All Samples

TOEFL Academic Discussion Writing Sample: Your professor is teaching a class on business. 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.

Real user submissions with AI-powered evaluation and feedback

5 user-submitted samples available

Start Free Practice

Task Overview

Professor

We are all exposed to a lot of advertising, especially on the internet. And of course businesses spend a lot of money to create and distribute advertising. Before next class, I would like for you to discuss this question:Is advertising just a way of manipulating people to buy things they do not need, or is it an important source of information that helps people make informed consumer decisions?

Student A Karen

 KarenI don't think most people consider ads to be valuable. I read that in just one one year, from 2018 to 2019, the number of computers, tablets and and mobile phones using ad blockers increased from 142 million to 615 million.

Student B Brad

People can find out a lot about products from advertising. There's plenty of evidence that people usually begin the process of making a big purchase by looking at ads and reviews. I have to go to another class right now, but I'm going to post later about an advertisement that gave me a lot of useful information.

User Samples & Evaluation Results

User Sample

I agree with Brad's perspective that advertising plays a crucial role in promoting product sales, as it enables consumers to make informed decisions more efficiently. Although Karen's viewpoint that some products do not rely on advertisements is valid to some extent, the majority of new products require advertising to reach a diverse audience. For instance, renowned brands and practical products, such as Apple's phones, can allocate fewer resources to advertising due to their innovative designs and essential functions. Conversely, for most products that serve less creative but practical roles in our daily lives, advertising can help penetrate the market and establish brand recognition. Consequently, I firmly believe that advertising not only provides valuable information for consumers but also contributes significantly to the growth of smaller brands.

Evaluation Result

1.子项得分

Relevance and Contribution to Discussion: 5 Clarity and Elaboration of Viewpoint: 4.5 Language Use and Grammar: 4.5

2.预估分数

27. 3.任务完成度

整体来说,这篇文章回答了教授的问题,并提供了有力的论据。但是,可以在以下方面进行改进:首先,在表达观点时,可以提供更多具体的例子和数据来支持观点。其次,在讨论广告对消费者的影响时,可以更深入地探讨广告如何帮助人们做出明智的消费决策。

示例1:在讨论广告如何帮助人们做出明智的消费决策时,可以举例说明某种产品的广告如何详细介绍了产品特点和优势,从而使消费者能够更好地了解产品。

示例2:在支持观点时,可以引用一些研究报告或统计数据来证明广告确实对消费者产生积极影响。

4.文章结构与组织

文章结构清晰,包括引言、正文和结论。每个段落都集中讨论了一个特定的观点,并提供了支持细节。然而,在以下方面仍有改进空间:首先,在段落之间加入更明确的过渡句,使文章更连贯。其次,可以在结论部分对文章进行更好的总结,强调广告在消费者决策中的重要性。

示例1:在段落之间加入过渡句,如:“然而,在某些情况下,广告可能会产生负面影响。”这样可以使文章更连贯。

示例2:在结论部分加入总结性陈述,如:“综上所述,尽管广告可能会导致消费者购买不必要的物品,但它仍然是一个重要的信息来源,有助于人们做出明智的消费决策。”这样可以使文章更具说服力。

  1. 语法批改

I agree with Brad's perspective that advertising plays a crucial role in promoting product sales, as it enables consumers to make informed decisions more efficiently. Although Karen's viewpoint that some products do not rely on advertisements is valid to some extent, the majority of new products require advertising to reach a diverse audience. For instance, renowned brands and practical products, such as Apple's phones, can allocate fewer resources to advertising due to their innovative designs and essential functions. Conversely, for most products that serve less creative but practical roles in our daily lives, advertising can help penetrate the market and establish brand recognition. Consequently, I firmly believe that advertising not only provides valuable information for consumers but also contributes significantly to the growth of smaller brands.

6.文章修订

I concur with Brad's assertion that advertising plays a pivotal role in promoting product sales, as it empowers consumers to make well-informed decisions. While Karen's argument regarding the limited value of ads for some products holds merit, the vast majority of new products necessitate advertising to reach a diverse audience. For instance, illustrious brands and practical products, such as Apple's phones, can allocate fewer resources to advertising due to their innovative designs and essential functions. In contrast, for most products serving less inventive but practical roles in our daily lives, advertising facilitates market penetration and brand recognition. Therefore, I firmly believe that advertising not only offers valuable information for consumers but also significantly contributes to the growth of smaller brands. (121 words)

7.文章批改

I agree concur (stronger, more formal word choice) with Brad's perspective assertion (more formal phrasing) that advertising plays a crucial pivotal (advanced vocabulary) role in promoting product sales, as it enables empowers (stronger verb choice) consumers to make informed decisions more efficiently. Although well-informed decisions. While Karen's viewpoint that argument regarding the limited value of ads for some products do not rely on advertisements is valid to some extent, holds merit (more formal phrasing), the vast majority of new products require necessitate (advanced vocabulary) advertising to reach a diverse audience. For instance, renowned illustrious (advanced vocabulary) brands and practical products, such as Apple's phones, can allocate fewer resources to advertising due to their innovative designs and essential functions. Conversely, In contrast (smooth transition), for most products that serve serving less creative inventive but practical roles in our daily lives, advertising can help penetrate the facilitates (advanced vocabulary) market penetration and establish brand recognition. Consequently, Therefore, I firmly believe that advertising not only provides offers valuable information for consumers but also significantly contributes significantly to the growth of smaller brands.

8.思维导图

  • Introduction

    • Agree with Brad
    • Advertising's role in promoting product sales
  • Argument 1

    • Limited value of ads for some products
    • Karen's viewpoint
  • Argument 2

    • New products need advertising to reach a diverse audience
    • Example: Apple's phones
  • Argument 3

    • Advertising facilitates market penetration and brand recognition for most products
  • Conclusion

    • Advertising provides valuable information and contributes to the growth of smaller brands

9.关键词

WordPhonetic SymbolPart of SpeechEnglish DefinitionSimplified Chinese TranslationSample Sentences
concur/kənˈkɜr/verbagree; be of the same opinion同意,一致I concur with Brad's assertion that advertising is important.
pivotal/ˈpɪvətl/adjectiveof crucial importance in relation to the success of something关键的,枢纽性的Advertising plays a pivotal role in promoting product sales.
empower/ɪmˈpaʊər/verbgive someone the authority or power to do something授权,使有能力Advertising empowers consumers to make well-informed decisions.
necessitate/nəˈsɛsɪteɪt//verb//make (something) necessary as a result or consequence//使成为必要,需要//New products necessitate advertising to reach a diverse audience./
illustrious/ɪˈlʌstriəs//adjective//well known, respected, and admired for past achievements//著名的,杰出的//Apple is an illustrious brand known for its innovative designs./
facilitate/fəˈsɪlɪteɪt//verb//make (an action or process) easy or easier//促进,使便利//Advertising facilitates market penetration and brand recognition./
innovative/ˈɪnəveɪtɪv//adjective//featuring new methods; advanced and original//创新的,革新的/Apple's phones have innovative designs and essential functions.
diverse/daɪˈvɜrs, dɪ-/adjectiveshowing a great deal of variety; very different多样的,不同的Advertising helps products reach a diverse audience.
penetration/ˌpɛnəˈtreɪʃən/nounthe action or process of making a way through or into渗透,穿透Market penetration is crucial for the success of a product.
recognition/ˌrɛkəgˈnɪʃən/nounthe acknowledgment of something's existence, validity, or legality承认,认可Brand recognition is important for the growth of smaller brands.

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.

Rooting for Your Goal Score Today!

With LingoLeap, an expert in English exams

Get to Your Dream Score Faster

Try for free now