Writing Templates for the New TOEFL iBT® Test (2026): Email and Academic Discussion, with Sample Answers

In short

• The Writing section has three tasks in about 23 minutes: ten Build a Sentence items, one email in 7 minutes, and one academic discussion post in 10 minutes.
• The email has to do three specific things the prompt lists. The discussion post should give and support your opinion; ETS says an effective one has at least 100 words.
• Both are scored 0–5 against ETS's scoring guides, which reward clear elaboration, varied sentences, precise words, and few errors, and mark down language borrowed from the prompt.
• A template is a skeleton for organizing your ideas fast, not filler to memorize. Below are one for each task, with a time plan and a sample answer.

Write an Email

What you get

A short situation, a recipient, and three bullet points that start "In your email, do the following": for example, say what you like about something, describe a problem, and ask a question. The To and Subject lines are filled in, and the directions say to write as much as you can, in complete sentences, in 7 minutes (from ETS's practice test).

What scores well

• All three bullet points covered, each with a detail or reason, not just a sentence.
• The right tone for the reader: polite and clear for a professor, an editor, or an office; relaxed for a friend. ETS's guide calls this using "appropriate social conventions".
• Requests and questions phrased the way people really write them.

Phrases worth having ready

Time plan: 7 minutes

• 1 minute: read the situation and the three bullets, and note one detail for each.
• 5 minutes: write, one short paragraph per bullet.
• 1 minute: check that every bullet is there, and fix typos.

A sample, with our own prompt

You signed up for a weekend photography workshop at the campus arts center. The center has moved it to Saturday morning, when you have a lab class. Write to the organizer, Ms. Rivera: explain why you signed up, describe the problem the new time causes, and ask about your options.

Each bullet gets its own paragraph and a concrete detail (biology field notes, a required lab from 9 to 12), and the request offers two options and a fallback.

Write for an Academic Discussion

What you get

A professor's question for an online class discussion, and posts from two classmates with different views. You write your own post in 10 minutes, expressing and supporting your opinion in your own words. ETS's directions say an effective response contains at least 100 words.

What scores well

• A clear position in the first sentence.
• A reason the classmates didn't already give, explained with an example or detail. Repeating their points adds nothing to the discussion.
• A sentence that engages with what a classmate said.
• Your own words: the scoring guide marks down language mostly borrowed from the prompt.

Time plan: 10 minutes

• 1½ minutes: read the question and both posts; note what each classmate argued.
• 1 minute: choose your side and a reason they didn't use, plus one example.
• 6 minutes: write 110–140 words.
• 1½ minutes: reread, vary repeated words, fix errors.

A sample, with our own prompt

Professor: Many universities are thinking about replacing printed textbooks with digital ones in every course. Should universities switch to digital textbooks only? Mina: Yes. Digital books cost less, and I can search them in seconds. Daniel: I'm not sure. I concentrate much better with a printed book.

The post takes a side at once, adds a new reason (fairness) with a specific example, builds on one classmate, answers the other, and ends with a one-line conclusion.

Build a Sentence: what to know

• Each item starts with a line of conversation, and you put words and phrases in order to answer it. You have about 6 minutes for all ten: the section is about 23 minutes, and the other two tasks take 17.
• Many items in ETS's practice test are indirect questions, such as "Can you tell me when the library closes?" After the question word, use statement order (subject, then verb), not "when does the library close".
• Some items give you one word more than you need, such as both "was" and "were". Pick the one that agrees with the subject.
• The punctuation at the end tells you whether you're building a question or a statement.

Mistakes that cost points

• Skipping one of the email's three bullet points.
• Copying sentences from the prompt or the classmates' posts.
• A memorized opening that doesn't fit the topic, which uses up time and adds nothing.
• The wrong tone: texting style to a professor, or stiff formal language to a friend.
• Running out of time before the last bullet or the conclusion. Practice with a clock.

Get your writing scored

Templates only help once you've practiced them under time pressure and seen how your answers score. On MockPrep, every email and discussion post is scored on the 1–6 scale against detailed rubrics, with feedback on what to fix, minutes after you finish, and your first full mock test is free. Use it with the one-month study plan.