Should I use templates?
　　A TOEFL TIGER VISITOR WROTE:
Toefl “Pets”,
　　 While I was listening to the pods regarding writing and speaking I was thinking if it would be appropriate to outline the structure we are going to use in our writings and speaking? What I mean is, prepare some templates and try to follow the patterns.
Regards,
“Toefl Fan”
　　TOEFL TIGER’S RESPONSE:
　　 The problem with templates are that they’re templates. What I mean is that a response that doesn’t reflect some original flare, or some originality, will not be as impressive to a grader. Templates are really only good for one thing: learning about the structure of what you intend to write. After you’ve learned about the structure, you should start experimenting with it and develop your writing skills. Some students think that templates are the quick way to get an easy score because they pick something that is safe and hopefully without any mistakes. However, what if the template doesn’t quite fit? Then the person grading your response will be thinking that this is a template because it isn’t really answering the question. Plus, developing your literary muscle will give you an advantage over others when you’re actually at the university. In the future, TOEFL TIGER will post some templates and hopefully you will use them to develop your skills.
POSTED BY TOEFL TIGER AT 6:40 AM LINKS TO THIS POST   
LABELS: REAL IBT TOEFL TOPICS AND QUESTIONS
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2007