Intermediate6 min read
TOEFL Note-Taking Strategies for Listening & Speaking
You can take notes throughout the TOEFL exam. Effective note-taking is a trainable skill that can raise your Listening score by 2–4 points.
Practice TOEFL Listening →Essential Shorthand Symbols
- ↑ = increase, ↓ = decrease, → = leads to / causes
- ∴ = therefore, ∵ = because, ≈ = approximately
- w/ = with, w/o = without, gov = government, env = environment
- eg = example, def = definition, imp = important
- +/- = advantage/disadvantage, ~ = about/approximately
Structuring Your Notes on Paper
Use indentation to show hierarchy: main topic at the left margin, main points indented once, examples indented twice. This mirrors the structure of academic lectures.
Example: Marine Ecosystems → Coral reefs eg: Great Barrier Reef — 1,500 species → Threats 1. Rising temp → bleaching 2. Ocean acidification
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What NOT to Write
Do not try to transcribe everything — you will fall behind and miss the next point. Write keywords, not full sentences. Numbers, proper nouns, and signal words are the highest priority.
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