TOEFL Sample essay : integrated essay from TPO5

The reading passage argues the usage of large buildings in Chaco Canyon and explains three possible theories. However, the lecturer finds all the ideas dubious and presents some evidence to refute them all.

First, the author of the passage mentions residential usage of the Chaco structures. In contrast, the lecturer brings up an idea that although the buildings look like earlier apartments from outside, their interiors do not seem to be used for living. He asserts that there have not been enough fire places which could have been used for cooking by hundreds of families.

Second, it is mentioned in the article that Chaco huge buildings were used for storage of food and crops. On the contrary, the speaker disproves this idea due to the fact that the research has not revealed many traces of spilled maize on the floor or remnants of maize containers in the building.

Finally, the reading passage asserts that the great houses played a role in ceremonies. Conversely, the professor draws attention to the evidence that some other materials such as building materials besides broken pots have been found in the mound near the buildings. He states that these materials like sand, stone, and construction tools are not expected to be utilized in ceremonies. The deposits of pots may simply be the leftovers of the meals of the workers in the building.