Should students be allowed to use their phones during class? Why, or why not?
A strong Task 1 answer states the choice immediately, gives two supports or one support with an example, and lands its last word around forty seconds. Fifteen seconds of preparation is enough for the plan, not for the wording.
The prompt and the clock
Should students be allowed to use their phones during class? Why, or why not?
15 seconds to prepare, up to 45 seconds to speak
A model answer at the right length
104 words — what 45 seconds actually holds.
Answer it yourself first
Record yours first. A memorised TOEFL answer is audible in the rhythm, and raters mark delivery, which is exactly what memorisation damages. Read this afterwards for the shape and the vocabulary.I would not allow them in a lecture, and the reason is not the person using it. There is decent research showing that students sitting near somebody on a phone score worse, so one person's choice is imposing a cost on everybody in the row, which is exactly the kind of situation a rule is for. I would make two exceptions. Anything the instructor asks you to look up, and any student who needs the device for accessibility or a family emergency. What I would not do is confiscate phones like a high school, because treating adults that way produces resentment rather than attention.
The words that carry it
Each one links to how it is pronounced.
- lecture
the precise noun for a university class
- imposing
three syllables with the stress on the second
- exceptions
three syllables with the stress on the second
- instructor
the American noun, stressed on the second syllable
- accessibility
six syllables with the stress on the fourth
- resentment
three syllables with the stress on the second
How to build the 45 seconds
- 1State the policy and redirect the reason.
- 2Support it with evidence about other people.
- 3Give the exceptions, which shows judgment.
- 4Say what you would not do, and why.
Sounds to watch
Straight answers
How long should this answer be?
Forty-five seconds, which is roughly 110 to 130 words at a natural pace. The model below is 104. If your version runs past fifty seconds the recording cuts off, and raters hear an answer that stops mid-sentence.
Does it matter which side I take?
No. Raters mark delivery, language use and topic development, never which opinion you chose. Pick one in the first second and spend the preparation time on two supports rather than on deciding.
What does sayit score here?
An estimate from fluency and pronunciation only — not an official band, and not a mark for vocabulary or grammar. The transcript is shown in full, so you can judge your own wording and development yourself.
What the score on your result means
An estimate from fluency and pronunciation only — not an official band, and not a mark for vocabulary or grammar.Drill it until the clock stops mattering
A free account keeps every take, so you can watch your pace settle and your filler count fall across a fortnight.