Preparing for the New TOEFL Writing (2026)―How to Study Effectively

New TOEFL Writing Format

As of January 21, 2026, the TOEFL will undergo a major revision. Although the test format has been adjusted several times in the past, this update represents the most substantial overhaul to date. Writing is also significantly affected by this revision.

Under the new format, the Writing section consists of three parts:

• Build a Sentence
• Write an Email
• Write for an Academic Discussion

The final task, Write for an Academic Discussion, follows a question style that is similar to the traditional TOEFL Writing task. However, the first two tasks introduce entirely new formats that require different approaches.

Because the Writing section has changed significantly, it is important to adopt study strategies tuned to each of these tasks. The good news is that, with proper preparation, these three question types are generally more achievable than those in other sections.

In the following sections, we will explain why this is the case and how you can prepare effectively for each task.

Below is a brief overview of the differences between the traditional and the new TOEFL Writing sections.

Part 1: Build a Sentence

The difficulties for Part 1 depends on one’s grammatical proficiency. Until the new TOEFL writing format, examinees’ grammar knowledge was not directly measured. Though they were required to compose writings grammatically, explicit understanding of grammar was not required.

However, since you have to arrange a list of words in grammatical order in Part 1, you must familiarize yourself with basic grammar.

Here is a question that you may see in Build a Sentence part.

Move the words to create grammatical sentences.
---
Prompt: The project would have been canceled without the grant.

Had it not been for .

---
they / last-minute / funding / secured / the
---

Time's up

Most of the difficult grammar questions in Part 1 are designed so that you can’t achieve consistent accuracy by relying solely on intuition. Intuition works fine when dealing with sentence patterns you have encountered before, but it’s far less reliable when you face unfamiliar sentence structures.

This is why broad and accurate grammatical knowledge plays an important role. Even if you have never seen a particular sentence structure before, a solid understanding of grammar allows you to construct a grammatically correct sentence.

Why Simple Repetitive Drilling Is Not Effective

So, how should you prepare for Writing Part 1 questions on the TOEFL?

First, it is essential to identify your grammatical strengths and weaknesses and plan your study accordingly. For this reason, you should use study materials for Writing Part 1 that offer clear and reliable grammatical explanations alongside practice questions.

Materials that provide little or no grammatical explanation force you to rely on intuition when answering questions. As a result, repeated practice with such materials rarely leads to consistent improvement.

Understanding Your Grammatical Weaknesses Matters

Grammar areas you are already comfortable with do not require extensive review. In most cases, if a particular grammar point is truly solid, you are unlikely to make mistakes on it during the actual test.

Instead, your study time should be directed toward grammar areas you find difficult. Focusing intensively on these weaker points is the most effective way to improve accuracy and overall performance.

Part 2: Write an Email

In this part, you are asked to write an email based on a specific situation. For example, you may need to send feedback to your colleague about his or her workshop a week earlier. Questions of this type typically follow a set format, as shown below.

You will read some information and use the information to write an email. You will have 7 minutes to write the email.

---

Your coworker, Lisa, organized a remote training session for your department last week. The session was meant to introduce a new project management tool. However, several team members experienced technical problems during the session, and the content was more basic than expected.

You need to inform Lisa about the situation and suggest how future training sessions could be improved.

Write an email to Lisa. In your email, do the following:

• Explain the problems that occurred during the training session.
• Describe how the team felt about the session overall.
• Suggest specific improvements for future training sessions.

Write as much as you can and in complete sentences.

Your Response:
To: Lisa
Subject: Feedback on the Recent Training Session

Though the official scoring criteria have not been publicly announced, the following aspects are likely to be considered for evaluation:

• use of an appropriate email format
• level of formality suitable for the relationship
• accuracy of vocabulary and grammar
• overall structure and clarity

Among these criteria, applying the correct email format can be particularly challenging for test takers who are not used to writing formal emails.

For example, when the recipient is not a specific individual but a department or office, it is appropriate to choose a formal, neutral opening. In such cases, starting the email with “To whom it may concern” is acceptable. Also, if you know at least which department or group is responsible, a more specific greeting such as “Dear Customer Support Team,” is preferable. Both expressions are formal and polite.

Understanding these email-specific conventions is essential for performing well on this part.

Create Email Templates Based on Common Situations

Since you will have only 7 minutes to complete this task, trying to decide on structure and expressions during the exam is risky. Instead, it is far more effective to prepare a few reliable email templates in advance.

Fortunately, the range of situations presented in Writing Part 2 is fairly limited. You don’t need to memorize dozens of templates. Most prompts fall into a small number of common scenarios, such as the following.

• Writing to colleagues about ways to improve an event held earlier
• Writing to colleagues or peers about an upcoming event
• Writing a formal email to inquire about a specific issue

Although each prompt includes slightly different details, the overall structure of the situation is usually simple. Remember that you have only 7 minutes to complete this task, so the scenarios are designed to be straightforward rather than complex.

Example: Inquiry about a Specific Issue

My suggestion is to prepare template structures for each of the three common situations, with a particular focus on overall organization.

For example, suppose you need to send an inquiry to a hotel about an online reservation because you didn’t receive a confirmation email after booking. If you have already prepared a template like the one below, you can slash the time needed to compose the message during the exam.

For inquiry emails, a clear and effective structure usually follows this order:

1. a brief introduction explaining the purpose and context of the email
2. a clear description of the issue
3. a polite request for assistance or resolution

To: XX
Subject: OO

To whom it may concern,

My name is Joe Smith, and I recently booked a room for January 21 through your online reservation system. According to the system, a confirmation email should be sent within six hours. However, I have not yet received any confirmation. Could you please check whether my reservation has been successfully processed?

(continues based on a prompt)…

Best regards,
Joe

The underlined portion of the passage is largely template-based, which means you can reuse it as long as it fits the given situation.

Part 3: Write for an Academic Discussion

This task is very similar to the writing task found in the traditional TOEFL. In this part, you are asked to write a response to a professor’s question as part of an academic discussion. Below is an example of the discussion format used in the TOEFL.

A professor has posted a question about a topic, and students have responded with their thoughts and ideas.
Make a contribution to the discussion.

You will have 10 minutes to write.

Your professor is teaching a class on environmental science.
Write a post responding to the professor’s question.

In your response, you should do the following:

• Express and support your opinion.
• Make a contribution to the discussion in your own words.

An effective response will contain at least 100 words.

—

Professor

Today we will discuss the most effective ways to reduce plastic waste. Many people argue that individual actions, such as recycling and reducing personal plastic use, are the key to solving this problem. Others believe that large-scale government regulations and corporate responsibility play a more significant role.
Which approach do you think is more effective in reducing plastic waste? Why?

---

Student 1

I think individual actions are extremely important when it comes to reducing plastic waste. When people consciously choose reusable bags, bottles, and containers, the overall demand for plastic decreases. These daily habits also raise awareness and encourage others to change their behavior.

---

Student 2

In my opinion, government regulations and corporate responsibility have a greater impact. Large companies produce massive amounts of plastic, so policy changes and stricter regulations can reduce waste on a much larger scale than individual efforts alone.

In this section as well, you will have only 10 minutes to complete the task. Preparing a clear template structure in advance is therefore key to success.

Three Patterns of Academic Discussion

In most cases, a professor’s question in an academic discussion falls into one of three patterns:

• Agree or disagree
• Which do you prefer: A or B?
• Open-ended questions

Among these, the third type is relatively rare on the exam. It has appeared only occasionally in recent TOEFL administrations in 2025, so focusing on the first two patterns is a more effective and time-efficient approach.

Think About Template Structures and Practical Expressions

Again, because you have very limited time to plan your response during the exam, preparing template structures and practical, high-scoring expressions in advance is essential.

For example, in “agree vs. disagree” or “A vs. B” question types, you can begin your response with a contrastive conjunction such as “although.” Starting with a conjunction like this allows you to present a balanced view while clearly stating your position from the beginning.

Although many people believe that using paper straws in fast-food restaurants helps reduce CO₂ emissions, the overall impact on the environment is likely to be limited.

Using this type of structure in the opening sentence is effective because it highlights your main idea clearly and aligns well with the official criteria used in TOEFL Writing.

You Do Not Have to Address Other Students’ Opinions

Finally, there is an important point to understand about the academic discussion task. While many test takers assume that they must respond to ideas presented by other students, this is not always necessary.

This is not merely anecdotal. In an official ETS video demonstrating the academic discussion task, a response that received the highest score (5 out of 5) focuses solely on the writer’s own idea without explicitly referring to other students’ opinions.

www.ets.org

TOEFL iBT Writing Section

https://www.ets.org/toefl/test-takers/ibt/about/content/writing.html

Learn about the TOEFL iBT Writing section and watch videos about what to expect for each question.

This suggests that, as long as you can clearly develop and support your own position in a response of 100 words or more, you are not required to incorporate others’ views.

This can be especially helpful for test takers who are confident in presenting their own ideas but find it challenging to integrate multiple perspectives into a short written response.