The New TOEFL Writing Tasks: Academic Discussion and Write an Email

ETS lists three Writing task types: Build a Sentence (short, form-focused items), Write an Email, and Write for an Academic Discussion. Together they make up 12 items in about 23 minutes of base time.

Because the test adapts and item counts can vary by form, treat those numbers as the published base values rather than a guarantee for your exact test day. Prepare for all three task types — you do not choose which items you receive.

You see a short professor's question on a discussion board and two student responses that take different positions or angles. Your job is to contribute your own reasoned response to the discussion — usually within around 10 minutes.

A strong response does three things: it takes a clear position, it engages with what the other students said (agreeing, disagreeing, or extending), and it supports the position with a concrete reason or example.

What graders look for:

Prompt: A professor asks whether cities should invest more in public transport or in cycling infrastructure. Student A argues for public transport (higher capacity). Student B argues for cycling (health and lower emissions).

Weak response opening: "I think both are good. Public transport is important and cycling is also important because..."

Strong response opening: "I agree with Student B's health argument, but I would push it further: cycling infrastructure is cheaper per rider than the metro expansion Student A describes, and in a mid-sized city it can absorb short trips that public transport handles inefficiently."

The strong opening takes a position, references another student by name, and previews a concrete reason — all in one sentence.

You are given a situation — for example, writing to a professor about a missed deadline, to an academic advisor about course selection, or to a manager about a workplace request — and a short list of points to cover. You then write an appropriate email under time pressure.

The task tests whether you can produce a coherent, polite, situationally appropriate short text. It is not testing whether you can write a long essay.

What graders look for:

The pre-2026 Independent Writing task rewarded a rigid five-paragraph structure and memorised transition phrases. On the new tasks, that approach actively hurts your score, for two reasons.

First, both tasks are short. A five-paragraph structure is too long for a 10-minute discussion contribution and completely inappropriate for an email. Second, both tasks are graded on how naturally you engage with a real situation — a professor asking a question, or a recipient reading an email. Formulaic openings signal to the grader that you are not actually engaging.

Instead, build the habit of producing one focused paragraph (Academic Discussion) or one short structured email (Write an Email) that addresses every point the prompt asks for.

Practise under time pressure from day one. Set a timer for the target duration and write to completion, even if the result is rough. Then review, not just for grammar but for whether every prompt point was actually addressed.

For Academic Discussion, practise reading the other students' contributions carefully before you start writing. A response that never mentions them, even implicitly, loses points however well-written it is.

For Write an Email, keep a small mental library of appropriate greetings and closings for different recipients. Do not memorise full templates; do memorise register.