TOEFL Speaking Scoring System: What It Means for You • PrepScholar TOEFL (2023)

When it comes tothe TOEFL, you’ll need to hone all of your English-language skills, including your speaking ability, in orderto get a great score on test day. Buthow does TOEFL Speaking grading work? And what’s a good TOEFL Speaking score anyway?

This guide goesover the TOEFL Speaking scoring system, analyzes the definition ofa good TOEFL Speaking score, and offers tips on how to set and reach your TOEFL Speaking score goal.

How Is TOEFL Speaking Scored? An Overview

The TOEFL Speaking section consists of six tasks: the first two tasks areIndependent tasks, and the latter four tasks are Integrated tasks. For each Independent task (tasks 1 and 2), you’ll geta prompt on a familiar topic and have45 seconds to explainyour opinion.

As for the Integrated tasks, each task will giveyou60 seconds to speak about a campus situation or academic course content. For tasks 3 and 4, you must read a passage, listen to an audio clip, and then respond to a promptabout the passage and audio clip. For tasks 5 and 6, you must listen to an audio clip and then respond to a promptabout the audio clip.

Now, let’s take a look at the TOEFL Speaking scoring system. Human raters will assign each task a score from 0 to 4in whole numbers. These scores are then averaged together to give you araw score for the task, also on a scale of 0-4 (note that decimals are possible here due to averaging). Finally, your rawscores for each of the six tasks are averaged together and converted to a final scaled Speaking score on a scale of0-30.

Buthow does ETS convert your rawSpeaking score (on a scale of 0-4) to a scaled Speaking score (on a scale of 0-30)? Below is an official chart showcasing the raw-score-to-scaled-score conversion process. Note that the raw scores on the left indicate youraverage rawscore forall six Speaking tasks.

Source: TOEFL Test Prep Planner

At the top ofyour TOEFL score reportwill beyour final Speaking score; however,you will not get to see your rawscores for each task.Rather, you’ll getrawscore rangesfortasks grouped by topic (familiar topics, campus situations, and academic course content). According to ETS, these raw score ranges are as follows:

• Weak (0-1)
• Limited (1.5-2)
• Fair (2.5-3)
• Good (3.5-4)

Now, let’s dive even deeper into theTOEFL Speaking scoring system.

TOEFL Speaking Rubric Breakdown

The official TOEFL Speaking rubricsfor the Independent and Integrated tasks differ slightly from each other. According to both rubrics, all Speaking tasks are scored on the basis of three components:

• Delivery:how clearly and intelligibly you speak (this includes pronunciation, flow, intonation, and pacing)
• Language use:how well you use grammar and vocabulary to express yourself
• Topic development:how coherently you construct your response by connecting thoughts and elaborating on ideas

Each raw Speaking score is accompanied bya general description of what that particular score indicates about the speaker’s overall English ability. In addition, each of the three rubric components containsits own descriptions forthe four score levels (excluding a score of 0, which simply means that the speaker didn’t respond or spoke about a topic unrelated to the prompt).

Independent Speaking Rubric

To start, let’s look at the descriptions of each score level for the Independent Speaking tasks. All of the following descriptions are taken from the official Independent Speaking rubric.

As you can see, a 4 response isn’t necessarily flawless(“minor lapses” mightbe present), but it should be easy to understand, effective, and detailed.This means that you must use proper grammar and pronunciation, speak for the whole 45 seconds, and offer clear reasons to support your opinion.

By contrast, a 1 or 2 response indicates only limited proficiency.At these levels, the speaker is generally difficult to understand, uses less complex vocabulary and grammar structures, and fails to clearly and coherently elaborate on the topic given.

Here is an official TOEFL video with a sample level 4 response, which you can listen to at4:10.

And finally, hereare the full descriptions for each criterion described above (delivery, language use, and topic development). Thesedescriptions can give you a better understanding of what you’ll needto accomplish on the two Independent Speaking tasks to get the score you want.

Integrated Speaking Rubric

Below are the general descriptions of each score level for the four Integrated Speaking tasks. All descriptions are taken from the official Integrated Speaking rubric.

As you can see, most of these descriptions are similar to those in the Independent Speaking rubric. A 3 response here means that the speaker is generally able to speak coherently and does a satisfactory jobanalyzing the audio clip (and passage, if referring to tasks 3 and 4)using effectivedetails and examples.

Here are two official TOEFL videos containing examples of realIntegrated Speaking responses, both of which scored 3s. For the first video (tasks 3 and 5), go to 5:15to hear the sample response, and for the second video (tasks 4 and 6), skip ahead to 5:50.

Lastly, here are the rubrics for each criterion (delivery, language use, and topic development). Once again, these descriptions are similar to those in the Independent Speaking rubric. But because Integrated tasks require you to listen to an audio clip(and read a passage for tasks 3 and 4), raters are primarily grading youon your ability to speak clearly, completely, and accurately about the sources you’re given.

How to Determine a Good TOEFL Speaking Score: 2 Methods

Simply put, a good TOEFL Speaking score is one that’s high enough to get you into the schools you’re applying to. More broadly, though, we can use percentiles to determine what a good Speaking score is based on how you compare to other test takers. We’ll look at both methods here.

What’s a Good Speaking Score Using Percentiles?

Percentiles tell uswhat percentage of test takers scored lower than you.So in short, the higher your percentile is, the more test takers you’vescored better than on the Speaking section—and thus the better your Speaking score will be.

Percentilesare available for onlyscaled scores (those that use the0-30 scale) on each section of the exam. Here are the currentpercentiles for the TOEFL Speaking section:

Source: Test and Score Data Summary for TOEFL iBT Tests

*All TOEFL Speaking scores listed are estimates based on current percentile data.

The 50th percentile score is the median. At this score, 50 percent of test takers have scored lower than you and 50 percent have scored higher. Therefore, we can say that any scorethat places you in the top half of test takers—i.e., anything above the median—is a good Speaking score. Numerically, this means that anything above22 can be considered agood score.

As this chart indicates,scoring 24 (just 2 points higher than the median) places you in thetop 25 percent of test takers, or higher than most test takers; thus, we can say that 24 is a great Speaking score. Moreover, by scoring just 3 points higher, you’d be inthe top 10 percent of test takers, making 27 an excellent Speaking score!

On the opposite side, anything below the median can be considered a poor Speaking score.For example, a score of 18 (4 points below the median) places you in the bottom 25 percent of test takers, making it a rather poor score. And witha score of15—the halfway point between 0 and 30 on the scoring scale—you’d be doing better than only 10 percent of test takers, making it a very poor score.

What’s a Good Speaking Score Using School Requirements?

With this method, a good TOEFL Speaking score isn’t determined by other test takers but rather by your schools’ TOEFL score requirements. A good Speaking score for you is one that gets you accepted toall of the schools you’re applying to—in other words, a score that’shigh enough to fulfill all of your schools’ TOEFL Speaking score requirements.

Many schools require (or recommend) minimum TOEFL scores for admission. You can usually find information about TOEFL requirementsthrough the following pages on your school’s official website:

• Application materials
• Admission requirements
• International admission
• FAQs
• Undergraduate admission
• Graduate program/department

We’ll explain how to do this next as we teach youthe steps needed to set aTOEFL Speaking goal score.

How to Set a TOEFL Speaking Goal Score

A goal score is an ideal score for you—the one that’s guaranteed to meet all of your schools’ TOEFL score requirements and thus give you your best shot atgetting accepted to all of the schools you’re applying to.

Be aware, though: while setting aSpeaking score goalcan be helpful, your total goal score will likely be more important, asmore schools require minimum total TOEFL scores than they do individual section scores for admission. We’ll explain what to do in this situation shortly.

Step 1: Make a Chart

The first step is to make a chartand fill in your school names. In this chart, you’ll be writing in TOEFL score information for each of your schools—specifically, minimum Speaking and minimum total score requirements. You’ll also have a“Notes” column you can use to make memos of any crucial details concerning your schools’TOEFL score requirements.

Let’s use an example: Rosa is currently applying to undergraduate programs across the US. Here is her goal score chart:

Step 2: Search for TOEFL Score Information Online

Next, it’s time to look for your schools’ TOEFL score requirements. The easiest way to search for information is by gettingon Google and typing in “[School Name] TOEFL requirements” or “[School Name] minimum TOEFL score.”

As you search, lookfor pages that link directly to your school’s official website. For undergraduate TOEFL requirements, you’ll most likely find TOEFL information on your school’s undergraduate or international admission webpages.

Once on aschool’s website, use ctrl + F to look for keywords such as “TOEFL,” “English,” or “proficiency.” If your school lists a minimum required Speaking score, write this down in your chart along with the required total score (if given).

As I mentioned previously,many schools maintain only total TOEFL score requirements—not specific TOEFL Speaking requirements.But you can still use this information to roughly calculate what Speaking score you’ll need to aim for on test day. To do this, simplydivide the total score by 4; this will give you an estimated Speaking score minimum, which you can then add toyour chart.

In our example, Rosa is applying to four fairly selective universities. Two of these schools,Johns Hopkins and Carnegie Mellon, want specific scores for all sections of the TOEFL. Rosa records these minimums in her chart.

ButNorthwestern doesn’t maintain anyminimum score requirements. Instead, it states that “competitive applicants … often score in the high range on all four sections (Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing) of the TOEFL iBT.” According to ETS, the “high range” for aSpeaking score is 26-30. So we’ll say that Northwestern’s minimum preferred score is around 26.

Finally, Cornellrecommends a minimum total TOEFL score of 100 but no particular Speaking score. Rosa divides this score by 4 to get an estimated minimum Speaking score of 25.

Here is Rosa’s chart again:

Step 3: Calculate Your Goal Score

The final step is to figure out your goal score. To do this, look for the highest TOEFL Speaking score in your chart. This will be your goal score, as it’s the only score capable ofmeeting all of your schools’ TOEFL Speaking requirements. (You can also look for the highest total score in your chart to get atotal TOEFL goal score. Since more schools will be looking at your total score during the admission process, this is arguablythe most helpful goal score to have.)

Let’s return to our example for a moment. According to Rosa’s chart above, her Speakinggoal score would be 26, and her total goal score would be 102. If Rosa can achieve both of these scores on the TOEFL, she’ll meet all of her schools’ minimum TOEFL score requirements and thus give herself her best chance of gaining admission.

Note that you generally shouldn’t need to aim above your goal score.Most schools just want to see that you are overall proficient in English and will be able to understand your lectures and coursework. So just being able to hit your school’s minimumrequirement should be sufficient for admission.

How to Geta High TOEFL Speaking Score: 6 Tips

Now that you know what TOEFL Speaking score you’ll need to get for admission to your schools, how can you ensure you’ll actually reach your goal score? Here are six test-day tips to help you secure a4 on each Speaking task.

#1: Usea Natural Pace

On each Speaking task you’ll have only 45-60 seconds to speak. But with test-day nerves and the pressure of a time limit, you might end up speaking too quickly while trying to squeeze in a bunch of details. Oryou might get so overwhelmed that you end upspeaking more slowly while trying to come upwith ideasforwhat to say next.

No matter how you’re feeling on test day, try your best to avoid speaking too fast or too slowly.You’ll earn more points on your responses if you’re able to speak at a natural and comfortable pace. Ideally, you’ll speak using the same relaxed paceyou’d use when talking with a friend or acquaintance. The best way to practice your speaking pace is tomimic the speednative English speakers use in daily conversation.

If you find that yournerves are getting the better of you on test day, use your preparation time before each taskto take a couple of deep breaths and calm yourself.

#2: Avoid Long Pauses

In English conversation,it’s normalto insert short pauses, or even an “uh” or “um,” between sentences, thoughts, and wherever feels most natural. But on the TOEFL, you’ll need tokeep these pauses brief—i.e.,no longer than a second or two.

If you pause for too long, evaluators will assume you’re having trouble formulating your next thought. And if you pause too often, you’ll likely waste precious time and therefore struggle to finishanswering the prompt before the time limit is up.

If you’re worried about the length or frequency of your pauses, try practicing witha TOEFL Speaking templateand work on integrating common sentence openers and transitional words,such as “also,” “however,” and “I think,” into your responses whenever you’re unsure what to say next. Remember, pauses in speaking are natural and expected but ultimately shouldn’t detract from what you’re saying.

#3: Talk the Entire Time

In addition to avoiding lengthy pauses, make sure you speak for the entire time you’re given.

Ratersexpect you to speak in detailabout various topics for as much timeas they allot you. If you run out of things to say but still have time left on the clock, you may:

• Come up with a short conclusionthat ties together your thoughts
• Expand upon a pointusing another key example or detail
• Briefly introduce another point (as long as you have time to explain it, too)

As you speak, take care to alsonot let your responses get cut off at the end. If the recording stops while you’re talking, you’ll likely lose points for not being able to tailor your response to the time limit.

#4: Enunciate

Getting agreat TOEFL Speaking score means being able tospeak clearly and intelligibly.In other words, always enunciateeach word and avoid mumbling and talking too fast.

This doesn’t mean you’ll lose points for having an accent,so don’t worry if you pronounce certain sounds slightly differently than native English speakers do. Usually, as long as your intonation and stress are correct and your pronunciation resemblesthe actual pronunciation of a word, your accent should be wholly intelligible to TOEFL raters.

In truth, accents are expected on the TOEFL—but your accent shouldn’t detract from your ability to be understood. So if there are any words or sounds you’re struggling to pronounce, be sureto practice enunciating these sounds prior to test day.

#5:Speak Up

Once you get to the Speaking section, usually everyone else in the testing room gets to the Speaking section, too! And since everyone will be recording their responses at the same time, it can be difficultto hear yourself speak, which might make youlose track of what you’re saying.

The best way to overcome this issue is to speak at a slightly louder volume.Don’t shout—just raise your voice slightly so that evaluators willhave no trouble hearing and understanding your responses. A little background noise is expected, but if you speak too quietly, raters might not be able to understand what you’re saying, causing you to lose precious points.

On a related note,try not to let any background noise distract you from your tasks.Remaining focused is key to doing well on Speaking, so tune out other test takers’ voices as best you can.

#6: Be Detailed & Organized

For each Speaking task, it’s important to be as detailed as possible, particularly if you wantto score highly on the “Topic Development” criterion.

On most (if not all) Speaking tasks, you must discuss at least two—ideally three—points, giving examples and details whenever possible. These points should follow a logical progressionas well. For example, as youexplain your opinion on task 5, make sure to start your response with a summary of theissue and the students’ proposed solutions; this makes your response easier to follow and thus more effective.

Thebest way to introduce key points is to use transitional words, such as “first,” “second,” “next,” and “finally.” Transitions organize your points in a clear and organized manner and mayalso be used in your essays in the Writing section.

Recap: What Does TOEFL Speaking GradingMean for You?

The TOEFL Speaking section consists of six tasks. According to the official TOEFL Speaking grading rubrics, each task is evaluatedusing three components: delivery, language use, and topic development. Tasks are then eachscored on a scale of 0-4.After, the tasks’ raw scores are averaged together and converted to afinal Speaking score on a scale of 0-30.

Generallyspeaking, a good Speaking score is anythingabove the median (22). But a good Speaking score for you specifically is any score that meets all of your schools’ TOEFL score requirements. To find this score—i.e., your goal score—look for TOEFL score requirements for your schools and then write them down in a chart. The highest score in your chart will beyour TOEFL Speaking score goal.

Finally, in order to scoreperfect 4s on each Speaking task, make sure you:

• Usea natural pace
• Avoid long pauses
• Talkthe entire time
• Enunciate
• Speak up
• Are detailed and organized

What’s Next?

Curious about how other TOEFL sections are scored? We explainwhat’s considered good Reading, Listening, and Writing scores.

What’s a good TOEFL score overall?Check out our guide to learn what constitutes a great TOEFL score as well as what you can do to get oneon test day!

You now know how the TOEFL Speaking scoring system works. But what about the TOEFL in general?Our guide to TOEFL scoringoffers an overview ofthe TOEFL scoring system and explains what it means for you.

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