Listening comprehension is one of the most important factors when it comes to English language proficiency. That is why a listening comprehension section is included in the TOEFL, TOEIC and IELTS exams. There are a many ways to improve your English listening comprehension; in this post we will provide a few of them.
In real life when listening to a lecture or having a conversation you can always ask for clarification. However, when taking a standardized test you have to be able to quickly think on your feet and understand what the person is saying even though you missed a word or two.
Taking organized notes is one tool to enhance your listening comprehension, just look at all the professional journalists who take notes during press conferences or interviews. Just be careful, avoid taking too many notes as it can easily distract you from actually understanding the overall story.
Listening comprehension is all about being able to understand what the person just communicated to you. Understanding the main idea, details, attitude and purpose. These are the types of questions you will see when taking an exam.
Main Details: What is the main theme of the lecture?
Detail: Give me two reasons why he can make that claim?
Inference: What does the teacher imply when he says this?
Attitude: What is the professor’s attitude towards his topic?
Purpose: Why does the professor bring up the two different cities?
Frequent Listening comprehension topics when taking the TOEFL, TOEIC or IELTS exams are art, science, biology, history, biographies and other academic topics.
These are some factors to consider if want to improve your English listening comprehension score for your exam.
Good luck on your exam!