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TOEFL Academic Discussion Writing Sample: Directions: Your professor is teaching a class on human resources management. Write a post responding to the professor’s question. In your response you should: Express and support your personal opinion. Make a contribution to the discussion in your own words. An effective response will contain at least 100 words.

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Task Overview

Professor

Our next class will focus on how companies maintain their staffing levels. While it is important for a company to look for new employees to fill open positions, many believe it is equally important for a company to retain the workers it already has on staff. In your opinion, what is the best way for a company to encourage its employees to stay at the company instead of seeking a different job elsewhere?

Student A

I think the best thing a company could do to keep its employees is to create a work environment that employees look forward to going to five days a week. Cramped office spaces or disorderly factory floors are not places I would want to spend a third of my life.

Student B

I see Paul’s point. But even more important than a nice workspace is making sure the employees don’t feel stuck in their jobs. Companies should offer opportunities for employees to advance their skills so they can get new positions within the company if they want. Employees should feel like they have a goal to work toward.

User Samples & Evaluation Results

User Sample

Personally, companies are supposed to provide their employees with spiritual well-beings. To elaborate, employees deserve to be taken care of their spiritual well-being, ranging from work motivation to family concerns. They can work with productivity and passion when their spiritual well-beings are satisfied. For example, in Google company, female employees, especially for mothers, are allowed to bring their children to the workplace when they are on duty. This adds up to their sense of security and they can better concentrate on their work when their young children are attended in the workplace by professionals. In this sense, staff can work without family concerns and focus on their projects and deal with clients with efficiency. This demonstrates the importance of meeting staff's spiritual well-beings to the sustainable development of a company.

Evaluation Result

1. 子项得分

  • Relevance and Contribution to Discussion: 4.5

  • Clarity and Elaboration of Viewpoint: 4.0

  • Language Use and Grammar: 4.0

2. 预估分数

  • Estimated Score: 25

3. 任务完成度

在这篇文章中,您对问题的回答和讨论贡献较好,但还有一些改进的空间。首先,您应该更具体地表达自己的观点,并且更多地参考对话中的观点。此外,尽管您提到了员工精神幸福感的重要性,但未能充分说明为什么这是公司留住员工的最佳方法。

改进建议示例(英文):

  1. "In my opinion, the best way for a company to encourage its employees to stay is by creating a supportive work environment that promotes both personal and professional growth."

  2. "I agree with Student B's point about providing opportunities for skill advancement, but I also believe that addressing employees' emotional well-being is crucial for long-term retention."

4. 文章结构与组织

文章结构方面,您已经有了简洁明了的引言、主体和结论。然而,在主体部分,可以通过使用更清晰的主题句和段落之间的过渡来进一步改善文章组织。

改进建议示例(英文):

  1. "To begin with, creating a positive work environment is essential for employee retention, as it directly impacts their daily experience and overall job satisfaction."

  2. "Moreover, offering opportunities for skill advancement and addressing employees' emotional well-being not only helps in retaining current staff but also attracts potential talents to join the company."

5. 语法批改

Personally, companies are supposed to provide their employees withemployees' spiritual well-beings.well-being. To elaborate, employees deserve to behave their spiritual well-being taken care of their spiritual well-being,of, ranging from work motivation to family concerns. They can work with productivity and passion when their spiritual well-beings arewell-being is satisfied. For example, in Google company,at Google, female employees, especially for mothers, are allowed to bring their children to the workplace when they are on duty. This adds up to their sense of security and they canenables them to concentrate better concentrate on their work when their young children are attendedcared for in the workplace by professionals. In this sense, staff can work without family concerns and focus on their projects and deal with clients with efficiency.efficiently. This demonstrates the importance of meeting staff's spiritual well-beings towell-being needs for the sustainable development of a company.

Section Title: 6 Article Revision

In my opinion, the key to retaining employees lies in addressing their holistic well-being, which encompasses both professional and personal aspects of their lives. A company that prioritizes the emotional and psychological needs of its workforce can foster a more motivated and committed environment. For instance, Google allows female employees, particularly mothers, to bring their children to work, providing on-site childcare managed by professionals. This policy alleviates concerns about family responsibilities and enables employees to concentrate on their tasks with greater efficiency. By catering to the spiritual well-being of staff members, companies can ensure sustainable development and maintain a dedicated workforce. (106 words)

Personally, companies are supposed In my opinion (provides a more natural tone), the key to provide retaining employees lies in addressing their employees with spiritual well-beings. To elaborate, employees deserve to be taken care holistic well-being, which encompasses both professional and personal aspects of their lives (clarifies the concept of spiritual well-being, ranging from work motivation to family concerns. They well-being). A company that prioritizes the emotional and psychological needs of its workforce can work with productivity foster a more motivated and passion when their committed environment (explains the benefits of addressing spiritual well-beings are satisfied. well-being). For example, in instance, Google company, allows female employees, especially for particularly mothers, are allowed to bring their children to the workplace when they are on duty. work, providing on-site childcare managed by professionals (provides a specific example). This adds up policy alleviates concerns about family responsibilities and enables employees to their sense of security and they can better concentrate on their work when their young children are attended in tasks with greater efficiency (explains the workplace by professionals. In this sense, positive effects of the policy). By catering to the spiritual well-being of staff members, companies can work without family concerns ensure sustainable development and focus on their projects and deal maintain a dedicated workforce (concludes with clients with efficiency. This demonstrates the importance of meeting staff's addressing spiritual well-beings to the sustainable development of a company.well-being for company success).

Display title: 8 思维导图


1. Holistic well-being
   1.1 Professional aspects
   1.2 Personal aspects

2. Emotional and psychological needs
   2.1 Motivated environment
   2.2 Committed environment

3. Company policies
   3.1 On-site childcare (Google example)
   3.2 Family responsibilities alleviation

4. Spiritual well-being of staff members

5. Sustainable development

6. Maintaining a dedicated workforce

Display title: 9 关键词

WordPhonetic SymbolPart of SpeechEnglish definitionSimplified Chinese translationSample sentences
holistic/həˈlɪstɪk/adjectiveconsidering a whole thing or being to be more than a collection of parts整体的Addressing the holistic well-being of employees is crucial for retaining them in the company.
well-being/ˌwelˈbiɪŋ/nounthe state of feeling healthy and happy健康幸福感The company focuses on the well-being of its employees to ensure their satisfaction and productivity.
emotional/ɪˈmoʊʃənəl/adjectiverelating to feelings情感的Emotional support from colleagues can help create a positive work environment for everyone involved.
psychological/ˌsaɪkəˈlɒdʒɪkəl/adjective/related to the human mind and feelings心理的Psychological well-being is an important aspect of overall employee satisfaction.
motivated/ˈmoʊtɪveɪtɪd/adjectivevery eager to do or achieve有动力的Motivated employees are more likely to perform well and stay committed to their jobs.
committed/kəˈmɪtɪd/adjective/willing to give your time and energy to something that you believe in忠诚的,敬业的Committed employees are more likely to stay with a company and contribute to its success.
sustainable/səˈsteɪnəbəl/adjective/able to continue over a period of time可持续的Sustainable development is essential for the long-term success of any organization.
development/dɪˈveləpmənt/noun/the process in which someone or something grows or changes and becomes more advanced发展Employee development programs can help improve skills and increase job satisfaction.
dedicated workforce/ˈdedɪkeɪtɪd ˈwɜrkfors/noun phrase/a group of people who work for an organization or business and are loyal, hardworking, and focused on their tasks敬业的员工队伍A dedicated workforce is crucial for the growth and success of any company.

How Academic Discussion Is Scored

The TOEFL Academic Discussion task is evaluated based on the official ETS scoring rubric. AI evaluation analyzes each response across multiple dimensions.

Relevance & Contribution

Does the response address the question and contribute meaningfully to the discussion?

Language Use

Grammar accuracy, vocabulary range, and sentence structure quality.

Development & Support

Are ideas well-developed with specific examples and clear reasoning?

Common Patterns Across Responses

Based on analysis of user submissions for this task, here are common patterns observed in student responses.

Many students provide clear opinions but lack specific supporting examples.

Strong responses directly reference the reading passage and other speakers' viewpoints.

Higher-scoring responses use varied sentence structures and academic vocabulary.

Time management is a key factor — responses that feel rushed tend to score lower on development.

Learning Tips

1

Read the prompt carefully and identify all parts of the question before writing.

2

Reference the reading passage and the other students' opinions in your response.

3

Use specific examples to support your main point — avoid generic statements.

4

Aim for 120-150 words. Longer responses are not always better; clarity and focus matter more.

5

Practice timed responses (10 minutes) to build fluency under exam conditions.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the TOEFL Academic Discussion task?
The TOEFL Academic Discussion task requires you to contribute to an online classroom discussion. You'll read a professor's question and other students' responses, then write your own post expressing and supporting your opinion in about 10 minutes.
How is the Academic Discussion task scored?
The task is scored on a scale of 0-5 based on relevance to the discussion, quality of language use (grammar, vocabulary, sentence structure), and how well you develop and support your ideas with specific examples and reasoning.
What are the user samples on this page?
These are real responses submitted by TOEFL test-takers who practiced this question on LingoLeap. Each sample has been evaluated by our AI scoring engine, which provides a score and detailed feedback on strengths and areas for improvement.
How accurate is the AI evaluation?
LingoLeap's AI evaluation engine is trained on official ETS scoring rubrics and calibrated against human rater scores. While no automated system is perfect, it provides reliable feedback for practice purposes and helps identify specific areas for improvement.
How can I practice this Academic Discussion task?
You can practice by signing up for a free LingoLeap account. Write your own response to this exact question, submit it, and receive instant AI evaluation with detailed feedback on your writing.
How long should my Academic Discussion response be?
Aim for 120-150 words. The task gives you 10 minutes to write your response. Focus on clarity, supporting your opinion with specific examples, and referencing the discussion context rather than writing a longer response.

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