TOEFL Writing Task 1 [Integrated Task] – Practice Test #060

This TOEFL Writing Task 1 (Integrated Writing) practice test provides an authentic experience with a real reading passage and a corresponding audio lecture. Follow the instructions carefully to simulate the exam and assess your skills accurately.

TOEFL Integrated Writing Detailed Instructions

Read the passage: You will read an academic passage on a topic, usually about 3 minutes.
Listen to the lecture: After reading, you will hear a lecture on the same topic, presenting a different perspective or additional information. You will not be able to see the reading passage while listening.
Take notes: While reading and listening, take notes on the key points and main ideas. Most of your focus should be on the lecturer since the passage is already available for reference.
Refer back to the reading: You can review the reading passage after the listening portion is complete.
Stay objective: Avoid adding personal thoughts, agreeing or disagreeing with the speaker, or evaluating the quality of their arguments. The key is to remain neutral and accurately report what each source says. Think of yourself as a reporter: your task is to explain what each side claims, how their points relate to each other, and how the lecture challenges the reading.
Organize clearly and have a plan: Use clear structure with an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Personally, I prefer writing a concise introduction that presents both sides and briefly states their main reasons, followed by three body paragraphs, each focusing on one point and discussing it from both perspectives. If done properly, there’s no real need for a conclusion, especially since this isn’t a personal or opinion-based essay.
Write your response: Summarize the main points from the lecture and explain how they relate to or challenge the points in the reading passage.
Stay within the word limit: Your response should be 150-225 words.
Proofread: Ensure your grammar, spelling, and sentence structure are accurate.
Submit your writing: Use the form below to privately submit your writing for review, or post it publicly in the comment section at the bottom of the page.
Feedback (optional): Order detailed written analysis or a video session to review your response using the official TOEFL writing criteria and identify specific areas for improvement.

Reading Passage

Communal online encyclopedias are among the newest resources available on the Internet. In many ways, they resemble traditional printed encyclopedias, as they are collections of articles on various topics. However, what sets these online encyclopedias apart is that any internet user can contribute a new article or edit an existing one. As a result, these encyclopedias are authored by a broad community of users. While the concept may seem appealing, communal online encyclopedias face several significant issues that make them far less reliable than traditional printed encyclopedias.

First, contributors to communal online encyclopedias often lack formal academic qualifications, which results in contributions that are, at best, only partially accurate and, at worst, completely incorrect. Traditional encyclopedias, on the other hand, are written by subject-matter experts who maintain high academic standards that non-experts typically cannot meet.

Second, even when an original entry in an online encyclopedia is accurate, the open-access nature of these encyclopedias allows malicious users, vandals, or hackers to alter, delete, or distort the information. Once changes have been made, unsuspecting users may not realize that the entry has been tampered with. Such vulnerabilities do not exist in traditional encyclopedias.

Third, communal online encyclopedias tend to place too much emphasis on trivial or popular subjects, which can create a misleading sense of importance. For example, a child researching for a school project might find that a significant historical event receives as much coverage as a long-running television show. Traditional encyclopedias, in contrast, provide a thoughtful selection of topics and a balanced sense of proportion that democratic, user-driven online encyclopedias often lack.