Listening

10 Expert Tips to Conquer the TOEFL Listening Section

Proven strategies from a TOEFL instructor with 10+ years of experience to excel in the listening section.

March 27, 2025

9 min read

Student practicing TOEFL listening with headphones

Why the Listening Section Is Critical for Your TOEFL Success

Hello everyone! With over 10 years of experience teaching TOEFL and scoring 119 out of 120 on the test myself, I'm excited to share my top 10 tips for conquering the TOEFL listening section.

The listening section is often considered one of the most challenging parts of the TOEFL test. Unlike the reading section, you can't go back and review the material—you have just one chance to understand everything. This makes it particularly stressful for many test-takers.

The good news is that with the right strategies and consistent practice, you can significantly improve your listening score. These tips are based on my experience helping hundreds of students achieve their target TOEFL scores.

Let's dive into the 10 expert tips that will help you master the TOEFL listening section!

Tip 1: Determine Your Listening Level

The first and most crucial step in creating your TOEFL listening study plan is to determine your current listening level. This will help you focus your preparation on the areas that need the most improvement.

Take two or three listening practice tests from the ETS website and calculate your average score. According to ETS, your listening level can be categorized as follows:

Advanced

Score: 22-30

Review different question types
Practice TOEFL tests regularly
Focus on fine-tuning your skills

High Intermediate

Score: 17-21

Work on dictation exercises
Practice with TOEFL-specific materials
Focus on academic vocabulary

Low Intermediate

Score: 9-16

Start with dictation exercises
Build basic listening skills first
Gradually move to TOEFL materials

Below Low Intermediate

Score: 0-8

Focus on basic English listening
Use simpler dictation exercises
Build vocabulary before TOEFL practice

Keep in mind that this distinction is based on the idea that your desired TOEFL score is 100 or higher. If your university only requires 80, a high intermediate score may be enough to start practicing with actual TOEFL tests and skip some of the more basic preparation steps.

Tip 2: Improve Your Listening Skills with Dictation

Dictation practice is one of the most effective ways to improve your listening accuracy, concentration, and understanding of sentence structure and grammar. It involves listening to spoken sentences or passages and writing down exactly what you hear.

How to Practice Dictation

Listen to a short audio clip (10-30 seconds)
Write down exactly what you hear
Check your answer against the transcript
Identify any words or phrases you missed
Listen to the same clip again, focusing on the parts you missed
Repeat with increasingly difficult material

A great resource for dictation practice is the Daily Dictation website. They offer dictation exercises on a variety of topics and levels, including TOEFL listening.

For those who have a high intermediate level, I suggest practicing with the TOEFL listening dictation exercises. For those who have a low intermediate level or below, start with short stories, daily conversations, or TOEIC listening and gradually build up your listening skills before moving on to TOEFL listening.

Pro Tip: When practicing dictation, don't just focus on getting the words right. Pay attention to the speaker's intonation, stress patterns, and pauses. These elements often provide clues about the importance of certain information.

Tip 3: Improve Your Understanding of Academic Topics

The listening section of the TOEFL covers a wide variety of subjects including science, art, history, social sciences, and education. Unless you attended a high school or college where all classes were taught in English, you may find most of these subjects quite challenging, especially biology or geography lectures.

Here's how to improve your understanding of academic topics:

Identify your problem areas

Take note of which academic subjects you struggle with the most in practice tests. Is it biology? Art history? Economics?

Watch educational videos on YouTube

I especially recommend the Crash Course YouTube channel as they have playlists with multiple videos dedicated to the most common school topics.

Start with subtitles, then remove them

Watch subtitle videos first to get used to hearing difficult words. Later, watch the same videos without subtitles to test your comprehension.

Build subject-specific vocabulary

Write down key vocabulary related to each topic. Create flashcards or use a vocabulary app to review these terms regularly.

Watch movies or TV shows set in academic environments

This will help you pick up a lot of college-related vocabulary, which is also essential for the listening section.

By familiarizing yourself with various academic subjects, you'll be better prepared to understand the lectures and conversations in the TOEFL listening section, regardless of the topic.

Tip 4: Practice the Art of Note-Taking

Do you know why college admissions require foreign students to have a certain level of TOEFL scores? It is to ensure that they will be able to participate in college life. One of their goals is to test a student's ability to take notes during a lecture.

As a result, most recordings contain a lot of information that you won't be able to remember in the end. This makes taking notes quickly and efficiently one of the key skills for passing the listening section.

Useful Abbreviations and Symbols for Note-Taking

→

leads to, results in

b/c

because

with

w/o

without

e.g.

for example

i.e.

that is

and, plus

minus, negative

equals, is

≠

is not, does not equal

↑

increase, rise

↓

decrease, fall

For those of you taking the test at home, practice taking notes specifically on a whiteboard with a marker. This is crucial for the listening section, and I cannot stress enough how important it is. The feel of writing on a whiteboard is different from writing on paper, and you want to be comfortable with it before test day.

Important: For conversations, organize your notes in two columns—one column for one speaker, another column for another speaker. For lectures, organize your notes in blocks and write down key points, not individual words.

Tip 5: Track Your Progress

Make sure you write down all your test scores to see if you're improving or not. Not only will this motivate you to try harder, but it will also help you to calculate your average score right before you take the test.

Here's how to effectively track your progress:

Create a spreadsheet or use a notebook

Record the date, test source, and your score for each practice test you take.

Track your mistakes

Note which types of questions you consistently get wrong and focus your practice on those areas.

Record new vocabulary

Keep a list of new words and phrases you encounter in listening exercises. Review them regularly.

Set specific goals

For example, "Improve my score by 2 points in the next two weeks" or "Master note-taking for lectures by the end of the month."

Seeing how many new words you have already learned is extremely rewarding, and keeping them in one place makes reviewing them much more convenient. This systematic approach to tracking your progress will help you stay motivated and focused on your TOEFL preparation journey.

Tip 6: Learn to Identify Different Question Types

Student analyzing different question types

As I've mentioned before, there are eight different question types in the TOEFL listening section. It is important to recognize them because the more you understand each type of question and how to approach it, the more likely you are to answer correctly.

Gist-Content Questions

These questions ask about the main topic or subject of the conversation or lecture.

Example: "What is the main topic of the lecture?"

Gist-Purpose Questions

These questions ask about the purpose or function of the conversation or lecture.

Example: "Why does the student visit the professor?"

Detail Questions

These questions ask about specific information mentioned in the conversation or lecture.

Example: "According to the professor, what caused the extinction of dinosaurs?"

Function Questions

These questions ask about why the speaker says something or the purpose of a statement.

Example: "Why does the professor mention her trip to Japan?"

Attitude Questions

These questions ask about the speaker's attitude, opinion, or feeling about a topic.

Example: "What is the professor's opinion about the new research?"

Organization Questions

These questions ask about how the information in the lecture is organized or structured.

Example: "How does the professor organize the lecture?"

Connecting Content Questions

These questions ask about the relationship between ideas or how pieces of information are connected.

Example: "How does the example of the butterfly relate to the main topic?"

Inference Questions

These questions ask you to make inferences or draw conclusions based on the information provided.

Example: "What can be inferred about the student's research project?"

In our intensive TOEFL course, we go over each of these types of questions and the strategies for answering them. Understanding the specific approach needed for each question type can significantly improve your score.

Tip 7: Learn to Manage Your Time

The TOEFL listening section consists of multiple-choice questions which often cause students to hesitate before choosing the right option. However, time is limited.

According to the ETS website, the entire TOEFL listening test takes 36 minutes to complete and consists of two conversations and three lectures with a total of 28 questions. Each conversation lasts 3 minutes, while each lecture lasts 3 to 5 minutes.

Time Breakdown

Total listening time: 15-21 minutes (depending on lecture length)

Time for answering questions: 15-21 minutes

Total questions: 28

Time per question: Approximately 54-75 seconds

During this time, you should:

Read the question and answer choices
Check your notes if necessary
Eliminate two incorrect answer choices
Select the correct answer

As you practice, I recommend that you try to spend about 50 seconds on each question to learn to skim questions and their answer options. If you can find the correct answer in that time, great! If not, randomly choose the correct answer from the remaining two options and move on to the next question.

Pro Tip: When practicing, use a timer to get a feel for how long 50-60 seconds actually is. This will help you develop an internal clock for the real test.

Tip 8: Don't Take Your Eyes Off the Screen

It is so easy to get distracted while listening, especially when it comes to lectures. To stay focused, don't take your eyes off the screen or off your notes.

This sounds simple, but it's actually quite difficult to do, especially when you are stressed. Your mind might wander, or you might find yourself thinking about something completely unrelated to the lecture. By keeping your eyes fixed on the screen or your notes, you create an anchor for your attention.

Take notes actively

The physical act of writing helps keep your mind engaged with the content.

Listen for transitions and signal words

Words like "however," "in addition," "on the other hand," often signal important information.

Visualize what you're hearing

Create mental images of the concepts being discussed to help maintain focus.

Practice mindfulness techniques

If you notice your mind wandering, gently bring your attention back to the lecture without judging yourself.

Remember, maintaining focus during the listening section is a skill that improves with practice. The more you train yourself to stay engaged, the easier it will become on test day.

Tip 9: Analyze Listening Transcripts

To take notes effectively, you need to understand the structure of conversations and lectures. Take the time to analyze the transcripts of every practice test you take. This is especially true for lectures, which are usually more difficult to follow.

Here's how to analyze transcripts effectively:

Think like a professor

How would you organize the lecture? What would come first? What would come second? How would you explain a difficult concept to someone who does not understand it?

Look for patterns in organization

Pay attention to how the ideas in the lecture are connected. Look for cause and effect, compare and contrast, problem and solution, and chronological patterns.

Study transitional and signal words

Words like "first," "next," "however," "in contrast," "as a result," etc., often signal important shifts in the lecture.

Identify the main ideas and supporting details

Practice distinguishing between the central points and the examples or evidence used to support them.

Important: After taking a practice test, listen to the recordings again while reading the transcript. This will help you identify words or phrases you missed and improve your listening comprehension over time.

Tip 10: Get Professional Help

You can undoubtedly do a lot of work on your own and get good results. However, if you need to get a high score or are pressed for time, consider getting professional help.

A TOEFL instructor or coach can:

Identify your specific weaknesses and create a personalized study plan
Provide expert feedback on your note-taking techniques
Share proven strategies for each question type
Help you practice with authentic materials
Keep you accountable and motivated throughout your preparation

Working with a professional can help you achieve your target score faster and with less stress. It's an investment in your future, especially if your academic or career goals depend on a high TOEFL score.

Final Thoughts

The TOEFL listening section can be challenging, but with the right strategies and consistent practice, you can significantly improve your score. Remember to:

Determine your current listening level
Practice dictation to improve your listening skills
Familiarize yourself with academic topics
Master the art of note-taking
Track your progress
Learn to identify different question types
Manage your time effectively
Stay focused during the test
Analyze listening transcripts
Consider getting professional help if needed

Remember, consistent practice is key. Even just 20-30 minutes of focused listening practice each day can lead to significant improvements over time.

I hope these tips help you on your TOEFL journey. If you have any questions or want to share your own listening strategies, feel free to leave a comment below. Good luck with your TOEFL preparation!