English Sentence Analysis Software

Ardian Deari has brought to my attention an excellent program where you can practice your syntactic rules! This software helps you to write and analyse sentences, clauses and phrases. It is based on English Sentence Analysis (book) by John Benjamins. Also available at Free Book Spot with this link.
For downloading this please click here: English Sentence Analysis Software.

Book details:

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Written by two instructors at Groningen University (in the Netherlands), this text guides the student of English through the intricacies of sentence structure. The authors have maintained a stringent and rather advanced level of analysis throughout: one learns the grammatical terms for all types of indirect objects, for example. A CD-ROM is include

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Product Details

• Paperback: 245 pages
• Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Co (October 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155619661X
• ISBN-13: 978-1556196614

TOEFL Practice Essay 3: Mario 9B

22. In general, people are living longer now. Discuss the causes of this phenomenon.

 

People in the world are now living much longer. For example in Europe and North America, the average life expectancy has risen to 68 years for men and 73 years for women. In India life expectancy has been much lower. But improved health and living conditions has now lifted the average life expectancy there to 56 years.

 

One of the causes that the life expectancy is increasing is the agriculture. Now the agriculture is improved. This means that the people in the world are better fed.

 

Another cause that people now live much longer is the public health. The public health is improved very much nowadays. There are better living conditions so people live longer because they are protected a bit from diseases.

 

The last cause is the medicines. The medicines are now better used. There are new medicines in hospitals. So people now have a cure for almost all the diseases. A lot of new chemicals are now discovered. The technology is improved so there are machines that cure diseases.

 

In conclusion, the people are now living longer for different causes. Some of these causes are: public health, improved agriculture, improved technology, medicines, new chemicals etc. This is a bad thing because there are a lot of natural resources that are being finished and can’t be renewed like coal etc. and the all this because of the population size.

TOEFL Practice Essay - Arber 9A

No. 24 "Teens with jobs" is this the right thing to do for the children of tomorrow or is it beneficial for teenagers and also the world or is it another form of slavery? Do teens really need jobs or can they do fine without one?

Teenagers have to start learning the value of money and that with money comfort can be bought and with comfort comes happiness (most of the times). Some teens are forced to do a job since their family is poor and needs money to survive so all the family has to work to help. Other teens are sent by their parents to work so that they can learn what having a job feels like. Some teens go to work for extra money for their own benefit since their parents won't give them money so they work for money to probably get them that movie or dress they wanted.

Now this seems fine but there are problems with this (like everything else involving money in this world). Some jobs have bad working hours so some teens leave school so that they can work to feed their poor family (this seems to only happen in poor countries). Other jobs are under-paid so teens are abused this way and no one seems to care. Finally some jobs involve a large amount of physical labor this is fine if the job is paid well but most hard work jobs are low paid.

So are teens having jobs a good idea? Well I think yes it's a good idea, teens need to learn to handle money and a job. As long as the job is well paid and not hard to do then why not get a job - a decent job, not one that takes advantage or abuses the teenager. "Money will never make you happy, and happy will never make you money!" The Marx Brothers.

TOEFL Practice Essay - Xhoia 9B

22. In general, people are living longer now. Discuss the causes of this phenomenon. Use specific reasons and details to develop your essay.

We all know that human populations are increasing and scientists can easily prove that. Over the last 300 years there has been a huge increase in human populations. We are going to reveal together the causes of this increase. All these reasons are based on facts that we can also find in scientific books.

One of the most important things is the improved medical care, including control of diseases and improved public health. If those things are improved then lives get better, less people die, more of them are careful, eat better food, go to the doctor, etc. Also there are some drugs that can control diseases inside the body, and there are others which totally destroy diseases. With public health we can have better sanitation and water supplies.

Another reason is the improved agriculture and the increase in amount of buildings and places to live. Improved agriculture means more food, more food means that all people are fed properly and don’t die of starvation. Buildings are needed for people without shelter so they don’t die of the cold outside.

There is also the last but not the least of importance, the war. We know that in wars hundreds and thousands of people die. But now countries can deal with each other about their problems without including war, so less people are dead.

So, these were the things I wanted you to know about the causes the increase of human populations all over the world. These were the reasons of this phenomenon. We hope it will not continue forever or everybody would die of the lack of food, diseases, wars, lack of shelter, etc., etc.  Help be part of the solution, not part of the problem - one person can and does make the difference!

TOEFL practice essay #3 ~ Ledio 9B

Some people believe that the Earth is being harmed (damaged) by human activity. Others feel that human activity makes the Earth a better place to live. What is your opinion? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.


The Earth’s natural resources are being damaged a lot by human activity. Since the last century the Earth’s natural resources have suffered very harsh damage. The environment and the climate are suffering changes. Carbon dioxide released by cars has caused an increase in the Earth’s temperature, which is leading our planet towards global warming. The humans’ excessive use of energy has led to the extinction of some fuels, which are very important for our technology.

Global warming is a much discussed topic in recent years and it is becoming a serious threat to humanity each day that passes. Governments are making many promises, but there are few actions. The plans that are made and talked about aren’t put into action. If the situation continues like this, then after seventy years our planet will be flooded by a large mass of water and countries, cities and towns will be lying underwater endangering the existence of humanity as we know it. Another problem is the pollution of the seas. The toxic wastes of ships and industries are released into the ocean. The seas are becoming polluted by the large quantity of toxic wastes released by human industries and washed away into the oceans. In this way much aquatic life will die because of poisoning. Oceans may become polluted and the sea will become useless.

In many poor countries these effects are being shown and because of this tourism in those countries is very weak. Marine tourism is the most beneficial tourism in the world. The sea has to be protected at every cost. Not only seas and oceans are at risk, but also rivers are affected by toxic wastes. If it continues like this many countries will remain short of water and a big part of the population will die because of thirst.

Humans are always working harder and harder to develop their technologies and they’re using all the natural resources available in the Earth to achieve this aim quickly. The necessity in the last century for building nuclear power stations has increased very much the level of radioactivity in the air. Just in Tirana, because of the high levels of carbon monoxide released by cars, the air has become so polluted that the chances of getting cancer are six times higher than the rest of the European Committee. Tirana is not the only capital with this condition; some well-known capitals share this problem such as those of Belgium, Germany, and France.

I personally think that it is our responsibility to save the planet. It is time for the leaders who rule the world to use their influence and power in the war against global warming and against the destruction of the planet. It is a shame that in the 21st century, the century of development, there are still leaders that think making war, which does not profit anyone, instead of reaching an arrangement between them and starting to work towards the problems that face humanity today such as poverty, global warming etc.

TOEFL practice essay 3 ~ Enxhi 9A

22. In general, people are living longer now. Discuss the causes of this phenomenon. Use specific reasons and details to develop your essay.

The earth has been around for billions of years. Humans first occupied it before hundred of thousands of years. As the years past by the human brain developed more and more and their lifetime became longer and longer due to the reducing of ignorance. We are now on the 21st century and our fellow occupiers have reached the longest years of life compared to our ancestors. The causes of this phenomenon have been the development of technology, medicine and the improvement of public health through hygiene.

Technology has evolved with high paces during the last century. People have been able to build machines which make our life much easier. Nowadays we have many different construction-work vehicles such as bulldozers, cranes, excavators, cement mixers and many more. Egyptians build the pyramids by man work for 20 years when we can now finish them with less than an year. Besides reducing time they have improved our health. Many of the slaves in Egyptian times have either died because of over forcing their bodies by lifting heavy weights and working for hours under the hot sun or have had health problems. Technology has improved human health in many ways. Thanks to technology now we don’t have to eat raw and rotten food. There are ovens and microwaves to cook it and freezers to prevent it from becoming rotten. Everything we eat and drink is sterilized due to very powerful high technological equipment, therefore enhancing our life conditions.

Louis Pasteur and Robert Koch were the first ones, in the 19th century, to discover that some diseases were caused by microbes. Today, not even can we identify disease organisms, we can also cure them and vaccinate against them. Sicknesses such as measles and chickenpox used to be deadly and had no cure. When an epidemic struck it wiped out a huge number of people. They are no more threats to humans. Although there are still diseases which scientists have yet not found a cure for, different products have been produced to prevent it. For example: there is no cure for skin cancer, but sunscreen has been invented to prevent it.

Human hygiene is important. It reduces the risk of germs getting into our organism. The basics of hygiene and public health are taught at early age. Now people know it is very important to wash our hands as frequently as we can, have a regular bath, brush our teeth at least twice a day and disinfect any cuts we get on our bodies. People now know the fundamentals of health care. They know which foods are healthy and which are not. They know it is important to exercise to have a healthier body and live longer.

People are living longer. Now they are self cautious about their health and have learned a lot from their ancestors’ mistakes. Due to the theory of evolution their brains have enlarged and with it come special technological equipment, perfected medicines and hospitals and knowledge of which things are good for their health and which are bad. They have a more developed mind so we can easily say knowledge makes life greater!

TOEFL Practice Week 2 - Ledio 9B

No.18-What are some important qualities of a good supervisor (boss)? Use specific reasons to develop your essay.

A boss is a leader and as important as this place is as difficult it is. To become a boss you must have some specific qualities, which are essential. First of all you must be responsible and you must take total responsibility about your actions, because from your decisions depends also the fate of other people. You have to be serious and very hard-working. You must be very ambitious and have the ability to keep your group united as a whole body. You have to accept different opinions of the members of your group and always praise those who are more hard-working within your group.

To become a boss is only half of the way of a real leader the second part is how you lead your group. What are your ambitions with this team? To be a successful boss you must be ready to take your team to the top. A successful boss can’t exist without a successful team and a successful team can’t exist without a successful boss. The boss is the one to plan a good strategy that his team has to follow in order to become successful. A true boss must never give up until he has seen victory in every battle that he does with his team, if he fails in his duty, the team itself will be a failure and he will be destroyed and another one will take his place.

The war for competition never forgives. The success of a team depends upon the skills of the members of the team and from the direct abilities of the boss. The boss must organize his team in a very accurate way before identifying a target and starting a new battle. He has to calculate every chance and he must never retreat. A true leader has to be ready to make the impossible possible if that is necessary. To make this happen he has to break a record that has never been broken. He must never be afraid to get to the top and he must have decided to do this although there may be many hard battles to get there.

A leader must be ready to sacrifice for the sake of victory. He has to know what has to be done to take victory in his hands. As in chess, it isn’t enough a good heart, a true leader must use his mind. Nothing is got without sacrificing something. The road to the top is full of harsh battles, where you have to struggle to take the victory and sometimes you’re forced to make some very hard choices, upon which the whole fate of the victory may depend.

We see that today everyone cares just for himself and for nobody else. Everyone struggles for survival, to be a boss nowadays you need to be a survivor and to be a survivor you must always win. Nobody will have mercy for you or pity you. A true boss has always to finish his work. He must never be lazy or retreat in his duties. He has always to be active. He must always check how much his team has advanced, how far his team is from the final goal, has he to make himself and his team work harder. The boss always works harder than anybody else. A boss must always point higher and higher until he has reached the final goal.

The Top Ten Student Essay Writing Errors, by Jessica Tiffin

Jessica Tiffin wrote out these excellent pointers for students in their essay writing techniques and skills. Jessica graphically shows the right and wrong approach. Follow Jessicas introduction and go to her example page...

"I spend a lot of time marking essays and writing comments, and a large proportion of that time and effort is spent on grammatical and stylistic errors. I keep threatening to have rubber stamps made for the more common ones, which underlines the sad fact that an awful lot of these errors are common to an awful lot of students.

"This checklist, then, is an attempt to proactively treat your essay: if you look through this list and make a serious effort to avoid the errors it contains, I'll have a lot more time to look at the content of your work, your argument and insight, rather than mechanistic mistakes. This will not only make me a lot happier, it will also give you a better chance to improve your essay-writing. It will also improve your mark: you are penalised for grammatical errors in an English essay. Writing correct English makes everyone happier, especially you. And you can feel the warm glow of pride which says you are not part of that awful horde of students whose abuse of the innocent apostrophe is hastening my decline...

1. Poor page layout and paragraphing.
2. Plagiarism.
3. Incorrect referencing.
4. Contractions, abbreviations and slang.
5. Incomplete sentences.
6. Spelling errors and word misuse.
7. Unformatted titles.
8. Incorrect use of apostrophes.
9. its/it's
10. "that of"

Top Twenty Essay Mistakes

Here are the twenty MOST COMMON writing mistakes students make. Each mistake is linked to examples and the 'correct way' to write the offending passage. To help you better understand the conventions of academic and professional writing, we have identified the twenty error patterns (other than misspelling) most common among U.S. college students and list them here in order of frequency. These twenty errors are likely to cause you the most trouble, so it is well worth your effort to check for them in your writing. Click on each error listed to see brief explanations and examples of each error pattern.

1. Missing comma after an introductory element
2. Vague pronoun reference
3. Missing comma in a compound sentence
4. Wrong word
5. Missing comma(s) with a nonrestrictive element
6. Wrong or missing verb ending
7. Wrong or missing preposition
8. Comma splice
9. Missing or misplaced possessive apostrophe
10. Unnecessary shift in tense
11. Unnecessary shift in pronoun
12. Sentence fragment
13. Wrong tense or verb form
14. Lack of subject-verb agreement
15. Missing comma in a series
16. Lack of agreement between pronoun and antecedent
17. Unnecessary comma(s) with a restrictive element
18. Fused sentence
19. Misplaced or dangling modifier
20. Its/It's confusion

TOEFL Instructions Weeks 3 and 4

Now that we have practiced reading and writing the essays it is time to focus in on the actual requirements of 'how to answer' a TOEFL essay question. I therefore remind you to look first at 'What type of Essay is it?' There are six types of TOEFL essays...

1. Choose a point of view and support that view.
2. Describe something.
3. Compare two points of view and tell which one you agree with.
4. Agree or disagree with something
5. Explain why something is true.
6. Support and idea or plan.

Each has a unique style and each needs to be answered very carefully. I recommend you return to the previous posting 'TOEFL Essay Writing Tips' where there are clear instructions on the 'How To' aspect of answering the essay. Also our posting on 'How to write an essay.'

In week 3 we will have unlimited time to complete the essay and provide the brainstorming as well as rough draft copies. However in week 4 we will narrow the time significantly to the one class period - 40 minutes.

In week 5 we will run our last practice, hand written essay and then in week 6 take the online demonstration in the computer laboratory.

TOEFL Essay Week 2 - Xhoia Y9B

 

Some people think they can learn better by themselves than with a teacher, some do not. My opinion is that both these things are true, so each of them has some particular reasons for agreement or disagreement. These are the things I would like to present to you today and to talk about. I’m here to tell you the reasons why I agree with them both.

I think that with a good teacher near you can gain extra info. He can add things to make it sound easier. But, some students can take that extra information from other books, from Internet or other sources. So they don’t need a teacher to give them this kind of info. There are also some teachers that can’t give extra info too. In this case it is better not to have a teacher, because he would make things more difficult.

A good teacher is always beside you to explain you the lessons with fewer words so you can understand them better and faster. So, the presence of a teacher can make a lot of people feel more secure and calm. But, there are always some people that do not like to have someone close because that makes them feel nervous. In this case a teacher would be the wrong decision because the teacher’s job is to make the student understand something and create a strong relationship teacher-student.

In a book you can find things you don’t understand. That’s why teachers exist. We know that we can find that thing easily through the internet, but that’s not the same. An excellent teacher can take that thing you didn’t understand, and transform it into a few words and make you think “was it really that easy??”. Some students find it hard to pay teachers, but you can also find teachers who don’t accept payments.

So, these were my opinions for this difficult choice. I hope you enjoyed reading my essay. Thanks!!!

 

TOEFL Practice Essay - Week 1 - Silvester Y11

1. Your government has announced that it wishes to build a military base near your community. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of this new influence on your community. Do you support or oppose the military base.

I would personally support the idea that a military base is due to build in my community. The military base would have many advantages for the local community. One reason why I think the military base should be build is because it will provide jobs and revenue to the local residence. Second, we may get a sense of identity that reaches far beyond the community. This are some reasons why I believe the military base must be build in my community.

The military base will provide jobs and increase our community’s revenue. This means that there will be less jobless people and that there will be a higher sense of security in the region. The military base would be available at all times in case of an emergency providing us with the protection we need. This is one reason as to why I support the construction of a military base in my community.

Another reason why I support the construction of a military in my community is because we may get a sense of identity which shall reach far beyond the community. The base may have an important role and achieve an accomplishment which may give us a sense of identity and even a place in history. Many military bases such as the Mexican military base have achieved victories in history. This is another reason why I support the construction of the base.

Finally, the military base shall provide our community with jobs and maybe a place in history. So why should we not give it a try and help our community to achieve a victory on our economic and our vanity?

TOEFL practice essay ~ Week 2 ~ Alba H 9A

Technology has expanded so much in the last couple of decades. Lots of new things have been invented and lots of other things have been improved. They all have one thing in common; all technology is used to help make our lives easier. The telephone lets us communicate in the comfort of our homes and cell phones let us communicate when we’re on the go and don’t have time. Lastly, and I think, most importantly, the Internet. Internet lets us communicate on different sides of the world. It educates us on many levels. It even helps us with the skills that we need in daily life. So, is the invention of the internet a positive or negative thing for our civilization?

Internet is a positive aspect to our civilization. Internet helps us with many different things. For example, it is rigorously used for research! Many students use it for information for essays, homework or projects. It is the number one dictionary in the world. You would need all the dictionaries in the world to even come close to the internet resources. Also, the internet helps you with your computer skills. This is very helpful in ordinary life. Most jobs require you to know your way around a computer. It is also very helpful for entrepreneurs that want to start a new business. They can learn how to make their own web pages!

Unfortunately, the Internet has many negatives as well. Most people, who use the Internet, are not using it for the proper reasons. Many men and women get addicted to online things, such as: gambling, pornography, and even violence. By violence I mean guns, knives and other weaponry. Most even get addicted to the internet, and stay on for hours at a time! For example, online chats and messenger! This isn’t a very good thing for your eyes! The more you stare at the screen the worse it looks! Your vision starts to go down hill from here! Also, another negative for internet is pirating. A lot of pirating is done through the internet. Also, plagiarism, which is against the law but most have done it anyway's!

So, the internet has its positives and negatives. The internet is very helpful for education, research and information. Also, it improves your computer skills, which are needed for daily life. At the same time it’s not so great because many vile things are done online. For example, plagiarism and gambling! The internet is both good and bad! Both sides are important! You can never have the good with the bad! So, internet is very important for our civilization! Technology has changed so much and it will continue to change dramatically! Changing our society and our lives one day at a time!

TOEFL Practice Essay - Week 2 - Iris Y. 11

15. Neighbours are the people who live near us. In your opinion, what are the qualities of a good neighbour? Use specific details and examples in your answer.

In our traditional culture neighbours are the people who can help you when you don't have sugar or watch the house when you leave. I love my neighbours and I would never change them for anything.

Its not always such a perfect relationship. Sometimes when you want to be alone and relax there is a knock on the door and a neighbour feels lonely. You want to sleep and they are loud. You want to have a party and again a knock on the door saying you can't. Yet in times when you need them they are there to help you, feed you, watch you and hopefully if they are smart neighbours give you advice.

Never underestimate the power of neighbours. Never undervalue their strength. Keep a close relationship, say hello and you will all have a healthy relationship. In my personal experience I have always loved my neighbours. They helped me when I needed them, stayed with me when I was alone and fed me when there was nothing to eat. Of course like all neighbours she gossiped about those who she didn't like, sometimes she would not like the way I dressed or the friends I had.

Even though your neighbours might not be on the same page as you, they are still in the same book. 'Good fences make good neighbours', I absolutely disagree.

TOEFL practice essay Week 2 ~ Irene Y11

15. Neighbors are the people who live near us. In your opinion, what are the qualities of a good neighbor? Use specific details and examples in your answer.

Neighbours are some people that you cannot really avoid having unless you live in the middle of the countryside or on a desert island. You cannot choose them and of course you have to have a good relationship with them, because one day you may be alone and need someones help. The can be there for you, just because they are very close to you. If your neighbours are good, you are very lucky, but if the do not you may suffer.

Most neighbours are very annoying, because they have nothing else to do than gossip and judge everything you do and have, especially if they are old ladies that do not have any other interesting activities. For example in my case, my neighbour is a lady who always sees and examines us from head to toe. She knows our schedule and if one day we don't follow it she starts asking us different strange questions that most of the times frustrate us and drive us crazy, but we try to be calm because we have to keep good relations with our neighbours and every malignant person.

Sometimes bad neighbours cause you a lot of trouble without even thinking about the consequences of their actions. In my previous apartment in Greece, I used to have the best neighbours anyone can have and I strongly believe and support them. They were the most benign people I have ever met. They were a family with two children, a boy my brother's age and a girl my age. We were very close to them, exactly like we were siblings. Every single hour we were together. The doors of our houses were never closed so that we could enter each other's homes very quickly and without ringing the bell.

We used to share everything, our toys, our clothes, our food, everything from the smallest thing to the most important one. Nora, my neighbour, was definitely my best friend, but I actually felt like was my sister. We have grown up together and as a result we have the same style, the same haircut, the same tastes. We will never forget each other no matter where we live or with whom, we will always be a part of each other's life.

As a conclusion, we can say that our neighbours may become part of our lives. But they have to fulfill some qualities, like offering love, and help. By this you can both be happy and not afraid of the people living next door.

TOEFL practice essay ~ Irene Y11

Topic: How does advertising influence people’s behavior? Use reasons and specific examples to support your answers.

Scientists and many other people believe that advertising has revolutionized our technology, but I personally am in a dilemma, because I strongly believe and can support that advertising has both advantages as well as many disadvantages.

The role of the advertisement is supposed to be to inform people of new products or services and their functions. They helps people become aware of what is available. But, unfortunately for us advertising is full of half truths and lies. In order to make people buy their products, firms use different ways.

First of all, people buy things that they don’t really need, just because they advertise them it doesn’t mean that they are better than products that are not being advertised and these products may be better and are obviously cheaper. Advertising influences our psychology and it affects us all day every day. We try to spend as much as we can afford and this leads to over consuming.

Advertising attracts more children and women because they are more flexible and vulnerable and in the case of children innocent, and they stay more hours at home watching TV. Children watch the new toys; they get excited and they want to have them without looking at the other toys. In the case of women, they watch the new machines that theoretically help them to do their housework and they think that these can make their life easier, so as a result the buy them.

Secondly, advertisements are very annoying to me, because they interrupt you while you are watching your program and most of the times they last more than the program itself. Advertising is also full of sexist stereotypes, because instead of focusing on the product, they use women as objects to draw attention.

According to me advertising is a great advantage for a company that wants to promote it’s products and of course competition between companies. In my opinion, we should have other aims in our lives from buying whatever we see, because in this way we are going to suffer from over consuming. But, of course we should never forget that advertisements carry advantages too.

TOEFL practice essay - Marco Y 10

Some people think that they can learn better by themselves than with a teacher. Others think that it is always better to have a teacher. Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons to develop your essay.

Learning takes place everywhere and anytime, in fact, you start learning when you are just a little kid, for example, you learn that fire burns after you get burnt, you learn from your experiences. There are plenty of things to learn both in school and outside of school, in school you learn necessary things such as writing or reading or any other subject that is needed to take part in society.

After elementary school there are more difficult schools which teach you how to think or to see things not just as a name someone has given them. These are advanced schools and are always based more on philosophy, these things that I’ve mentioned are necessary to get a good job and earn good money.

However, things learned outside school are needed to survive in the ‘real’ world, because, for example, if you don’t know that a knife can cut then you’ll probably cut your self badly one day.
There are kids that from the moment of their birth have had everything they have wanted and they have never had to make any effort to earn the things they have wanted. These people sometimes do not study much at school, they are sheltered from life because of their status and their families position and money. Sometimes their life is secluded from the ‘real’ world the rest of us live in. In some cases they don’t have any life experience and so it will be much harder for them to get a job because they have never had to work.

Those people who have been pretty much on their own will be more likely to get a job if they studied. They know how to survive. I think you should have both a school education and out of school knowledge, so that you have a complete education. This prepares you to find a job and have life’s lessons, so you do not lose your job. I think they both are very important and as I have explained, we should have them both.

TOEFL Practice essay - Franklie Y 11

Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: 'Universities should give the same amount of money to their student;s sports activities as they give to their university libraries. Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion.

It is my dream to go to college and get a sport scholarship as a soccer player. Today the importance of sports has reached high levels compared to the years before. I believe that sport is knowledge just like reading. Colleges have to give the same amount of money not only to a library but also to sports.

Sport has evolved with humans. Its importance is not minimal; vice versa it is more than entertainment. It is a culture that makes each state be accentuated in the eyes of the world. There is no objection that books are what make us understand the past and the present. They are what make us smart. They are truly important.

I prefer sports and hope that one day the same amount of money given to the library would be given for sports.

This is Franklie's first attempt at a TOEFL essay.

TOEFL Practice Essay 1 - Enis Y 10

3. Nowadays, with the invention of the microwave and with the popularity of fast food restaurants, food has become easier to prepare than ever. Do you think microwave ovens and fast food restaurants are beneficial to society? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.

In time, there is no doubt that technology has developed and changed. In terms of that, the technology for our food has developed as well. Many people can now warm their meals in a matter of seconds. Also, fast food has had a major effect on the entire population of the quickness that they make it.

This can be good for society because the meals are made fast either with microwave or fast food. They offer convenient choices that will be a time-saver for the people who work a lot. The quickness may be good but what people consider the most is the taste. Fast food is made very tasty, compared to other home-made food. The appeal to the taste and the speed in which it is made are the factors that influence people to buy these food items. Also, microwaves are used for heating food that has gotten cold already so this is a handy device to have around the house.

Although they may have their good sides, they also have a share of bad ones. Let’s start with fast food. It is made quickly and tastes delicious but you have to take into consideration, how much fat it contains. Eating to much can get you much fatter and it also contains trans-fatty acids. Trans-fatty acids are fats that are bad for the body. Normal fat isn’t that harmful because the normal body needs a little fat but trans fat is very dangerous fat that is bad for your body. It is also expensive, compared to homemade food. The only person you can trust is yourself so you don’t even know what they put in your food. It’s a mystery. Now, let’s move on to the microwave. The microwave is used to warm cold meals but does everyone know that the UV rays it uses take away all the health from the food leaving just bad things for you.

In conclusion, they may have some good things but with the disadvantages it could be risky for your health. Although convenient, it is not right to say it’s beneficial for society since it has such a health hazard.

TOEFL practice - Marshella 9A

6. If you could change one important thing about your country, what would you change? Use reasons and specific examples to support your answer.

It is such a mysterious situation. On the outside it seems simple and easily solvable, but in the other side, there lies a huge world of reasons, where nothing happens. What makes a country successful? Many people think it is all about power, some think it is about reputation or money. Some have it wrong but are too stubborn to admit – set in their ways, locked in tradition, others just don't think about it. I think differently. These thoughts travel all along. It is the different opinions people have, that take this question to a discussion. My opinions and my ideas to this discussion began their way of developing starting from my country, Albania.

What’s wrong with it? This confusion in my mind seems to translate into various reasons and a coherence to understand what’s going on, what is the virus, the reason why all the troubles spread. I believe they all have the same mother. They develop together causing trouble everywhere around them. It is all about the psychology of humans. Their characters were sometime too weak to manage reality. In order to win what people fight for, money, people started using every way possible to get it.

Fortune and goods turned into a disease which infected people’s minds and turning them into destructive creatures. If we would put a name to what passes into people's minds it would be a variety of words expressing simply the bad, evil, anger, fear, ego, eager for power and money. These are all factors which make up ‘sophisticated’ people now a days.

This works just like a chain, so strong and unbreakable that it is able to be inherited generation after generation. And that is how the walls of the castle keep falling down into pieces, until someone brave appears and fixes it. In such occasions lays our hope, since it is the key to rebuild the precious segments of life, the things that stand on top of everything which we have to deify and use to free our souls. Such things are called virtues and live amongst us but many times are imprisoned inside people's bodies. Once freed these make up a kind and gentle person. These are the people I would like to have in my country right now, people who know what freedom is all about, people who are just born to make something in life.

Now a difficult battle lies in front of us, the most difficult of all, the castle has to be rebuilt but the price will be much bigger than once earned. The way we have to follow, will secretly be appeared each time we win a lesson. But yet the philosophy in this is so big, astonishing and valuable, standing on top of a cliff waiting for time to bring visitors.

A little difficult to follow along with at times yet the idea is there and Marshella's passion is clearly stated. This was Marshella's first attempt at a TOEFL essay.