TOEFL Academic Discussion Writing (Task 2) – Practice Test #025

This TOEFL Writing Task 2 (Academic Discussion) practice test offers a realistic experience with a genuine prompt featuring a professor’s question and responses from two classmates. Follow the instructions closely to simulate the exam conditions. After writing your response, you can submit it for feedback or choose to order a written assessment or video call session to review your writing in detail.

TOEFL Academic Discussion Task Detailed Instructions

Read the Prompt Carefully: Pay close attention to the professor’s question and understand the topic being discussed. What are the two positions presented on the issue? In some cases, the two sides may disagree on the nature or cause of the problem itself. In other cases, they might agree on the problem but propose different solutions or approaches to address it. This will guide your response and ensure that you stay on topic.
Consider Different Perspectives: Reflect on the responses from the two classmates provided in the prompt. Think about how their viewpoints relate to the professor’s question and how you can add to the discussion.
Express Your Opinion: Clearly state your opinion on the topic. Make sure to support your viewpoint with relevant reasoning, examples, or personal experiences to strengthen your argument.
Make a Unique Contribution: Go beyond summarizing the responses of the classmates. This is the main difference between the TOEFL Integrated Writing Task 1 and the new Academic Discussion task. In the older task, you were expected to remain completely unbiased and objective, simply reporting what you read and heard. In contrast, the new task asks you to participate in the discussion by offering your own opinion. Try to contribute something original to the conversation. You can share a new idea, extend one of the points made, or provide a relevant example. This demonstrates your ability to think critically and engage thoughtfully with the topic.
Organize Your Response: Structure your post with a clear introduction, body paragraph(s), and a conclusion. This will help your ideas flow logically and enhance the readability of your response.
Stay Within the Word Limit: Ensure your response contains at least 100 words. This helps you develop your ideas in enough detail to meet the expectations of the task. While 100 words is the minimum, it is often not sufficient to fully explain your position, provide examples, and respond meaningfully to the other students’ comments. Do not feel limited by the word count. Aim to express your opinion clearly and support it with relevant reasoning or personal experience. Personally, I usually end up writing around 200 words when responding to this task, as that length allows me to build a well-structured and thoughtful response without running out of time.
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. Posting publicly encourages an organic “Academic Discussion,” allowing other site visitors to join in, respond to your ideas, and share their own perspectives.
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.

Remote Work vs. Office Work

Academic Discussion

Professor: “This semester, we’ve been studying workplace dynamics. The recent increase in remote work has sparked debate about its effectiveness compared to traditional office work. Do you think employees are more productive working remotely or in an office environment? Why?”

Vahid: “Remote work increases productivity because it eliminates commuting time and workplace distractions. Employees can create optimal personal work environments and enjoy greater work-life balance, which improves focus and job satisfaction. Technology now makes collaboration possible without physical presence.”

Angel: “I believe office environments foster greater productivity through spontaneous collaboration and clearer work-home boundaries. In-person interactions build stronger team relationships and company culture. Many people also find that the structure and social aspects of office settings help maintain motivation and accountability.”

Your Response

Sample Response #1 (High-Level Response)

The productivity debate between remote and office work is nuanced, as effectiveness depends on both job requirements and individual work styles. Vahid makes valid points about remote work eliminating commute time and allowing personalized environments. For tasks requiring deep concentration, the ability to control one’s surroundings and work during personal peak productivity hours can significantly enhance output.

However, Angel correctly identifies that certain collaborative projects benefit from in-person interaction. Spontaneous discussions often generate creative solutions that scheduled video meetings cannot replicate. Additionally, workplace relationships built through casual interactions strengthen team cohesion and trust, particularly for new employees who need to absorb organizational culture.

The most effective approach likely involves hybrid models tailored to specific roles and tasks. Critical thinking and individual production might be optimized remotely, while brainstorming sessions and relationship-building activities might be more productive in-office. Organizations should consider which environment best serves specific work functions rather than applying universal policies.

Sample Response #1 - Examiner Comments

This writer has composed a sophisticated response that demonstrates excellent facility with language. The response thoughtfully analyzes the strengths of both remote and office work contexts rather than simply choosing one side. The writer effectively categorizes different types of work that might benefit from each environment, showing nuanced understanding of workplace dynamics. Vocabulary is precise and varied (“spontaneous discussions,” “team cohesion,” “hybrid models,” “organizational culture”), and sentence structures are effectively varied. The organization is logical, addressing remote benefits, office advantages, and concluding with a synthesized recommendation. There are no noticeable grammatical errors despite timed conditions. This response demonstrates the ability to analyze complex issues from multiple perspectives.

Sample Response #2 (Mid-Level Response)

I think remote work is more productive for most employees. When people work from home, they don’t waste time traveling to office. They can start working earlier and finish more tasks. Also, offices have many distractions like coworkers talking or having meetings nearby. At home, workers can focus better on their jobs.

Angel says that office helps employees work together better and builds stronger teams. This is sometimes true, especially for new projects that need lots of discussion. But with modern technology like video calls and chat programs, most teamwork can happen online now.

Some people might not have good workspace at home, so companies should give employees choice between home and office. This way, each person can work where they are most productive.

Sample Response #2 - Examiner Comments

This response addresses the task with adequate clarity but limited depth. The writer takes a position favoring remote work with reasonable support focused on time savings and reduced distractions. The response acknowledges Angel’s counterargument about collaboration but addresses it somewhat superficially. There are several grammatical errors throughout, particularly with articles (“traveling to office,” “At home, workers can focus,” “have good workspace”). The organization is logical, moving from position to counterargument to compromise solution, but development of ideas is limited. The conclusion about giving employees choice demonstrates some nuance, but overall, the response lacks the sophistication and language control of higher-level responses.

TOEFL Writing Task 2 Academic Discussion Practice Tests [With Sample Responses & Examiner Comments]

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