Yes, sometimes we don't know what to do when we write. In this post, we are going to look at the two types of integrated writing and create our plan.
There are two types of writing on the TOEFL. The first one is the Independent TOEFL, which we have looked at and given a basic overview. The second type is the Integrated Writing. In this type, you read for 3 minutes, listen and then write about what you have read in 20 minutes.
Let's create a plan first:
1.Make sure we understand the way we are going to organize it.
2.Follow a template.
3.Practice for time.
Today let's make sure we understand the way we are going to organize it and we will create a template for the 2nd way to organize it, the point by point. Then later we will get into more specifics of taking notes and writing the paragraph.
One way to write it text by text.
You write an introduction and in the last sentence of the introduction, you write the relationship between the reading and the writing. We will talk more about the different kinds of relationships between the two later.
Then you write your first body paragraph which is a paraphrase of what you read.
Then for your second body paragraph, you write about the listening and at the end of the paragraph you contrast it to the reading.
Then you write a brief conclusion.
Another way to write is point by point. This is the way I have chosen for us to use.
In this type, we will write just a paragraph and follow this order:
Topic sentence
First reason from listening and support and contrast with the reading and brief support
Second reason from listening and support and contrast with the reading and brief support
Third reason from listening and support and contrast with the reading and brief support
concluding sentence
Below is a sample of a point by point paragraph. What is underlined can be copied.
The speaker in the lecture directly contradicts the opinion and information from the reading concerning the extinction of the wooly mammoths. The first point that the speaker contradicted was the theory of man vs. mammoth. According to the speaker, the mammoths were huge and dangerous. Their skin was hard to pierce. The Clovis people also could kill other animals that were easier to kill. They were also few in number and widely scattered. In fact, they could have eaten only 10% of the mammoths that they killed. The reading, however, stated that this theory was the most likely theory of extinction for the wooly mammoths. The second theory was that the Clovis people brought disease. The speaker said that there is no evidence to suggest that the mammoths died from disease. They examined the mammoths and found no evidence. This directly opposes the reading, which suggested that they could have gotten a disease from lice or from the dogs. The final theory concerns climate change. In the lecture, the speaker said that they endured a lot worse. Their relatives survived climate changes as well. In conclusion, the lecture contradicts the reading and states that maybe one of the theories might be correct, a combination of the three theories or possibly none of the theories at all are correct.
We just talked about steps 1 and 2 in our plan:1.Make sure we understand the way we are going to organize it.2.Follow a template.
Next we will go into more detail on both of these parts.