TOEFLライティング練習模試02

Read the passage below. You have 3 minutes to read through:

Coal Burning

The coal industry has had a large environmental impact from: land use, waste management, water and air pollution caused by coal mining, processing, and using coal. Not only does it cause atmospheric pollution, but coal burning also produces millions of tons of solid waste products. Burning coal comes with severe health effects and it is estimated to shorten approximately 1,000,000 lives worldwide every year. The following are three methods for reducing the pollution produced by coal burning.

One method is to improve the reaction efficiency. By improving the reaction efficiency, air pollution can be reduced. It will not be an immediate impact, but over the long term it will have a significant impact.

Another method is to use water to flush the coal and remove sulfides to prevent the creation of sulfur dioxide. This would help to reduce the level of pollution created by the sulfides reacting with the air.

A third method is to collect the emitted carbon dioxide. This would prevent the gases from reaching the atmosphere. Pollution levels from carbon dioxide would drop significantly over time as this technology is expanded.

Both the reading and the lecture discuss the impact of burning coal. The reading passage explains that burning coal causes great harm to humans and the planet, and it suggests some ways that we could curb that impact. However, the professor in the lecture attempts to demonstrate some flaws in that thinking based on three pieces of conflicting information.

First, the reading suggests that by improving the reaction efficiency, the amount of pollution produced by burning coal would lessen over time. On the other hand, the lecturer argues that while improving the reaction efficiency would perhaps lower the emission of carbon dioxide, it actually would increase the production of solid waste byproducts. He feels that this is still a form of pollution.

The next suggestion in the reading is to limit the amount of emitted pollution by flushing coal and removing sulfide. However, the lecturer indicates that this would require moving this pollution from the atmosphere to the waterways, which increases acidification of the ecosystem and is equally harmful.
The final idea presented in the reading is to make improvements to existing technology which collects carbon dioxide released by burning coal, and the lecturer mostly agrees. Nevertheless, the professor also says that this technology is not yet fully developed and too costly. Moreover, he believes that this still does not effectively address what happens to carbon dioxide once it is collected.

Although both the reading and the lecture present the many problems caused by burning coal, neither one effectively proposes a solution to this problem. The reading presents three ideas, but the lecturer refutes each of those ideas.

When it comes to schools, not one school has perfect policies; there is always room for improvement and change. Personally, if I could make one important change in my school, I would include more extracurricular activities such as music, ballet, and swimming. Many of my peers dropped out of school because there were no options for participating in activities that were of interest to them. Students want to, and ought to, regularly participate in something of their own interest rather than constantly doing compulsory activities. Upon learning that this wasn’t encouraged in our school, they pursued their interests outside the school.

First of all, it is no secret that music has become an integral part of the life of young people. Since I was in school, music has had a huge influence on me. Everyone around me was being positively influenced or inspired by music. But unfortunately, my school only allowed the use of instruments for special functions. There was no music class and no extracurricular music program. I had to find an alternative and practice it outside the school, which was entirely inconvenient. I learned to play piano, guitar, and violin at a music institute, but I was disappointed and a little demotivated that my school did not offer anything like this.

Another example of an extracurricular activity that motivates students and teaches valuable lessons is ballet. I was always fascinated by young girls and boys doing ballet. There is something so beautiful and graceful about it, yet it involves discipline, commitment, and practice. If I had the chance to learn ballet, I am sure I would have excelled at it, and the same is true for gymnastics. I would have loved to work hard while learning, exercising, and pushing myself.

Finally, swimming is another extracurricular activity that should be offered at my school. It can be considered a hobby but it is a useful skill that can be relied on for a lifetime. It is a popular sport that has practical applications in life and in certain emergencies. Students would get exercise, develop useful skills, and have an outlet for their stress.

In conclusion, these are only some of the activities that I wish were offered at my school, even as extracurriculars. I think the experience of the majority of students would have been different in a positive way if my school had offered these activities. Not only do such activities have physical and mental benefits, but they offer a means in which to discover and develop talents and abilities and possibly even create professionals in the given field.