Review of 'Official TOEFL IBT Tests Volume 1, Fourth Edition' on 'GoodReads'
5 stars
This book, (along with Volume 2 of the same) contains the most accurate TOEFL practice tests available. There are five in this volume. The accuracy of these practice tests is what makes them so valuable – most third party books and websites have terrible sample questions. Some major publishers publish tests that are mind-bogglingly terrible.
I should mention at this point the book is very similar to the previous editions. One reading passage has been changed, but otherwise the tests have the same questions. They are, of course, modified to match the changes to the test introduced in 2019 so there are fewer reading, listening and speaking questions. The good news is that the omitted questions include all of the non-standard reading question types that plagued earlier editions.
The only major difference between Volume 1 and Volume 2 (other than the contents of the tests of course) are in how …
This book, (along with Volume 2 of the same) contains the most accurate TOEFL practice tests available. There are five in this volume. The accuracy of these practice tests is what makes them so valuable – most third party books and websites have terrible sample questions. Some major publishers publish tests that are mind-bogglingly terrible.
I should mention at this point the book is very similar to the previous editions. One reading passage has been changed, but otherwise the tests have the same questions. They are, of course, modified to match the changes to the test introduced in 2019 so there are fewer reading, listening and speaking questions. The good news is that the omitted questions include all of the non-standard reading question types that plagued earlier editions.
The only major difference between Volume 1 and Volume 2 (other than the contents of the tests of course) are in how the answers are presented. This book merely talks about what an answer should contain, while in Volume 2 actual sample answers are provided. Both methods are helpful. The explanations function sort of like a template, laying out exactly what information should be included and not included. The samples, of course, are more tangible. I do wish that each book included both. Oh well.
The digital content is no longer provided on a DVD. Instead, students must use a code to access the files on McGraw-Hill’s website. I like that the content can be accessed online, but sadly the code can only be used two times. Make sure to back up those files!