TOEFL Speaking - Section 2

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TOEFL Speaking test - Section 2

In the second TOEFL speaking section, you are presented with a topic that gives you a choice. You have 15 seconds to read the topic and prepare (you may take notes), and then you need to speak for 45 seconds about the topic. Read the following topic and then speak about it for 45 seconds.

Should parents speak their native language to their children or speak to them in the language of the country in which they live? Some experts think that speaking two languages is confusing for the child, while others see it as an advantage.

Click below for two possible answers:

Children have a large capacity to learn languages. Being in a position to grow up bilingual exposes a child to two different cultures and two different ways of expressing him- or her- self. Being bilingual is an advantage in the workplace, where the person can use both languages in commerce between two different countries. A lot of money is spent by adults in trying to learn another language, being bilingual for all of one's life is a great advantage.

OR

Children want to fit in, to be a part of their peer group. A child can be ashamed of being forced to use a second language at home, and embarassed about bringing friends into that environment. A second language marks a child as different at a time when social development is taking place. The child may confuse the two languages in school work, and feel isolated from his or her peers because of different traditions associated with the different language.