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TOEFL Academic Discussion task: a professor’s question, two student posts, and a sample post

TOEFL Academic Discussion: Free Sample Question with a High-Scoring Post, a 5-Step Strategy and Template, & Helpful Insights from 30,982 Discussion Posts Reviewed for our Students

Welcome to our free TOEFL academic discussion guide, where you can practice a real TOEFL iBT Write for an Academic Discussion question, study a high-scoring sample post, and learn a five-step strategy and template built for the 10-minute limit. You can also learn helpful insights from 30,982 discussion posts reviewed by our AI, so you know where most learners lose points before you write your own.

The academic discussion is the only Writing task kept from the previous TOEFL, so much of the advice online was written for the longer old test. Everything on this page is built for the 2026 format.

If you’re looking for a free TOEFL academic discussion practice question, then click the button below to write a post now and get a free AI score on all six writing criteria.

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Table Of Contents

What Is the TOEFL Academic Discussion Task?

In the TOEFL Academic Discussion task, you join an online class discussion. A professor posts a question, two students reply with their opinions, and you write your own post that gives and supports your opinion. You have 10 minutes, and the prompt says an effective response contains at least 100 words.

TOEFL Academic Discussion task screen: the professor’s question, two student posts, and the response box

The topics come from university subjects such as business, education, sociology, or technology, but you don’t need any special knowledge. The question always asks what you think, so your own reasons and examples are enough. The task comes after Build a Sentence and Write an Email, and its score counts toward your Writing band from 1 to 6.

TOEFL Academic Discussion Sample Question and Answer

Here’s a TOEFL academic discussion question from our practice bank with a sample post. Read the professor’s question and both student posts first, then see how the sample answers the question in its first sentence and adds reasons neither student gave.

Academic Discussion TOEFL Writing Sample Question
Your professor is teaching a class on Money. Write a post responding to the professor’s question.

In your response you should:
- express and support your opinion
- make a contribution to the discussion

An effective response will contain at least 100 words.

Professor

We've been discussing the shift toward cashless payment systems. Some people believe digital payments improve convenience, speed, and security, while others argue they create exclusion risks for people without stable access to banking or technology. What is your opinion on a largely cashless society?

Two posts from students


Paul

I think cashless systems are beneficial. They make transactions faster, reduce theft risk, and help users manage spending through digital records. In many contexts, cashless payments improve efficiency for both customers and businesses.


Sunny

I think cashless systems can be harmful if they become the only option. Not everyone has equal access to smartphones, internet service, or bank accounts. A payment system should remain inclusive, especially for vulnerable groups.

Sample Post

In my opinion, society should move toward mostly digital payment, but it should not remove cash completely. Electronic payment is useful because it leaves a clear trail for taxes and makes it easier for small shops to sell online or at street events without keeping many coins. However, a country also needs a back-up plan. During a power cut, a storm, or a problem with a payment company, people still need to buy food, medicine, and bus tickets. Cash also gives people some privacy for simple daily purchases. For this reason, I support a mixed system: digital payment as the normal choice, with cash protected for emergencies and basic public services.

Task Fulfillment — Discussion

Learn how to answer this question in a step-by-step interactive exercise

Paul says cashless payment is efficient, and Sunny says it can exclude people. The sample takes a middle position and supports it with two new ideas: a back-up for emergencies such as a power cut, and privacy for daily purchases. That’s what the raters mean by a contribution to the discussion.

TOEFL Academic Discussion Strategy in 5 Steps

This five-step strategy fits the 10 minutes and covers everything the rubric looks for.

AI Tutor supporting details exercise for the TOEFL Academic Discussion task

  1. Read the question, then both students (about 1 minute). Underline what the professor asks you to decide. Note each student’s reason, because you can’t reuse them as your own.
  2. Choose the side you can explain fastest (about 1 minute). Any position can score a 5. Agree with one student, disagree with both, or take a middle view, but pick the one you have a clear reason and a real example for.
  3. State your position in the first sentence. The reader should know what you think right away. You can name a student to connect to the discussion: “Like Sunny, I think…, but for a different reason.”
  4. Give two reasons of your own, each with support (about 6 minutes). A reason says why; the support shows how it works in real life, with a situation, a person, or a result. This is where most of your words and most of your points come from.
  5. Close in one sentence, then check (about 1 to 2 minutes). Restate your view in new words, then read the post back for grammar, spelling, and missing words.

The most common mistake is repeating a student’s idea in different words. The raters see that as no contribution, even when the English is good. If both students took your side, find a different reason or a different example.

TOEFL Academic Discussion Template

A template gives you the shape of the post before you start, so you spend the 10 minutes on ideas. Here’s the short version, with a sentence starter for each part:

Part

What it does

Sentence starter

1. Position

Answers the professor’s question in one sentence

In my opinion,… / I believe…

2. Reason 1

Explains why, in your own words

The main reason is that…

3. Support 1

Shows the reason in a real situation

For example,…

4. Reason 2

Adds a second, different reason

In addition,… / Another reason is…

5. Support 2

A new example for the second reason

For instance,… / This means that…

6. Close

Restates the position, with no new idea

For these reasons,… / Overall,…

For the full step-by-step version with a second sample answer, see the TOEFL academic discussion template on our writing templates page.

How the Academic Discussion Post Is Scored

Your post gets a score from 0 to 5 from a combination of AI scoring and certified human raters. The raters look for a relevant contribution that is easy to understand, with well-explained reasons and examples, a variety of sentence structures, precise word choice, and few errors. A 3 is mostly relevant, but part of an explanation or example is missing or unclear. A post that only repeats the students or the prompt scores low, even with no errors.

TOEFL Academic Discussion score report with an AI score for each writing criterion

For every level of the rubric in plain words, see our TOEFL academic discussion rubric.

Helpful Insights from 30,982 Reviewed Discussion Posts

In 30,982 discussion posts reviewed by our AI, grammar was the lowest criterion most often, in 84% of them. Our learners’ posts average band 3.6: 47% reach band 4 or higher, and 12% reach band 5. A typical post is 133 words, and posts at an AI score of 4 carry about 20 more words than posts at a score of 2. The fixes our reviews make most often in posts are is to are, in to on and i to I.

Bar chart of the average AI score of TOEFL academic discussion posts by BestMyTest learners on each of the six writing criteria, lowest first

So after you plan your two reasons, save time to check your grammar, and give each reason a full example rather than a single line.

Free TOEFL Academic Discussion Practice

All of our TOEFL academic discussion practice is built for the current test, with the professor, the two students, and the 10-minute clock.

Here’s every Academic Discussion practice question in our bank, each with a professor’s question, two student posts, and a sample post. Set a 10-minute timer for each one.

Academic Discussion: Frequently Asked Questions

How many words should a TOEFL academic discussion post be?

The prompt says an effective response contains at least 100 words. Most high-scoring posts are a little longer, about 120 to 150 words, because each reason needs an example.

How much time do you get for the academic discussion task?

You have 10 minutes to read the discussion and write your post.

Can I agree with one of the students?

Yes. You can agree with a student, disagree with both, or take a middle position. What matters is that you add reasons and examples of your own instead of repeating theirs.

Is the academic discussion task still on the new TOEFL?

Yes. Write for an Academic Discussion is the only Writing task kept from the previous TOEFL. It now comes after Build a Sentence and Write an Email.

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The figures on this page come from the BestMyTest TOEFL learner performance data, our records of TOEFL practice on BestMyTest up to October 2026. That page explains how we measure each figure. Last updated 15 October 2026.