2 c. 3 4 The following sentence can be inserted into the passage:
Chapter 5
Writing
C
ollege success depends on your ability to express your- self clearly and accurately in written English. At the
university level, you will receive numerous writing assign-
ments—term papers, essay exams, lab reports—and you will need to show you can organize and develop your thoughts through writ-
ing. The writing section is a required part of the computer-based TOEFL exam; everyone must complete an essay on the day of
the test. The paper-and-pencil version of the TOEFL exam does not include a writing section. The writing test is a separate exam
called the Test of Written English TWE, which is offered in the United States five times a year.
Both the writing portion of the TOEFL exam and the TWE exam test your ability to generate ideas and support them through
details and evidence. They measure how effectively and logically you organize your thoughts, using correct grammar, appropriate
word choice, and varied sentence structure and vocabulary. In both
113
114 TOEFL EXAM ESSENTIALS
tests, you will be given 30 minutes in which to compose a short essay about four to five paragraphs long about a given topic. The
topics are designed to be general so that you do not need any spe- cialized knowledge to respond to them.
COMPUTER TEST VS. PAPER TEST
The writing section of the computer-based TOEFL exam differs from the paper-based TWE exam. Although the types of writ-
ing prompts are the same, the TWE exam is offered separately from the paper-based TOEFL exam and at limited times, whereas
the computer-based test requires that you write an essay on the same day as the rest of the TOEFL exam. Both tests give you 30
minutes to respond to one pre-selected topic. The following chart compares the two tests:
Paper-and-Pencil: Computer Test:
Test of Written English Writing
TWE
Mandatory part of the Separate test not part of
computer test. the paper-and-pencil TOEFL
exam. Offered whenever the
Offered only five times a computer test is given.
year. If you need to take the TWE exam, select a TOEFL
exam date when the TWE exam is also offered. There
is no additional cost.
WRITING 115
TYPES OF WRITING PROMPTS
The computer test and the TWE exam use the same type of writ- ing prompt—a general topic and a question about that topic. Most
prompts present a statement, situation, or scenario and ask you to take a position and explain it. They can be broken down into
three parts: