TOEFL 8 Week Study Plan: How to Study Smart and Score High?

Are you wondering about cracking TOEFL with 8 weeks of preparation? The TOEFL is a standardized test that measures your English language proficiency in four skills: reading, listening, speaking, and writing and is widely accepted as proof of English ability by universities worldwide. But it’s by no means easy to ace, requiring a lot of practice, strategy, and dedication. This blog will help you prepare for it through a TOEFL 8 week study plan, guiding you through the steps and tips to follow in each week of your preparation. Let’s get started!

Also Read: How to Crack TOEFL in 3 Months?

TOEFL 8-Week Study Plan: Overview

The TOEFL 8-Week Study Plan is divided into five phases, with each phase focusing on a particular aspect of the TOEFL test preparation. Here’s a brief summary of the schedule:

Week 1: Introduction and understanding of the structure of the TOEFL paper.

Week 2-5: Devoting time to speaking, listening, reading, and writing sections separately.

Week 6: Practicing full TOEFL practice tests and working on the speaking part.

Week 7: Taking TOEFL practice tests online.

Week 8: Last-minute preparation: practice test, test-day checklist, and gathering relevant documents.

Let’s explore this schedule in further detail, week by week

Week 1: Introduction and Understanding the Structure of TOEFL Paper

1. Take a diagnostic test to assess your current level and identify your strengths and weaknesses in each section of the TOEFL paper. Review the test format and scoring criteria.
2. Watch video lessons after taking the preliminary test. They will give you an overview of the TOEFL exam, its format, and the kinds of questions you will face. 
3. Then, practice answering the questions. Begin with ten questions and gradually learn how to deal with different question types. As you practice reading, writing, listening and speaking, you will find it easier.
4. After watching the video lessons, you should focus on specific sections to improve your understanding.
5. Reading section: Learn how to read faster and manage your time. You should also study about inference and purpose questions.
6. Speaking section: Watch video lessons on how to practice speaking and listen to other people’s responses. Learn about the ‘choose one from two’ question type and see some sample answers.
7. You should practice the reading and speaking sections that are related to the video lessons you watched. This will help you review the concepts you learned.
8. Listening section: Listen to the recordings and try to answer the questions. Take notes, identify the main idea, and summarize what you heard. You should also practice the listening questions.

Also Read: TOEFL 6 Month Preparation Plan: Tips and Tricks

Week 2-5: Devoting time to speaking, listening, reading, and writing sections separately

Speaking Section

1. Practice as many speaking practice tests of the TOEFL speaking section as you can. Note down the areas where you have trouble. Try the following tasks and check their sample answers:

• Task 1: Choose one option from two given choices and explain your preference.
• Task 2: Listen to a conversation and read a passage, then answer a question about them.
• Task 3: Listen to a lecture and read a passage, then answer a question about them.
• Task 4: Listen to a lecture and answer a question about it.

2. Review your speaking performance and identify any errors you made. Try to correct them and improve your pronunciation. 
3. Listen to CDs with sample speaking answers and record your own answers for later evaluation. 
4. Enrich your vocabulary by using new words every time you practice the speaking section.

Reading Section

1. Practice reading complex texts and answering TOEFL reading questions.
2. Then, try to solve reading questions within a 54-minute time limit and score yourself. Also, note down the wrong answers.
3. Take another official TOEFL practice test after reading more. Repeat this until the end of the week and review your answers. 
4. Remember, reviewing more answers will help you understand your mistakes better.

Listening Section

1. First, finish the campus conversation part and then move on to the other parts.
2. Answer TOEFL listening questions on topics such as archaeology, astronomy, sociology, biology, botany, film history, history, ecology, earth science, literature, marine biology, marketing, psychology, and geology. 
3. At the end of the week, practice the questions thoroughly.

Writing Section

1. Learn the concepts behind the TOEFL writing questions in detail after practising them. Practice writing independently on topics such as:

• Preferences
• Agree/disagree 
• If/Imaginary 
• Comparison/contrast 
• Description/explanation

Practice writing integrated essays that combine reading, listening, and writing skills.

Also Read: How to Prepare for TOEFL in 2 Weeks?

Week 6: Practicing Full TOEFL Practice Tests and Working on the Speaking Part

1. After learning the lessons for each section, you should try the full TOEFL practice test. This will help you see the improvement and difference in your performance.
2. Listen to your recorded speaking responses and practice your speaking skills.
3. Evaluate your previous answers and identify your strengths and weaknesses.

Week 7: Taking TOEFL Practice Tests Online

Taking an online practice test will help you simulate the real exam situation and improve your time-management skills. This is a good strategy to follow in the second last week of your preparation.

Week 8: Last-Minute Preparation

Take one more test in the final week of your preparation. Make sure you have everything ready for the test day, such as the checklist and the required documents and check the official website for any updates.

FAQs

We hope that the TOEFL 8 week study plan provided in this blog will help you crack the English test and make your study abroad dreams come true! For more helpful information regarding study abroad test preparation, keep following Leverage Edu.