Do you want to score 7.0 or higher in the Speaking module? Check out our tips & strategies to achieve your goal!
Information and strategies for the Speaking test
Description of the Speaking test
The Speaking test consists of an oral interview
Do you want to score 7.0 or higher in the Speaking module? Check out our tips & strategies to achieve your goal!
Information and strategies for the Speaking test
Description of the Speaking test
The Speaking test consists of an oral interview between you, the candidate, and an examiner. It will last between 11 and 14 minutes, and is divided into three parts which are described below.
The aim of the test is to assess the candidate’s ability to communicate effectively in English, and the examiner will consider your: Fluency and Coherence; Lexical Resource: Grammatical Range and Accuracy; and Pronunciation.
These criteria will be discussed below.
Introduction to the IELTS Interview
Like the Listening test, the Speaking test is taken by all candidates, whether they are taking the Academic or General Training modules. It is a one-to-one interview of 11 to 14 minutes and may be done on the day of the examination, or up to two days later, at the discretion of the examination centre.
Your examiner is a qualified teacher who has been appointed by the test centre and approved by the British Council or IELTS Org. He or she is likely to be very experienced in dealing with students.
There are three main parts to the interview. The examiner has been trained to guide candidates through the interview, and will help you to feel comfortable. The interview will be recorded.
The examiner will have to follow a script, or frame, during the interview. This frame means that everyone doing the Speaking test will receive the same instructions and information in the same manner. Your examiner will be more constrained in Part 1 and Part 2 of the test. In Part 3, the two-way discussion, the examiner will have a less restrictive frame, but will still have very firm rules to follow.
Description of the three parts of the interview
In this part you will answer general questions. The examiner will ask you about things which are close to you and which should be easy for you to answer. The examiner may ask you about yourself, your home and your family, what sort of job you have, what you are studying, or he or she may want to know about your particular interests. This part will last between four and five minutes.
In Part 2 the examiner will give you a verbal prompt on a card and will ask you to talk on a particular topic. You will have one minute to prepare your answer before speaking at length for between one or two minutes. After you have spoken the examiner will ask some questions which arise from what you have said. These questions will bring Part 2 to a conclusion. The whole of Part 2 lasts between three and four minutes, which includes the one minute spent preparing the answer.
In Part 3 the examiner will get you to develop the ideas on the topic you have been discussing in Part 2. The discussion will continue between four and five minutes.
How to approach the test
The examiner will introduce him or herself and ask for your identification. The examiner may also ask you how to pronounce your name correctly. This part of the interview takes four to five minutes, and should allow you to settle down and feel comfortable.
Part I is concerned with familiar topics of general interest.
Preparing for Part 1
Make sure you know the English vocabulary you might use to speak about familiar topics, so you can talk about topics like your home, your family, your course of study or your job. It is a good idea to think about the sort of things your examiner might ask you about. If you are studying with other students, be ready to question each other about your homes and families, jobs and studies and your interests.
You will notice that it is a very wide list, and it is impossible to guess the specific topic you will be asked to discuss. If, for instance, your examiner wants you to talk about your interests, he or she might ask you what sport/hobby/pastime you are interested in, and when, where and why you became interested. Or he or she might ask if that particular hobby is popular in your country, or if your parents share your interest, or if your hobby is expensive …
Please do not think you can prepare a talk on any topic and take it into the examination. The examiner will be in control of the interaction, and may prompt you with questions or change the direction of the conversation. The examiner will not permit a prepared speech.
Develop the topic as fully as you can, and offer your own ideas and give explanations if necessary. Do not simply answer “Yes” or “No” to the examiner’s questions.
If possible, practise asking and answering questions with another person. Do not let the person you are talking to correct you or prompt you while you are speaking. If you want to be corrected, record your conversation and then listen to it and see how you might improve it.
In Part 2 the candidate is given a verbal prompt on a card and is asked to talk on a particular topic. The candidate has one minute to prepare before speaking at length, for between one or two minutes. The examiner then asks one or two follow-up questions.
|Describe the thing you most like to do when you have some free time.
You should say:
· what it is
· what you do
· what makes you enjoy t