TOEFL Speaking Task 4 Sample: Using points and examples from the lecture, explain two drawbacks of planning.
Historical user samples and AI evaluation results from an older TOEFL format.
5 archived user samples
Older TOEFL Format
This task is from a previous version of the TOEFL exam. The current TOEFL has a different structure. These archived samples remain available as a reference for practice.
Task Overview
Question
Using points and examples from the lecture, explain two drawbacks of planning.
User Samples & Evaluation Results
1User Sample #1
Score19
User Sample #1
Evaluation Result
1.子项得分 Delivery: 2.5 Language Use: 2.5 Topic Development: 2.5
2.预估分数
19. 3.表达
从表达方面来看,发言者的语速较快,但在某些地方存在不适当的停顿。建议发言者在练习时注意语速和停顿的控制,以便更清晰地表达自己的观点。此外,发言者在发音方面也有一些错误,需要加强发音的准确性。
4.话题发展 从话题发展方面来看,发言者对两个计划的缺点进行了解释,但在组织和连接思路方面还有待提高。建议发言者在回答问题时尝试使用更清晰的逻辑结构,并为所提到的观点提供更充分的支持或例子。这样可以使回答更具说服力和条理性。
5.语言使用Original Answer: The lecture talks about two drawbacks of planning. The first drawback is about planning excessively. There are always too many specific yet detailed plans. The lecturer takes herself for example. She really has many goals and she really missed her goals so she felt frustrated. At the beginning, she got really organized about how much time to prepare such as for reading, for taking classes and for exercise. But every day, she didn't do all these on the list. So she did frustrated and disorganized. Another drawback is about without interruptions. In fact, it doesn't take long time. A month ago, she reviewed a paper. She thinks it will take a while and couple of hours. She found there are some similar topics. Two hours ago, she didn't She needs more time to do it.
Corrected Answer: The lecture discusses two drawbacks of planning. The first drawback involves excessive planning, which leads to overly specific and detailed plans. The lecturer uses herself as an example, stating that she had many goals but often failed to achieve them, resulting in frustration. Initially, she was highly organized in allocating time for tasks such as reading, attending classes, and exercising; however, she could not complete everything on her list daily, causing her to feel disorganized and frustrated. The second drawback concerns the assumption that tasks will proceed without interruptions when, in reality, they often take longer than expected due to unforeseen issues or disruptions. For instance, the lecturer mentioned reviewing a paper a month ago; she thought it would only take a couple of hours but encountered unfamiliar topics that required additional research and faced interruptions when her son fell ill—ultimately needing more time to finish the task. (修改了语法错误,使句子结构更清晰,同时增加了过渡词和连接词,使回答更自然流畅。)
Revised Answer (140 words): The lecture discusses two drawbacks of planning. The first drawback involves excessive planning, leading to overly specific and detailed plans. The lecturer uses herself as an example, stating that she had many goals but often failed to achieve them, causing frustration. Initially, she was highly organized in allocating time for tasks such as reading, attending classes, and exercising; however, she could not complete everything on her list daily, causing her to feel disorganized and frustrated. The second drawback concerns the assumption that tasks will proceed without interruptions when, in reality, they often take longer than expected due to unforeseen issues or disruptions. For instance, the lecturer mentioned reviewing a paper a month ago; she thought it would only take a couple of hours but encountered unfamiliar topics that required additional research and faced interruptions when her son fell ill—ultimately needing more time to finish the task.
6.思维导图
- Drawbacks of Planning
- Excessive Planning
- Overly specific and detailed plans
- Lecturer's example
- Many goals
- Failed to achieve them
- Frustration and disorganization
- Assumption of No Interruptions
- Tasks take longer than expected
- Unforeseen issues or disruptions
- Lecturer's example
- Reviewing a paper
- Thought it would take a couple of hours
- Encountered unfamiliar topics and interruptions (son fell ill)
- Needed more time to finish the task
7.关键词
| Words | Phonetic Symbols | Parts of Speech | English definitions | Simplified Chinese translations | Sample sentences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excessive | /ɪkˈsɛsɪv/ | adjective | More than is necessary, normal, or desirable | 过多的,过分的 | Excessive planning can lead to frustration when goals are not met. |
| Unforeseen | /ˌʌnfɔrˈsin/ | adjective | Not anticipated or predicted | 未预见到的,意料之外的 | Unforeseen issues often cause tasks to take longer than expected. |
| Disruption | /dɪsˈrʌpʃən/ | noun | Disturbance or problems that interrupt an event, activity, or process. | 中断,干扰 | The lecturer faced disruptions while reviewing the paper, which extended the time needed to finish it. |
| Frustration | /frʌˈstreɪʃən/ | noun | The feeling of being upset or annoyed, especially because of the inability to change or achieve something. | 挫败感,沮丧 | The lecturer felt frustration when she could not complete all her daily tasks. |
| Assumption | /əˈsʌmpʃən/ | noun | A thing that is accepted as true or as certain to happen, without proof. | 假设,设想 | The assumption that tasks will proceed without interruptions often leads to unrealistic expectations. |
2User Sample #2
Score20
User Sample #2
Evaluation Result
1.子项得分
-
交付:2
-
语言使用:2
-
话题发展:2
2.预估分数
- 总分:20
3.表达 从交付方面来看,发言者的语言流利度和语速一致性有待提高。在回答中出现了一些不必要的停顿,导致标点符号问题。此外,发言者的发音也需要改进,以避免拼写错误。建议发言者多加练习,提高口语表达能力。
4.话题发展 从话题发展方面来看,发言者的回答虽然涉及了两个缺点,但在组织和连接观点方面还有待加强。例如,在提到第一个缺点时,可以更清晰地说明过于详细的计划可能导致无法完成目标和产生挫败感。在提到第二个缺点时,可以强调人们往往低估了任务可能遇到的问题和干扰。建议发言者在回答时更加注重逻辑性和条理性,以便更好地阐述观点。
5.语言使用原文:Two example to say the drawback of making plans less helpful The first thing is to make excessively detailed or specific She used example of herself Like once he want to make the list of the day Like per every day what need to do Like for every time need to run reading, preparing of the class or even relaxing But he just find it's too detailed to finish every line So she easily got frustrated and didn't even try it after that The second part is about assuming that every task gonna go on smoothly without distraction, which is false She used another example like she was asked to review a plan Originally she wanted to do it on a weekend But eventually he found that take more time for her to finish And eventually he didn't made it
修正后:There are two examples illustrating the drawbacks of making plans less helpful. The first issue is creating excessively detailed or specific plans. The professor used her own experience as an example. Once, she wanted to make a daily list of tasks, such as allocating time for writing, preparing for classes, and even relaxing. However, she found it too detailed to complete every item on the list. As a result, she easily became frustrated and stopped trying. The second issue is about assuming that every task will proceed smoothly without distractions, which is unrealistic. She mentioned another example where she was asked to review a paper. Initially, she planned to do it over the weekend but eventually realized it would take more time than expected and couldn't finish it. (修正了语法错误,改进了句子结构和词汇使用,使回答更自然流畅。)
修正后的回答(140字):
There are two examples illustrating the drawbacks of making plans less helpful. The first issue is creating excessively detailed or specific plans. The professor used her own experience as an example, where she found it too detailed to complete every item on the list, leading to frustration and giving up. The second issue is about assuming that every task will proceed smoothly without distractions, which is unrealistic. She mentioned another example where she was asked to review a paper but couldn't finish it due to unexpected time constraints and interruptions.
6.思维导图
- Drawbacks of Planning
- Excessively Detailed Plans
- Professor's example
- Frustration
- Giving up
- Unrealistic Assumptions
- Smooth progress
- Distractions
- Professor's paper review example
- Time constraints and interruptions
7.关键词
| Words | Phonetic Symbols | Parts of Speech | English definitions | Simplified Chinese translations | Sample sentences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excessive | /ɪkˈsɛsɪv/ | Adjective | More than is necessary, normal, or desirable | 过多的,过分的 | Excessive planning can lead to frustration when we are unable to complete all the tasks. |
| Frustration | /frʌˈstreɪʃən/ | Noun | The feeling of being upset or annoyed | 挫败感,沮丧 | She felt frustration when she couldn't finish her detailed plan, which affected her motivation. |
| Unrealistic | /ˌʌnrɪˈælɪstɪk/ | Adjective | Not realistic or practical | 不切实际的 | Assuming that tasks will proceed without any distractions is unrealistic and can lead to failure. |
| Distraction | /dɪˈstrækʃən/ | Noun | Something that prevents concentration | 分心的事物,干扰 | Distractions, such as unexpected events or interruptions, can hinder the completion of a task. |
| Time constraint | /taɪm kənˈstreɪnt/ | Noun | A limitation or restriction on the time | 时间限制 | Due to time constraints, she couldn't finish reviewing the paper and had to ask for an extension. |
3User Sample #3
Score23
User Sample #3
Evaluation Result
1.子项得分
-
交付 (Delivery): 3
-
语言使用 (Language Use): 3
-
话题发展 (Topic Development): 3
2.预估分数
- 总分: 23
3.表达 从交付方面来看,发言者的语音清晰,语速基本稳定,偶尔有停顿。为了提高表达能力,可以注意以下几点:1) 在适当的地方加入适当的停顿,以便让听众更好地理解你的观点;2) 注意发音的准确性,避免因发音不准确而导致拼写错误。练习这些方面会使你的表达更加流利和自然。
4.话题发展 从话题发展方面来看,发言者提供了一个连贯且组织良好的回答,并在回答中明确地使用了讲座中的观点和例子。为了进一步提高话题发展能力,可以注意以下几点:1) 在引用讲座中的例子时,尽量详细地描述这些例子,以便更好地支持你的观点;2) 在回答中使用更多的连接词(如“然而”、“因此”等),以便更清晰地表达观点之间的关系。通过改进这些方面,你的话题发展能力将得到提高。
5.语言使用Original Answer: Lectured professor talk us about the two problems of planning. The professor discussed two drawbacks of planning. (将“Lectured professor talk us about”修改为“The professor discussed”,使句子更自然。) The first one is planning excessively or saying too specific to complete all the tasks. The first drawback is excessively detailed planning, making it difficult to complete all tasks. (将原句重新组织,使其更清晰。) She used the example of herself to illustrate that. Last year, she wanted to make a very specific plans and plan like planning every time, spending on reading, planning class, or even exercising, but it was too detailed. She didn't even finish all the tasks every day. So eventually, she got very frustrated and did not even try it any time after that. Second problem is to always assume that everything's going to be smooth without disruptions. Well, she used another example like she was asked to review a paper, and she planned to do it on weekend, but everything jumped up, and she didn't manage to finish the reading and have to ask for extra time.
Revised Answer (140 words):
The professor discussed two drawbacks of planning. The first drawback is excessively detailed planning, making it difficult to complete all tasks. She illustrated this with a personal example: last year, she created a highly specific plan outlining her daily activities such as reading, preparing for classes, and exercising. However, the plan was too detailed and she couldn't finish all tasks each day. This led her to become frustrated and eventually stop trying. The second drawback is the assumption that everything will go smoothly without disruptions. She provided another example where she agreed to review a colleague's paper over the weekend, expecting it to take only a couple of hours. However, unforeseen issues arose, and she couldn't finish the review, ultimately needing more time.
6.思维导图
- Drawbacks of Planning
- Excessively Detailed Planning
- Personal Example
- Daily Activities
- Too Detailed
- Frustration
- Assuming Smooth Progress
- Reviewing Colleague's Paper Example
- Weekend Plan
- Unforeseen Issues
- Needing More Time
7.关键词
| Words | Phonetic Symbols | Parts of Speech | English definitions | Simplified Chinese translations | Sample sentences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| drawback | /ˈdrɔːbæk/ | noun | a disadvantage or problem | 缺点,不利条件 | One major drawback of excessive planning is that it can lead to frustration and decreased productivity. |
| excessively | /ɪkˈsɛsɪvli/ | adverb | to an extreme degree | 过分地,过度地 | Planning excessively detailed schedules can make it difficult to complete all tasks. |
| assumption | /əˈsʌm(p)ʃ(ə)n/ | noun | something that is accepted as true | 假设,设想 | The assumption that everything will go smoothly can cause problems when disruptions occur. |
| unforeseen | /ˌʌnfɔrˈsiːn/ | adjective | not anticipated or predicted | 未预见到的,意料之外的 | Unforeseen issues arose during the project, causing delays in its completion. |
| frustration | /frʌˈstreɪʃ(ə)n/ | noun | the feeling of being upset or annoyed | 沮丧,挫败感 | The frustration caused by not completing tasks can lead to a decrease in motivation and productivity. |
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