TOEFL Speaking Task 3 Practice Test #12

Instructions

You will read a short academic passage (usually about a concept from psychology, biology, business, etc.), and then listen to part of a lecture in which a professor explains the same concept using one or more examples. After that, you will be asked a question that connects the reading and the lecture. You will have 30 seconds to prepare and 60 seconds to speak.

The question for TOEFL Speaking Task 3 typically asks you to explain how the example (or examples) from the lecture illustrate the concept described in the reading. In your response, briefly summarize the concept from the reading and explain how the professor’s example helps to clarify or demonstrate it. This format is consistent across tests.

Reading Passage

Reactance

Individuals across all age groups typically value the ability to make their own decisions and maintain autonomy over their actions. When they perceive that their freedom is being unjustly restricted, they often respond by actively defying or resisting the rule or restriction that impinged upon their liberty. Both children and adults exhibit behaviors driven by this instinct to reclaim their perceived freedom. Psychologists refer to this behavior as “reactance,” a psychological response stemming from an individual’s desire to regain control and autonomy in a given situation.

Listening

Transcript

Narrator: Now listen to part of a lecture on this topic in a Psychology class.

Professor: Think about when you were a kid. Imagine you like this one playground, you play there a lot, have lots of fun, you know, OK. Now imagine that one day for no apparent reason, your parents decide that they don’t want you playing there anymore. You are not allowed to go there anymore. Of course you’re not going to like that one bit, it’s not fair. And now that you’re not allowed, you wanna play there even more than before. So you sneak over there anyway. You go to this playground despite your parents’ rules. Here’s another example. There was a town that passed a law that banned the sale of a certain kind of soap. There was an ingredient in the soap that was harmful for the environment, so stores weren’t allowed to sell the soap anymore. Keep in mind that this ingredient had no affect whatsoever on this soap’s ability to clean things. None. But people found out about the upcoming restriction and got upset. They thought they should be able to buy whatever soap they wanted. It wasn’t right to take this soap away. And a week before the law went into effect, what happened? People went and bought a whole lot of this particular soap, way more than they would have in another circumstance.

TOEFL Speaking Task 3 Sample Questions [Reading Passages & Audio]

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