范文1:
"The study of history has value only to the extent that it is relevant to our daily lives."
The speaker alleges that studying history is valuable only insofar as it is relevant to our daily lives. I find this allegation to be specious. It wrongly suggests that history is not otherwise instructive and that its relevance to our everyday lives is limited. To the contrary, studying history provides inspiration, innumerable lessons for living, and useful value-clarification and perspective---all of which help us decide how to live our lives.
To begin with, learning about great human achievements of the past provides inspiration. For example, a student inspired by the courage and tenacity of history's great explorers might decide as a result to pursue a career in archeology, oceanography, or astronomy. This decision, in turn, can profoundly affect that student's everyday life--in school and beyond. Even for students not inclined to pursue these sorts of careers,studying historical examples of courage in the face of adversity can provide motivation to face their own personal fears in life. In short, learning about grand accomplishments of the past can help us get through the everyday business of living, whatever that business might be, by emboldening us and lifting our spirits.
In addition, mistakes of the past can teach us as a society how to avoid repeating those mistakes. For example, history can teach us the inappropriateness of addressing certain social issues, particularly moral ones, on a societal level. Attempts to legislate morality invariably fail, as aptly illustrated by the Prohibition experiment in the U.S. during the 1930s. Hopefully, as a society we can apply this lesson by adopting a more enlightened legislative approach toward such issues as free speech, criminalization of drug use, criminal justice, and equal rights under the law.
Studying human history can also help us understand and appreciate the mores, values, and ideals of past cultures. A heightened awareness of cultural evolution, in turn, helps us formulateinformed and reflective values and ideals for ourselves. Based on these values and ideals, students can determine their authentic life path as well as how they should allot their time and interact with others on a day-to-day basis.
Finally, it might be tempting to imply from the speaker's allegation that studying history has little relevance even for the mundane chores that occupy so much of our time each day, and therefore is of little value. However, from history we learn not to take everyday activities and things for granted. By understanding the history of money and banking, we can transform an otherwise routine trip to the bank into an enlightened experience, or a visit to the grocery store into homage to the many inventors, scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs of the past who have made such convenience possible today. And, we can fully appreciate our freedom to go about our daily lives largely as we choose only by understanding our political heritage. In short, appreciating history can serve to elevate our everyday chores to richer, more interesting, and more enjoyable experiences.
In sum, the speaker fails to recognize that in all our activities and decisions--from our grandest to our most routine--history can inspire, yinform, guide, and nurture. In the final analysis, to study history is to gain the capacity to be more human--and I would be hard-pressed to imagine a worthier end.
范文2：
"The well-being of a society is enhanced when many of its people question authority."
The speaker asserts that when many people question authority society is better off. While I contend that certain forms of disobedience can be harmful to any society, I agree with the speaker otherwise. In fact, I would go further by contending that society's well-being depends on challenges to authority, and that when it comes to political and legal authority, these challenges must come from many people.
Admittedly, when many people question authority some societal harm might result, even if a social cause is worthy. Mass resistance to authority can escalate to violent protestand rioting, during which innocent people are hurt and their property damaged and destroyed. The fallout from the 1992 Los Angeles riots aptly illustrates this point. The "authority" which the rioters sought to challenge was that of the legal justice system which acquitted police officers in the beating of Rodney King. The means of challenging that authority amounted to flagrant disregard for criminal law on a mass scale--by way of looting, arson, and even deadly assault. This violent challenge to authority resulted in a financially crippled community and, more broadly, a turning back of the clock with respect to racial tensions across America.
While violence is rarely justifiable as a means of questioning authority, peaceful challenges to political and legal authority, by many people, are not only justifiable but actually necessary when it comes to enhancing and even preserving society's well-being.In particular, progress in human rights depends on popular dissension. It is not enough for a charismatic visionary like Gandhi or King to call for change in the name of justice and humanity; they must have the support of many people in order to effect change. Similarly, in a democracy citizens must respect timeless legal doctrines and principles, yet at the same time question the fairness and relevance of current laws. Otherwise, our laws would not evolve to reflect changing societal values. It is not enough for a handful of legislators to challenge the legal status quo; ultimately it is up to the electorate at large to call for change when change is needed for the well-being of society.
Questioning authority is also essential for advances in the sciences. Passive acceptance of prevailing principles quells innovation, invention, and discovery, all of which clearly benefit any society. In fact, the very notion of scientific progress is predicated on rigorous scientific inquiry--in other words, questioning of authority. History is replete with scientific discoveries that posed challenges to political, religious, and scientific authority. For example, the theories of a sun-centered solar system, of humankind's evolution from other life forms, and of the relativity of time and space, clearly flew in the face of "authoritative" scientific as well as religious doctrine of their time. Moreover, when it comes to science a successful challenge to authority need not come from a large number of people. The key contributions of a few individuals---like Copernicus, Kepler, Newton, Darwin, Einstein, and Hawking---often suffice.
Similarly, in the arts, people must challenge established styles and forms rather than imitate them; otherwise, no genuinely new art would ever emerge, and society would be worse off.And again, it is not necessary that a large number of people pose such challenges; a few key individuals can have a profound impact. For instance, modern ballet owes much of what is new and exciting to George Ballanchine, who by way of his improvisational techniques posed a successful challenge to established traditions. And modern architecture arguably owes its existence to the founders of Germany's Bauhaus School of Architecture, which challenged certain "authoritative" notions about the proper objective, and resulting design, of public buildings.
To sum up, in general I agree that when many people question authority the well-being of society is enhanced. Indeed, advances in government and law depend on challenges to the status quo by many people. Nevertheless, to ensure a net benefit rather than harm, the means of such challenges must be peaceful ones.
开头写法：
◎背景引入法：
基本结构1：立场+理由
例子：Businesses are as likely as governments to establish large bureaucracies, but bureaucracy is far more damaging to a business than it is to a government.
Contrary to the statement’s premise, my view is that businesses are less likely than government to establish large bureaucracies, because businesses know that they are more vulnerable than government to damage resulting from bureaucratic inefficiencies. My position is well supported by common sense and by observation.
切忌1：废话过多
例子：Should college students be allowed to get married?
This topic is very interesting. I’m very interested in talking about this topic. Because I’m also a college student and I’m not married……
切忌2：观点过于模糊
例子：Should college students be allowed to get married?
I think this topic is very hard to say. Because I am still very little, only 17, and not married, so this topic is very difficult for me……
切忌3：口语化严重，句子简单。
例子：The importance of environmental protection
This issue is surely very important, let’s talk about it!
例.Universities should require every student to take a variety of courses outside the student's major field of study.
I fundamentally agree with the proposition that students must take courses outside their major field of study to become “truly educated”. A contrary position would reflect a too-narrow view of higher education and its proper objectives. Nevertheless, I would caution that extending the proposition too far might risk undermining those objectives.
基本结构2：复述+立场理由
例子：So long as no laws are broken, there is nothing unethical about doing whatever you need to do to promote existing products or to create new products.
The speaker asserts that in creating and marketing products, companies act ethically merely by not violating any laws. Although the speaker’s position is not wholly insupportable, far more compelling arguments can be made for holding businesses to higher ethical standards than those required by the letter of the law.
例：a society’s heroes or its heroines reflect its character.
The speaker claims that the character of a society’s heroes and heroines(“heroes”hereafter) reflects the character of that society. I tend to disagree. In my observation a society chooses as its heroes not people who mirror the society but rather people whose character society’s members wish they could emulate but cannot—for want of character. Nevertheless, I concede that one particular type of hero---the sociopolitical hero—by definition mirrors the character of the society whose causes the hero champions.
切忌4：观点跑偏
例子：It is said that nowadays one cannot acquire the qualifications and quality essential to success through university education. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the statement?
I think to success, we must have a lot of important qualities. To have these important qualities, we must learn a lot of things, for example, English, music tools, and etc. We can learn these qualities from our teachers, our friends and from books. All in all, we can learn from many places.
切忌5：意思重复
例子：Your opinion on DINK families
My opinion on DINK families is that DINK families is not a good thing. And it is a bad thing. It brings no benefits to our society and it is even sometimes harmful to our society.
基本结构3：复述+主题复杂性/隐含假设/让步+立场理由
主题复杂性例子：
Most people would agree that buildings represent a valuable record of any society****’s past, but controversy arises when old buildings stand on ground that modern planners feel could be better used for modern purposes.
The issue of whether to raze an old, historic building to make way for progress is a complex one, since it involves a conflict between our interest in preserving our culture, tradition, and history and a legitimate need to create practical facilities that serve current utilitarian purposes. （复述+复杂性）In my view, the final judgment should depend on a case-by-case analysis of two key factors.
隐含假设例子：
Clearly, government has a responsibility to support the arts. However, if that support is going to produce anything of value, government must place no restrictions on the art that is produced.
The speaker here argues that government must support the arts but at the same time impose no control over what art is produced. The implicit rationale for government intervention in the arts is that, without it, cultural decline and erosion of our social fabric will result. However, I find no empirical evidence to support this argument。
让步例子：
Work greatly influences people****’s personal lives—their special interests, their leisure activities, even their appearance way from the work place.
The speaker claims that our jobs greatly influence our personal interests, recreational activities and even appearance. While I agree that the personal lives of some people are largely determined by their work, in my view it would be a mistake to draw this conclusion generally. In my observation, the extent to which occupation influences personal life depends on the nature of the work, and how central the work is to one’s sense of self.
背景+主题+过度+立场+理由
例子： In the future, students may have the choice of studying at home by using technology such as computers or television or of studying at traditional schools. Which would you prefer?
We live in a technology world in which technology gives us many opportunities to improve every aspect of our lives, including arts, sciences, politics, and education(时代特征)。
One of most obvious impact which the technology has on education is that it has changed traditional studying-in-class learning pattern. (走向主题).
Now we get chance to study at home by using technology such as computer or television(论述主题).This new learning pattern, which I strongly recommend to every one, will save a lot of time on the traveling between schools and living spots; moreover, learners can arrange their time schedule flexibly (Transition).
切忌6：观点武断，态度强硬。
例子：The importance of confidence
In my opinion, confidence is the most important thing for a person. All the successful people in the world are full of confidence. While those people who don’t have confidence, they all have failed.
◎ 重申题目法：
结构：重申题目与理由+观点
例子：Some students like classes where teachers lecture (do all of the talking) in class. Other students prefer classes where the students do some of the talking. Which type of class do you prefer? Give specific reasons and details to support your choice.
There are basically two types of classes in universities, classes where teachers lecture and that where the students do some of the talking. Some students prefer the class in which they can talk because they believe the exchange between teachers and students promotes learning; others will prefer lectures which will deliver far more information to students.（重述题目+理由）
I prefer the former approach although both teaching and learning approaches are valuable and have relative merits. My reasons are listed below.（我方观点）
概念展开法：
结构：概念展开+主题+观点
例子：You have enough money to purchase either a house or a business. Which would you choose to buy? Give specific reasons to explain your choice.
Money is a basic need of human society; without money, society cannot be worked. Most of social status have been judged by the amount of money that one person earns per year.（概念展开）
If I am emerged /involved in a situation where I have to make my own decision on purchasing either house or business, I would choose to purchase business because I know the relationship among money, human life, and the society.（展开主题）
提问法：
结构：提问+主题+立场
例子：People listen to music for different reasons and at different times. Consequently, music is important to many people. Use specific reasons and examples to support your choice.
Is music important to many people? Music indeed exists all around the world in thousands of forms and manifestations. It spans time and geography as an ever-present theme in the lives of all people. There is no culture without some form of music; from primitive man to the modern urban inhabitants, and from Tibet to New York City. Musicians come from all walks of life and express their emotions and their experiences, so that they may be shared with their community or even the world.
例： scandals---whether in politics, academia, or other areas---can be useful. They focus our attention on problems in ways that no speaker or reformer ever could.
Are scandals useful in calling our attention to important problems, as this statement suggests? I agree that in many cases scandals can serve to reveal larger problems that a community or society should address. On the other hand, scandals can sometimes distract us from more important societal issues.
※琼瑶式提问：
Automobile is a valuable invention in our life.
Have you ever stood in rain and waited for a saving-life texi taking you home? Have you ever spent an important holiday alone in a strange city because no car is available at that time? Have you ever spent a whole day walking through a desert and been exhausted at last?If you have never had such experience you would never known the importance of automobile to our life. Hence, in my eye, nothing in the world is more valuable than the invention of automobile in improving our life. The reason to this opinion involves many aspects including that it can not only save us a lot of time, but also make the world we are living becoming smaller.
例子2：To solve the problem of present and future, people should learn from past.
Have you ever been spirited up by learning the achievements of the historical figure? Have you ever comprehended the popular culture, such as music, media and literature, to name just a few, at the expense of the past culture? Have you ever shown solicitude for the environment and endangered species after realizing the past extinction? If you have never experienced such situation, you will never appreciate the value of the past to solve present and future problems. I agree insofar as past can be instructive and conductive when we are confronting the problems, whereas, in some cases, we are supposed to overthrow the past provided that it is irrelevant.
◎引语法
As technologies and the demand for certain services change, many workers will lose their jobs. The responsibility for those people to adjust to such change should belong to the individual worker, not to government or to business.
As a saying goes, “God helps those help themselves”, which is true in most cases. But as far as the large numbers of laid-off workers caused by the technological and market changes are concerned, I believe the government and the business certainly have an unshakable responsibility to take.
We can learn from history that we never learn from history.
切忌7：俗语的翻译混乱
例子1：Is it good to have a large family?
I think it is good to have a large family. Because we Chinese believe a sentence: “Many sons, many lucks”……（Happiness lies in having many children）
例子2：Should we pretend to know everything or admit our ignorance?
We all know, our Chinese old fathers and grandfathers said: “Know is know, don’t know is don’t know”……（admit what one really understands and admit what one does not know）
例子3：The advantage of being a nice person
I believe one sentence:“A good person is all life safe”. （Good person life is safety）We Chinese people always say: “Good has good pay, bad has bad pay”.（good begets good, and evil leads to evil）
切忌8：中式英文：
例子：
The happiest moment in your life
In our life, there are always some moments which make your heart flower opened angrily……
The population problem
The population problem is a very big problem. For example, in the city centers of Shanghai, we can always see people mountain people sea there.
Is there fairness in today****’s business world?
I think in today’s society, there is no fairness in the business world. For example, I always chopped when I go out buy things……
The advantage of being a nice person
Being a nice person have many advantage. I believe if a people always do bad things, he will get “baoying”.
◎事例法
句子开头案例分析：
1. In a team, those who do not accept others' criticism cannot succeed.
Nowadays, with the development of society, teamwork has been paid more and more attention. When it comes to whether team members should accept other's criticism, most people assert that team members are supposed to learn to take criticism, but other people regard it as an unwise choice. Personally, I concede that it is the acceptance of others' criticism that brings about our remarkable success.
2. In recent years, there is a sharply growing tendency that more and more people work in a team. Nonetheless, which kinds of factors in team may cause people’s success? Some people claim that those who do not accept others’ criticism cannot succeed. And others claim that accepting others’ criticism is not the only reason to succeed. Personally, I concede the former opinion definitely and accepted others’ criticism may bring a number of benefits.
3. When asked about the issue of whether those who do not accept other’s criticism cannot succeed，The vast majority of people argue that listening to other’s criticism may confuse the interior and real mind of person. While others contend that other’s criticism may have positive impact on the success., i would like to stand on the latter view.
4. Thanks to the development of globalization and the advancement of living standards in China, there are increasing citizens who desire to understand the cultures and habits of other countries. Thereby, how to learn foreign cultures efficiently has become a heated issue to be discussed in the public. Some people assert that reading is the most significant method for the citizens to understand the foreign countries on the basis that it is much more convenient and less expensive. In my mind, however, there are other ways to learn foreign culture more efficiently than reading, at least including taking several weeks journey in the foreign countries and communicating with foreigners directly.
5. It is more important for a university to spend money on improving facilities (libraries, computer labs and technology in general) than to spend money on hiring famous teachers.
Spending moneys on improving facilities are highly considered by the universities, which is even more essential than spending money on hiring famous teachers. In my opinion, the investment on improving facilities is the primary aim for universities,which has various benefits for both students and teachers.
※结尾段：
当开头段把观点阐释清楚之后，结尾段从信息题上讲就成为了最不重要的段落，甚至存在没有结尾段的满分文章-言外之意是如果时间不够了，应该尽可能将中间段写完整，而不是追求结尾段的完整性。时间不充分的时候，结尾只需要在中间段最后加上一句总结文章的话；时间充分的时候，可以写一个简单的独立的结尾段，总结一下观点，总结一下论据（层次），然后还可以做一下简单的引申（只是不要发号召）。
结尾段要强化阅卷人对文章的整体印象。《新托福考试官方指南》指出结尾短的任务主要是一下几个：
讨论作者自己看法的重要性
以不同的措辞复述文章的主题
总结文章的主要论点
可以包含引语、统计数字、类比或者建议
因此在结尾段我们可以采取以下思路来编写：
复述文章的主旨
总结个段的论点
提建议、做预测、引语和类比。
提建议结尾：
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Television, newspapers, magazines, and other media pay too much attention to the personal lives of famous people such as public figures and celebrities. Use specific reasons and details to explain your opinion.
In conclusion, the media should not devote so much coverage to the personal lives of famous people such as public figures and celebrities.（复述题目观点）
On the contrary, they should put in the spotlight more "unsung heroes” in every society, those who quietly give off their time, talents and finances, to help humanity. （重申自己观点并提出建议）
The result will be that the famous people will have much more needed privacy. （做预测）
引语结尾：
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? One should never judge a person by external appearances. Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.
Generally speaking, making judgments about an individual on the basis of external appearances is fallible. This prevents us from getting to know the individual concerned. （重申自己观点）
However, we can never know the real person unless we get to know them; as it is said, “you can’t judge a book by its cover.”（引用谚语）
类比法结尾：
Some people believe that students should be given one long vacation each year. Others believe that students should have several short vacations throughout the year. Which viewpoint do you agree with? Use specific reasons and examples to support your choice.
Taking several short vacations throughout the year can be linked to the breathing of whales: they need to emerge for a breath after short intervals. Otherwise, they would suffocate. Likewise, students need a few short vacations in a year to relax themselves for better academic performance in the next term. (类比法，把short vacations 与鲸鱼的呼吸来比较)
模板：
The issue under discussion looks quite complex and leaves no leeway for an easy and casual response. But I still would like to hold onto my ground that the indicator of the great country is that the welfare and the basic of the achievement of rulers, artists and scientists.