Timed Writing (The Prompt)
The Prompt
One of the challenges of timed writing is making quick decisions about content and organization. The brainstorming stage is limited and requires you to move swiftly into composing your paragraphs. A luxury of drafted writing is that you can spend time exploring different supporting ideas before revising and finalizing your essay.
With timed writing, a thorough understanding of the prompt is first needed. You need to recognize the linguistic task (compare, describe, argue, explain) and create a thesis statement and supporting points that make a clear road map for what you will say. Additionally, you need to check the prompt to ensure that you are addressing all of the points.
Once you have analyzed the prompt, you should be able to start structuring your outline to ensure you have all of the necessary components.
Making a brief list of the parts of the prompt that are most important to respond to or include is a great first step for creating your thesis statement, topic sentences, and overall outline.
Understanding and including all of the parts of the prompt is important for two reasons.
The first reason is that the question is specifically designed to get you to write about the target content. A multi-part question indicates the degree of complexity that the audience expects to find in your response. If you miss information from your response, it can be interpreted as missing knowledge about an important concept for the course.
Second, your audience may attribute missing information to a lack of language. This is especially true in a language test like the TOEFL where the audience knows nothing about your ability other than what you show. Not writing about part of the question could be an avoidance strategy because you do not have the vocabulary or grammar control necessary to respond. This may also be an unfortunate assumption at the college level as well, especially if your professor has minimal interaction with you.
Therefore, it's in your best interest to carefully read through the prompt and dissect it. This strategy will lead to a stronger response with more purposeful organization.
Exercises
Exercise 1: Analyze Timed Writing Prompt
Read the prompts below. Identify the linguistic task. Break the prompt down into the individual parts.
- Many people claim that a healthy diet is more important than exercise, while others believe that exercise has a larger impact on your overall health. Which do you think has a more significant impact on our overall physical well-being: the food we consume or the exercise we do? What do you think the short-term and long-term impacts of your choice are on an individual's health.
- A significant problem for many people is the rising cost of living. Why do you think this is a prevalent issue in modern society? What solutions do you propose for closing the gap between the average income and the average cost of living? Be sure to address solutions at the individual, family, and societal levels.
- Imagine the ideal future workplace. What does this work experience look like and how is it different from the one you live in now? Be sure to discuss both the differences in the physical spaces, the tasks that are done, and the expectations of employers. Do you think this ideal is possible? Why or why not?
Exercise 2: Timed Writing (Prompt Focus)
Choose one of the prompts below. Set a timer for 30 minutes. Write your response to the question. Remember to leave time for revision.
- Do you think that banning books from high school classrooms has a positive or negative impact on society? Why do you think that? What process should be followed to find a balance between student, parent, and educator opinions on this issue?
- Your city council is considering changing the city ordinances to allow for more lighting in the downtown area. Part of the community is excited about this change because of the increased safety it provides for people living and working in that area. Others are concerned about higher light pollution in the city and the impact that will have on the environment. Write a short opinion article for the local newspaper explaining your position on this issue. Explain the short-term and long-term impacts of the change on the city. Try to persuade undecided readers to support your point of view.
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