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TOEFL Academic Discussion Writing Sample: Grading Students

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Task Overview

Professor

Professor: In class today, we are going to talk about grading students. Before you come to class, I want you to think about whether grades are beneficial. On one hand, they provide a way to measure students’ progress. On the other hand, some argue that grades are too focused on performance and don’t provide an accurate picture of a student’s overall academic abilities. If you had to choose, would you say that students should be given grades or not? Why?

Student A

Lila: I think that students should not be given grades. Grades create a needlessly competitive environment and can make students feel like they are only valued for their academic performance. When students feel that grades are the most important thing, they get discouraged. Instead of giving specific grades, teachers should provide personal feedback that helps students understand what they need to improve and how they can do so. I think that approach leads to more academic success.

Student B

Jake: I believe that grades are the only way for students to understand how well they are doing and the only way to motivate them to work harder. Without grades, there would be no way to measure their progress or to identify areas where they need to improve. Moreover, grades prepare students for the real world where they will be judged based on their performance. The only way for adults to advance in their careers is to consistently perform well, and grading children prepares them for that.

User Samples & Evaluation Results

User Sample

From my perspective, students should not be graded. I strongly agree with the Lila’ s idea that giving students grades makes them disappointed and stressful. It would be anxious and tiresome for students to focus on their grades and get better grades let them under great pressure. I’ d add that everyone has different capabilities to learn knowledge, pass tests and get good grade. I think that grading students with only academic performance is inequivalent because there are so many characteristics need to be valued when grading a person. Won’t a student’s healthy, integrity, kindness and so on more important than just grades? Jake raised a relevant view that grades bring self-introductions to students and inspire them to enhance, but I think that teacher can also do this out of class. Professors can give specific compliment, suggestions, and encouragement which helps students to perfect.

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: 3.5

2. 预估分数

25. 3 任务完成度

这篇文章在回答问题方面做得不错,你明确表示了支持Lila的观点,并提出了一些有力的论据。但是,为了更好地完成任务,你可以尝试更详细地阐述你的观点,并提供更多具体的例子来支持你的论点。此外,在语法和词汇使用方面还有一些小错误,需要加以改进。

改进建议(英文):

  1. Provide more specific examples to support your argument, such as how personal feedback can lead to better academic success compared to grades.

  2. Proofread your essay for grammar and vocabulary errors, and try to use a wider range of vocabulary and sentence structures.

4. 文章结构与组织

文章的结构和组织方面还有待提高。虽然你在开头部分简要介绍了自己的观点,但整篇文章缺乏明确的段落划分和逻辑结构。为了使文章更加清晰易懂,请尝试使用恰当的过渡词汇,并确保每个段落都集中讨论一个特定的论点。

改进建议(英文):

  1. Divide your essay into clear paragraphs with an introduction, body, and conclusion. For example, start with an introduction that briefly states your viewpoint, followed by body paragraphs that elaborate on your arguments, and finally a conclusion that summarizes your main points.

  2. Use appropriate transition words and phrases to connect ideas and paragraphs, such as "firstly," "in addition," "on the other hand," etc. This will help improve the flow and coherence of your essay.

5. 语法批改

From my perspective, students should not be graded. I strongly agree with the Lila’ sLila’s(space after apostrophe in contraction (e.g. I' m)) idea that giving students grades makes them disappointed and stressful. It would be anxious and tiresome for students to focus on their grades and get better grades let them under great pressure. I’ dI’d(space after apostrophe in contraction (e.g. I' m)) add that everyone has different capabilities to learn knowledge, pass tests and get good grade. I think that grading students with only academic performance is inequivalentin equivalent(misspelling) because there are so many characteristics need to be valued when grading a person. Won’t a student’s healthy, integrity, kindness and so on more important than just grades? Jake raised a relevant view that grades bring self-introductions to students and inspire them to enhance, but I think that teacher can also do this out of class. Professors can give specific compliment, suggestions, and encouragement which helps students to perfect.

Grading Students

In my opinion, assigning grades to students is not the most effective approach. I concur with Lila's argument that grades can lead to disappointment and stress among students. The constant pressure to achieve high grades can be mentally exhausting and anxiety-inducing. Furthermore, I believe that evaluating students solely on their academic performance is insufficient, as individuals possess varying abilities to acquire knowledge and excel in examinations. Grading should encompass a more comprehensive assessment of a student's qualities, such as their health, integrity, and kindness – factors that arguably hold greater significance than mere grades. While Jake contends that grades offer students self-awareness and motivation for improvement, I argue that educators can achieve this through alternative means outside the classroom. By providing personalized praise, constructive feedback, and encouragement, teachers can effectively guide students towards growth and success without relying on traditional grading systems. (144 words)

From In my perspective, students should opinion, assigning grades to students is not the most effective approach (revised for clarity and conciseness). I concur with Lila's argument (corrected punctuation) that grades can lead to disappointment and stress among students (rephrased for better flow). The constant pressure to achieve high grades can be graded. mentally exhausting and anxiety-inducing (revised for clarity). Furthermore, I strongly agree with the Lila’ s idea that giving students grades makes them disappointed and stressful. It would be anxious and tiresome for students to focus believe that evaluating students solely on their grades and get better grades let them under great pressure. I’ d add that everyone has different capabilities to learn knowledge, pass tests and get good grade. I think that grading students with only academic performance is inequivalent because there are so many characteristics need to be valued when insufficient (rephrased for better flow), as individuals possess varying abilities to acquire knowledge and excel in examinations (clarified meaning). Grading should encompass a more comprehensive assessment of a student's qualities, such as their health, integrity, and kindness – factors that arguably hold greater significance than mere grades (rephrased for clarity and emphasis). While Jake contends that grades offer students self-awareness and motivation for improvement (clarified meaning), I argue that educators can achieve this through alternative means outside the classroom (rephrased for better flow). By providing personalized praise, constructive feedback, and encouragement, teachers can effectively guide students towards growth and success without relying on traditional grading a person. Won’t a student’s healthy, integrity, kindness and so on more important than just grades? Jake raised a relevant view that grades bring self-introductions to students and inspire them to enhance, but I think that teacher can also do this out of class. Professors can give specific compliment, suggestions, and encouragement which helps students to perfect.systems (revised for clarity and conciseness).

8 思维导图

graph TD
A[Grading Students]
B[Disadvantages of Grades]
C[Alternative Assessment Methods]
D[Varying Abilities to Acquire Knowledge]
E[Comprehensive Assessment Factors]
F[Personalized Praise and Feedback]
G[Motivation for Improvement]

A --> B
A --> C
B --> D
B --> E
C --> F
C --> G

9 关键词

WordPhonetic SymbolPart of SpeechEnglish DefinitionSimplified Chinese TranslationSample Sentence
GradingˈɡreɪdɪŋNounThe act of assigning a rank or category to something.打分Assigning grades to students is not the most effective approach.
DisappointmentˌdɪsəˈpɔɪntməntNounThe feeling of sadness or displeasure caused by the nonfulfillment of one's hopes or expectations.失望Grades can lead to disappointment and stress among students.
AnxietyæŋˈzaɪətiNounA feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease about something with an uncertain outcome.焦虑The constant pressure to achieve high grades can be anxiety-inducing.
Evaluation/ ɪˌvæljuˈeɪʃən// Noun// The making of a judgment about the amount, number, or value of something; assessment.// 评估// Evaluating students solely on their academic performance is insufficient./
Integrity/ɪnˈtɛɡrəti/NounThe quality of being honest and having strong moral principles.正直Grading should encompass a student's integrity.
Kindness/ˈkaɪndnəs/NounThe quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate.善良Grading should encompass a student's kindness.
Self-awareness/ˌsɛlf əˈwɛr nəs// Noun// Conscious knowledge of one's own character, feelings, motives, and desires.// 自我意识// Grades offer students self-awareness and motivation for improvement./
Praise/ preɪz// Noun// The expression of approval or admiration for someone or something.// 赞美// By providing personalized praise, teachers can effectively guide students towards growth and success./
Feedback/ ˈfidbæk// Noun// Information about reactions to a product, a person's performance of a task, etc., used as a basis for improvement.// 反馈// Constructive feedback helps students improve their skills and understanding of the subject matter./

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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