TOEFL ITP Level 2 - Identifying main ideas (3).ppsx

TOEFL ITP
Level 2
Sample Questions

Main Receptive Skills
1. Identifying main ideas
2. Identifying specific information / details
3. Inferencing
Today we will be practicing "Identifying main ideas."
However, make sure you practice them all since they are
common to many International Exams.
The main sub-skills you will find questions about
appear below.

Identifying Main Ideas
As you listen or read, pay attention to similar or related
words that are repeated throughout the text. They will
likely guide you towards the topic.
A main idea question asks you for the general
idea or the main topic of the lecture or
conversation.

Question stems per skill
• What are the speakers mainly
discussing?
• What is the student discussing with the
professor?
• What are the speakers talking about?
• What was the research study about?
• What is the speaker’s main purpose?
Listening for main ideas
• What does the passage mainly discuss?
• What is the main idea of the second
paragraph?
• The passage focuses on the United
States in the 1920s primarily in terms of
the…
• Which of the following statements is
supported by the passage?
Reading for main ideas
Question stems will help you anticipate the type
of information required to answer the question.

Sample Listening for Main Ideas
AUDIO
Woman: Last class we looked at the nests of
various species of birds. Today I want to look at
some species of birds that don’t build their own
nests. These are called parasite birds. (continues…)
Let’s practice listening for main ideas using a question from
Listening Section Part C.
AUDIO
Narrator: Listen to a professor talking in a biology
class.
Before the lecture begins, you will hear the narrator
first. Pay attention to what they say, as it could offer
important information about the passage. For
example, in this case, the talk will be about biology.
What are some keywords you can think of?
This is the beginning of the lecture. What are some
frequently repeated words? What is the main
difference between today’s lecture and the previous
one?
AUDIO
Narrator: Question 21. What is the talk mainly
about?
Once the lecture is over, you will hear the narrator
read the questions. Remember the prompts for
main ideas since identifying the purpose of the
question quickly will give you a head-start allowing
you to choose your answer a bit faster.

Sample Listening for Main Ideas
AUDIO
Woman: Last class we looked at the nests of
various species of birds. Today I want to look at
some species of birds that don’t build their own
nests. These are called parasite birds.
As you remember, a parasite is an organism that
lives off of another organism. So, these birds lay
their eggs in the nests of other bird species and
let the other birds raise their young.
One type of parasite bird is the cowbird. The
cowbird is what we call a generalized parasite
because it will lay its eggs in any available nest. The
cowbird eggs hatch sooner than other eggs in the
nest. Because the cowbird eggs hatch first, and
because cowbird chicks are larger than most other
baby birds, they're better able to compete for food.
Since the young cowbirds get more food, they have
a better chance of survival than the other chicks do.
Question 21
A. A bird that lays its eggs in other
birds’ nests
B. How different birds’ eggs are formed
C. How cowbirds build their nests
D. Feeding habits of cowbirds
On your screen or booklet, you will see the choices
for every question. Let’s look at the ones for Question
21: What is the talk mainly about?
• The correct answer is A, since the text refers to
parasite birds.
• Alternatives B and D are not discussed in the text.
• Alternative C is eliminated because cowbirds are
parasite birds, meaning they don’t build nests.

When working on Listening, remember that…
• For all Listening questions, you will hear the sentences,
conversations and talks as well as the questions about them
only once.
• After you hear a question, read the possible answers on the
screen or test booklet and select the best answer by either
clicking on it or marking your answer sheet.
Think about how the lecture is organized. Listen for
signal words that indicate the introduction, major steps
or ideas, examples, and the conclusion or summary.

Sample Reading for Main Ideas
In this section you will read several passages. Let’s practice
reading for main ideas with a brief excerpt of the exam.
20.What is the primary purpose of the
passage?
A. To teach a lesson
B. To sell a product
C. To support a theory
D. To provide information
A new atomic clock being developed for navigation
satellites will perform better than previous devices. The
clock will use a new microwave cavity design to
provide a compact and lightweight package and new
electronic techniques to maintain long-term stability.
The clock can provide precise navigation information
because it is stable to one second in three million
years. The differences in the time when signals from
four satellites arrive at one location can be used to
calculate that position to within a few yards.
It is common for the author to present the main idea
at the beginning of the text. What is the text about?
What kind of information is being presented? Are
these facts? Opinions? Advantages and
disadvantages?
Let’s look at the choices for question 20: What is the
primary purpose of the passage?
• The correct answer is D, since the text is
basically providing facts about the new atomic
clock.
• Alternatives A and B are incorrect because the
text is factual and informative. The language and
style used in the text does not match said
purposes.
• Alternative C can be eliminated because the
information provided are facts, not theories.

When working on Reading, remember that…
• You will read a variety of short passages on academic
subjects. However, subject knowledge will not determine
your score.
• All questions can be answered on the basis of what is
stated or implied in the text.
You don’t have to understand every word of the
passage to be able to answer a specific question. Go
over the text quickly (skim) and identify major points.

Now let’s practice together!
We will work on a Listening passage together.
Listen carefully, take notes, and answer the questions on your own.
We will check together later!
After you listen, you will have around 10 seconds to choose your
answer.
Are you ready?

Listening: Questions 7-10
You will hear a conversation between a student and a professor. Listen carefully, take notes and
answer questions 7-10.
7.
A. To ask the professor to be the math club adviser
B. To learn about tutoring opportunities
C. To ask a question about a math assignment
D. To find out about joining the math club
Conversation
Question 7

Practice!
You will hear a conversation between a professor and a student. Listen carefully, take notes and
9.
A. She cannot attend all the meetings.
B. She is glad the club meets so often.
C. She is not sure when the club meets.
D. She hopes the meeting times can be changed.
8.
A. It has been meeting for a long time.
B. It is an enjoyable activity.
C. It does not have many members.
D. It helped them improve their math skills.
Question 8 Question 9

Practice!
You will hear a conversation between a professor and a student. Listen carefully, take notes and
10.
A. To get some job experience
B. To find out if she would like to be a teacher
C. To fill a graduation requirement
D. To help out at the primary school she attended
Question 10

Let’s check your answers!
• The answer is alternative D. The purpose
of the visit (main idea of the text) is
mentioned at the very beginning and at
the end of the conversation.
• Tip! Since the expression “math club” is
frequently repeated, focus your attention
on alternatives that include said
expression, such as A and D.
(Woman) Hi, I'd like to join the school's math club.
(Man) Wonderful. We have some great activities
planned for this year.
(Woman) Yeah, I've talked to some of my friends who
are club members. They especially enjoyed the club's
field trips last year.
(Man) So... you probably know that we meet every
Monday and Thursday.
(Woman) Yeah... There's one thing. I volunteer to tutor
some primary school students in math on Mondays.
(Man) Ahhh... I see.
(Woman) Yeah. Is that OK? If I only come on
Thursdays?
(Man) Is it possible to change your tutoring day?
(Woman) Not really. The tutoring counts toward the
community service requirement for graduation. And the
way the school set up the program, Mondays are for
math, so I have to be there.
(Man) Well, it should be OK. After all, not everyone
comes to every meeting. Even if you can only come
once a week, I think you'll still enjoy the club.
7. Why does the student go to see the professor?
A. To ask the professor to be the math club
adviser
B. To learn about tutoring opportunities
C. To ask a question about a math assignment
D. To find out about joining the math club

• The answer is alternative B. It is found in
the text, when the student says: “They
especially enjoyed the club’s…”.
• We do not have enough information in
the text to affirm that the other
alternatives are correct. The information
is not mentioned.
are club members. They especially enjoyed the
club's field trips last year.
Thursdays?
8. What did the student's friends say about the
math club?
A. It has been meeting for a long time.
B. It is an enjoyable activity.
C. It does not have many members.
D. It helped them improve their math skills.

• The answer is alternative A. It is found in
the text, when the student says: “Is that
OK? If I only come on Thursdays?”
• We do not have enough information to
affirm that B is correct.
• Alternative C can be eliminated, because
both the professor and the student know
when the club meets.
• Alternative D can be eliminated, because
the student is asking for permission to
only come on Thursdays.
Thursdays?
9. What does the student say about the math club
meeting times?
A. She cannot attend all the meetings.
B. She is glad the club meets so often.
C. She is not sure when the club meets.
D. She hopes the meeting times can be changed.

• The answer is alternative C. It is found in
the text, when the student says: “The
tutoring counts toward the community
service requirement for graduation…”.
• We do not have enough information in
the text to affirm that alternatives A nor B
are correct. The information is not
mentioned.
• Even though the student is helping at a
school, we do not know if it is the school
she attended as a child, so alternative D
is eliminated.
Thursdays?
community service requirement for graduation. And
the way the school set up the program, Mondays are
for math, so I have to be there.
10. Why did the student become a volunteer tutor?
A. To get some job experience
B. To find out if she would like to be a teacher
C. To fill a graduation requirement
D. To help out at the primary school she attended

General Study Tips for Listening
• Focus on the content and flow of spoken
material.
• Anticipate what a person is going to say as
a way to stay focused.
• Stay active by asking yourself questions
(for example, what main idea is the
professor communicating?)
• Listen for words that show connections
and relationships between ideas.

General Study Tips for Reading
• Develop the ability to skim quickly and
identify major points.
• Scan passages to find and highlight key
facts.
• Choose unfamiliar words and guess the
meaning from the context; then, look
them up to confirm their meaning.
• Underline all pronouns and identify the
nouns to which they refer in the
passage.
• Practice drawing conclusions based
on what is mentioned in the passage.

References
• TOEFL ITP Level 2 items and audio resources taken from:
https://www.ets.org//toefl/itp/prepare.html

TOEFL ITP Level 2 - Identifying main ideas (3).ppsx

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

Similar to TOEFL ITP Level 2 - Identifying main ideas (3).ppsx

Similar to TOEFL ITP Level 2 - Identifying main ideas (3).ppsx (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (10)

TOEFL ITP Level 2 - Identifying main ideas (3).ppsx