2018-06-28 TOEFL: ind writing

Greg Malivuk
[email protected]
http://www.pastebin.com/u/gmalivuk - notes from all classes
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https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-psychology-of-post-traumatic-stress-disorder-joelle-maletis
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Homework: Finish the handout. Audio is at the link in your email.
1 b
2 a
3 b
4 c
5 - 1 1 2 1 2 2
6 - 3 2 1 3
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Remember: reader and listener “effort” is one of the things considered when scoring your writing and speaking responses.
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Writing Section: Fourth and last section of the test, about 1 hour total, 2 tasks, 50 minutes of writing time
1 integrated: 3 minutes to read a text, listen to a lecture about the same topic, 20 minutes to write about the points from the lecture and how they relate to the points from the reading passage
2 independent: read a prompt with a choice question, 30 minutes to write and support your opinion about the question
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Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
    It is better to have broad knowledge of many academic subjects than to specialize in one specific subject.
Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
- This is an agree/disagree prompt.
- The other possibility is a some people / other people prompt.
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It’s usually best to clearly pick exactly one of the options and support it. An “it depends” answer requires you to find good reasons to support both sides and make it clear how the answer depends on those reasons.
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Typically, an effective response will contain a minimum of 300 words. It should have 4-6 paragraphs.
Introduction: give background and summarize the options you’re choosing between, state your opinion (thesis statement), lead-in connecting this to the supporting ideas
2-4 Body Paragraphs: state your reason, convince readers that the reason is true, convince readers that the reason supports your thesis
Conclusion: summarize your reasons and restate your opinion, advice/recommendation/prediction for the future (a “takeaway” for the reader)
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Be careful how you use “synonymous” transition signals:
There are many advantages to living alone, such as independence, freedom, and saving your parents money.
There are many advantages to living alone. For example, young aduls who live alone develop more independence than young adults who stay with their parents for a long time.
Even though it was raining, we still had class outside. / We had class outside even though it was raining.
It was raining. However, we still had class outside.
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If you’re not sure how to use a particular transition signal, it’s best to just avoid it in your TOEFL writing.
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BREAK
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K.I.S.S. = Keep It Simple, Stupid
Writing practice - ETS 1.1 and Oxford happiness topics.