Speaking and Writing Strategies for the TOEFL iBT part 39

Audio Scripts - 369




Task #2 – Rent Increase


Man: Fifty percent! Can you believe it? I thought living off campus would be
more affordable. Boy, was I wrong.

Woman: Didn’t your landlord warn you that your rent was going up?

Man: No. He just showed up the day before the rent was due and said, “By the
way, your rent just went up fifty percent.” Talk about a shock.

Woman: So what’re you going to do?

Man: I have no idea.

Woman: You know, increasing the rent like that without proper notice can’t be
legal. If I were you, I’d talk to a lawyer, get some legal advice. Serious.
There are laws that protect tenants from unscrupulous landlords.

Man: Aren’t lawyers really expensive?

Woman: Not if you go over to the law department. I bet you can find a third year
who’d help you pro bono.

Man: Pro bono? What’s that?

Woman: It means no cost. Law students often give legal advice for free. It’s a great
way for them to practice law and learn how to deal with clients.

Man: Great idea. But in the meantime, I still have to pay my rent. I mean, I do
like the place.

Woman: You have a two-bedroom, right?

Man: Right.

Woman: So why not get a roommate? That way you could share the costs and you
wouldn’t have to move.

Man: I thought about that, but I like living on my own. Besides, I’m not sure
how well I would get along with a roommate.



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Task #3 – Giving a Presentation

Woman: Hi, Greg. Do you have a minute?

Man: Sure, Anne. What’s up?

Woman: Professor Rogers just asked me to do a presentation. Lately, I’ve been
helping people find jobs. It’s this volunteer work I’ve been doing after
school. Anyway, Professor Rogers wants me to give a presentation about
it. Stupid me, I said yes.

Man: Why? What’s wrong with giving a presentation?

Woman: I’m terrified. I absolutely hate talking in front of a class.

Man: When do you have to present?

Woman: In two weeks.

Man: Well, you could always tell Professor Rogers you’re not comfortable doing
it. I’m sure he’d understand. The only problem is you made a promise
and if you break it, it might not look too good later on, especially if you
need Professor Roger’s recommendation or something.

Woman: Yeah, I know. The more I think about doing it, the more scared I get.
Look at me! I’m shaking.

Man: If you’re not comfortable speaking in a classroom, why not change the
location, you know, to a conference room? They’re definitely less formal
than a classroom. You could even have food and drinks. It’s a great way
to relax everybody. I’ve done it. Believe me, it works.

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Task #4 – Research Assistant


Woman: Hey, Tom. Congratulations. I hear you got a job doing research for
Professor Wilson.

Man: Wow. Word really travels fast. But you know what? Professor Smith just
asked me if I wanted to go to Arizona to do archeological work on a Hopi
Indian village. And get this: It’s all expenses paid for the entire month of
July. Can you believe it?

Woman: So go.

Man: I want to. But the problem is I’ve already promised Professor Wilson I’d
be his research assistant this summer.

Woman: What’s he want you to research?

Man: Early American pottery. Not exactly Arizona, is it?

Woman: Look, why don’t you explain the situation to Professor Wilson. I’m sure
he’ll understand. He’s a pretty cool guy. Besides, he can easily get
another research assistant.

Man: Yeah, but he’s famous. His name on my resume almost guarantees me a
teaching position after graduation.

Woman: Okay. Well, how about this. While you’re in Arizona, do research for
Professor Wilson online. Spend a few hours every day googling early
American pottery, then email him the results.

Man: Yeah. I never thought about that. That’s definitely doable. Hey, do you
want to work for Professor Wilson?

Woman: And be stuck in a library all summer? I’ll let you know, okay?

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Task #5 – Plagiarism

Man: Are you sure?

Woman: Yes. My professor plagiarized my essay, not just a few words, but an
entire page verbatim in his last research paper.

Man: This happened once before. A student accused her professor of
plagiarism.

Woman: And?

Man: The professor was fired.

Woman: Great. Maybe I should just forget the whole thing. Maybe I should be
flattered that a professor borrowed my work, and just shut up about it.

Man: Marilynn, the man did not borrow your work. He stole it. If you’d done
this, stolen his work, you would’ve been kicked out of school in two
seconds. No. There’s no way you can back down. You’ve got to confront
the man. You need to take your essay and his paper to his office, and tell
him in no uncertain terms that what he did was wrong.

Woman: But he’s one of the most popular professors.

Man: He’s a thief.

Woman: He gave me an A+ - for the essay he plagiarized!

Man: Look, if you don’t want to confront him, then you’ve got to go to the
Dean. This is a serious breech of academic ethics. The sooner you
confront the man, the better. Who knows how many other student essays
he’s plagiarized?

Woman: But if I go to the Dean, it’ll be all over the school in no time.

Man: Yeah, well, I know what I’d do.

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Sample Lecture – Animal Behavior


Animal behavior can be classified according to the time of day an animal is active.
Animals, such as horses, elephants and most birds, are said to be diurnal because
they are active during the day and rest at night. Those animals active at dawn and
dusk are said to be crepuscular. Beetles, skunks and rabbits fall into this category.
The third group are those animals that sleep during the day and are active at
night. They are called nocturnal. A good example is the bat. Bats have highly
developed eyesight, hearing and smell. This helps them avoid predators and locate
food. Being nocturnal also helps them avoid high temperatures during the day,
especially in deserts where temperatures can reach well over one hundred degrees
Fahrenheit. There are two types of bat: micro bats, or true bats, and mega bats,
also called fruit bats. Let’s start with mega bats.

Size wise, mega bats range from two to sixteen inches in length. Mega bats have
extremely sensitive sight and smell. This helps them locate the flowers and fruit
upon which they feed. It is while eating that mega bats play an important role in
the distribution of plants. Like bees, mega bats serve as pollinators. When they lick
nectar or eat flowers, their bodies become covered in pollen which they, in turn,
carry to other trees and plants thereby acting as pollinators. In fact, many of the

fruits and vegetables on our tables, such as bananas and peaches, would not be
there if mega bats did not pollinate plants and trees.

Next are micro bats. As the name implies, micro bats are quite small, about the
size of a mouse. To find food, micro bats use echolocation, high frequency sounds
they bounce off insects. The most common micro bat is the vesper or evening bat.
Like mega bats, micro bats play an important role in the environment. The average
vesper bat, for example, can eat one thousand mosquitoes in one night. By doing
so, they control the mosquito population.














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