TIPS for the TOEFL Integrated Essay

by Mia Della Pietra

The TOEFL has two essays and each essay is scored out of 5. Both scores are then added up and converted to a scaled score that is out of 30.  

The first essay that you write is the integrated essay.  This essay tests your ability to integrate two different opinions and ideas about the same topic.  This essay does NOT test your ability to choose the best opinion of the two presented.  The trick is to hold these two ideas in your head at the same time and weigh them both equally in your writing. 

Procedure and Format:

First a reading passage will appear on the screen and you will have 3 minutes to read and take notes.  The passage will present 3 different points related to the topic.  Your notes should look like this. 

Reading

1. FIRST POINT
2. SECOND POINT
3. THIRD POINT

Two birthday surprises in one week!

Greg with his surprise birthday cake with, uh, 21 candles on it.

We caught a couple of birthday surprises at school last week. Greg walked into his 9 a.m. class and was greeted with a yummy chocolate cake, some party hats and a "Happy Birthday" sign on the board. He said he had no idea the students had been planning it. Kudos to his class for catching him completely by surprise. Nice job, students!

A surprise for, uh, King Robert III on his birthday.

Earlier in the week, Robert III also got a surprise cake, a humongous card, some gifts, and a crown! Nice! :-)

A huge thanks from Antonio

Hi again!=)

How are you, guys? I'm here today to write a thank-you message for all the staff of New York Language Center. Well, I am leaving next week and I am really happy to have chosen this school for my English improvement. Certainly, the school made this trip unforgettable, with all the activities and fun teachers, always willing to help the students. I really felt that it was my home here! Thanks, New York Language Center for providing this amazing learning experience.

Cassandra: I remember when I got here in the beginning; I was struggling to find a house with a reasonable price, and you stepped up for me. In addition to that, you were the one who gave me tips for the best places in New York, offered me tickets and discounts to a lot of activities. So if you are trying to find a house always look for Cassandra. If you want suggestions for good places in New York, look for her, as well. She is always willing to help despite being a busy person. Any creative ideas, she is the one to talk to; she loves crazy videos, sorry K, but I just realized that. =P

Ryan Lee's teaching & learning

Ryan Lee, one of NYLC's senior teachers, uses a teaching style that is popular among students.

When Ryan Lee received his Bachelor’s degree in geography from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2008, he was ready to head overseas and immerse himself in a different culture. Having taken some Spanish classes in college, he chose Ecuador and signed up to volunteer for one year teaching English in its capital city of Quito with World Teach, a nonprofit NGO started by a group of students from Harvard University. During this stint abroad, he lived with a local family, taught EFL to high school students, and boosted his Spanish skills significantly.

What's your biggest PET PEEVE?

This is the cover page of amNewYork on May 29. Do you see the PUN in this headline?
Would you get PEEVED if your neighbors kept snakes, rooster, or pigs at home? 

Last weekend, I blogged about PUNS, and at the end of that lesson, I mentioned that PUNS come up in conversation EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE, sometimes unexpectedly, and that they're everywhere, especially in ads and newspaper headlines. I also said that we'd keep an ear or eye out for them, so we could share them with you here. Well, here's one from the cover story of a local paper here in New York City. This article is about exotic and illegally kept animals in New York City. Snakes, roosters, alligators, tigers, et al., all kept as pets. If you know the meaning of PET PEEVE, you'll quickly figure out the PUN. If you don't know what PET PEEVE means, well, keep reading; this is the topic of this lesson.

EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE (now and then; sometimes)

KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR (watch out for)

A PET PEEVE is something that angers or annoys you every time you encounter it. To be PEEVED means to get angry. You can say, "I was so PEEVED at what they did that I left the party." This use of PEEVE is not as common because there are other ways of saying I'm angry--I am upset; I am mad; I'm pissed; I'm ticked off; I'm annoyed. PEEVE is more often used as part of the phrase PET PEEVE. We say, "that's a PET PEEVE of mine" to talk about something that angers us every time we witness or come across it.