Investigating Students’ Strategies and Difficulties in Facing TOEFL Reading Section

Reghina Aulia Pramesti

Abstract


The TOEFL test has a significant impact on EFL (English as a Foreign Language) students. It is an examination administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) in Princeton, New Jersey, to evaluate the English proficiency level of non-native speakers. It is the most widely used test in universities and passing it with a high score is crucial for students. To overcome challenges, various reading strategies are commonly employed to understand the information in the text. Language learners can utilize any strategy to comprehend the text, which is vital for both understanding the content and overcoming reading difficulties. The data in this study is categorized into primary data, obtained from student questionnaires, and secondary data, derived from interview results. The information was collected through questionnaires and interviews conducted with 60 students from different faculties who had taken the TOEFL test at Universitas Muhammadiyah Jember. The findings reveal that students utilize strategies such as rereading the text to enhance comprehension, using keywords to identify the main idea, and focusing on the passage's content. Additionally, students encounter challenges in responding to implied questions, primarily due to limited vocabulary and time constraints during the TOEFL reading section.

Keywords


TOEFL Test; Reading;

Full Text:

PDF

References


Abdul Samad, I., Jannah, M., & Sarah Fitriani, S. (n.d.-a). Samad, Jannah, & Fitriani, EFL Students’ Strategies dealing with Common… efl students’ strategies dealing with common difficulties in toefl reading comprehension section.

Abdul Samad, I., Jannah, M., & Sarah Fitriani, S. (n.d.-b). Samad, Jannah, & Fitriani, EFL Students’ Strategies dealing with Common… Efl Students’ Strategies Dealing With Common Difficulties In Toefl Reading Comprehension Section.

Abdullah, A., Alghail, A., Hassan, O., & Mahfoodh, A. (n.d.). Academic reading difficulties encountered by international graduate students in a Malaysian university Academic Writing and Plagiarism View project. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/307013984

Alek, F. J., Nurlia, M., & Hausca, V. (2019). University Students’ Perception on TOEFL as a Graduation Requirement: A Case in UIN. In Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta. ELITE Journal (Vol. 1, Issue 2). https://www.elitejournal.org/index.php/ELITE

cresswell (2015). (n.d.).

Denzin, N.K. (1978). Sociological methods: A sourcebook. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Hamzeh Dodeen. (2015). Teaching Test-Taking Strategies: Importance and Techniques. Journal of Psychology Research, 05(02). https://doi.org/10.17265/2159-5542/2015.02.003

Ilmiah, J., & Antoni, R. (2014). An Analysis On 6 Th Semester Students’ Toefl Experience At English Department Of Teachers Training And Education Faculty Of Pasir Pengaraian University. In Edu Research (Vol. 3, Issue 1).

Netta, A., & Trisnawati, I. K. (2019). ACEHNESE UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS’ STRATEGIES IN PREPARING FOR TOEFL PREDICTION: A PRELIMINARY STUDY. Englisia Journal, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.22373/ej.v7i1.5779

Ni, O. :, Depi, P., Peramesti, Y., & Kusmana, D. (n.d.). KEPEMIMPINAN IDEAL PADA ERA GENERASI MILENIAL.

Putra, Tomi Mandala et al. (2017). Reading Comprehension in The PBT TOEFL: Which sub- skills deserve more intensive training?. Syiah Kuala University, Indonesia. Conference Paper.

Pratiwi, D. I., Atmaja, D. S., & Prasetya, H. W. (2021). Multiple E-Learning technologies on practicing TOEFL structure and written expression. JEES (Journal of English Educators Society), 6(1), 105–115. https://doi.org/10.21070/jees.v6i1.1194

Richards, J. C., & Rodgers, T. S. (2001). Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching. Cambridge University Press.

Sharpe, Pamela J. (2004). How to Prepare for the TOEFL Test: Test of English as a Foreign Language. New York: Barron's Educational Series, Inc.

Skehan, P. (1998). Task-based instruction. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 18, 268-286.

Yuan, H.-C., Liu, J., Wen, M., Liu, Z., Moh’d Khair, K. (, Al Omari, A., Abdel, H., Jum’ah, R. A., Yang, J., Zhang, Y., Zhang, Y., & Wang, L. (n.d.). A Corpus-based Study on the Influence of L1 on EFL Learners’ Use of Prepositions Exploring Learners’ Developing L2 Collocational Competence Supakorn Phoocharoensil On Translation Quality of Mongolian Intangible Cultural Heritages: The Mausoleum of Genghis Khan as a Case Study A Study on the Application of WeChat in ESP Training.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.31004/jele.v8i2.414

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2023 Reghina Aulia Pramesti

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.