TOEFL Speaking Success by Josh MacPherson

2
About the Author

Josh MacPherson is the Academic
Coordinator of the Intensive English
and TOEFL programs at ASA College in
midtown Manha?an. He holds a
b a c h e l o r’ s d e g r e e i n S e c o n d a r y
Education and a master’s degree in ESL
Curriculum and Instruction. Over the
past ten years Josh has taught English,
American History and TOEFL test prep
in New York, Korea and Japan. After
teaching for many years in both the
public and private sector, Josh was hired by ASA College after returning from Japan
in 2012. In his free time, Josh utilizes the same advice he gives to his students to
study Japanese. If you’d like to learn more about Josh, his methodology and/or
about the TOEFL exam, you can visit his website:
www.talkinglanguage.net
First edition: Feb. 2016

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Table of Contents
Independent Speaking Section:
Tasks 1 and 2 ………….………………………………………….………9
Mindset Questionnaire ……………………………………….………. 26
Integrated Speaking Section:

Task 3 …………………………………………………………………… 32
Task 4 …………………………………………………………………… 46
Task 5 …………………………………………………………………… 59
Task 6 …………………………………………………………………… 70
American Culture ……………………………………………………… 83
Independent Speaking Appendix:

F.A.Q. ………………………………………………………..………….. 91
Introduction Practice …………………………………………………. 101
Answering General Questions …………………………………..…… 107
Example List …………………………………………………………… 109
Expansion Practice ……………………………………………………. 122
Question List …………………………………………………….…….. 132
Integrated Speaking Appendix:

F.A.Q. …………………………………………………………………… 148
Analogies ………………………………………………………………. 154
Listening Predictions …………………………………………………. 161
Example Questions ……………………………………………………. 172
Studying Vocabulary ………………………………………………….. 205
4
Speaking Success Layout

I was originally inspired to write this book because of the lacklustre material currently available for
TOEFL preparation. Most TOEFL books are very dense and difficult for a non-native English speaker to
read. I wanted to create a book with plenty of color, fonts, pictures and space to make it easier for students
to follow and understand. However, it may be a liEle confusing to read at first. As far as I know, no other
book is designed quite this way. So let me explain a liEle about it:
SAMPLE PAGE
Sometimes you’ll see images of
my own handwriting, like
this one. These images are
usually included in the text
when I talk about taking notes
and note structure.
On some pages you’ll find

questions in a large, bold
font like the one written
around the bottom third of this
particular page. These are
questions I imagine my
students asking after I
introduce new information. Of
course, I can’t imagine every
single possible question that
may arise, but from experience
I can make a good guess about
what you, the student, may find
confusing.
You’ll find these little

images scattered throughout
the book. Some think it’s
childish, but I find it hard to
concentrate when there are only
words on a page. Images help
break up the monotony and
provide visual stimuli to
accompany new knowledge.
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SAMPLE PAGE
The box at the top of the page

is a TOEFL test question.
Almost all of the integrated
TOEFL questions will be
presented in an off-white
colored box, which is slightly
indented.
Probably the most common

color you’ll see in the book is
the light blue color found in the
middle of this particular page.
Sentences highlighted in
blue are important pieces of
information, so you should pay
close attention to their content.
They’re usually written in a
slightly larger font size as well.
The bright yellow boxes

with bold borders are ‘tip
boxes’. In each box are bits and
pieces of useful information
that will help you prepare for
the exam.
6
SAMPLE PAGE
About halfway through
every chapter of the
book is a little quiz. One
overarching theme of the book
is to become active in the
learning process. When you
read a book, it’s usually a
passive experience: you sit and
read and the words wash over
you. However, it’s hard to retain
information when you don’t test
your knowledge. Use these
quizzes to review what you
learned and go back and reread
pieces of information you
didn’t completely understand.
Do not skip the quiz section.
Take an active role in the
learning process and test your
knowledge. You’ll retain much
more information if you use the
quizzes.
Also, at the end of every quiz I

ask you to make predictions
about future material. Your
brain retains more information
when you predict what’s going
to come next. Use this strategy
to your advantage and actually
guess what kind of information
might come in the future.
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SAMPLE PAGE
At the end of each

speaking task you’ll find a
self-assessment. The self-
assessment questions change
depending on the question
type, therefore, for each task
you should make multiple photo
copies of the assessment. When
you prepare for the TOEFL
speaking, you must record
yourself speaking. After you
record yourself, listen back and
fill out one of these self-
assessment handouts. The
questions are designed to help
you target your weaknesses so
you can work on improving
specific areas of your English
speaking. This is very similar to
the criteria the TOEFL graders
use to judge your speaking
performance. Be honest with
yourself and use the
information to make a plan for
improvement.
8
TOEFL
Independent
Speaking
Section
9
Independent Speaking Tasks

Introduction
When you get to the speaking section of the TOEFL, you will have just finished your 10-minute-break. That’s
the first and last break of the exam. You’ve been taking the test for about an hour and a half at this point. The
reading and listening sections are over. You return to your computer and your first two tasks are the
independent speaking tasks.
Speaking Tasks #1 and #2

Topic: The first independent speaking task question is a free-choice question. In other words, you have to
choose one of many possible choices. In speaking task #2, there are only two choices and you have to pick one.
There’s no use trying to prepare for the subject because the question could be about anything.
Structure:
1st - The directions and the question will be read.
2nd - You have 15 seconds to prepare your response.
3rd - You have 45 seconds to speak.
Let’s just jump right in with an example and see how you do.
1. What’s the best way to learn a foreign language?

T i p 15 seconds
This tip is the most
important: always record
yourself when you speak.
SPEAK
It’s hard to judge how well 45 seconds…
you speak without listening
to it from a recording STOP
device. It’s strange to
hear the sound of your own 2. Would you prefer to live in the countryside or in the city?
voice at first, but you
have to get used to it.
Assessing a recording of 15 seconds
your own voice is much,
much more effective than SPEAK
assessing your speaking 45 seconds…
through memory.
STOP
Josh MacPherson©
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How did it go? Was there any difference between the way you
answered the first and second question?
These questions are fairly easy. On the TOEFL they’ll be a bit more complicated, but
let’s talk about it together.
If you’re like most people, you probably gave a simple answer to each
question. For number one, you might have said, “I think the best way to learn a
foreign language is to live in a place where they speak the language… finished.” T i p
That takes about 5 seconds to say. During the break, find
someone to talk to or
Or… talk to yourself.

Exercise your voice.
You’ve been quietly
For the second question you might have said, “I prefer to live in the sitting and taking the
city… finished.” That takes just 2 seconds to say. So how can you expand upon TOEFL for at least an
hour and a half. Get
these questions and stretch them out for 45 seconds? Think about it. Before
ready to talk!
you move on, try these questions again and figure out a way to stretch out your
response to 45 seconds. What will you do? How will you expand your answers
on the TOEFL?
The QuestionS:
Some TOEFL teachers put a great amount of emphasis on the difference between speaking task #1 and
speaking task #2. For me, the way you answer each question is exactly the same, so there’s no use in worrying
about the question style. Just be aware that speaking task #1 will provide you with many options to choose
from while speaking task #2 will only give you two choices. Besides that, the questions could be about
anything. The only common characteristic of all the independent speaking section questions is that they all ask
for your opinion. Most of the questions fit under one of the following five categories:
Qualities/Characteristics
What are some important qualities of a good supervisor (teacher/neighbor/roommate/friend)? Use
specific details and examples to explain why these qualities are important.
Compare/Contrast
When people move to another country, some of them decide to follow the customs of the new country.
Others prefer to keep their own customs. Compare these two choices. Which one do you prefer? Support
you answer with supporting details.
Agree/Disagree
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Telephones and email have made communication
between people less personal. Use specific examples to support your opinion.
Josh MacPherson©
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Advantages/Disadvantages
The city council of your hometown has decided to add a new tax on T i p
plastics to reduce pollution. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages Don’t try to anticipate the
of this and whether you believe it’s a good decision. question. Once you learn how
to answer the speaking
question, you won’t need to
General Opinion worry about what the
question might be. You’ll be
What do you consider to be the most important room in the house prepared for any type of
where you grew up? Why was this room more important to you than question!
any other room? Use specific reasons and examples to support your
opinion.
PREPARING YOur notes:

So the question remains:
How can I extend my independent speaking responses so they

take up more time?
Remember, every independent speaking question is an opinion question. When you have an opinion
about something, you have to explain why you have your opinion; you have to have reasons for your opinion.
So the first step is to state your opinion and two reasons for your opinion. Let’s try the following question:
What do you consider to be the most important room in the house where you grew up? Why was this
room more important than any other room? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
Opinion?
Reason 1?
Reason 2?
If you added reasons to your opinion, you’ve probably extended your response from 5 seconds to
about 15 seconds. That still leaves approximately 30 seconds of time you need to fill. The best way to support
your opinion, and your reasons for your opinion, is through personal examples. Can you think of any for this
particular question?
Example 1?
Example 2?
Josh MacPherson©
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Once you’ve thought of your opinion, your two supporting reasons and two personal examples, you’ll
have more than enough content to fill up 45 seconds.
Before every single task you should have a note structure memorized and wri[en out on the scrap
paper provided by the proctor of the TOEFL exam area. For independent speaking tasks #1 and #2, you should
have your notes look exactly like this:
O = Your Opinion
R1= Reason One

Ex1= Example One
R2= Reason Two

Ex2= Example Two
Do I have to take notes before I speak?

Yes, you have to write notes. I know that 15 seconds isn’t a lot of time, but you still have to get into the
habit of writing out your notes before you speak. This is probably the hardest task to take notes for because
you have such li[le time to prepare. However, your notes are a crucial aspect of your score. They will be an
indispensable tool for you to use as you speak. On the following page is a copy of my own notes, wri[en out in
15 seconds, to the same question:
T i p
What do you consider to be the most important room in the house If you understand the
where you grew up? Why was this room more important than any question, don’t wait until the
other room? Use specific reasons and examples to support your audio finishes reading before
taking notes. You can start
opinion. preparing your response before
they finish reading. This will
give you a couple of extra
seconds to prepare.
Josh MacPherson©
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After 15 seconds, this is what my notes looked like:
F7 F 7 736 F 7 7 F A F 7 3 3 N0 7 B75 5
73 A 3 6 - 3 A F 3 I3 F3 F FA I F7 I 7 F 7
736 F B3 F A F 7 7 F A
,A AB A - I AF7 N 7 F A 6A F 3 7 FA
I F7 3 F F 7 AB A B3 F 2A 73 A 3 6
7 3 B 7 I 5 7 A FA A AB A - A I3 F FA
5A 7 7 F 7 A F F FA B I F 6AI A
AB A 3 6 F F 7 73 A 3 6 7 3 B 7
2A B A 3 6A F 67 F3 6 I 3F AF7 73 F-
AI I 3F F 7 73 3 6 F 3F I 3F 3FF7
-A I AF7 IA 6 3 6 F 7 7 3 7 F 7 A A 7
7 7 7 IA 6 F 3F I 7 B 67 7 3 - B73
It takes practice and patience to get used to the time and the structure. Make sure when you practice,
you write out the note structure (O, R1, Ex1, R2, Ex2) exactly the same every time. Most of my students do it
once or twice and then get lazy and just write without the structure. When you have the structure wri[en out,
you naturally organize both your notes and your thoughts. Be sure to practice on your own. Take a look at the
Question List handout located in the Independent Speaking Appendix. Have a friend read a question aloud
and time yourself: 15 seconds to prepare and 45 seconds to speak. If you can’t prepare something in 15
seconds, give yourself 30 seconds or even a minute to prepare. Take your time and be patient. When you first
start to practice, your comfort is most important. As you continue in your studies, slowly reduce the amount of
time you take to prepare until you can do it the same way you’ll encounter it on the TOEFL.
Josh MacPherson©
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Time management is crucial.

PREPARING YOur INTRODUCTION:
Since there’s no way to anticipate the question, we should focus on structure.
How do you think we should begin our response?
The question again:
What do you consider to be the most important room in the house where you grew up? Why was this
room more important than any other room? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
Now, we want to have a transition word that we’re going to use to start every single response we
practice before taking the exam.
Why?
You should try to use the same transition word every time because you don’t have a lot of time to think
after you’re asked a question. You only have 15 seconds. If you know how you’re going to start, you don’t have
to worry about it. The phrase I think works best is:
“To me…”
You can say other things like, “In my opinion…”, “If I were asked…”, “I think…” “I believe…” and
so on. However, beginning with “To me…” or “For me…” sounds the most natural. If you begin your
response with:
“In my opinion, the living room was the most important room in the house
where I grew up for a couple of reasons.”
That sounds a lot like a script someone memorized and it doesn’t sound very natural. You want to find
a balance between natural and academic. You want to sound comfortable, natural and professional. You want
to sound like you’re fluent in English; that’s what this test is all about. Here’s my sentence:
“To me, the living room was the most important room in the house where I
grew up because it had a big, comfortable sofa.”
Doesn’t that sound more natural?
Josh MacPherson©
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Your first sentence is very important. We need to spend time thinking about it. If you noticed, I did
three things in my first sentence:
1. I restated the question.

2. I gave my opinion.
3. I provided one reason for my opinion.
In one li[le sentence I did three different things. I restated the question, gave my opinion and gave a
specific reason. Also, you might have noticed that I didn’t say “for a couple of reasons” and instead described
one specific reason immediately. If you look at my notes, I wrote down two reasons, but in your introduction
sentence you should end it with one specific reason only. I’ll explain why a li[le later.
Let’s look at one more example:
“For me, I agree that telephones and email have made communication less
personal because you no longer have to look someone in the eye when you
talk with them.”

When you begin your speaking in this manner you sound confident
T i p and concise. You shouldn’t spend too long on your introduction. You only
have 45 seconds to speak and in that time you have to explain your reasons
Your introduction
and examples to help illustrate your opinion. The sooner you get into your
should last about 12
reasons and examples, the more you’ll be able to explain and the higher your
seconds.
score will be.
Do I have to start with “To me…” or “For me…” every

single time?
Yes, you should start with the same transition word every single time. It may sound repetitive and you
may feel like it isn’t creative, but you have plenty of room for creativity in the rest of your response. Do
yourself a favor and give yourself one less thing to think about, start the same way every time. It’ll help you
organize the rest of your response.
If you need more help practicing your introduction, refer to the Introduction Practice handout located in
the Independent Speaking Appendix.
Josh MacPherson©
16
PREPARING YOur RESPONSE:
Now that you know how to begin your response, you can start to think about how to organize the rest
of it. Let me remind you of our introduction sentence again:
I’ve all ready stated my first reason for my opinion in the introduction sentence. Now that I’ve stated
my opinion and first reason, the next part of my response is the first example.
How should I introduce a personal example? What transition

word or phrase can I use to start?
My Intro and First Example
7 F 7 F7 57 I7 I7 F A 7 3 736 F 7F 7-
“To me, the living room was the most 3 FF 77 A 6 73A F 75A 6 7 F
important room in the house where I grew up
because it had a big, comfortable sofa.” 7 - 7 F 7 7 3 B 7 - 3 3 I3 7 IF F 7
F 3 F A 3 B 3 7 N- 7 7 7 I 7
“I remember growing up with two brothers
and we always fought, but not about the sofa. .AF 57 AI 3 F 7 F7 57 5A 75F F 7 7 3 B 7 35 FA F 7
The sofa was big enough for all of us to sit and FAB 5
share it together. We even had our own
designated place. So the living room was one
of the few places where we didn’t fight.”
IA 6 A 6 F3 7 7 3 A F 75A 6 FA 3
I 5 73 7 7 75A 6 FA 6 5 AF 7 73 A 3 6
7 3 B7
Two-Example Response Time Structure:
Content Key Phrases Time (45 seconds)

1. Rephrase the question, state your
To me… 45-35 seconds
opinion and provide a reason
3. Discuss example 1 I remember when… 34-22 seconds
4. State reason 2 Also… 21-17 seconds
5. Discuss example 2 For instance… 16-4 seconds
6. Conclusion That’s why… 4-0 seconds
Josh MacPherson©
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Here’s my entire response:
“To me, the living room was the most important room in the house where I grew up
because it had a big, comfortable sofa.
I remember growing up with two brothers and we always fought, but not about the sofa.
The sofa was big enough for all of us to sit and share it together. We even had our own
designated place. So the living room was one of the few places where we didn’t fight.
Also, the only TV in the house was in the living room. Everyday, after school, my
brothers and I would sit on the sofa and watch Power Rangers together. It was so much
fun!
That’s why the living room was the most important room in the house where I grew up.”
Other teachers say that a conclusion isn’t necessary, but I disagree. Thoughts sound strange when
they’re not completed. Be sure to leave yourself enough time to state a conclusion.
This example is 127 words, which is a perfect length. You should get used to saying approximately 125
words in 45 seconds. Practice reading this example out loud and record yourself. Can you say everything in 45
seconds? Are you pausing, stu[ering or repeating yourself? If you are, then you need to practice speaking.
Look in the Independent Speaking Appendix for the Independent Speaking F.A.Q handout. Towards the end
of that handout is a homework assignment which will help improve your speaking speed.
And one more important thing…
Always connect your example back to the topic.

Let me show you how I connect my examples back to the topic in my own response:
My Body Paragraphs
“I remember growing up with two brothers and F7 - 7 B 3 7 3 B7 F 7 67F3 - 5A 5 67

we always fought, but not about the sofa. The 7 6 F 7 F7 7 I - A F B F B3 F 5 3 7 3 B 7
sofa was big enough for all of us to sit and F 7 F B 357 -F BA F3 F FA 5A 5 67 3 7 3 B 7 7 A 7
share it together. We even had our own
A A FA 3 AF 7 A 7
designated place. So the living room was one
of the few places where we didn’t fight.”
75A 6 7 3 B 7 6A7 F 77 7 5 A 3 5A 5 A
“Also, the only TV in the house was in the
7 F7 57 F F 6A7 366 A 7 5 A 7 FA 7 3 B7 - F
living room. Everyday, after school, my
F 3F A 7 3 B 7 I3 A F A - 6 6 F F - 77676 3
brothers and I would sit on the sofa and watch
Power Rangers together. It was so much fun!” B AB7 5A 5 A 7 F7 57 753 7 5A 5 A FA F 7 7 F 7
B73 I 5A 7 B 7 F 3 6 F 3F I 5A 75F 7 7 F
35 FA F 7 FAB 5
Josh MacPherson©
18
Quiz Time
We’ve talked a lot about the independent speaking section of the exam. Actually, let me rephrase that,
I’ve talked a lot about the independent speaking portion of the exam. But you’re the person who’s going to
have to take the exam, so it’s much more important to figure out what you know and what you don’t know. As
you read this book, you should be actively participating in the material. Instead of underlining, circling and
rereading, the information will sink into your head at a much deeper level if you constantly quiz yourself.
And don’t look back for the answers! On the TOEFL all
you have to rely on is your mind, so do the same here.
1. What’s the difference between the two independent speaking tasks? How long do you have to prepare for
each question? How long do you have to speak for each question?
2. How should you prepare your notes for each independent speaking task? What’s the note structure?
3. What information should you include in your introduction? How long should your introduction be?
4. What are some transition words you’ve learned so far? Can you think of any other useful transition words?
5. What’s the time structure for the two-example response? How long should it take to complete your
introduction, first reason, first example, second reason, second example and conclusion?
6. Approximately how many words should be included in your response? Why is to important to connect your
examples back to the topic?
The future…

Another way to be actively involved in the learning process is to predict the future. So, what do you
think the rest of this chapter will be about? What do you think is the difference between a one and two-
example response? What are some ways you can make your examples longer? How do you think the TOEFL
graders judge your independent speaking responses?
Josh MacPherson©
19
Should I have one reason or two
reasons to back up my opinion? How
about an example; do I need one or
two?]
The structure I provide is to help you organize your thoughts
and prepare for the exam, but there’s more than one way to show
fluency in the independent speaking. I just showed you how to do it
with two reasons and two examples. However, I think the best way
is to have one reason and one example that illustrates your reason.
But this is very difficult. You should only try to answer with
only one-reason and one-example after you’ve mastered the two-
reason and two-example response. Let me show you the difference
between these two types of responses. Remember, the question is:
What do you consider to be the most important room in the house

where you grew up? Why was this room more important than any
other room? Use specific reasons and examples to support your
opinion.
“To me, the living room was the most important room in the house where I grew up because it
had a big, comfortable sofa.
I remember growing up in our house on Long Island. I had two brothers and we each had our
own room. We were all very protective of our space. I wouldn’t let my brothers into my room and
they wouldn’t let me into theirs. However, the one thing we didn’t argue about was the sofa. We
each had our own designated spot. Greg would sit on the left, Chris in the middle and me on the
right. The living room was the only room in the house that brought us together.
That’s why the living room was the most important room in the house where I grew up.”
This example is 132 words, but the example is much more detailed. It’s hard to get used to speaking in
this kind of detail. When you start, you’ll most likely practice using two reasons and one or two examples; and
that’s fine. Eventually, you want to try to speak with one reason and one example in order to get a top score in
the speaking section. But you can still earn a great score with a two-example response. When thinking about
how to respond, focus on what makes you feel most comfortable.
When you’re comfortable, you’re confident, so stick to what

makes you more comfortable at first.
Josh MacPherson©
20
Why is one example better than two?
Good question. Let’s compare the body paragraphs of each exercise:
Two-Example Body One-Example Body

- EASIER - - MORE DIFFICULT -
I remember growing up with two brothers and we I remember growing up in our house on Long Island.
always fought, but not about the sofa. The sofa was big I had two brothers and we each had our own room. We
enough for all of us to sit and share it together. We even were all very protective of our space. I wouldn’t let my
had our own designated place. So the living room was one brothers into my room and they wouldn’t let me into
of the few places where we didn’t fight. theirs. However, the one thing we didn’t argue about was
the sofa. We each had our own designated spot. Greg
Also, the only TV in the house was in the living room. would sit on the left, Chris in the middle and me on the
Everyday, after school, my brothers and I would sit on the right. The living room was the only room in the house that
sofa and watch Power Rangers together. It was so much brought us together.
fun!
Take a minute and think about it. What are the differences between the two? Why do you think the one-
example essay is be[er? Write down your ideas.
T i p
Get used to looking at the
timer. You should look at
the clock at least three
times while you speak. Time
management has a BIG
influence on how well you
do on the TOEFL. Make the
timer your best friend.
Josh MacPherson©
21
The one-example response is be[er for the independent speaking
T i p because:
Plan on giving a one-example 1. When you tell a personal example you tell a story. Every
response, but prepare for a good story should have a beginning, middle and end. It’s hard
two-example response. If you to tell two well-developed stories in less than 45 seconds.
still have time after you
state your first reason and 2. If you have just one example you can add more details,
example, you want to make sure which will make your story more interesting.
you have enough content to
fill 45 seconds. Your second
3. You don’t have to rush through the speaking part if you just
reason and example is like a
give one reason and one personal example. It’s easier to give a
spare tire, it’s there if you
clear and natural introduction which will lead you into a
need it, but it’s better if
you don’t. personal example with a beginning, middle and end.

One-Example Response Time Structure:
Content Key Phrases Time (45 seconds)

1. Rephrase the question, state your
To me… 45-36 seconds
opinion and provide a reason
3. Discuss example 1 I remember when… 36-4 seconds
6. Conclusion That’s why… 4-0 seconds
WARNING: make sure your story doesn’t go off topic. It’s very important to bring it back to the question
and show how it’s related, which is what I usually do in the conclusion.
How can I make my examples better and longer?

Let me just say this one more time, your comfort is most important. You can get a score as high as 25
with a speaking response that has two reasons and two examples. However, if you want to get the highest
score possible, you should try to have a response that includes just one reason and one example. Over time, if
you feel confident with the two-example response, practice doing the one-example response at home.
So to answer the question, you can make your personal examples both be[er and longer by thinking of
more details to add. If you’re not sure how to add details, consider the following questions:
Who? What? Where? When? Why? How?

Josh MacPherson©
22
Here’s my response to the question again:
When I remember growing up in our house on Long Island.
I had two brothers and we each had our own room.

Where
We were all very protective of our space. I wouldn’t let
Who my brothers into my room and they wouldn’t let me into
theirs.
What (problem) However, the one thing we didn’t argue about was the
sofa. We each had our own designated spot.
Why (opinion) Greg would sit on the left, Chris in the middle and me on
the right.
How
The living room was the only room in the house that
brought us together.
Connection to topic

Make sure you finish your response somewhere between

the 40-45 second mark.

My example is a very clear story with a beginning,
middle and end. I address all of the questions and at the
end I show how this story is connected to the topic.
Of course, when you’re telling a story, don’t try to
answer each question independently (who, what, when,
where, why and how). Just tell a story with a lot of details and
you’ll organically answer those questions. You should keep
these questions in mind if you feel like all of your examples
are too short or uninteresting. If you still need help
developing personal examples, you can refer to the
Expansion Practice handout and the Example Sheet handout,
which is located in the Independent Speaking Appendix.
Both those handouts will provide you with plenty of
practice to help you prepare for the actual exam.
Josh MacPherson©
23
F I N A L W O R D S:
In this chapter we’ve discussed the independent speaking section of the TOEFL exam. We’ve reviewed
various strategies, techniques and tips that’ll help you succeed when you finally take the test. Here’s a review
of some key points:
1. G i v e p e r s o n a l e x a m p l e s : You should give one or two personal examples to back up your

opinion. In American culture you can’t just have an opinion without explaining it, you have to have a good
reason to back up your opinion. Also, your reason sounds much stronger if you have a personal example.
In regards to the example, I recommend that it’s something truthful because you know more about the
truth and can add more details to your story. However, if you need to lie that’s fine, and the TOEFL grader
won’t ever find out.
2. A d d d e t a i l s : Remember to answer as many who, what, when, where, why and how questions as possible.
But the most important question of the bunch is:
Why
You need to have a reason for your opinion. Every time you answer a question and give your opinion,
imagine an obnoxious child standing next to you asking: Why? Why? Why?
3. S H O W E m o t i o n a l C o n n e c t i o n : I haven’t mentioned this yet, but make sure you speak like you
mean what you say. Don’t talk like a robot. Don’t give a scripted answer. Understand what you’re saying and
have an emotional connection with it. You’ll sound much more natural that way.
4. T I M E M a n a g e m e n t : Use the timer, use the timer, use the timer. This piece of advice is so important
that I can’t say it enough. Be sure to look at the clock at least three times during your response. The timer will
help guide your speaking, so use it to your advantage. Go back to find the two-example and one-example time
management structure and be sure to closely follow it.
5. C o n n e c t b a c k t o t o p i c : I know I’ve said it a lot, but I’ll say it again, use your last sentence to
remind the listener of the connection between the story and the topic. This sentence is the most crucial part of
both your independent speaking and writing tasks.
6. S P E A K F R O M T H E H E A R T : One thing I like to tell my students is that your heart knows more than
your memory. The TOEFL graders call this automaticity. Basically, it means that you answer in a natural and
automatic way, without thinking. I’m teaching you a very detailed structure for you to practice and memorize.
However, after you study and practice, when you finally sit down to take the test, you should be so good at
answering the speaking questions that your answers come out naturally, with very li[le thought. That’s what
I mean when I say speak from the heart.
Are you ready to practice? Go to the Independent Speaking Appendix and find the List of Independent
Speaking and Writing Tasks handout. There are over 150 different tasks for you to practice.
Josh MacPherson©
24
Self - Assessment

Directions: After you finish each practice task ask yourself the questions listed below. Be honest with
yourself and identify your weaknesses. After that, look through the Independent Speaking Appendix for
helpful strategies and exercises that’ll assist in targeting those weaknesses.
Questions Your Answers

(explain and score yourself on a scale from 1-10)
1. Did I understand the question completely?
2. Before I began speaking, did I formulate

my own opinion?
3. In my notes, did I write down two reasons

for my opinion and at least one example?
4. Did my first speaking sentence include a

rephrasing of the question, my opinion and
my first reason?
5. Did I finish my introduction within 10-15

seconds?
6. Did I give at least one personal example?
7. Did I speak with emotion that matched the

content? Did I finish the question on time?
8. Did I speak without too many pauses,

vocal fillers or repetitions?
9. Did I follow the structure and speak in a

clear and concise manner?
10. What’s something I did well?
11. What’s something I didn’t do well?
12. Think of a plan. How can I improve?
Josh MacPherson©
25
Grading Rubric
The highest grade you can get on each speaking exercise is a 4 and the highest grade you can earn on the
speaking section is a 30. How do the graders get a score of 30? Basically, 6 x4 = 24 and then they multiply your
score by 1.25 to come up with a final score out of 30. Below, you’ll find a chart of how your independent
speaking performance is scored. This is a description of the criteria needed to get a perfect score. On the right
hand side I’ve reworded the ETS’ language to make it easier to understand.
According to the ETS

Criteria website: My Simplified Translation
https://www.ets.org/s/toefl/pdf/
toefl_speaking_rubrics.pdf
“The response fulfills the demands of the task, You answered the question in a
with at most minor lapses in completeness. It’s
1. General logical and coherent way. You never
highly intelligible and exhibits sustained,
Description coherent discourse. A response at this level is went off topic and you were easy for
characterized by all of the following:” the listener to follow.
“Generally well-paced flow (fluid expression)

You spoke in a calm, cool and
Speech is clear. It may include minor difficulties natural manner. The listener could
2. Delivery with pronunciation or intonation pa[erns, understand almost everything you
which do not affect overall intelligibility.”
said.
“The response demonstrates effective use of You were able to speak in a natural
grammar and vocabulary. It exhibits a fairly way while also varying your
3. Language high degree of automaticity with good control of
basic and complex structures (as appropriate). sentence structure. You didn’t sound
Use
Some minor (or systematic) errors are noticeable nervous and you didn’t rely on
but do not obscure meaning.” simple vocabulary.
“Response is sustained and sufficient to the task.

You followed a structure and
4. Topic It is generally well developed and coherent; showed how one idea led to another.
Development relationships between ideas are clear (or clear You used at least three transition
progression of ideas).”
words as well.
Josh MacPherson©
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Mindset Questionnaire
Directions: Before you begin to study for the TOEFL exam, it’s important to understand your own opinions on
learning and knowledge. Once you understand your beliefs about education a bit beBer, you’ll be more likely
to succeed on the TOEFL.
Look at the following ten questions and answer according to your own opinion.
Strongly Strongly
Mindset Statements Agree
Agree Disagree
Disagree
Not sure
1. Everyone has a certain amount of

intelligence and you can’t do much to
change it.
2. You can learn new things, but you

can’t change your level of intelligence.
3. You’re born with a certain amount of

talent and you can’t do anything to
change it.
4. If you focus and work hard you can

change the amount of intelligence you
have.
5. You can change the amount of talent

you have through hard work and
determination.
6. Your IQ test says a lot about your

potential intelligence.
7. Smart people don’t have to try as

hard as others.
Josh MacPherson©
27
8. You’re a parent and your daughter just failed her biology exam. She’s disappointed. She feels like she
just isn’t very good at science. Which do you think is the best response from a parent?
a. “Biology’s a hard subject. They should make the exam easier so students don’t have to
feel so stressed.”
b. “How do you expect to go to Harvard with a grade like this? If you got a bad grade it
means you have to study harder. If you don’t get an A next time, I’ll be disappointed.”
c. “Some subjects are more difficult than others. If you failed, you should try to figure out
why you failed and adjust your study habits so you can improve.”
d. “Well, I never liked that teacher anyway. I think he’s doing something wrong. They
should find someone else to teach you properly.”
9. You watch a friend compete in a swimming contest and he didn’t do well. Which do you think is the best
kind of encouragement?
a. “You were the best out there, I don’t care what the clock said.”
b. “That race wasn’t fair. I think I saw one of the girls out there get a head start. If I were
you, I’d complain to the league.”
c. “I recorded the whole thing. You should watch it with your coach and you can both
identify your weaknesses and figure out a way to improve.”
d. “Some people are better at swimming than others. Don’t worry, you’re still great at
other things.”
10. Again, imagine you’re a parent and your son comes back home from school and he’s excited; he got a
perfect score on his social studies exam without studying.
a. “You’re such a genius. I’m going to hang this on the refrigerator.”
b. “That’s awesome! Now try to do the same thing on your math test tomorrow.”
c. “Oh, that’s great, but maybe the test was too easy. You should try a different class that
is a bit more challenging.”
d. “You must have a great teacher if you did so well. Be sure to thank her for teaching
you.”
So how did you do? Why do you think I’m asking you these
questions?
Josh MacPherson©
28
Fixed vs. Growth Mindset

Questions 1-7
-If you strongly agreed with questions 1, 2, 3, 6 and 7 you have

a fixed mindset
-If you strongly disagreed with questions 1, 2, 3, 6 and 7 you have

a growth mindset
-If you strongly agreed with questions 4 and 5 you have

a growth mindset
-If you strongly disagreed with questions 4 and 5 you have

a fixed mindset
Questions 8-10
For questions 8, 9 and 10, if you picked the leBer ‘C’ for any
question, than you have a growth mindset. All other answers
reflect the ideas of someone with a fixed mindset.
Which one is better: a fixed mindset or a growth mindset?

We need to strive to have a growth mindset. Many Americans are used to a fixed mindset. Personally, I
grew up believing that specific people were destined for greatness while others just weren’t born with enough
talent. However, when you ask most successful people how they reached their current level of ability, they
usually contribute it to hard work and determination. People are not born great, they become great. Carol
Dweck, author of the book Mindset: The New Psychology for Success was one of the first researchers to discover
that intelligence and talent are not products of inherit ability, but instead the result of an individual’s aBitude
towards learning. It’ll be much more difficult for you to study for the TOEFL if you have a fixed mindset. Let me
share a short passage from Dweck’s book:
Believing that your qualities are carved in stone — the fixed mindset —
creates an urgency to prove yourself over and over. If you have only a
certain amount of intelligence, a certain personality, and a certain moral
character — well, then you’d better prove that you have a healthy dose of
them. It simply wouldn’t do to look or feel deficient in these most basic
characteristics. (pg. 6)
In other words, if you have a fixed mindset, than you’re afraid of being wrong. For example, if you think
you’re smart, than you’ll do things that make you look smart. I used to have a fixed mindset, which is why I
never wanted to learn a foreign language. As you all know all ready, learning a foreign language is difficult
Josh MacPherson©
29
and you’re going to be wrong, a lot. It’s natural. But when I started learning a foreign language I felt stupid,
and because I felt stupid, I got angry. I didn’t see my mistakes as opportunities for growth, but instead as
evidence of my own stupidity. And since I considered myself intelligent, I couldn’t continue learning
something that made me feel dumb.
What does this have to do with TOEFL?

Your TOEFL score is less of a reflection of what you learn in the book, but more of a reflection on how
you study and handle challenges. I can’t make you succeed, only you can do that. The following situation
constantly happens in my TOEFL class:
Me: I want you to try to answer the question, you have 45 seconds to speak.
Fixed Mindset Student: I don’t want to speak.
Me: Why not?
Fixed Mindset Student: My speaking isn’t good.
I know your speaking isn’t good! But you have to focus on growth.
If you have a fixed mindset I understand, it’s not your fault. Most of us have been indoctrinated to feel
that the most important thing is a good grade. GeBing good grades is not a bad goal, but it’s more important to
focus on the way you achieve correct answers and high marks. When you learn a new skill you must have a
growth mindset. You need to target your weaknesses and work on those specific problems. Again, your TOEFL
score has less to do with the content in this book and more to do with your aBitude. I can show you the way,
but you must walk through the door.
Here’s a quote from Carol Dweck’s book about what happens when you change to a growth mindset:
Mindset change is not about picking up a few pointers here and there. It’s
about seeing things in a new way. When people — couples, coaches and
athletes, managers and workers, parents and children, teachers and students
— change to a growth mindset, they change from a judge-and-be-judged
framework to a learn-and-help-learn framework. Their commitment is to
growth, and growth takes plenty of time, effort, and mutual support.
It has been tough for me to change into a growth mindset. For a long time I’ve based my self-worth on
the opinions of others and looking smart. Now, for the past six months, I’ve been studying Japanese and I’ve
never felt dumber. However, instead of stress and anxiety, the emotions that used to visit me when I was
confronted with something I didn’t know, now I’m excited to learn, grow, and discover. I don’t see my lack of
knowledge as a weakness, but as a source of motivation.
Josh MacPherson©
30
Don’t worry about looking smart. Focus on having a strong desire to learn
and grow. Look at the chart below to see the difference between the two
Two Mindsets
types of mindsets:
Fixed Mind-set Growth Mind-set

Intelligence is static Intelligence can
be developed
Leads to a Leads to a
desire to look desire to learn
smart and and therefore a
therefore a tendency to...
tendency to...
CHALLENGES
...avoid ...embrace
challenges challenges
OBSTACLES
...give up easily ...persist in the
face of setbacks
EFFORT
...see effort as ...see effort as the
fruitless or worse path to mastery
CRITICISM
...ignore useful ...learn from
negative feedback criticism
SUCCESS OF OTHERS
...feel threatened ...find lessons
by the success of and inspiration
others in the success of
others
As a result, they may plateau early

and achieve less than their full
potential. As a result, they reach even higher
levels of achievement.
***This
Graphics by Nigel Holmeschart
based is
on courtesy of: hBp://www.megsonline.net/lee_meg3.pdf
research by Carol Dweck http://dww.ed.gov
Josh MacPherson©
31
TOEFL
Integrated
Speaking
Section
32
Integrated Speaking Section

Introduction
The next four integrated tasks are different from the first two independent tasks. In the first two tasks you are
asked an open-ended question that requires you to speak about your opinion within 45 seconds. In the
integrated section you report information, you don’t give your opinion (except for task #5). Also, you’re given
60 seconds to speak in each task, not 45 seconds.
Speaking Task #3
Topic: Campus Life (i.e. new parking policy, class syllabi, new food prices)
Structure:
1st - Reading Passage: It’s approximately 100 words and you have 45 seconds to read (unlike the
integrated writing task, the passage never returns, so take good notes).
2nd - Listening Passage: It’s a conversation between two students (always a man and woman). It’ll last
between 60-90 seconds.
3rd - Prepare: You have 30 seconds to prepare your response.
4th - Respond: You have 60 seconds to speak.
Let’s just jump right in with an example and see how you do. This example is courtesy of the ETS website:
hRps://www.ets.org/Media/Tests/TOEFL/pdf/SampleQuestions.pdf
Directions: Read the following text and the conversation that follows it. Then, answer the question.
You have 45 seconds to read the following text.
The Northfield College Student Association recently decided to make a new purchase. Read the
following announcement in the college newspaper about the decision.
Good News for Movie Fans

The Student Association has just purchased a new sound system for the Old Lincoln Hall
auditorium, the place where movies on campus are currently shown. By installing the new sound
system, the Student Association hopes to attract more students to the movies and increase ticket sales.
Before making the purchase of the new equipment, the Student Association conducted a survey on
campus to see what kind of entertainment students liked best. Going to the movies ranked number one.
“Students at Northfield College love going to the movies” said the president of the Student Association,
“so we decided to make what they already love even better. We’re confident that the investment into the
sound system will translate into increased ticket sales.”
Josh MacPherson©
33
Since this is a book, you’re going to have to read the conversation, but on the TOEFL, you’ll have to listen.
Speaking Task #3 Conversation

Male Student: I really think the Student Association made a bad decision.
Female Student: Really? Why? Don’t you like going to the movies?
Male Student: Sure I do. But this new purchase is just a waste of money.
Female Student: What do you mean? It’s supposed to sound really good.
Male Student: Yeah, well, I’m sure it does, but, in Old Lincoln Hall? I mean that building must be 200
years old! It used to be the college gym! The acoustics are terrible.
Female Student: So you’re saying there’ll be no improvement?
Male Student: That’s right. And also, I seriously doubt that going to the movies is the number one social
activity for most students.
Female Student: Yeah, but that’s what students said.
Male Student: Well, of course that’s what they said. What else is there to do on campus?
Female Student: What do you mean?
Male Student: I mean, there isn’t much to do on campus besides go to the movies. If there were other
forms of, uh recreation, or other social activities, you know, I don’t think most students would have said
that going to the movies was their first choice.
Question: The man expresses his opinion of the Student Association’s recent purchase. State his
opinion and the reasons he gives for holding that opinion.
30 seconds PREPARE
60 seconds SPEAK
How did it go? How was it different from the first two tasks?
Believe it or not, this is a fairly easy question. Usually on the TOEFL this question is
more difficult, but let’s talk about it together.
Josh MacPherson©
34
WAIT
Did you record yourself speaking? If you didn’t, do it again and record yourself. I mentioned this all ready in
the independent speaking section, but you should get used to recording yourself every… single… time… you
practice speaking.
T i p
A question that’s going to come up over and over again is w h y. To an American, things must
happen for a reason. There are other cultures where why is not a very important question. Things
just are, so there’s no need to ask w h y. This idea is hard for an American to fathom. If
something changes, in the case of speaking task #3, there must be a reason w h y. In America, you
can’t just change things without explaining the reason for it.
Always ask w h y.
The Reading Section:

The reading is usually an announcement of a change on campus or an explanation of university policy.
-If it’s an announcement, your job is to:

1. Identify the change
2. List 1-2 reasons why the change is occurring
-If it’s an explanation of policy, your job is to:

1. Find the main point
2. Identify 1-2 main details
About 80% of the time, it will be announcement of some kind of change.
Reading Notes: On the following page you’ll find the note structure for this particular task. Remember, the
reading passage goes away so you need to take very, very good notes.
Josh MacPherson©
35
C = Change (announcement)
R1= Reason One (detail one)
R2= Reason Two (detail two)
Before we look at my own notes, try it for yourself. Reread the passage on the first page and identify
the change and the two reasons they provide for the change.
Your Notes
C:
R1:
R2:
T i p
When you take notes, it’s better to misspell words than it is to abbreviate. When you
abbreviate you’re more likely to get confused. For example, if I wanted to abbreviate the
word ‘uninterested’ I’d write ‘uni’, but that could easily be confused with a lot of
different words that begin the same way. However, if I misspell ‘untrsd’ it’s more likely
that I’ll remember the word.
Josh MacPherson©
36
Here are my notes…
2 O L S T F S5T AF L S F? T F S FT
ALT A F I AC
( 2 O H AFLAF? H L O AF
) 2H H A H O AC S L T L
SLA C LT LCL F S T
. A O F L 2 F O L
O OF F A F L L LA LC
F L I AC F H H
I can’t understand your notes. Why did you write so messy?

Good question. I write messy because I don’t have a lot of time. When you write notes you have to
write them quickly. It’s a good idea to start to create your own system for writing notes shorthand. For
example, whenever I hear the word because I usually write b/c. If you read my notes you might not understand
what b/c means, but I understand and that’s what maRers. They’re my notes! I also use symbols; if I hear the
word increase or more I’ll have an arrow pointing up . It saves time and when you take notes, time is crucial.

I have more questions.

How did you know what was the
change and the two reasons for
the change? How did you know
what was important? Why didn’t
you write down the title?

Let me start by saying that you can never be 100% certain of what’s important. Over time, as you
continue to practice on different questions, you’ll get used to the structure and naturally get beRer at taking
notes. Let’s look at the reading in more detail and I’ll explain my process.
Josh MacPherson©
37
L ?A AF L A LA F OAL L
H SF O H T - F? A L AF? SF OT The Northfield College Student Association recently
decided to make a new purchase. Read the
following announcement in the college newspaper
- LAL FTL L F AF LA F A LAL A about the decision. (Reading time in an actual test
FL L LL L AF L AF would be 45-50 seconds.)
Good News for Movie Fans

-? AF L O SF OT F S F L T 2
O L L L OF 2 A FTL O AL S4 3AF F 1 The Student Association has just purchased a new
AL A T LA FL AFL L A 2 sound system for the Old Lincoln Hall
auditorium, the place where movies on campus are
LA LL F 2O L L AF LA F currently shown. By installing the new sound
system, the Student Association hopes to attract
2 O L OF L A L F SL LL L more students to the movies and increase ticket
sales. Before making the purchase of the new
L FL L AF LA C L T L FL F equipment, the Student Association conducted a
?AF OAL L H . AF L AF? L F O F survey on campus to see what kind of
L R 2 CF O L L L L L LL F L entertainment students liked best. Going to the
movies ranked number one. “Students at
H L L FL F OA L FO Northfield College love going to the movies” said
the president of the Student Association, “so we
decided to make what they already love even better.
-? AF L F F L FL F ?AF
We’re confident that the investment into the sound
. CAF? L H L F O I AH FLR 2 system will translate into increased ticket sales.”
CF O L L L FL F OA L L L
FO L LL H O F
Should I skim when I read?

As I always say, do what makes you feel comfortable. However, in my experience, I don’t
think you should skim for this particular question. It’s beRer to focus on understanding what you
read than to try to read everything. If you don’t understand what you read than it’s pointless.
Understanding and reading are two very different things. Focus on understanding.
Your notes will prepare you for the listening. After taking notes on the reading, ask
yourself: What’s the listening going to be about?
Josh MacPherson©
38
The LISTENING Section:
The listening passage is a conversation between two students. Here are some points to consider:
1. It’s always a conversation between a man and a woman that’ll last between 60-90 seconds.
2. Somebody is going to support or oppose (usually oppose) every point made in the reading
passage.
3. Usually one speaker will do most of the talking and the other will simply egg him or her on
by saying things like: “Really” or “Why do you say that?”
O = Opinion (of the reading)
R1= Reason One
R2= Reason Two
***The other person usually won’t do much

talking, so only one side of the column will
most likely be filled.

This is how your notes should look before the listening because you don’t know who is going to do
most of the talking; it could be the man or it could be the woman. As I already mentioned, one person will
most likely do most of the talking, but sometimes both individuals in the listening passage do a great deal of
talking. If you’re not sure who they’ll ask the question about, take notes for both the man and the woman. The
most important thing is to identify the opinion of each speaker. Once you identify each speaker’s opinion, the
conversation becomes much easier to follow. But for the most part, one person will do the majority of the
talking.
Don’t forget to write this structure out on a piece of paper before the listening begins. My advice is to
study and memorize the note structure for every single speaking task. On exam day, while the computer reads
the directions before the start of the speaking section, you should be able to write out the note structure for all
six speaking tasks.  
Josh MacPherson©
39
Quiz Time
We’ve talked a lot about integrated speaking task #3. Actually, let me rephrase that, I’ve talked a lot
about integrated speaking task #3. But you’re the person who’s going to have to take the exam, so it’s much
more important to figure out what you know and what you don’t know. As you read this book, you should be
actively participating in the material. Instead of underlining, circling and rereading, the information will sink
into your head at a much deeper level if you constantly quiz yourself.
1. How long is the reading passage? How long is the listening passage?
2. How should you prepare your notes for task #3’s reading passage? What’s the note structure?
3. How should you prepare your notes for task #3’s listening passage? What’s the note structure?
4. How long do you have to prepare for your response? How long do you have to speak? What information
should you include in your speaking response?
5. What’s the reading passage usually about? How does the listening section relate to the reading passage?
6. List two things you learned about taking notes (besides speaking task #3’s structure).
The future…

think the rest of this chapter will be about? What do you think the question will be about? How will your
speaking response differ from the independent tasks? Are you going to give a personal example like you did
in the independent tasks? How should you structure your response? Do you think you’ll use more information
from the reading passage or the listening passage?
Josh MacPherson©
40
Back to the listening. Read the conversation again and take down notes
on the important information.

Male Student: I really think the Student Association made a bad decision.
Female Student: Really? Why? Don’t you like going to the movies?
Male Student: Sure I do. But this new purchase is just a waste of money.
Female Student: What do you mean? It’s supposed to sound really good.
Male Student: Yeah, well, I’m sure it does, but, in Old Lincoln Hall? I mean that building must be 200
years old! It used to be the college gym! The acoustics are terrible.
Female Student: So you’re saying there’ll be no improvement?
Male Student: That’s right. And also, I seriously doubt that going to the movies is the number one social
activity for most students.
Female Student: Yeah, but that’s what students said.
Male Student: Well, of course that’s what they said. What else is there to do on campus?
Female Student: What do you mean?
Male Student: I mean, there isn’t much to do on campus besides go to the movies. If there were other
forms of, uh recreation, or other social activities, you know, I don’t think most students would have said
that going to the movies was their first choice.
Your Notes
Man
Woman
O: O:
R1: R1:
R2: R2:
Josh MacPherson©
41
2 O L F L AF? AF L O FT A F
HAFA F B L ?? F L F
- F 2 O AL L H C T HAFA F 2 F B L OF
LF A F S? T SA ? T 0 I FL
O AF A H AF? F L L T
LA
2 L H L A H 2 CF O T AF?
L L F L
O F C O L F, 4 2 CF O A
H F OA L A HAFA F
C L F, LOA
The QUESTION:
After the reading and the listening passage, the test will read the question. The question almost always
follows the same structure. Describe the man/woman’s opinion on (topic) and the reason he/she gives for
holding that opinion.
WAIT
Did you notice anything interesting about the question?
They tell you the change. So if you read the passage and listened to the conversation, but still didn’t
understand what the change was, don’t worry, they’ll tell you in the question.
Question: The man expresses his opinion of the Student Association’s recent purchase. State his
opinion and the reasons he gives for holding that opinion.
As you prepare, remember the information that you need to include in your response. You have to:
1. Describe the CHANGE from the reading

2. Say the OPINION OF THE STUDENT and the TWO REASONS he or she has for his or her
opinion.
Josh MacPherson©
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In 30 seconds you have to look at your notes and figure out what you’re
going to say.
Reading Notes Listening Notes
Are you ready?
SPEAK
60 seconds…
STOP
How did it go? Did you state the change, the
student’s opinion and the two reasons the
student provided to support his opinion of the
change? Turn to the next page to see my own
response.
Josh MacPherson©
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Task #3: My Answer

The reading passage announces a change on campus. In particular, the school has bought a
new sound system for the movie theater in Lincoln Hall. The man in the conversation feels that
the school shouldn’t have purchased the sound system and provides two reasons for support.
To start, the student explains that the acoustics in Lincoln Hall, where the movie theater is
located, are terrible. The building is over 200 years old and was originally designed as a
gymnasium.
Second, he goes on to say that going to the movies is not the number one activity on
campus, regardless of what the campus survey found. He explains that there’s nothing else to do
on campus. There are no other social activities, so, going to the movies is really the only choice
students have.
These are the reasons why the man disagrees with the school’s decision to buy a new sound
system. -150 words
The words in black are part of a script. You can use these words, phrases and sentences in almost any
situation. The words and phrases highlighted in blue are taken from the reading and the words and phrases
highlighted in yellow are taken from the conversation.
In this book, you’ll be provided sample scripts for all integrated speaking and writing questions.
However, these scripts are here to guide you. When you start to study for the TOEFL, it can be very daunting
because there’s so much to learn. To help you start, I think it’s best for you to use a sample script so you can
get used to the structure and how the TOEFL graders expect you to answer each question.
Eventually, you should try to deviate from the script and start answering in a way that makes you feel
both comfortable and confident. You can get a high score while using the script, but you can get an even beRer
score by answering in a more natural way.
Task #3 Script
The reading passage (announces a change on campus/explains a class policy). In particular,
________________. The man/woman in the conversation feels that ___________________ and
provides two reasons for support.
(35-40 seconds left) To start, he/she/the student explains that _____________________ (2x
sentences, one to introduce the reason and another detail that expands it).
Second, he/she goes on to say __________________. He/she explains that _________________.
(5 seconds left) These are the reasons why the man/woman ___________________________.
Josh MacPherson©
44
T i p Also, if you’re frustrated, that’s okay. Most of my students get

It’s been scientifically proven very depressed when they start practicing speaking because they’re
that you learn less when you’re
not used to taking an exam where speaking is required. Look in the
stressed. If you’re frustrated
that’s okay, just take a break. Appendix for the Growth vs. Fixed Mindset handout and answer the
Go out for a walk or surf the questions. Which mindset do you have? If you enter the growth
Internet for a few minutes. Come mindset you’ll stop seeing difficulties as obstacles, but instead as
back to studying when you’re in a
necessary steps in the process of learning. This is a process so take
relaxed and open frame of mind.
a deep breath and stay focused.
Last Minute ADVICE:

1. As you can see from the script, the only thing you have to state from the reading is the
announcement or change in policy. Everything else should come from the listening. Your
notes from the reading are to help you prepare for the listening.
2. You should be able to say about 150 words, or a liRle more, in 60 seconds. If not, refer to the
homework assignment at the end of the Independent Speaking F.A.Q. handout located in
the Appendix.
3. Some books go into great detail teaching you how to paraphrase. Don’t worry about
paraphrasing, you’ll naturally paraphrase as you speak. If you say the exact words from the
reading or listening passage it means that you took good notes and understood what was
important.
4. This particular example is tricky because it’s short and simple. You need to write down as
much as possible as you listen. When you write your notes, make sure you understand
everything you write down. If you don’t understand your notes, they’re useless.
5. Keep doing one task until you perfect it. It’s more helpful than doing a bunch of different
tasks. Perfecting one task will help in all future tasks.
After you complete any integrated speaking practice task #3, before you move on, be
sure to ask yourself the questions on the next page:
Josh MacPherson©
45
Self - Assessment

Directions: After you finish each practice task, ask yourself the questions listed below. Be honest with
yourself and identify your weaknesses. After that, look through the Independent and Integrated Speaking
Appendix for helpful strategies and exercises that’ll assist in targeting those weaknesses.

1. Did I write down the announcement of the

reading and the two reasons for support?
2. Did my notes from the reading prepare me

for the listening?
3. Did I understand most of the listening

conversation and note all important points?
4. Did I use my notes to help me prepare and

speak?
5. Did I answer the question completely in

time? Did I look at the clock 3-4 times to
monitor my progress?
6. Did I speak mostly about the listening

passage and one person’s opinion?

10. Try to think of a plan. How can I improve?
Also, it may help if you to reconceptualize the way you think of the question. Look at
integrated speaking task #3 in the Analogies handout located in the Integrated Speaking Appendix,
this may help you rethink the question and make it easier to answer.
Josh MacPherson©
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Introduction
Many students feel that integrated speaking tasks #4 and #6 are the most difficult. What makes them so
difficult? Well, they’re about an academic topic. More specifically, about an academic topic you probably don’t
know about. For example, maybe you have to read and listen to something about Homeostasis. At this point
many students shut down. Homeostasis is a big, long word that many students have never heard of before.
However, this is done on purpose. On the TOEFL, it’s not about what material you know, but about what
structure you know. Look at the Analogies handout in the Integrated Speaking Appendix section before
starting. It’ll help demystify the academic speaking tasks.
Speaking Task #4
Topic: An academic task covering a very wide range of topics.
Structure:
1st - Reading Passage: It’s approximately 100 words and you have 50 seconds to read (never returns).
2nd - Listening Passage: It’s a lecture by a professor illustrating an example of the topic from the
reading material. It’ll last between 60-90 seconds.
3rd - Prepare: You have 30 seconds to prepare your response.
4th - Respond: You have 60 seconds to speak.
Let’s just jump right in with an example and see how you do. This example is courtesy of the ETS website:
hXps://www.ets.org/s/toefl/pdf/qp_v4_web_a4.pdf
Directions: You will now read a short passage and listen to a talk on the same topic. You will then be
asked a question about them. After you hear the question, give yourself 30 seconds to
prepare your response. Then record yourself speaking for 60 seconds.
Behavior Modification
Individuals often modify their behavior based on what they have learned about the possible
consequences of their actions. When an individual learns through experience that a certain behavior
results in pleasant consequences, that behavior is likely to be repeated. An unpleasant consequence, on
the other hand, discourages further repetition of the behavior. While behavior modification can be
observed in experiments, it also occurs frequently in everyday settings, when individuals change their
behavior based on what they have learned about the consequences of that behavior.
Josh MacPherson©
47
Task #4 Lecture Script

Directions: Now listen to part of a lecture on the topic in a psychology class.
This happens all the time with kids, in schools. Say there’s a little boy or girl who’s just starting
school. Well, they’re not really used to the rules about proper behavior for a classroom, so at the
beginning, they might, I don’t know, interrupt the teacher, walk around the classroom when they’re
supposed to be sitting down. You know just misbehaving in general. OK, but what happens? Well, the
teacher gets angry with them when they act this way. They might get punished—they have to sit at their
desks when everyone else is allowed to go outside and play. And they certainly don’t like that. Soon
they’ll learn that this kind of behavior gets them in trouble. They’ll also learn that when they raise their
hand to talk to the teacher, and sit quietly and pay attention during class ... they’re rewarded. The
teacher tells them she’s proud of them, and maybe puts little happy-face stickers on their homework.
Now that their behavior gets a good reaction from the teacher, the kids learn to always act this way in
class ... and not behave the way they used to.
Question: Using the example from the lecture, explain what behavior modification is and how
it works.
30 seconds PREPARE
60 seconds SPEAK
How did it go? How was it different from task #3?

Believe it or not, this is a fairly easy question. Usually on the TOEFL this question is
more difficult, but let’s talk about it together.
T i p
When I ask a question, like I just did above, actually answer it! Don’t just keep
reading. I became a better learner once I started to become actively involved in my
learning. Don’t let this information passively drift through you. Stop, think about the
questions and the examples. Decide if you agree or disagree with me or try my ideas out
on another TOEFL question. The biggest step in improving your TOEFL score is by
improving the way you study. Get active!
Josh MacPherson©
48
The Reading Section:
The article will basically be a 100 word definition of the title and maybe a bit of further explanation.
Write down as much as you can, but be sure to write these two things:
1. Copy Title
2. Find Definition
T = Title
D= Definition
AN= Additional Notes
Is that all I have to write down for the reading

passage?
Yes, that’s all you have to do. Some books go into
the different methods of note-taking depending on the
style of the reading —maybe it’s explaining a theory or
describing a process — but they all follow a similar
format, they simply introduce a new piece of
information and describe it.
This is what your notes for the reading should look
like. Remember, the reading passage goes away and you
only get to hear the listening once, so take very, very
good notes. At first, you want to copy the title, after that,
the definition. If there’s time remaining, add some
details you think might be important.
Josh MacPherson©
49
Try it for yourself. Reread the passage on the first page of this
section and try to identify the topic and its definition.
Your Notes
T:
D:
AN:
)' 0 DI % .1 I D ID %
ID I D A DI 7 I
'
'0 IIN ? I
DI D I I IA I
I I I D D D 7 I D
I I D A D D I D I IA
I D ' .7D I ,( D I I % I ID
I I I '
'0 D AN AA 7 D 7 %
ID I DI D '
This style is risky and you can probably see why: I didn’t get a chance to read the whole thing. By the
time I wrote down the title and the definition my time was up. I didn’t have any more time to write down
additional details. Again, you can never be 100% sure of what’s important and what isn’t.
While I think identifying the topic and the definition is the best strategy for speaking task #4, some of
my students don’t feel comfortable writing down just the title and definition. Many students prefer to skim the
reading. If you feel the same way, than you can follow the note structure on the next page:
Josh MacPherson©
50
The Note Structure My Notes
T i p
My advice is just that… advice. Follow whichever strategy you feel
most comfortable using, but find one method and stick with it!

For this particular question, the TOEFL is testing your ability to see how the listening is an illustration
of the reading. They want to see if you can connect information and show how the listening passage further
develops the material in the reading. The listening will develop the topic from the reading by either:

1. Showing an example of the reading
2. Expanding on the reading
3. Disagreeing with the reading
About 90% of the time, it will be an example of the reading.
WAIT
You’re going to use your reading notes to prepare you for the listening. On the
TOEFL, before the listening passage to speaking task #4 starts, look at your reading
notes again and ask yourself: What’s the listening going to be about?
Josh MacPherson©
51
Anticipating the Listening: Here are my notes again. I want to use them to anticipate the lecturer. I’m going to
write out my thought process. You should do the same when you practice and when you take the exam.
Remember, we need to become actively involved in the material:
“Okay, so the title is ‘Behavior Modification’. I guess the listening is

probably going to have something to do with changing the way you
act. Modification means change. They mention ‘consequences’ in the
definition so behavior modification is all about changing your
behavior based on what happens after you do something. I remember
hearing something about Pavlov’s dog and how that scientist, Pavlov,
would ring a bell before feeding the dog. After a while, every time the
dog heard the sound of the bell, he’d drool. Maybe the lecturer is going
to talk about that or an example similar to it.”
Think about it: Why is it a good idea to predict what will happen in the listening
passage before you actually listen?
Listening Notes: You’re listening for an example or illustration of the topic in the reading. In this case, the
topic is Behavior Modification, so listen for an example of it and some details. Your notes should look like this:
Ex1= Example #1
D1= Details for example #1
Ex2= Example #2
D2= Details for example #2
Josh MacPherson©
52
Look at the speaking passage again, or have a friend or family member read it to
you. Try it for yourself first before you see my own example.
Speaking Task #4 Script

Directions: Now listen to part of a lecture on the topic in a psychology class.
This happens all the time with kids, in schools. Say there’s a little boy or girl who’s just starting
school. Well, they’re not really used to the rules about proper behavior for a classroom, so at the
beginning, they might, I don’t know, interrupt the teacher, walk around the classroom when they’re
supposed to be sitting down. You know just misbehaving in general. OK, but what happens? Well, the
teacher gets angry with them when they act this way. They might get punished—they have to sit at their
desks when everyone else is allowed to go outside and play. And they certainly don’t like that. Soon
they’ll learn that this kind of behavior gets them in trouble. They’ll also learn that when they raise their
hand to talk to the teacher, and sit quietly and pay attention during class ... they’re rewarded. The
teacher tells them she’s proud of them, and maybe puts little happy-face stickers on their homework.
Now that their behavior gets a good reaction from the teacher, the kids learn to always act this way in
class ... and not behave the way they used to.
Your Notes
Ex#1:
D#1:
Ex#1:
D#1:
 
T i p
Don’t forget to ask yourself the questions
at the end of each section after you complete
each practice question. These questions will
help guide you as you study and improve.
Josh MacPherson©
53
Quiz Time
1. How long is the reading passage? How about the listening passage; how long is it? How is this task different
from integrated task #3?
2. How should you prepare your notes for task #4’s reading passage? What’s the note structure?
3. How should you prepare your notes for task #4’s listening passage? What’s the note structure?
5. What’s the reading passage usually about? How does the listening section relate to the reading passage?
6. List two things you learned about Behaviour Modification.
The future…

speaking response differ from task #3? How should you structure your response? Do you think you’ll use more
information from the reading passage or the listening passage?
Josh MacPherson©
54
Back to our listening note-taking strategy. Now, here are my notes for this
particular listening passage…
A I 7 AA I I I DDA ' N I % I
D I %7 D D ID % D0 I
I D '
3NI OS I D N D A N
ID I I A'
2 %7 I I - I
ID A ID A I %I I D
D ID D7 7AN D I I'
. %0 D AN AA D ID I A
D
0 I N I 7
I N I A D I A I I I
I IAN'
In the listening passage, they usually provide two examples of what you read about in the listening.
However, sometimes they give more than two examples and sometimes they give only one example. The note
structure is only a guide. If you’re not sure if some detail is an example or not, don’t worry about keeping
everything neat. Just make sure you write down what you think is both important and connected to the
reading passage.
The QUESTION:
After the reading and the listening passage, the computer will read the question. The question almost
always follows the same structure. Using the example(s) from the lecture, explain the topic you read about.
Question: Using the example from the lecture, explain what behavior modification is and how
it works.
As you prepare, consider the information you need to include in your response. You have to:
1. Give the TITLE and the DEFINITION you read in the reading passage
2. DESCRIBE THE ILLUSTRATION you heard in the listening and show how it
CONNECTS to the topic in the reading
Josh MacPherson©
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In 30 seconds you have to look at your notes and figure out what you’re going to say.
Reading Notes Listening Notes
Are you ready?
SPEAK
60 seconds…
STOP
How did it go? Did you provide the title and
definition of the subject? Did you describe the
example and show how its connected to the topic of
the reading? Are you still confused? Take a look at
my own response on the following page:
Josh MacPherson©
56
Task #4: My Answer

The reading passage discusses behavior modification which the author defines as a situation
when individuals modify their behavior based on what they’ve learned about the consequences of
a particular action. In the lecture, the professor delves deeper into the subject by providing two
examples of behavior modification. He explains that behavior modification often happens to kids
in school. If, for example, a kid interrupts the teacher by doing something like walking around
during class, the student will be punished. Maybe, the punished child has to sit at their desk while
other students play. The lecturer also mentions that when children raise their hand and sit quietly
in class they’re rewarded with something like stickers. Therefore, through either positive or
negative outcomes, children learn to adjust their behavior at a young age. And so, the professor
clearly illustrates how consequences influence and change behavior. -143 words
The words in black are part of the script. You can use these words, phrases and sentences in almost
any situation. The words and phrases highlighted in blue are taken from the reading and the words and
phrases highlighted in yellow are taken from the lecture.
Also, I’d like to point out the last two sentences which state:
Therefore, through either positive or negative outcomes, children learn to adjust their behavior at a young age.
And so, the professor clearly illustrates how consequences influence and change behavior.

These two final sentences bring the example back to the reading passage and show
connection. Many people forget this crucial aspect of speaking task 4. When you finish
reporting the example(s), try to provide two sentences, one sentence after the example(s)
and your conclusion. These two sentences will show how the example(s) from the listening
is related to the reading.
T i p
Keep doing one task until you perfect it. It’s more helpful than
doing a bunch of different tasks. Perfecting one task will help in
all future tasks.
Josh MacPherson©
57
Here’s the sample script to speaking task #4 to help guide your response. Eventually, you should try to
deviate from the script and start answering in a way that makes you feel both comfortable and confident. You
can get a high score while using the script, but you can get an even beXer score by answering in a natural way.
Task #4 Script
The reading passage discusses ____________________ which the author defines as
_________________. (40-45 seconds left) In the lecture, the professor delves deeper into the subject
by providing two examples of ___________________. He (or she) explains that
____________________. (20 seconds) The lecturer also mentions ______________ . (5 seconds left)
And so, the professor clearly illustrates ________________.
LAST MINUTE ADVICE:

1. As in speaking task #3, the majority of the information in your response should be from the
listening section.
2. If the speaker repeats something or s-p-e-l-l-s out a word you should probably write it
down. You should also write down numbers and dates. If you repeat the same number or
date in your speaking response, it seems like you’re a very good listener.
3. Some books go into great detail teaching you how to paraphrase. Don’t worry about
paraphrasing. You’ll naturally paraphrase as you speak. If you say the exact words from the
reading or listening passage, it means you took good notes and understood what was
important.
4. If you hear a rhetorical question (i.e. Do you know what a lion is? Well, a lion…) make sure
you write down what comes afterward; it’s almost always important information.
5. In your notes, write down only nouns, verbs or adjectives.
6. Timing is crucial. Sometimes students don’t take a lot of notes during the listening and they
find that they don’t have enough information to discuss in their response. Pay aXention to
the clock and the script, and it’ll help guide your speaking speed.
7. If you still need help with this question, it may be helpful to reconceptualize what the
question is and how it’s being asked. Look in the Appendix at the Analogies handout under
integrated speaking task #4.
Josh MacPherson©
58
Self - Assessment


1.Did I identify the topic, definition and have

time to jot down additional notes?
2. Did my notes from the reading prepare me

for the listening?
3. Did I understand most of the lecture and

write down 5-6 lines of notes?
4. Did I use my notes to help me prepare and

speak?

6. Did I speak mostly about the listening

passage?

And that’s the end of task #4. Now, let’s relax for a minute. Grab a cup of coffee or tea or have a
cigareXe or do whatever it is you like to do to relax. You’ve earned it. This TOEFL stuff is hard.
Josh MacPherson©
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Introduction
Integrated tasks 5 and 6 are different from the previous two integrated tasks. In integrated tasks 5 and 6
you are not given anything to read. When you respond to the question, you’ll be reporting about the
information you heard in the listening passage, and that’s it. In task #5 you hear a conversation between two
students, which may remind you of the listening passage in integrated speaking task #3. You must listen
closely and report the important information. After that, you’re required to offer your opinion.
This is the only integrated speaking task where your opinion is necessary.
Speaking Task #5
Topic: Campus Life
Structure:
1st - Listening Passage: It’s a conversation between two students, one man and one woman. It’ll last
between 120-150 seconds.
2nd - Prepare: You have 20 seconds to prepare your response.
3rd - Respond: You have 60 seconds to speak.
WAit
So far we’ve discussed two integrated speaking tasks. By now, you should be somewhat familiar with the task
structure. As I mentioned before, the listening passage in this section is very similar to the listening in speaking
integrated task #3. Before we discuss task #5 in detail, try to answer the following questions:
What do you remember about speaking task #3?
T i p
A reoccurring theme in this book is for What do you think the listening is going to be about?
you to be active in the learning
process. You can’t just passively read
this book, you must be engaged. One way
to do that is to make predictions. You How many people are going to speak? Where will he, she or
should be actively thinking about the
question before it’s even presented. they be speaking?
Predicting will help prepare your brain
for the task ahead.
How do you think you should structure your notes?
Josh MacPherson©
60
The following example is courtesy of the ETS website:
hQps://www.ets.org/Media/Tests/TOEFL/pdf/SampleQuestions.pdf

Female Student: How’s the calculus class going? You’re doing better?
Male Student: Not really. I just can’t get the hang of it. There’re so many functions and formulas to memorize, you
know? And the final . . . It’s only a few weeks away. I’m really worried about doing well.
Female Student: Oh . . . You know, you should go to the tutoring program and ask for help.
Male Student: You mean, in the Mathematics building?
Female Student: Ya. Get a tutor there. Most tutors are doctoral students in the math program. They know what they’re
talking about, and for the final test, you know, they’d tell you what to study, how to prepare, all of that.
Male Student: I know about that program . . . but doesn’t it cost money?
Female Student: Of course. You have to register and pay by the hour . . . But they’ve got all the answers.
Male Student: Hmm . . .
Female Student: Another option, I guess, is to form a study group with other students. That won’t cost you any money.
Male Student: That’s a thought . . . although once I was in a study group, and it was a big waste of time. We usually
ended up talking about other stuff like what we did over the weekend.
Female student: But that was for a different class, right? I’ve actually had some pretty good experiences with study
groups. Usually students in the same class have different strengths and weaknesses with the material . . . if they’re
serious about studying, they can really help each other out. Think about it.
Question: Briefly summarize the problem the speakers are discussing. Then state which solution you
would recommend. Explain the reasons for your recommendation.
20 seconds PREPARE
60 seconds SPEAK
How did it go? How was it different from tasks #3 and #4?
I don’t think this question was too easy or too difficult. You can expect a similar level of
difficulty on the TOEFL.
Josh MacPherson©
61
The listening passage is a conversation between two students. Here are some points to consider:
1. It’s always a conversation between a man and a woman

that’ll last between 120-150 seconds. T i p
2. One student will discuss a problem. Don’t forget to always have
your note structure written
3. The student’s problem is going to have something to do out and prepared before the
with campus life. For example, the student missed an listening begins, which means
you’ll have to write out the
assignment and she doesn’t know what to do or she has note structure for all tasks
to get a parking sticker for her car. while they’re reading the
directions for the speaking
4. The other student will offer one or two suggestions. section.
Listening Notes: This note structure should

mirror the way the conversation unfolds in the
listening passage. Just like in speaking task #3, you
don’t know if it’s the man or the woman who’s
going to do most of the talking. In this structure,
the man is the one with the problem. If you listen
to the passage and it’s the woman who has the
problem, you can just switch the columns.
If you have this note structure wriQen out
before the listening, it should help you follow the
conversation. The listening will almost always
begin with a student explaining the problem, in
this case the man. After he finishes, the woman
will offer a suggestion. The man usually finds
some problem with the first suggestion, so the
woman is forced to think of another suggestion.
After the second suggestion the man will give
another response.
When we speak to people about a problem, we usually introduce it with a transition word
and change of tone. When we offer solutions, we also start with a transition word and
change of tone. Take a look at the chart on the next page which includes some common
transition words and tone changes.
Josh MacPherson©
62
Transition Words Tone of Voice
I just can’t…
-dejected
I’ve got a problem with…
Introducing a I don’t understand….
-down and low
Problem -sad
I can’t decide…
-frustrated
I’m not sure…
You know…
-upbeat
Another thing you could do…
Offering Possible Why don’t you…
-hopeful
Solutions -optimistic
Have you tried…
-cautious
If I were you, I’d…

I included the tone of voice because the speakers are emotionally connected to what they’re saying.
When I have a problem and I describe it to my friend, I usually sound sad of frustrated. It’d be strange for me
to describe a problem in a happy way. Also, when I offer advice to someone, I usually try to sound cheerful
and optimistic. When someone has a problem, you want him or her to feel beQer. This is all fairly common
sense, but for some reason a lot of students have a hard time with the listening passages and I think that’s
because they forget that this test is supposed to reflect real life. The TOEFL measures your English fluency, not
your knowledge of grammar and correct pronunciation. In speaking task #5 don’t imagine a test, but instead,
two friends talking, one with a problem and the other trying to help.
So now you have another piece of the puzzle to help you tackle speaking task #5. Use your new
knowledge to take notes and answer the question. Go back to the passage and ask someone to read it out loud
so you can jot down the important points while you listen. After you finish, compare your notes to my own on
the following page. Are they similar?
Josh MacPherson©
63
Your Notes
Man Woman
PD:
S1:
R1:
S2:
R2:
, . . , .
. -.
$ . - -
. , $
. - -
-- . . . . .
. $
. -
- $ . .
. $
. . .
$ .
, . $
- . --
$ . .
. $
Josh MacPherson©
64
Quiz Time
1. How is this task different from task #3? What makes task #5 different from all other integrated speaking
tasks?
2. How should you prepare your notes for the listening passage? What’s the note structure?
3. In the listening passage, one person will describe a problem, but what will the other person do?
5. What are some transition words you can use to introduce a problem? What transition words can you use to
offer a solution to a problem? What kind of tone of voice should you employ if you discuss a problem? How
about when you’re offering a solution?
The future…

speaking response differ from speaking task #3? How should you structure your response? Will you include
any information besides what was said during the listening passage?  
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The QUESTION:
After the listening passage the computer will read the question. The question almost always follows the
same structure. Describe the man or woman’s problem and offer your own opinion in the ma9er.
Question: Briefly summarize the problem the speakers are discussing. Then state which
solution you would recommend. Explain the reasons for your recommendation.
As you prepare, consider the information you need to include in your response. You have to:
1. Describe THE PROBLEM.

2. Discuss THE TWO SUGGESTIONS given to the student. Sometimes there might be only
one suggestion.
3. Offer YOUR OPINION. Which suggestion do you think works best? If there was only one
suggestion, say whether you agree or disagree with it.
For tasks 5 and 6 you only have 20 seconds to prepare before you speak, so you have
to go over your notes quickly and figure out what you’re going to say and how
you’re going to say it.
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Are you ready?

SPEAK
60 seconds…
STOP
How did it go? Were you able to include all the
necessary information? Did you go over the man’s
problems, the woman’s suggestions and his
responses to those suggestions? Did you offer your
own personal opinion? Here’s my own response:

Task #5 My Answer
In the conversation, the man’s problem is that he’s struggling in his Calculus class and he’s
afraid he might fail the final in a few weeks. At first, the woman suggests that the man go to the
tutoring program in the Mathematics Building. After that, she advises him to make a study group
with serious students from the same class. If I were the man, I would go to the tutoring program.
Even though the second solution is okay, I think the first is beQer because the tutors are geQing
their doctorates in the field. They know much more about the topic than other students. I don’t
know why he’s complaining about the price; on-campus tutors are usually cheap. And like the
woman explained, not only can they teach him about Calculus, but they can also teach him how to
study. That’s why I believe the first suggestion is beQer than the second. -153 words
situation. The words and phrases highlighted in yellow describe the problem, the words and phrases
highlighted in blue describe the possible solutions and the words and phrases highlighted in green are
my own personal opinion.
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I could have done more reporting about the conversation, but I didn’t. I
omiQed the man’s reactions to the woman’s suggestions and I didn’t explain
T i p the reasons why she thought each suggestion was a good idea. Instead, I spoke
a lot about my own personal opinion. You see, when I give my personal
Most TOEFL instructors
say the conclusion isn’t
opinion it gives me the opportunity to talk about the reasons why the woman
necessary, but I felt the way she did and how the man reacted. This will give you more time to
disagree.Thoughts sound discuss your own opinion while also showing how it connects to the
strange when they’re cut conversation. When I say, “Like the woman explained, not only can they teach him
off. Leave yourself a
few seconds to wrap
about Calculus, but they can also teach him how to study.” I’m showing the TOEFL
everything up. graders that I understood the suggestion and connected with it. As I’ve
mentioned in previous sections, at some point it’s necessary for you to show
how your opinion is connected to the passages.
Here’s the script on its own…
Task #5 Script
In the conversation, the man’s/woman’s problem is that _____________________________
and/because _____________________. (50-45 seconds left) At first, the woman/the man suggests
that the man/woman ______________________. After that, she/he advises him/her to
_____________________. (25 seconds left) If I were the man/woman, I would
________________________. Even though the first/second solution is okay, I think the first/second
is beQer because ________________________. That’s why I believe the first/second suggestion is
beQer than the first/second suggestion.
I said it before and I’ll say it again, this script is just a guide. Feel free to modify it anyway you want.
When you first start practicing for the TOEFL, I recommend using a script and sticking to it until you start to
feel more comfortable with the questions. Eventually, you want to keep the general idea of the structure of the
script, but use more of your own words.
T i p
You want to have these scripts memorized before test day. I recommend creating flash
cards with the question type on the front, along with some memory cues, and the passage
written out on the back. Flash cards are a powerful way to remember difficult material.
I’d recommend joining a website <www.quizlet.com> or downloading the Anki app and
creating your own personal deck <www.ankisrs.net>.
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Last Minute ADVICE:
1. If you’re reading this book then, unfortunately, you can’t hear me speak. When you practice,
make sure to vary your intonation and show emotion. This isn’t a lecture; a friend has a
problem which makes him or her sad or nervous and you want to help. Show that you want
to help through your voice.
2. It’s important to go in the same order as the listening passage. Don’t start your response
with your opinion. In the listening passage they go over the problem and offer suggestions;
you should go in the same exact order as the listening passage.
3. Imagine yourself in the conversation. If you have a problem, you’re sad. If you have a friend
with a problem, you try to help. Think of this task as a natural conversation between two
friends.
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Self - Assessment


1.Was I able to identify the problem,

solutions and reactions in the listening?
2. Did I understand each speaker’s feelings

through their intonation?
3. Did my notes from the listening prepare

me for the speaking?
4. Did I use the preparation time to review my

notes and plan my speech?

6. Did I identify the problem, the possible

solutions and my own opinion in time?

You’ve made it all the way to the end of task #5. Congratulations! I know this material is difficult so take a
break, you’ve earned it. But whatever you do, don’t give up. Stay focused. Remember the reasons why you’re
taking the TOEFL test in the first place. You want to get a beQer job or enter a North American university,
those are important goals. Keep them in mind and you’ll stay motivated.
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Introduction
This is the final speaking task and usually the most difficult. For this task you have to listen to an academic
lecture. Lectures are more difficult to follow and understand than conversations. Geography, Anthropology
and Biology are just a few examples of the range of possible topics for this question. But like all parts of the
TOEFL, it’s not important for you to be familiar with the topic discussed. For this task you have to prove to the
graders that you’re able to identify the topic and the important points discussed. After you finish speaking task
#6, you’ll be ready to move on to the writing section.
Speaking Task #6
Topic: An academic task covering a wide range of topics.
Structure:
1st - Listening Passage: It’s always an academic lecture by a professor which lasts somewhere between
90-150 seconds.
2nd - Prepare: You have 20 seconds to prepare your response.
3rd - Respond: You have 60 seconds to speak.
WAit
We’re almost at the end of the speaking section. By now, you should be somewhat familiar with the task
structure. The listening passage in this section is very similar to the listening in speaking integrated task #4.
Before we discuss task #6 in detail, try to answer the following questions:
What do you remember about speaking task #4?
T i p
Some tasks are harder than others. While
What do you think the listening is going to be about?
you’re taking the TOEFL, it’s easy to
lose your motivation if you don’t do
well on a particular task. In the
speaking section there are six tasks. If
you do poorly on one task don’t worry, How many people are going to speak? Where will he, she or
you have five other tasks to focus on.
they be speaking about?
Try not to dwell on what you did wrong
in the past and focus on how you can do
better in the future.
How do you think you should structure your notes?
Josh MacPherson©
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This example is courtesy of the ETS website:
hXps://www.ets.org/s/toefl/pdf/qp_v1_web.pdf
Speaking Task #6 Lecture Script

Directions: Now listen to part of a lecture in a business class.
Today, we’ll talk about how companies determine the initial price for their products, by that I mean, when they
first introduce a product in the market. There are different approaches, and today we’ll discuss two of them. They are
quite different… each with their own advantages.
One approach or strategy sets the initial price of the product high, followed by a lower price at a later stage.
Why? Well… when introducing a new product, companies want to build a high-quality image for it. Products that cost
more are believed to be of higher quality. So, during the early stages of the product life cycle, companies can make very
high profits from consumers willing to pay more for a high quality product, and although consumers know that prices
will eventually go down, they’re also willing to pay more to get the product sooner. This approach works very well
with… oh… innovative, high-tech products, for example. Now just think about when video recorders, or… video
cameras…or even cell phones… first came out. They were expensive, but then they became much more accessible.
Another very common strategy sets an initial price low. Now this happens when the market is already saturated
with the product and the strategy is to undercut its competitors. Say, there’s a newly starting computer maker trying to
gain market share. So what do they do? Well, they offer a computer at an affordable price, lower than existing brands.
By doing this, this company appeals to new consumers who weren’t probably even interested in getting a computer…
well, of course… to existing consumers who might now be tempted to switch brands. Now, how does this company
make profits with its low-priced computer? Well, one thing that’s often done is to encourage their customers to buy
accessories also manufactured by them, like printers, or software, for example.
Directions: Give yourself 20 seconds to prepare your response to the following question. Then
record yourself speaking for 60 seconds.
Question: Using the points and examples from the lecture, explain the two pricing strategies
described by the professor.
20 seconds PREPARE
60 seconds SPEAK
How did it go? How was it different from the other integrated tasks?
I don’t think this question was too easy or too difficult. You can expect a similar level of
difficulty on the TOEFL.
Josh MacPherson©
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The listening passage is an academic lecture by a professor. Here are some points to consider:
1. The lecturer usually states the topic in the beginning.

2. After the lecturer introduces the topic, he or she may give a definition
T i p or some background information to further explain the topic.

3. After giving a general idea of the topic, the professor will provide two
The listening passage for
speaking task #6 follows a examples of the topic or two sub-topics. The examples or sub-topics are
similar structure to your
independent writing
meant to help you develop a beXer understanding of the topic in a
assignment. Think of the particular context.
listening as a 3-paragraph
essay read aloud.
4. You will probably be unfamiliar with the topic, however, you’re still
expected to identify the topic, briefly describe the topic and talk about
the examples or sub-topics discussed in the lecture.
Listening Notes: The listening passage

should go in the exact order of my note
structure. Of course there are times when
there might be only one subtopic, or the
professor doesn’t talk about the topic until a
minute into the lecture, but those instances are
rare. Prepare for a listening passage that will
follow this order. This is a well-organized
speech. When we introduce a new subject it’s
hard for people to understand abstract
concepts. It’s much easier to understand
something when you give concrete, real-life
examples that people can relate to.
This note structure should help you
beXer follow the listening passage. Don’t
worry if you don’t write everything down in
every category. It’s a lot of information in a
very short amount of time. Focus on writing
down what you understand.

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73
When you speak, it’s necessary to use specific transition words and phrases as you progress
from one topic to the next. In the lecture, you may here one of the phrases listed on the
following chart:
Key Words and Phrases

Today… Let’s take a look at…
Introducing the Topic I’d like to discuss… So, what do you think…?
For homework… Last time…
One type of… Also,…

Introducing Subtopics The first/second/third… First of all…
Another way… Not only…
For example… Let’s look at…

Introducing Examples For instance… Say…
One way… Take for example…
If you look at each category in the chart above, the

transition words differ depending on the situation. For the
first row, Introducing the Topic, it’s something brand new,
you have no prior information to build from, so you need to
make your transition phrase very general. Another example
that I use all the time in my class is, “Okay, so….”. I
included the “for homework” phrase because sometimes
the lecturer will refer to previous material. In the Introducing
Subtopics category, the transition words change because
they’re building on previous information; there must be a
topic before there’s a subtopic. And after that, when I
introduce examples, I use phrases that you’re probably
familiar with. Examples should be easy for you to identify
since you’ve been hearing teachers introduce them since
you started learning English.
T i p
I’ve said it before, but I have to
say it one more time before we move
on to the next section: have your
note structure written out before
you encounter any speaking task.

So now you’ve learned a couple new things about speaking task #6. Use your new knowledge to take
notes and answer the question. Go back to the task we all ready tried and ask someone to read the passage out
loud so you can jot down the important points while you listen. After you finish, compare your notes to my
own on the following page. Are they similar?
Josh MacPherson©
74
Your Notes
T:
AD:
ST1:
AD:
Ex1:
ST2:
AD:
Ex2:
. A 1 A1 AA
1 61A A 1 1A
A1 6 1 6 1
A 1 A 1 6
1A 1A AA 2 2
1 A A
F1 1 A
I 1 A 1 A A1
A F 1 1 1A
6 1H
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75
Quiz Time
1. What makes speaking task #6 different from all other integrated speaking tasks?
2. How should you prepare your notes for the listening passage? What’s the note structure?
3. What’s one metaphor or analogy you can use to help you think differently about task #6?
4. List at least three transition phrases to introduce the topic. After that, list at least three transition phrases to
introduce the subtopics. Finally, list at least three transition phrases to introduce examples.
6. What are some transition words you can use to introduce a problem? What transition words can you use to
offer a solution to a problem? What kind of tone of voice should you employ if you discuss a problem? How
about when you’re offering a solution?
The future…

speaking response differ from the other tasks? How should you structure your response? Will you include any
information besides what was said during the listening passage?
Josh MacPherson©
76
Back to our listening note-taking strategy. Now, here are my typed notes for
this particular listening passage…
# A A 1 AA 1 A 1 A A1
T: Companies must determine initial price
#. 6 A A 1 A1 1A I 1 1 16 AD: products have different strategies
1 A A 1 ST1: high price, later down
# 212 1 6 I1 1 1 A AD: build image
A A 2 6 1 -more money, more quality

Ex1: high-tech, effective
# A A 1 6 AI 1 I -cameras and cell phones
A 1 A ST2: lower price
AD: competitive
#- 2 A 6 A A 2# 2 A 1A I,
Ex2: new computer company
1 1 A 1 H - A A 2
-new customers, lower price
2 A1 I H
-maybe switch brands
#- AA 1A I6 F1 6 A -buy accessories, more profit
F1 1 IA1 6 A
T i p
When adding to a section of your notes, place new ideas or details on a
fresh line and indent. This will make your notes easier to read and
understand. My notes are very messy, but you can still see a structure.
The QUESTION:
After the listening passage the computer will read the question. The question almost always follows the
same structure. Using information from the lecture, explain the topic, sub-topics and examples.
Question: Using the points and examples from the lecture, explain the two pricing strategies
described by the professor.
After the computer finishes reading the question, you have 20 seconds to prepare. As you prepare,
consider the information you need to include in your response. You have to:
1. Identify THE TOPIC.
2. Explain THE TWO SUBTOPICS given to the student. Sometimes there might only be
one subtopic.
3. Describe THE EXAMPLES.
Josh MacPherson©
77
T i p
Just like speaking task #4, if you’re not sure of the topic, wait
for the question. They restate the topic in the question.
In 20 seconds you have to look at your notes and figure out what you’re
going to say.
You may notice that with my 20 seconds of

prep time I edited my notes a liXle bit. If it helps,
you can do the same.
1 1 A2 A 2 1
A 2 1 A 1 1
1 A 6 AA 1
A 1 61
2 1A F1 A 1 1 6
A6 A 1 1 1A 1
1 1 1 A 1 A1
1 6 1 6 A
1 1 1
1 1 1 A . 1A 1
1 6 A A 6 1
1
Are you ready?

Josh MacPherson©
78
SPEAK
60 seconds…
STOP
How did it go? Were you able to include all the
necessary information? Did you talk about the topic,
the two subtopics and their examples? Did you
speak in the same order as the lecturer? Here’s my
own response:
Task #6 Script
In the lecture, the professor discusses how companies determine the initial price of a
product. To further illustrate, she describes two different pricing strategies.
First, some feel that it’s beXer to set the initial price of a product high and then to lower the
price later. SeXing the price high helps build the product’s image. In the mind of the consumer,
higher prices equal higher quality. For example, this strategy is very effective when introducing
high-tech products. Cameras and cell phones are a few specific examples of products that were
released at a high price.
Another strategy is to do the opposite and release products at a lower price. This makes you
more competitive with other companies. The lecturer gives a new computer company as an
example. If the price is low, they might make less money, but these new customers may also buy
some accessories that will increase profits.
As you can see, the professor has clearly explained two different initial pricing approaches.
-162 words
Josh MacPherson©
79
situation. The words and phrases highlighted inyellow identify the topic and subtopics, the words and
phrases highlighted in blue are additional details and the words and phrases highlighted in green are the
examples.
Note that while I didn’t stress the additional details part when we were learning how to take notes,
they became very useful when I was speaking. Sometimes you listen to examples with a lot of details and
sometimes the examples are very simple. In this listening passage the ladder was true, particularly for the first
example involving cameras and cell phones. While I was speaking, I looked at the clock and I could tell that I
didn’t have enough information about the examples, so I inserted some additional details to help fill time. You
might have to do the same. Use the clock to your advantage. You should be around the 45 second mark when
you get into the first subtopic, and somewhere between 20-25 seconds when you get into the second subtopic.
Here’s the script on its own…
Task #6 Script
In the lecture, the professor discusses _________________ (topic and a detail)
________________________. To further illustrate, he/she describes two ________________.
(45 seconds lefT) First, ____________________________. For example,
______________________________________.
(20-25 seconds lefT) Another ____________________________. The lecturer gives
_____________________ as an example. _______________________________ (one piece of additional
information).
As you can see, the professor has clearly explained ______________________ (topic).
You’re human and you’re probably not going to hear everything. Don’t focus on what you didn’t hear
but instead focus on what you did. If you didn’t hear anything about the first subtopic but a liXle bit from the
second then just focus on the second. In all the examples I provide the perfect response, but nobody’s perfect.
You’re going to make mistakes and miss a few things when you listen. Just focus on what you do know and
not on what you missed.
T i p
Some students say they listen better when they don’t take notes but trust me,
that’s not true. Your mind is not as reliable as pen and paper. Learn how to
take notes and listen. You’ll eventually have to do the same when you go to
college and sit in an actual class.
Josh MacPherson©
80
Last Minute ADVICE
1. Don’t add any information that you didn’t hear in the lecture. You simply report back the
important information you heard.
2. For this section of the exam your note-taking skills are crucial. Develop a system for taking
down notes and stick with it. Remember the transition words discussed earlier and focus on
the structure. If you know the structure, you’ll know what to expect and when to expect it.
3. When you take notes, focus on what you understand. There’s no reason to write down
words if you don’t know how they relate to the context.
4. Don’t add information that you didn’t hear in the lecture. Your job is to report back the
information you heard and that’s it.
5. This is the last speaking task. After this you’ve completed 75% of the test. Stay focused.
You’re almost finished.
6. Don’t self-judge while you speak. When you self-judge, you only hurt yourself and help no
one. For more information on self-judging, look in the Appendix, Integrated Speaking
F.A.Q. handout.
7. If you need time to think, stay silent. Try to avoid vocal fillers like “ugh” and “um”.
Josh MacPherson©
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Self - Assessment

Directions: After you finish each integrated speaking task #6, ask yourself the questions listed below.
Be honest with yourself and identify your weaknesses. After that, look through the Independent and
Integrated Speaking Appendix for helpful strategies and exercises that’ll assist in targeting those weaknesses.

1. Did I have the note structure written out

and ready to go before the listening?
2.Did I identify both the topic and the

subtopic(s)?
3. Did I write down additional details and

examples?
4. Did I write down and organize my notes in

a clear and cohesive manner? Did I use
abbreviations, misspellings and symbols?
5. Did I understand the majority of the

passage and my notes?
6. Did I use the preparation time to review my

notes and plan my speech?

8. Did I identify the topic, the subtopics and

the examples in my speech?

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Grading Rubric
The highest grade you can get on each speaking exercise is a 4 and the highest grade you can earn on the
speaking section is a 30. How do the graders get a score of 30? Basically, 6 x4 = 24 and then they multiply your
score by 1.25 to come up with a final score out of 30. Below, you’ll find a chart of how your integrated speaking
performance is scored. This is a description of the criteria needed to get a perfect score. On the right hand side
I’ve reworded the ETS’ language to make it easier to understand.
According to the ETS

Criteria website: My Simplified Translation
https://www.ets.org/s/toefl/pdf/
toefl_speaking_rubrics.pdf
“The response fulfills the demands of the task, You answered the question in a
with at most minor lapses in completeness. It’s
1. General logical and coherent way. You never
highly intelligible and exhibits sustained,
Description coherent discourse. A response at this level is went off topic and you were easy for
characterized by all of the following:” the listener to follow.
“Speech is generally clear, fluid, and sustained.
It may include minor lapses or minor difficulties
You spoke in a calm, cool and
with pronunciation or intonation. Pace may vary natural manner most of the time. It’s
2. Delivery at times as the speaker aXempts to recall okay if you paused a couple of times
information. Overall intelligibility remains
high.” to remember stuff from the listening.
“The response demonstrates good control of

basic and complex grammatical structures that You were able to speak in a natural
allow for coherent, efficient (automatic) way while also varying your
3. Language expression of relevant ideas. Contains generally
effective word choice. Though some minor (or sentence structure. The grader
Use
systematic) errors or imprecise use may be understood almost everything you
noticeable, they do not require listener effort were trying to say.
(or obscure meaning).”
“The response presents a clear progression of You followed a structure, included

ideas and conveys the relevant information
4. Topic important details and showed how
required by the task. It includes appropriate
Development detail, though it may have minor errors or minor one idea led to another. Also, you
omissions.” used at least three transition words.
Josh MacPherson©
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American Culture and

the Test
At this point, you should be somewhat familiar with the test, but it’s also
important for you to foster a deeper awareness of the test structure. Maybe for
some of you the questions are fairly straightforward and simple, but, for many,
the test style is new and a li=le strange. One of the reasons students struggle in
the speaking and writing sections is because they don’t understand how
American cultural values are reflected in the question styles. Cultures aren’t
the same, obviously, and the way that individuals react and deal with
situations fluctuate depending on time and place. A Chinese businessman may
have a very different reaction to an employee arriving late than a Brazilian
engineer. Cultures are not uniform, but the TOEFL test is created within a
culture and it’s apparent in the test structure. You don’t have to study
American cultural values in order to take the TOEFL, but I believe it’s helpful
to know some of these things when preparing for the exam.
***The following is a list of generalizations. Of course, not all Americans will share the following qualities. This handout
is only meant to serve as an explanation as to why the questions take on this specific format.
Independent Questions
In the independent speaking and writing sections, you have to give your opinion on a question that
covers a wide range of topics. This is where we get a glimpse of the first American cultural value I’d like to
discuss. If you’re an American, you have to have an opinion about everything. Think about it. In the
Independent Speaking and Writing Topics handout, which is located in the Appendix, you have a list of over 150
different independent task questions that range from school uniforms to deforestation. That’s a very long and
broad list of topics and you’re expected to have an opinion about every, single, possible question. Of course
you probably never wondered if your government should support space travel or if the diet of ancient man
was be=er than the food you eat today, but in the speaking section you’re expected to prepare a well-spoken 45
second response in only 15 seconds to a random question.
Why do you think Americans have opinions about everything? Well, it’s because we don’t trust
experts. The rest of the world doesn’t share America’s distaste for knowledgable people. Academics,
politicians and scientists are well-respected in many cultures. For example, in France, philosophers are
admired for their intellectual prowess. In China, the public doesn’t vote and usually leaves important political
decisions in the hands of politicians. You may find it strange, but in China most of the population feel that
politicians are wiser than others in political ma=ers. Chinese politicians are put in a position of power because
they are be=er informed than the public and can make be=er decisions. In both France and China, there are
other examples when the people put their trust in individuals with more specialized knowledge.
84
Americans don’t respect knowledgable people because we love equality. Americans are obsessed with
equality. Now, usually a desire for equality is a positive thing. Americans want equal rights for all types of
people regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, etc. However, a kind of side effect of the equality-drive is that it
trickles in to other aspects of society like intellectual pursuits and, also, power. Since we love equality we can’t
stand when someone acts more powerful than us. For example, a few years ago, when I met my boss for the
first time, I addressed her by her last name, “Hi, Ms. Jones.” Like most typical American bosses, she corrected
me, “Please, call me Melissa.” As an American, I appreciated this degree of friendliness and immediately liked
her. If I had called her Melissa, and she responded, “Actually, it’s Ms. Jones,” my first impression would have
been very different. For Americans, if a person displays a high level of authority, we’re more likely to have a
negative opinion of that person.
Individuals who are in a position of power must be careful not to show it too strongly. Every year the
president of the United States, arguably the most powerful man in the world, must a=end something called the
Correspondent’s Dinner. During the dinner, various actors, musicians, comedians and other entertainment
personalities take the stage and make fun of the president and his decisions. It’s easy to find clips on Youtube
of dinners past with George Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. Most of my students are shocked that we
openly ridicule our president, but again, it’s a cultural practice that reflects our disdain for power.
Okay, so let’s review. So far you’ve learned:
1. …have an opinion about everything.

Americans… 2. …don’t trust experts.
3. …are obsessed with equality.
These three factors might help you understand why for the independent sections of the exam, you
must have an opinion on hundreds of different topics. But an opinion isn’t enough, you must also be able to
explain why you have your opinion. In American culture, and I think for much of western culture in general, if
you have an opinion, you have to give reasons why you have that particular opinion. You can’t just say, “I
think students should wear school uniforms because my mother thinks it’s a good idea.” You have to have
your own personal opinion and your own personal reasons. This may be difficult for individuals who come
from a culture where why is not an important question. For more practice expanding your responses and
providing personal reasons for your opinions, refer to the Answering General Questions handout located in the
Appendix.
Integrated Questions
If you have a basic understanding of some core American values than you’ll be be=er equipped to
answer the questions on the day of the exam because you’ll know what kind of answers the graders want. On
the following page is an example of an integrated writing question. The example comes from Longman
Preparation Course for the TOEFL iBT, 3rd edition by Deborah Phillips and can be found on page 329. We’re only
going to look at the reading passage, but while you read, focus on the highlighted passages and ask yourself:
“What American cultural values are reflected in this passage?”
85
More and more schools are eliminating mandatory physical education, and
this trend should continue due to the validity of parental oppositions. Every year,
a growing number of parents become upset that their children are being required
to participate in physical education classes at school. They feel that children
should not be forced to take a physical education class if they do not want to.
Many feel their children are individuals who should be able to make their own
decisions about their bodies and not be required by school officials or a
curriculum to engage in physical activities. They feel children should make their
own decisions, because, for example, some want to avoid uncomfortable
situations if they are self-conscious about their bodies or suffer from stress
because they are nervous about physical performance. Those who oppose the
physical education requirement also think it distracts from other, more purely
educational pursuits, such as math, science or literature. It is argued that students
often know from a young age, what kind of job they want later, and therefore, if
children take classes in their chosen area of interest, it is more beneficial than
compelling them to take a physical education class. Lastly, these parents feel that
required physical education courses expose their children to unnecessary and
potentially expensive injuries that may result in long-term or permanent damage.
What makes the part highlighted in blue American?
The idea that parents have a say in how their children are educated is an American value. In other
cultures, it is expected that some people know more than you, like in France and China. Teachers know how to
teach just like doctors know how to diagnose a patient. There’s no reason to question their opinion because
they are specialists. This is due, in part, to Americans distrust of power and obsession with equality. As I
mentioned before, even the president shouldn’t expect to be treated differently just because he’s the president.
In our elections, the candidates constantly try to reassure voters, “I’m just like you.” We don’t trust people who
think they know more than us, and the same goes for teachers and educators who think they know best.
What makes the part highlighted in yellow American?
It’s a rather new idea to believe, “…children are individuals.” In most cultures of the past, children
were the objects of their parents’ will. Not only their parents, but children had to defer to the judgment of all
adults. Children were taught, either implicitly or explicitly, that all adults knew more so they should listen to
them and respect their opinion. Nowadays, a child’s opinion is highly valued. Children are expected to begin
to make their own decisions from a very early age. We Americans believe this type of intense autonomy will
help in the future when they become adults.
What makes the part highlighted in green American?
In the past, some people believed that difficulties in childhood would build character and make
someone a be=er person in the future. However, now, we try to avoid discomfort at all cost, even adults. While
it’s true that many Americans embrace dangerous activities like extreme sports or uncomfortable situations
like public speaking, most Americans just want to be comfortable. In regards to our children, we worry about
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their future. We don’t want them to have any experience that may have a negative impact on who they become
in adulthood. Some parents have even suggested that all types of competition should be completely banned
from schools because of the possible negative effects losing might have on their child’s psyche.
What makes the part highlighted in orange American?
Well, as I just mentioned, we think children should start making decision at a young age, but this piece
of information is a bit different. When you study about the integrated writing task, you’ll learn that about 90%
of the time the listening will disagree with the opinion in the reading passage. I highlighted this particular
passage because I know the lecturer in the listening will probably disagree with this particular point. Why?
Because while Americans value autonomy in children, we also value freedom of choice. Americans change
their minds fairly often. Even college students will switch their major multiple times before they graduate. In
this highlighted passage, it says, “…students often know from a young age…” The word know is what caught
my a=ention. As a general rule on the TOEFL, you should stay away from absolute words like know, only,
never, always, etc. This is an academic test and most academics believe that things are usually never absolute.
And most Americans agree, nothing is ever perfect.
Okay, so let’s review some new American values:
4. …treat children like adults.

Americans… 5. …want to be comfortable.
6. …believe nothing is absolute.
Here are a couple more values for you to keep in

mind…
7. Americans value direct

communication.
Another cultural value you have to consider is our
love of directness and it’s reflected in our writing. Let’s
look at the following topic:
Some people are always in a hurry to go places and get things

done. Other people prefer to take their time and live life at a
slower pace. Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons and
examples to support your answer.

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The following is the first body paragraph of one student’s response.
First, I’m not good at getting things done and hurrying. For me, people who do
those things seem that they are going too fast. In other words, these people don’t enjoy
their life because if someone always tries to do that, they will not do anything good. That
might be okay for some things, but I really believe that it’s not efficient for joyful things
in life. For instance, when I watch movies throughout the day, I feel bad. I never knew
why I had that feeling. But on the other hand, when I do thing, like writing, I feel happy.
Even now, it sometimes happens to me.
There are a lot of problems with this paragraph but I want to focus on clarity. You probably all ready
know that every sentence in English usually includes a subject, verb and object, which means you have to
repeat the subject in every single sentence. Other languages don’t repeat the subject. Some languages don’t say
the subject at all. Often in spoken Japanese, the subject isn’t included. The Japanese language is built on a more
implicit and indirect way of understanding meaning. For the Japanese, the listener should be smart enough to
read between the lines and figure out the subject. In America, if you’re not clear and direct, then it’s the
speaker’s fault. So in English academic writing and speaking, you must constantly remind the reader of the
subject. However, you have to be careful as to how you refer to a subject all ready stated. You can use referents
like this, that and its, but they should be used sporadically. If you use them too often, you risk confusing the
reader, which is what happened in the above example. You have to try to mention the subject again, but use
synonyms and change the grammatical structure.
First, I’m not good at getting things done and hurrying. For me, people who are
always in a rush seem like they’re moving too fast. In other words, people who hurry
don’t enjoy their life because if someone always tries to do things quickly, they will not
do anything good. You can rush through some things, but I really believe that it’s not
efficient for joyful things in life. For instance, when I watch movies throughout the day, I
feel bad. I never knew why I felt so depressed. But on the other hand, when I do thing,
like writing, I feel happy. Even now, I sometimes get this wonderful feeling after I finish
writing.
When I rewrote the underlined parts I made it clearer and more direct. I replaced most of the pronouns
with synonyms and reworded some of the phrasing. Americans believe that when you constantly reword the
subject with an occasional pronoun, you’re a be=er writer because you’re clear and direct. Poetry and
interpretation are valued in other cultures, but not much in America.

8. Americans don’t like big words.

The TOEFL test is an academic test. You’re going to encounter very big words sometimes, especially in
the reading section of the test. However, when you’re speaking or writing, I’d suggest staying away from long,
difficult vocabulary unless you’re absolutely confident with the word. I advise students away from studying
academic vocabulary in the speaking and writing sections for two reasons. The first reason is because most
students aren’t sure how to use the word and, even if they do, they sound awkward. Let me show you the
following example of a student who loved to study vocabulary:
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First of all, you should respect your neighbors’ privacy. Privacy is one of the
rudimentary and innate human right which many country’s constitutions state or
infer.
In other words…
First of all, you should respect your neighbors’ privacy. Privacy is a fundamental
right of all people, regardless of where you’re from or what you do.
Some people say big words make you sound smarter, and that might be true sometimes. However, I
guarantee you that 100% of the time, big words make you sound less like a native speaker. On the TOEFL,
clarity is valued more than vocabulary or grammar. If you want to be clear, keep it simple and direct.
9. Americans must fix problems.

In integrated speaking task #5 you listen to a conversation between two students. In the conversation,
one student has a problem, and the other student usually offers two possible suggestions. When you speak,
you’re expected to speak about the problem, the possible solutions and your own opinion as to which solution
you think is best.
Americans need to react. If a friend has a problem, we have to fix that problem immediately. This type of
mentality trickles out to other aspects of American culture as well. Let’s say something terrible happens, like a
murder, most Americans will try to think of ways to prevent similar murders in the future. We can’t accept the
world as a place where bad things sometimes happen. In the past, more people were religious and understood
that the world was filled with both pleasure and pain and you had to accept the pain. But now, if we don’t like
the way the world works, we have to change it. Even death seems like a problem we need to fix. Many
American inventors and investors are driven to find a way to overcome death by merging human beings with
machines in a process called The Singularity. This is an extreme example, but one of many in our contemporary
society that reflects how strongly Americans feel about fixing “problems”.
10. Americans think TOEFL test proctoring isn’t a great job.

This has less to do with how you study and more about what to expect when you go to the testing area.
This is a particular problem a lot of my students in the New York City encounter, and I believe it may be
similar in other testing centers around the US. When you go to the testing area, there will be at least one test
proctor. Sometimes, you get a friendly proctor, but a lot of the time, you get someone who is unfriendly and,
even, rude. There are a couple of different reasons why this happens but, basically, it’s because proctoring a
test is not a fun job and it doesn’t take a high degree of skill to do. Almost anyone can proctor a test. Since it
doesn’t take a lot of skill, a TOEFL test proctor may feel like this is just a bad job that he has to do for a
paycheck. Don’t let the a=itude of the proctor distract you from the exam. Focus on what you’ve studied and
the question in front of you. Many of my students come from a culture where people feel an inner sense of
responsibility to do their job well, regardless of what it may be. We Americans don’t share that idea.
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American Cultural Values

Reflected in the TOEFL
1. Americans have an opinion about everything.

2. Americans don’t trust experts.
3. Americans are obsessed with equality.
4. Americans treat children like adults.
5. Americans want to be comfortable.
6. Americans agree that nothing is perfect.
7. Americans value direct communication.
8. Americans don’t like big words.
9. Americans must fix problems.
10. Americans think TOEFL test proctoring isn’t a great job.
Again, I included this information to help you reconceptualize the exam. The
structure of the TOEFL may be confusing to some. By understanding some core
American values you may get a beJer sense of why the TOEFL is structured the way
it is and the kind of answers the graders expect from you, the test-taker.
90
TOEFL
Independent
Speaking
Appendix
91
Independent Speaking:
F.A.Q.
The following is a list of tips and exercises I’ve used to help students improve on different aspects of the
independent speaking section. I’ve divided it up into a series of frequently asked questions (F.A.Qs).
Hopefully, this list will address most of your problems and concerns.
I can’t prepare in 15 seconds. It’s not enough time. What should I do?
I can’t speak for 45 seconds. What should I do?
Why do I have to give a personal example?
My voice doesn’t sound great. Why?
My notes aren’t very neat. What should I do?
I often speak too slow and make mistakes. What can I do?
I can’t prepare in 15 seconds. It’s not enough time. What

should I do?
In this appendix you’ll find the Question List handout which includes over 150 independent speaking and
listening questions released by ETS and included in ETS’ book “The Official Guide to the TOEFL Test”. If you’re
having trouble with time, you should start by preparing answers in a set amount of time that makes you feel
comfortable. When you start, your comfort is the most important thing. You’re not going to learn much if
you’re stressed or if you feel the material is too difficult.
Start by answering some of the easier questions in either the Question List or Answering General Questions
handout, which are both located in the Appendix. At first, don’t worry about the time. As you continue to
practice, slowly reduce the amount of time it takes you to prepare. Try following these steps:
Step 1: Answer five questions and give yourself one minute to prepare. Don’t answer one question and
simply move on to the next. Make sure you master each question and respond perfectly using the structure.
Step 2: Answer five questions and give yourself 45 seconds to prepare. I know this may seem like a big jump,
but after step one, you’ll start to get used to the question style. And I’m going to repeat this in each step
because I want to emphasize it: Don’t answer one question and simply move on to the next. Make sure you
master each question and respond perfectly using the structure.
Josh MacPherson©
92
Step 3: Answer 10 questions in only 30 seconds. This
is probably the hardest step which is why you should
practice with more questions. At this point you should
be geVing beVer at automaticity. It looks like the word
automatic and that’s basically what it means. Once you
start to get used to the TOEFL question style, you might
find that you can almost automatically answer some of
the questions. Again: Don’t answer one question and
simply move on to the next. Make sure you master all
ten questions and respond perfectly using the structure.
Step 4: Try slowly reducing the time in five-second-

intervals. You will go from 30 seconds to 25 seconds
and from 25 seconds to 20 seconds and eventually from
20 seconds to 15 seconds. Once you get to the 15 second
mark, keep practicing until you feel comfortable. The
amount of tasks you’ll have to practice to move between
each five-second-interval will be up to you. At this
point, you should know your needs and weaknesses
and how to address them. And as always: Don’t answer
one question and simply move on to the next. Make
sure you master each question and respond perfectly
using the structure.
T i p
You should always practice answering questions in 45 seconds.
Don’t adjust your speaking time, only your preparation time.
I can’t speak for 45 seconds. What should I do?

Most of my students who don’t speak for 45 seconds have the following problems:
a. They can only come up with one reason.

b. They have reasons but they don’t illustrate them through details or examples.
c. They can only think of one example and it’s too short.
d. They don’t provide any personal examples.
I have two pieces of advice:
Josh MacPherson©
93
Piece of Advice #1
Sometimes you encounter a difficult question that you have no idea how to answer. For example,
question #3 in the Environment section of the Question List handout asks:
A company is going to give some money either to support the arts or to protect the environment.
Which do you think the company should choose? Use specific reasons and examples to support your
answer.
Let’s say you read this question and you understand it, but you have no idea what you’re going to say.
Maybe you’ve never thought about this kind of question before. One quick and helpful hint, which is a
reoccurring theme in this book, is to ask:
WHY
Why would a company want to give money to art or the environment?
Think about it for a minute…
Any luck? Do you have some ideas? When you’re not sure how to answer, think in terms of the
following categories:
-Economic
-Communication
-Time
-Relationship
Josh MacPherson©
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Let me show you my process. Again, here’s the question:
A company is going to give some money either to support the arts or to protect the environment.
Which do you think the company should choose? Use specific reasons and examples to support your
answer.
Step 1: If I have trouble understanding the question, start by identifying the important nouns. In this case
they’re business, money, arts and environment.
Step 2: Since I’m a teacher, I have very liVle personal experience with business, so I am going to have to use
my list of categories to consider:
Economic
Communication
Time
Relationship
Step 3: Now, I pick the first category that jumps out at me. Remember, you only have 15 seconds to think of a
response. For this particular question I chose: Relationships. I picked relationships because company’s in
America are constantly trying to improve their image and relationship with the public. Many companies look
to improve their image by championing a cause or donating money to a charity. Let me show you why I didn’t
pick the other options:
Economic: I didn’t pick money (economic) because it’s not the first thing that came to mind.
Of course, the company may sacrifice some short-term profits for long-term gains by improving
their image, but that’s a liVle complicated and I didn’t think of it immediately.
Communication: Communication with the public has more to do with commercials and
advertising and less to do with public image and how people feel about a company. And again,
I didn’t think of it at first.
Time: This question doesn’t seem to have anything to do with

saving or wasting time or changing the time something
happens, so it doesn’t seem to apply here.
Step 4: So now I ask myself, “How am I going to relate

relationships to the topic?” While I don’t have any direct
experience with business, I do interact with business everyday.
Whenever I buy something, I’m doing business. And lately a lot of
companies have been donating money to various organizations to
improve their image. And the company that stands out the most in
my mind is Starbucks.
Josh MacPherson©
95
I go to Starbucks fairly often and am somewhat familiar with their products. Now, keep in mind this whole
process goes through my mind in just 15 seconds. After I jot down a few notes I speak.
Where
To me, I think it would be better for a business to donate some money to
the environment because it’ll improve the relationship with the customer.
When
I go to Starbucks everyday. I remember one particular day a few years
ago when I went to pay my favorite barista, Jessica, and she told me that
Who from now on, every time I purchase a cup of coffee from Starbucks, they
will donate five cents to help preserve the Amazon Rainforest.
What After that, every time I bought a cup of coffee from Starbucks I felt like a
kind and generous person who cared about the environment. And I think
a lot of other people started to feel the same way, and it encouraged more
Why people to buy coffee from Starbucks.
That’s why I think it’s better for a company to support the environment.
Connection -140 words

T i p
Say the first thing that pops in your head. You don’t have time to
deeply analyze the question. Usually what comes to mind first is
the easiest to answer and support.
Let’s look at a couple other questions and I’ll show you how to relate them to the other categories. This
question is from the Question List, question #3 in the Experience vs. Comfort section:
You have received a gift of money. The money is enough to buy either a piece of jewelry you like or
tickets to a concert you want to aFend. Which would you buy? Use specific reasons and examples to
support your answer.
For this question I think in terms of Time. For me, a piece of jewelry is a beVer investment because it’ll
last longer than a concert. A concert will only last one night. This reason could also be viewed from the
Economic point of view. However, that’s just the first thing that pops in my head. You could think in terms
of Relationship. Maybe going to a concert is beVer because it could build your relationship between friends
or family.
Josh MacPherson©
96
The following is question #17 in the Hometown section:
You have decided to give several hours of your time each month to improve the community where you
live. What is one thing you will do to improve your community? Why? Use specific reasons and
details to explain your choice.
When answering independent tasks, you should say the first thing that pops in your head and for this
question I immediately think of Communication. I live in New York City and I hardly ever talk to my
neighbors. I’ve lived in the same apartment building for five years and I don’t even know anyone’s name! This
happens a lot in New York City. So, I would probably talk about my current living situation and my plan to
improve it.
Let’s try one more. This is question #2 in the Past vs. Future section.
It’s generally agreed that society benefits from the work of its members. Compare the contributions
of artists to society with the contributions of scientists to society? Give specific reasons to support
your answer.
Before I give my answer, I want to mention that I put this particular question in the Past vs. Future
section because the arts tend to celebrate culture and tradition while scientific discovery tends to look toward
the future. This isn’t always true of course, but I think it’s a useful way to reconceptualize a question and look
at its deeper implication on your own values.
The first thing that comes to mind when I read this question is money, or Economic. Scientific
innovation leads to further development of a country’s ability to create new goods, which could be used to
help improve trading and aVract international business. I may give the example of Silicone Valley in California
and how programmers and other people in the IT field flock to this area to get jobs at places like Google and
Facebook. Employees at these companies work to develop new, cuVing-edge technology that might benefit
society and increase the country’s wealth.
Josh MacPherson©
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Piece of Advice #2:
As I’ve all ready mentioned, it’s more difficult to respond with just one reason and one example. You
should probably think of at least two reasons, but many students have trouble coming up with two reasons for
their opinion. Here’s a two-reason-response to the same question:
To me, it would be better for a business to donate some money to the environment because it’ll
improve the relationship with the customer.
For example, every time I purchase something at Starbucks they donate five cents to help
preserve the Amazon rainforest. Not only does this money go to a good cause, but it also makes
me feel like a good person when I go there.
Also, if a company donated money to the arts, it may make some people angry. A lot of people
don’t care about art and think it’s a waste of money. People and companies should invest their
money in real world problems like hunger and poverty.
So, these are the reasons why I think it’s better for a company to support the environment.

In this example I have two reasons and one personal example. For my second reason, I don’t give an
example. Instead, I contrast the choice of donating to the environment with donating to the arts. Personal
examples are the strongest way to support your opinion, but they’re not always necessary.
T i p
Focus on communicating,
not on being correct.
Why do I have to give a personal example?

You give a personal example because it makes your opinion much more powerful. A lot of American
journalists don’t just report on stories anymore, they also relate news and social issues back to their own lives.
I can’t argue with your personal examples because they really happened to you. Your personal examples may
have shaped who you are and how you look at the world. Many people across the world are baffled by the
increasing support for the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community in America. I believe the
main reason is because these individuals have begun to share THEIR OWN PERSONAL EXAMPLES of hatred
and discrimination. Even if you don’t agree with their lifestyle, it’s hard to argue against a person who has
been discriminated against because of who they are. Personal examples are powerful, use them to your
advantage.
I tell you not to lie but that’s a lie. If you need to lie, lie. Sometimes you really can’t think of a personal
example that relates to the question. As long as it sounds personal and real it’ll help you fill time and improve
your score.
Josh MacPherson©
98
My voice doesn’t sound great. Why?

A lot of my students speak in a robotic way on the TOEFL exam and that’s a big mistake. You need to be
emotionally connected to what you’re talking about. Sometimes we get so caught up with structure and
practice that we forget that this is a fluency test. The test will let the grader know if you’re ready to enter
college, and you’re not ready for college if you sound like you’ve been rehearsing a script for weeks. You have
to sound natural. The best advice I can give you is to continue to practice until your answers become almost
automatic. Once you get so accustomed to the structure and how to answer in the allocated time, you should
move on and work on your example list. You can refer to the independent speaking Examples List handout to
help you create a few truthful examples you can connect with.
I’d also like to share a story from my own TOEFL class about a student who finally found a way to
emotionally connect to the language:
I had a 17-year-old student in my TOEFL class who hardly ever said a word. He always looked
miserable. He never wanted to speak and when he did speak he sounded like a robot. However,
one day we practiced a question that the student loved. I don’t remember the exact wording, but it
was something like:
What’s one thing you have to do everyday that you don’t like to do?
His face lit up and, for the first time, he volunteered an answer. He took the opportunity to say
how much he hated the class. His parents were paying for him to take the class and he thought it
was a big waste of time. On top of all that, he didn’t like the teacher, me, but he had to come
every day anyway.
Did he hurt my feelings?
Yes.
However, after he finished, I praised him. It was his best speaking performance ever. It was his
best because he was emotionally connected to the topic. He hated coming to the TOEFL class
every day and it was a subject he felt passionate about. Most of these independent tasks are about
your opinion and one of the best things about an opinion is that it can’t be wrong. So don’t worry
too much whether someone will agree or disagree with your opinion and focus more on speaking
(and writing) about something you feel passionate about.
T i p
Whatever you decide to talk about, make sure you’re
emotionally connected to it.
Josh MacPherson©
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My notes aren’t very neat. What should I do?
You should try to make them neater of course, but even when I take the TOEFL I don’t let the note
structure get in the way of my flow of ideas. Let me show you an example from the Independent Speaking
Section. I had the question:
Who has helped you the most to get where you are today, and how has that person helped
you? Use specific examples to support your response.
Now this might be an easy question for you, but for me it’s a bit challenging. Of course I had people
who helped me out, but no one pops in my head when I read the question. A lot of what I’ve accomplished has
come through hard work and self-discipline. But my life experience doesn’t change the question. The test just
finished reading the question and the clock is ticking. 15 seconds has become 10 seconds and I still haven’t
wriVen anything. What should I do? Let me show you my notes:
5
5 A A (
5( A
( A )
A
A5
, ( (
A A A
( 5 -
5
, ( 5 A 5
( (
. ( ( A
A 5( , A
5 A5 (
, ( 5 A
- 5
5 ( ( A A (
The reason I’m showing you this is because books are nice, neat and organized, but real life is messy;
language is messy. There’s hardly ever clear lines and perfect responses. You do the best you can when you’re
in the moment. Don’t let the structure get in the way of your thoughts. Write down your ideas as they come
and try to put them in some kind of order you can understand.
Josh MacPherson©
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I often speak too slow and make mistakes. What can I do?
First of all, keep in mind that mistakes happen. When I took the TOEFL test I had some trouble in the
beginning of one of my independent speaking responses. However, I took a breath, recovered and still scored a
30 in the speaking section. Mistakes are part of language and communication so get used to them. One easy
way to limit your mistakes is by changing your mindset. Don’t ask yourself: What if I make a mistake? Change
the question: How can I demonstrate fluency? You’ll find when you make the switch and focus more on
communicating a message rather than on being
perfect, you’ll naturally improve your speaking
ability.
Besides changing your mindset, there’s
an exercise you can try if you make a lot of
mistakes or speak too slow. Try the following
exercise:
Step 1: Practice reading sections of articles from

websites containing respected academic
literature like:
nationalgeographic.com , nytimes.com ,
history.com , sciencedaily.com ,
geography.about.com
Step 2: Once you find an article you think is

appropriate, copy a section of it and paste it into
Microsoft Word or any other application that has
a word counter. Check to see if you have about
125 words, + or - 10 words. Remember, you want
to be able to say approximately 125 words in 45
seconds.
Step 3: Record your speaking and then listen. Ask yourself the following questions:
Was I able to say everything in 45 seconds?
Were there certain words or sounds I had trouble pronouncing?
Did I stop or stuFer more than three times?
Step 4: After self-diagnosing your strengths and weaknesses do the same passage again. Continue on the
same passage until you’re comfortable and confident with the way you speak for that particular excerpt. Once
you feel confident, congratulations! Be proud of your accomplishment. But after that you’re going to have to
do it again with a different passage.
Josh MacPherson©
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Introduction Practice
Directions: In our day-to-day interactions speaking is a spontaneous action.
“How are you?”
“What did she tell you?”
“Do you think he’s going to be okay?”
Someone asks you a question and you answer without thinking much about grammar or structure. On
the TOEFL there are two questions that are designed to mimic everyday life and judge how well you can
spontaneously react to a question. This is difficult because you’re not a native English speaker. It probably
takes you a liGle while to process the question and organize your thoughts in a coherent way. You only have 15
seconds to prepare a response to an independent speaking question. Not only that, but you’re also expected to
sound natural in a very unnatural environment; you’ll be siGing in a big room with a bunch of strangers
talking to computers at the same time. However, the TOEFL independent speaking questions follow a format.
They ask for your opinion about a topic and to explain the reasons why you feel the way you do. Since you
know what to expect, you can prepare and have a beGer chance of sounding more natural.

The best place to start is your introduction. Once you know how to begin, you’ll be more confident
answering the rest of the question.
Questions in life don’t usually come with a time limit, but for the TOEFL independent speaking
questions it’s 45 seconds. The first 10 seconds of your response to both independent speaking questions should
be your introduction sentence.
Your introduction sentence should take about

10 seconds.
If it’s between 10-15 seconds that’s okay, but no longer than 15 seconds. It’s crucial for you to start off
on the right foot. The first step in doing that is to perfect the introduction sentence structure. If you look at the
Independent Speaking section of this book your introduction sentence should do three things:
1. Give your opinion.

2. Restate the question.
3. Provide one reason for your opinion.
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You want to practice this structure over and over again until you feel very confident with it. Once you
have this structure down you’ll be able to focus on the body of your response. After you have mastered your
introduction and memorized a conclusion sentence, that leaves you with a 30-second body for you to think
about.
Let’s look back at the question and answer I gave in the Independent Speaking section:
What do you consider to be the most important room in the house where you grew up? Why was this room
more important to you than any other room? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
Or this one from the same page:
“For me, I agree that telephones and email have made communication less
personal because you no longer have to look someone in the eye when you
talk with them.”

Exercise Directions: It’s important for you to practice this skill on your own. Listed below are ten different
questions that vary in style, format and subject. You can find all of these questions in the Question List handout
also located in the independent speaking section appendix.
The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Business and Work Question #6
1. Which would you choose: a high-paying job with long hours that would give you little time with family
and friends OR a lower-paying job with shorter hours that would give you more time with family and
friends? Explain your choice, using specific reasons and details.
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The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Education Question #2
2. It has been said, “Not everything that is learned is contained in books.” Compare and contrast
knowledge gained from experience with knowledge gained from books. In your opinion, which source is
more important? Why? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Education Question #20
3. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? It is more important for students to study
history and literature than it is for them to study science and mathematics. Use specific reasons and
examples to support your opinion.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Environment Question #4
4. Many parts of the world are losing important natural resources, such as forests, animals or clean
water. Choose one resource that is disappearing and explain why it needs to be saved. Use specific reasons
and examples to support your opinion.
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The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Experience vs. Comfort Question #11
5. Some people choose friends who are different from themselves. Others choose friends who are similar
to themselves. Compare the advantages of having friends who are different from you with the advantages
of having friends who are similar to you. Which kind of friend do you prefer for yourself? Why?
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WAIT
Go back and reread the introduction sentences you’ve wriGen so far. How are they? Did you give your
opinion, restate the question and provide ONE reason? After you write your introduction read it aloud and
time yourself. How long did it take?
Here’s an example of a response to question #2:
It has been said, “Not everything that is learned is contained in books.” Compare and contrast knowledge
gained from experience with knowledge gained from books. In your opinion, which source is more
important? Why? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
STUDENT RESPONSE
In this situation the student took the phrase “rewrite
the question” too literally. She rewrote too much of the
question. A lot of questions on the TOEFL are rather long, To me, I believe that not everything
so you don’t want to repeat every single word in the that is learned is contained in books.
question. Instead, focus on some key words. Some people tried to get knowledges
from the books, but I personally think
In the last sentence she says, “…people learn more it’s not an effective way. I believe that
through everyday life experience…,” and that’s all she needs to people learn more through everyday
say. She doesn’t have to repeat the whole question, just life experience because they relate to
enough of the question so the reader knows the topic. others more than they do when they
read books.
Also, when looking back at your introduction
sentences, make sure you wrote a specific reason in your
introduction rather than “for the following reasons” or “for two reasons” because it sounds unnatural. People
don’t say, “New York City is my favorite city for the following reasons…” or “There are two reasons why I
think high school students should wear school uniforms…” Instead, we tell you our specific reasons right off
the bat.
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Let’s keep going…
The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Hometown Question #1
6. A company has announced that it wishes to build a large factory near your community. Discuss the
advantages and disadvantages of this new influence on your community. Do you support or oppose the
factory? Explain your position.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Individual vs. Group Question #3
7. Is it more important to be able to work with a group of people on a team or to work independently?
Use reasons and specific examples to support your answer.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Hometown Question #9
8. Should a city try to preserve its old, historic buildings or destroy them and replace them with modern
buildings? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Parenting Question #10
9. What are some of the qualities of a good parent? Use specific details and examples in your answer.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
The following question can be found in the Question List handout: Technology Question #12
10. What discovery in the last 100 years has been most beneficial for people in your country? Use specific
reasons and examples to support your choice.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Answering General Questions
Directions: For the first two independent speaking tasks you have 15 seconds to prepare and 45 seconds to
speak. In 45 seconds you have to state your opinion, provide at least one reason for your opinion and provide
at least one personal example that supports your opinion. 45 seconds doesn’t sound like a long time, but on the
TOEFL it feels much longer. Practice answering the following questions in 45 seconds. Try not to think about
the TOEFL exam, but instead imagine your talking to a friend and explaining your opinion.
This exercise is designed to help you improve your timing. You must
get used to providing a complete answer in 45 seconds.
1. What do you like to do in your free time?
2. Do you like your hometown?
3. What’s your dream job?
4. Describe your dream house. T i p

Are you having trouble
5. What did you do last weekend? providing an answer that
lasts 45 seconds? After
6. What do you think is the best way to study English? each question imagine
someone is asking you
7. Do you prefer to live in the city or the countryside? why you have your
opinion. Explain your
8. Do you like your job (school)? reason why and then give
an example which
9. Do you have a best friend? What’s he or she like? supports your reason.
10. What kind of movies do you like to watch?
11. Where’s the best place to visit in your hometown?
12. What’s your favorite food?
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Get used to the word ‘because’. Why? Because you use the word
‘because’ when you’re answering the question ‘why’?
13. What’s your favorite holiday?
14. Describe the best vacation you ever had.
15. Who’s the best teacher you’ve ever had?

T i p
At home, record yourself
16. Who’s the best boss you’ve ever had? answering the following
questions with a TOEFL-
style structure: include
17. Who’s your favorite musician?
your opinion, your
reason(s) for your
18. Where’s your favorite place to shop?
opinion and a supporting
example(s) .
19. What’s your favorite season?
20. If you could meet one person, who would it be?
You will find that this exercise will not only help you on the TOEFL exam, but also when you’re
communicating with native speakers in English. If I ask you,”What’s your favorite food?” and you say,“Pizza,”
there’s a lot of pressure on me to continue the conversation. I have to figure out what to ask next to continue
the conversation. However, if I ask you the same question and you say, “Well, I’d have to say that pizza’s my
favorite food because I love cheese and you can put anything on it. I remember when I was a kid and…”. Sometimes this
may get you in trouble, but for the most part people will appreciate the additional information and find more
ways to connect and continue the conversation.
Find a partner and practice together. One person asks the questions and times the other. You will both
benefit greatly. And again, always record your answers.
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Independent Tasks:
Examples List
In the independent speaking section you have to speak about your opinion to a random question for 45
seconds. In the independent writing section you have to write at least 400 words about your opinion. In both
instances you have to find a way to fill the time and the page with your thoughts. One of the best ways to
expand your answers is through a personal example.
In both the independent speaking and writing tasks it’s important to give a personal example because it
makes your opinion much more powerful. Nowadays, a lot of American journalists don’t just report on the
news, but they relate the stories back to their personal lives. It’s difficult to argue with a personal example
because it really happened to you and shaped who you are and how you look at the world. For example, many
people across the world are baffled by the increasing support for the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender) community in America. In my opinion, one of the contributing factors to this phenomenon has
been individuals who have decided to share their own personal examples of hatred and discrimination. Even if
you don’t agree with their lifestyle, it’s hard to argue against a person who has been discriminated against
because of who they are.
Personal examples are powerful, use them to your

advantage.
Why is it better to tell the truth?

You know more about the truth than you do about a lie. You can go into a lot of detail when you’re
telling the truth. When you lie you have to come up with things to say and your story can easily become
inconsistent. When something is true you’re naturally more emotionally connected to the material and it’ll
show in your response. However, with an array of topics ranging from homeschooling to exploring Mars, it
can be very difficult to find a personal example that’ll relate to the topic. Regardless, there are some
reoccurring themes in the independent task questions, therefore, before you take the exam, I believe you
should create your very own personal example list.
What’s an example list?

It’s exactly what it sounds like; it’s a list of ten real, honest examples that you can keep in your arsenal
and use on test day. When you start to look a bit more closely at the Question List located in the Appendix
section of this book, you’ll notice that a lot of these questions overlap. You can use one example for multiple
questions. I’ll show you how this works later, but for now, let’s work on our examples. Turn to the next page.
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E X A M P L E L I S T C A T E G O R I E S:
1. An example of when you were or weren’t given the freedom to choose
2. Someone who did something that inspired you and influenced who you are today
3. An example of an obstacle that either you or someone you know had to overcome
through hard work
4. An example of a donation or charitable contribution
5. An example of a personal risk that succeeded or failed
6. An example that proved money was (or wasn’t) important
7. An example of a time when you changed your mind; in particular, you felt one way
before direct contact and a different way after, thusly emphasizing experience and
trumping assumption
8. One thing you see a lot of people do, but you wish they didn’t (make it something
a liNle serious, not small like ‘listening to music too loud on the train’)
9. A piece of technology that has either improved your life or hurt it
10. Two characteristics of a decent person and an example
Work on each example until they’re perfect. If you need someone to help correct your spelling, grammar
and vocabulary you can hire a teacher, a language exchange partner or share your writing on:
www.lang-8.com
Lang-8 offers free language exchange help, particularly in writing. The people on the site aren’t trained
teachers, but it’s free and their feedback is usually helpful.
T i p
Example #1 is the most important for you to have a strong and well-rehearsed story. A
lot of questions across many categories deal with the tension between being told what
to do and having the freedom to choose for yourself.
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Directions: You should prepare a real, personal
example for each of the ten prompts below. Take
your time to write them out and edit. When you’re
ready, practice reciting them. Your entire response
should be approximately 125 words but your
examples should only be about 100. The other 25 or
so words will come in your introduction and
conclusion.
1. An example of when you were or weren’t

given the freedom to choose:
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2. Someone who did something that inspired you and influenced who you are today:
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3. An example of an obstacle that either you or someone you know had to overcome through hard
work:
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
4. An example of a donation or charitable contribution:
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. An example of a personal risk that succeeded or failed:
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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6. An example that proved money was (or wasn’t) important:
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. An example of a time when you changed your mind; in particular, you felt one way before direct
contact and a different way after, emphasizing experience and trumping assumption:
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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8. One thing you see a lot of people do, but you wish they didn’t (make it something a liNle
serious, not small like ‘listening to music too loud on the train’):
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
9. A piece of technology that has either improved your life or hurt it:
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
10. Two characteristics of a decent person and an example:
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________
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Congratulations!
You’ve completed your example sheet. I’m sure it was a lot of hard work. But believe me, the time you
spent writing, editing and rehearsing these ten examples will not be in vain. Even if you don’t use any of these
examples on the TOEFL, you’ll be much beêr at telling a story with a solid structure in the allocated time
given in both the speaking and writing sections.
MY PERSONAL EXAMPLES :
Now, I’m going to show you my own personal examples for each category. However, these are
MY EXAMPLES. It’s important for you to come up with your own examples. I’m showing you my own
examples to give you an idea of the kind of personal stories you should be relating to each category.
1. An example of when you were or weren’t given the freedom to choose
I remember when I was in junior high school and I wanted to join the football team. I was small
and had never played much football before, but I wanted to try it. My father didn’t think I’d like
football very much, but he said that if I wanted to do it I should try. After three months of football
practice and riding the bench I ended up hating football. All the kids picked on me because of my
size and I wasn’t very good at tackling or catching. Even though I hated everything about the
football team, I was and am still grateful for the experience. If my father hadn’t let me try, I
would have blamed him for the way things turned out. It was important for me to make the
decision myself so I could take responsibility for my own choices and learn not to blame others.
I’m going to underline the last sentence of every single example I provide
to show how I connect the story back to the theme.
2. Someone who did something that inspired you and influenced who you are today
When I was in high school I had a teacher named Mr. Farrell. He taught Social Studies, which
was my favorite subject. However, Mr. Farrell was a terrible teacher. It’s strange, but if I had met
him outside of school I probably would have liked him. He was young, sweet, funny and very
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easy to get along with. The problem was that he couldn’t control the class. He really wanted the
students to like him. He was so nice that students never bothered to listen to him. He sometimes
tried to manage the class but whenever he got angry he would immediately apologize. When I
eventually became a teacher, I learned that being likeable is important, but it can’t be the most
important thing when you teach and when you want to get things done.
3. An example of obstacle that either you or someone you know had to overcome through
hard work
I’ve always wanted to write a book. After graduating from college I thought I would write an
indispensable piece of literature that would live on forever. However, after years of writing I
finally figured out that I wasn’t very good at writing fiction. But I continued to read, write and
study. I tried to write a screenplay and when that failed I tried to write a TV show. After all these
failures, for some reason, I still had an urge to write. A few years ago I started teaching TOEFL
and discovered that I had learned some valuable information and knew how to present it in a new
and unique way. After years of writing and failing I have finally completed a book that I can be
proud of.
4. An example of a donation, charitable contribution or any act of charity that taught you a lesson
about how to treat others
A few years ago I went to visit Laos, a small country next to Thailand. While I was there I met a
guy from England named James. He was the same age as me, but there was something different
about him. He was very sweet, warm and open to others, more so than most people and he had
just finished volunteering for six months at an orphanage. He showed me pictures of the students
and how happy they were to be around him. He told me about their problems and encouraged me
to donate some money to help give their small village access to clean drinking water. I still
remember him today because, through his example, he inspired me to be a more charitable
person. Now, I annually donate to various charities in Laos.
5. An example of a personal risk that succeeded (or failed)
***For this particular category most of my students pick coming to New York, but there are a lot of different
variations of personal risk.
When I think of risk, I immediately think of the stand-up comedy class I tried a few years ago.
I’ve always admired comedians, but I was never brave enough to take the stage and try myself.
For my birthday, my wife paid for me to take a stand-up comedy class. I was so nervous. The first
time I took the stage I could hardly say a word. I wanted to quit, but my wife told me I’d regret it.
I went back and tried again. I still wasn’t funny, but I lasted a couple minutes longer. By the end
of the three-month class, I gave a ten-minute stand-up routine to a packed comedy club in
midtown Manhattan. Putting myself on a stage in front of an audience and allowing myself to be
judged was one of the hardest and most rewarding experiences of my life.
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6. An example that proved money was (or wasn’t) important
I’m a teacher, so I don’t make a lot of money, but I have a friend who’s rich. He has a nice house,
three cars and every electronic device imaginable. While money can buy products, there are
plenty of aspects of life that can never be bought. For example, my rich friend, Justin, hasn’t had
a girlfriend in over ten years. Also, he’s terrible at communicating with people, unless he’s talking
about himself. Besides that, he doesn’t have any patience. Whenever a problem arises, he just
throws money at people and tells them to fix it. He never tries to acquire any new skills because
he doesn’t know how to patiently work through a problem. As you can see, while money can buy
a lot of goods, it can’t buy certain emotional and personal traits that are necessary to live a full
and happy life.
7. An example of a time when you changed your mind; in particular, you felt one way before direct
contact and a different way after, emphasizing experience and trumping assumption

I decided to become a teacher because I was lazy. In America, public school teachers get a lot of
holidays. Actually, public school teachers only work 180 days out of the year. It seemed like a
great, stable job with a lot of benefits and vacation. However, when I stepped into the classroom
on my first day all that changed. My first class was huge and filled with students from different
economic, social and cultural backgrounds. It was so hard to manage the lesson and their behavior
at the same time. I was exhausted after teaching just one class for forty minutes. And besides the
teaching, I also had to prepare every lesson which took three times as long as the class itself.
After that, I understood that how something looks on paper is much different than the reality.
8. One thing you see a lot of people do, but you wish they didn’t (make it something a liNle
serious, not small like ‘listening to music too loud on the train’)
In my experience, I think people are too quick to judge others based on appearance. This leads to
all sorts of social and political problems. I remember when I was in junior high school and my
parents were driving in a poorer neighborhood. When we stopped at a red light my mother
pressed the automatic car door locks. You see, there were a few people outside the car that were
African-American and Hispanic. She immediately assumed that because of the way they looked,
they were more likely to steal our car. My mother isn’t a bad person, but sometimes her
misguided judgments lead to miscommunication. I never forgot that experience because it made
me realize how easily appearances can lead to bad decisions and how important it is to know
before you judge.
9. A piece of technology that has either improved your life or hurt it.
Of course, there have been both positive and negative effects since the invention of the
Smartphone, but in regards to face-to-face interaction, the Smartphone has done a lot of harm. For
example, my friends and I used to go out to bars a lot. Sometimes there would be a lull in the
conversation, but for the most part, we talked and had a good time. Some people were quieter
than others but it was no big deal, we were all together. Now there’s a constant need to be
entertained. Whenever we’re out, if we run out of things to talk about, everyone retreats to their
phone. And now, some of my friends just look at their phone the whole time while we’re out. For
me, the Smartphone has done more harm than good because it has altered people’s perception of
what is worthy of attention and hurt the quality of communication between loved ones.
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10. List two characteristics you think every decent person should have
In my opinion, every decent person must be empathetic and honest. For example, I had a
(neighbor/friend/roommate/co-worker/boss/teacher/classmate/child/parent) roommate who
never considered me or anyone else but himself. We lived in the dorms together during my first
year in college. Sometimes he would go through my drawers, borrow my clothes, use my
computer and eat my food without asking. Whenever I confronted him about it, he’d always deny
his guilt. I didn’t mind so much when he used my stuff, I just wanted him to be honest about it.
The fact that he would lie made it much more difficult to live together. I couldn’t trust him. I
never felt comfortable in my own room, the place which is supposed to be my sanctuary from the
rest of the world. After that experience, I learned to value people who are both considerate and
honest and to never let a liar be a part of my life.
DONE!
It may take a while for you to complete your own
example sheet, but once you do you’ll find that it was
worth it. Some of these examples are too long, but that’s
okay. Practice reciting your own and check how long it
takes you to finish. Remember, you need to include an
introduction and conclusion as well.
Does this actually help?

Let’s see. I’m going to pick 10 random questions and
check if I can use some of my examples.
WARNING: Sometimes an example doesn’t fit where you want it to go. Don’t force an example
into a question where it doesn’t really belong.
INDEPENDENT EXAMPLE QUESTIONS:

Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Advertising can tell you a lot about a country.
Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
For this question I could talk about EXAMPLE #7, which emphasizes experience and trumps
assumption. Or I could use EXAMPLE #8 about my mother and how looks can be deceiving. Actually, I think
this fits rather well. Let me show you how it would:
In my opinion, I don’t think advertising can tell you much about a country’s culture because
it’s just an image on paper, not an accurate depiction. You simply can’t judge a book by its cover.
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This question reminds me of something my mother did once when I was in junior high
school. We were driving through a poor neighborhood and eventually stopped at a red light.
While waiting, my mother pressed the automatic car door locks because she thought the young
Black and Hispanic men outside of our car looked dangerous. She made an immediate assumption
based on nothing more than appearance. I never forgot that experience because it made me realize
how easily appearances can lead to bad decisions and how important it is to know before you
judge.
So to sum up, no, I don’t think advertising can tell you a lot about a country’s culture.
Of course you’re going to have to tweak your examples a li^le bit depending on the question, but it
works here, don’t you think?
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Television, newspapers, magazines and other
media pay too much attention to the personal lives of famous people such as public figures and
celebrities. Use specific reasons and details to explain your opinion.
I think this is an example of a question when none of my ten examples will work. I’d estimate that this
example sheet will work for about 70% of the questions on the independent tasks.
In the future, students may have the choice of studying at home by using technology such as computers or
television or of studying at traditional schools. Which would you prefer? Use reasons and specific details
to explain your choice.
Of course for this example I’m going to use my technology example (#9). I’ll tweak my answer by
showing how education that places too much emphasis on technology could have a negative impact on social
interaction, for example…
If you could go back to some time and place in the past, when and where would you go? Why? Use
specific reasons and details to support your choice.
This is another example of a question that will not work with the example sheet.
What do you want MOST in a friend—someone who is intelligent, someone who has a sense of humor, or
someone who is reliable? Which ONE of these characteristics is most important to you? Use reasons and
specific examples to explain your choice.
Here’s where example #10, the qualities example, will help out a lot. The quality question is popular
and in the example I provided I listed all the other individuals they may ask the same question about
(neighbor/friend/roommate/co-worker/boss/teacher/classmate/child/parent). I purposely picked two qualities
that would work for almost every situation, but it’s up to you to decide what qualities you value. For this
question, I’d most likely pick someone who is reliable and talk about my roommate and his tendency to lie.
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Some people think governments should spend as much money as possible exploring space (for example,
traveling to the moon and to other planets). Other people disagree and think governments should spend
this money on our basic needs on Earth. Which of these two opinions do you agree with? Use specific
reasons and details to support your answer.
On the surface, a lot of these government questions tend to be rather abstract and not related to our
personal lives. However, most of them call for a specific, personal example. In this situation, I don’t think any
of my examples work, but the question does deal with a basic experience we all face. Should we invest money
in the unknown and take a risk or should we focus on what we know and deal with situations directly in
front of us? So for this question you want to look at example #5, the one dealing with risk. My example about
the stand-up class doesn’t work but, if you talked about moving to New York, even though you had a family
and a stable job in your home country, that could fit for this question.
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Parents or other adult relatives should make
important decisions for their older (15-18-year-old) teenage children. Use specific reasons and examples
to support your opinion.
Example #1 about freedom of choice is obviously the best example to use for this question. And I will
reiterate that this example will be the most useful one for you to master. Many questions deal with the
dichotomy between tradition and modernity, and a lot of that tension looms between responsibility and
personal desire.
A foreign visitor has only one day to spend in your country. Where should this visitor go on that day?
Why? Use specific reasons and details to support your choice.
This question is very specific and it’s clear that my examples won’t help me.
Some people enjoy change, and they look forward to new experiences. Others like their lives to stay the
same, and they do not change their usual habits. Compare these two approaches to life. Which approach
do you prefer? Explain why.
This question is a li^le tricky because it asks you to compare the two approaches and give your
opinion. The compare-and-contrast questions are rare so I usually advise students to just ignore one option
and focus on the option he or she agrees with. For this example you would have to compare the two,
experience vs. comfort, and decide which one you prefer. I would eventually use example #5, my risk example.
When you take a risk you take a chance; you get out of your comfort zone and embrace the unknown. Your
opinion will depend on the result of your example: did the risk turn out to be a success, or a failure?
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Some people believe that university students should be required to attend classes. Others believe that
going to classes should be optional for students. Which point of view do you agree with? Use specific
reasons and details to explain your answer.
Again, we’re going to go back to example #1 dealing with the tension between personal freedom and
respect for others’ wishes.
FInal words:

Note that your example must be related to the question’s theme, but not its specifics. For example, in
the last question about aênding class, the example I plan on providing is about when I was given the choice
to join the football team or not. As you can see, this example is related to the question’s theme, personal
freedom, not it’s specific seîng. The TOEFL graders understand that you’re human and most likely won’t be
able to relate to every single possible question, which is why most of the independent questions are more
thematic than specific.
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Independent Tasks:
Expansion Practice
A lot of students have trouble adding details to stories. In order to speak about your opinion to a simple
question for one minute, or to write about the same question for 30 minutes, you have to provide a lot of
details. If you’re still struggling to expand your responses, this exercise will help.
If I ask one of my advanced level English students what they did yesterday, they usually respond:
“I don’t remember.”
Or, if I ask a student why she is late, she usually responds:
“The train got delayed.”

In these kinds of responses the vocabulary and grammar are fine, but they won’t help you on the TOEFL.
Not only will clipped answers hurt your TOEFL score, but it’ll also hurt your chances to make friends with
native English speakers. If you expect to speak like a native, you need to keep the conversation going with
more details. So, how can you expand on your answer?
Think about it…
In the space provided below, make a list of ways to

make your answers to simple questions longer.
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I’ve given some advice all ready in the independent speaking and writing sections:
1. Give examples
2. Express emotion (be careful on the TOEFL, you may go off topic with emotion)
3. Add details
4. Speak the truth
Remember, you also want to try to answer as many of the following questions as possible:
Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?

Thinking of ways to answer all of these questions is a great way to expand your answer time and your
fluency. However, even after I tell students how important it is to expand, I still get truncated speaking and
writing responses. For example, the question:
Why were you late for school yesterday?
The response:
Yesterday I went to school with my friend. —Who and When

We took the train but the train got delayed. — What
We were stuck on the train for an hour. — Where
There was a lot of train traffic. —Why
We waited. After we waited we came to school. — How
This is an incredibly boring story.

Take a minute and try to make this story longer. You’re going to have to lie a bit in order to expand since
this isn’t your story, but use your imagination and add details. Think to yourself, “What would make this
story more interesting? What information is missing that the reader would like to know?” Use the space
provided below to tell a story that would take at least 90 seconds to recite. (On the TOEFL you only need to
speak for 45 or 60 seconds, but you should get used to speaking for a longer amount of time for these simple
questions.)
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How did it go? Did you improve the story? Let me remind you again of the student’s initial response:
I went to school and the train got delayed. I got to class an hour late… finished.
And after some instruction, here’s the same student’s second response:
Yesterday I went to school with my friend. We took the train but the train got delayed. We were
stuck on the train for an hour. There was a lot of train traffic. We waited. After we waited we came
to school.
Even after instruction, the student still provides a story that’s short and uninteresting. We need to try to
make our personal examples detailed, interesting and related to the topic. Let me show you an example of my
own response. The left side is how I would take notes for the speaking and the right side is the story
completely wri\en out.
Speaking Writing
-school w/ Yoon, Astr I was on my way to school yesterday with my friend

Yoonji. We almost always ride the train together in the morning
since we both live in Astoria. Everything was fine until we got
-Lex ave. to Lexington Avenue. We started to leave the station and then
the train jolted to a sudden stop. I lost my balance and bumped
into the person next to me. It wasn’t a big deal though because
-train traffic everyone was surprised. But the worst part was the wait
afterward. The conductor kept saying that there was train traffic
ahead and we’d get moving soon, but nothing happened for 5
-long wait minutes, then 20 minutes and after 30 minutes people finally
started to complain to each other. I was shocked because
commuters usually don’t talk to each other. But everyone was
-commutrs talk feeling kind of nervous, I guess. I’m not claustrophobic or
anything, I’ve been riding trains my whole life, but I started to
have a bit of anxiety too. I wondered if we were ever going to
-nervs move, and I imagined being stuck in the train forever. Yoonji
and I tried to talk to each other most of the time so we wouldn’t
have to think about the wait. Finally, after almost an hour, the
-talk Yoonji train started to move. I think everyone’s anger turned into relief
because no one spoke to each other after that.

You may have noticed that my notes aren’t structured the same way as I teach (refer to page 4 of
the Independent Speaking section). You could use that structure with some of the questions in this
exercise, but for the most part these questions are designed to be simple enough for you to answer
with a real example that you can stretch out, add details to and make more interesting. If you want to
practice structure, you can refer to the Question List handout, which includes over 150 real
independent section TOEFL questions.
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Exercise Directions: The following is a list of 15 simple questions that have very boring answers. Work on
expanding these responses and making them more interesting. You can use this exercise to practice with either
your speaking or writing responses. If you’re practicing speaking, you should just write down a few notes
that’ll help guide you as you speak. If you’re practicing writing, then you should write everything out. Try to
make your responses 90 seconds or at least 200 words. If you’re practicing speaking, be sure to record yourself.
If you’re practicing writing, find someone who can correct your grammar and overall structure.
Also, don’t just try to rewrite the sentences or supplement words with more difficult synonyms. Instead,
use the sentences provided as prompts to help you launch a more interesting story. For example:
“The student didn’t know how to do it.” ———> “The student was unsure how to perform a task.”
INSTEAD…
“The student didn’t know how to do it.” ———> “No maWer how hard she tried, the student in Mr. Mac’s
class couldn’t figure out how to do long division.”
***Note that for some of the questions I don’t ask about you personally, but instead ask about ‘he’ or
‘she’ or ‘the student’ or ‘the lecturer’ because you will have to speak and write about other people
besides yourself on the TOEFL.
1. What’s one skill the student didn’t know how to do but now knows well?
The student didn’t know how to do it. She asked someone to teach her. She worked hard. She
tried to learn. In the end, she could do it.
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2. Where did you go on your last vacation?
I went to a new place last year. I went with many people. We saw some new things. We came
back home two weeks later.
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3. What happened to the author after she left work yesterday?
She left work. It was a normal commute. However, she was surprised when she came home. She
wasn’t happy about the surprise.
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4. Has something unexpected ever happened to the student on her way to school?
The student walked to school. She suddenly had a problem. She had to solve the problem. She
found a solution to the problem.
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5. What is the professor’s first childhood memory?
She saw a horse. The horse ran fast. Someone tried to catch the horse.
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6. How was your weekend?
I woke up, took a shower and brushed my teeth. I cooked, cleaned and watched TV. I did my
laundry. It wasn’t much fun.
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7. What was the last book you read?
It was about a man. The man was very smart. But people lied to him a lot. He almost died. He
kissed a girl at the end.
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8. Why doesn’t she like her hometown?
She grew up in the town. She had many friends. In high school there was an accident. Now she
lives far away. She’ll never go back to her hometown.
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9. How did your best friend become your best friend?
One day I needed something. None of my friends had it. One friend knew someone who had it.
I met him. After that, I met him more often.
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10. What was the strangest place you’ve ever visited?

I went to a weird shop in another country. There were so many things I had never seen. Some
things even made me uncomfortable. I bought some things for my friends back home.
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11. Talk about a time when the lecturer broke the law.
The lecturer was always normal. One day he left the house and did something bad. Everyone
was surprised. The police had to come and stop him.
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12. What was the worst date you’ve ever been on?
I met a guy on the Internet. We met. We stayed at the restaurant for a while. After that, we went
to another place. It was one of the worst nights of my life.
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13. When was the last time the student got in a fight with his parents?
The student came home late and his father was angry. He told his father what happened. His
father didn’t believe him.
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14. Talk about an interesting thing that happened to you when you first arrived in a new
place.
I went away to college. I met my roommates. We didn’t like each other at first. Later, we became
great friends.
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15. What’s the most embarrassing moment of your classmates’ life?

One day, when he was very young, he was standing in front of the entire school. Something
unexpected happened to him. For the rest of his life, his classmates called him a cruel nickname.
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Independent Tasks:
Question List
Directions: Here’s a list of over 150 different independent writing and speaking tasks for you to practice and
improve your skills. This list is from “The Official Guide to the TOEFL Test”, 4th edition, by ETS. This book is
good for additional practice but offers liFle in terms of strategy.
One thing you have to understand about Americans is that we have an opinion about everything. We
hardly ever trust the advice of ‘experts’. We’re suspicious of people who think they know more than us about a
particular topic. In the following list, there are a lot of different questions for you to formulate an opinion on.
Some might be easier for you than others. For example, the Education questions may be easier for you since
you have a lot of experience going to school. However, it may be harder for you to have an opinion about
business or government. Once you answer a few of the easier questions and start to feel comfortable, switch to
the more difficult questions. Answering difficult questions will help you feel more comfortable and confident
when you finally take the exam.
As I’ve mentioned before, there are many different categories and question types, but they still all
follow the same structure: they want to know your opinion and why you have your opinion. Follow the
guidelines in the Independent Writing and Independent Speaking sections to help guide you. The list is separated
based on topics and listed in alphabetical order. The topics include: Business and Work, Education,
Environment, Hometown, Parenting, Qualities, Simple General Questions, Technology and Travel.
However, there are also a few strange categories.
Experience vs. Comfort: All of these questions are basically asking if you like to take risks. Do you like the
unknown? Do you like to try new things? Or do you prefer to sit at home and feel comfortable?
Individual vs. Group: This category is fairly self-explanatory, but do you prefer to work with other people
or by yourself?
Long-term vs. Short-term: There are only a few questions included in this category, however, many
questions in other categories follow a similar theme. Do you prefer to focus on short-term goals that can be
reached within a week or a month? Or do you prefer to focus on long-term goals that could take months or
years to achieve?
Past vs. Future: Which kind of person are you: do you look back to the past and wish to preserve it or do you
embrace the future? Look at the questions and decide which you prefer.
Weird and Random: These are questions that don’t really fit into a category and many are somewhat
unusual questions. You might be unfortunate and get a strange question on your exam.
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Business and Work

1. “When people succeed, it is because of hard work. Luck has nothing to do with success.” Do you agree or
disagree with the quotation above? Use specific reasons and examples to explain your position.
2. Should governments spend more money on improving roads and highways, or should governments spend
more money on improving public transportation (buses, trains, subways)? Why? Use specific reasons and
details to develop your essay.
3. What are some important qualities of a good supervisor (boss)? Use specific details and examples to explain
why these qualities are important.
4. Businesses should hire employees for their entire lives. Do you agree or disagree? Use specific reasons and
5. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Businesses should do anything they can to make a
profit. Use specific reasons and examples to support your position.
6. Which would you choose: a high-paying job with long hours that would give you liFle time with family and
friends OR a lower-paying job with shorter hours that would give you more time with family and friends?
Explain your choice, using specific reasons and details.
7. People work because they need money to live. What are some OTHER reasons that people work? Discuss
one or more of these reasons. Use specific examples and details to support your answer.
8. Some people believe that success in life comes from taking risks or chances. Others believe that success
results from careful planning. In your opinion, where does success come from? Use specific reasons and
9. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? The most important aspect of a job is the money a
person earns. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
10. Some people prefer to work for themselves or own a business. Others prefer to work for an employer.
Would you rather be self-employed, work for someone else, or own a business? Use specific reasons to explain
your choice.
11. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Only people who earn a lot of money are
successful. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
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Education
1. People aFend college or university for many different reasons. Why do you think people aFend college or
university? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
2. It has been said, “Not everything that is learned is contained in books.” Compare and contrast knowledge
gained from experience with knowledge gained from books. In your opinion, which source is more important?
Why? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
3. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Universities should give the same amount of money
to their students’ sports activities as they give to their university libraries. Use specific reasons and examples to
support your opinion.
4. In some countries teenagers have jobs while they are still students. Do you think this is a good idea? Support
your opinion by using specific reasons and details.
5. Some people believe that university students should be required to aFend classes. Others believe that going
to classes should be optional for students. Which point of view do you agree with? Use specific reasons and
details to explain your answer.
6. Some people think they can learn beFer by themselves than with a teacher. Others think that it’s always
beFer to have a teacher. Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons to develop your essay.
7. Learning about the past has no value for those of us living in the present. Do you agree or disagree? Use
specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
8. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Classmates are a more important influence than
parents on a child’s success in school. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
9. Many teachers assign homework to students everyday. Do you think that daily homework is necessary for
students? Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.
10. If you could study a subject that you have never had the opportunity to study, what would you choose?
Explain your choice, using specific reasons and details.
11. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Grades (marks) encourage students to learn. Use
specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
12. Some universities require students to take classes in many subjects. Other universities require students to
specialize in one subject. Which is beFer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
13. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Children should begin learning a foreign language
as soon as they start school. Use specific reasons and examples to support your position.
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14. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Boys and girls should aFend separate schools. Use
15. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Teachers should be paid according to how much
their students learn. Give specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
16. Schools should ask students to evaluate their teachers. Do you agree or disagree? Use specific reasons and
17. Some people believe that a college or university education should be available to all students. Others
believe that higher education should be available only to good students. Discuss these views. Which view do
you agree with? Explain why.
18. Some people think that children should begin their formal education at a very early age and should spend
most of their time on school studies. Others believe that young children should spend most of their time
playing. Compare these two views. Which view do you agree with? Why?
19. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? People should read only those books that are about
real events, real people and established facts. Use specific reasons and details to support your opinion.
20. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? It is more important for students to study history
and literature than it is for them to study science and mathematics. Use specific reasons and examples to
21. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? All students should be required to study art and
music in secondary school. Use specific reasons to support your answer.
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22. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? There is nothing that young people can teach older
people. Use specific reasons and examples to support your position.
23. Some people say that physical exercise should be a required part of every school day. Other people believe
that students should spend the whole school day on academic studies. Which opinion do you agree with? Use
specific reasons and details to support your response.
24. A university plans to develop a new research center in your country. Some people want a center for
business research. Other people want a center for research in agriculture (farming). Which of these two kinds
of research centers do you recommend for your country? Use specific reasons in your recommendation.
25. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? A person’s childhood years (the time from birth to
12 years of age) are the most important years of a person’s life. Use specific reasons and examples to support
your answer.
26. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? High schools should allow students to study the
courses that students want to study. Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
27. If you could make one important change in a school that you aFended, what change would you make? Use
reasons and specific examples to support your answer.
28. Some people believe that students should be given one long vacation each year. Others believe that
students should have several short vacations throughout the year. Which viewpoint do you agree with? Use
specific reasons and examples to support your choice.
29. Many students choose to aFend schools or universities outside their home countries. Why do some
students study abroad? Use specific reasons and details to explain your answer.
30. Some students like classes where teachers lecture (do all the talking) in class. Other students prefer classes
where the students do some of the talking. Which type of class do you prefer? Give specific reasons and details
to support your choice.
Environment
1. Some people believe that the Earth is being harmed (damaged) by human activity. Others feel that human
activity makes the Earth a beFer place to live. What’s your opinion? Use specific reasons and examples to
support your answer.
2. Some people think that human needs for farmland, housing and industry are more important than saving
land for endangered animals. Do you agree or disagree with this point of view? Why or why not? Use specific
reasons and examples to support your answer.
3. A company is going to give some money either to support the arts or to protect the environment. Which do
you think the company should choose? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
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4. Many parts of the world are losing important natural resources, such as forests, animals or clean water.
Choose one resource that is disappearing and explain why it needs to be saved. Use specific reasons and
Experience vs. Comfort

1. Some people spend their entire lives in one place. Others move a number of times throughout their lives,
looking for a beFer job, house, community or even climate. Which do you prefer: staying in one place or
moving in search of another place? Use reasons and specific examples to support your opinion.
2. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? AFending a live performance (for example a play,
concert, or sporting event) is more enjoyable than watching the same event on television. Use specific reasons
3. You have received a gift of money. The money is enough to buy either a piece of jewelry you like or tickets to
a concert you want to aFend. Which would you buy? Use specific reasons and examples to support your
answer.
4. Do you agree or disagree that progress is always good? Use specific reasons and examples to support your
answer.
5. Why do you think some people are aFracted to dangerous sports or other dangerous activities? Use specific
6. Some people prefer to work for a large company. Others prefer to work for a small company. Which would
you prefer? Use specific reasons and details to support your choice.
7. Some people like to do only what they already do well. Other people prefer to try new things and take risks.
Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your choice.
8. Some movies are serious, designed to make the audience think. Other movies are designed primarily to
amuse and entertain. Which type of movie do you prefer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your
answer.
9. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Most experiences in our lives that seemed difficult at
the time become valuable lessons for the future. Use reasons and specific examples to support your answer.
10. People learn in different ways. Some people learn by doing things; other people learn by reading about
things; others learn by listening to people talk about things. Which of these methods of learning is best for
you? Use specific examples to support your choice.
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11. Some people choose friends who are different from themselves. Others choose friends who are similar to
themselves. Compare the advantages of having friends who are different from you with the advantages of
having friends who are similar to you. Which kind of friend do you prefer for yourself? Why?
12. Some people enjoy change, and they look forward to new experiences. Others like their lives to stay the
same, and they do not change their usual habits. Compare these two approaches to life. Which approach do
you prefer? Explain why.
13. Some people prefer to spend their free time outdoors. Other people prefer to spend their leisure time
indoors. Would you prefer to be outside, or would you prefer to be inside for your leisure activities? Use
specific reasons to explain your choice.
14. A friend of yours has received some money and plans to use all of it either to go on vacation or to buy a car.
Your friend has asked you for advice. Compare your friend’s two choices and explain which one you think
your friend should choose. Use specific reasons and details to support your choice.
15. Some people are always in a hurry to go places and get things done. Other people prefer to take their time
and live life at a slower pace. Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
16. Students at universities often have a choice of places to live. They may choose to live in university
dormitories, or they may choose to live in apartments in the community. Compare the advantages of living in
university housing with the advantages of living in an apartment in the community. Where would you prefer
to live? Give reasons for your preference.
Hometown
1. A company has announced that it wishes to build a large factory near your community. Discuss the
advantages and disadvantages of this new influence on your community. Do you support or oppose the
factory? Explain your position.
2. If you could change one important thing about your

hometown, what would you change? Use reasons and
specific examples to support your answer.
3. It has recently been announced that a new restaurant may

be built in your neighborhood. Do you support or oppose
this plan? Why? Use specific reasons and details to support
your answer.
4. A person you know is planning to move to your town or

city. What do you think this person would like and dislike
about living in your town or city? Why? Use specific reasons
and details to develop your essay.
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5. It has recently been announced that a large shopping center may be built in your neighborhood. Do you
support or oppose this plan? Why? Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.
6. 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.
7. It has recently been announced that a new high school may be built in your community. Do you support or
oppose this plan. Why? Use specific reasons and details in your answer.
8. What change would make your hometown more appealing to people your age? Use specific reasons and
9. Should a city try to preserve its old, historic buildings or destroy them and replace them with modern
buildings? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
10. Your city has decided to build a statue or monument to honor a famous person in your country. Whom
would you choose? Use reasons and specific examples to support your choice.
11. Describe a custom from your country that you would like people from other countries to adopt. Explain
your choice, giving specific reasons and examples.
12. A foreign visitor has only one day to spend in your country. Where should this visitor go on that day?
Why? Use specific reasons and details to support your choice.
13. If you were asked to send one thing representing your country to an international exhibition, what would
you choose? Why? Use specific reasons and details to explain your choice.
14. The government has announced that it plans to build a new university. Some people think that your
community would be a good place to locate the university. Compare the advantages and disadvantages of
establishing a new university in your community. Use specific details in your discussion.
15. What is the most important animal in your country? Why is the animal important? Use reasons and specific
details to explain your answer.
16. Plants can provide food, shelter, clothing or medicine. What is one kind of plant that is important to you or
the people in your country? Use specific reasons and details to explain your choice.
17. You have decided to give several hours of your time each month to improve the community where you
live. What is one thing you will do to improve your community? Why? Use specific reasons and details to
explain your choice.
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Individual vs. Group

1. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? A person should never make an important decision
alone. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
2. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? The best way to travel is in a group led by a tour
guide. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
3. Is it more important to be able to work with a group of people on a team or to work independently? Use
reasons and specific examples to support your answer.
4. You have been told that dormitory rooms at your university must be shared by two students. Would you
rather have the university assign a student to share a room with you, or would you rather choose your own
roommate? Use specific reasons and details to explain your answer.
5. Some people believe that the best way of learning about life is by listening to the advice of family and
friends. Other people believe that the best way of learning about life is through personal experience. Compare
the advantages of these two different ways of learning about life. Which do you think is preferable? Use
specific examples to support your preference.
6. Some people prefer to spend most of their time alone. Others like to be with friends most of the time. Do you
prefer to spend your time alone or with friends? Use specific reasons to support your answer.
7. Some high schools require all students to wear school uniforms. Other high schools permit students to
decide what to wear to school. Which of these two school policies do you think is beFer? Use specific reasons
8. Some students prefer to study alone. Others prefer to study with a group of students. Which do you prefer?
Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
Long-term vs. Short-term

1. Is it beFer to enjoy your money when you earn it or is it beFer to save your money for some time in the
future? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
2. If you were an employer, which kind of worker would you prefer to hire: an inexperienced worker at a
lower salary or an experienced worker at a higher salary? Use specific reasons and details to support your
answer.
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Parenting
1. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Parents are the best teachers. Use specific reasons
and examples to support your answer.
2. It is beFer for children to grow up in the countryside than in the big city. Do you agree or disagree? Use
specific reasons and examples to develop your essay.
3. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Parents or other adult relatives should make
important decisions for their older (15-18-year-old) teenage children. Use specific reasons and examples to
4. Some people think that the family is the most important influence on young adults. Other people think that
friends are the most important influence on young adults. Which view do you agree with? Use examples to
support your position.
5. Some young children spend a great amount of their time participating in sports. Discuss the advantages and
disadvantages of this. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
6. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Children should be required to help with household
tasks as soon as they are able to do so. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
7. A gift (such as a camera, soccer ball, or an animal) can contribute to a child’s development. What gift would
you give to help a child develop? Why? Use reasons and specific examples to support your choice.
8. Your school has received a gift of money. What do you think is the best way for your school to spend this
money? Use specific reasons and details to support your choice.
9. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Watching television is bad for children. Use specific
details and examples to support your answer.
10. What are some of the qualities of a good parent? Use specific details and examples in your answer.
Past vs. Future

1. Some people think governments should spend as much money as possible exploring space (for example,
traveling to the moon and to other planets). Other people disagree and think governments should spend this
money on our basic needs on Earth. Which of these two opinions do you agree with? Use specific reasons and
details to support your answer.
2. It’s generally agreed that society benefits from the work of its members. Compare the contributions of artists
to society with the contributions of scientists to society? Give specific reasons to support your answer.
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3. When people move to another country, some of them decide to follow the customs of the new country.
Others prefer to keep their own customs. Compare these two choices. Which one do you prefer? Support you
answer with supporting details.
4. Every generation of people is different in important ways. How is your generation different from your
parents’ generation? Use specific reasons and examples to explain your answer.
Qualities
1. Neighbors are the people who live near us. In your opinion, what are the qualities of a good neighbor? Use
specific details and examples in your answer.
2. We all work or will work in our jobs with many different kinds of
people. In your opinion, what are some important characteristics of
a coworker (someone you work closely with)? Use reasons and
specific examples to explain why these characteristics are
important.
3. What are the important qualities of a good son or daughter? Have

these qualities changed or remained the same over time in your
culture? Use specific examples to support your answer.
4. What do you want MOST in a friend—someone who is

intelligent, someone who has a sense of humor, or someone who is
reliable? Which ONE of these characteristics is most important to
you? Use reasons and specific examples to explain your choice.
5. Many students have to live with roommates while going to

school or university. What are some of the important qualities of a
good roommate? Use specific reasons and examples to explain why these qualities are important.
6. In your opinion, what is the most important characteristic (for example, honesty, intelligence, a sense of
humor) that a person can have to be successful in life? Use specific reasons and examples from your experience
to explain your answer.
Simple General Questions

1. Some people prefer to live in a small town. Others prefer to live in a big city. Which place would you prefer
to live in? Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.
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2. Some people prefer to eat at food stands or restaurants. Other people prefer to prepare and eat food at home.
Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
3. People do many different things to stay healthy. What do you do for good health? Use specific reasons and
4. Some people prefer to get up early in the morning and start the day’s work. Others prefer to get up later in
the day and work until late at night. Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your
choice.
5. If you could go back to some time and place in the past, when and where would you go? Why? Use specific
reasons and details to support your choice.
6. If you could travel back in time to meet a famous person from history, what person would you like to meet?
Use specific reasons and examples to support your choice.
7. You need to travel from your home to a place 40 miles (64 kilometers) away. Compare the different kinds of
transportation you could use. Tell which method of travel you would choose. Give specific reasons for your
choice.
Technology
1. How do movies or television influence people’s behavior? Use reasons and specific examples to support
your answer.
2. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Television has destroyed communication among
friends and family. Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
3. Nowadays, food has become easier to prepare. Has this change improved the way people live? Use specific
4. In general, people are living longer now. Discuss the causes of this phenomenon. Use specific reasons and
details to develop your essay.
5. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? With the help of technology, students nowadays can
learn more information and learn it more quickly. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
6. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Face-to-face communication is beFer than other
types of communication, such as leFers, email, or telephone calls. Use specific reasons and details to support
your answer.
7. Some people think that the automobile has improved modern life. Others think that the automobile has
caused serious problems. What is your opinion? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
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8. Some people say that computers have made life easier and more convenient. Other people say that
computers have made life more complex and stressful. What is your opinion? Use specific reasons and
9. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Technology has made the world a beFer place to
live. Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
10. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Modern technology is creating a single world
culture. Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
11. Some people say that the Internet provides people with a lot of valuable information. Others think access to
so much information creates problems. Which view do you agree with? Use specific reasons and examples to
12. What discovery in the last 100 years has been most beneficial for people in your country? Use specific
reasons and examples to support your choice.
13. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Telephones and email have made communication
between people less personal. Use specific reasons to support your opinion.
14. Some people think that governments should spend as much money as possible on developing or buying
computer technology. Other people disagree and think that this money should be spent on more basic needs.
Which one of these opinions do you agree with? Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.
15. In the future, students may have the choice of studying at home by using technology such as computers or
television or of studying at traditional schools. Which would you prefer? Use reasons and specific details to
explain your choice.
16. The 20th century saw great change. In your opinion, what is one change that should be remembered about
the 20th century? Use specific reasons and details to explain your choice.
Travel
1. Some people like to travel with a companion. Other people prefer to travel alone. Which do you prefer? Use
specific reasons and examples to support your choice.
2. You have the opportunity to visit a foreign country for two weeks. Which country would you like to visit?
Use specific reasons and details to explain your choice.
3. Many people visit museums when they travel to new places. Why do you think people visit museums? Use
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Weird and Random

1. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? People should sometimes do things they do NOT
enjoy doing. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
2. Do you agree or disagree with the following

statement? Television, newspapers, magazines and other
media pay too much aFention to the personal lives of
famous people such as public figures and celebrities. Use
specific reasons and details to explain your opinion.
3. If you could invent something new, what product

would you develop? Use specific details to explain why
this invention is needed.
4. Choose ONE of the following transportation vehicles

and explain why you think it has changed people’s lives:
automobiles
bicycles
airplanes
Use specific reasons and examples to support your
answer.
5. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? People behave differently when they wear different
clothes. Do you agree that different clothes influence the way people behave? Use specific examples to support
your answer.
6. Decisions can be made quickly, or they can be made after careful thought. Do you agree or disagree with the
following statement? The decisions that people make quickly are always wrong. Use reasons and specific
7. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? It is beFer to be a member of a group than to be a
leader of a group. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
8. What do you consider to be the most important room in the house? Why is this room more important to you
than any other room? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
9. Some people say that advertising encourages us to buy things we really do not need. Others say that ads tell
us about new products that may improve our lives. Which viewpoint do you agree with? Use specific reasons
and examples to support your answer.
10. When famous people such as actors, athletes and rock stars give their opinions, many people listen. Do you
think we should pay aFention to these opinions? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
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11. Some famous athletes and entertainers earn millions of dollars every year. Do you think these people
deserve such high salaries? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.
12. People recognize a difference between children and adults. What events (experiences or ceremonies) make
a person an adult? Use specific reasons and examples to explain your answer.
13. Imagine that you are preparing for a trip. You plan to be away from your home for a year. In addition to
clothing and personal care items, you can take one additional thing. What would you take and why? Use
specific reasons and details to support your choice.
14. Many people have a close relationship with their pets. These people treat their birds, cats, or other animals
like members of their family. In your opinion, are such relationships good? Why or why not? Use specific
15. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? One should never judge a person by external
appearances. Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.
16. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Advertising can tell you a lot about a country. Use
17. Some people prefer to live in places that have the same weather or climate all year long. Others like to live
in areas where the weather changes several times a year. Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons and
examples to support your choice.
18. People have different ways of escaping the stress and difficulties of modern life. Some read, some exercise,
others work in their gardens. What do you think are the best ways of reducing stress? Use specific details and
examples in your answer.
19. 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.
20. People are never satisfied with what they have; they always want
something more or something different. Do you agree or disagree?
Use specific reasons to support your answer.
21. Imagine that you have received some land to use as you wish.
How would you use this land? Use specific details to explain your
answer.
22. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? A zoo has
no useful purpose. Use specific reasons and examples to explain your
answer.
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TOEFL
Integrated
Speaking
Appendix
148
Integrated Speaking:
F.A.Q.
The following is a list of tips and exercises I’ve used to help students improve on different aspects of the
integrated speaking section. I’ve divided it up into a series of frequently asked questions (F.A.Qs). Hopefully,
this list will address most of your problems and concerns.
When I mess up should I go back and repeat what I said?
What do you mean when you say DON’T self-judge?
I don’t want to speak because I didn’t hear everything. Is that okay?
I don’t like the sound of my own voice. Is it okay if I DON’T record myself speaking?
Why is there a self-assessment at the end of every separate task?
What verb tense should I use in my speaking responses?
What is automaticity?
When I mess up should I go back and repeat what I

said?

We all make mistakes. It’s inevitable that you’ll make some mistakes on your TOEFL exam. Some
TOEFL teachers say you should never go back and repeat what you said, even if it was wrong, and I tend to
agree. When you stop to repeat yourself, you’re no longer thinking about what you’re going to say next.
Instead, you’re focusing on your mistake. When you focus on your mistake, you lose your train of thought and
the rest of your speaking response will suffer. Not only do you lose your train of thought, but you also lose
valuable time. For the speaking section of the TOEFL:
Think like an actor.

When an actor messes up his lines, he doesn’t stop and repeat himself. Instead, he moves on and hopes
the audience doesn’t notice. You’d be surprised by how many mistakes go unnoticed in live performances.
Think of your TOEFL exam like a performance. Don’t dwell on what you didn’t do in the past but on what you
will do in the future.
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What do you mean when you say DON’T self-judge?

Something I tell my TOEFL students all the time
is, “Stop self-judging.” While you’re speaking, you
probably have a liTle voice in your head thinking about
what you’re saying. Not only is this liTle voice in your
head thinking about your words, but it’s also judging
your words, and those judgments are probably negative.
Americans do this all the time, we’re constantly
questioning our words and looking in-depth at the
words of others. In most cases, we overthink things.
Don’t judge your words, just

speak them.
I like to drink alcohol sometimes and when I do I
tend to talk more. When you consume alcohol you stop
judging yourself so much because, in your mind, the
most important thing is to communicate. That’s all that maTers. When you’re sober you don’t just think about
communicating, you also think about the message, the listeners, how your message may be received and how
similar messages in the past were received by past listeners. When I drink, my thoughts are very one-
dimensional: communicate and be heard. Now, I’m not saying you should drink before the TOEFL! I’m just
using it as an example of how you should approach the speaking section. Think of this section as a place where
your goal is to communicate. Of course you’re speaking will be judged, but that’s not your job. Let the graders
judge you, you don’t need to judge yourself.
Brene Brown is a writer and researcher on shame and vulnerability. Her TED Talks have been viewed
by millions around the world. A reoccurring theme in Ms. Brown’s work is how shame, feeling ashamed of
ourselves and our actions, has a toxic effect on our potential. Shame kills creativity. I’ve learned a lot from her
work and its given me the strength to let myself be vulnerable. Instead of feeling ashamed by my mistakes, I
now embrace them as learning opportunities. Here are a few of her more popular quotes:
“Shame keeps us small, resentful and afraid.”
“Certainty often breeds absolutes, intolerance and judgement.”
“Perfectionism is not the same thing as striving to be our best. Perfectionism is not about healthy achievement
and growth; it’s a shield.”
“I spent a lot of years trying to outrun or outsmart vulnerability by making things certain and definite, black
and white, good and bad. My inability to lean into discomfort of vulnerability limited the fullness of those
important experiences that are wrought with uncertainty: love, belonging, trust, joy and creativity.”
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If we strive for certainty and perfection we are doomed to feel shame and that will lead to self-judgment.
Don’t try to be perfect, just try to communicate in English and you’ll do fine. Remember, if you’ve gone
through this book you’ve studied a lot. You know more than the average TOEFL taker. Use that knowledge to
your advantage and walk into the test with confidence.
I don’t want to speak. I didn’t hear everything. Is that

okay?
I’m going to use the term reconceptualize here again. I want you to reconceptualize your goals. In
traditional schooling, when we get an assignment or we have to take a test we want to get an A. We want to be
perfect. However, the TOEFL is different. Nobody really thinks they’re going to get a perfect TOEFL score. The
highest score you can get on the TOEFL is:
120

Most students who take the TOEFL want to get:
80
Some students want less, some students want more, but the average desired grade is an 80. Now, let’s do
some math:
80 / 120 = 0.67 or 67%

In a typical American high school or university 67% is equal to the grade:
D
I want you to let that sink in for a minute.

Your goal, on the TOEFL, is to get a D. That’s much lower than an A. In fact, that’s a failing grade in most
classes. I’m not bringing this up because I want you to set your goals higher or to tell you you’re not good
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enough, but to INSPIRE you. Get yourself in the GROWTH mindset where the most important thing is that
you try.
I know you didn’t understand everything. I know you’re not sure of your answer, but you’re never going
to get beTer if you don’t try.
Language is imperfect, so don’t expect to be perfect on a fluency test. I make mistakes all the time. Do
you know how many times I’ve rewriTen this book? Each page of this book has gone through at least five
rewrites and I’ve had three different people proofread it. Don’t let your obsession with perfection get in the
way of your growth. Focus on learning, not on being perfect.
I don’t like the sound of my own voice. Is it okay if I don’t

record myself speaking?

No, it’s not okay. If you don’t record yourself you won’t improve your speaking so don’t bother
wasting your time studying for the TOEFL. That may sound harsh, but I’m serious. You must record yourself.
The way you hear yourself is not the way other people hear you. You have to know how other people hear
you. The only way to know how other people hear you is by recording yourself.
Everyone hates the sound of their recorded voice… everyone. There’s actually a scientific explanation
for this. According to Dr. William Cullinan, dean of the College of Health Sciences and the director of the
Integrative Neuroscience research Center:
When you ‘hear’ my voice, the sound/pressure waves leaving my mouth enter
your ear, and the process of events happens in series. When you ‘hear’ your own
voice, however, not only do the sound/pressure waves leaving your own mouth
(call this the external stimulus) reach your ear and activate this series of events,
but a second thing happens. The physical act of producing speech, which involves
contraction of the muscles of the larynx (and others), creates a vibration that is
translated through the neck to the skull where the entire auditory transduction
apparatus is. This delivers a second (internal) stimulus to the apparatus. The
combination of the two stimuli is what you perceive as the sound of your own
voice. But you are the only person who hears it this way because you are the only
one who can produce both stimuli. Everyone else receives only the external
stimulus.
Let me translate. When other people hear you, all they hear is your voice, when you hear you, you hear
your voice AND the vibrations that travel through your muscle and bone before it reaches your ear. Because
you have this kind of natural filter, you hear you own voice differently than when you hear others.
So don’t worry if you hate the sound of your own voice, EVERYONE DOES!
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Why is there a self-assessment at the end of every task?

Indulge me for a minute, and read the following passage.
Many people believe that Hillary Clinton will most likely be the Democratic
nominee for president in 2016. However, a veteran senator from Vermont, Bernie
Sanders, has entered the race and is catching up with her in the polls. According
to a recent survey, 60% of voters say that they don’t trust Hillary Clinton. In fact,
in a separate poll conducted by CNN news of potential voters, 48% said they
would consider voting for Bernie Sanders, which was higher that than the 44%
polled who said they supported Hillary Clinton.
Question: What’s Bernie Sanders current job?

If you could answer that question without looking back at the passage, I’d be impressed. However,
most learners would have to go back to review the material to find that in the second sentence it mentions that
he’s a senator. After reading, answering a question and discussing the answer, it’s much more likely that you’ll
remember Bernie Sanders’ job. If I hadn’t asked you any questions about it, you would have confused
understanding with knowing. Understanding a message is not the same as knowing about it. The self-
assessments at the end are a guide to help you assess your strengths, weaknesses and what you truly know.
We learn things in a deeper way when we review them. That’s why it’s critical for you to review what
you learned. You won’t know your weaknesses until you analyze them. Repetition will help improve your
score more than continuous practice. Focus on answering a couple questions perfectly. Identify your weak
points and focus on improving them.
What verb tense should I use in my speaking responses?

For the independent speaking section, you should try to keep everything in either the present or past
tense. Of course, sometimes you’ll have to use different tenses, but when you speak simply, you’re more likely
to sound like a native speaker. Some test-takers believe that they’ll sound smarter if they use complicated
grammar and vocabulary, but these test-takers usually sound more awkward than natural.
Now, for the integrated section it’s a liTle bit trickier because you have to report what you heard. You
probably talked about reported speech in your English grammar class and I’m sure it was frustrating. For
example, if someone says something in the present, you have to change that sentence to the past or if they said
something using the past tense, then you have to change it to the past perfect. That’s just an example of the
myriad rules associated with reported speech. But one thing your grammar teacher doesn’t tell you is that
when we speak, we don’t follow the rules. Like most native speakers in any language, we usually pick the
easiest way to communicate our message, not the correct way. Turn to the next page for an example…
153
So, if I had a conversation with my friend Amy a few days ago and she told me:
“I went to the movies last week.”
I would probably tell my friend Chris, who I’m talking to right now:
“Amy said she went to the movies last week.”
NOT
“Amy said she had gone to the movies the week before.”
On the test, the speaking section is all about sounding natural, and if you want to sound natural, don’t
strive for grammatical perfection.
What is automaticity?

If you go to the TOEFL website or read the speaking grading rubrics provided in the end of the
independent and integrated speaking sections of this book, you may have noticed the word automaticity.
Automaticity basically means automatic.
In one of the independent speaking example questions I talked about the yips. The yips is when a
professional athlete starts to consciously think about the complicated motions involved in an action. Let’s say,
for example, a golfer begins to think about how he swings the club. Now, because the golfer is conscious of
each step in the process of an effective swing, he can no longer perform as well.
You’ll begin to master a task once you stop thinking consciously about the
question. You must enter a state of flow.

How did the athlete become a professional? How did the ballet dancer start to flow with the music?
They practiced, a lot. If your fluency isn’t good enough for the speaking task what you need to do is practice.
You have the scripts. You know what it takes to get a good score on each task. Practice. Master each question
until it becomes automatic. Once you master a few questions, you’ll find that you can apply your knowledge to
future questions and become a confident TOEFL-taker.
Speak from the heart, it knows more than your memory.

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Integrated Speaking Tasks:

Analogies
Sometimes the best way to understand something is all about finding the right analogy. An analogy is
basically a comparison between two things. Through an analogy we can sometimes grasp a difficult topic a
li<le bit be<er. Let me give you an example:
If you’re trying to explain global warming to a child, you might use the analogy
of a fever. When you have a fever your body temperature gets ho=er. When your
body can’t regulate at its normal temperature, it can’t properly function. The
same thing happens to the earth. If the temperature of the earth warms, it can’t
properly function either.
Most of the time we think of a test as a series of questions we’re responsible for answering. For integrated
speaking tasks three, four, five and six, it might help you to think about them through the following analogies.

Task #3
Imagine you’re a
reporter.
Think about it for a second.
Why do you think I came up with the reporter analogy

for speaking task #3?
What’s the first part of speaking task #3?
What’s the listening section structure for task #3?
What information are you supposed to report on when

you speak?

155
Speaking task #3 begins with a change, right? There’s usually an announcement about a new school
rule or something along those lines. News agencies report on accidents and crimes, but they also report on
new rules and laws. You can search on the web or watch the news tonight and note when they talk about a
change to some institution’s rules and regulations. These types of stories are worthy of appearing on the news
because they could have a tremendous impact on people. When you watch these reports, you’ll find journalists
interviewing people and asking for their reactions. People are either in favor of or against the new rule and
they explain the reason why they feel the way they do.
Integrated speaking task #3 is no different.
While you’re reading and listening to the passages on the TOEFL, remember, you’re a reporter. As a
reporter, you must:
1. Identify the new rule or change.

2. Find the reasons why the change has occurred.
3. Listen to interviews.
4. Determine individual opinions and supporting reasons.
And don’t forget, people don’t like change, for the most part, so in the listening passage, the main
speaker will most likely disagree with the change.
Task #4
Imagine you’re a
parent.
Why do you think I came up with the parent analogy for

speaking task #4?
What’s the first part of speaking task #4?
What’s the listening section structure for task #4?
What information are you supposed to include during

your speaking response?
156
Let’s say you have a five-year-old child and the family dog just died. I know it’s terrible, but just stick
with me for a minute.
The reading passage for speaking task #4 is very literal. It’s pre<y much a cold definition of some
academic topic. If Death was the topic, the reading passage would state somewhere that:
Death is when all vital functions of a body cease to work and life ends.
That’s a pre<y harsh definition that doesn’t say a whole lot about what death could mean to different
people and how it relates to our experiences. Every reading passage for speaking task #4 is a cold definition of
some phenomenon, historical event, etc. But every good teacher knows their subject ma<er is much richer than
a simple definition. We humans understand things be<er and relate to them more through details, examples
and analogies. So how do you explain to a child what death means and what it might mean for the dog?
Well, you could compare death to other endings, like a movie or when you moved to a new house.
Or…
Maybe you could share your own experiences of friends or loved ones that passed away and talk about how
you coped with the grief.
Or…
Another way is to talk about different interpretations of what death means to specific groups. You
might explain how some people believe that after you die you go to a be<er place where you’re always happy.
For example, Muslims and Christians believe in Paradise while Buddhists believe in resurrection. Maybe the
dog will return to earth as a bird or, even, as a human!
These are just examples…
These are just examples to illustrate how you can transform a definition that means very li<le on the
page to something everyone can relate to and understand. Death transforms from ‘when all vital functions of
the body cease…’ to a topic filled with personal experience and unlimited interpretation.
In the listening passage for task #4, the lecturer is trying to take a difficult, cold definition and
transform it into something realer and more accessible through further illustration. Imagine you’re that sad
child and the lecturer is your parent, trying to help you make sense of something that seems so senseless.
Sorry, I know this analogy is rather morbid, but I think it’s going to stick
in your memory.
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Task #5
Imagine your friend’s
in trouble.

Why do you think I came up with the friend-in-trouble

analogy for speaking task #5?
What’s the structure of the listening passage in speaking

task #5?

A lot of us confide in our friends when we need advice and that’s all task #5 is, really. Some student has
a problem and the other student tries to help him out. What do you do when your friend has a problem? You
try to help. That’s exactly what one speaker does in the listening passage. The man or the woman has a
problem, he or she explains the problem and then the listener tries to offer him or her some help. You would
do the same. Nobody wants to see their friend or loved one in pain. We want to help out.
Emotional connection is crucial when responding to this question.
For the speaking section, try to stop thinking of the TOEFL test as a test, but instead as a reflection of
your daily life. Language is like most other subjects, what you know on paper ma<ers very li<le if you can’t
apply it to every day life. Here, for the speaking section, you have to take what you know and apply it to the
test. And you know how to be a friend. Don’t focus on the rules, vocabulary, script grammar, etc. and instead
focus on the emotional aspect of being a good friend. Vary your intonation and show feeling through your
voice. For the entire speaking section you have to try to get out of the usual test mindset and instead think like
a native speaker. Put yourself in the position of the speakers. Imagine you’re the friend. Repeat some of the
main points and then offer some advice.

158
Task #6
Imagine you’re trying
to explain Christmas to
an alien.

Why do you think I came up with the Christmas-to-an-

alien analogy for speaking task #6?
What’s the structure of the listening passage in speaking

task #6?

This last task is the most difficult, but I think it has the easiest analogy. Most of the people who read
this book our non-native English speakers, which means you, the reader, grew up in a place where English
wasn’t the first language. Also, if you’re preparing for the TOEFL, than you probably want to come to America
to study or do business. Now, when you come to the States and speak English with Americans, you’re going to
find that there are a lot of cultural differences. Even if you feel Americanized, you’re still going to find that you
have had a very different upbringing than actual Americans.
For example, if you’re Turkish you probably have to explain Kuran Bayram or if you’re from Korea you
might have to explain kimchi and why it’s culturally significant. So how are you going to explain these things
to someone? Where will you start? Well, just like in speaking task #6, you’ll have to begin with a basic
definition and description. After that, you can launch into a couple of different subcategories and examples
which will help illustrate Kuran Bayram or kimchi and how it relates to your culture. I know my analogy is
Christmas, but I’m going to pick a different holiday:
Thanksgiving
If I were writing a question for speaking task #6 about Thanksgiving, I’d first describe the basics and
give a very general overview of it.
159
Thanksgiving is a traditional American holiday that always takes place on the
fourth Thursday in the month of November. Thanksgiving is a holiday which
combines both American history and the harvest. While many countries have
harvest festivals, Thanksgiving is unique and only celebrated in America and
Canada. The Thanksgiving Day feast is the most popular tradition, which
includes American indigenous foods like turkey, corn and potatoes.
So now I’ve given some general information about the topic and a few details to help familiarize the
reader (or listener) with the tradition. Now, my next sentence will have to be some introduction of the overall
theme of my talk. At this point I could talk about the conflicting historical accounts of Thanksgiving, or I could
talk about some other Thanksgiving traditions, or I could share one or two personal experiences. Whatever, I
choose, I’m going to have to narrow my focus.
While most people associate Thanksgiving with the large meal, there are two
Thanksgiving traditions that are often overlooked. Today, I’d like to discuss the
presidential pardon of a turkey and the breaking of the wish bone.
This is my thesis statement. If I were listening and taking notes, I would write down presidential
pardon in the first sub-category and wish bone in the second. In most cases, when you introduce a topic you
want to let the listener know a kind of outline of your talk, which is why the speaker usually introduces it in
the beginning.
The presidential pardon of one, sometimes two turkeys, is a tradition dating

back to president George Bush senior. You see, every year on Thanksgiving
almost 50 million turkeys are killed and served on American dinner tables. The
presidential pardon is a real executive power, but it’s usually only exercised on
humans who are in prison or on death row. In other words, the president has the
power to halt someone’s execution if he has good reason to do it. As a kind of
joke, George Bush felt sorry for a live turkey served to him on Thanksgiving and
he decided, on a whim, to use his presidential power to save this lucky turkey’s
life. Since that day, the presidential turkey pardon has become an annual
tradition.
Do you see how a simple explanation needs further details? I began by giving some background
information about Thanksgiving, but for someone who knows nothing about Thanksgiving — like an alien —
he might have more questions like, “What do you do besides eat a big meal on Thanksgiving?” And that
simple question has led to a long explanation of a presidential turkey pardon. Now as you know, in most
speaking tasks they don’t just provide one example or illustration, but usually two examples for a new topic.
By providing more than one example, you make the topic clearer, fuller and more interesting. In my second
body paragraph about Thanksgiving traditions, I chose to discuss the breaking of the wish bone. Please turn to
the next page.
160
If you did a Google search of a turkey wish bone you’d find that it’s officially
called the furcula, or li=le fork. It’s not only found in turkeys, but chickens and
other birds. It’s located around the neck area and believed to help birds fly. On
Thanksgiving, after the bird is cooked and eaten, some families take out the
wishbone and have two individuals pull on it. Each person pulls on the opposite
side of the bone until it breaks in half. The person who is left with the bigger half
of the bone makes a wish that’ll, supposedly, come true.
As you can see, this is how the explanation of a simple American tradition can start to look a lot like a
TOEFL task. Think about your own cultural traditions, what might you have to explain to an American?
You might want to practice this exercise at home as well. You can structure it as a
speaking or writing exercise, whichever you prefer. Put yourself in the mindset of a
teacher. You have to describe some aspect of your culture that the class has no idea about.
Begin by picking a topic, provide some general information and then narrow your topic
down to two sub-categories.
Keep practicing the structure, think in terms of analogies and perform

one task until you perfect it. Over time, you’ll be amazed to see how well
your speaking responses improve.
161

Listening Predictions
This handout is designed specifically for integrated speaking tasks 3 and 4. If you need further help
with questions 5 and 6, you can look at The integrated speaking F.A.Q. handout also located in the Appendix.
In the integrated speaking section, what makes questions 3 and 4 different

from 5 and 6?
In speaking questions 3 and 4 you have a reading section that prepares you for the listening passage.
You may disagree, but being given a reading passage is a huge advantage. In my opinion, questions 3 and 4 are
easier than questions 5 and 6 because you get something to read first.
Many of my TOEFL students struggle with listening and I understand why. If you think about it, we
usually don’t let people talk for a few minutes while we quietly listen. Of course we watch movies, but we
have pictures to connect with the words. Sometimes we listen to our friends’ stories, but we’re involved in the
conversation, thinking about how to react and what to say next. One of the things that’s so difficult about
listening on a test is that you’re completely passive. All you do is sit and listen. Not only that, but it’s only a
voice, there’s no bodily movements to connect with the words. So when you listen, you have to pay very close
aOention. If your mind drifts for a moment, you’ll be lost.
Of course focus is a big part of the entire test, but on the listening task you have to focus on the right
information. In speaking tasks 3 and 4, the reading passages actually tell you what to focus on. I believe you
can read the reading passage and make a very, very good guess of what the listening is going to be about. I bet
you could even answer the question without ever listening to the listening passage.
How can you respond to the question without hearing the

listening passage?
Good question. Let’s do another example question for speaking task #3.
POP QUIZ
What’s the note structure for speaking task #3? How should your notes look before the
question begins?
162
The following example is courtesy of the ETS website’s TOEFL Quick Prep, pages 23-34:
http://www.ets.org/s/toefl/pdf/qp_v1_web.pdf
Directions: Read the following text and the conversation that follows it. Then, answer the question.
You have 45 seconds to read the following text.
The university is making a change in the courses it will offer. Read the article from the
university newspaper about the change.
Sculpture Courses to Be Discontinued

University administrators announced yesterday that the sculpture program, a division of the art
department, will be eliminated. “The main reason is a lack of student interest,” reported one
administrator. “Although the number of art students has increased, fewer and fewer art majors are
taking sculpture classes.” Furthermore, the department’s only sculpture professor is retiring this year.
“Given the art department’s limited budget,” the administrator explained, “it just doesn’t make sense to
hire a new full-time professor to teach sculpture for only a handful of students.”
Remember, in the reading passage for speaking task #3, you want to try to identify the change and the
reasons for the change. Here are my notes:
I know my notes are hard for anyone besides myself to understand, so let me explain:
Change (C): The sculpture program at the university is going to close.
Reason #1 (R1): It’s closing due to a lack of student interest. While the number of students in the art department is
growing, the number of student enrolled in sculpture classes continues to shrink.
Reason #2 (R2): The sculpture professor is retiring. Since the art department doesn’t have a lot of money, it doesn’t make
sense to continue to invest in the sculpture class.
163
At this point we know the change and the two reasons for the change based on the reading passage. As
usual, after the reading passage, you should predict what the listening’s going to be about. Here are some
questions to consider:
How many people are going to speak in the listening passage?
What kind of people are going to be speaking (i.e. what will be his or her job, age, etc)?
What’s he, she or they going to talk about?
From previous sections, you should know that the listening part is going to be a conversation between
a man and a woman. Also, the conversation will most likely be between two college students or between two
individuals who work at a college. On top of that, you know that they’re going to react to whatever was
announced in the reading.
I think I remember some other things from the

integrated section.
That’s right! You also know that at least one person is going to agree or disagree with every single
reason for the change mentioned in the reading passage. You also know that people don’t like change. Most
likely, in the listening passage, one person is going to disagree with the points mentioned in the reading. I’m
going to take all this information and show you what I predict the listening to be about.
My Reading Notes My Listening Predictions

(C): The sculpture program at the university is going to (O): The man or woman, I’m going to guess it’s the
close. woman, is going to disagree with the school’s decision.
(R1): It’s closing due to a lack of student interest. (R1): She might claim that student’s aren’t interested in
While the number of students in the art department is sculpture because they don’t know the class exists or
growing, the number of students enrolled in sculpture they have too many class requirements so they don’t get
classes continues to shrink. a chance to try the sculpture class.
(R2): The sculpture professor is retiring. Since the art (R2): As they get older, a lot of teachers become less
department doesn’t have a lot of money, it doesn’t motivated to teach. Maybe the sculpture teacher was
make sense to continue to invest in the sculpture class. lazy or very strict and so no one wanted to take his
class. A new professor might renew interest in the
sculpture program.
164
Look at my predictions; are they reasonable? Would you make similar predictions?
Are there any predictions you’d like to add?
Now we’re going to skip the listening and go right to the question:
Directions: Give yourself 30 seconds to prepare your response to the following question. Then record
yourself speaking for 60 seconds.
Question: The woman expresses her opinion of the university’s plan. State her opinion and explain the
reasons she gives for holding that opinion.
Look at the question again. Do you notice any useful information?
In the question, you should notice that they tell you who’s opinion is important. In this case, my guess
was right, it was the woman. I still don’t know if she agrees or disagrees, but about 90% of the time the
student disagrees, so I’m going to try it out.
Now, here’s where the magic comes in. I haven’t even heard the listening and
I’m still going to speak.
The only things I need to answer the questions are:

a. My integrated speaking task #3 script
b. My notes from the reading passage
c. My predictions of the listening passage
d. The question
In case you forgot, here’s the sample script for speaking task #3…
Task #3 Script
The reading passage (announces a change on campus/explains a class policy). In particular,
________________. The man/woman in the conversation feels that ___________________ and
provides two reasons for support.
(35-40 seconds left) To start, he/she/the student explains that _____________________ (2x
sentences, one to introduce the reason and another detail that expands it).
Second, he/she goes on to say __________________. He/she explains that _________________.
(5 seconds left) These are the reasons why the man/woman ___________________________.
165
And here’s my response based only on the script, my notes from the reading, my listening
predictions and the question provided.
Task #3: My Guess

The reading passage announces a change on campus. In particular, the administration has
decided to discontinue the sculpture program on campus. The woman in the conversation
disagrees and provides two reasons for support.
To start, she explains that there are more students enrolled in the art department than ever
before. Even though enrollment in the sculpture program may be low, it could be due to other
factors besides lack of interest.
Second, the student goes on to say that the sculpture professor is retiring this year. She
explains that even though there’s a lack of money in the art department and it doesn’t seem to
make sense to invest more in the sculpture program, a new professor might be able to change the
image of the sculpture program.
These are the reasons why the woman feels that closing all sculpture classes is a bad idea.
In my response, I made predictions about the listening passage, but did you notice how I mostly
reworded parts of the reading passage instead of adding details I wasn’t sure were true or not? For example:
Even though enrollment in the sculpture

program may be low, it could be due to other
factors besides lack of interest.
Here, I use the phrase ‘even though’ and

when I use that phrase I can preOy much repeat a
bunch of details from the reading. It’ll take time for
me to elaborate the reason in the reading. After my
‘even though’ statement, I’ll contrast it by offering a
vague, opposite idea. Instead of saying specific,
detailed reasons I just say, “…other factors beside
lack of interest.” Obviously, a response that includes
details from the listening would be beOer than this
kind of vague statement, but it still sounds preOy
good. In my opinion, this above example would
score at least a 20 on the TOEFL.
Now let’s look at the actual conversation…

166
Male Student: Everything all right?
Female Student: Yeah, I’m just upset about that article I showed you this morning…
Male Student: Why? What’s the big deal?
Female Student: Well, as an art major I think it’s a big loss for the department. The university’s got it all
wrong.
Male Student: What do you mean?
Female Student: Well the low enrollment isn’t because art majors don’t want to take these classes.
Problem is, who has time to take them when there are so many other requirements?
Male Student: I don’t understand.
Female Student: See, the classes they’re eliminating are all optional. The required courses are mostly
painting and drawing, and they take up all our time. What we really need are different requirements—
then art majors could take a better variety of classes… all the things were interested in.
Male Student: That makes sense. But the thing about the professor…
Female Student: Well, that’s true. But still, they’re being drastic. If money’s the problem, they could
hire a part-time professor! Or, most of the professors in the department have secondary fields…
Male Student: Really?
Female Student: Yeah! At least a few painting teachers are also great sculptors. I’m sure one of them
could teach a class.
Besides the part where I said, “…a new professor might be able to change the image of the sculpture
program,” most of my predictions were correct. You may be thinking that I wrote all this out and planned it
perfectly but, I promise you, I just picked a random question and followed the structure I know. My guess
about course requirements was part luck, but a big part of it was experience. After the reading passage I
thought about the change and the reasons they provided for the change and I tried to imagine what the other
side might say. I thought, “How would I argue against the administration’s decision?” Remember, the TOEFL
167
is created and graded by some person, just like you and me. Think about how and why you would disagree
and let your own experiences guide your predictions.
But question 4 is different than question 3. How are we

supposed to predict a lecture that could be about anything?
Question #4 is more difficult to predict, and I’ll be more likely to make some incorrect guesses because
I’ll have to add details that probably aren’t true, but let me give it a shot anyway. Again, I’ll show you how to
include as liOle information from the listening as possible while still sounding like a confident English speaker.
Let’s look at an example…
POP QUIZ
What’s the note structure for speaking task #4? How should your notes look before the
question begins?
The following example is courtesy of the ETS website’s TOEFL Quick Prep; page 29:
hOp://www.ets.org/s/toefl/pdf/qp_v2_web_a4.pdf
Directions: Read the following passage about revealing coloration from a biology textbook. You have
45 seconds to read the following text.
Revealing Coloration
Many animals use coloration to protect themselves from predators. One defensive strategy
involving the use of coloration is what is known as revealing coloration. Animals employing this
strategy have an area of bright color on some part of their body; this bright color is usually hidden from
predators’ view. When approached by a predator, the animal suddenly reveals the area of bright color;
this unexpected display of color startles or confuses the predator and provides the would-be prey with
an opportunity to escape.

Remember, in the reading passage for speaking task #4, you want to try to identify the topic, the topic’s
definition and any additional notes you have time to jot down. On the following you page you’ll find my own
handwriOen notes for this particular task.
168
Let me translate my notes:
Title: The title is revealing coloration.
Definition: Revealing coloration is a defensive strategy used by certain animals.
Additional Notes: These animals use coloration to protect themselves from predators.
What do you think the listening passage is going to be about?
This is a random example I chose to show you and it’s difficult because they provide me with very liOle
information in the reading. I’m still going try my method.
There are a couple of things you should know about the listening by now. You should know that it’s
going to be a lecture and the lecture will most likely provide two examples or illustrations of the topic from the
reading passage. This is much, much more difficult to predict because the examples could be about anything.
Since the examples are so hard to predict, I’m going to keep my predictions as vague as possible.
My Reading Notes My Listening Predictions
(T): The title is revealing coloration. Example: Weaker animals need to find different ways
to protect themselves from stronger animals. From the
(D): Revealing coloration is a defensive strategy used smallest insect to the largest mammal, every animal has
by certain animals. different adaptations to help it survive. Camouflage is
(AN): These animals use coloration to protect an example of color helping an animal hide.
themselves from predators. Details: Chameleons change their color to blend into
their environments and hide from predators. But this is
‘revealing coloration’, so I guess it’s a way to show
your colors in order to scare predators.
169
Look at my predictions; are they reasonable? Would you make similar predictions?
Are there any predictions you’d like to add?
Now we’re going to skip the listening and go right to the question:
Directions: Give yourself 30 seconds to prepare your response to the following question. Then record
yourself speaking for 60 seconds.
Question: Using the example of the peanut bug and the morpho butterfly, explain the concept of
revealing coloration.
Look at the question again, notice any useful information?
In the question, you should notice that they state the specific examples they want you to discuss. In this
case it’s the peanut bug and the morpho buCerfly. I’m not going to say anything about chameleons now. Of
course, I still don’t know anything specific about how these species actually use revealing coloration, but I can
still use:
a. My integrated speaking task #4 script
b. My notes from the reading passage
c. My predictions of the listening passage
d. The question
In case you forgot, here’s the sample script for speaking task #4…
Task #4 Script
The reading passage discusses ____________________ which the author defines as
_________________. (40-45 seconds left) In the lecture, the professor delves deeper into the subject
by providing two examples of ___________________. He or she explains that
____________________. (20 seconds) The lecturer also mentions ______________ . (5 seconds left)
And so, the professor clearly illustrates ________________.
170
Task #4 My Guess
The reading passage discusses revealing coloration which the author defines as a defensive
strategy used by certain animals to protect themselves from predators. In the lecture, the professor
delves deeper into the subject by providing two examples of animals that use revealing color to
protect themselves from other predators. The two cases he mentions involve the peanut bug and
morpho buOerfly. He explains that the peanut bug uses color differently than other animals. The
peanut bug reveals its color and, instead of helping it hide from predators, the color actually makes
them go away. The lecturer also mentions the morpho buOerfly, which uses the defensive strategy
of revealing coloration in a similar fashion as the peanut bug. And so, the professor clearly
illustrates how the morpho buOerfly and the peanut bug use color to help them survive in the wild.
Sounds preOy good, don’t you think? In my modest opinion, if I spoke calmly and confidently, this
could earn a score of at least a 20. I hardly added any information that wasn’t in the script, the reading or the
question. How did I do it? Notice how I said the same thing more than once, but simply reworded it:
…a defensive strategy used by certain animals to protect themselves from predators.

and later…
…animals that use revealing color to protect themselves from other predators.
later…
The peanut bug reveals its color and, instead of helping it hide from predators, the color
actually makes them go away.
again…
…the morpho buOerfly, which uses the defensive strategy of revealing coloration in a
similar fashion as the peanut bug
finally…
…illustrates how the morpho buOerfly and the peanut bug use color to help them
survive in the wild
You can look at the actual listening passage on the next page to see if my response
fits well enough with the question.
171
Revealing Coloration Script

Directions: Now listen to part of a lecture from a biology class.
There’s a large tropical insect called the peanut bug — yes, like the peanuts that you eat
— uh, and the peanut bug’s front wings are colored so that they blend in with their
surroundings. But its black wings— which are usually closed and hidden— have these bright,
colorful spots on them. And when the peanut bug’s attacked, it suddenly opens its black wings,
and out pop these big, bright colors. And that surprises the predator, and gives the peanut bug a
chance to get away.
Um, and then you have a butterfly… called the morpho butterfly. And parts of the
morpho butterfly’s wings are very shiny they reflect a lot of sunlight; when this butterfly is
resting, this shiny part of its wings is hidden… Now, morpho butterflies are often attacked by
birds… So when a bird approaches, the morpho flies away… and when the morpho flaps its
wings, all the bird can see are flashes of light reflected from the morpho’s wings. Those flashes
of light make it very difficult for the bird to follow the morpho, and the morpho is usually able
to get away.
Of course on the actual test you will hear something

from the listening. Only if you hear a couple of key
words they can be a big help in guiding how you
respond. In these examples, I’m speaking with
ABSOLUTELY NO KNOWLEDGE of what the
listening is going to be about. In the previous
exercise I was at an extreme disadvantage. Again,
I’m just using this as an example to show how well
the reading prepares you for the listening. So stop
stressing about what you didn’t hear and focus on
what you did. You know more than you think.
That’s you! Superhero

TOEFL taker
172

Example Questions
As I’ve mentioned before, this book focuses more on strategy and less on practice. One of the reasons
for that is because I’m not a book company. I can’t churn out a bunch of TOEFL example questions for you to
practice. However, after much time, thinking and research, I have created 16 unique sample questions. Each
corresponds to a specific integrated speaking task. There are four example questions for each task type. They
are arranged in order, so it’ll start with integrated speaking task #3. I have tried to format them in a way that
looks similar to the exam.
On the exam, most of the questions follow a format exactly like I describe in this book. However, you
might sometimes have a question that’s slightly different. The TOEFL test format stays relatively the same, but
it does change once in awhile. In each group of examples I included one example that doesn’t strictly follow
the format I prepared you for; I did this on purpose. Once you memorize how you should take notes and
respond, you should be able to adjust to whatever question you might be asked. Besides veering slightly from
the format, I also included some fairly difficult questions. Again, these questions are not meant to trick you,
only prepare you for the exam. Remember:
Practice like you play.

On exam day you’re going to be nervous and
you sometimes get questions that are harder or
different then what you expected. So we might as well
practice the same way it may happen on the exam. The
best baseball teams don’t practice by having pitchers
throw the same pitch over and over again. Instead, the
coaches have their pitchers change up their style in
practice to beTer prepare baTers for the real game
experience.
________________________________________________

Do you remember the note structure for the
reading and listening passages? After each practice
example I provided a space for you to write out your
note structure. Do you remember the note structure for
each task? Practice, quiz yourself to ensure that you’re
prepared on exam day.
173
Speaking Task #3
Directions: Read the following text and the conversation that follows it. Then, answer the
question. You have 45 seconds to read the following text.
A Message from the Administration

Security is the top priority for the entire faculty and staff at our prestigious university. In an
educational environment, it’s paramount for students to feel safe and comfortable. In the wake of a
couple of unfortunate incidents, the school administration has decided to adjust our current visitor
policy. No visitor will be permitted entrance into any dormitory after 10pm. Only students who are
residents and carry the proper identification will be permitted into their respective building unit. This
policy will be enforced in all dorms located on campus. If you have any questions or concerns, please
address them to your resident administrator. Thank you for your understanding.
Your Notes
Listening transcript on the next page

174
Task #3 Conversation
Example #1
Directions: Now, listen to a conversation between two students.
Man: This is ridiculous!
Woman: What? You mean the new rule about visitors?
Man: Yeah, I mean, we’re adults, we should be treated like adults. If I wanted to live at a place with a
bunch of rules, I wouldn’t have moved away to a university; I would’ve stayed with my parents.
Woman: But it’s not like they’re trying to take away your freedom or anything like that. The new rule is
just for your safety.
Man: But why now?
Woman: Well, my neighbor next door had her purse stolen while she was out last week. And I know
another girl who walked into her room at like, 1am or something, and someone was in there going
through her stuff! Luckily, the guy just ran out but she said that he definitely didn’t look like a student.
Man: Wow, really? That’s scary.
Woman: Yeah, I mean, what if it happened to me or you? To be honest, for the last week or so, I’ve had
trouble studying. I keep imagining what if someone comes through my door? What if someone steals
my stuff? I’ve been studying in the library for the past week because I don’t feel comfortable in the
dorm.
Man: Oh. I didn’t know any of that stuff.
Woman: Yeah, well, I’m really happy with the change. Maybe now I can finally stop thinking about
‘what if’ and instead focus on my studies.
Question: The woman expresses her opinion of the school administration’s recent change in
visitor policy. State her opinion and the reasons she gives for holding that opinion.
Your Notes
175
Class Opening
Due to high-demand, a new section of Professor Underwood’s Business and Creativity class
will be open for registration this Friday, the 23rd. The new section will run on Tuesday and Thursday
afternoons from 1-2:30pm. In the past, no prerequisites were required to enroll in this course. However,
only students who have completed Business 101 will be allowed to enroll in this particular section. This
course is a requirement for business majors. Many have complained that the class fills up so quickly
that they don’t have a chance to enroll. Therefore, business majors who have completed Business 101
will be seated first. If there are still seats available by the registration deadline, students without the
necessary prerequisites will be considered for enrollment.
Your Notes

176
Example #2
Woman: Did you sign up for classes in the fall semester yet?
Man: No, not yet. I have to go to the registration office after class today.
Woman: Well, I all ready registered, but I’m probably going to have to go there today too.
Man: Why?
Woman: It’s because of this Business and Creativity class. I really wanted to join because I heard
Professor Underwood is an amazing instructor, but the class was filled up.
Man: That happens sometimes. So what’s the problem?
Woman: Well, they opened up a new section, but I can’t take it because now they’re saying you need to
have taken Business 101 as a prerequisite.
Man: There are prerequisites for lots of classes. Why are you upset about this one?
Woman: Because it’s not fair. There were never any prerequisites before, so why should they start now?
They’re just making up rules so business majors can enroll.
Man: But don’t you think that the rule kind of makes sense. I mean, business majors have to take this
class, right?
Woman: Yes, but that’s their responsibility, not mine. They’re in this school for four years, that means
they have at least eight different semesters to take this class. I’m only allowed one elective per semester
so I try to enroll early to make sure I get the classes I want. They should plan ahead of time if they need
this class.
Man: I see what you mean, but I don’t think they’re going to let you in to this new section.
Woman: Well, I still want to talk to my advisor and plead my case.
Question: The woman expresses her opinion about the new section of the Business and
Creativity class. State her opinion and the reasons she gives for holding that opinion.
Your Notes
177
Changes in the Cafeteria

Student health and wellness is a growing concern not just on our campus, but across the
country. Parents, students and administrators have voiced their concerns about the possible calorie
intake and health risks associated with some of the food offered in the cafeteria. New legislation has
been put in place to alter the food options at all public schools across the country, and we’re going to do
the same. Certain food choices which are fried, oily, high in saturated fat and/or high in calories will be
replaced with more sensible and balanced menu items.
Your Notes

178
Example #3
Man: This is terrible!
Woman: Relax, Mike. You can still eat all the oily food you want outside of the cafeteria
Man: But my parents paid thousands of dollars for me to eat in the cafeteria this semester. Anything I
eat outside of school has to come out of my own pocket. If they were going to change the policy of food
choices, they should have done it before the semester started.
Woman: Don’t you think maybe you should try eating a bit healthier?
Man: Yeah, but…uh…like, when I’m like, 40 or something. Right now, I want to enjoy my youth and
eat all the unhealthy food I want.
Woman: Well, it’s not just here. All across the country restaurants, even fast food restaurants, are trying
to make their food healthier. Nowadays, people don’t care about taste as much as they do about the
possible effects on their body.
Man: I know, that’s the other problem. The government, the school, whoever it is; these people
shouldn’t be getting involved in telling people what they can and can’t eat. If I want to eat fried food, I
should be able to eat it. And this is a private school, just because public schools do something doesn’t
mean we should do it too.
Woman: You sound like my dad. And I think you’re in the minority on this one Mike. Most of the
students agree that the food in the cafeteria is far too oily.
Man: You might be right, but I’m really going to miss that cafeteria pizza.
Question: The man expresses his opinion about the changes made to the cafeteria menu items.
State his opinion and the reasons he gives for holding that opinion.
Your Notes
179
Finals Week Extended

During finals week the university sees a dramatic increase in reports of stress and anxiety. Not
only do the students suffer, but the faculty and administration are also under increased pressure to
grade, submit and report back scores. In an effort to alleviate some pressure, finals week has been
extended from a one-week to a two-week period. Effective immediately, professors and students should
plan to begin administering exams on December 7th until the last day of the semester, Friday,
December 21st. The increased amount of time should help give professors more time to grade exams
and students more time to study in between exams. We strive to maintain the most comfortable and
effective learning environment for our students, and hope his change will not effect any preexisting
commitments.
Your Notes

180
Example #4
Woman: Wow, what a relief.
Man: Really? You’re happy about this?
Woman: Of course, who wouldn’t be?
Man: Well, I’m not happy about it.
Woman: Really? Why? Don’t you think this will help relieve some stress during finals?
Man: To be honest, I like stress. I find that I work better when I have a deadline to meet and not a lot of
time to meet it. I remember better and perform better under stress. It’s just my personality.
Woman: Oh, well, maybe that’ll change. Now that finals are stretched out for two weeks, you can adjust
your habits and spread out your studying time. And, besides, now we’ll get our grades back sooner than
usual.
Man: Yeah, but I’m not used to this kind of structure. It may have a negative impact on my grades.
Woman: I doubt it. I’m sure you’ll do fine.
Man: They did this to relieve stress but now I’m more stressed than ever. They really shouldn’t have
done this in the middle of the semester. I had made plans the week before finals to go back home and
visit my family. I figured I could skip review week and study on my own. Now I’ll have to cancel my
flight.
Woman: Oh, yeah, that’s too bad. Maybe you’re right. They should’ve waited till next semester.
Question: The man expresses his opinion about the new schedule for finals. State his opinion
and the reasons he gives for holding that opinion.
Your Notes
181
Speaking Task #4
Directions: Read the following passage about the yips from a psychology textbook. You have
45 seconds to read the following text. Begin reading now.
The Yips
The yips is a phenomenon usually associated with sports. The yips occurs when an athlete loses
the fine motor skills needed to perform a task without any apparent rational explanation. A one-time
master will suddenly and inexplicably lose the ability to perform a task he or she once knew so well.
Some experts believe the yips is attributed to continual use of the same muscles in order to perform a
particular movement in a sport which eventually leads to increase deterioration of muscle tissue and
nerve damage. Other experts suggest that the yips is strictly a psychological problem and should be
treated through psychoanalyst, meditation or other cognitive means. Some professional athletes
eventually overcome the yips and return to their former greatness, however, far more athletes continue
to suffer through this strange condition and are forced to retire.
Your Notes

182
Example #1
Directions: Now, listen to part of a lecture from a psychology class.
Okay, so I’m going to assume you all read the reading I assigned last week and are ready to talk
about the yips. As the reading states, the yips is most popularly associated with sports and the most
well-known examples come from baseball.
Steve Blass was an all-star baseball player in the 1960s and early 1970s. In 1973 however,
Blass suddenly lost his previous pitching abilities. Without warning, his once stellar play rapidly
deteriorated. No matter what he did, Blass could not stop thinking consciously about his pitching. You
see, in the past, Blass would just pitch. He had a considerable amount of training leading up to the time
he became a professional baseball player, which was mainly stored in his unconscious. Once he became
aware of the complicated motions associated with throwing a baseball, he was no longer able to
perform at a mastery level. Others have tried to attribute his meteoric decline to the death of his close
friend and teammate Roberto Clemente, but Blass himself denies that it had anything to do with
Clemente’s death.
But the yips aren’t always fatal to an athlete’s career. Another baseball player, Steve Sax, started
to suffer from a similar deterioration of basic baseball mechanics in the 1983 season. After a single bad
throw in a game Sax began to question his throwing ability and fear started to cloud his judgment. He
committed so many errors throwing to first base that fans started wearing baseball helmets while sitting
in the stands, mocking Sax’s lack of throwing ability. However, Sax worked on his mechanics until he
overcame his case of the yips and continued to play baseball for another 13 years afterward.
Question: Using the examples from the lecture, explain what the yips is and how it works.
Your Notes
183
Directions: Read the following passage about power distance from an anthropology textbook.
You have 45 seconds to read the following text. Begin reading now.
Power Distance
Few studies have had such profound influence on the anthropological community as Geert
Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory, which he developed while working as a researcher at IBM. One
aspect of his cultural dimensions theory was power distance. The term itself, power distance, describes
the extent to which members of a society are comfortable with inequality in power and influence.
There’s inequality in every society, but the level of comfort individuals have with inequality varies
across cultures. Age and economic status are the most common indicators of status in a hierarchical
society, but there are other contributing factors depending on the place.
Your Notes

184
Example #2
Directions: Now, listen to part of a lecture from an anthropology class.
So let’s move on to…uh…right, the reading. It talks about Geert Hofstede’s work on cultural
dimensions, in particular power distance. Now, power distance is kind of like a scale. On one end of the
scale you have high-power distance cultures and at the other end of the scale you have low-power
distance cultures. This concept may be difficult to understand without an example, so let me give you
one of each.
First, there’s high-power distance cultures and these have a strict hierarchical order. Each person
has their own unique and particular place in a society and each individual has an implicit understanding
of who is higher and who is lower on the totem pole. Japan is a good example of a high-power distance
culture. In Japan, much of how you act is determined by age. If you have a co-worker who is older, they
are your senpai, and if you have a co-worker who’s younger, they’re your kohai. The kohai must use
respectful and polite language when addressing their senpai. Also, the kohai must obey commands from
their senpai. The most common example is a senpai ordering their kohai to drink alcohol.
American culture is the opposite. Most Americans cringe when they’re forced to act differently
because of status. Americans don’t like feeling unequal. So, at work or at school, you’ll find many
teachers and bosses who prefer to be called by their first name. Using this kind of moniker helps create
a friendlier and more comfortable work environment. In America, if someone is in a position of power,
they should do their best to conceal it.
Question: Using the examples of Japan and America from the lecture, explain what power
distance is and how it works.
Your Notes
185
Directions: Read the following passage about sign language from a sociology textbook.
You have 45 seconds to read the following text. Begin reading now.
Sign Language
Contrary to popular belief, sign language is not the same around the world. American, British,
Indian, Japanese and French Sign Language are just a few examples of the many different sign
languages throughout the world. Sign languages share many similarities with spoken languages, but
what sets them apart is the use of bodily motions and facial expressions to convey meaning. Users of a
sign language cannot rely on voice or acoustics to communicate. Historically seen as handicap, the deaf
community has fought a long time to be recognized as fully functional individuals with the same rights
as everyone else. Some sign languages have even obtained national recognition and are now taught as
subjects in all levels of education.
Your Notes

186
Example #3
Directions: Now, listen to part of a lecture from a sociology class.
You guys know what sign language is, right? You use your body to communicate instead of your
voice. Now, of course, most people associate sign language with the deaf community, but… uh… can
anyone guess who else might use sign language?
Well, today, I…uh… I’d like to focus on babies and gorillas. Ha, I guess you never imagined
babies and gorillas would be lumped into the same category, but it makes sense, right? Both these
groups have a limited capacity for verbal communication. Now, there has been a growing number of
exciting studies done on the benefits of teaching sign language to both babies and gorillas.
Let me start with babies. Babies can’t speak and they don’t say their first word until they’re about
18 months old. That’s why babies cry so much, it’s one of the only ways they know how to
communicate. But nowadays many parents teach their kids how to sign words like milk or hungry.
Although signs are usually soon abandoned once the child learns to speak, these simple signs help
parents gain a better understanding of their baby’s needs
Another famous example is, of course, gorillas. There are some famous signing apes like, for
example, Koko, who knows over 1000 GSL signs. Oh, and if you didn’t know, GSL stands for, Gorilla
Sign Language. Anyway, unlike children, gorillas are usually taught to sign in order for researchers to
determine the learning capabilities of primates and, also, to gain a clearer understanding of what
distinguishes man from other animals. However, most findings in this field of study remain
controversial to this day.
Question: Using the examples of babies and gorillas from the lecture, explain what sign language is
and how it’s used outside the deaf community.
Your Notes
187
Directions: Read the following passage about compassionate consumerism from a business
textbook. You have 45 seconds to read the following text. Begin reading now.
Compassionate Consumerism
Compassionate consumerism is a relatively new trend in the American retail market. In this
type of consumerism, when individuals make a purchase, a portion of the money they paid is allocated
to a charitable cause. In other words, when you buy a product, some of that money is donated.
Nowadays, individuals look for ways to contribute to the betterment of humanity, but don’t have the
monetary means to do so. Compassionate consumerism appears to be a good middle ground. While
critics feel that it’s only a marketing ploy aimed at appealing to millennials — individuals in their 20s
and 30s — others applaud the effort. In compassionate consumerism, companies are willing to sacrifice
profits in order to help those in need.
Your Notes

188
Example #4
Directions: Now, listen to part of a lecture from a business class.
I just want to start by saying that companies sacrifice nothing in order to give to charities. Sorry, I
usually try to keep my personal opinion out of the material, but I disagree with the usage of the word
‘sacrifice’ in the reading. Why? Well, because companies make a lot of additional profits from this kind
of compassionate marketing. Some companies even thrive off of it.
Take TOMS shoes for example. They’re kind of like the pioneer of this type of consumerism. You
know the shoes, right? Those flat, simple, slip-on shoes, which are based on a type of Argentinian shoe
called a alpargata. Anyway, TOMS exploded on the market about seven years ago now with their ‘one-
for-one’ business model. Basically, if you buy a pair of TOMS shoes, they donate another pair of shoes
to an impoverished individual. While TOMS has, quote on quote ‘sacrificed’ profits, they’ve also made
so much profit that they’ve expanded to include not only shoes, but also eyewear and coffee.
Now, TOMS was the pioneer, and like any pioneer they had copycats. BOBS is a division of the
Sketchers shoe company. The acronym BOBS stands for Benefiting Others By Shoes. The shoes
themselves look exactly the same as TOMS shoes. So what’s the difference? Well, pretty much nothing,
except the fact that Sketchers didn’t try to hide their ulterior motive behind this new marketing scheme.
This was an act of desperation from Sketchers. They had lost so much profit after the financial crisis of
2008 that the people at Sketchers were willing to do anything to encourage people to spend what little
money they had left.
Question: Using the examples of TOMS and BOBS from the lecture, explain what
compassionate consumerism is and how it works.
Your Notes
189
Speaking Task #5
WAIT
Remember for speaking tasks five and six there’s no reading passage, only listening. On the first page
of each task I leave a space for you to write notes. If you can, find someone who can read the passage aloud for
you. Take down notes, give yourself 20 seconds to prepare and then record yourself speaking for 60 seconds.
Keep practicing each task until you perfect it.
READY?
Example #1 Notes
190
Example #1
Man: Hey Sheila, what’s up?

Woman: Ah, don’t ask.
Man: Is it professor Evans’ class again?
Woman: Yeah, it is. 40% of the grade is attendance and I’ve missed two classes all ready. If I miss
another one, she’ll start to deduct points from my grade.
Man: Well, why have you missed so many classes?
Woman: Unlike most people here, my parents can’t afford for me to go to college. I have to work to pay
for school.
Man: Did you try to talk to professor Evans? Maybe she’ll make an exception for you because your
schedule’s so busy.
Woman: I don’t know, she’s so scary. And I talked to a few other people who had her last semester and
they all said the same thing, she doesn’t make exceptions for anyone, ever. Everyone has to be in class
all the time.
Man: Well, if you can’t do anything about the class, then maybe you should do something about what
you do outside of class?
Woman: What, like quit my job?
Man: No, not exactly, I mean let’s think about it for a second, you can’t quit your job but, your job’s
conflicting with your class so, to me, it looks like you’re going to have to do one or the other, either
drop the class or quit your job.
Woman: What’d you mean, drop the class?
Man: Well, it’s still only the fourth week of the semester. As long as you make a request to drop the
class before the sixth week, you’ll get a W for the class.
Woman: A W?
Man: Yeah, it stands for withdrawal. If you withdraw from a class it doesn’t negatively effect your
overall GPA. Last semester I dropped my Microeconomics class because I was all ready overloaded
with work from my other courses.
Woman: I’m not sure. If I drop this class then I’ll have to take more classes next semester to make up
for those credits.
Man: Well, either way, you’re going to have to make a tough decision.
Question: The speakers discuss two possible solutions to the woman’s problem. Briefly
summarize the problem. Then state which solution you recommend and explain why.
191
WAIT
READY?
Example #2 Notes
192
Example #2
Woman: Hey Mike, are you okay?

Man: Oh, hey Lisa. Yeah, sorry, I’m fine. My mind is somewhere else.
Woman: Well, whatever it is, it looks like you’re pretty upset.
Man: Ha, yeah, I guess it’s not that serious, but the library has a new policy about printing.
Woman: Oh, really? What is it?
Man: Now there’s a limit to how many pages students can print each semester. It used to be limitless,
but now you’re only allowed to print 100 pages per semester.
Woman: Oh, well, I do lots of my reading online and I have a printer in my dorm, so I guess I don’t
have to worry about that.
Man: Yeah, well I don’t have a printer. I mean, this school’s expensive. They should be able to provide
us with all the materials we need.
Woman: You know, you should get a printer. You can find one for like $50 and then you can print all
you want at home.
Man: The printer might be cheap, but the ink isn’t. Ink is really expensive and I make color copies
sometimes too. By the end of the semester, I’ll have spent hundreds of dollars just on making copies.
Woman: Yeah, now that I think about it, the ink is pretty expensive. But I still agree with the school’s
decision. Using a lot of paper is bad for the environment. Do you mind if I ask why you make so many
copies?
Man: Well, there are a lot of articles I have to read and I like to write notes in the margins and underline
when I study. I can’t do any of that stuff on the computer.
Woman: Yes you can.
Man: Huh? Not on the computers in the library you can’t.
Woman: No, but you might want to invest in a tablet, like an iPad or something like that. They have a
lot of apps and programs where you can annotate digital files. You can underline, write notes and do a
lot more. I actually prefer the tablet because I use a lot of different colors and I don’t have to schlep all
this heavy paper around with me.
Man: But that’s a lot of money I’d have to spend too. And then I’ll have to learn how to use the app and
all that stuff. It seems like it would take a lot of time, but maybe it’s worth it.
Woman: I think so, but either way, you’re not going to be able to print the way you used to.
Question: The speakers discuss two possible solutions to the man’s problem. Briefly
193
WAIT
READY?
Example #3 Notes
194
Example #3
Directions: Now, listen to a conversation between a student and a resident advisor.
Man: Excuse me, are you the resident advisor?

Woman: Yes, that’s right, I’m the RA. What’s your name?
Man: I’m Michah.
Woman: Hi, Michah I’m Kristy. How can I help you?
Man: Well, I, uh, I really hate to be a tattletale, you know? I don’t want to get anyone in trouble.
Woman: Of course, but I assure you, that whatever you have to say will stay between you and me.
Man: So it’s about my roommate. I live in room 208, on the second floor and my roommate always lets
his friends sleep over. The other night they came back to the room at 2am and they all slept right on our
floor! I’ve tried talking to him, but he doesn’t listen to me.
Woman: Well, first of all, there aren’t supposed to be any visitors after 10, so I’ll have to talk with
security about that.
Man: The security in this building is a joke. Anyone can get in here whenever they want.
Woman: Well, do you think your roommate would listen to me? Do you want me to go talk to him?
Man: I don’t know, probably not. He’d either deny everything or tell you he won’t do it again and keep
doing it anyway.
Woman: I wouldn’t be so sure about that Michah. Believe it or not, I can be pretty scary sometimes.
How do you think I got this job in the first place? People listen to me.
Man: Haha, really? Well, what would you say to him?
Woman: Well, I’d remind him of the rules, that no visitors are allowed after 10pm and to also respect the
wishes of his roommate, which I’m sure you did all ready. And then, after that, I’d probably give him a
copy of the student handbook and show him the part that says no visitors are allowed after 10 pm. Do
you know what the punishment is for violating our visitor policy?
Man: No. What?
Woman: And I quote, “Anyone who is caught on more than one occasion with a visitor after 10pm will
be expelled from school. No exceptions. No excuses.”
Man: Woah.
Woman: Told you I could be scary.
Question: The speakers discuss two possible solutions to the man’s problem. Briefly
195
WAIT
READY?
Example #4 Notes
196
Example #4
Woman: That’s it. It’s over. There’s no way I’m going to pass now.
Man: Don’t give up on yourself so easily. A D isn’t the end of the world. You’ve been to every class and
you do all the homework, so, technically, you’re still passing.
Woman: Yeah, that’s true, but I’m going to need to attend every class, do all my homework and get an A
on the final if I’m going to get a B in this class.
Man: Why do you need to get a B?
Woman: I need to maintain a B average in every single class or I lose my financial aid.
Man: Ah man. That’s going to be tough.
Woman: I know. Hey, you got an A on the midterm. What do you do that I don’t do? Are you just
naturally gifted at math or something?
Man: Ha, no, not really, but maybe I can give you some pointers. Let me ask, how do you study?
Woman: Well, I’m a procrastinator. I prefer to wait to the last minute and then cram before the test. I get
much more focused when I’m under pressure.
Man: That’s a big mistake. It’s been scientifically proven that cramming might help your short-term
memory, but it’s terrible for the long-term. Instead, after each class you should go home and review the
notes you took. You’d be surprised by how much you forget when you don’t review.
Woman: That’s true. So, I should review after class. But, I mean, I am busy in the afternoon, and I work
in the evening.
Man: Well, if you can’t review on the weekdays, maybe you can join our weekend study group?
Woman: Our weekend study group?
Man: Yeah, me and a few of the other guys in class meet for two hours on Saturday and Sunday
afternoons to talk about the material and answer each other’s questions.
Woman: How come you never told me about that before?
Man: I guess I didn’t think you were interested.
Woman: You’re right. I usually like to relax on the weekend, but if I want to get an A on the final, I
might have to start studying with you guys.
Question: The speakers discuss two possible solutions to the woman’s problem. Briefly
197
Speaking Task #6
WAIT
READY?
Example #1 Notes
198
Example #1
Directions: Now, listen to part of a lecture in a linguistics class.
Language acquisition and how it comes about has sparked the interest of curious minds since
ancient Greece. Even Sanskrit grammarians would debate on language and how it worked. At the base
of the argument was a fundamental difference in opinion: is language something God given and known
before birth, or is it learned through the environment and examples shown to us from our parents and
elders around us? To put it more simply, is language in a human beings nature, or is it nurtured into us?
The debate has waged on through the ages and reached an interesting climax in the mid-20th century.
B.F. Skinner is probably best known as a champion for Behaviorist theory. What is
Behaviorism? You all probably know Pavolv’s dog, right? That’s the guy who would ring a bell and
offer food to a dog and after a while the sound of the bell alone would make the dog salivate. From this
simple experiment came an academic movement that strongly believed that all our behaviors are based
on a series of rewards and punishments from the past. If we were rewarded positively, we’d continue an
action and if we were punished for an action we’d stop doing it; that’s Behaviorist theory in a nutshell.
Skinner extended the Behaviorist theory to language acquisition. To Skinner, children acquire language
based on rewards and punishment. If a child utters the word food and is eventually fed, the child learns
how to speak and say food because they’re rewarded positively for the utterance.
Skinner’s theory of language acquisition was strongly criticized by Noam Chomsky. In 1959,
the young Chomsky attacked Skinner’s Behaviorist Theory of language acquisition based on certain
inconsistencies in language acquisition. For example, a child might learn that the past tense of give is
gave but will continually say gived, even after repeated correction. Now, Chomsky was a serious
academic, he didn’t propose that God naturally endows humans with language before their born, like
the ancient thinkers of the nature or nurture debate. Instead, Chomsky proposed that since grammar,
vocabulary and all the other elements of language are so complex, human beings must be sort of
hardwired for language. In other words, language is in our biological makeup and we have evolved in a
way to prepare us for the language we’ll eventually have to learn.
But this age old debate still lingers today and, I wonder, if we’ll ever fully understand how
language acquisition works.
Question: Using the points and examples from the lecture, explain the two theories of language
acquisition described by the professor.
199
WAIT
READY?
Example #2 Notes
200
Example #2
Directions: Now, listen to part of a lecture in a biology class.
Animal Coloration. Now, when most people think about animals and how they change color,
they think of camouflage. You know camouflage, right? I even see some of you wearing clothes with
camouflaged patterns. I guess you’re all trying to blend in with the thick jungle brush of the classroom.
(silence)
No laughs? Nothing? All right fine, I’ll stick to the topic. So, right, coloration. Besides using
color as camouflage, there are a lot of other reasons why specific species take on certain colors. In
particular, I want to talk about using color to signal other animals. Some animals use color signaling to
attract a mate, while others use it to warn potential predators.
So let me start with signaling as a means to procreate. Darwin expounded upon this theory in
his work the Descent of Man. In it, Darwin proposed that the bright coloration of male birds in the
Amazon rainforest was most likely due to evolutionary selection. Basically, brighter birds attracted
more females which, in turn, created more offspring with similar traits. This also explains why many
birds in the rainforest have such bright colors and ostentatious feathering, even if these traits make it
more difficult for them to fly or elude predators. It’s been 130 years since Darwin first proposed this
evolutionary explanation of coloration and it’s still widely accepted by the academic community today.
Now, besides sexual attraction, bright colors can send a very different signal to other animals:
danger. Yes, it’s a general rule of thumb in the animal kingdom that the brighter the animal, the more
likely it is to be poisonous, or at the very least, terrible tasting. Unlike camouflaged prey, these animals
want predators to see them and remember to stay away. There are plenty of examples and
manifestations of warning coloration, but let’s just take the tiger moth as an example. The tiger moth
received its moniker from its orange and white stripe pattern. Unlike most moths, its bright colors warn
predators that it’s poisonous to consume, which is why it can get away with having such a cumbersome
body. This fat, slow moth is living proof that all you need for your species to survive for thousands of
years is the right combination of color.
Question: Using the points and examples from the lecture, explain color signaling and the way
rainforest birds and tiger moths use it.
201
WAIT
READY?
Example #3 Notes
202
Example #3
Directions: Now listen to part of a lecture in an astronomy class.
So now I’d like to discuss solar and lunar eclipses. Well, first of all, you all know what an
eclipse is, right? It’s when some astronomical body gets in the way or obscures the view of another. We
even use eclipse as a verb to say that someone surpasses the skills of someone else. Anyway, eclipses
are a natural phenomena that have a very long history. Historians argue over when exactly the first
eclipse was recorded by human beings, but it dates back to at least three thousand years ago. Clearly,
eclipses have been considered an important, even spiritual phenomenon that could have some impact on
what happens here on earth. While the human interpretation of eclipses is very interesting, let’s stick to
the phenomenon itself.
Let’s start with a solar eclipse. A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes in front of the sun.
If you ever had the opportunity to watch a solar eclipse, you would have seen the slow progression of
the moon passing in front of the sun. It begins with a crescent shadow that continues until it completely
engulfs the sun’s rays. Now there are partial eclipses, but when most people think of solar eclipses, they
usually think of a total eclipse. A total eclipse is when the umbra -- umbra is the term given to the
darkest region of the moon’s shadow – intersects with the earth. Again, if you’ve ever seen the event,
you might have been disappointed by its length. A total solar eclipse will never last longer than seven
and a half minutes.
So what’s the difference between a solar and lunar eclipse? In a lunar eclipse, the moon goes
through the earth’s shadow. Now, to go past the earth’s shadow it has to be behind the earth, right? And
since space has no north, south, east or west, how can the earth have a shadow? Ah ha, because of the
sun. Think about your own shadow, without the sun you wouldn’t have one. So in a lunar eclipse, the
moon is on the far side of the Earth. Also, a lunar eclipse can only occur when there’s a full moon.
Lunar eclipses are more common for people to see because they can be observed by almost an entire
hemisphere, whereas in a solar eclipse, the view of the eclipse is limited within a range of
approximately 250 kilometers.
Question: Using the points and examples from the lecture, define an eclipse and the two types
of eclipses described.
203
WAIT
READY?
Example #4 Notes
204
Example #4
Directions: Now, listen to part of a lecture in an education class.
Okay, so, for homework you were supposed to read about student motivation. It seems fairly
straightforward, right? But what me and most of the educational community is interested in is how best
to spawn student motivation. Lots of kids don’t want to learn anything. I remember when I was in high
school and I didn’t think learning was cool or interesting. I preferred to go out and spend time with my
friends. I didn’t want to study. So this has always been a problem for both schools and teachers. So how
do you do it? How do you get kids to want to learn?
One simple answer is to provide students with extrinsic rewards. What I mean is that when
students do something positive, teachers can reward them in some way. A good grade isn’t enough. Lots
of elementary school teachers have sticker charts on the wall and the student with the most stickers at
the end of the week gets a prize. I even remember when I was student teaching at a local high school
and my mentor teacher would give students a piece of candy if they participated in class. And using
extrinsic rewards as motivators isn’t limited to the classroom: trophies, ribbons, certificates are a few
other examples that are widely used in every day life.
Critics of extrinsic rewards argue that when students do something for a reward, they eventually
won’t do anything without a reward. A student won’t see a point in doing anything without these
extrinsic motivators. In adulthood, these students will become more ambivalent to their tasks and only
perform work based on how much it pays. These critics believe its better for students to foster an
intrinsic motivation to learn. Intrinsic comes from inside the student. When a student performs a task,
the only reward is an inner feeling of personal growth. The student doesn’t participate, study and learn
because they expect an external prize, but because of the benefit it does for their mind and how it’ll
prepare them for the future. Some believe that when students are motivated by an inner desire to learn
they have a healthier and more productive adulthood where they see work as a means for them to grow
as a person, not for their bank account. However, many argue that intrinsic rewards alone aren’t enough
to keep a student motivated over an extended period of time.
Question: Using the points and examples from the lecture, describe how students are motivated
and discuss the difference between extrinsic and intrinsic rewards.
205
Integrated Speaking:
Studying Vocabulary
Many students believe that they don’t do well on the TOEFL because they don’t know enough words.
They feel that if they study vocabulary, it’ll improve their comprehension of the overall exam. Sometimes
that’s true, studying vocabulary can help improve your lexicon.
However, in my opinion, if you’re at a high-intermediate or advanced level of English, studying

vocabulary is an enormously ineffective way to spend your time preparing for the WRITING and SPEAKING
SECTION of the TOEFL. I’ve found that learning the structure of the exam and how best to answer questions is
a much beQer way to improve your overall TOEFL score. When you know the structure, you don’t have to
worry about knowing what every single word means, you can understand the general gist of a question or
passage. In my experience, as students study structure and strategy the vocabulary soon follows. If you study
vocabulary before you study structure and strategy you end up using big words awkwardly. Students who
study vocabulary know stuffy, academic words like cacophonous, but in the same sentence they’ll make a
simple grammar mistake. For example:
He don’t like the cacophonous arcade because he prefers quiet place. XX
This sentence has one big, difficult word and two very simple grammar mistakes. This sounds very
awkward to a native speaker and a TOEFL grader. Just so you know, the sentence should read:
He doesn’t like the cacophonous arcade because he prefers quiet places. OO
Studying vocabulary before strategy is like trying to run before you learn
to walk.
When you study vocabulary before you study structure

and strategy you end up using big words while making simple
mistakes. I once had a student who studied vocabulary for a year
before studying strategy. On the following page I’ve aQached a
writing sample from this particular student. His speaking wasn’t
much different form his writing. This writing sample is a response
to the following question:
Neighbors are the people who live near us. In your opinion,
what are the qualities (characteristics) of a good neighbor?
Give reasons and examples to support your opinion.
206
Almost all of us are living in a city or town where many people are
, - live near and live together. Being a good neighbor is very important,
. because if we all were good neighbors, our lives would be more
A - - comfortable and convenient. There are many qualities of a good neighbor.
In my opinion, respecting your neighbors’ privacy and living without
disturbing neighbors are indispensable qualities of a good neighbor.
, -
. , F - First of all, you should respect your neighbors’ privacy. In order to
- - - - lead calm private lives, privacy is irreplaceable. So, privacy is one of the
- . rudimentary and innate human right which many country’s constitutions
- -- - state or infer. Violating other people’s privacy can be a crime. Neighbors
A - - are apt to impeach each other’s privacy because they live so near that they
can see each other’s privacy. My sister’s neighbors are good example of
this. Her neighbors are too interested in her privacy. They were always
F - - - - keep their eyes on her life. For example, they were checking who she come
. back home with and they are too loquacious with other people about what
- - they saw. Eventually, she are forced to move out from her apartment due to
- - - H - her neighbors’ these behavior.
A EI A
A -. - - Finally, you must live without disturbing neighbors. Abiding by not
- - - only the rules of condominiums, but also morals requirements are essential
to be a good neighbor. Breaching rules will raise conflict with your
neighbors and break relationship with them. My neighbor of my previous
H . . - - apartment is a typical example. They were smoking on their balcony
- I -A almost every night even though smoking on the balconies are prohibited by
-, the condominium’s rule. Due to their smoke, I had to close windows every
- , - - night even in hot midsummer. I submitted a claim through the committee
- - A of the condominium but they never stopped smoking. Additionally, they
- were so noisy at almost every weekend’ night. Therefore they could not be
a good neighbor for me so that I never helped them when they needed my
help.

Hopefully, you can see from the example how only studying vocabulary can get you in trouble, particularly in
the speaking and writing sections. In the independent speaking and writing sections I encourage students to
share a personal example to support their opinion. A personal example shouldn’t sound like an academic
example. When he wrote, “privacy is a rudimentary and innate human right” he should have just said, “…everyone
deserves to have privacy in their own home.” This simple sentence sounds much beQer and more like a native
English speaker.
But I still want to study vocabulary…

207
That’s fine and studying vocabulary is very, very useful. I’m not saying you shouldn’t study
vocabulary, but that you should do it conjunction with TOEFL strategy. However, I don’t think you have to
buy a TOEFL vocabulary book. Instead, find a list of TOEFL vocabulary by doing a simple Google search.
Once you get your list, I recommend that you create your own study material. In particular, you should use:
Flash Cards
Now, most of you are familiar with flash cards all ready. However, you can really improve the quality
of your flashcards and the amount of information you retain by doing these three things:
1. Download and use the Anki app.

2. Make your flashcards yourself (no pre-made cards)
3. Use the Spaced Repetition System (SRS)
Handwriting your own flashcards and drawing pictures to help you remember the words is a great
way to retain information. However, that can take a very long time. Anki is an app that helps you make your
own flashcards. It’s a liQle difficult to figure out at first and it’ll take you a few hours to get comfortable using
it. Once you get used to Anki, however, you’re never going to study vocabulary any other way ever again. For
a tutorial on how to setup, install and use Anki, go to:
hQps://fluent-forever.com/chapter2/#.VcI56Xi1ndk
Or you can just go to Anki’s website:
hQps://ankiweb.net
The first link is for the website www.fluent-forever.com which was created by Gabriel Wyner, a
polyglot and opera singer who is using cuQing-edge technology, research and techniques to make language
learning more effective, more efficient and more fun. I learned about Anki from his website and currently use
it to study Japanese. I can’t recommend this website enough. Use it! Okay, so after you download Anki you
have to make your flashcards yourself.
Let me show you one of my own flash cards so you can see how this works…
208
About My Flashcard
So this is a complete card and it includes:
1 The Japanese Hiragana
This is the word I want to remember, which 2

means interesting in English. I’m also practicing my
writing so I try not to translate the word in English on
my card. The less translation you do on your
flashcards the beQer.
2 A strong image to associate with the word
For each word I learn in Japanese I want it to

be associated with Japanese culture to help
distinguish the word from English. This image makes
a strong impression in my mind and causes a change
in my feelings. The more emotion you can associate
with a word, the more likely you are to remember it.
An audio recording from a native speaker

3 www.forvo.com is an incredible website
where you can find an audio recording of a native
speaker pronouncing almost any word you can
imagine in the language you’re studying. And you can
add that audio to your flashcard. 1
A mnemonic cue to help me remember
4
This is something you can use to help you
remember the word and should be connected to your 3
memory. Again, I don’t translate the word, but instead
give myself a hint. is an adjective and
whenever someone asks me, “How was your trip to
4
Japan?” I usually give them the same answer,
“Interesting.” And this helps me remember the
meaning. 5
5 Three different repetition options depending on how well I remember the word
First, let me explain the numbers and leQers: 10m = 10 minutes, 2d = 2 days, 4d = 4 days. This is when the Spaced
Repetition System (SRS) comes into play. Current scientific research has found that we remember things best when we do
two things:
1. We make an emotional connection to the content

2. We are reminded of the content at specific intervals
209
The emotional connection will come, hopefully, through the process of looking up the meaning
(visual), finding a picture associated with the word (visual/emotional), hearing the word (auditorial) and using
a mnemonic to help remember the word (connection with previous knowledge). However, even after we do all
this work, we still might forget this word if we only study it once. In order to retain the word, we have to
revisit it again. But we can’t just see the word and repeat three times means interesting,
means interesting, means interesting.
How often do you repeat someone’s phone number and forget it the next day?
Repetition is the key to memory, but it has to happen at the right time. Anki is programmed to
reintroduce you to words just as you are about to forget them. If I feel like I know the word preQy
well I’ll select the green 2d buQon and 2 days later the card will return, just as the word is about to slip out of
my memory. Cognitive Scientists have collected a massive amount of data on memory and memory loss and
eventually created the following graph:
image courtesy of: hQp://www.ellaz.com/AIV/Memo%20Images/ForgeQing%20Curve.jpg
The graph illustrates the ideal times to review after you learned a word for the first time in order to
maximize the likelihood of retention. You might have noticed that at first it’s more immediate. You shouldn’t
wait more than a day to review new material. After that, the space you can take between review time
consistently doubles, going from one day to three days to six days and so on.
One of the beautiful things about the Anki program is that it does all of the difficult work of keeping
track of when to review a word again for you. It has a Spaced Repetition System built into the program. This
app is an incredible resource for anyone who needs to study vocabulary or acquire new knowledge in general.
Also, don’t just download flashcards, go through the process of making your own flash cards. That’s
the problem with vocabulary books, they do all the most important and most valuable work for you. It’s a pain
210
in the neck to learn how to do at first, but once you get beQer at using the application, it becomes much easier.
When you make your own flashcards, you go through the process of looking up the word, an image associated
with the word and a recording of the word. Through the process of creating, you become more mindful of
your own learning and that’s the key to retaining new knowledge. You must be mindful of what you’re
learning instead of passively receiving knowledge. Another great thing about Anki is that you can learn one
word from three different perspectives. Here are a few images to show how the same card looks when I’m
studying.
To practice my writing and memory one card looks like this:
Front Side Flip Side
***I’m going to cut the top and bo:om parts off to save space, but you’ll get the idea of each one.
To practice my vocabulary retention:

211
To practice my visual association with the word:
As you can see, I have three flash card types for a single word. I’m learning the word by incorporating
various senses (auditorial, visual) and from three different perspectives. Along with the SRS system, learning
vocabulary in a foreign language with Anki is not only much more effective, but also much more enjoyable.
If you have any further questions or want to know more I strongly encourage you to either visit Anki’s
website:
hQps://ankiweb.net
…or Gabriel Wyner’s website for tutorials on how to setup Anki.
hQp://fluent-forever.com
Another website you can use to create your own flash cards is:
hQps://quizlet.com

TOEFL Speaking Success by Josh MacPherson

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TOEFL Speaking Success by Josh MacPherson

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2

About the Author

First edition: Feb. 2016

Integrated Speaking Section:

Independent Speaking Appendix:

Integrated Speaking Appendix:

Speaking Success Layout

On some pages you’ll find

You’ll find these little

The box at the top of the page

Probably the most common

The bright yellow boxes

Also, at the end of every quiz I

At the end of each

Independent Speaking Tasks

Speaking Tasks #1 and #2

2nd - You have 15 seconds to prepare your response.

3rd - You have 45 seconds to speak.

1. What’s the best way to learn a foreign language?

Or… talk to yourself.

PREPARING YOur notes:

How can I extend my independent speaking responses so they

R1= Reason One

R2= Reason Two

Do I have to take notes before I speak?

Time management is crucial.

How do you think we should begin our response?

The question again:

Doesn’t that sound more natural?

1. I restated the question.

Do I have to start with “To me…” or “For me…” every

How should I introduce a personal example? What transition

Two-Example Response Time Structure:

Content Key Phrases Time (45 seconds)

3. Discuss example 1 I remember when… 34-22 seconds

4. State reason 2 Also… 21-17 seconds

5. Discuss example 2 For instance… 16-4 seconds

6. Conclusion That’s why… 4-0 seconds

Always connect your example back to the topic.

“I remember growing up with two brothers and F7 - 7 B 3 7 3 B7 F 7 67F3 - 5A 5 67

What do you consider to be the most important room in the house

When you’re comfortable, you’re conﬁdent, so stick to what

Two-Example Body One-Example Body

Content Key Phrases Time (45 seconds)

3. Discuss example 1 I remember when… 36-4 seconds

6. Conclusion That’s why… 4-0 seconds

How can I make my examples better and longer?

Who? What? Where? When? Why? How?

When I remember growing up in our house on Long Island.

I had two brothers and we each had our own room.

Make sure you ﬁnish your response somewhere between

1. G i v e p e r s o n a l e x a m p l e s : You should give one or two personal examples to back up your

Questions Your Answers

1. Did I understand the question completely?

2. Before I began speaking, did I formulate

3. In my notes, did I write down two reasons

4. Did my first speaking sentence include a

5. Did I finish my introduction within 10-15

6. Did I give at least one personal example?

7. Did I speak with emotion that matched the

8. Did I speak without too many pauses,

9. Did I follow the structure and speak in a

10. What’s something I did well?

11. What’s something I didn’t do well?