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Outline
You must pass through four steps to do well on this question:
1st: read the question to understand all parts you must answer
2nd: outline your essay 2-4 minutes
3rd: write your essay in an efficient way 20-25 minutes
4th: proofread your essay for major grammatical and structural errors 2-4 minutes
Next, we learn exactly how to pass through these steps to get the highest score possible.
1st: read the question to understand all parts you must answer back to the top
You will read a question about one of twenty-nine familiar topics. These topics are listed in this page for your reference. These questions appear in three forms:
Closed questions ask you to take one of two sides. Your job is simple. Choose a side and support it. Our practice was an example of this.
Closed Example Question
It has recently been announced that a new movie theater may be built in your neighborhood. Do you support or oppose this plan? Why? Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.
Open questions ask you to form your own answer. In other words, the question asks you to think of your own answer and you can choose any answer you wish.
Open Example Question
If you could change one important thing about your hometown, what would you change? Use reasons and specific examples to support your answer.
More questions ask you to do more than state your answer and support it. They often ask you to list the advantages and disadvantages of both sides and then support one.
More Example Question
Some people prefer to spend time with one or two close friends. Others choose to spend time with a large number of friends. Compare the advantages of each choice. Which of these two ways of spending time do you prefer? Use specific reasons to support your answer.
Good news: that’s it! You will see a question about one of twenty-nine familiar topics in one of the three forms we just described. Make sure you read carefully and answer all parts of the question.
Many students skip this step and some students don’t do this step and do a good job. So, in my TOEFL class I ran an experiment. One day, I gave my students 30 minutes to answer a question and they all started typing away. Another day, I gave my students 30 minutes to answer a question but forced them to spend 2-4 minutes outlining their essay first. I asked who thought outlining made it easier and 80% of the class raised their hands. It works, so do it. Their essays were better too.
How do you outline your essay? Good question. Let me provide you with the simplest and most common answer. Make a table like the one you see here; make two columns, one for each side; fill each column as fast as you can with reasons to support the side; choose your answer according to the column with the best and easiest reasons to support.
Example Outline
| Support |
Oppose |
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city earns more taxes
may inspire more businesses
creates jobs
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add traffic
add noise
take away business from others
better ways to develop city
|
Did you see what I said? The EASIEST to support. Remember, this is a timed test. Don’t worry about answering with the most meaningful reasons. Choose reasons that are appropriate and simple. This is more about showing fluency through structure, grammar, and coherence, not through powerful ideas.
In about 25 minutes you need to write a four-paragraph essay with at least 300 words to earn a fair score (20/30). Each paragraph must do a specific job. If you master what comes next, you’ll be able to write a good essay on any topic within 30 minutes on your test day.
The first paragraph
1st: introduces the topic
2nd: restates the question
3rd: presents your answer (or thesis as some would call it)
The second paragraph
1st: presents your first reason to support your answer
2nd: offers general support for your reason
3rd: offers specific support for your reason
4th: summarizes the link among your example, reason, and answer
The third paragraph
1st: presents your first reason to support your answer
2nd: offers support for your reason
3rd: offers specific support for your reason
4th: summarizes the link among your example, reason, and answer
The fourth paragraph
1st: restates your answer
2nd: restates your reasons
In your introduction, you can write more than just 3 sentences, but make sure that you still accomplish the 3 basic steps. The topic of this question deals with “hometown.” Here’s an example of an introductory paragraph with a topic sentence that can work for any question that deals with “hometown.”
In the second and third paragraphs, the hardest part rests in producing a good, specific example that illustrates how your reason and answer are connected; that is, we need to present an example of how adding a movie theater produces my reasons that show the addition is a good idea. We’ll go with these reasons: generates jobs and adds tax revenue.
The conclusion is straightforward and simple to write.
Example Fair Essay
(1) Our hometown has a very important effect on our lives. (2) If a movie theater were going to be built in my hometown, some residents I’m sure would oppose this and others would support it. (3) In my view, a movie theater would be a positive addition for several reasons.
(1) The main reason is that the addition will generate jobs. (3) For example, in Knee City, my hometown, a new theater was built on a busy street corner. As the theater was being built, there were advertisements in the paper asking for construction workers and later for general employees for the movie theater. Many people applied and a few were able to work for the company. (4) These people wouldn’t have had the opportunity to work if it weren’t for the addition of the movie theater.
(1) Another reason is that a new movie theater will add tax revenue for the city. (3) For instance, after the theater in my hometown was built, it became very popular. My friends and I spent a lot more time in the area. Normally, we would go to a theater in a city about 15 miles away. After a year or two, we began to notice that our city was spending more money on schools and streets. Now, whenever there was a pothole, the city fixes it. (4) Our local newspaper said this was a result of the added tax revenue new businesses like the movie theater were adding.
(1) In sum, though some may oppose the plan, a new theater would be a great addition to my hometown and any other city. (2) Not only will the addition generate jobs for residents but the added tax revenue could also help the city provide more for its residents. 296 words.
This would earn a score of (22/30)
Example Good Essay
Most of us spend our childhood in one area. (1) As a result, our hometown has a very important effect on our lives. Every possible change must be considered carefully. (2) If a movie theater were going to be built in my hometown, some residents I’m sure would oppose this and others would support it. (3) In my view, a movie theater would be a positive addition to my hometown for several reasons.
(1) The main reason is that the addition will generate jobs. (2) In order to build the theater, construction workers will be needed, architects, engineers, and many other people. After it is built, managers and other employees will be needed to manage the theater. (3) For example, in Knee city, my hometown, a new theater was built on our busiest street, Main Street. Before the theater was built, there was just open land. As the theater was being constructed, there were advertisements in the paper asking for construction workers. Many people applied and a few were able to work for the company. After its construction, the ads didn’t stop since they started looking for dozens of employees to run the theater. (4) These people wouldn’t have had the opportunity to work if it weren’t for the addition of the movie theater.
(1) Another reason is that a new movie theater will add tax revenue for the city. (2) Many people who might have stayed home or driven somewhere away from the city to relax may decide to go to the theater instead. This money the theater generated is taxed. These tax dollars are new to the city and will add more tax revenue to help the city improve itself. (3) For instance, after the theater in my hometown was built, it became very popular. My friends and I spent a lot more time in the area. Normally, we would go to a theater in a city about 15 miles away. After a year or two, we began to notice that our city was spending more money on our schools and streets. Normally, it would work on the streets, fixing potholes, every few years. Now, whenever there was a pothole, the city would fix it within a month. Also, our school’s football team was able to get new uniforms, the first time in about 5 years. (4) Our local newspaper said this was a result of the added tax revenue new businesses like the movie theater were adding.
(1) In sum, though some may oppose the plan, a new theater would be a great addition to my hometown and any other city. (2) Not only will the addition generate jobs for residents but the added tax revenue could also help the city provide more for its residents. Every addition should be considered carefully, but in the end, new businesses are good for any city. 476 words.
This would earn a score of (30/30)
Though the instructions ask you for 300 words. To ensure a top score, get as close to 500 as possible. Of course, you can still get a fair score if you have only 250-350 words.
4th: proofread your essay for major grammatical and structural errors 2-4 minutes back to the top
If you get to this step, congratulations. That means you finished your essay and were able to have some time to fix major errors that would otherwise lower your score.
To improve your writing, check out our section on grammar and punctuation. To improve your word choice, check out our section on vocabulary. To learn how to avoid common mistakes that lower your score, click next to check out a student essay and how it can be improved considering grammar and structure.
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