TOEFL Essay Writing Tips

Probably, only native English speakers are not afraid of the TOEFL test, which is the most popular, common and highly respected exam in the world. TOEFL letters stand for Test of English as a Foreign Language and its function is to measure the ability of a non-native English student to read, write, hear and understand this language as well as speak and put to use all gained knowledge and skills. TOEFL Essay As the main mission of the exam is to test and rate different skills of the examinee, it consists of four sections: listening, reading, speaking, and writing. Though every section is vital and complex, TOEFL essay writing is one of the most difficult and stressful parts. It is necessary to write an essay in accordance with the academic standards and, at the same time, it must be a TOEFL piece of writing. Usually, when students have to write essays and they can’t cope with such tasks, they turn to professional writers and go to Essay Writing Lab service, but during an exam they have to work on the paper on their own. Two Tasks The more you know about the assignment, the better you can complete it; moreover, it is important to know how to write in standard academic English, if you want to succeed and get a good score. The thing is that the writing section consists of two parts (no matter, what exam type you have chosen - Paper-based Test or Internet-based Test), which are Independent Writing task and Integrated Writing task. Consequently, students are writing two different texts. In the Independent Writing task of the TOEFL essay, the test taker must provide an answer to some general question, which will demonstrate his ability to express the opinions and support the ideas with examples. The Integrated Writing task was designed to check the ability of students to understand information, which came from different sources. Usually, examinees have to listen to the audio recording, read a text fragment, compare the information and write a conclusion. If you have a chance to read the TOEFL essay samples on the Web or find some in the college library, you will see that every essay is unique and, by contrast with the cause and effect essays, it is more difficult to institute some rules or principles of successful writing. But there are certain time-tested strategies, which will definitely help you essentially. Essay Writing Strategies First of all, it is necessary to practice typing or writing on paper (it depends on what type was chosen) without mistakes. You may feel stressed during the exam and make certain silly mistakes. Enlarge your wordlist, if you do not want the examiners to feel bored because of the restricted vocabulary. Learn new words, synonyms and English idioms long before the exam ad try to use them in your speech. Mind your grammar. If there are certain gaps in rules or you are afraid to use grammar patterns, work on that. rnDo not ignore the essay structure, as every component is important, even if you have to write a 200 text and express your personal opinion. Always keep your writing organized. Create an outline – that will save some time and nerves. Pay attention to transition words, as these parts of speech help the readers switch between essay components, different ideas, etc. Make sure that you know these words and where they can be used. Track the time, while writing essays for TOEFL, even if you are just practicing writing for TOEFL. It is important to remember that you will be tied for the time. rnIt will be useful to learn how to paraphrase. Paraphrasing implies retelling some points from the original source in your own words, you have to show that you understood the material and not just copy the information you hear or read.