1-on-1 TOEFL iBT Tutoring · Grades 10–12 · Taipei

TOEFL, from preparation to admission.

TOEFL preparation for Grades 10–12 students preparing for university admissions in the US, Canada, and other English-speaking university destinations. The program is calibrated to each student's diagnostic gaps and target test date, with all four TOEFL sections, Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing, blended into each lesson and weighted toward the sections where the student needs the most work. Lessons are 1 to 2 hours, calibrated to how much support each student needs and the time before their test.

Audience
Grades 10–12, students preparing for the TOEFL for university admissions
Format
1-on-1, 1 to 2 hours per lesson
Duration
Typically 4 to 6 months at standard cadence
Begin
Complimentary consultation & assessment class

What Students Learn

TOEFL preparation at the level the TOEFL rewards.

Parents come to TOEFL preparation at Harland looking for a program that calibrates to their child's diagnostic gaps and target score. They want the four-skill academic English fluency the TOEFL rewards taken seriously, and the work done in a structured 1-on-1 setting where each lesson sits where the student is. The work covers what the TOEFL requires. Reading academic passages with comprehension under time pressure. Listening to lectures and conversations across academic contexts and accent variation. Speaking across one independent task on a familiar topic and three integrated tasks. Writing an integrated task that synthesizes reading and listening, plus an academic discussion task. Pacing through all four sections without losing depth. These are the skills behind every TOEFL score that lands well.

TOEFL preparation comes in two common shapes in the Taipei market. Group classes at test-preparation centers, where instruction is standardized regardless of a student's specific gaps. Individual tutoring without a structured curriculum behind the sessions, where quality depends on whichever tutor a family draws and where the work doesn't accumulate from lesson to lesson. Harland's program occupies a third position. The curriculum is structured: typically 4 units of 11 lessons calibrated to the student's timeline, with all four TOEFL sections blended into each lesson and assessments built into the program. The format is 1-on-1: lessons calibrated to the student's diagnostic gaps and target score, not to a class average.

Lessons follow Harland's TOEFL curriculum, calibrated by diagnostic to where each student is starting and what target score they need for their university applications. The program typically runs 4 units of 11 lessons. Each lesson blends all four TOEFL sections, with weighting toward the sections where the student needs the most work. Earlier units build foundation across the content. Later units shift the weighting toward test-condition practice, including full-length cross-skill simulations. The eleventh lesson of each unit runs as an in-house formative assessment, followed by an at-home summative mock measured against the diagnostic. Section weighting recalibrates after each unit based on what the assessments show. Harland's curriculum decides what gets taught. The TOEFL is where the work gets tested.

Progress shows up in places parents can see. Section scores climbing from the diagnostic baseline. Integrated-task performance improving across full simulations. Academic English the student keeps after the test, not phrases memorized for one sitting. The full TOEFL taken on test day with the work behind it.

How We Teach It

TOEFL preparation through the actual content of the test.

Harland's Test Preparation pedagogy is content-based learning. The skills the TOEFL rewards develop through the actual content of the test, not through isolated test-taking tips or phrases memorized in isolation from real academic English use. Lessons work directly with the TOEFL's section content. Reading develops the analytical depth the section rewards through work with academic passages spanning sciences, social sciences, and humanities. Listening trains comprehension across accent variation and academic-context lectures through guided practice with authentic recordings. Speaking integrates listening and reading into produced responses, with practice in both the independent task and the three integrated tasks. Writing teaches both the synthesis task combining passage and lecture and the academic discussion task that builds an argument. Mixed practice and full timed sections sit alongside the content lessons, so students experience the test's pacing pressure as they build the skills.

Across the program, the weighting calibrates to where each student is starting. A student whose diagnostic shows strong receptive skills (Reading and Listening) but weak productive output (Speaking and Writing) gets heavier productive-skill weighting, with writing structure and synthesis-task practice built into early lessons. A student strong in the independent Speaking task but weak in the integrated Speaking tasks gets heavier weighting on those tasks, with synthesis practice that builds the cross-skill move they require. A student whose Writing academic discussion task is solid but whose integrated Writing task is bounded gets heavier weighting on that task, with structural work focused on the rhetorical moves higher scores require.

TOEFL preparation in this format also responds to how each student handles test pressure. Some students freeze on integrated Speaking tasks when the cross-skill load combines unfamiliar content with timed production. Some lose pacing on Reading and run out of time before the second passage. Some misjudge Writing structure and produce arguments that lack the rhetorical clarity higher scores require. The 1-on-1 format lets teachers respond to these patterns concretely. A student who freezes on integrated Speaking tasks doesn't get the same scheduled drill the curriculum had planned. The next lessons get redesigned around the synthesis move the tasks require, with progressively closer test-condition simulation. A student running out of time on Reading gets pacing-targeted modules before content-targeted ones. Group classes can't make these moves. Private tutors without curriculum can make them but lose track of the broader program arc. Skill and composure develop together. Neither moves far in isolation.

The format also lets teachers calibrate to each student's section-by-section gap pattern. A student strong in Reading and Listening but weak in productive skills works on the synthesis moves these tasks require. A student strong in receptive skills but uncomfortable with the integrated Writing task works on the rhetorical moves that distinguish higher scores. Each lesson plan sits where the student's specific gap pattern is.

Curriculum and Test Format

A structured curriculum across all four TOEFL sections.

TOEFL preparation at Harland follows a structured curriculum keyed to the TOEFL's section content and the student's diagnostic-determined gaps. A student who completes the program has demonstrated meaningful progress against their target score on TOEFL-format unit assessments and on a full TOEFL practiced under exam conditions. The program is 4 units of 11 lessons.

The curriculum follows the current TOEFL iBT format published by ETS. When ETS updates the test, the curriculum tracks the update. Within each unit, lessons progress from content work and guided practice through mixed practice under real-test conditions toward a closing block of strategy work, a full timed module under exam conditions, and a comprehensive assessment across all four sections. Across the four units, the work shifts from foundation-building toward test-condition practice, with each unit's assessment recalibrating the section weighting for the unit ahead. Students whose schools are running their own TOEFL preparation alongside Harland use the program for targeted reinforcement, with the Student Coordinator translating school priorities into specific lesson goals so the work doesn't duplicate.

Standards
Current TOEFL iBT specifications published by ETS, including section content, timing structure, recorded Speaking format, and section scoring (0 to 30 per section, 0 to 120 composite) across Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing
Materials
TOEFL-format practice questions, full-length practice TOEFLs under exam conditions including integrated-task simulations, and unit assessments calibrated to each student's target score
Assessment
Eleventh lesson of each unit runs as a formative in-house assessment, followed by an at-home summative mock measured against the diagnostic. Section-score progression tracked against the student's target score across both assessments.
Reporting
Per-lesson written record of content covered, practice performance, and homework. Unit-level progress reports tracking section-score progression against the student's target.

Prerequisites and What Comes Next

Where TOEFL preparation fits in your child's learning.

Before starting

Most students arrive at TOEFL preparation with academic English fluency that the program assumes. For students still building toward that foundation, Academic English (Grades 3–12) runs alongside or before TOEFL preparation. Academic English is the most direct foundation for TOEFL preparation in the Harland program. The test itself measures fluency across four skills, including integrated tasks that synthesize listening, reading, and producing in single responses. Students whose academic English is solid often benefit from Analytical Reading (Grades 6–12) for Reading-section depth, or from Analytical Writing (Grades 6–12) for Writing-task structural reinforcement, particularly the integrated Writing task.

Students preparing US university applications alongside the TOEFL often benefit from College Application Essays (Grades 11–12) as a parallel program, where the application-writing component has its own structural and rhetorical demands separate from the TOEFL Writing tasks.

What comes after

The program typically takes 4 to 5 months at standard cadence. Students complete the program when their assessments meet their target score, and take the TOEFL with the program behind them.

After TOEFL, students entering university often continue with Academic English work as their academic English needs evolve into university-level reading and writing demands. Students preparing US university applications often work on College Application Essays alongside or after TOEFL for the application-writing component.

The longer-term aim of TOEFL preparation is to make itself unnecessary. The program brings students to the point where they have taken the TOEFL with the preparation behind them, with a score that reflects the work they have put in. After that, the work is done. What they have learned about academic reading, listening under timed conditions, structured argumentative writing, and synthesis across multiple sources stays with them through every academic context that follows. A parent who is no longer worried about how their child will perform on the TOEFL is the point of all of it.

Common Questions

Common questions about TOEFL preparation at Harland.

Who is TOEFL preparation at Harland for? +
TOEFL preparation at Harland is for Grades 10–12 students preparing for university admissions. Most of our students fall into one of three patterns. Some are applying to US universities and graduate programs where the TOEFL is the required or preferred English proficiency test. Some are at international schools in Taiwan or across Asia where the TOEFL is a graduation milestone or part of the university-preparation pathway. Some have a specific section weakness, often in the integrated Speaking or Writing tasks, where one underperforming section is bounding their composite score.
My child has taken a practice TOEFL and the score isn't where they need it to be. How does Harland approach this? +
The first step is a diagnostic that establishes a baseline across the TOEFL's four sections, so the work focuses on the gaps that move the score rather than on areas the student already handles. From there, lessons are calibrated to the student's specific gap pattern and target score. A student strong in the independent Speaking task but weak in the integrated Speaking tasks gets heavier weighting on those tasks, with synthesis practice that builds the cross-skill move they require. A student whose Writing academic discussion task is solid but whose integrated Writing task is bounded gets heavier weighting on that task, with structural work focused on the rhetorical moves that distinguish higher scores. Score progression is tracked against the target on every unit assessment, so families see whether the work is moving the score and where the next gains are coming from.
Can my child begin TOEFL preparation over the summer? +
Yes. Summer is a productive window for TOEFL preparation, particularly for students preparing for autumn test sittings or autumn university applications. Many of our TOEFL students use 6 to 8 weeks over summer to build the diagnostic-driven foundation that the school year then refines through ongoing practice. Your Student Coordinator helps map preparation to your target test date and university application timeline. See Summer Enrollment for full details.
What does the TOEFL program cover? +
The program typically runs 4 units of 11 lessons. Each lesson blends all four TOEFL sections: Reading (2 academic passages with 20 items under timed conditions), Listening (3 lectures and 2 conversations across academic contexts and accent variation), Speaking (4 tasks including one independent task on a familiar topic and three integrated tasks that combine just-read passages with just-heard audio, all recorded for grading), and Writing (one integrated task synthesizing a passage with a related lecture, plus an academic discussion task). The weighting between sections shifts toward whichever sections the student needs most, recalibrated after each unit's assessment. Earlier units emphasize content foundation. Later units shift toward test-condition practice, including full-length cross-skill simulations. These integrated tasks are TOEFL's signature feature, so the program treats them as full curricular work throughout.
How long is each lesson and how often does my child attend? +
Lessons are 1-on-1 sessions of 1 to 2 hours, in person at our head office in Da'an or online. Lesson length is calibrated to how much support the student needs and the time available before their test date. Two-hour lessons typically cover one or two section areas in depth, with room for full-length cross-skill simulations where the synthesis work benefits from uninterrupted practice. Shorter lessons focus on a specific question type or run at higher cadence in the weeks before a test. The program is 4 units of 11 lessons. At two lessons per week, the program typically takes 4 to 5 months. Higher cadence compresses the timeline. The Student Coordinator helps you choose the cadence and lesson length that fit.
How are lessons scheduled, and what if we need to reschedule? +
Lessons happen on a fixed weekly slot reserved with your child's primary teacher. This protects the teacher's time and keeps a consistent rhythm for your child. If you need to reschedule, give us at least 24 hours of notice and we'll find another time when your teacher is available. Many families add classes during summer or winter vacation, either to accelerate progress or to make up for a slower term. Once a unit has started, it should be completed within a defined window. For a typical 11-lesson unit, that means finishing within 15 weeks of the start date. The Student Coordinator walks through the details when you enroll.
How do you measure progress? +
Progress is measured against each student's target score, and the universities they are applying to. The pre-course diagnostic establishes the baseline across the TOEFL's four sections. The eleventh lesson of each unit runs as a formative in-house assessment, followed by an at-home summative mock measured against the diagnostic. Section-score progression tracked against the target across both assessments. At the close of the program, a full TOEFL is completed under exam conditions, including full simulations of the cross-skill tasks. Parents receive a written record after every lesson covering what was taught and the homework set, plus unit-level progress reports. This means score progression is visible throughout the program, not only at test day. Families see whether the work is moving the score at every unit boundary, with enough lead time to adjust cadence or focus before the test date arrives. Where helpful, the Student Coordinator translates this into the rhythm of your child's specific university application timeline.
How do we begin? +
Every Harland relationship begins with a consultation, followed by a 1-on-1 assessment class. The consultation is about your goals and your child's situation. The assessment class is about how your child works in the subject. Together they tell us where to start and what kind of teacher will fit best.

Related at Harland

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Test Preparation
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Related Program
Academic English (Grades 3–12)
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Faculty
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