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TOEFL Academic Discussion Writing Sample: Your professor is teaching a class on political science. Write a post responding to the professor’s question.In your response you should: express and support your opinion make a contribution to the discussionAn effective response will contain at least 100 words. You will have 10 minutes to write it.

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Task Overview

Professor

As I mentioned in class, governments make public policies to describe their responses to various problems that affect a community. Part of this process involves setting and defending priorities about which issues deserve the most attention and resources. For example, governments need to decide whether they should spend more money on education or on environmental protections. If you were a policy maker, which issue would you argue is more important—education or environmental protections? Why?

Sara

We all live on planet Earth, and it is the only planet we have. Therefore, we must take care of it. Clearly, protecting the environment should be the government’s priority over education. I think the REAL question is, which approach to protecting the environment—restricting pollution, regulating population, promoting clean energy, or something else—should be the government’s priority.

Taehyun

I disagree with Kelly that that the environment is more important than education. Education is actually the best way to protect the environment. Educated people can see how their decisions affect the world around them. Also, with better science and technology education, we can develop solutions to environmental problems. Therefore, I think the government should spend more money on education.

User Samples & Evaluation Results

User Sample

While I can see Sara’s point that investing on environment protection should be set as the government’s top priority, I concur with Taehyun that with allocating to education, the environment receives way more benefits from such actions. As mentioned by Taehyun, it is essential for scientifical institution to be resided by fundings, which enhance the advancement of newest and cutting-edge technology and theories. Due to the updated equipment of environmental protection, citizens are able to employ more renewable and recycling material in daily life, such as using lasting-longer light bulbs instead of regular bulbs, utilizing environmental-friendly energy sources rather fossil fuels; however, such revolution of technology and science cannot happen without spending numerous fundings on education. Apart from what Taehyun has raised, I would add that upgrading of education can also prevent environment from further deterioration. It is well-known that well-educated individuals will raise their awareness of protecting our planet, and take practical measures of sustainability; on the contrary, just dealing with environment issues, the authority cannot guarantee that more problems will not emerge. Therefore, from both long-term benefits or efficiency standpoint, allocating on education proves advantageous for all parties involved.

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

  • 27

3. 任务完成度

整体来说,你的文章回答了教授的问题,并对讨论做出了贡献。然而,你可以进一步改进你的观点支持和论据。例如,你可以提供更多关于教育如何帮助环境保护的具体例子。此外,尝试避免使用过于复杂的句子结构,以提高文章的可读性。

改进建议示例:

  1. "Due to the updated equipment of environmental protection, citizens are able to employ more renewable and recycling material in daily life." 改为 "Investing in education can lead to the development of new technologies that promote the use of renewable energy sources and recycling materials, thus reducing our impact on the environment."

  2. "It is well-known that well-educated individuals will raise their awareness of protecting our planet, and take practical measures of sustainability." 改为 "Educated individuals are more likely to understand the importance of sustainable practices, such as reducing waste and conserving resources, which can help protect our environment."

4. 文章结构与组织

你的文章结构清晰,包括引言、正文和结论。然而,在段落之间添加过渡句可以使文章更连贯。此外,请确保每个段落都集中讨论一个特定的观点,并提供支持细节。

改进建议示例:

  1. 在第二段和第三段之间添加过渡句,如 "In addition to the benefits of investing in scientific research, education also plays a crucial role in raising environmental awareness among individuals."

  2. 在正文段落中使用主题句来明确表达每个段落的主要观点,例如 "One of the main reasons why investing in education is beneficial for the environment is the development of new technologies and solutions to environmental problems."

5. 语法批改

While I can see Sara’s point that investing onin(This rule identifies wrong preposition usage.) environment protection should be set as the government’s top priority, I concur with Taehyun that with allocating to education, the environment receives way more benefits from such actions. As mentioned by Taehyun, it is essential for scientificalscientific(misspelling) institution to be resided by fundingsfunding(misspelling), which enhance the advancement of newest and cutting-edge technology and theories. Due to the updated equipment of environmental protection, citizens are able to employ more renewable and recycling material in daily life, such as using lasting-longer light bulbs instead of regular bulbs, utilizing environmental-friendly energy sources rather fossil fuels; however, such revolution of technology and science cannot happen without spending numerous fundings onfunding son(misspelling) education. Apart from what Taehyun has raised, I would add that upgrading of education can also prevent environment from further deterioration. It is well-known that well-educated individuals will raise their awareness of protecting our planet, and take practical measures of sustainability; on the contrary, just dealing with environment issues, the authority cannot guarantee that more problems will not emerge. Therefore, from both long-term benefits or efficiency standpoint, allocating on education proves advantageous for all parties involved.

Display title: 6 文章修订

While I can appreciate Sara's perspective on prioritizing environmental protection, I concur with Taehyun that allocating resources to education can yield even greater benefits for the environment. As Taehyun mentioned, funding scientific institutions is crucial for advancing cutting-edge technology and theories. With updated environmental protection equipment, citizens can adopt more sustainable practices in their daily lives, such as using longer-lasting light bulbs and environmentally-friendly energy sources. However, such technological revolutions cannot occur without significant investment in education.

In addition to Taehyun's points, I would argue that enhancing education can also prevent further environmental degradation. It is well-known that well-educated individuals are more likely to be aware of the importance of protecting our planet and take practical measures towards sustainability. Conversely, merely addressing environmental issues without investing in education does not guarantee that new problems will not arise. Therefore, from both long-term benefits and efficiency standpoints, investing in education proves advantageous for all parties involved. (158 words)

While I can see Sara’s point that investing appreciate Sara's perspective on environment prioritizing environmental protection should be set as the government’s top priority, (revised for a more natural tone), I concur with Taehyun that with allocating to education, resources to education (changed "allocating" to "allocating resources" for clarity) can yield even greater benefits for the environment receives way more benefits from such actions. environment. As mentioned by Taehyun, it Taehyun mentioned, funding scientific institutions is essential for scientifical institution to be resided by fundings, which enhance the advancement of newest and crucial for advancing cutting-edge technology and theories. Due to the theories (rephrased for clarity and flow). With updated equipment of environmental protection, environmental protection equipment, citizens are able to employ can adopt more renewable and recycling material in sustainable practices in their daily life, lives, such as using lasting-longer longer-lasting light bulbs instead of regular bulbs, utilizing environmental-friendly (changed "lasting-longer" to "longer-lasting" for proper word order) and environmentally-friendly energy sources rather fossil fuels; however, sources. However, such revolution of technology and science technological revolutions cannot happen occur without spending numerous fundings on education. Apart from what Taehyun has raised, significant investment in education (rephrased for clarity).

In addition to Taehyun's points, I would add that upgrading of argue that enhancing education can also prevent environment from further deterioration. environmental degradation (rephrased for clarity and flow). It is well-known that well-educated individuals will raise their awareness are more likely to be aware of the importance of protecting our planet, planet and take practical measures of sustainability; on the contrary, just dealing with environment issues, the authority cannot towards sustainability. Conversely, merely addressing environmental issues without investing in education does not guarantee that more new problems will not emerge. arise (rephrased for clarity). Therefore, from both long-term benefits or and efficiency standpoint, allocating on standpoints (changed "standpoint" to "standpoints" to maintain parallel structure), investing in education proves advantageous for all parties involved.

8 思维导图


- Prioritizing Environmental Protection
    - Sara's perspective

- Allocating Resources to Education
    - Taehyun's perspective
    - Funding scientific institutions
        - Advancing technology and theories
        - Updated environmental protection equipment
            - Sustainable practices in daily lives
                - Longer-lasting light bulbs
                - Environmentally-friendly energy sources

- Enhancing Education to Prevent Environmental Degradation
    - Well-educated individuals more likely to protect the environment
        - Awareness of importance of sustainability
        - Practical measures towards sustainability
    - Addressing environmental issues without education not effective long-term solution
        - New problems may arise without proper education and awareness

9 关键词

WordPhonetic SymbolPart of SpeechEnglish DefinitionSimplified Chinese TranslationSample Sentence
prioritize/praɪˈɒr.ɪ.taɪz/verbTo decide which things are most important and deal with them first优先考虑We should prioritize environmental protection.
allocate/ˈæl.ə.keɪt/verbTo give something, especially a share of something available, for a particular purpose分配Resources should be allocated to education.
cutting-edge/ˈkʌt.ɪŋˌedʒ/adjectiveVery modern and with all the newest features尖端的Cutting-edge technology can help protect the environment.
sustainable/səˈsteɪ.nə.bəl/adjectiveAble to continue over a period of time, causing little or no damage to the environment可持续的Sustainable practices can reduce our impact on the environment.
degradation/ˌdeɪ.ɡrəˈdeɪ.ʃən/nounThe process in which the beauty or quality of something is destroyed or spoiled恶化Education can help prevent environmental degradation.
efficiency/ɪˈfɪʃ.ən.si/nounThe good use of time and energy in a way that does not waste any效率Investing in education proves advantageous for efficiency.
investment/ɪnˈvest.mənt/nounThe act of putting money, effort, time, etc. into something to make a profit or get an advantage投资Significant investment in education is necessary for long-term benefits.
awareness/əˈweə.nəs/nounKnowledge that something exists, or understanding of a situation or subject at the present time意识Well-educated individuals have greater awareness of environmental issues.
practical/ˈpræk.tɪ.kəl/adjectiveRelating to experience, real situations, or actions rather than ideas or imagination实际的Practical measures towards sustainability are essential for protecting the environment.
advantageous/æd.vænˈteɪ.dʒəs/adjectiveGiving an advantage; helpful; favorable; useful有利的Investing in education proves advantageous for all parties involved.

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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