TOEIC reading comprehension skills for english majors at thuong mai university

Recognizing the importance of reading comprehension skills in the TOEIC test,the study was launched with the desire to point out common mistakes while doing thereading comprehension sect

Today, TOEIC certification plays an important part in the resume of employees

It reflects the level of proficiency in communicating in English in activities such asbusiness, commerce, tourism In particular, reading comprehension skills in theTOEIC test is considered the hardest part Therefore, it is extremely necessary topractice reading comprehension skills while still in school

Recognizing the importance of reading comprehension skills in the TOEIC test,the study was launched with the desire to point out common mistakes while doing thereading comprehension section of English Department students at Thuong MaiUniversity and propose some solutions to improve their reading comprehension skills.Hopefully this article will partly help students studying for the TOEIC exam aswell as preparing to enter the TOEIC exam

Hanoi, November 25th, 2019

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me to step into life in a solid and confident way.

I also sincerely thank the supervisor Ms.Hoang Thu Ba for her valuableguidance, constructive suggestions, and unconditional support during the time I tried

to complete this research

I have made this graduation report in nearly 4 weeks This is the first time I’veexperienced in this fields, my knowledge is still limited so that I could not avoiddifficulties and mistakes I hope to receive comments from you so as to enhance myexperience

Finally, I wish you good health, happiness, and success in your life

Sincerely thanks!

Student

Ho Ly Na Tra My

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii

TABLE OF CONTENTS iii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS v

LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS vi

CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY 1

1.1 Rationale 1

1.2 Previous research 2

1.3 Aim of study 2

1.4 Research subjects 3

1.5 Scope of the study 3

1.6 Research methodology 3

1.6.1 Participants of the study 4

1.6.2 Data collection method 4

1.6.3 Data analysis procedures 6

1.7 Organization of the study 6

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 8

2.1 Theoretical background 8

2.1.1 Definition of reading comprehension 8

2.1.2 Types of reading comprehension 10

2.1.3 TOEIC reading test 11

2.2 Reading comprehension-related problems 16

2.2.1 Long texts and runing out of time 17

2.2.2 Multiple synonyms 17

2.2.3 Vocabulary, phrases and traps 17

2.3 Factors affecting English majors’ reading comprehension skill 17

2.3.1 Lacking of vocabulary 17

2.3.2 Lacking of skimming and scanning skill 18

2.3.3 Bad translation skill 18

2.3.4 Lacking of testing skill 18

2.4 The solutions improving reading comprehension skill 18

2.4.1: Solutions for students 18

2.4.2: Solutions for teacher 19

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CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH FINDINGS 20

3.1 The real situation of learning English 20

3.1.1 English learning time of English majors 20

3.1.2 Time to know about TOEIC test of English majors 20

3.2 Reading comprehension practice-related habit 21

3.2.1 Practicing time TOEIC test of English majors 21

3.2.2 Students of English Department’s self-assessment reading comprehension skills on the TOEIC test 22

3.2.3 Reading habits of English Majors 23

3.3 Reading comprehension skill-related problems 24

3.3.1 Students’ assessment of difficulties in reading comprehension part of TOEIC test 24

3.3.2 Some difficulties when test – taking 24

3.4 Language competence - related problems 25

3.4.1 Factors leading to Enghlish majors’ problems in doing reading comprehension section in TOEIC test 25

3.4.2 Factors leading to the reading comprehension difficulties of the learners 26

3.5 The solutions to improve the reading comprehension skill in TOEIC test 27

3.5.1 Ways to improve reading skills on the TOEIC test 27

3.5.2: The reality of applying these above ways to improve reading comprehension skills in TOEIC 27

3.5.3 The effect of learning vocabulary 28

3.5.4 The effect of practicing regularly 29

3.5.5 The effect of joining a course in English centers 29

3.6 Summary 30

CHAPTER 4: RECOMMENDATION AND SUGGESSTION 31

4.1 Learing by heart vocabulary day by day 31

4.2 Practicing regularly 31

4.3 Applying some tips while taking the reading comprehension section of the TOEIC test 32

4.4 Joining a course in English centers 33

CONCLUSION 35 REFERRENCES

APPENDIX

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS

Table 3.1: General information 5

Image 1: TOEIC scorecard 15

Chart 3.1: English learning time of English majors 20

Chart 3.2: Time to know about TOEIC test of English majors 20

Chart 3.3: Practicing time TOEIC test of English majors 21

Chart 3.4: Students of English Department’s self-assessment reading comprehension skills on the TOEIC test 22

Chart 3.5 : Reading habits of English Majors 23

Chart 3.6: Students’ assessment of difficulties in reading comprehension part of TOEIC test 24

Chart 3.7: The difficulties in doing reading comprehension section in TOEIC test 24

Chart 3.8: Factors leading to Enghlish majors’ problems in doing reading comprehension section in TOEIC test 25

Chart 3.9: Factors leading to the reading comprehension difficulties of the learners 26

Chart 3.10: Ways to improve reading skills on the TOEIC test 27

Chart 3.11: The reality of applying these above ways to improve reading comprehension skills in TOEIC 27

Chart 3.12: The effect of learning vocabulary 28

Chart 3.13: The effect of practicing regularly 29

Chart 3.14: The effect of joining a course in English centers 29

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CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY 1.1 Rationale

In the integration period and with the current trend of globalization, foreignlanguage - popularly English - plays an extremely important role That language isconsidered the most popular in the international arena Not only that, English is alsoconsidered a bridge of languages between countries around the world, having apositive effect in exchanging and cooperating with people of countries Therefore, in

an increasingly social society with international integration , English is a compulsoryand important condition for students in the process of communicating and applying forjobs

Today, the criteria for evaluating an English ability are becoming more and moredifficult The A, B, C certificates used for people who want to find jobs are replaced byIELTS, TOEFL or TOEIC TOEIC, along with other requirements for candidates, ispreferred by most companies to assess the English language proficiency of theiremployees Therefore, many people are trying their best to achieve success on theTOEIC test They have to pass 2 sections: Listening and Reading Many people thinkthat reading comprehension section in the TOEIC test is the most difficult and needsthe most attention Most people who get an unexpected result in readingcomprehension often blame it on reading comprehension At Thuong Mai University,English Department students must achieve TOEIC 800 or IELTS 6.5 to be eligible tograduate Although they have not taken the TOEIC exam preparation course, theystudied many subjects majoring in economic English The vocabulary that they haveaccumulated is very close to the TOEIC test Therefore, to take a TOEIC exam, moststudents of the English department can study at home by themselve or take a course at

an English center However, I realize that not all of them can do well in readingcomprehension Maybe the total score on the TOEIC test is not too bad, it is almost thescore of the listening section Their reading comprehension skills are weak and theycannot avoid some common mistakes when doing tests

For all reasons, I decided to conduct a study on how to improve TOEIC readingcomprehension skills for English majors at Thuong Mai University From there,several solutions are propsed to improve their reading comprehension skills

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1.2 Previous research

In this part of the study, I will review some previous studies related to thisresearch These studies have been conducted to identify students' readingcomprehension difficulties

Firstly, the effectiveness of stratified reading with the development of readingskills of first-year students of Vietnam Maritime University This research wasconducted by a lecturer at Vietnam Maritime University (M.S Nguyen Thi HoaiPhuong, 2016) The researchers conducted this study to study and evaluate the effect

of stratified reading - a form of extended reading comprehension - on the development

of reading skills of freshmen at Hang University From this research result, theresearcher has come up with some applications in teaching activities and shows themethods of teaching reading comprehension skills and strategies to improve readingcomprehension skills for students

Second, a study on test-taking techniques for TOEIC reading comprehenion test

by students at Viet Nam maritime University This research was conducted by NguyenThi Thi (Viet Nam maritime University) This study is a view to exploring test-takingstrategies relative to learners ’performance in TOEIC Reading Comprehension as well

as identifying differences in reading strategies among high proficiency and lowproficiency students at Vietnam Maritime University From the findings, the studysuggested several pedagogical implications for teachers, students and test-designers atVMU, acknowledged limitations of the study and offered suggestions for furtherresearch In this part of the study, some previous studies related to this study will bereviewed These studies were carried out to identify the writing errors made bystudents

In short, the previous studies in writing skills have revealed some errors andmistakes in reading comprehenion and pointed out some solutions, but not at all,especially, for English majors at Thuongmai University

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- Proposing some solutions to help English majors improve their situation.

I see that it necessary to do a research on TOEIC reading comprehension skill, ithelps to find the most common factors that affect students' reading skills, commonmistakes that students encounter in the course of doing exercises to improve theirreading comprehenion skills and get good marks on the TOEIC test

I hope that this study can help students of the English Department at Thuong MaiUniversity have a deep understanding of reading skills, especially readingcomprehension in TOEIC and it will help them improve not only their reading skillsbut also other neccessary skills

1.4 Research subjects

This study researches about the TOEIC reading comprehension skills for Englishmajors at Thuong Mai University, I determined that the research subject of study isreading comprehension skills when English majors doing TOEIC test

1.5 Scope of the study

As the title of the study has indicated, the author only focuses on the TOEICreading comprehension skills Besides, because the time and scope of the thesis islimitted , I can only conduct a survey on 100 students at Thuongmai University( students of English Department) 50 students of K52, 25students of K53 and 25students of K54

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The reason for my choice of students of English Department is that they arestudents of English department, so their English level is quite good Moreover, theyhave to start studying for the TOEIC exam for the goal of 800 points.

The study also focuses on the difficulties and mistakes that students make inreading comprehension sections of the TOEIC test and suggests solutions for them

1.6 Research methodology

In this section, the researcher will discuss the methodology used to implementthe research The chapter will cover five major parts, context, participants, data

collection instruments, data collection procedures and data analysis procedures.1.6.1

The context of the study

In Vietnam, most universities take the TOEIC certificate as a condition ofgraduation For English majors in TMU need a TOEIC certification with 800 pointswhile for non - English proficient students, the score only from 450 points This showsthat achieving high TOEIC certification is essential for English faculty students ofTMU Therefore, the researcher conduct this survey to help them improve theirreading comprehension skills in the TOEIC test, which also helps to improve theirscores

1.6.1 Participants of the study

The study was conducted with 100 students at Thuongmai University ( students

of English Department) 50 students of K52, 25 students of K53 and 25 students ofK54 Most of them are review for the TOEIC test Of these, 95 students are female and

5 students are male Although all of them have learned English for over 8 years theyhave had difficulty in reading English comprehension Each person has difficulties due

to different impact factors They also enthusiastically participated in the survey toshare their difficulties and find ways to improve their English reading skills, especiallythe reading comprehension skills on the TOEIC test

All students agree to provide information in a voluntary, comfortable andaccurate manner

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1.6.2 Data collection method

In the current study, the researcher decided to employ the quantitative method.The research instruments employed to collect data were questionnaires, which are sent

to 200 students of English Department.Furthermore, the researcher also uses a flexiblecombination of other methods: interviewing, categorizing and analyzing of data, anddescription of result With the aim of making the responses more confident in theinterview, all the questions are simple and understandable for students to answer After searching, selecting and referring to related documents, the researcherdeveloped a questionnaire based on previous research and conducted a survey ofEnglish majors at Thuongmai University

My research was carried on the quantitative method with the data collectionthrough questionnaires

1.6.2.1 Data collection instruments

After searching, selecting and referring to related documents, the researcherdeveloped a questionnaire based on previous research and conducted a survey ofCommerce students of English University students The content of chapter 3 is adescription of the questionnaire, participants and data collection process

My research was carry on the quantitative method with the data collectionthrough questionnaires

Time to conduct this research is not much Therefore, I find that the questionnaire

is one of the most affordable ways to collect quantitative data Survey by questionnairecan be surveyed on a large scale geographically with a large number of people,especially students Moreover, using this method makes it easy for researchers togeneralize the problem and be proactive In addition, you can choose questions andformats (open end or multiple selections) Moreover, collecting quick and accuratefeedback is another advantage of the questionnaire method because the survey isconducted directly

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I sent questionnaires to 100 students The survey questions included both closeand open questions The total includes 10 questions divided into two parts and written

in bilingual (Vietnamese and English)

The first part is about personal information and information about Englishlearning of students

The second part includes reading comprehension section on the TOEIC test andthe problems students are having

Specific figures are presented in the table below:

Time of learning English Less than 5 years 0

Opinion about importance

Stage 2: The researcher conducted the survey by sending the questionnaire toeach student in the physical education classe during recess The researcher even came

to each of the students' classes The researcher will clearly introduce the purpose of thesurvey with the expectation that students understand and respond honestly andenthusiastically If there is a problem that students do not understand, the researcherwill explain to them for finding the most accurate answer

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Stage 3: The researcher synthesizes data from the survey and has generalcomments.

1.6.3 Data analysis procedures

After collecting the right data to answer student’s question, the researcher willanalyze the data further

In this step, the study focuses on two questions in the questionnaire:

1 What mistakes have you encountered in doing the reading comprehensionsection on the TOEIC test?

2 What are some solutions you can suggest to help students improve theirreading comprehension skills on the TOEIC test?

1.7 Organization of the study

My graduation thesis is divided into three parts:

Part I is the Introduction giving general information of the outlines

Part II is the Study which consists of four chapters:

Chapter 1: Overview of the study

In this chapter, the researcher mention about the Rationale, Previous studies,Aims of the study, Research subjects, Scope of the study and Research methodologyChapter 2: Literature review

In this chapter, the researcher reviews and discusses some previous relevanttheories and studies.Specifically, I give the definition of research topic: readingcomprehension and TOEIC test Besides

I also show some problems in doing reading comprehension section in TOEICtest review

Chapter 3: Research findings

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The researcher gives more detail about the reasons why the researcher choosesthe quantitative method.

Specifically, I expresse how to collect and process the data as well as show theresults of the survey and analyzes them

Chapter 4: Recommendations and suggestions

The researcher gives some recommendation to these problem from the results ofchapter 3

Part III is the Conclusion

This is the last part which summarizes main contents, gives a final conclusions aswell as limitations, and recommend some researching directions of the study in thefuture

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Ho Ly Na Tra My – 16D170030

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Theoretical background

2.1.1 Definition of reading comprehension

Reading is an important skill when learning English as well as taking the TOEICtest

However, not all English learners have effective and accurate readingcomprehension skills Especially in the TOEIC exam, when you encounter longreadings, difficult words, you often get confused, take a long time to understand thelesson, resulting in not high results

However, reading English is always considered lesser than other skills because it

is often considered a skill that is not too important and can reinforce in the end It is afaulty thinking In fact, good English reading skill not only helps people develop theirability to absorb vocabulary, but also is the best way to strengthen the mind, regainfocus and especially expand knowledge

Consequently, many writers and researchers have written about readingcomprehension leading to a large number of its definitions The following are the basictheoretical foundations for this study:

First of all, According to Harris & Hodges (1995, p 39), Reading comprehension is the construction of the meaning of a written or spoken

communication through a reciprocal, holistic interchange of ideas between theinterpreter and the message The presumption here is that meaning resides in theintentional problem-solving, thinking processes of the interpreter that the content ofthe meaning is influenced by that person’s prior knowledge and experience

Secondly, Keith Lenz, Ph.D., University of Kansas stated that "Reading comprehension is the process of constructing meaning from text The goal of all

reading instruction is ultimately targeted at helping a reader comprehend text Readingcomprehension involves at least two people: the reader and the writer The process of

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comprehending involves decoding the writer's words and then using backgroundknowledge to construct an approximate understanding of the writer's message."

Thirdly, Ashley Friedman (Updated May 09, 2019) also stated that "Reading comprehension is the skill of making meaning from whatever text is read Said

another way, reading comprehension isn't simply knowing what words you have read,it's the ability to look at what these words say and to figure out what they mean.It alsoencompasses the ability to understand words and their meaning in a variety ofcontexts."

Fourthly, According to Grellet (1990, p.3) “Reading comprehension or

understanding a written text means extracting the required information from it asefficiently as possible”

Besises that, We also can find a statement about reading comprehension of Swan(1975, p.1) “a student is good at comprehension” if “he can read accurately andefficiently, so as to get the maximum information of a text with the minimumunderstanding”

In addition, In Collins English Dictionary, We can find that "Reading comprehension is a text that students use to help them improve their reading skills, by

reading it and answering questions relating to the text Sometimes used as a test orexamination of reading skills A reading comprehension can be in the student's own oranother language."

Last but not least, Reading comprehension was also stated by Kimberly

McLaughlin (a Master in Secondary Education) that "Reading comprehension is

about understanding what you read When you comprehend what you are reading,you're not only understanding the words and their meanings, but you are alsounderstanding them enough to form opinions, thoughts and reflections about what thewords mean together.Reading comprehension is like having a conversation withsomeone If you do not understand what the other person is saying, you will have noidea what they are talking about and have nothing to say in return No one wants to

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have that conversation! So, in order to understand what you're reading, you have tofollow certain steps."

Based on the definitions above, a definition of reading comprehension skill can

be obtained Reading comprehension is one of the pillars of the act of reading When aperson reads a text he engages in a complex array of cognitive processes He issimultaneously using his awareness and understanding of phonemes (individual sound

“pieces” in language), phonics (connection between letters and sounds and therelationship between sounds, letters and words) and ability to comprehend or constructmeaning from the text This last component of the act of reading is readingcomprehension It cannot occur independent of the other two elements of the process

At the same time, it is the most difficult and most important of the three

2.1.2 Types of reading comprehension

Reading Comprehension is the last step of the reading process, after they'velearned phonics, fluency, and vocabulary

In a study: “How Can Students Improve Their Reading Comprehension Skill?”

of Abbas PourhoseinGilakjani (2016), He believed that “There are two types ofreading comprehension: extensive reading and intensive reading.”

2.1.2.1 Extensive Reading

Extensive Reading (ER) is an approach to second language reading Whenlearners read extensively, they read very easy, enjoyable books to build their readingspeed and fluency Another way to say this is students learn to read by actually readingrather than examining texts by studying the vocabulary, grammar and phrases

Extensive Reading builds vocabulary When learners read a lot, they meetthousands of words and lexical (word) patterns that are not taught in textbooks.Extensive Reading allows the learner to develop an awareness of collocations(common word partnerships) and thousands of lexical phrases

Extensive Reading helps learners understand grammar In textbooks learnersmeet hundreds of grammar patterns However, textbooks do not provide enough

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meetings with grammar for real acquisition to occur Extensive Reading providesopportunities to see grammar in context so learners can deepen their understanding ofhow grammar is really used.

Extensive Reading helps learners to build reading speed and reading fluency Inparticular, developing reading speed is important because it helps learners tounderstand language faster and better

When extensively reading, it is best to stay relaxed Reading in a relaxed, stress environment will help you associate reading with pleasure, and thereforeincrease your willingness to read more often, and for longer periods Clearly, you don'twant to be so relaxed that you fall asleep, but instead just relaxed enough that you feelcomfortable, and willing to absorb whatever you're reading

low-2.1.2.2 Intensive Reading

Intensive reading involves learners reading in detail with specific learning aimsand tasks It can be compared with extensive reading, which involves learners readingtexts for enjoyment and to develop general reading skills

This is an activity that requires great mental effort and focus Because of this, thelearner who engages in intensive reading must be careful to follow specific guidelines,

or else risk boredom and burnout Specifically, if you wish to read a text intensively,you must take care to read texts that are interesting and short, to read only for briefperiods of time, and to do so when you have the most mental energy

Intensive reading has two key advantages For low level readers, intensivereading is possibly the fastest way to build vocabulary Some foreign languagestudents are able to successful add 10 or more comprehension words per day.Additionally, reading difficult material forces a learner to develop strategies for fordealing with texts that are too hard to read comfortably

In shot, it is important to realize that both styles of reading have their uses, andyou should use both styles in tandem (across different texts) in order to bolster yourvocabulary acquisition quickly and effectively

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2.1.3 TOEIC reading test

2.1.3.1 General introduction of TOEIC

The Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC®) is a choice English language proficiency test for non-native speakers who speak English astheir first language, especially those who want to use English in internationalcommunication and working environment It reflects their English speaking, writingand reading comprehension skills in an international environment The scores indicatehow well people can communicate in English with others This result is valid for 02years and is recognized in many countries including Vietnam

multiple-The TOEIC test program was developed and developed by the EducationalTesting Service (ETS), USA - a famous and reputable organization specializing inmultiple-choice test programs such as TOEFL, GRE, GMAT at the request of theJapan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren) in association with theJapanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry - MITI (now the Ministry ofEconomy, Trade and Industry of Japan - METI) in 1979

In 2005, the Ministry of Education and Education testing Institute- based in USregarded the use of TOEIC to asset students’ English language proficiency Therefore,Vietnam' universities can use the TOEIC certificate to evaluate students’ learningoutcomes instead of A, B, C certificates

2.1.3.2 TOEIC Reading Comprehension Section

TOEIC test consists of 2 parts: listening and reading In the reading section, thepart that has highest percentage of question and is the hardest is part 7 (readingcomprehension) It includes 54 questions in which there will be 29 questions in singlepassages The 48 questions are based on a variety of reading materials likeannouncements, reports, forms, letters, bulletins, faxes, memos, charts, tables,magazine newspaper and articles, and advertisements According to ETS (2003), theReading Comprehension of the TOEIC tests consists of four main kinds of questions: (1) Vocabulary questions

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(2) Factual information questions

(3) Inference questions

(4) Summary questions

There are at least 2 questions and 20 questions in double passages The takers, in this part, must choose the best answer among four for each question Theinference questions is the most difficult, the reader can not base on the immediateinformation to find the correct answer because it is not actually found in the document.Therefore, they should make a prediction based on the given information in the text tochoose the best answer

test-For example:

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181 What is indicated about Ms Murakami?

(A) She will speak on the first day of theconference

(B) She was recently elected STI president.(C) She will be available to answer

(A) Innovative Online Resources

(B) Distance Education in the Film Industry(C) Improving Course Content Quality

(D) Learner Support Systems

185 According to the e-mail, what information is

Ms Murakami expecting to receive?

(A) The title of a presentation

(B) The name of a replacement speaker

(C) The conference schedule for Thursday

(D) The contact information for

Mr Buchanan

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2.1.3.3 The importance of Reading Comprehension Skill in TOEIC test

In the context of globalization of people's increasing communication needs,English has become a "communication" tool It is also an officially used language in

an international working environment Currently, most young people have chosenTOEIC as a "guaranteed ticket" to prove their ability to use foreign languages in work

as well as in life

In Vietnam, most universities take the TOEIC certificate as a condition ofgraduation For non-English proficient students, they need a TOEIC certification with450-550 points, while for English proficient students, the score must be higher, from800-850 points English Majors at TMU are not an exception

To to get a TOEIC point above 800 to be eligible to graduate, they need to have agood reading comprehension skills

Image 1 is an example scorecard Based on this we can see that readingcomprehension accounts for 50% of the total score We can see from the "ProficiencyDescription Table" of Reading section, it measures many abilities of test taker Suchas: The ability to make inferences based on information in written texts and locate andunderstand specific information in written texts Besides that, connecting informationacross multiple sentences in a single written text and across texts, understanding aswell as vocabulary in written texts are also measured

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Image 1: TOEIC scorecard

2.1.3.4 TOEIC reading comprehension strategies

All reading comprehension exercises require a lot of skills to find the right answer.They are skimming, scanning, paraphrasing, and understanding vocabulary in context.Readers have to identify synonyms and implied information It is diffcult if they do nothave some neccessary skills According to Lougheed (2007b) reading skills such as

“skimming, scanning, using the context and reading fast” should be practiced sharply toenhance reading comprehension (p.228, see more in the 5th Appendix) He also said thatthere is a tip that “read the questions before read the passage” (Introductory Course,

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p.151) It might help readers read fast and purposefully since they have a particularquestion in their mind.

Skimming is a method of skimming the entire document to understand the

meaning and grasp the content of the full text

Steps in skimming:

First read the topic of the article (This is a brief summary of the content of thearticle)

Read the introductory paragraph, or generalize

Read the first paragraph of the lesson

Read the first sentence of the remaining paragraphs

The main idea of each paragraph is usually in the first sentence

Scanning is fast reading to get specific data, detailed information in the text such as

proper name, date, parameters, or key words without reading and understanding the otherparts of the lesson

 Quickly glance at multiple lines at once

 When you find a sentence that contains the information you are looking for, stopand read the entire sentence

 You can read from top to bottom, or read diagonally

In short, to complete the reading comprehension section quickly and achieve thehighest efficiency, you should use and combine two methods smoothly: skimming andscanning They will help you find the correct and fastest answer

2.2 Reading comprehension-related problems

According to a study of Ms Tran Lan Huong (2010): “ A study on the difficulties

in studying TOEIC reading of non-English majors at elementary level at Haiphongprivate University.”, problems faced in doing reading comprehension section inTOEIC test are:, vocabulary, grammar and traps, teaching and learning styles…Besides that, we can find that long texts, runing out of time and multiple synonyms alsoafftect to reading comprehension section

2.2.1 Long texts and runing out of time.

Reading comprehension is considered to be the most difficult part of the TOEICtest With a series of long texts that need to be read and filtered to answer the question,

we will be exhausted at the end This causes test takers to do both ineffective work andtake time Part 7 has the highest question rate It consists of 54 questions including 29questions in single paragraphs and 25 questions in double paragraphs (2 doubleparagraphs and 3 paragraphs having 3 paragraphs) Therefore, this is the biggestdifficulty for test takers They must be alert and know how to allocate a reasonable time

to complete the test

2.2.2 Multiple synonyms

Part 7 uses a lot of synonyms or similar sentence structures in the lesson and in thequestion

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