TOEFL® Junior™ Comprehensive Score Descriptions

Section-level "Can Do" Statements

Listening Comprehension Section

A typical student who scores between 157 and 160 can do all of the following.

Understand main ideas, whether they are clearly stated or implied, in both academic and nonacademic extended spoken texts
Identify important details in both academic and nonacademic extended spoken texts
Make inferences based on a speaker's intonation or stress
Usually understand idiomatic language used in longer, more complex speech
Understand how information is being used by a speaker (e.g., to make a comparison or to provide evidence to support an argument) in academic and nonacademic extended spoken texts

A typical student who scores between 150 and 156 can do all of the following.

Understand main ideas that are explicitly stated in academic and nonacademic extended spoken texts where the language is simple and the context is clear
Identify important details in academic and nonacademic extended spoken texts where the language is simple and the context is clear
Make inferences from short spoken texts where the language is simple and the context is clear
Understand some common idioms used in moderately complex speech
Understand how information is being used by a speaker (e.g., to make a comparison or to provide evidence to support an argument) when the context is familiar

A typical student who scores between 143 and 149 can do all of the following.

Understand the main idea of a brief classroom announcement if it is explicitly stated
Understand important details that are explicitly stated and reinforced in short talks and conversations
Understand direct paraphrases of spoken information when the language is simple and the context is clear
Understand a speaker's purpose in a short talk when the language is simple and the context is clear

A typical student who scores below 143 may need to develop the following skills.

Understanding the main ideas and important details of announcements, short talks and simple conversations
Understanding a speaker's purpose in a short talk when the language is simple and the context is clear
Paraphrasing spoken information when the language is simple and the context is clear

Reading Comprehension Section

A typical student who scores between 157 and 160 can do all of the following.

Understand main ideas in nonacademic and academic texts, including ones that are not explicitly stated
Accurately comprehend important details in nonacademic and academic texts, including texts with a high level of linguistic complexity
Effectively make inferences when reading, including inferences needed to understand why an author includes certain information (e.g., to make a comparison or to provide evidence to support an argument) from nonacademic and academic texts
Usually infer the attitude or point of view of a character in a fictional story
Usually understand figurative language and determine the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary words from context, even in linguistically complex academic texts

A typical student who scores between 151 and 156 can do all of the following.

Understand main ideas that are explicitly stated in nonacademic and academic texts
Usually identify important details in nonacademic and academic texts, even when the context is not always clear and the vocabulary may be unfamiliar
Sometimes make inferences accurately, including inferences needed to understand why an author includes certain information (e.g., to make a comparison or to provide evidence to support an argument) from nonacademic and academic texts
Usually identify events and plotlines in a fictional narrative
Usually determine the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary words from context in simply constructed texts

A typical student who scores between 143 and 150 can do all of the following.

Sometimes identify main ideas that are explicitly stated in nonacademic texts
Sometimes identify basic details in nonacademic and academic texts where the language is simple and the context is clear
Usually locate basic information in nonlinear texts, such as schedules and menus that use everyday, nonacademic vocabulary
Sometimes make simple inferences from straightforward nonacademic texts
Sometimes determine the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary words from context in simply constructed nonacademic texts

A typical student who scores below 143 may need to develop the following skills.

Identifying main ideas and important details in texts written in simple, clear language
Making inferences based on texts written in simple, clear language
Locating basic information in nonlinear reading materials such as schedules, menus, etc.
Determining the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary words from context

Speaking Section

A typical student who scores between 14 and 16 can do all of the following.

Almost always speak in a fluent and sustained way
Almost always use intonation effectively
Produce speech that is always understandable to listeners, with only minor errors in pronunciation
Almost always produce vocabulary and grammar that is accurate, varied and effective, with only a few errors
Tell a complete and coherent story with elaboration and detail
Understand and accurately convey all main ideas and supporting details from an academic lecture, with almost no omissions

A typical student who scores between 11 and 13 can do all of the following.

Usually speak in a fluent and sustained way, with some stops or hesitations
Usually use intonation effectively
Produce speech that is usually understandable to listeners, but with some pronunciation errors
Usually produce vocabulary and grammar that is accurate and effective, although with some errors
Tell a story that is mostly complete and coherent, although some details are inaccurate or left out
Understand and convey main ideas from an academic lecture, although some supporting details may be left out or inaccurate

A typical student who scores between 8 and 10 can do all of the following.

Speak fluently for a few brief stretches
Sometimes use intonation effectively
Produce speech that is at times understandable to listeners, but with obvious pronunciation errors
Often produce basic vocabulary and simple grammatical structures
Tell a limited story, occasionally providing details
Understand and convey limited information from an academic lecture, but probably leave out many supporting details

A typical student who scores below 8 may need to develop the following skills.

Speaking fluently for at least a few brief stretches
Using intonation effectively
Producing speech that is understandable to listeners
Producing basic vocabulary and simple grammatical structures
Telling a story with some details
Understanding and conveying some information from an academic lecture

Writing Section

A typical student who scores between 13 and 16 can do all of the following.

Recognize and correct nearly all errors identified in a written text
Produce simple and complex sentences accurately
Provide answers to informal questions, and the answers are clear, complete and appropriate
Express an opinion on a school-related topic, almost always with substantial detail and development
Understand and accurately convey all main ideas and supporting details from an academic lecture, with almost no omissions

A typical student who scores between 10 and 12 can do all of the following.

Recognize and correct most errors identified in a written text
Produce some complex sentences, although with occasional vocabulary and grammar errors
Usually provide answers to informal questions, and the answers are clear and appropriate
Express an opinion on a school-related topic, usually with some development
Understand and convey main ideas from an academic lecture, although some details may be left out or inaccurate

A typical student who scores between 6 and 9 can do all of the following.

Recognize and correct simple errors identified in a written text
Produce basic, simple sentences, although with some vocabulary and grammar errors
Provide basic answers to informal questions, although sometimes the answers are unclear
Express an opinion on a school-related topic, although with little development
Understand and convey a few main ideas from an academic lecture, but probably leave out many supporting details

A typical student who scores below 6 may need to develop the following skills.

Recognizing and correcting simple errors identified in a written text
Producing simple sentences
Providing basic answers to informal questions
Expressing and developing an opinion on a school-related topic
Understanding and conveying some information from an academic lecture

Overall Level Descriptors

The TOEFL Junior Comprehensive test assesses language skills representative of middle schools that use English for instruction.

Level	Label	Overall Performance Descriptor
6	Excellent	A typical student at Level 6 consistently demonstrates the skills needed to communicate at a high level in complex interactions and while using complex materials.
5	Advanced	A typical student at Level 5 often demonstrates the skills needed to communicate at a high level in complex interactions and while using complex materials.
4	Competent	A typical student at Level 4 demonstrates the skills needed to communicate successfully in some complex situations and in most simple interactions and while using basic materials.
3	Achieving	A typical student at Level 3 usually demonstrates the skills needed to communicate successfully in simple interactions and while using basic materials.
2	Developing	A typical student at Level 2 occasionally demonstrates the skills needed to communicate successfully in simple interactions and while using basic materials.
1	Beginning	A typical student at Level 1 demonstrates some basic language skills but needs to further develop those skills in order to communicate successfully.