A Happy TOEFL student from Kazakhstan!

Another 5- star review!

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent, March 1, 2013

By 

Ruben Amaya - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Speaking and Writing Strategies for the TOEFL iBT (Book & Audio CD) (Paperback)

excellent product, everything was good. i got the product at the time that was expected. good quality i'm still using in my classes.

Another 5-star Review

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended!, February 27, 2013

By 

Luba - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Speaking and Writing Strategies for the TOEFL iBT (Book & Audio CD) (Paperback)

My purpose was to improve my speaking and writing skills. This book helped me a lot. I learned very useful strategies from speaking section and I finally understood what TOEFL examiners expect me to write in successful composition, its structure and etc. Using this book you can also approximately evaluate your expected grade for composition for example. There are also very good exercises that are very close to real TOEFL tasks. Final line: this book helped me get 7 additional points to my final TOEFL score. That was exactly what I needed. Worth it.

Video_How to Rate an Essay

Why are some essays “good” and others not so good?

Watch my video and discover the answer.

Best viewed in full screen at HD 1080. Click on red link below.

Video_How to Rate an Essay_by Bruce Stirling

Essay Conclusion Strategies

A fast and effective way to increase your independent essay score (and your independent speaking scores!) is to add a conclusion strategy. Look at the following conclusion strategies. Each is designed to maximize scoring.

a. Suggestion

For this strategy, start with a transition, restate your opinion, then end with a suggestion.

In sum, I assert that television is a bad influence on our children. Instead of watching so much television, parents should make their kids read a book, or make them go outside and play.

b. Suggestion + Prediction

For this strategy, start with a transition, restate your opinion, then end with a suggestion and a prediction. Note how the prediction contains the auxiliary verb “will” to describe a future action.

In the end, I posit that it is better to save the money that you make. The best thing you can do is put your money in the bank. In a few years, that money will help you buy a new car or help you go to university. 

c. Warning + Prediction 

      

For this strategy, start with a transition, restate your opinion, then end with a warning that contains a prediction of future events.

It goes without saying that television is a bad influence on our children. It is creating a lot of fat and lazy kids who will develop serious health problems when they are adults.

Remember: The raters will look for a conclusion strategy. A conclusion strategy demonstrates development, topical unity, and language use = a higher independent essay score and a higher independent speaking score = a higher TOEFL iBT score.

Want to learn more conclusion strategies? Please check out my TOEFL books.

click here for TOEFL books by Bruce Stirling

Another 5-star review

5.0 out of 5 stars Really love it, February 4, 2013

By 

Sattar Sobhani - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Speaking and Writing Strategies for the TOEFL iBT (Book & Audio CD) (Paperback)

Very well organized...Best material for TOEFL.
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