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Mbbs 26 Aug, 2024
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The TOEFL, or Test of English as a Foreign Language, is one such gateway that allows foreign nationals to take up educational and professional opportunities in English-speaking countries. The writing section of TOEFL plays an imperative role in proving your English skills (which is to communicate very well). Resources Given the difficulty of this section, you must have good resources and practice materials to be clear. In this guide, we will talk about the key resources you need, books to practice from, and actionable tips that can help you ace your TOEFL writing.
The TOEFL writing section tests your ability to write in English clearly and effectively. There are two different elements in it, which include:
You will read a passage and then listen to a lecture on the same topic. Write an essay in which you explain how [the author] builds an argument to persuade his audience that ([author]'s claim). Your task is to give a concise overview of the important concepts from the lecture and their correlation with the reading. The fact is that this particular assignment tests how well you can draw from multiple sources and present information in a unified way.
You will receive a writing prompt with instructions to state an opinion on a controversy and support that position. You will have to write an essay that clearly expresses your opinion, along with details provided by reasons, examples, and specific details. This one tests your skills in developing and defending a well-thought-out argument.
To do well in the TOEFL writing section, you need good resources. Let us list down the indispensable resources.
You cannot do without official TOEFL prep books for learning test format and doing real practice problems. These books are offered by ETS (Educational Testing Service), which sets the test. Recommended official TOEFL prep books are:
ETS's Official Guide to the TOEFL Test: This book provides a very comprehensive overview of the test, along with practice questions and sample essays for both writing tasks.
Official TOEFL iBT Tests Volume 1 by ETS: Contains actual test questions and full explanations. It makes you familiar with the pattern of test day.
ETS Official TOEFL iBT Tests Volume 2: Another book by ETS that contains extra practice tests (and therefore, additional sample questions) as well as important tips for understanding the test.
Books like these are useful in getting to know the format and running through questions that mimic those on the real test as well.
They are essential so you can get used to the types of questions that they will ask, and they also mimic a real test environment for you. Both books will contain a practice test and an answer key as well as others that go into depth on why the assessment is right or wrong. TopBookToPrepare For SBI PO 2018 Raised To Challenge By PM Modi Here are recommended practice test books:
Kaplan Test Prep: Anything by Kaplan is always an easy pick for test prep, and this one provides you with similar strategies to Magoosh along with its full-length practice tests.
Barron's TOEFL iBT with CD-ROM by Pamela J. Sharpe: Offers practice tests, skill-building activities, and sample essays (with explanatory answer choices).
Princeton Review's Cracking the TOEFL iBT Princeton Review: Practice questions (including a full-length practice test) and traditional strategies.
Here are the resources so you can quickly see where you are at and if there is anything else that could help.
Aside from books, there are interactive checklists and information on the web to help practice TOEFL writing. Online resources that are considered highly recommended would include:
Magoosh TOEFL: It gives practice questions, video lessons, and personal feedback on writing tasks as well. Magoosh — Their interactive platform is great when you want to track progress and work on individual skills.
Testen: A decent amount of practice tests and sample essays.
Agentskart: Instant feedback on your performance (what is working and what needs to improve).
EDX TOEFL Preparation Course: Offers two writing tasks along with full courses, practice materials, tips, and strategies.
As an integral part of this format, these online platforms provide flexibility and learning which is quite interactive — the perfect accompaniment to regular study materials.
What features of TOEFL writing practice books to look out for:
Select prep books synthesizing every part of the TOEFL writing section. The book should contain model essays alongside integrated and independent writing exercises with sample answers along with detailed explanations.
Make certain that the practice questions are like those found on the real exam. This will get you used to what prompts and tasks look like.
Choose books that come with answer keys and detailed explanations. This will also help you with comprehension of why things are the way they are in the questionnaires and overall make your approach to writing better.
Seek out how-to books that dissect specific types of writing tasks. It will enable you to teach yourself different methods of organizing and structuring your thought processes.
Integrated Writing Task- Summarize someone else's writing and an oral speech together. You should make it explicitly clear how the lecture relates to the passage. The Independent Writing Task requires you to make a compelling argument and give logical explanations with specific examples.
Test Day Strategy: The key to success is time management. Write sample papers – essays, and responses in specified time constraints to be more efficient. You have 20 minutes for Task 1 and another extra ten minutes for Task 2. Practice tests help you get a feeling for these time constraints.
Good Writing Equals Clarity and Brevity. The key is for them to not be complex or come with too much technical jargon. Instead, clarity and directness are key ways to communicate. This helps you say what you want to and also makes it much easier for others to read your writing.
Always find the time to go back and reread your work. It should have appropriate grammar, correct spelling, and another edit pass for readability. Your essay comes out more polished and coherent when you revise it. You can use online grammar check tools to help with it.
It takes regular practice as well, and some feedback from teachers or tutors (or even your classmates) can help you understand how to do that. By receiving constructive feedback on your work, you can determine both what you do right and how to improve in the long run, which helps shape your writing style.
Sample responses can offer ideas of what excellent answers look like. Here are a few examples:
According to the reading, global warming has a strong effect on Polar bears and the loss of their habitats. He endorses this perspective but also argues that Arctic ice is melting, leading polar bears to swim longer distances in search of food. This extra swimming distance puts their survival at even greater risk because they use more energy and are less likely to find suitable food.
This passage underscored the need for green energy to address falling carbon emissions. The lecturer concurs but notes that returning the initial cost is tough because of high startup costs with renewable technology. According to the lecturer, these technologies need government subsidies and assistance for them to become much cheaper and more widely available.
Being diverse with the practice topics can make it easier for you to pass the exam. Here are some representative TOEFL writing topics:
Topic 1: In some countries, many more people are choosing to live alone nowadays than in the past. Do you think this is a positive or negative development? Which view do you think is more likely to reflect the position of any Commonwealth Country, and why? Give reasons for your answer by using specific examples.
Topic 2: The government should fund public transportation, but others believe road construction is more essential. This essay will examine both.
Some people think that these older people will not be able to teach business students, but others argue there is much they could offer. Online study gives so many more opportunities and some are afraid this change would jeopardize its potential growth in the future generations of teachers and learners (Discussion Question). Is this a good or bad thing for society? Elaborate on your response, with examples if necessary.
1. What are the components of the TOEFL Writing Section?
The TOEFL writing section has two tasks — the Integrated Writing Task, for which you need to summarize and integrate information from a reading passage and a lecture into an essay, and the Independent Writing Task where you have to write an essay on a topic in response to a prompt. The two of these tasks examine two separate, however overlapping, components linked to composing writing.
2. How to score good marks in the TOEFL writing section?
Practice using official prep books and online resources to get better practice in your TOEFL writing skills. Concentrate on the task requirements, and time management, and take feedback on your writing as gently. Also, go through a few example answers and use different prompts for practice to gain confidence.
3. What is the best way to practice for TOEFL writing?
Regular practice with sample essays, and interactive exercises on TOEFL writing, can make you proficient. Incorporate feedback on these essays to improve your writing skills. Aim for writing both practice essays within the time limits and correcting them for any possible errors in content or structure.
4. What are common mistakes to avoid in TOEFL writing?
Avoid common mistakes such as ignoring the prompt, not using specific examples, writing off-topic, or making grammatical and spelling errors. Make sure you understand the task requirements fully and spend time revising and editing your work.
5. How can practice books help in TOEFL writing?
Practice books provide a structured approach to preparation. They offer sample questions, model essays, and answer keys. They also give insight into the test format and help develop writing strategies that can improve your performance in the TOEFL writing section.
