2013 年是ETS 对托福考试实施全面改革的第7 个年头，纵览本年度独立写作的命题，不难发现，其仍然符合近几年ETS 的出题规律，预计该趋势在今后的几年内仍将持续。例如“Agree or Disagree”为独立写作的重点题型，具有代表性的话题种类则包括：1. 友谊交际类；2. 教育类；3. 科技类；4. 环保类；5. 经济类；6. 文化类；7. 个人成功类；8. 人生观、价值观；9. 社会生活类；10. 传媒类。
总体而言，2013 年独立写作的话题呈现生活化的特点，诸多题目与人们的日常生活息息相关，这表明ETS 并非提倡应试者对高深理论进行空洞之谈，而是更希望考生充分利用各种实例支撑论点，并在论证过程中全面展现其准确应用语言传达思想的能力。
2013 年出现频率较高的独立写作话题种类包括：
1. 教育类
2013 年6 月8 日题目：Some students prefer to have their final gradesdetermined by numerous small assignments, whereas others prefer to have theirfinal grades determined by only a few large ones. Which do you prefer and why?
2. 科技环保类
2013 年3 月22 日题目： Though modern agricultural practices damage theenvironment, feeding the world's growing population is more important than protectingagainst environmental damage.
2013 年3 月30 日题目： Despite the fact that many countries say they careabout environmental problems, the environmental situation will not improvesignificantly in the future.
2013 年5 月18 日题目：Government should support scientific research evenif the research does not have any practical use.
2013 年9 月8 日题目：To increase economic growth, the government shouldignore the environmental concerns.
3. 社会生活类
2013 年3 月2 日题目：Our society today is so busy and crowded that peopledo not need to be polite to each other.
2013 年7 月13 日题目：People rely on their neighbors less now than in the past.
2013 年8 月15 日题目：It is less important to eat with families regularlynowadays.
4. 个人成功类
2013 年1 月13 日题目： It is important to make sure that others know about yourstrengths and accomplishments; if you are not so, you will be never successfulin life.
因此，对于历年出现频率较高的热点话题，建议考生予以足够的重视。根据对2013 年中国考生在备战托福写作的普遍情况，考生面临的问题如下：
1. 如何在极其有限的时间内提高写作水平并获得高分？
2. 如何用英语语言准确传达自己的思想？
3. 如何科学且高效地使用各种备考资料？
4. 如何在考场上合理地分配时间？
针对这些棘手难题，笔者以ETS 官方写作评分标准为导向，归纳出5 条高分策略，旨在帮助莘莘学子“拨云见日”，顺利实现高分梦想：
一.“语言制胜”策略
语言能力是托福写作考试考查的重中之重，这也是考生很难在短时间内大幅度提高的。若想快速提高语言能力，须从词汇与句法着手准备。
1．巧妙用词
1）一词多义
建议考生在备考过程中重视一词多义，即灵活应用不同词汇表达同一种意思，这也是评分标准强调的重点之一。例如，在表达“大”这个概念时，没必要机械地重复使用“big”这一个词，可灵活使用其同义词：large, tremendous, gigantic, grand 等等。
2）重视连词
连词能够使文章逻辑顺畅，语言连贯，建议考生牢记各种连词如in spite of, in addition, moreover,even though, nevertheless 等。此外，还须注意词语表达的准确性，因为托福写作注重考查用语言准确传达思想，若频繁使用“高深莫测”的超难词汇，恐怕会“弄巧成拙”。
2．句法多样
应用多种“黄金句型”，避免重复单一。建议考生平时多做造句练习，以便更熟练地掌握典型句式。“黄金句型”包括：
1）强调句。
It is in the process of such anendeavor that people realize the power of unity.
It is the associated responsibilitythat builds up a solid infrastructure of a group.
2.）倒装句
Not only will it help one keep a goodbalance between work and rest, but it can also further benefit him both spirituallyand physically.
Good medicine tastes bitter but curesdiseases and saves life, so does honest advice.
3）并列结构
Tremendous investments are being madeto construct more roads, build more overpasses and develop new bus and subwaylines.
Taking up a favorite subject improvesperformance during their course of study and brings about more satisfactoryresults.
4）修辞问句
How could a person show purefriendliness to others while wearing a smiling mask?
Shouldn’t the students finish their homeworkon time?
5）插入语
Other people, however, would ratherhold smaller ones within the family.
二.“论证技巧”策略
由于独立写作的体裁均为议论文，因此，考生必须灵活运用多重论证技巧，最为典型的论证技巧包括：
1. 例证法
举例是说服力极强的论证技巧。此外，应尽量使事例具体化。如：...For instance, traffic jam feeswere introduced in Singapore in 1975. Since then, Sweden, Britain, Norway,Italy, Portugal and China have followed suit... 又如：Having an intelligent partner by our side is just like receivingcharcoal when the snow falls. He is competent enough to offer sincere andapplicable suggestions that could drag us out of troubled waters. By makingfull use of our combined wisdom, problems can be solved easily. Take my cousinas an example: He has just set up his own company. At the very beginning, hewas faced with a series of problems in business administration. After consultinghis best friend, an MBA student in Harvard, he smoothly tackled those problems.As an old Chinese saying goes, ‘he who gets in contact with vermillion will become red’. A friend’s wisdom and accomplishments candirectly influence us in positive ways. 建议考生平时广泛搜集可作为热点话题论据的各种素材，包括名人轶事、历史事件、新闻报道、生活经历等等，不断积累，并学会将其恰当地应用于论证过程之中。
2．因果论证法
因果论证法是深入展开讨论的典型论证技巧，恰当使用因果法，可以使段落思路连贯，逻辑明晰，论证严谨透彻。因果法论证步骤：提出论点→提出原因→分析条件→得出结果。如：Besides, TV is also an effectiveteaching tool that helps enhance learning efficiency. The large variety of educationprograms are specially designed to make study time more enjoyable. “Follow me,” a popular English learning program,is a perfect example. The superior visual and sound effects help leave a deeperimpression on the viewers and improve their learning effectiveness. Therefore, TVdoes not merely serve for delight but also for education.
3．拆分法
在写作构思过程中，往往需要对论点进行合理拆分，从不同侧面展开论述，以达到论证逻辑的全面性。例如：Secondly, travelling expenditures maybe cut down and much money can be saved. Regarding the accommodation on thejourney, companions can share a double room in a hotel. Thus, each of them onlyhas to pay half of the room price. The same is true with eating. It is a mostpopular choice for travelers to go dutch when having meals in restaurants. Inthis way, not only can they enjoy more dishes, but they can also spend lessmoney than people who dine alone. In addition, on the trip, there might be the necessityto rent vehicles. Likewise, transportation costs can be shared equally betweenthem as well.
三.“真题完胜”策略
托福写作考试的命题趋势表明，考题重复出现的概率很高，因此，机经的参考价值不容小觑。建议考生在平时写作练习过程中，充分选用最近几年考过的写作真题，对过去几年考过的题目进行分类整理，并有针对的进行练习，以求“事半功倍”。
四.“赢在范文”策略
高分范文无疑是参考价值最高的写作备考资料。然而，很多考生因不知如何借助典型优秀范文快速提高写作成绩而苦恼。
首先，应当挑选题目新、话题多样、写法全面的高质量范文资料，这一点至关重要，倘若范文质量欠佳，势必会影响备考效率。然后，按照如下步骤使用范文资料：
第1 步，通读30 篇高分范文，注意寻找文章的写作思路和主要论点，把握整体框架。以《托福高分范文大全》中的文章为例，2013 年6 月15 日考题：
The way a persondresses in is a good indication of his/her personality and character. 通读此文时，应找到文章主要论点：1. 着装习惯反映个人偏好；2. 着装习惯透露了性格的某些方面；3. 除了着装习惯，行为和举止是性格的更真实体现。
第2 步，精读10 篇范文，理清每句话之间的关系。如：Relatives were co-habitants inside alarge house where more intimate relationships could be stably maintained andcarried on. Nowadays, however, nuclear families are taking up the greatestratio of social build-up... 这两句话之间形成了转折的逻辑关系。又如：Minor setbacks might cause a loss ofconfidence, or even produce overwhelming distress. Therefore I think it isunrealistic to expect a person who is down in spirit to accomplish their goals.这两句话之间形成了因果逻辑关系
第3 步，详细分析10 篇范文，弄懂每句话内部的关系以及每句话之间的关系。如：In addition, obsessed with computergames, children are gradually becoming slaves under the control of thepre-designed game modes. As a matter of fact, it is not only a waste of time,but may also considerably mislead children mentally... 在这段话中，标志词in addition 表明首句承前启后，该句中，过去分词短语obssessed with... 表原因，children are usually... 是原因所导致的结果。第二句是对首句的进一步解释说明，注意not only...but also... 这个典型句式的应用。
第4 步，选取经过详细分析的10 篇范文题目进行仿写练习。
第5 步，再选取另外10 道题目进行写作练习，完成后与范文对照，寻找自己的优点与不足之处。
五．“临场实战”策略
毋庸置疑，合理安排考试时间是取得优异成绩的关键所在。对于独立写作而言，通常应按照如下步骤完成答题：首先，审题并确定立场；然后，确定分论点，构建文章框架；下一步，全面展开论述；最后，通读全文，进行必要的修改。
综上所述，无论是在艰苦的备考过程之中，还是在紧张压抑的考场之上，托福写作高分策略势必将有助于增强考生必胜的信心，进而确保其高水平发挥，并最终获得理想的分数。
