests they

are going to take. Some of them do practice test items via the Internet, some work

through exercises in practice books. Many others would pay for commercial forms of

preparation that may involve a formal class or even one-to-one tutoring (Briggs, 2009).

According to Robb and Ercanbrack (1999), in recent times there have been abundant

preparation programs for academic aptitude and language proficiency tests, which

constitute a vast industry within the private educational sector. Students attend such

programs with a strong desire for successful performance in the tests, and the higher

the stakes of a test, the greater the desire for guided test preparation and practice.

3.2. Types of test preparation

Although the term “test preparation” is commonly in the field of testing, different

authors have suggested different categories of test preparation.

To begin with, Anastasi (1981) specified three kinds of test preparation which may

have a considerable effect on test performance. The first is called test-taking

1 http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Test_preparation

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orientation which is designed to ensure all test candidates’ familiarity with the general

procedures involved in taking a particular test. The second kind is termed coaching

which is usually characterized by intensive, short-term practice on item types similar to

those employed in the test. The third type is to provide participants with training in

broadly applicable cognitive skills.

Briggs (2009) mentions the typical elements of any test preparation which include

content review, item practice and orientation to the format of the test. He divides test

preparation into two main types namely informal or student-driven test preparation and

formal test preparation or coaching. The first type is characterized with students’

activity of purchasing a book of practice exams for a nominal fee and using this as a

basis for preparation in the weeks leading up to an official examination. The other,

coaching, refers to the preparation that is given by an official instructor (i.e., a coach)

who drives students’ attention to specific test-taking strategies. Most coaching

programs require participants to pay a fee – sometimes quite substantial - to attend. The

three most common forms of coaching include 1) classroom-based courses offered by

test preparation centers, 2) online coaching (with or without a “virtual” tutor) and 3)

private one-to-one or small group tutoring in-person.

Powers (2012) identifies two test preparation kinds which include test familiarization

and coaching. Test familiarization is quite similar to test orientation given about 30

years ago by Anastasi (1981) because it is to supply test-takers-to-be with general skills

for test taking and to get them familiarized with the procedures required to take a

particular test. Participants of this kind of test preparation are exposed to the kinds of

item formats they will encounter, the guidelines of guess making and time

management. Powers (2012, p.2) suggests that preparation of this sort is generally

considered desirable as it is supposed to get individuals to master the mechanics of test

taking; as a result, it will allow them to focus on, and accurately demonstrate, the skills

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and abilities under tested. Meanwhile, the other is named coaching which is typically

associated with short-term efforts aimed at teaching test-taking strategies or “tricks” to

enable test takers to “beat the test”; that is, to take advantage of flaws in the test or in

the testing system (e.g., never choose a particular answer choice if a question has these

characteristics…).

To summarize, the aforementioned authors have different ways of classifying test

preparation with various names of the subtypes or with discrepant features of a

particular subtype. However, it can be seen that in any test preparation such as test-

taking orientation or test familiarization, test takers are all familiarized with the format

of the test, the skills and abilities to be tested and the ways to tackle the test so that they

can achieve optimum test results. This kind of knowledge refers to the so-called test-

taking strategies, which will be discussed in the next part of this chapter.

3.3. Test-taking strategies

This section deals with the definition and the categories of test-taking strategies, which

is considered as an indispensable component of test preparation.

3.3.1. Definition of test-taking strategies

An early definition is the one given by Millman et al. (1965) (as cited in Ritter and

Idol-Maestas, 1986, p.50) who suggests that test-taking strategies are “one’s capacity

for using test characteristics and formats and/or test-taking situations to raise test

scores”.

Later on, Rogers and Harley (1999) mention specific test-taking strategies which

include: reading the instructions carefully, scheduling the allocated time appropriately,

making use of clue words in the questions, delaying answering difficult questions,

reviewing the work in order to check the answers, etc.

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Then, test-taking strategies are defined by Cohen (2000) as the consciously selected

processes that test-takers use for addressing language issues and the item-response

demands in the test-taking tasks at hand. As can be seen in this definition, two

important elements are mentioned, which are consciousness and goal-orientation.

As has been presented, although all the definitions show the nature and purpose of

test-taking strategies, it is clear that the definition given by Rogers and Harley (1999) is

the most detailed one.

3.3.2. Types of test-taking strategies

Cohen (1998) maintains that test-taking strategies consist of language use strategies

and testwiseness strategies. The first one, language use strategies are defined as the

ways test takers apply their knowledge of a second/foreign language so as to carry out

language tasks. Typically, four types of language use strategies (i.e., retrieval,

rehearsal, cover, and communication strategies) are used in a testing situation for the

purpose of storing, retaining, recalling, and applying the information for use on the test.

The later, testwiseness is not necessarily associated with the examinee’s language

proficiency, but rather is concerned with his knowledge of how to take tests.

Rezaee (2006, p. 155) classifies test-taking strategies into two types of “general and

specific” strategies. General strategies are those needed for any test such as reviewing

test content, reading the directions, using time effectively during a test, avoiding errors,

etc. Meanwhile, specific strategies are employed in the exact area of the subject matter

that is being tested; they deal with taking various kinds of tests such as multiple-choice,

matching, fill-in-the-blanks, essay, short answer, true-false, and problem solving.

According to Hirano (2009, p. 158), test-taking strategies can be categorized into three

following types:

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(i) Learner strategies which include the ways that test takers employ the skills of

listening, speaking, reading and writing, and the related skills of vocabulary, grammar,

and translation in addressing test items.

(ii) Test-management strategies which are characterized as consciously selected ones

used for giving meaningful and correct answers to test items. These strategies include

logistic issues, such as keeping tract of time and determining where to look for

answers.

(iii) Test-wiseness strategies which are strategies for using knowledge of test formats

and other peripheral information to answer test items without going through the

expected linguistic and cognitive processes. In other words, test-wiseness is the ability

to use special strategies to give correct answers without necessarily knowing the

content or skill that is being measured.

As shown above, the classification suggested by Rezaee (2006, p. 155) is clearly

different from the other two, while the later ones are similar in many ways. To be

specific, the nature of Cohen’s (1998) categorization is the same as that of Hirano’s

(2009) and the difference only exists in the name of subtypes.

3.4. Previous studies on improvements of learners at language courses

Language test preparation courses in which the participants are given necessary

strategies for dealing with tests have been of great interest to researchers all over the

world. This section mainly deals with those studies that focus on the improvements of

learners at language test preparation courses.

It can be seen that research over time has suggested incompatible findings regarding

the effects of preparation programs on a variety of language tests.

First, the study by Brown (1998) investigates the performance on an IELTS test taken

by students in a ten-week IELTS preparation course and a more broadly focused on

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English for Academic Purposes course. The student groups mainly came from the

South-East Asia region, aged between 16 and 25 years old, balanced in gender

distribution and were typically enthusiastic, but characterized by diverse mother tongue

and cultural backgrounds as well as previous educational experience. This evaluation

project was conducted with a mixed research design, requiring the collection and

analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative IELTS test score data

generated by the writing sub-tests was collected through pre- and post-course testing of

both the program groups. Qualitative data was gathered through extensive classroom

observation procedures including document analysis of staff teaching records, and

informal interviews with both staff and students. The findings revealed that the IELTS

group has an improvement of nearly one band, while the other one showed a small

score decrease. Nevertheless, the sample sizes of the two groups in this study were

rather small (9 vs. 5) and only writing skills were studied. Therefore, it would be

impossible to generalize the effect of a language test preparation course on test

performance.

Next is “The effect of background disciplines on IELTS scores” by Celestine and Ming

(1999), in which the authors look at the extent to which test preparation affects IELTS

test scores of students from different disciplines. Three hundred and ninety-eight

IELTS candidates whose major was either Science or Arts were randomly selected

from the IDP Education Australia offices in Malaysia to participate in the project.

Using IELTS scores and questionnaires as research instruments, Celestine and Ming

(1999) found no significant difference in test results between those attending

preparation and those who did not. They suggested two reasons accounting for this

which include (i) the duration of the preparation program (i.e. a few months) is too

short if compared to the duration of the disciplines the student had undergone (i.e. two

years) and (ii) IELTS is a test of English proficiency; hence, the knowledge of test-

taking strategies cannot make any significant change to the scores gained.

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Of the greatest relevance to this study is the one carried out by Robb & Ercanbrack

(1999) which investigated the effect of direct test preparation on TOEIC gaining

scores. During the study, freshmen students (i.e., English majors and non-majors) at

Kyoto Sangyo University were divided into three treatment groups: 1) TOEIC

Preparation, 2) Business English and 3) General (four-skills) English. These groups

were treated separately since there were important differences in contact hours/week,

level of English, motivation and homework between them, which make integration of

the data unwise. The participants took the pre-test at the beginning of the school year

and took the post-test and completed a survey questionnaire at the end. The results

suggest that the TOEIC preparatory materials had a significant impact on improving

the non-majors’ reading component score. The authors came to a conclusion that direct

test preparation are not beneficial to students majoring in the English language, but

might have a great effect on boosting the score of the reading component of students

enrolled in a university-level general English course in Japan.

Another study, Elder and O’Loughlin (2003) examines the relationship between

intensive English language study and band score gains on the IELTS. Specifically, it

investigates the process of a sample of 112 students from non English-speaking

backgrounds enrolled in intensive English language courses at one of four different

language centers in Australia and New Zealand. Progress is gauged in terms of score

gains on the academic module of the IELTS which was administered at the beginning

and end of a 10-12 week period of intensive English language instruction. Pre- and

post-study questionnaires were given to all participating students and semi-structured

interviews were conducted with a small number of students and some administrators

and teacher at each of the participating institutions. Data were analyzed using both

quantitative and qualitative methods. The study found a significant improvement in

English language proficiency, with students on average increasing their IELTS score

by half a band. They found that the improvement was greatest on the Listening subtest,

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and gains were likely to be greater for students with low initial English language

proficiency. They also discovered that a range of personal, instructional and

environmental factors were linked to these improved scores, but that these factors

varied from one language skill to another. However, Elder and O’Loughlin (2003)

suggest the need for caution in interpreting these results, as these studies are measuring

average gains, and individual performance is highly variable.

Apart from the international studies, research papers on test preparation in the

Vietnamese context were also reviewed by the researcher of this study. One of those

related articles is Effects of Test Preparation on Test Performance the case of the

IELTS and TOEFL iBT Listening Tests by Nguyen (2007). In this study, the

relationship of two test preparation programs (the IELTS preparation course and the

iBT TOEFL preparation course) and the test performance of 95 Vietnamese test takers

destined for overseas study in English-speaking countries was investigated. The

research focuses on the listening sub-test of these two test batteries. The IELTS

preparation group was provided with instructions on IELTS 6 hours a week in which

about 1.5 to 2 hours were devoted to listening skills and doing IELTS listening practice

tests. The program lasted for 10 weeks. The English language proficiency of this group

of students ranged from IELTS band 5 to IELTS 6.5 with the listening sub-band from

4.5 to 6.5. The TOEFL iBT group was introduced to the TOEFL preparation program

for about 2 hours on the first day. After that, instructions were focused on teaching

listening skills in general and on the TOEFL iBT listening test in particular. For the

participants in the TOEFL group, the training for the TOEFL iBT listening test ran for

approximately 3 hours every other day and lasted for 2 weeks. The English language

proficiency of the TOEFL preparation group ranged from 35 to 50 on the TOEFL iBT

with the reading sub-band from 10 to 31. The time allocated for the preparation of the

two groups and the level-off of their average scores were closely scrutinized so that the

two groups would be as much the same as possible. The students from the two test

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preparation groups took both the IELTS and the iBT TOEFL listening tests at the

beginning and end of the courses. The research findings reveal that the effect of test

preparation can be seen more evident on the performance of the IELTS listening test

than on that of the TOEFL iBT listening test. Specifically, the IELTS preparation

group significantly outperformed the TOEFL preparation group on the IELTS listening

test. In contrast, the TOEFL preparation group performed better than the IELTS

preparation group on the TOEFL iBT listening test, but the difference was not

significant.

As reviewed above, the majority of those aforementioned studies focus on test

preparation courses which last a couple of months; however, they indicate different

effect levels of language test preparation on test scores. Therefore, it is likely that time

of preparation programs has little impact on test performance. Rather, the reasons

accounting for this discrepancy include the kinds of tests and/or test formats, the

sample sizes, the background cultures, and the language proficiency levels of the

studies’ participants.

II. The TOEIC test

1. What is TOEIC?

Trew (2008) points out that the Test of English for International Communication, or

TOEIC is used as a way of measuring the communicative ability of business people. It

covers the vocabulary and situations business people encounter when using English all

over the world. The typical test is composed of two papers, i.e. the Listening and

Reading Test, and the Speaking and Writing Test. Due to its popularity in Vietnam,

this study is focused on the Listening and Reading Test only.

A summary of the TOEIC test’s history and components can be seen in the table

below:

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The TOEIC Listening and Reading Test 1978 1979 2006 Present

developed √administered √changed √two hours √ √ √ √200 multiple-choice questions √ √ √ √

Listening

Comprehension

Section

4 parts √ √ √ √

45 minutes √ √ √ √

fewer photo questions in Part 1 √ √

set of questions in part 3 and Part 4 √ √

both recorded and written questions in

Part 3 and Part 4

√ √

Reading

Section

3 parts √ √ √ √

75 minutes √ √ √ √

error recognition questions in Part 6 √ √

text completion questions in Part 6 √ √

"double-passage" questions in Part 7 √ √

TOEIC scores range from 10 to 990 and there is no pass or fail mark. The score test-

takers receive for the Listening Comprehension section is added to the score they

receive from the Reading section. Only their correct responses are counted toward the

final score.

Section Score

Listening Comprehension 5 to 495

Reading 5 to 495

TOTAL 10 to 990

(Lougheed, 2009: viii)

2. Suggested strategies test-takers need for success in the TOEIC test

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Trew (2008) suggests that test takers should have both good test-taking skills and

linguistic skills in order to gain a satisfactory TOEIC score.

First, the test-taking skills that test-takers are advised to master include: (i) familiarity

with the test format, instructions and question types; (ii) good time management; (iii)

efficiency of information processing; and (iv) awareness of features that can make

incorrect answer choices attractive.

Apart from the test-taking skills, test takers need to have adequate linguistic skills for

good performance in the TOEIC test, which consist of (i) vocabulary and grammatical

understanding; (ii) familiarity with different native speaking accents; (iii) awareness of

English connected speech and (iv) understanding language in use (conversational

English).

In addition to the overall linguistic and test-taking strategies mentioned above,

according to Kanistra & Kollias (2008) TOEIC test takers should keep in mind the

following part-specific techniques:

In part 1- Photographs, the tactics include looking at and answering questions

about the photos before listening, marking the answers on the answer sheet upon

listening and eliminating distracters.

In order to answer as many questions in part 2 – Question – Response as

possible, students should first try to identify question types and predict the

possible answers before they listen to the responses. Furthermore, they should

be aware of distracters and avoid them when doing this part.

Part 3 – Conversations and Part 4 – Talks require students to skim the questions

and answer choices paying attention to the key words before they listen. When

listening to the audio, students should keep their eyes on the key words in the

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question stem and answer choices. Finally, students should mark the correct

answer choice as quickly as they hear it.

For tackling the questions in Part 5 – Incomplete Sentences and in Part 6 – Text

Completion, test takers should be well aware of the common question types as

each type requires different techniques. They are also advised to use the 2-pass

method and strictly follow the advice on time management.

Some key techniques to deal with part 7 – Reading Comprehension are as

follows. Initially, students should spend at least 40 minutes on this part. Also,

they are advised to read the questions first and then use the appropriate skills

and sub-skills to answer the questions. Some other reading skills include using

key words to locate the relevant parts of the text and trying to guess unknown

words from context.

It can be said that those skills and techniques stated above are considered essential for

good TOEIC test performance; therefore, they should be included in any TOEIC

preparation course.

SUMMARY

In this chapter, the researcher has described elaborately the theoretical basis of the

study by defining and clarifying the various aspects of test preparation. More

importantly, the researcher has reviewed what related studies say about the discussed

aspects, which is hoped to provide a milestone background for the discussion of the

collected data.

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Chapter 2: METHODOLOGY

This chapter presents the context of the study and the research methods involved to

answer the two research questions of the study.

1. Context of the study

The study was conducted at TiengAnh 123 English center which offers training in a

variety of English courses. The researcher surveyed learners who are studying in

TOEIC A classes which require participants to gain scores equivalent to between 250

and 300 points in the 990-point scale of TOEIC in the placement test. The learners are

mainly university students along with some employees in several companies in Hanoi.

They voluntarily pay tuition fee to take the course. The outstanding advantage of the

target training is the keen interest of these learners in English. Most of them are very

studious and purposeful in studying the TOEIC course because they want to meet the

graduation requirement set by their educational institutions or the application

requirement set by their potential future employers.

Each TOEIC A course lasts two months, with three 90-minute lessons every week.

Like any other preparation programs, these learners receive tuition in the format of the

TOEIC test, and frequent practice of the relevant skills to be tested. The course

employs a number of commercial TOEIC test preparation books by well-known

publishers such as Oxford, Longman, and Cambridge. Apart from the preparation

activities in class, the learners are required to complete a huge amount of practice

exercises at home. The course guarantees a post test score of at least 400 points to each

learner, if not, they will be offered another similar course free of charge if they wish to.

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2. Methodology

Sample TOEIC pre and post tests and learners’ survey questionnaires are respectively

carried out during the study procedure. Following is the detailed procedures of

collecting data through these research instruments.

2.1. Participants

The subject of the study involved 31 learners from three TOEIC A classes (one in the

morning and the other two in the evening). They come from different parts of the

country and are at the age of between 18 and 26. Most of them are studying at

college/university while the rest is working or looking for a job.

2.2. Instruments

In this study, qualitative data was collected with the use of learners’ survey

questionnaire for it provides space for respondents’ thoughts, and approaches. In

addition, the scores of the pre-tests and post-tests were used as they provided a quick

and easy way of looking at the improvements made by TOEIC learners.

The TOEIC pre-test and post test

The aim of the pre-test is to identify learners’ level of English before they are enrolled

in the course. The post test is to decide how much the learners have improved their

TOEIC scores after a direct preparation program. Because it is impossible for the

researcher to design a pre/post test which is the same as an actual TOEIC test;

therefore, two practice tests at the end of the book named Tactics for TOEIC Listening

and Reading Test (Trew, 2008) were used. Practice test 1 was used as the pre test and

practice test 2 as the post test. The format and level of difficulty of these two practice

tests are closely similar to those of an official TOEIC test.

The survey questionnaire for learners

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The aim of this survey is to explore the learners’ improvements in their TOEIC test-

taking strategies. (The questionnaire is attached in Appendix A.)

The questionnaire was designed with two main parts including 7 questions. Part one

consists of six questions regarding the learners’ general information which includes

their gender, age, working/study status, years of studying English, and pre-and post-test

scores. To answer these questions, learners ticked the most approximate boxes or wrote

in the given blanks. Part two comprises question number 7 which investigates the

improvements that learners have made after the course in terms of general and specific

test-taking strategies. This question was written using a 5-point Likert scale. Learners

answered this question by ticking the column which most reflects their thoughts. The

questionnaire was conducted in English as these learners’ level of English is good

enough to understand all the questions properly. It was administered after the learners

got their post test scores at the end of the course.

2.3 Procedures of collecting data

The survey was conducted by the researcher herself. During the procedure of data

collection, 42 copies of the questionnaire are administered to learners of three TOEIC

A classes at TiengAnh 123. The researcher went to all of the classes and instructed the

learners how to answer questions in the questionnaires. Although the survey

questionnaire is written in English, translation and explanation are utilized when

necessary so that the learners could understand the questions properly. The full

translation for the survey questionnaire for learners is not applied for their level of

English is good enough to perceive the core content of the questionnaire.

2.4 Procedures of analyzing data

There were actually 42 questionnaires sent out to the learners at three TOEIC

preparation classes, among them 39 were returned and 8 were not properly completed.

Therefore, only 31 questionnaires were analyzed. The responses include their general

21

information, their pre- and post-test scores, and their improvements on test-taking

strategies and scores are outlined and discussed in the next chapter. Wherever possible,

the information discussed is provided in diagrammatic form.

22

CHAPTER 3: RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

This chapter presents the results from and the interpretation of the data collected from

the questionnaires. Specifically, the presentation will deal with learners’ personal

information, an analysis of learners’ pre test and post test scores, and an analysis of

learners’ improvements on general and specific TOEIC test-taking strategies.

1. Learners’ personal information

Aspects of learners’ personal information provided are indicated in Figures 1.1 – 1.3

(relating to Questions 1 to 4 of the questionnaire)

Gender of

learners

0.00%

20.00%

40.00%

60.00%

80.00%

100.00%

120.00%

0.455

0.545

Column1Male

Figure 1.1: Gender of learners

As can be seen, the number of TOEIC learners is divided rather equally between male

and female categories, 54.5% and 45.5% respectively.

23

Learn-ers' age

0.00%

20.00%

40.00%

60.00%

80.00%

100.00%

120.00%

0.462

0.337000000000001

0.201

25 or older22-24 years18-21 years

Figure 1.2: Learners’ age

Nearly half of the learners are at the age of 18-21 years old while a third of them are

between 22 and 24. The smallest portion includes those who are 25 years old or older

with just more than 20.0%.

24

Learners' cur-rent

status

0.00%20.00%40.00%60.00%80.00%

100.00%120.00%

0.704000000000001

0.2030.0930000000000002

Looking for a jobWorkingStudying at university

Figure 1.3: Learners’ current status

The majority of learners are those who are studying at college/university with 70.4%.

The second largest group (20.3%) consists of those who are currently working. People

who are looking for a job comprise the smallest portion of 9.3%.

25

Years of learn-

ing Eng-lish

0.00%20.00%40.00%60.00%80.00%

100.00%120.00%

0.306

0.503

0.191

1-3 yearsover 10 years8-10 years4-7 years

Figure 1.4: Learners’ years of learning English

All of the learners have more than three years of learning English. Specifically, half of

them have been studying English for 8-10 years, while a third of them has been

spending 4-7 years learning English. Nearly a fifth has been an English language

learner for more than a decade.

2. Research question 1: Improvements on TOEIC test-taking strategies

Question number 7 in the questionnaire explores the learners’ knowledge and usage of

TOEIC test-taking strategies, both general and specific ones to answer research

question 1.

When reporting the learners’ knowledge of TOEIC general test-taking strategies, the

researcher employed Oxford’s (1990) key to understanding mean scores on SILL-

based instruments whose scale range is 1 to 5:

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- High awareness = 4.5 to 5.0 (always aware or almost always aware) and 3.5 to 4.4

(usually aware)

- Medium awareness = 2.5 to 3.4 (sometimes aware)

- Low awareness = 1.5 to 2.4 (usually not aware) or 1.0-1.4 (never or almost never

aware)

The responses to this question will be presented and analyzed as follows.

2.1. Improvements on TOEIC general test-taking strategies

Following is the responses received from the questionnaire for questions number 7.1-

7.9 regarding knowledge of TOEIC general test-taking strategies. The results are

displayed in table 2.1.

Strategy

number

Knowledge of Mean

1 test instructions 4.10

2 time to spend on each part of the test 4.06

3 identifying main idea questions 4.03

4 identifying detail questions 4.03

5 identifying vocabulary questions 4.03

6 identifying similar-sounding distracters 4.06

7 identifying meaning distracters 3.84

8 avoiding distracters in the test 4.00

27

9 guessing when I don’t know the answer 4.06

10 working quickly but carefully 4.16

11 marking only one answer per question 4.23

12 sticking to only one answer for all the

questions I don’t know the exact

answers

4.16

Table 2.1: Mastery of TOEIC general test-taking strategies

As reported in Table 2.1, the mean scores for the twelve strategies ranged from 3.84 to

4.23. According to Oxford (1990), this is an indication for high awareness. Therefore,

it can be concluded that after a TOEIC preparation course, learners are well aware of

general strategies for test taking. None of the ten strategies got a mean score which is

higher than 4.5 points; hence, it can be said that no strategy always received awareness

from the learners. The four most familiar strategies to the learners include knowledge

of marking one answer per question, working quickly but carefully, choosing the same

option for all remaining questions, the test instructions with means of 4.23, 4.16, 4.16,

and 4.10 respectively. Knowledge of allocating time in the test, identifying similar-

sounding distracters, making a guess when an answer is not obvious, various question

types in the test including main idea, detail, and vocabulary questions, and ways of

avoiding distracters are the next most familiar strategies with mean scores ranging

from 4.00 to 4.10. The least acquainted strategy is awareness of ways to identify

meaning distracters with a mean of 3.84. This is because of the complexity and

frequency of this type of distracter in the test, which could be a reason for learners to

find it more difficult than other strategies.

2.2. Improvements on TOEIC specific test-taking strategies

2.2.1 Specific test-taking strategies for part 1

28

Strategy

number

Part 1 test-taking strategies Mean

1 - Before listening, identify all words about photos 4.06

2 - Before listening, self-ask and self-answer questions

about photos quickly

4.16

3 - While listening, avoid similar-sounding distracters 4.03

4 - While listening, avoid meaning distracters 3.77

5 - Only mark answers after listening to 4 choices 4.03

Table 2.2: Mastery of TOEIC part 1 strategies

As can be seen from table 2.2, the mean scale is between 3.77 and 4.16, which

indicates that learners are highly aware of suggested strategies for TOEIC part 1.

However, this also means that they are usually, but not always or almost always, aware

of using these strategies when doing the part. In more detail, respondents are the most

aware of self-asking and self-answering questions about photos quickly before they

listen to the audio. The next most mastered strategies include identifying all words

about photos before listening, avoiding similar-sounding distracters while listening,

and only marking answers after listening to 4 answer choices with means of 4.06, 4.03,

and 4.03 respectively. The strategy which has got a mean of 3.77, the lowest, is

avoiding meaning distracters while listening. This may be due to the fact that meaning

distracters are difficult to identify to the learners, which is also found out in the

previous question.

2.2.2 Specific test-taking strategies for part 2

Strategy

number

Part 2 test-taking strategies Mean

29

1 - Before listening, check part 1 answers quickly

again

4.0

2 - Before listening, preview quickly part 3 4.06

3 - While-listening, focus on audio and answer sheet

only

4.03

4 - While-listening, identify question types 4.13

5 - While-listening, take notes of question words 4.16

6 - While-listening, avoid similar-sounding

distracters

4.22

7 - While-listening, avoid meaning distracters 3.77

8 - Only mark answers after listening to 3 choices 4.03

Table 2.3: Mastery of TOEIC part 2 strategies

Similar to part 1 strategies, those strategies for dealing with part 2 TOEIC are all well

mastered by the learners. In more detail, the strategies of identifying question types,

taking notes of question words and avoiding similar-sounding words are the most

highly mastered with means of 4.13, 4.16, and 4.22 respectively. The reason for this, as

for the researcher, is the fact that these strategies are considered the most basic and

important for success in part 2. Means of between 4.0 and 4.1 include the four

strategies of checking part 1 answers quickly before listening, previewing part 3

quickly before listening, focusing on audio and answer sheet only while listening, and

only marking answers after listening to 3 choices. The strategy of avoiding meaning

distracters while listening, again, is the only strategy which got a mean of below 4.0.

As mentioned before, these distracters take more time and effort to identify; as a result,

it would be more difficult for the learners to identify and avoid them.

30

2.2.3 Specific test-taking strategies for part 3 and part 4

Strategy

number

Part 3 & part 4 test-taking strategies Mean

1 - Before listening, look at questions and answer choices quickly 4.19

2 - Before listening, predict context 4.13

3 - While-listening, avoid similar-sounding distracters 4.22

4 - While-listening, avoid meaning distracters 3.77

5 - While-listening, mark answers quickly 4.21

Table 2.4: Mastery of TOEIC part 3 and part 4 strategies

As presented in table 2.4, the learners’ knowledge of TOEIC part 3 and part 4

strategies is quite good, although none of the strategies is always used by the learners.

To be specific, the strategies of avoiding similar-sounding distracters while listening

and marking answers quickly while listening got the highest means of more than 4.20.

The second place belongs to the strategies to be used in the pre-listening phase which

include previewing questions and answer choices quickly and predicting context with

means of 4.19 and 4.13 respectively. Similar to in part 1 and part 2, avoiding meaning

distracters while listening is the strategy that got the lowest mean of 3.77; therefore, it

can be said that this strategy seems to be the most difficult to master among the TOEIC

listening strategies.

2.2.4 Specific test-taking strategies for part 5 and part 6

Strategy

number

Part 5 test-taking strategies Mean

31

1 - Spend no more than 30 seconds per question on part 5 4.09

2 - Spend around 10 minutes on part 6 4.22

3 - In part 6, read more than one sentence to find the answer when

necessary

4.13

4 - Use context for word choice questions 4.13

5 - Use grammar clues for word choice questions 4.23

6 - Look at suffixes for word form questions 4.35

7 - Look for time clues for verb questions 4.22

Table 2.5: Mastery of TOEIC part 5 and part 6 strategies

In general, it can be said that the learners are highly aware of TOEIC part 5 and part 6

strategies because the mean range is from 4.09 to 4.35, none of them got a mean below

4.0. The highest mean of 4.35 belongs to the strategy of using suffixes for word form

questions which is quite well-known to many English learners. The second most

mastered strategies are those of part 6 time management, using grammar clues for word

choice questions, and using time clues for verb questions with means of 4.22, 4.23, and

4.22 respectively. Reading more than one sentence in some cases in part 6 and using

context clues for word choice questions got the same mean of 4.13. The strategy of part

5 time management got the lowest mean of 4.09 as many TOEIC candidates find it

hard to complete this part in only 20-25 minutes.

2.2.5 Specific test-taking strategies for part 7

Strategy

number

Part 7 test-taking strategies Mean

1 - Spend at least 45 minutes on this part 4.09

32

2 - Read questions carefully and identify key words before

reading texts

4.06

3 - Identify easier questions and do them first 4.10

4 - Use skimming skill for main idea questions 4.0

5 - Use scanning skill for detail questions 4.0

6 - Use context clues for vocabulary questions 4.0

Table 2.6: Mastery of TOEIC part 7 strategies

Table 2.6 shows that the mean range of part 7 strategies knowledge is from 4.0 to 4.1,

which is indicative of high awareness. Those strategies of time management, reading

questions and identifying key words before reading texts, and identifying easier

questions and doing them first are the most mastered strategies which got means of

4.09, 4.06, and 4.10 respectively. These are the strategies needed for all kinds of texts,

and all question types in part 7. The second group comprises of the strategies for three

specific kinds of question with the same mean of 4.0.

3. Research question 2: Improvements on TOEIC pretest and post test scores

As mentioned in chapter 2 – Methodology, learners were given a sample TOEIC test at

the beginning of the course and another one at the end. These test papers were marked

by the teachers, and then their scores were informed to the learners. The learners, then,

provided their received scores in their questionnaires. As such, the raw score data for

each learner in the study is displayed in the following table.

Learner Reading Listening TotalPre-test Post-test Pre-test Post-test Pre-test Post-test

1 150 220 120 230 270 4502 155 200 125 250 280 4503 160 220 130 230 290 450

33

4 150 210 125 250 275 4605 125 210 130 260 255 4706 130 220 120 240 250 4607 140 210 135 250 275 4608 135 220 140 240 275 4609 145 215 120 245 265 470

10 140 225 130 245 270 47011 130 220 135 260 265 48012 160 250 140 300 300 55013 155 200 145 340 300 54014 145 245 150 300 295 54515 140 255 155 350 295 60516 145 295 155 325 300 53017 140 195 150 305 290 50018 150 205 140 220 290 42519 130 215 150 225 280 44020 130 200 145 260 275 46021 130 215 155 240 285 45522 130 210 140 240 270 45023 145 220 125 245 270 46524 145 215 130 255 275 47025 125 205 155 270 280 47526 120 210 150 270 270 48027 140 220 140 265 280 48528 135 245 145 220 280 46529 150 215 140 245 290 46030 140 225 150 265 290 49031 145 200 145 275 290 475

Table 3.1: TOEIC pre- and post-test raw score data

The first column from the left in Table 3.1 displays the numbered names of the TOEIC

learners. Each column thereafter indicates the TOEIC score gained by each learner in

terms of Reading, Listening, and Total.

At a glance, as can be seen from table 3.1, all the learners have improved their scores

between the pre- and the post-tests. However, the extent of the improvements is not the

same among them; this is due to the fact that the learners’ frequency and amount of

34

practice outside the class usually vary. Also, their behavior on the test day can be a

reason which accounts for this difference.

In order to discover the gain achieved by each learner during their course of

instruction, it is necessary to find out the minimum, maximum and mean score of each

component in each test. This kind of information is shown in the following table.

TOEIC

Score

Reading Listening Total

Pre-test Post-test Pre-test Post-test Pre-test Post-test

Minimum 120.00 195.00 120.00 220.00 250.00 425.00

Maximum 160.00 295.00 155.00 350.00 300.00 605.00

Mean 140.0 220.0 140.0 262 280.0 479.0

Table 3.2: TOEIC pre- and post-test minimum, maximum, and mean score

The score range in the pre-test is 120-160 points for Reading, 120-155 points for

Listening, and 250-300 points for Total. On average, a TOEIC learner scored

equivalently to almost 280 points in the pre-test, with about 140 points for each

component. This score indicates that learners took the course with their quite equally

developed listening and reading skills.

Meanwhile, in the post test, TOEIC learners scored between 195 and 295 points for

Reading, between 220 and 350 points for Listening, and between 425 and 605 points

for Total. The average score is approximately 220, 260, and 470 points for Reading,

Listening, and Total respectively.

Therefore, it can be seen that there has been a big change between the pre-test and post

test scores, both in each component of the test and in the total score. The detailed score

change is presented in the figure below.

35

Score

TOEIC

N Mean Minimum

Change

Maximum

Change

Reading 31 79.0 45.0 150.0

Listening 31 122.6 75.0 195.0

Total 31 199.0 135.0 310.0

Table 3.3: Detailed score change between pre-tests and post-tests

Table 3.3 shows that the three TOEIC classes (n=31) has a mean score change of

199.0, that is, an improvement of nearly 200 points. The range of score changes is from

a minimum of 135.0 points to a maximum of 310.0 points. Specifically, for Reading,

there is a mean increase of 79.0, and the score change range is between 45.0 – 150.0

points. The Listening component has experienced a mean score change of 122.6, and

the change range is from 75.0 points to 195.0 points. Accordingly, the mean score

change of Listening is more than 40 points higher than that of Reading. In the

researcher’s point of view, learners have improved their listening scores better than

their reading scores because TOEIC listening is quite new and attractive to them;

therefore, it is easier for them absorb the listening skills that are taught by the teachers.

In conclusion, the learners have greatly improved their understanding and usage of

TOEIC test-taking strategies, which have resulted in their significant improvements in

TOEIC scores.

36

PART 3: CONCLUSION

This study has investigated the improvements made by TOEIC learners after a direct

preparation program by carrying out a research project at TiengAnh123 English center.

The improvements were explored with regard to two aspects, i.e. test-taking strategies

and scores. All the findings from the survey questionnaires were analyzed and

discussed in the previous part. The summaries of the findings and the conclusion for

the research are presented as follows.

1. Summary of the study

The study aims at addressing the two research questions regarding learners’

improvements after studying at TOEIC preparation classes. Based on the data collected

from the pre- and post-tests and the survey questionnaires for learners at TiengAnh123

English center, answers to the two research questions are gained.

Research question 1: To what extent do learners improve their TOEIC test-taking

strategies after attending TOEIC preparation classes at TiengAnh123 English

center?

37

The results from the learners’ survey questionnaires suggest that TOEIC learners have

significantly improved their knowledge and usage of both general strategies for the

whole test and specific test-taking strategies for each part in the test.

Research question 2: To what extent do learners improve their TOEIC scores after

attending TOEIC preparation classes at TiengAnh123 English center?

According to the findings of the study, in general, TOEIC learners with 250-300 points

in the pre-test have made a nearly 200-point improvement after a two-month

preparation course. In addition, their listening scores have experienced a better score

increase than their reading ones.

2. Implications of the study

Based on the findings of the study, there are some implications in the research as

follows.

First and foremost, the study has shown that test preparation has a significant effect on

test scores; as a result, test candidates are advised to spend time and effort making

revision and doing practice tests before taking a standardized test like TOEIC.

In addition, the findings for the two research questions have confirmed the correlative

relationship between test-taking strategies and test scores. Specifically, learners’

improved test-taking strategies have resulted in their improved test scores. Therefore, it

is suggested that teachers should pay adequate attention to the instruction of knowledge

and usage of test-taking strategies in teaching test preparation lessons to their learners.

3. Limitations of the study

The study has offered some insightful findings, yet, like many other studies, there are

still some limitations.

38

With regard to sample size, the study is limited in the fact that the responses from only

31 learners make it difficult to generalize the improvements made by TOEIC learners

after a direct preparation program.

Moreover, in terms of methodology, only survey questionnaires were given out at the

end of the course, no interview or observation was carried out. This could be a reason

for not thoroughly comparing the improvements on test-taking strategies between

before and after attending the course.

4. Suggestions for further study

According to some limitations of the study, there are some suggestions for further

researchers.

Firstly, this study has researched only 31 TOEIC learners which was a rather small

sample. Similar projects can be carried out with a larger number of participants.

Next, the participants of the project were those with a pre-test score of between 250

and 300 points. Therefore, further researches may focus on the learners who get a

different starting score.

In addition, other studies might be on the same issue but employ other methodologies

like case study or class observation or interview.

Last but not least, the study has found out that learners have improved their listening

scores better than their reading ones. As a result, other studies might go further into the

issue by finding out the actual reasons accounting for this.

39

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