Question 5 ”What TOEIC (L/R) score do I need for business?”　英語学習法

ビジネス英語の学習法やポイントについて聞く Q&A 第5弾は、
“What TOEIC (L/R) score do I need for business?” です。

「ビジネスでつかうためには、TOEIC(R)テストのスコアはどれくらい必要なのか？」

Hikaは次のように言っています。

『よくTOEIC(R)テストで860点をとれば英語でコミュニケーションすることができる、
と思っている人がいますが、これは正しくありません。

TOEIC(R)テストで900点以上のスコアがあってもうまく英語を話せない人はたくさんいますし、
逆にスコアが600点の人でもうまくビジネスでコミュニケーションができている人はいます。

TOEIC(R)テストはコミュニケーションスキルを測るためのテストではなく、
「英語基礎力をはかるためのテスト」なんですね。

ですので、「英語上級者」の方はTOEIC(R)テストのスコアなんて気にせず、
コミュニケーションスキルの修得にフォーカスするのがよいと思います。

「英語初級者」の方は、TOEIC(R)テストのための勉強もよいかもしれませんが、
あくまでもボキャブラリーや文法といった英語基礎力を高めた結果としてスコアアップを目指すべきで、
TOEIC(R)テストのためのテクニックを学習すべきではないと考えます。

本当の目的は、「よいコミュニケーター」になることだと思うからです。』

「ではTOEIC(R)テストは使わずに、どうやって自分の成長を測ることができるのか？」

Hikaが自分自身の日本での経験を踏まえてどうしたらいいかについて説明しています。
詳しくは、動画をご覧ください！

Hello and welcome to this Bizmates
question and answer video series.

And today's question is kind of a sensitive one.
It's a difficult one.

What TOEIC listening and reading score do I need for business?

Hmm. Tough question.
Now first of all we need to understand,

what is TOEIC listening and reading.
What is this test? What does it measure?

Because some people will say something like this.

"Yeah if I can get over 860 points on the TOEIC,
I can communicate in English. Hmm 860..."

I'm sorry to say this, but it's not true. I know many people
who have over 900, and they're very bad communicators.

I know people with 600 points
who are actually very good communicators. OK.

And the reason is TOEIC isn't a test that measures
your communication skills.

It's a test which measures your base in English.
And it does that really well.

It's actually... I've taught TOEIC for many years.
And I have nothing to say anything bad about TOEIC.

But it's a test that measures your base in English,
and it's important to understand that. OK.

So you know a lot of the advanced students who are really
good speakers. They don't care so much about TOEIC.

OK. They focus on communication.

Now beginner students. Yes.
Maybe it's OK to focus on TOEIC.

You want to improve your TOEIC score.
But improve your TOEIC score by building,

your base in English, by learning vocabulary,
by learning grammar.

Not by learning TOEIC techniques.
I don't think that's the right way.

OK, because the real goal is to become a better communicator.

No? Well I think so. OK. So but when I say this many students say.

OK Hika, that's fine OK. I won't use TOEIC.
Then how can I measure my progress?

And this is even a tougher question.

Yeah. Now there are many other test out there.
For example, BULATS which is a very business focused test.

But I don't know if the test is the best way.
You know I've lived in Japan for many years.

And to be honest I don't feel that my Japanese skills have
really improved over the last 16 years. I don't think so.

But when I think about my Japanese.
You know, and I think, wait a second,

Can I keep up in teleconferences more easily than before?
I think yes I can.

And if I think can I make presentations better than before?
I think yes I can.

You know, can I express my opinion more naturally than before?
Absolutely I can.

And can I do my work more effectively in English than before
when I started studying? Absolutely.

And that's really the measure of your progress.
That's what I think.

And if you don't stop and think about this,
it's difficult to notice.

But sometimes stop and just think about it.

Are you getting better? OK.
And, if you really think about these individual things.

And these are just four. There are many, many, many
more you could think of. You'll realize...

Hey, my English has gotten a lot better. OK.

So I hope that answers your question about TOEIC.

Please ask me another question soon.
OK, thank you.