Personal vs Group Decision-making - TOEFL Speaking Practice Test (Independent)

The TOEFL Independent Speaking Task evaluates your ability to express and support personal opinions effectively in English. In this section, you'll need to speak about familiar topics, presenting your views clearly and providing relevant examples to support your perspective. To help you master these skills, we've prepared this comprehensive practice test with sample responses and detailed feedback.

Instructions:

• You'll receive a familiar topic to speak about with no accompanying reading or listening passages.
• After hearing the question, you will have 15 seconds to prepare your response and 45 seconds to deliver it.
• Remember, 15 seconds might seem short, but it's ample time for preparation.
• For this Question, you'll encounter two situations or opinions and must express your preference, providing reasons for your choice.

Now, play this Audio to hear the Question.

Question:

When faced with an important decision, some people prefer to make the decision on their own, while others prefer to consult with a group. Which approach do you prefer and why? Provide specific reasons and examples to support your choice.

Points to Remember

When addressing the question about personal vs group decision-making, consider these key points to craft a well-rounded response. You must clearly state your position and provide specific reasons to justify your opinion. Include relevant examples and maintain a clear, logical organization. Your response should be concise yet detailed enough to demonstrate your speaking abilities within the time limit.

Answer Key with Explanation for TOEFL Independent Speaking Test - Personal vs Group Decision-making

Here, we've included two sample answers, one at a mid-level and one at a high-level proficiency. By comparing the differences in language use, you will gain valuable insights into the key elements that contribute to achieving a higher TOEFL score.

Listen to the audio recording to hear a mid-level answer to the provided question.

Mid-Level Answer Audio Transcript:

Rater’s Comment:

The response demonstrates significant language errors, such as incorrect verb forms like "I thinked about my interests" and tense inconsistency with "When I choose a university." Delivery is hindered by frequent filler words, including "um," "uh," and "you know," which disrupt the flow and create unnatural pauses. Speech clarity is compromised by these hesitations, leading to a choppy and fragmented delivery. Content development is minimal, with repeated phrases like "Making decisions alone is, um, faster" and "I thinked about my interests," indicating a lack of depth and supporting details. The response earned a score of 1 due to its limited coherence, repetitive content, and significant language issues. To improve, the speaker should focus on reducing filler words, ensuring grammatical accuracy, and expanding on ideas with specific examples and transitions.

Listen to the audio recording to hear a high-level answer to the provided question.

High-Level Answer Audio Transcript:

Rater’s Comment:

This response earns a score of 4 due to its effective language use, clear delivery, and well-developed content. The speaker employs advanced grammar structures, such as "when I had to choose a university, I considered my interests and career goals without external influence," demonstrating control over complex sentence constructions. Sophisticated vocabulary choices like "autonomy" and "consensus" enhance the response's precision. The delivery is characterised by a natural flow and effective pacing, with clear articulation and smooth transitions, as seen in the phrase "while group input can be valuable, it sometimes complicates the process." The content is well-organised, with strong supporting examples, such as the personal anecdote about choosing a university, which illustrates the speaker's preference for individual decision-making. The coherent progression of ideas and logical arguments further solidify the response's high score, showcasing notable strengths in language and topic development.

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