Episodes
Learn how to use iTunes U to study for the TOEFL Test. Special guest: Warren Ediger of SuccesfulEnglish.com.
Published 12/04/07
In this special podcast, we interview Warren of SuccessfulEnglish.com about how to select and use a tutor to improve your English. We'll answer the following questions: -What should you look for in an online or face-to-face tutor? -How should you select a tutor? -What are the advantages of video tutoring versus email or voice only? -How should students prepare for the new TOEFL speaking section? -What are some other ways to use an online tutor? -What are some ways to build vocabulary and...
Published 11/21/06
Script by Katrina Carrasco Audio Index Slow dialog: 1:10 Explanation: 5:02 Fast dialog: 19:10 Questions: 21:36 During the next few weeks, we will be learning about the basic principles of marketing, from conceiving the idea for a product, to developing it based on market research, to promoting its sale. If you all read the assignment for last night you should already have an idea about what we will be discussing today. What is marketing? The Chartered Institute of Marketing defines...
Published 05/30/06
Script by Meropi Peponides Audio Index: Slow Dialog: 1:19 Explanations: 3:26 Fast Dialog: 23:40 Questions: 25:06 Anna: I was riding my bike across campus, when suddenly, out of nowhere, I saw someone step right in front of me. I yelled “Watch out!” so that he could move out of the way, and I barely missed him. But he dropped his notebook, and papers started to fly everywhere. I decided to stop to help him pick them up. Anna: Hey, are you okay? I’m really sorry. I didn’t see you...
Published 05/16/06
Script by Meropi Peponides Audio Index: Slow Dialog: 0:55 Explanations: 3:07 Fast Dialog: 17:37 Questions: 19:05 Fiona: Hi, Chris. How are you? Chris: Hey, Fiona. Thanks for meeting me here on such short notice. The thing is, I needed to ask you something and I thought sooner was better than later. Fiona: No problem. It worked out that we were both on campus. What’s the question? Chris: Well, I was thinking about how we have to move out of the dorms next year. Fiona: Yeah, I know. No...
Published 05/02/06
Script by Dr. Lucy Tse Audio Index Slow dialog: 1:06 Explanations: 3:19 Fast dialog: 16:22 Comprehension Question: 17:47 I went to the bookstore to buy the textbooks I needed for this semester. I went in and saw that the books were organized alphabetically by department. I found the Chemistry department under the “C’s”, but, I couldn’t find the books for the class I was taking. I asked one of the clerks. Student: Excuse me, I’m having trouble finding the books for Chemistry 205. ...
Published 04/25/06
Script by Meropi Peponides Audio Index Slow Dialog: 1:05 Explanations: 2:49 Fast Dialog: 14:27 Questions: 15:37 Christie: Hey, Garret, how’s it going? Garret: Christie, what’s up? I’m doing alright. Really busy though. Christie: How come? It’s only the first week. You don’t have homework yet, do you? Garret: No, but I’m going to a bunch of classes to try to figure out which ones I want to take. So far I’ve chosen five, but I’m going to have to drop one. Christie: Really? Which...
Published 04/18/06
Script by Dr. Lucy Tse Audio Index Slow dialog: 1:16 Explanations: 3:41 Fast dialog: 16:35 Questions: 18:04 We’ve been talking about weather phenomena this week, and one such phenomenon that affects this region of the country is El Niño. An El Niño occurs when there is a warming of the ocean surface along the South American coast. This warm water current is usually associated with atmospheric changes. As the warm air spreads toward the east, it takes along with it rain. This...
Published 04/11/06
Script by Dr. Lucy Tse Audio Index: Slow dialog: 1:00 Explanation: 3:50 Fast dialog: 16:30 Questions: 18:17 We are going to spend this week talking about cognitive psychology. Like the other theories of psychology we’ve covered so far, cognitive psychology studies the mental processes that drive behavior. This behavior includes thinking, reasoning, decision making, and even emotion and motivation. In 1967, a psychologist by the name of Ulric Neisser published a book called...
Published 04/04/06
Audio Index: Slow dialog: 0:55 Explanations: 2:27 Fast dialog: 14:03 Questions: 15:08 Juan: Hey, Aline, I wonder if I can ask you a question. Aline: Sure, what’s up? Juan: Well, I’m trying to apply for grad school, and wanted to get your advice on something. I have to get some rec letters from my professors, but I’m not quite sure how to go about it. Aline: I’d recommend talking to them personally about it by making an appointment to see them during their office hours. Give them...
Published 03/28/06
Script by Meropi Peponides Audio Index: Slow dialog: 1:08 Explanations: 3:16 Fast dialog: 10:50 Questions: 12:07 I was sitting in a lecture, waiting to get my test back. When I did get it back, I was shocked. My grade was a C-, even though I thought I had done really well. When I looked over the test to see what I got wrong, I couldn’t understand why I missed so many questions. I decided to talk to my professor about it after class. Jack: Excuse me, Professor Meyers? Prof. Meyers: Yes,...
Published 03/21/06
Special announcement from ESLPod.com's Guide to the TOEFL Test Podcast: We will be returning soon with new podcasts. Stay subscribed!
Published 02/22/06
Audio Index: Slow dialog: 1:05 Explanations: 4:43 Fast dialog: 17:35 Comprehension: 19:43 An important theoretical perspective in sociology is the notion of symbolic interactionism. We’ve talked about how we examine social behavior in this course, and how that behavior arises from intentions and motivations—what we might call, uh, “meanings”—and leads to certain events or results. As social psychologists, we try to understand this relationship between the individual mind, the group, and...
Published 02/07/06
TOEFL Podcast #17 Part 2 of 2 Special thanks to Dr. Lucy Tse for help in producing this podcast. We discuss how to write the body and conclusion of an essay for the TOEFL or similar English examination.
Published 01/31/06
Learn how to write an academic essay in English in this podcast. Part 1 of 2. Discusses the importance of reading in building writing skills, and what goes into the introduction of the essay.
Published 01/24/06
Audio Index: Slow dialog: 0:50 Explanations: 2:27 Fast dialog: 13:44 Questions: 14:51 Simon: Hey, Paula, how’s it going? Paula: I’m doing all right, not too shabby. Where are you headed to? Simon: I need to go to the student health center. I’ve felt lousy for the past week, and I figured it was time to see a doctor. Besides, I haven’t had a checkup in ages. Good thing I have that mandatory health insurance. Paula: Do you know the way from here? Simon: To be honest, I’m a bit...
Published 01/17/06
Audio Index: Slow dialog: 1:00 Explanations: 4:33 Fast dialog: 21:59 Comprehension: 24:01 We’ll continue our examination, then, of the, uh, branches of the science of biology. Biologists can specialize in and study many different things. But perhaps we should back up a bit and talk more generally about the study of nature in a larger context. The field of botany study plants—what kinds of plants, what their relationship is, and so forth. The field of zoology studies animals, and the...
Published 01/10/06
Audio Index: Slow dialog: 1:30 Explanations: 4:11 Fast dialog: 13:28 Comprehension: 15:15 Ah, good morning ladies and gentlemen. My name is Dr. Robert Lambert, and I am your guest speaker today. As I am sure that Dr. McQuillan told you, I am a visiting scholar from another university. Today we are going to talk about history, or more exactly, historiography. Historians used many different types of evidence in their work. These include a variety of sources, including written or printed...
Published 01/02/06
Script by Dr. Lucy Tse Audio Index: Slow dialog: 1:10 Explanations: 3:39 Fast dialog: 13:30 Comprehension: 15:11 Good morning. I am Officer Brandon and I'm the head of Public Safety on this campus. I'm here today to talk about how to protect yourself while you are on this campus. Students new to the campus believe that once they are within the campus grounds, they can let their guard down. That's not the case and I'm here to give you some tips to avoid problems. One of the most serious...
Published 12/19/05
Script by Dr. Lucy Tse Audio Index: Slow dialog: 1:01 Explanations: 3:35 Fast dialog: 14:22 Comprehension: 16:16 Student: Hi, I'm Mark Mendoza. I have an appointment with an advisor at 10. Advisor: That will be with me. I'm Ambika Singh. Have a seat. Student: Thanks. I wanted to talk with an advisor about my major. Advisor: Okay. I don't have your file or your degree plan in front of me. What year are you and what's your major? Student: I'm a freshman and I don't have a...
Published 12/12/05
Script by Dr. Lucy Tse Audio Index: Slow dialog: 0:49 Explanations: 3:04 Fast dialog: 12:34 Questions: 14:07 Student: Hi, you're James, right, the T.A. for this class? T.A.: Yes, that's right. Student: I got my paper back and I have some questions. T.A.: I wrote on each paper whether the student should revise the paper they turned in or start over and rewrite the whole thing. Student: On my paper, you had written that I should revise, but I'm not sure how to proceed. T.A.: ...
Published 12/05/05
Script by Dr. Lucy Tse Audio Index: Slow dialog: 0:47 Explanations: 3:03 Fast dialog: 13:34 Questions: 15:11 Woman: Hi, what are you doing? Man: I'm preparing for the exam this week. M: What did you get on the last test? W: I really blew it. I got a 78. The professor graded on a curve and I got a “C-“. I just don't do well on multiple choice tests. Last semester when I took the prerequisite, the professor had open-book tests. They were still hard but I did a lot better on...
Published 11/28/05
TOEFL® Podcast 8 Script by Dr. Lucy Tse Audio Index: Slow dialog: 0:52 Explanations: 2:50 Fast dialog: 11:37 Questions: 13:00 Professor: This theory is supported by a series of studies conducted beginning in the 1960's. You'll be reading about that in your assigned chapter for next week and we'll be deconstructing it in class next Monday. Any questions?...Yes, you have a question? Student: Could you please explain how this theory is related to the discussion we had last...
Published 11/21/05
TOEFL® Podcast 7 Doing a Project Together Script by Dr. Lucy Tse Audio Index: Slow dialog: 1:26 Explanations: 3:35 Fast dialog: 12:55 Questions: 14:27 W: Well, while we're waiting for the other two members of our group, let's read through the assignment guidelines for this group project. We're supposed to come up with a presentation on one of the topics on this list. M: Yeah, and the professor said that we have to work collaboratively. How long does the presentation need to...
Published 11/14/05