The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) evaluates how well non-native English speakers use and understand English at the university level. One major section of the TOEFL exam is the independent writing task, where students are given a topic and asked to write an essay. Writing responses are scored on a scale of 0 to 5, with 5 being the highest possible score. Essays earning a score of 4 on the TOEFL writing section demonstrate competence in communicating an idea in writing, despite some weaknesses in aspects like organization, development, or language use.
The TOEFL rubric used to evaluate writing contains four main criteria – task response, structure/organization, development/support, and language use/conventions. For a score of 4, responses must fulfill the basic requirements of the task and show some organization of ideas. They demonstrate reasonable competence in using language to express ideas, but language errors may be frequent enough to cause occasional difficulty following the argument. Development and support of ideas are sufficient but simplistic, using basic reasoning and examples. Overall, a 4 level response accomplishes the communicative purpose with some linguistic inaccuracies that do not significantly interfere with understanding.
Let’s examine a sample independent writing task and two student responses scored at the 4 level to better understand the characteristics of this score. The prompt asked students to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of increasing tourism in their hometown or city. Response A discusses both advantages and disadvantages in separate paragraphs but lacks clear organization and sufficient development. Response B takes a stance on the issue and supports it better, but still has some weaknesses in language and reasoning.
Response A:
Tourism can bring both good and bad things to a city. There are some advantages if more people visit. First, it can improve the local economy. When tourists come, they will spend money. They buy food and souvenirs. They stay in hotels. This spending helps businesses and creates jobs. Also, it exposes the city to different cultures. Local people learn about places visitors come from.
Increased tourism also has disadvantages. Many problems happen when there are too many visitors. The city can become very crowded. There is more traffic on the roads and in popular tourist areas. Lines will be long to see important sights. Housing prices may rise if landlords turn homes into tourist accommodations instead of places for residents to live. Some locals may feel their city is changed too much. The unique character that first attracted tourists could be lost.
Overall, this response fulfills the basic requirements of the task by discussing both advantages and disadvantages of increased tourism. The organization is basic, simply separating the two perspectives into two paragraphs without any clear introductory or concluding statements. Development and support is also limited, using only brief and general reasoning rather than specific, well-chosen examples. Grammatical errors are present but do not heavily interfere with comprehension. This essay would likely earn a 4 score based on showing reasonable competence in communicating the essential ideas despite weaknesses.
Response B:
In my opinion, increased tourism can benefit my hometown more than hurt it if managed properly. While some problems do exist with more visitors, the economic advantages seem to outweigh these issues. The money brought in from tourism should be used carefully to address concerns.
It is true that large crowds and traffic could become problematic with a big rise in tourism. Locals may feel their daily lives are disrupted. If more infrastructure is built to support visitors, such as additional roads, parking areas, and public transportation, these problems do not have to be inevitable. New hotels and attractions also need to be planned strategically so they are not right in areas where people live. With the right planning, crowds can be controlled and locals can still enjoy their community.
The economic boost from tourism dollars is very meaningful for many cities. Not only do individual businesses benefit, but new tax revenue can fund improvements for all residents. This extra money makes it possible to address issues caused by more visitors through infrastructure projects for example. Tourism also creates new jobs that locals can fill. If planned correctly, my hometown could greatly grow its economy without losing its local character through careful management of increased tourism.
This response develops a clear thesis supporting the position that increased tourism can benefit a city if managed well. While support and reasoning is still somewhat simplistic, using broad examples and assumptions, it shows better critical thinking and organization than Response A. Language use is mostly accurate, with only minor errors that do not interfere with meaning. This response better fulfills the criteria for a 4 by communicating the key ideas with reasonable competence in structure, development, and language despite room for improvement.
In sum, TOEFL scores of 4 for the independent writing task indicate a response that fulfills the basic requirements of the prompt while demonstrating some developing competence in writing skills. Ideas are adequately organized and sufficiently supported, if not exceptionally strong in these areas. Language is generally accurate enough to communicate the intended message, despite noticeable errors. Essays at this level meet expectations for minimum competence at the university level but would still benefit from further improvements to elements like critical reasoning, logical organization, use of examples, and control of grammar/mechanics. Examining sample 4-scored essays helps clarify what distinctions independent raters see to assign this score rather than lower or higher levels. An understanding of TOEFL rubrics and examples aids test-takers to realistically self-assess writing strengths and refine target areas before completing high-stakes standardized exams.
Andrew Stroud