TOEIC Mastery
(Continued from Page One)

Reviewed by Jun Da, Ph.D.
Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures
Middle Tennessee State University

Instant feedback

The TOEIC Mastery CD is capable of providing feedback to a user either immediately in practice mode, or at the end of each section in test mode. In either case, in-depth feedback is available whether he/she makes a correct and wrong choice. In the case of listening comprehension questions, a button is included in the feedback window so that a user can click to replay the corresponding audio segment. At the end of each subsection, the user is presented with a summary report (or a score report for a full length test). He/she can choose to review his/her responses and (optionally) study the questions in detail (by first clicking on the button on the review sheet and then the relevant options of a particular question on the answer sheet).

Extra learning opportunity

While instant feedback is expected of most (if not all) CD-ROM-based or online CALL materials, the TOEIC Mastery CD offers an additional feature. The "How-To" section is informative and well written, offering content similar to that found in the Study Guide (e.g., test taking strategies and tips), but in audio format. This allows the user to use the instructions in this section for additional listening practice.

Things to improve

Given its well-thought-out design and presentation, a user should have little problem in making full use of the package. However, there are a few improvements that could be made.

Installation

There is a minor glitch when installing the package on a Windows2000 system. If a user follows the installation instructions provided in the Study Guide, the software will not install if he/she logs onto the Windows2000 system with an ordinary user account (i.e., without any administrator privileges). Furthermore, even if it is installed properly with an administrator account, the CD will not run if it is installed under the default location specified by the package installer (e.g., C:\Program files\American Language Academy\TOEIC Mastery). This installation glitch has to do with setting proper permissions on the installed folder (used for saving runtime session data). A workaround is to log into the Windows2000 system as an administrator and install the package in a folder that can be written to by all users.

While this is not such a big deal for experienced Windows2000 users, the glitch may be a barrier for non-technical or inexperienced users, especially when the package is to be rolled out in a language lab where an administrative account is rarely issued to an ordinary user.

Navigation

It would be better if a button could be added on the pages of the "How-To" section that would take the user back to the beginning of a particular subsection. There are times when a user wants to jump directly to the first page of a subsection where sub-titles for that particular subsection are listed.

Quality of the practice items

According to its official website, TOEIC Mastery practice items follow the actual TOEIC specifications and difficulty level, and were authored by Bruce Rogers, an experienced and accomplished author of both TOEFL and TOEIC test preparation materials. However, it would be more helpful if statistical information about the quality of the practice items on the CD were provided. Since TOEIC is a standardized test, there are users (such as language program directors) who would be interested in summary statistics such as reliability and indices of difficulty and discrimination, etc. from pre-tests or trial use (if available). For these users who are often responsible for institutional purchases, such information is valuable when making software acquisition decisions.

Concluding remarks

Given its informative nature, the quantity of the practice items, and the well-planned design of the interactive CD-ROM, TOEIC Mastery can best be used by those who are new to the TOEIC test. It is especially useful for those who want to get familiar with the test and test formats in a short period of time.