Writing Practice Set 1: Passage, Lecture, and Question Directions: Give yourself 3 minutes to read the passage. READING TIME: 3 minutes In an effort to encourage ecologically sustainable forestry practices, an international organization started issuing certifications to wood companies that meet high ecological standards by conserving resources and recycling materials. Companies that receive this certification can attract customers bby advertising their products as “ecocertified.” Around the world, many wood companies have adopted new, ecologically friendly practices in order to receive ecocertification. However, unlikely that wood companies in the United States will do the same, for several reasons. First, American consumers are exposed to so much advertising that they would not value or even pay attention to the ecocertification label. Because so many mediocre products are labeled “new' or “improved,” American consumers do not place much trust in advertising claims in general. ‘Second, ecocertified wood will be more expensive than uncertified wood because in order to earn ecocertification, a wood company must pay to have its business examined by a certification agency. This additional cost gets passed on to consumers. American consumers tend to be strongly motivated by price, and therefore they are likely to choose cheaper uncertified wood products. Accordingly, American wood companies will prefer to keep their prices low rather than obtain ecocertification Third, although some people claim that it always makes good business sense for American ‘companies to keep up with the developments in the rest of the world, this argument is not convincing. Pursuing certification would make sense for American wood companies only if they marketed most of their products abroad. But thet is not the case— American wood businesses sell most of their products in the United States, catering to a very large customer base that is satisfied with the merchandise. Directions: Here is the transcript. Narrator Now listen to part of a lecture on the topic you just read about. Professor Well, despite what many people say, there's good reason to think that many American wood companies will eventually seek ecocertification for their ‘wood products. First off, consumers in the United States don't treat all advertising the same. They distinguish between advertising claims that companies make about their own products and claims made by independent certification agencies. Americans have a lot of confidence in independent consumer agencies. Thus, ecologically minded Americans are likely to react very favorably to wood products ecologically certified by an independent organization with an international reputation for trustworthiness.Second point—of course it’s true that American consumers care a lot about price— doesn't? But studies of how consumers make decisions show that price alone determines consumers’ decisions only when the price of one competing product is much higher or lower than another. When the price difference between two products is smai—say, less than five percent, as is the case with certified wood— ‘Americans often do choose on factors other than price. And Americans are becoming increasingly convinced of the value of preserving and protecting the environment. ‘And third, U.S. wood companies should definitely pay attention to what's going on in the wood business internationally, not because of foreign consumers, but ‘because of foreign competition. As | just told you, there's a good chance that many ‘American consumers will be interested in ecocertified products. And guess what, if American companies are slow capturing those customers, you can be sure that foreign companies will soon start crowding into the American market, offering ecocertified wood that domestic companies don’t. Directions: Give yourself 20 minutes to plan and write your response. Your response is judged on the quality of the writing and on how well it presents the points in the lecture and their relationship to the reading passage. Typically, an effective response will be 150 to 225 words. You may view the reading passage while you respond. RESPONSE TIME: 20 minutes 35. Summarize the points made in the lecture, being sure to expl specific points made in the reading passage. how they cast doubt onReading the Article ic. It is important to First, you will read a short article about an academic top! i ticle is structured in the understand how the article is structured, because every ar same way. The article begins with a main idea. The main idea is clearly expressed in the first paragraph of the reading. In our example question the main idea is: American companies will not certify their wood products The main idea is followed by three body paragraphs. Each paragraph explains one point that supports the main idea. In the sample question, the points are: 1. American consumers see too many advertising claims already ; 2. Ecocertified wood is more expensive than regular wood because of inspection costs 3. Certification is only good for companies selling outside of the USA Listening to the Lecture ‘After you are done with the reading, you will listen to a short lecture on the same topic. At the beginning of the lecture, you will hear the lecturer's main idea. It will always be the direct opposite of the main idea in the reading. In our example question, the main point of the lecture is: ‘American companies will eventually certify their wood See? It is the complete opposite of the main idea from the reading! ‘After stating his main idea, the lecturer will describe three counter-points that support his main idea. It is important to note that these counter-points directly challenge the points made in the reading. Not only that, but they challenge them in the same order. In our example question, the counter-points are: 1. Consumers recognize and care about claims from official agencies. 2. Customers only care when there is a major price difference 3. Wood companies need to worry about foreign competitionTaking Notes Now that you know how the sources are structured, note-taking should be easy. Do it just like this: Reading eeture Wetchng Cotes poot Point one Malchng cower sont Point two Conner pont Point three However, it is important to note that in addition to noting the points and counter- points, you need to get some of the supporting details that are mentioned with them. In the reading, these are mentioned in the same paragraph as each point, fhe lecture they are mentioned at the same time as the counter-point. and int Here are my final notes from the example question (supporting details are in cursive): Lecture Reading Point 1 +] American consumers sec Counterpoint 1 | many advertising claims already Il These claims very bold, so consumers ignore them too| Consumers recognize and care about claims from official agencies // Will favor products certifications ‘from trustyworthy groups ‘Customers only care about major price differences // Price is only a problem when the difference is more than 5%. 3+] Certification is only good for| Wood companies need to companies selling outside of the | worry about foreign USA// American companies sell| competition // — Foreign domestically, and their | companies that certify their customers are products will steal their customers +|Ecocertified wood is more expensive than regular wood because of inspection costs // Consumers prefer cheap wood Point 2 Counterpoint 2 Point CounterpointWriting Your Essay Your essay must include an introduction and three body paragraphs. The Introduction Write your introduction using the following template: The reading and the lecture are both about______, which is The author of the reading believes that. . (Main idea) The lecturer casts doubt on the claims made in the article. He/She thinks that . (Main idea) For our sample essay, the introduction would look something like this: The reading and the lecture are both about ecocertification of wood products, which is @ way to show that they are environmentally friendly. The author of the reading believes that American companies will not adopt this practice. The lecturer casts doubts on the claims made in the article. ‘She thinks that American wood companies will eventually certify their products. You should be able to use this template every time you write an integrated essay. Your First Body Paragraph Here's a template to follow for your first body paragraph: First of all, the author points out that . (point 1) It is mentioned that . (supporting detail) This point is challenged by the lecturer. She says . (counter-point 1) Furthermore, she argues . (supporting detail) In our example question, the first body paragraph would look something like this: First of all, the author points out that customers will likely ignore such a label. Itis mentioned that many products are now given special labels, so shoppers no longer trust them. This point is challenged by the lecturer. She says customers actually do pay attention to claims when they are made by official agencies. Furthermore, she she argues that Americans will be enthusiastic about products that are endorsed by a trustworthy organizationYour Second and Third Body Paragraphs Your second and third body paragraphs are done in the exact same way with the exact same structure. Just remember to change your verbs (states, mentions, etc). To make this easier, here are my recommended templates for the rest of the essay: Secondly, the author contends that 2 The article notes : The lecturer rebuts this argument. She suggests = She elaborates on this by mentioning that Finally, the author states that The article establishes that + The lecturer, on the other hand, posits that She puts forth the idea that Here's how our sample essay would go: Secondly, the author contends that it costs a lot to have wood inspected, so certified products will be more expensive. The article notes that American consumers are strongly motivated by price, and will choose products that have not been certified. The lecturer rebuts this argument. She suggests that customers do not care too much about small differences in price. She elaborates on this by mentioning that certified products will only be about five percent more expensive, which will not affect the purchasing decisions of buyers. Finally, the author states that certification only makes sense for companies that sell products outside of the United States. The article establishes that American firms sell most of their products domestically, and their customers are happy with thei merchandise as it is. The professor, on the other hand, posits that American businesses should be afraid of foreign competitors. She puts forth the idea that foreign firms could flood into America and win customers by selling ecocertified wood to people who care about the environment. Your Conclusion ‘You do not need to write a concluding paragraph. Don't waste your time trying. Instead use it to proofread your work.Writing the TOEFL Integrated Essay Without Fear: A7-step Plan 4. Find the Topic Siar by finding the shared topic of the reading and listening passages. The topic is the genoral idea that is found throughout the passages, and will be just a few words. To find it, Iook (or listen) for repeated words and ideas throughout the passages. 2. Find the Claim ‘Ask yourself, “What is the author or speaker saying about the topic?” The answer to this question is your claim. Often, you will hear the claim after a brief introduction to the topic. 3. Find the Reasons Next listen or read for reasons that explain or prove the claim in both the reading and listening passages, ‘Those may be examplos, facts or other details. If you are starting to fool fos, don't panic! Listen for addition transitions like “next” “also” and “furthermore.” These transitions give you a clue that important details are 4, Find the Connection Between the Reading and Listening The goal of the TOEFL Integrated essay is to consider how the reading and listening passages connect to Gach other, Take a look at the claims that you identified in the reading and listening passages. Do they agree or disagree? 5. Organize Your Essay! ‘There are two options to organize your essay: block style or point by point. Block Style For a block style essay, you start with an introduction that explains the connection between the reading and listening lecture. ‘Then, you combine all ofthe points from the reading in one paragraph. and combine all ofthe points rom Whe Istening in another paragraph. This is an especially good option i you had a hard time understanding some of the details in the reading or listening passages (or both) Point by Point ‘Fhis type of organization starts out similar to block ste, with an introduction explaining the relationship betvean the claims. But instead of separating the reading and listening in blocks, each paragraph is ‘are connected through the detail that they share. ‘organized around a single point. The reading and listening ‘Thus type of organization shows a deeper understanding of the reading and listening lecture. 6. Use Transition Words Shean so'you have identified the topic, claim and detals. You have decided which type of organization to use. Now, how do you write the essay? ransition words. A transition shows the reader how your sentences gs of sentences, are related to each other. First, use your tr ‘These words are often at the beginnins It the reading and listening passages have opposite viewpoints, you will want to show that You understand that by using contrast transitions like “however,” “but and “although.” “similarly,” “also” and “equally.” You can also use comparison transitions —like 3," next” of “lastly.” Ifthe viewpoints are similar, .graphs. For example: “frst use number transitions at the beginnings of paras 7. Paraphrase Paraphrasing (or restating the ideas in your own words) is Key for high scores? do to make it easier to paraphrase while writing your essay: Here are some things you can Leam lots of synonyms (words that have the same meaning) Build your English vocabulary Learn lots of sentence structures and verb forms.Integrated essay - Academic reading passage and lecture on the same topic. You may take notes as you read and listen. EXERCISE 1 1) Read this passage for 3 min. ‘Critics say that current voting systems used in the United States are ineilicrent and often Jead to the inaccurate counting of votes. Miscounts can be especially damaging if an election 1s closely contested. Those critics would like the traditional systems to be replaced with far more efficient and trustworthy computerized voting systems. In traditional voting, one major source of inaccuracy is that people accidentally vote for the wrong candidate. Voters usually have to find the name of their candidate on a large sheet of Paper containing many names—the ballot—and make a small mark next to that name. People with poor eyesight can easily mark the wrong name, The computerized voting machines have an asy-lo-use touch-screen technology: 10 cast a vote, a voter needs only to touch the candidate's ame on the screen to record a vote for that candidate, voters can even have the computer ‘magnify the name for easier viewing. Another major problem with old voting systems is that they rely heavily on people to count the votes. Officials must often count up the votes one by one, going through every ballot and recording the vote. Since they have to deal with thousands of ballots, # is almost inevitable that they will make mistakes. If an error is detected, a long and expensive recount has to take Place. In contrast, computerized systems remove the possibility of human error, since all the vote counting 1s done quickly and automatically by the computers Finally some people say 111s too risky to implement complicated voting technology nationwide. But without giving it a thought, governments and individuals alike trust other complex computer technology every day to be perfectly accurate in banking transactions as well as in the communication of highly sensitive information. 2) Now hear a lecture on the same topic as the passage. 3) Summarize the points made in the lecture, being sure to explain how they oppose specific points made in the reading passage. You will not write about your own opinion for this task You have 20 min to plan, write and revise your response. 150-225 words. Exercise 2 Ina vote that took place at the International Astronomical Union Conference on August 24th, 2006, Pluto lost its status as a planet in our solar system. Pluto was originally discovered in 1930 when scientists were searching for something that was interfering with Uranus's orbit. Though Pluto was estimated to be similar in size to Earth, it was later discovered that it was even smaller than our own moon, as well as many other moons. It is now known that there are thousands of planetary objects similar to Pluto, including Eris which is slightly larger than Pluto. Choosing to reclassify Pluto to a dwarf planet honors the fact that science is about making new discoveries. While it was a sad day for Pluto lovers, people in general have accepted the idea, and the next generation of children will grow up knowing only eight planets and thinking nothing of it. As Mike Brown, the astronomer who discovered Eris, noted following the IUC's decision, “science is self-correcting.”