Question: Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Advertising can tell you a lot about a country. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
Sample Essay
Advertising can tell one a lot about a country. I believe that it is a great way to get an introduction to the country. I feel this way for three main reasons. The first reason is that advertising can show you the attitude of the country. Next, I believe that advertising can introduce you to different foods from the country. Last, advertising within the country can teach you about the education levels of the country.To begin, I believe that advertising can show you that general attitude of the country. Are the people happy? For example, in South Korea, all of the advertisements are brightly colored, with a fun song and even though I can’t speak Korean, I can tell the tone of voice is very happy. This tells me that they are trying to get people excited about shopping. Compared to other countries, I think it shows that Koreans try to be very positive and fun.
Second, I believe that advertising can teach you about a country’s food. Take America, for example. When I visited America, I saw advertisement after advertisement for fast food places. Whether it is pizza or burgers, I got the impression that Americans enjoy eating take-away for many meals. When I met Americans, this suspicion was confirmed, as many times we ate pizza or hamburgers when we had a meal together.
Last, I believe that advertisements can teach you about a country’s education level. If you are able to speak the language the advertisement is in, you can determine if they use proper grammar, or translations. I have found that in places like Germany, advertisements usually contain some English, but when you head to poorer regions, there is either no translation, or it is not correct. This shows me that education isn’t as important in those countries.
In conclusion, I believe that advertisements can teach you a lot about the country they came from. I believe that you can interpret the general attitude of the country and learn about the country food choices. In addition to this, I believe that advertisements can foreshadow how education is perceived.
Learn How to Tackle TOEFL Independent Writing - Agree and Disagree Essays
Tip 1: Follow a standard TOEFL essay structure
| Introductory Paragraph |
1. Provide background information about the essay topic. Here are a few techniques:
2. Write a strong thesis statement Lesson: How to write a high-scoring TOEFL introductory paragraph part 1 Lesson: How to write a high-scoring TOEFL introductory paragraph part 2 |
|
Body Paragraph A Body Paragraph B Body Paragraph C (Optional) |
1. Include a transition word/phrase at the beginning 2. Write a topic sentence 3. Include supporting sentences Lesson: How to write a high-scoring TOEFL body paragraph |
Conclusion Paragraph |
1. Include a restatement of the thesis statement you wrote in your introduction 2. Provide a brief summary of your main ideas Lesson: How to write a high-scoring TOEFL conclusion paragraph |
There's no maximum length for your essay, but a good response is usually at least 300 words.
Tip 2: Use transition words and phrases
You need to use transition words and phrases to connect your ideas in your essay. You should have 2 transition words/phrases every 4-5 sentences.
| Type of connection | Transition words |
| These words can help you show the order of ideas. |
First/Second/Third Firstly (or "First of all")/Secondly/Thirdly (or "Lastly") For one thing/For another thing/Finally (or "Lastly") In the first place/in the second place/Finally (or "Lastly") Instead of "First", "First of all" and "Firstly", we can use "To begin with", "To start with", or "For starters". We can also use "First and foremost" to state that the first key point is the most important one among all key points. Likewise, instead of "Finally" and "Lastly", we can use "Last but not least" to state that the final key point is just as important as the others, despite it being mentioned last. |
| These words can help you add information | In addition, furthermore, additionally, also, next, moreover, what's more, on top of that |
| These words can help you conclude or to summarize: | To sum up, in summary, in conclusion, to conclude, all in all, all things considered ,overall, taking everything into consideration, in a nutshell |
| These words can help you demonstrate contrast | Conversely, on the contrary, by contrast, by way of contrast, on one hand/on the other hand |
| These words can help you compare or demonstrate similarity | Similarly, likewise, by the same token, along similar lines |
| These words can help you state a result. | As a result, as a consequence, consequently, therefore |
| These words can help you state a generalization. | Generally, on the whole, in most cases, in general |
| These words can help you clarify a point. | That is, in other words, to put it simply, That is to say, just to reiterate |
| These words can help you give examples. | For example, for instance, take something, for example, to give a clear example |
| These words can help you state an alternative. | Alternatively, as another possibility |
Tip 3: Vary your sentence structure
To achieve a higher score or a perfect 5 out of 5 on the TOEFL English language criteria, you must show that you can accurately and flexibly use a variety of structures.
Lesson: Achieving sentence variety part 1Lesson: Achieving sentence variety part 2
Lesson: Achieving sentence variety part 3
Tip 4: Avoid grammar and spelling mistakes
You should avoid any grammar and spelling mistakes, otherwise your score will be deducted.
Lesson: Countable nouns and Uncountable nounsLesson: Subject verb agreement rules
Lesson: Use the right article
Lesson: Relative pronouns and relative clauses
Lesson: Achieving sentence variety part 1 (Pay attention to the lesson content related to punctuation)
Lesson: Achieving sentence variety part 2 (Pay attention to the lesson content related to punctuation)
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Tip 5: Vary your vocabulary
You should avoid using the same vocabulary throughout your essay. Instead, you can use synonyms or phrases that have the same meaning of words.
Here are some ways you can improve on this area:
- Read our sample essays and pay attention to words you are not familiar with.
- Utilize our TOEFL Vocabulary system
- Utilize our TOEFL synonyms exercises