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 grades determined by numerous small assignments, whereas others prefer to have their final 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 the environment, feeding the world's growing population is more important than protecting against environmental damage.

2013 年3 月30 日题目： Despite the fact that many countries say they care about environmental problems, the environmental situation will not improve significantly in the future.

2013 年5 月18 日题目：Government should support scientific research even if the research does not have any practical use.

2013 年9 月8 日题目：To increase economic growth, the government should ignore 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 people do 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 regularly nowadays.

4. 个人成功类

2013 年1 月13 日题目： It is important to make sure that others know about your strengths and accomplishments; if you are not so, you will be never successful in 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？