I've recently had a student ask me about my opinions on IELTS vs TOEFL. For context, I'm teaching at a High School and once a week after school I coach 3 students in IELTS preparation after school. One of them said they are attending cram school for TOEFL as well, and their parents are pushing them to drop IELTS and focus of TOEFL. The student in question is planning to apply for international-focused courses at universities in Tokyo, and some prefer one qualification over the other, but they haven't chosen an institution yet so are unsure what to do. They asked me for advice.
I've never taught TOEFL specifically, but IELTS I'm well versed in. However while I like the exam format I think the whole half point grading system to 9 that IELTS uses is absolutely ass to say the least.
Could anyone with TOEFL experience (and IELTS – can never hurt to get some other opinions on the system) give me their opinions on the matter? What research I've done on TOEFL the main difference is it's a typed exam not a written on, but I'm struggling to discern any other points, besides the grading scale.
Thanks in advance 👍
by gambitbowson