SPEAKING

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SPEAKING
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• Speaking approximately 11-14 minutes
• Consists of oral interviews between the examinee
  and the examiner

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• The test consists of three parts.
• In the first part the examiner introduces himself
  and asks about name, address, interests and
  occupation. This part, lasting 4 to 5 minutes, is
  fairly simple if the candidate is not nervous and
  the conversational English is adequate.

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• In the second part the examinee will be given a
  sheet of paper with a topic written on it. S/he
  has to speak for 2 minutes on this topic.
• Can't ask for another topic.
• 1 minute to write down ideas. A sheet of paper
  and a pen are provided.
• Make sure to read all the questions relating to
  the topic, written on the paper. It usually has
  two or three parts which the candidate will have
  to talk about.
• Don't miss out any question or lose marks.
• Take the one minute provided to write down all
  the ideas . Two minutes can be a long time to
  talk solo and the notes made will help the
  candidate keep talking for the full two minutes.

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• Once the examinee finishes two minutes, the
  examiner will stop him/her and then ask him/her
  some questions on what s/he has talked about. The
  second part lasts a total of 3-4 minutes.

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• The third part involves a discussion between you
  and the examiner on a topic related to what you
  spoke about in part 2.
• You will be marked on fluency, vocabulary,
  grammar, pronunciation and ideas.

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• The speaking module assesses whether candidates
  can communicate effectively in English . The
  assessment takes into account Fluency and
  coherence , Lexical Resource , Grammatical Range
  and accuracy , and Pronunciation.

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Part 1 (Interview)

• Part 1 of the IELTS Speaking test lasts between 4
  and 5 minutes. The examiner will ask some simple
  'getting-to-know-you' questions which will help
  the examiner find out a little about you and help
  put you at ease. These will be general questions
  such as about your family, your studies, where
  you come from or what your interests are.

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Example Questions

• Q Where are you from?Q Why are you studying
  English?Q Have you visited any English speaking
  countries?

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Tips

• Giving full, relevant answers to the examiner's
  questions will help get the interview off to a
  good start.
• 1) Avoid giving short, uncommunicative
  replies. Q Where are you from?A I'm from .
  in .. (Don't stop there!) It's about .
  kilometers north of . It's a modern city but
  with a lot of history and a lovely place to live.

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• 2) Avoid short, 'yes', 'no' answers to closed
  questions. (These are questions beginning 'Have
  you ...', 'Do you ...', 'Is it ...' etc which can
  be answered simply with a yes or no
  answer).Q Have you visited any English speaking
  countries?A Yes. (Don't stop there!) I went to
  England last year and spent two weeks seeing the
  sights. A couple of years ago I went to New York
  with my parents and had a great time. 

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• Q Do you play any sports?A No. (Don't stop
  there!) I'm not really interested in playing
  sports. I like watching sport on TV and I really
  enjoyed keeping up with the Olympics recently.

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• 3) Offer examples to help you explain a
  statement.Q Why are you preparing for the IELTS
  exam?A Because I need it for my studies. (Don't
  stop there!) I've been offered a place at a
  university in England to study on an MBA but I
  need to show my level of English is good enough.

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Part 2 (Long Turn)

• Part 2 of the IELTS Speaking test lasts between 3
  and 4 minutes (including 1 minute preparation
  time). The examiner gives you a task card and you
  have to speak about the subject without
  interruption for between 1 and 2 minutes.

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Example Task

• Example Describe a place you have visited that
  you have fond memories of.
• You should say
• where this waswhy you went therewhat you did
  thereand what it was about the place that makes
  it so memorable.

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• Example
• Describe your favourite personal possession.
• what this possession is
  
  when you first got it
  
  
  when you use it
  
  
  and why it's so important to you.

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Tips!

• 1. Use your 1 minute preparation time wisely and
  make notes of the points you'd like to make.
• 2. The question will help you with the structure
  of your talk. The introduction can include the
  item itself and maybe a brief description. The
  main body of your talk could describe the
  situation when you acquired the object and go on
  to explain when you use it. You can then end with
  an explanation of why the object is so important.

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• 3. Try to avoid giving a very dry, unimaginative
  introduction such as 'The object I'm going to
  describe is ....'. Get your talk off to a
  memorable start with something on the lines of
  'If I were about to lose everything and could
  only save one thing it would be my ...', or 'I've
  got several things that mean a lot to me but the
  one that really stands out is my ...'

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• 4. If you're concerned about not having enough to
  talk about for 1 to 2 minutes or running out of
  time before you've finished, the answer is to
  practise as often as possible. Time yourself and
  ask a friend for feedback.

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Part 3 (Two-Way Discussion)

• In Part 3 of the test, which lasts between 3 to 4
  minutes, the examiner will ask you questions
  linked to the topic in Part 2.

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Example Questions (Based on example topics in
Part 2 above)

• Q It is sometimes argued that local cultures are
  being destroyed by tourism. Why do think people
  might feel this?Q What benefits do people get
  from travelling to other countries?Q Do you
  think people are becoming too materialistic?Q To
  what extent are people's buying habits affected
  by advertising?

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Tips!

• 1. If you need time to collect your thoughts use
  expressions like 'That's a good question.',
  'Well, let me think ...'.
• 2. Don't forget to avoid short, 'yes', 'no'
  answers. Try to offer examples to back up a
  statement.
• 3. Help make your contributions memorable. Try
  explaining a point using a short, personal
  anecdote.

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• 4. If the examiner asks a question that you don't
  understand, take control of the situation with
  questions such as those that appear below.
  Responding like this will show evidence of your
  communication skills. If the examiner uses a
  word or phrase that you don't understand, say
  something like"Sorry but could you explain what
  you mean by ........" or"I haven't come across
  that word/expression before. Could you explain
  what you mean?"

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• If you simply didn't hear something that was
  asked, respond with"Excuse me, I didn't quite
  catch that. Could you say that again?""I'm
  sorry, but would you mind repeating that?"
• If you want to make sure you've understood what
  the examiner has asked you could say"Do you
  mean ........""When you say ........, do you
  mean/are you asking ........?

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Key points 

• A good vocabulary and content are important, but
  Presentation precedes content, fluency precedes
  vocabulary for the speaking exam.
• Adopt good presentation skills (eye-contact,
  pauses, speaking not too fast or slow).
• Read up and visualize a few possible questions.
  Make your answers exciting and passionate.

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• Possessing a good stock of words is important,
  even more so than the writing exam (where you
  have the luxury of review and edit). However,
  fluency takes precedence over vocabulary, and if
  you feel you have forgotten the words, it is
  better to display a level of fluency with simple
  terms you know rather than struggle with numerous
  pauses while searching for the perfect word.

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Remember to adopt basic presentation skills.

• Maintain good eye contact with the marker, and
  adopt a friendly demeanor. Remember that the
  examiner is there to help you achieve high
  grades, not stall and obstruct your progress.
• Speak at a reasonable pace, neither too fast or
  slow. You can practice this by recording your
  normal speech and monitoring it, or communicating
  with a good English speaking person and asking
  for his feedback.

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• Modulate your tone. Raise and lower your voice a
  few times.
• Remember that the synonym for boredom is monotony
  mono tone.
• Use you hands in an expressive way. Maintain a
  mild smile, but dont giggle frivolously.

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• Heres a list of prompt words that you can use to
  help you prepare
• Introductory phrases - when you start your talk
• Im going to talk about
• Id like to talk about
• I want to talk about
• What I'm going to talk about is
• I'm going to describe

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• Developing phrases - when you want to expand your
  argument
• First of all
• Secondly,
• Additionally,
• Another thing
• Another reason why
• Furthermore

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• Background phrases - when you want to add some
  detail
• It's near
• It happened
• It took place
• Its been going on for/since
• At that time

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• Impression phrases - when you want to say
  something that made an impression on you
• impressed me
• motivated me
• moved me
• disturbed me
• touched me deeply
• had an effect on me
• affected me
• ... influenced me.

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• Things you like phrases - when you want to
  describe or talk about things you like
• I like most of all
• I enjoy
• I love doing...
• really appeals to me because
• I take great pleasure in

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How to prepare?

• Speak as much English as you can before the day.
• Practise in any way you can and don't just rely
  on speaking to your teacher. Try to have as many
  conversations as you can with other people,
  either face-to-face or over the telephone.
  Additionally, listen to as many good quality
  radio programmes as you can particularly the BBC
  news. Listen very carefully to how each item is
  constructed and try to practise some of the
  sentences you have heard. Note down any new
  phrases and words which you come across.

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• 2. Make sure you know what is involved when
  taking the test.
• On the day of the test, nothing should come as
  a surprise to you.
• Become completely familiar with each section of
  the test.

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• 3. Be very positive about taking the test!
• Try to be cheerful, smile and breathe evenly
  during the conversations with the Examiner. Stay
  calm and be positive!

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• 4. Dont learn things by heart!
• If you do, it will sound false and come across as
  if you are making a speech!
• You need to sound natural throughout the test.

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• 5. Don't worry about being nervous!
• When you are nervous, youll often perform
  better! The Examiner isnt trying to catch you
  out and will be aware that you are nervous. He or
  she will try to put you at ease and make you feel
  comfortable.

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• 6. Always try to use a wide range of vocabulary.
• Candidates often use less vocabulary than they
  know when they speak because they are afraid of
  making mistakes. Your range of vocabulary will
  improve if you practise speaking English to
  others listen to
• the radio and read newspapers and magazines.

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• 7. Practise speaking clearly at all times.
  Remember, speaking clearly does not mean
• speaking slowly! Try to speak naturally and
  
• evenly throughout the test.

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• 8. Concentrate on what you are saying rather than
  trying to be accurate.
• Remember,the test is based around a three part
• conversation with the Examiner. Therefore,
• concentrate on the general ideas and themes
  
• of what youre saying to the Examiner, rather
  
• than worrying about the specific accuracy.
• Youll make fewer mistakes that way.

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• 9. Get used to looking people in the eye when you
  speak to them.
• During the test, you should always try to keep
  eye contact with the Examiner. Dont worry if the
  Examiner isnt looking at you! He /she is
  probably making notes!

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• Thank you