2018年1月27日&28日托福写作预测

1. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Government should offer free Internet access to all citizens. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.

　　Smartphones, tablets and other kinds of electronic devices with Internet access have become indispensable in our daily life, thanks to the rapid development of science and technology. Users, the young adults in particular, demand access to Internet anywhere. Moreover, some people even suggest that it is the government’s duty to offer free Internet access to all citizens. However, I find this proposal inadvisable.

　　First of all, the fact that we can no longer part with Internet does not necessarily mean the government should provide free access to all citizens. More often than not, we can easily obtain free Internet access from other sources. It is not unusual to find free Wi-Fi spots or cable network set up by commercial purveyors such as office buildings, shopping malls and restaurants. It is certainly not necessary for the government to cover these places. Also, many telecommunication companies offer packages which already cover the Internet cost. Naturally, users of these services will not ask for any governmental support. Besides, itseems that the older generation are not as addicted to Internet as the younger one, so in communities full of senior citizens, the demand for free Internet access from the government is also not urgent.

　　Even if thegovernment wants to offer free Internet access, doing so would cost too much. Internet access, either wireless or wired, would require immense investment, if the government wish to cover the whole population. Some countries, such as Russia, China and the USA, cover a huge area of land, with people living inremote areas far away from the cities. It would certainly cost much to build base stations or set up cables to all these areas so as to enable the residents there to enjoy free Internet access. The billions of dollars could have been more wisely-used in other sectors that are more vital to the country. Also, building the facilities is only the first step, and there will always be the continuous maintenance to the facilities, and that will never be offset by thefee charged from the users.

　　Finally, users may be disappointed to find that their benefits are impaired because the increased cost will be passed on to them in the form of tax. In this way, what they have longed—to save money—will fail to be met, if not completely reversed. As we all know, the government budget comes from various taxes collected fromall citizens. Normally, people can choose the type of Internet access in accordance with their own income level. However, if the government should beleft to impose higher taxes, the low-income group will find it most unsatisfactory and even unfair since the added tax may even exceed the expenseon Internet access. Similarly, the users who cannot receive stable signal orspeed may also complain about the situation and feel cheated. To avoid dissatisfaction of these people, the government should think twice before taking the initiative.

　　In conclusion, despite the indispensability of the Internet, the government doesnot have to provide all its citizens with free access to the Internet, considering the lack of need, the high cost and the potential complaint the general public.

　　2. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: some people think that the most important quality in choosing the leader of a school organization or club is honesty.

　　In today’s schools and universities, student organizations are playing more and more important role in students’ campus life. When choosing a leader in student organization, some people believe that the most important quality is honesty. However, the most important quality for a student leader, I believe, is to provide his or her team members with opportunities to express their opinions. If necessary, a leader should change his or her opinions as well.

　　Admittedly, being honest could benefit student organizations’ work because the team members tend to trust the leader, which could result in a strong leadership and smooth teamwork. However, compared to honesty, a leader’s willingness to accept others’ opinions and to change when they make wrong decisions are much more important for the following reasons.

　　First of all, a student leader’s primary task is to stimulate and motivate his or her peer to come up with creative ideas, which benefit teamwork to a large extent. In student organizations, most tasks require teamwork where everyone in the team needs to contribute. The role of a leader is to stimulate all his or her team members to express their opinions rather than to become a dictator who make every decision on his or her own. In order to motivate the team members, a leader should not only create an atmosphere that everyone could feel free to speak up but also respect the thoughts of his or her peers.

　　Moreover, it happens that sometimes the leader’s decision could be wrong and will exert negative influence on the team’s work. As everyone knows, no one is perfect and people do make mistakes. If a leader hold strong opinions that might result in setbacks, and he or she refuses to change, the whole team’s project will be affected by his or her dictation. As a result, the team members will become reluctant to contribute to the team and might even quit the current job for a better one. On the contrary, if the leader is humble enough to change their opinions and listen to others’ suggestions, the team could avoid future loss.

　　As I have read from an article published online, “decision making is when the leader gives up ownership and control of a decision and allows the group to vote”. This is not only true in business and politics but also in student organizations. A student leader should encourage his or her colleagues to actively participate in the decision-making process, and should change their opinions when it is necessary, which are more important than being honest.

　　3.  A high school has decided that all students must take a class in which they learn a practical skill. School administrators are trying to decide whether to hold a class in cooking, managing personal finances or auto repair. Which do you think the school should require students to take? Why?

　　In my home country, the curricula in high schools are extremely intense for students. Many high school students are under great pressure at school, and they might feel stressed out if one more required course is added to the busy schedule. However, if they have to choose one course to take, I believe that a cooking class is better than a personal financial management class or auto repair class, because a cooking class could benefit students in different ways.

　　To begin with, a cooking class could provide students with opportunities to relax and escape from intense academic study for a while. In a cooking class, students neither need to read lots of materials nor to solve complicated mathematic problems. What they need to do is to follow the chef’s instructions and learn how to serve delicious dishes. Moreover, students could cooperate and communicate with each other during the process of cooking. By working cooperatively with their peers, students could learn more about their classmates and thus become friends with each other, which is almost impossible in classrooms where students are forbidden to discuss in my home country. Thus, a cooking class could help students relax in a pleasant atmosphere.

　　Another advantage of cooking class is that the skill of cooking could benefits students in a long run. In the future, some high students might choose to enter colleges or universities in their home country, whereas others will choose to study abroad. It is possible that many of them will relocate to a new city and live in apartments with roommates. If those students have learned how to cook during high school, they could cook by themselves, and treat their friends with delicious dishes when they have time. In this way, the students could save a lot of money because they do not have to eat outside in restaurants that are usually more expensive than cooking at home. Moreover, the students’ friends would appreciate a lot being invited to their places and served with mouth watering dishes. Hence, a cooking class could benefit students even after their graduation.

　　Compared with a cooking class, a personal financial management course would be too boring because students still need to sit in classrooms and complete difficult tasks. As for an auto-repair course, students might find it dangerous because they need to use tools that they are not familiar with to repair cars. Furthermore, in order to open an auto-repair course, high schools need to spend a lot of money purchasing vehicles and equipment. I am afraid that the administration offices in high schools are not fond of this idea.

　　Based on the above discussion, a cooking class could benefit students in that they could relieve the pressure from academic learning, and could utilize the skill of cooking in the future.