这次改革的完整总结,大家可以在下面推送看到 7.26 改革后的TOEFL完整官方介绍 这里重点说下写作的部分。写作加个了一个叫做Academic Discussion 的新题型,替代了目前的独立写作。 主要谈以下几个部分
#1 新题型备考资料
#2 新题型评分标准
#3 新题型满分示范
#4 新题型和目前的独立写作的对比
#1 备考资料
这个题型和TOEFL Essentials 写作的其中一个部分目前看是一模一样。 下面这个截图是Essentials 写作介绍和iBT写作新题型视频介绍对比
就是同一个题目啊,只是换了几个头像。 具体的Essentials 和 iBT 的此题型对比,可以点击https://mock.labhaohao.cn/mock/toefl/index.html#/newspaper_detail?id=705 或“查看原文”,转到labhaohao 官网查看。
所以对于备考资料来说,可以大胆的用Essential 部分的对应题目来备考。另外下面是官方目前给出的样题 (完整介绍点击 https://mock.labhaohao.cn/mock/toefl/index.html#/newspaper_detail?id=704)
#1 上面截图里关于advertising 的这个
#2 发布会给的一个样题
#3 官方样题 Writing Practice Set 4 (和#2 这个很像,只是 Lena A 和 Claire 的回复有所不同)
#4 官方样题 Writing Practice Set 2
#5 官方Free Practice Test 里的题目
在7月正式改革前肯定还有更多的官方样题。加上TOEFL Essentials 部分的题目,所以实际上不担心新题型的题荒。但是作为一个新题型,我们更为关心的可能是打分的尺度。下面就是我们的第二个部分
#2 评分标准
首先要说的是综合写作的评分标准和目前的是一样的,所以综合写作是真的没动。那么我们关注下这个Academic Discussion 部分的5分(满分)要求
The response is a relevant and very clearly expressed contribution to the online discussion, and it demonstrates consistent facility in the use of language.
A typical response displays the following:
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Relevant and well-elaborated explanations, exemplifications, and/or details
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Effective use of a variety of syntactic structures and precise, idiomatic word choice
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Almost no lexical or grammatical errors other than those expected from a competent writer writing under timed conditions (e.g., common typos or common misspellings or substitutions like there/their)
下面是目前的独立写作部分的5分要求
An essay at this level largely accomplishes all of the following:
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Effectively addresses the topic and task
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Is well organized and well developed, using clearly appropriate explanations, exemplifications and/ordetails
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Displays unity, progression and coherence
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Displays consistent facility in the use of language, demonstrating syntactic variety, appropriate word choice and idiomaticity, though it may have minor lexical or grammatical errors
以上颜色一样的,就说明是一样的指标,划线的为对方没有的
基本上是一样的要求,大致来看目前的这个新题型没有了独立写作关于organization 部分(包括unity, progression and coherence )的直接要求。不能说coherence 这些类似一点都不考察了,毕竟要求写的是clear的,所以内容的清楚还是要有的,句子间的联系还是得存在的。只是毕竟大多数的回答就是一段话,段间或者全文的结构就没法考察了,这可能是改革后的题型里organization 这个指标被弱化的原因。
总结一下,按照这个评分标准来看的话,整体上其实和目前的独立写作还是差不多的。
#3 满分示范
这个满分示范来自于官方样题,对应上面“备考资料部分”的Writing Practice Set 4 (就是important invention 那个题目)
In the past 200 years, tons of scientific discoveries or technological inventions have been shown to the world. 【引入话题】If I had to choose one in particular it will probably be vaccine or antibiotics. 【表明态度】With Pasteur's work and discoveries, the world changed in a way people couldn't imagine. So many people were dying really young because at that time life's conditions were not as good as the one we have now. With vaccine, we could now irradicate diseases that were killing millions of people, we learn so much about the immune system and ways our body was reacting to pathogens and the answers he could produce to defend us against it. 【有vaccine or antibiotics前后的对比论证】 Medicine evolved so much and keeps evolving every day because scientists are curious to understand how our body is working and how he is able to communicate with our environment. 【vaccine or antibiotics 对于后来医药研究的帮助】People aged 40 are now not that old and still have a really long life to live and enjoy when 2 centuries ago it was synonymous of 80% chance of dying. 【vaccine or antibiotics 对于延长寿命的帮助】
全文一共是171个字。
范文简单来说就是“虽小俱全”:虽然只有10分钟的时间去写百来词,但是
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引入话题
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表明态度
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细节论证
的层次很清楚
仔细看,语言上会有错误,所以哪怕满分的文章,小瑕疵还是可以有的,不要影响内容理解就好。
当然拿满分的关键,还是确实有细节展开(上文有3个层次的细节)。
值得注意的是10分钟给171个字,算是一个比较快的内容输出速度,毕竟这10min 里面也包括了读题和构思的时间。
所以10min 的任务和30min 的任务(目前TOEFL 的独立写作)到底哪个比较容易拿高分或满分,真的很不好说。
#4 和目前的独立写作对比
大致的结论,在#2 评分标准对比的时候已经明确了。 从题目排版来看,其实目前这个题型教授部分的内容就相当于是独立写作的题目,比如上面这个范文对应的题目的教授是这么说的 Dr. Achebe When people are asked about the most important discoveries or inventions made in the last two hundred years, they usually mention something very obvious, like the computer or the cell phone. But there are thousands of other discoveries or inventions that have had a huge impact on how we live today. What scientific discovery or technological invention from the last two hundred years - other than computers and cell phones would you choose as being important? Why? 或者政府要保护环境还是要支持教育那个题目的教授发言 Dr. Gupta 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? 是不是就是个比较长的独立写作题。 所以大的框架设定和现在的独立写作也没什么区别。 另外,如果注意下发布会上ETS 对于院校的承诺:
简单概括下就是我们的考试还是一样靠谱的,再具体点说就是改革前托福的写作30分 和改革后托福的写作30分是一样的30分。 从这个也可以期待考试的拿分难易度是一样的。一定要明白学校对于TOEFL 成绩的认可是ETS 能做这笔生意的根本保障,考生之所以会去考TOEFL,也是申请的学校要求去考的。所以不管怎么改,ETS 一定不能失去学校对于自己产品的信任,也务必不要给学校添麻烦。所以理性想一下,改革前和改革后的拿分难易度从整体来看肯定是类似的。
但目前还没参加过实考,所以有几个点还不定
1. 生活化的例子是不是也可以拿高分 ?
2. 两边都写和只写一边哪个更容易拿高分? 大概有个自己的答案,毕竟这么多年经历了这么多考试的写作。但是要自信的表达态度,还得去考场证明下。