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https://www.ets.org/Media/Tests/TOEFL/pdf/989563wt.

pdfTOEFL WRITING
Pool of topics
Types of TOEFL Essay Topics
Agree or Disagree
Preference
Description / Explanation
If / Imaginary
Compare & Contrast


Essay 1

If you could change one thing about your hometown, what would it be?

Everything in the universe is in constant change. And everything needs continual
betterment if the changing and increasing demands of humankind are to be met.
If I was given the chance to change one important thing about my home town, it
would be internet service. Needless to say, nothing has revolutionized the way we
live as much as internet in the past decade. Thus, an advance in this vital service
would mean an even more, unheard improvement to the people in my home
town.

It is said that information is power. This is undoubtedly true! I can envision how
everything in my home town could improve dramatically if the internet service in
it were made free and fast. Besides, a high- speed free and reliable internet
service could improve the way people work. If there was a better service, people
in my home town neednt commute to a far place to do their job. This, therefore,
would bring about less traffic jams, less crowded workplaces, more time for
family and recreation and so on and so forth.

The way people learn would be another important thing that a fast, free and
reliable internet service could better my home town. People will have the chance
to have access to relevant and varied information resources in a very small
amount of time. This will assure a more fulfilled life for my home town people.

Since its discovery, internet touched every part of our life. It has amazingly
improved the way we do business, learn and communicate. A change in internet
service implies a better lifestyle for everyone in my home town.


TECHNOLOGY

Does modern technology make life more convenient, or was life better when
technology was simpler?
Will modern technology, such as the internet ever replace the book or the written
word as the main source of information?
We are becoming increasingly dependent on computers. They are used in
businesses, hospitals, crime detection and even to fly planes. What things will
they be used for in future? Is this dependence on computers a good thing or
should we be more suspicious of their benefits? Use specific details and examples
in your answer.
In what ways has information technology changed work and working practices in
the past 10 years?

EMPLOYMENT

Should retirement be compulsory at 65 years of age?
Telecommuting' refers to workers doing their jobs from home for part of each
week and communicating with their office using computer technology.
Telecommuting is growing in many countries and is expected to be common for
most office workers in the coming decades. How do you think society will be
affected by the growth of telecommuting?
In some countries the average worker is obliged to retire at the age of 50, while in
others people can work until they are 65 or 70. Until what age do you think
people should be encouraged to remain in paid employment? Give reasons for
your answer.

ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY
To what extent should economic planning be influenced by the need of
environmental conservation?
Damage of the environment is an inevitable consequence of worldwide
improvements in the standard of living. Discuss.
The rising levels of congestion and air pollution found in most of the world cities
can be attributed directly to the rapidly increasing number of private cars in use.
In order to reverse this decline in the quality of life in cities, attempts must be
made to encourage people to use their cars less and public transport more.
Discuss possible ways to encourage the use of public transport.


GENDER ISSUES - ESSAY TOPICS

To what extent has the traditional male role changed in the last 20 years?
Many people believe that women make better parents than men and that this is
why they have the greater role in raising children in most societies. Others claim
that men are just as good as women at parenting Write an essay expressing your
point of view. Give reasons for your answer.

EDUCATION

Education is the single most important factor in the development of a country. Do
you agree?
What are factors which are related to academic success in high-school students?
Do the benefits of study abroad justify the difficulties? What advice would you
offer to a prospective student?
The idea of going overseas for university study is an exciting prospect for many
people. But while it may offer some advantages, it is probably better to stay home
because of the difficulties a student inevitably encounters living and studying in a
different culture. To what extent do you agree or disagree this statement? Give
reasons for your answer.
Education is recognized as vital to the future of any society in today's world.
Governments throughout the world should make education compulsory for all
children between the ages of 5 and 15. To what extent do you agree or disagree
with this statement?
Foreign language instruction should begin in kindergarten. Discuss.
Should sports classes be sacrificed in High School so students can concentrate on
academic subjects?

Integrated Writing sample

READING
First examinees see the following reading passage on their computer screen for
three minutes:
In many organizations, perhaps the best way to approach certain new projects
is to assemble a group of people into a team. Having a team of people attack a
project offers several advantages. First of all, a group of people has a wider
range of knowledge, expertise, and skills than any single individual is likely to
possess. Also, because of the numbers of people involved and the greater
resources they possess, a group can work more quickly in response to the task
assigned to it and can come up with highly creative solutions to problems and
issues. Sometimes these creative solutions come about because a group is
more likely to make risky decisions that an individual might not undertake. This
is because the group spreads responsibility for a decision to all the members
and thus no single individual can be held accountable if the decision turns out
to be wrong. Taking part in a group process can be very rewarding for members
of the team. Team members who have a voice in making a decision will no
doubt feel better about carrying out the work that is entailed by that decision
than they might doing work that is imposed on them by others. Also, the
individual team member has a much better chance to shine, to get his or her
contributions and ideas not only recognized but recognized as highly significant,
because a teams overall results can be more far-reaching and have greater
impact than what might have otherwise been possible for the person to
accomplish or contribute working alone.

They listen to:
(Professor) Now I want to tell you about what one company found when it
decided that it would turn over some of its new projects to teams of people,
and make the team responsible for planning the projects and getting the work
done. After about six months, the company took a look at how well the teams
performed.
On virtually every team, some members got almost a free ride ... they didnt
contribute much at all, but if their team did a good job, they nevertheless
benefited from the recognition the team got. And what about group members
who worked especially well and who provided a lot of insight on problems and
issues? Well...the recognition for a job well done went to the group as a whole,
no names were named. So it wont surprise you to learn that when the real
contributors were asked how they felt about the group process, their attitude
was just the opposite of what the reading predicts.
Another finding was that some projects just didnt move very quickly. Why?
Because it took so long to reach consensus...it took many, many meetings to
build the agreement among group members about how they would move the
project along. On the other hand, there were other instances where one or two
people managed to become very influential over what their group did.
Sometimes when those influencers said That will never work about an idea
the group was developing, the idea was quickly dropped instead of being
further discussed. And then there was another occasion when a couple
influencers convinced the group that a plan of theirs was highly creative. And
even though some members tried to warn the rest of the group that the project
was moving in directions that might not work, they were basically ignored by
other group members. Can you guess the ending to *this* story? When the
project failed, the blame was placed on all the members of the group to
accomplish or contribute working alone.

Summarize the points made in the lecture you just heard, explaining how they
cast doubt on points made in the reading.

Benchmark Annotations: Reading-Listening-Writing Task
Level 5 Benchmark Examinee Response:

The lecturer talks about research conducted by a firm that used the group
system to handle their work. He says that the theory stated in the passage was
very different and somewhat inaccurate when compared to what happened for
real.

First, some members got free rides. That is, some didnt work hard but got
recognition for the success. This also indicates that people who worked hard
was not given recognition they should have got. In other words, they werent
given the opportunity to shine. This directly contradicts what the passage
indicates.

Second, groups were slow in progress. The passage says that groups are more
responsive than individuals because of the number of people involved and their
aggregated resources. However, the speaker talks about how the firm found
out that groups were slower than individuals in decision making. Groups
needed more time for meetings, which are necessary procedures in decision
making. This was another part where experience contradicted theory.

Third, influential people might emerge, and lead the group towards glory or
failure. If the influent people are going in the right direction there would be no
problem. But in cases where they go in the wrong direction, there is nobody
that has enough influence to counter the decision made. In other words, the
group might turn into a dictatorship, with the influential party as the leader,
and might be less flexible in thinking. They might become one-sided, and thus
fail to succeed.

The Introduction
Start with a sentence like "The article and the lecture are about..." followed
by "The author of the article feels that..." Continue with a transitional sentence
like "The lecturer disagrees/agrees with the article." Conclude with "He says
that..."
For the above topic our introduction would be something like this:

"The article and the lecture are about the best place for a child to group up. The
author feels that living in the city is best for children. The lecturer disagrees with
the author. He says that it is better for a child to live in the country than in the
city."
The Body Paragraphs
You should write one short body paragraph for each of the points (and
counterpoints/supports) in the outline above. Be sure to include as many details
as you can. Details from the lecture are more impressive (since you only get to
listen to it once), but remember that it is also necessary to include details from
the reading. Keep in mind that you cannot COPY details from the reading. Use
your own words.
Here are some basic tips:
1. Begin your first body paragraph with "First" your second with "second" and
your third with "third."
2. When transitioning from discussing the article to discussing the lecture, use
transitional phrases like "the lecturer challenges these claims by stating
that..." or "the lecturer casts doubt on this claim." If the lecture supports the
reading, try phrases like "the lecturer supports this claim by..." or "the
lecturer reinforces the reading by..."
3. Don't use boring phrases like "he says that." Try something like "he observes
that," "he claims that" or "he suggests that."
4.
Here's a sample body paragraph using the example given above:
"First, the author claims that living in the city is better because cities have more
educational opportunities for children. He points out that there are more schools
for parents to choose from. He also mentions that there are more amenities like
museums, art galleries and academic clubs for students to join. The lecturer casts
doubts on these claims by referring to the problems with urban schools. He
observes that schools in cities have higher violence and drop-out rates than
schools in the country. He suggests that this can have a negative effect on the
academic future of children."

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