Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Answering TOEFL Essay Questions

QUESTION:
How much flexibility do I have in the TOEFL essays? Is it possible to change the question a little bit when I answer it?

ANSWER:
You have no flexibility when answering the question. It is essential that you answer without changing the question in any way. For
example, if the question is about the qualities of a good parent, then these are the qualities that should be discussed. In other
words, don't write about how parents used to raise their children 50 years ago.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Answering TOEFL Essay Questions

QUESTION:
How much flexibility do I have in the TOEFL essays? Is it possible to change
the question a little bit when I answer it?

ANSWER:
It is not possible to change the question. It is essential that you answer
the question without changing it in any way. For example, if the question is
about the qualities of a good parent, then these are the qualities that
should be discussed. In other words, don't write about how parents used to
raise their children 50 years ago.

Answering TOEFL Essay Questions

QUESTION:
How much flexibility do I have in the TOEFL essays? Is it possible to change
the question a little bit when I answer it?

ANSWER:
It is not possible to change the question. It is essential that you answer
the question without changing it in any way. For example, if the question is
about the qualities of a good parent, then these are the qualities that
should be discussed. In other words, don't write about how parents used to
raise their children 50 years ago.

"Information on" vs. "Information about"

QUESTION:

What’s the difference between "information on" and "information about"?

 

ANSWER:

To be honest with you, I can’t think of a situation where we can use one but not the other. If you can give me a specific sentence, maybe I’ll be able to give you better advice. There may be a difference, but this is something that I can’t even find in my grammar book. 

 

Time Management in the TOEFL Essay

QESTION:

I have difficulty writing the TOEFL essay in less than 30 minutes. I have allocated my time as follows:

10 minutes:  outline, thesis statement, introduction

05 minutes:  paragraph 1

05 minutes:  paragraph 2

05 minutes:  conclusion

05 minutes:  review

Is this a good use of my time for the TOEFL independent writing?

 

ANSWER:

Your allocation of time looks good. Most TOEFL  books I’ve seen simply recommend 3 to 5 minutes for the outline, 3 to 5 minutes for the review, and the remaining time for the actual writing of the essay.