TOEFL Writing — Integrated & Academic Discussion Tasks

The TOEFL Writing section has two tasks in about 29 minutes: an integrated task (you read a passage, hear a lecture, then write about how they relate) and the "Writing for an Academic Discussion" task (you respond to an online class discussion). Everything is typed.

The integrated task rewards accurate summarising; the discussion task rewards a clear, relevant contribution. Neither rewards length for its own sake — organisation and precision win points.

Task 1 — Integrated writing

You read a short academic passage (about 3 minutes), then hear a lecture that usually challenges or adds to it. You then write a 150–225 word response explaining how the lecture relates to the reading — you do not give your own opinion.

The reading stays on screen while you write, so note the lecture's points carefully; the marks come from accurately connecting each lecture point to the matching reading point.

Task 2 — Writing for an Academic Discussion

A professor poses a question and two students post short replies. You add your own contribution of about 100 words in 10 minutes, as if in an online class forum.

A high score comes from a clear, relevant opinion that engages with the discussion — extend or respectfully challenge a classmate's point and support it with a specific reason or example, in well-organised English.

How Writing is scored

• Both tasks are scored 0–5 by human raters and AI, then converted to the 0–30 section scale.
• Integrated: full, accurate coverage of the lecture and its link to the reading, in clear English.
• Discussion: a relevant, well-developed contribution with correct, varied language.
• Type accurately and leave two minutes to proofread — small grammar and spelling slips add up.

Sample task (original, in the TOEFL format)

An original example in the official style — not a real test question.

Frequently asked questions