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

Now the reading passage will DISAPPEAR.  (But don’t worry; it comes back.)  You will then listen to a two-minute lecture on the same topic.  The lecture will either contradict or support each point that the reading brought up.  It is vital that you take notes on this!  When the lecture is finished your notes should look like this. 

Reading                                                                      Lecture

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

And now the reading passage will return to the screen, and you will have 20 minutes to write your essay!  This essay should be about 150-225 words, which is not very long.  (To give you an idea this article is about 600 words.)  

The format of your essay should look like this. 

Reading FIRST POINT, Lecture FIRST POINT
Reading SECOND POINT, Lecture SECOND POINT
Reading THIRD POINT, Lecture THIRD POINT

Once you have a topic sentence at the beginning and a concluding sentence at the end you are done!  Wasn’t that easy?  Make sure that you check your essay for mistakes before submitting it, and then take a deep breathe because you only have one more essay to go before you are done with the test!

A FEW MORE TIPS TO KEEP IN MIND:

Make sure that you…

1. do NOT organize your essay like this:

Reading FIRST POINT
Reading SECOND POINT
Reading THIRD POINT

Lecture FIRST POINT
Lecture SECOND POINT
Lecture THIRD POINT

This is not the correct format, and has the potential to significantly lower your score.  If you organize it like this you run the risk of giving more details about the reading than the lecture, and you also greatly increase the risk of not including all the information if you cannot finish on time.  If you are only able to write about the reading, and do not include any information about the lecture because you ran out of time, you will receive a score of 1, regardless of how good your writing is.

     2.   do NOT choose a side

One of the easiest traps to fall into is agreeing or disagreeing with either the reading or the listening.  Watch out for this, particularly in your conclusion.  If you start using phrases like, “...and that’s why the reading is correct,” or “but the listening clearly states...which is more logical,” you’re in trouble.  Even if one side seems more logical than the other, present them both as equally plausible options.

    3.   pay attention to the articles

I do not mean articles like newspaper articles! I mean “a” “an” and “the!”  There are a lot of missing or misplaced articles in the practice essays that I receive.  Make sure that you refer to “the reading,” “the lecture,” and “the professor in the lecture” when you are referencing them. 

   4.   use appropriate transitional words

Link the reading passage with the listening by using transition words that give the reader a preview of how you connect the two passages. If the reading and the lecture contradict each other, use transitions such as, "On the other hand," "However," and "In contrast." However, if the listening supports the reading and provides examples, link the two passages by saying, "As an example, the listening ..." "To support this point, the professor mentions ..." or "The professor in the listening passage strengthens this by ..." 

If the correct format is used, this essay can be conquered with just a bit of practice!  We hope that these tips make this part of the TOEFL a bit less stressful!

Look out for our next post on Tips for the Independent Essay!

Good luck!

Mia teaches TOEFL Preparation at NYLC's Upper West Side location. She enjoys meeting students from a wide variety of countries, cultures, and backgrounds on a daily basis and takes pleasure in putting her students at ease by finding the humor in the challenges of learning English.