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My Favourite Productivity App for Students - Notion (2019)

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Explore Popular Debates, Discussions and Critical Thinking...

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Kialo is the platform for rational debate. Empowering reason through friendly and open discussions.

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Quizlet is a lightning fast way to learn vocabulary.

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international english language testing system

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Fill in the blanks in the sentences with the most appropriate word or expression. Asia covers a huge area. ... By way of contrast Europe is very small. : By way of contrast By ways of comparing By similar means Britain's economy is largely based on its industry, ...

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How I ranked 1st at Cambridge University - The Essay Memorisation Framework

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Cambridge IELTS 9 Practice Test Refer to the pdf document and audio files for Cambridge IELTS 9 Practice Test. cambridge ielts 9 Listening Test 1 Audio: Listening Test 2 Audio: Listening Test 3 Aud...

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Band Score: ?

Structure your answers in logical paragraphs

One main idea per paragraph

Include an introduction and conclusion

Support main points with an explanation and then an example

Use cohesive linking words accurately and appropriately

Vary your linking phrases using synonyms

Band Score: ?

Try to vary your vocabulary using accurate synonyms

Use less common question specific words that accurately convey meaning

Check your work for spelling and word formation mistakes

Band Score: ?

Use a variety of complex and simple sentences

Check your writing for errors

Band Score: ?

Answer all parts of the question

Fully explain these ideas

Support ideas with relevant, specific examples

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Check Essay - Correct your IELTS Task 2 Online | Writing9

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Band Score: ? Structure your answers in logical paragraphs One main idea per paragraph Include an introduction and conclusion Support main points with an explanation and then an example Use cohesive linking words accurately and appropriately Vary your linking phrases using synonyms Band Score: ?

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Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 1 section 2 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 1 section 3 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 1 section 4 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 2 section 1 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 2 section 2 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 2 section 3 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 2 section 4 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 3 section 1 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 3 section 2 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 3 section 3 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 3 section 4 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 4 section 1 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 4 section 2 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 4 section 3 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 4 section 4

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Cambridge IELTS 11 Downloads - DEVFARTHA

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Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 1 section 2 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 1 section 3 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 1 section 4 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 2 section 1 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 2 section 2 Cambridge IELTS 11 - Test 2 section 3 Cambridge IELTS

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Quizlet is a lightning fast way to learn vocabulary.

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The IELTS test assesses your abilities in all four skills - listening, reading, writing and speaking - in under three hours.

IELTS USA is pleased to offer a free IELTS practice test to test takers who register for IELTS in the USA!

The practice test includes an overview of the test format with a variety of sample test questions and answers, to assist you in preparing for the real IELTS test. In addition, you will have the opportunity to time yourself as you take each section of the practice test, so you can prepare yourself for the real test day experience.

You can find additional information about the test format on the IELTS website.

Test format - Listening (30 minutes)

Begin your Practice Listening Test

Download the following IELTS Practice Listening test and Blank Answer Sheet, then begin your sample practice test. The audio files for each section of the Practice Listening test are provided in the box below. You will only have 30 minutes to complete this section of the test, so we recommend you time yourself as you complete your practice test.
IELTS Practice Listening Test (pdf) IELTS Practice Listening Test Blank Answer Sheet (pdf)
Check your answers on your Practice Listening Test

Once you have completed the sample practice test, download the following IELTS Practice Listening Test Answer Key and check your answers. Each correct answer receives 1 mark and scores out of 40 are converted to the IELTS 9-band scale.
IELTS Practice Listening Test Answer Key (pdf)
For more information about how IELTS scores are calculated, see IELTS scoring in detail.

Additional Listening resource:
After you have taken the Practice Listening Test, you may download and view the IELTS Practice Listening Test Audio Transcript (pdf).

A1

Prove your English speaking and listening skills as part of your application to UK Visas and Immigration for ' family of a settled person' visas.

IELTS Life Skills

B1

Prove your English speaking and listening skills as part of your application to UK Visas and Immigration for indefinite leave to remain or citizenship.

Test format - Academic Writing (60 minutes)

Begin your Practice Academic Writing Test

Download the following IELTS Practice Academic Writing test then begin your sample practice test. You will only have 60 minutes to complete this section of the test, so we recommend you time yourself as you complete your practice test. You should spend approximately 20 minutes on Writing Task 1 and approximately 40 minutes on Writing Task 2.

Once you have completed the sample practice test, review the sample "model" response and feedback based on the IELTS assessment criteria used to mark the test.
IELTS Practice Academic Writing Test (pdf)
For more information about how IELTS scores are calculated, see IELTS scoring in detail.

Test format - General Training Writing (60 minutes)

Begin your Practice General Training Writing Test

Download the following IELTS Practice General Training Writing test then begin your sample practice test. You will only have 60 minutes to complete this section of the test, so we recommend you time yourself as you complete your practice test. You should spend approximately 20 minutes on Writing Task 1 and approximately 40 minutes on Writing Task 2.

Once you have completed the sample practice test, review the sample "model" response and feedback based on the IELTS assessment criteria used to mark the test.

IELTS Practice General Training Writing Test (pdf)

For more information about how IELTS scores are calculated, see IELTS scoring in detail.

Test format - Speaking (11-14 minutes)

Begin your Practice Speaking Test

Download the following IELTS Practice Speaking test and think of "model" responses to the questions in parts 1-3 of the test. We suggest you practice the speaking test with a study partner and complete all 3 parts of the test without a break, to make your practice as realistic as possible. You will have approximately 11-14 minutes to complete this section of the test, so we recommend you time yourself as you complete your practice test.

IELTS Practice Speaking Test (pdf)

IELTS examiners rate the IELTS Speaking test using 4 assessment criteria - Fluency and Coherence, Lexical Resource, Grammatical Range and Accuracy, and Pronunciation. View videos of IELTS Speaking test samples below:

Speaking test sample - Part 1
Speaking test sample - Part 2
Speaking test sample - Part 3

You may view additional videos on the IELTS Official YouTube channel.

For more information about how IELTS scores are calculated, see IELTS scoring in detail.

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IELTS USA is pleased to offer a free IELTS practice test to test takers who register for IELTS in the USA! The practice test includes an overview of the test format with a variety of sample test questions and answers, to assist you in preparing for the real IELTS test.

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IELTS Listening: Mini Mock Test 1 | MULTIPLE CHOICE and MATCHING!

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The IELTS test assesses your abilities in all four skills - listening, reading, writing and speaking - in under three hours.

IELTS USA is pleased to offer a free IELTS practice test to test takers who register for IELTS in the USA!

The practice test includes an overview of the test format with a variety of sample test questions and answers, to assist you in preparing for the real IELTS test. In addition, you will have the opportunity to time yourself as you take each section of the practice test, so you can prepare yourself for the real test day experience.

You can find additional information about the test format on the IELTS website.

Test format - Listening (30 minutes)

Begin your Practice Listening Test

Download the following IELTS Practice Listening test and Blank Answer Sheet, then begin your sample practice test. The audio files for each section of the Practice Listening test are provided in the box below. You will only have 30 minutes to complete this section of the test, so we recommend you time yourself as you complete your practice test.
IELTS Practice Listening Test (pdf) IELTS Practice Listening Test Blank Answer Sheet (pdf)
Check your answers on your Practice Listening Test

Once you have completed the sample practice test, download the following IELTS Practice Listening Test Answer Key and check your answers. Each correct answer receives 1 mark and scores out of 40 are converted to the IELTS 9-band scale.
IELTS Practice Listening Test Answer Key (pdf)
For more information about how IELTS scores are calculated, see IELTS scoring in detail.

Additional Listening resource:
After you have taken the Practice Listening Test, you may download and view the IELTS Practice Listening Test Audio Transcript (pdf).

A1

Prove your English speaking and listening skills as part of your application to UK Visas and Immigration for ' family of a settled person' visas.

IELTS Life Skills

B1

Prove your English speaking and listening skills as part of your application to UK Visas and Immigration for indefinite leave to remain or citizenship.

Test format - Academic Writing (60 minutes)

Begin your Practice Academic Writing Test

Download the following IELTS Practice Academic Writing test then begin your sample practice test. You will only have 60 minutes to complete this section of the test, so we recommend you time yourself as you complete your practice test. You should spend approximately 20 minutes on Writing Task 1 and approximately 40 minutes on Writing Task 2.

Once you have completed the sample practice test, review the sample "model" response and feedback based on the IELTS assessment criteria used to mark the test.
IELTS Practice Academic Writing Test (pdf)
For more information about how IELTS scores are calculated, see IELTS scoring in detail.

Test format - General Training Writing (60 minutes)

Begin your Practice General Training Writing Test

Download the following IELTS Practice General Training Writing test then begin your sample practice test. You will only have 60 minutes to complete this section of the test, so we recommend you time yourself as you complete your practice test. You should spend approximately 20 minutes on Writing Task 1 and approximately 40 minutes on Writing Task 2.

Once you have completed the sample practice test, review the sample "model" response and feedback based on the IELTS assessment criteria used to mark the test.

IELTS Practice General Training Writing Test (pdf)

For more information about how IELTS scores are calculated, see IELTS scoring in detail.

Test format - Speaking (11-14 minutes)

Begin your Practice Speaking Test

Download the following IELTS Practice Speaking test and think of "model" responses to the questions in parts 1-3 of the test. We suggest you practice the speaking test with a study partner and complete all 3 parts of the test without a break, to make your practice as realistic as possible. You will have approximately 11-14 minutes to complete this section of the test, so we recommend you time yourself as you complete your practice test.

IELTS Practice Speaking Test (pdf)

IELTS examiners rate the IELTS Speaking test using 4 assessment criteria - Fluency and Coherence, Lexical Resource, Grammatical Range and Accuracy, and Pronunciation. View videos of IELTS Speaking test samples below:

Speaking test sample - Part 1
Speaking test sample - Part 2
Speaking test sample - Part 3

You may view additional videos on the IELTS Official YouTube channel.

For more information about how IELTS scores are calculated, see IELTS scoring in detail.

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IELTS USA is pleased to offer a free IELTS practice test to test takers who register for IELTS in the USA! The practice test includes an overview of the test format with a variety of sample test questions and answers, to assist you in preparing for the real IELTS test.

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IELTS General Task 1 - overview

I think IELTS writing general Task 1 is the easiest of the writing sections because you are expected to use ready made phrases. You see, formal letter writing in English consists of standard phrases and structure, most of which are outlined below in this tutorial.
Also, you can use the question as a ready made plan to follow for your writing, you can write a few sentences for each bullet point in the question, and you have a well structured answer covering the task response requirement.
Below we have a large list of questions, samples answers and phrases to help you with your online IELTS preparation.

Here are the official IELTS Bands descriptors for pdf download.

Writing Task 1 Sample Letters to Make a Complaint
Example Letter: A formal complaint
You have eaten at a restaurant and it was such a terrible experience that you have decided to inform the manager by letter of what happened, and that you want your money back. Things to include:
- Facts. You need to be concise but explain what happened.
- Polite. No one responds to insults.
- Outline what you wish from this. What do you want to happen?
- Firmness. You want to be taken seriously. Example Letter: Your next door neighbour owns a small dog that barks throughout the day and the night. Write a letter to your neighbour requesting that something be done about the dog. Include in your letter:
- Your reason for writing
- What you would like to happen
- A nice, respectful style
Useful phrases to make a complaint

Writing Task 1 Sample Letters to Make an Application
IELTS writing sample: The school library is seeking applicants for a job over summer break. Write a letter to the library's manager, in your letter include:
- A brief introduction of yourself
- Your experience and relevant skills
- Why you want the job
Useful phrases to make an application

Writing Task 1 Sample Letters to Invite
IELTS writing task 1 sample: You will be graduating from university and would like to invite your family to the ceremony.
Write a letter of invitation to your parents. In the letter:
- Explain that you have completed your studies
- Give details of the event, including time, date and dress code
- Let them know how many tickets they have and who they are for

Useful phrases to invite or reply to an invite

Task 1 Sample Letters to Advise
Task 1 sample: Write a letter to your favourite restaurant. Include the following:
· Your reason for writing
· What you like about the restaurant
· Suggestions for improvement Task 1 sample: Write a letter to the newspaper editor about an experience you had at a restaurant. The experience can be good or bad. Describe your experience in detail and state whether or not you recommend others to visit the restaurant.
Useful phrases to advise

IELTS Sample Letters to Apologise
IELTS sample: A Formal Apology and Explanation
You have received a letter from your university of Albion demanding a reason for your absence
from an exam. You were ill that day, but failed to submit the evidence. Write a letter to the
Examinations Committee explaining your situation. You should include:
- Apologies for the situation
- Identification for yourself (Name, Student Number, Case Number)
- An explanation of what had happened and any possible evidence you may have
- Possible resolutions to consider. IELTS sample: You agreed to take a particular job over the summer, but due to unforeseen circumstances, you can no longer take the position. Write a letter including:
- Explaining your situation
- An apology
- Express that you would be interested in the position next summer IELTS sample: You recently applied for 2 separate jobs. Both have chosen to hire you, but you must write a letter to 1 of them explaining why you are unable to take the position. Include in your letter:
- An apology
- An explanation of your situation
Useful phrases to apologise

Sample Letters to Make a Request
IELTS task 1 writing sample: You live near a record shop that sells music, movies, and books.
Write a letter to the shop asking if they have a few different items that you are looking for.
- Ask what the prices are and if they can be orders
- Ask when they would arrive and if you can have them held in advance.
Sample Task 1 letter:
You recently used a taxi and left some important documents there. Write a letter to the taxi manager and say:
- Describe what you left and where it happened.
- Why are these papers important?
- What would you like the manager to do about it?
Dear Sir / Madam, I am writing in regards to a recent journey I made in a vehicle from your fleet on June 1st, 2018, more specifically, from London Mayfair to Piccadilly station, starting around 4 pm and finishing 30 minutes later. Immediately after entering the taxi that afternoon I immediately started reviewing some very important documents containing confidential client data. I have strong reason to believe I left these documents in the cab upon reaching the destination. These papers are of enormous value because of the information contained, and if they fall into the wrong hands there could be profoundly serious implications for myself, and possibly your firm too. The documents concern an extremely sensitive governmental topic regarding national security, it is therefore of paramount importance they are found and returned to me as soon as possible. As a result of this, I need your firm to check the security camera in the cab of the aforementioned date and time, and please send a copy to this email address: [email protected] In addition, I would be terribly grateful if you could forward the contact details of the driver as I would like to contact him before the situation spirals out of control. Your assistance in this matter is of dire importance, furthermore, I would like to believe we can solve this between ourselves without the Police or MI5 interference. Mr. Worthington
Useful phrases to make a request

General Task 1 Informal Letter Samples
Sample IELTS writing task 1: Write a letter to a pen pal. This can be your first letter or a letter you're writing after knowing your pen pal for a long time. Include details you would normally include when writing to a pen pal in this situation.
Useful phrases for informal letters

Task 1 Sample Letter to Inform

A letter to inform is used whenever the sender (you) would like to inform the receiver of some information. The information you wish to convey could be related to just about anything. Below is a list of topics or concepts your letter may cover
- Inform about a death/ engagement/ wedding/ special life event
- Inform about an acceptance or rejection of application
- Inform about the receipt of a document or package
- Inform about a current event

The purpose of an "inform" letter is to make sure that whatever important news the receiver has to get is clear and articulate. You want to ensure that your letter has a structure. This would include your introduction, your body and ultimately your conclusion.

The introduction- here you want to set up the conversation of the letter. This can include a greeting, an enquiry about how the receiver is doing and then depending on how well you know the receiver a brief introduction of who you are.

Example: Letter to inform about an upcoming wedding

Sample introduction:
This is Jill, we met at the art exhibition last year. I hope this email finds you well.
The body - Once the introduction is complete you need to write the reason for your "inform letter".

Sample Body:
Jack and I engaged! I would love it so very much if you could make it to our wedding. You played a huge role in us getting together and it only makes sense that you are part of the big day.
The conclusion - this section is where you close your letter. You can make any final requests or list any final requirements

Sample conclusion:
Your friend, Jill
By the way, I lost all my contacts as my phone was stolen. This is my new number 123 456 789. I look forward to hearing back from you.
(NOVEMBER 2018)
Latest 2018 General Task 1 questions

1. Write a letter to your friend who has moved to another country and now he/she is coming back to your country for a visit. You have arranged a party for him/her. In your letter:

- Give the date and location of the party
- Say which friends are coming to the party
- Give more information about the friends current lives.

2. You have not received the prize which you have won at a newspaper. Write a letter to the editor of the newspaper with below details:

- Details of how you won the prize
- What is the prize given to you
- What actions you expect to be taken.

3. Write a letter to your manager about a party that you want to organize at the office. In your letter say

- What the party is about
- Why it is necessary
- What you want from him to do.

4. Letter to council for the dirty street:

- Explain why it has become dirty recently
- What problem it has caused
- Giving some suggestions.

5. You decided to drive a bicycle to work and do not have parking space available. Write a letter to building manager:

- Why you decided to use bicycle
- What is the problem
- Provide some suggestions.

6. You have recently read a newspaper article about your school friend whom you did not hear about for a long time. Write a letter to the newspaper editor

- Highlighting some article details
- Ask for some information about your friend

7. The street where you live is very polluted. Write to the local council and ask to act about this situation. You should say:

- What is the main problem?
- How does it affect your street?
- Give some suggestions and request action.

8. Write a letter to the local council about the poor condition of roads in your area. Include the following in your letter:

- Explain the situation and roads' condition.
- How does it affect you and other people?
- Suggest what measures need to be taken, in your opinion.

9. You have recently attended a job interview which went well, but you are still waiting for the decision. Write a letter to HR manager of the company and say
(OCTOBER 2018)
- Give details of the job.
- Why do you think the interview went well?
- Why do you need to know the result?

1. You recently attended a meeting at a hotel. When you returned home, you found you had left some important papers at the hotel. Write a letter to the manager of the hotel. In your letter:

- Explain the problem
- Say why the documents are important
- Suggest a solution

2. Your office building doesn't have parking available. Write a letter to the manager. In your letter:

- Explain the problem
- Suggest a solution
- Say why parking will benefit all employees

3. Your company has recently introduced new uniform for the staffs. Write a letter to your manager that you are not happy with the new uniform:

- Explain why you are not happy with the new uniform
- What you want new uniform to be like
- - Giving some suggestions.

4. You like the apartment but you need some improvements to be made in it. Write a letter to the landlord:

- Explain why you you are happy living in the apartment
- Describe what improvements are to be made
- Explain why it is important to make the improvements.

5. Your brother couldn't join you on a trip that you guys planned. Write a letter to a friend inviting him to join:

- Explain about the trip
- Explain why your brother couldn't make it
- Giving details about the trip.

6. Your friend wants to spend a holiday trip with you, but it is not suitable for you. Write a letter to your friend:

- Explain why it is not suitable for you
- Giving the suggestion.

7. You have bought furniture from a store. When you received there were some damages. Write a letter to manager:

- Giving information him about the furniture.
- Explain the damage.
- Asking the manager to do something.

8. Your brother couldn't join you on a trip that you guys planned. Write a letter to a friend inviting him to join:

- Explain about the trip
- Explain why your brother couldn't make it
- Giving details about the trip.

9. Your child is going on a trip to another country for 3 days. School is looking for some parents who can join the trip and you decided to apply for the same. You are interested in going with trip. Write a letter to the head of the school and include:
(SEPTEMBER 2018)
- Why you want to join the team
- What you can do to assist
- Queries related to the trip.

1. You have bought a toy in an online toy shop, but the toy is damaged. You have to write a letter to the shop manager:

- Describe the toy.
- Describe the damages.
- Providing a resolution.

2. You are working in a giant company which does financial or other items help to the different group of local community. Write to your manager about some group you want to provide help next year.

- Describe a group.
- What help do the group need.
- What kind of help you expect to provide.

3. You missed attending a friend's invite. Write a letter to your friend:

- Apologise for not coming.
- Explain how did you try to contact him/her.
- What is the alternate plan.

4. The local council is about to destroy children playground in your area because it is under use. write a letter and tell them:

- Why it is not well used
- What can be done so more people can use it.

5. The office where you work does not have a proper car park. Write a letter to your manager and say

- Explain the problem of no parking space available.
- Suggest a solution for the car park problem.
- Explain how this will help your company.

6. There is a group of people in your community that needs help. Write a letter to your company director and say
(AUGUST 2018)
- Describe this group.
- What kind of help do they need?
- How will this group and the community benefit from it?

1. You have recently visited a sports centre and discovered some problems and the poor condition of a changing room there. You have made a complaint earlier, but still no action was taken. Write a letter to the facility manager about it. In your letter:

- Describe the problems
- Include details of your complaint
- Say what actions you would like them to take.

2. Your child's school has arranged a trip abroad for students. The principal of the school asked some parents to join the trip to help. Write to the school principal and say:

- Why do you want to join the trip?
- How could you help during the trip?
- Ask some questions about the trip.

3. You recently stayed in a hotel and an employee was very helpful to you. Write a letter to the hotel management to tell them what happened. In your letter:

- Describe the situation
- Explain what happened
- Say what you would like the manager to do

4. There is a problem with the changing rooms in the sports centre that you visit. You have complained several times but with no success. Write a letter to the manager of the sports centre. In your letter:

- Describe what the problem with the changing rooms is
- Say what happened the last times you complained
- Explain what you want the manager to do

5. Your child is going away on a school trip for three days to another country. The head teacher wants some parents to join the trip and you would like to go. Write a letter to the head teacher. In your letter:

- Say why you would like to go
- Suggest what you could do to help during the trip
- Ask some more questions about the trip

6. Write a letter to hotel manager praising a staff member. In your letter:

- Explain the situation
- What they did
- What you want manager to do.

7. You are getting married soon. Write a letter to your friend from a different country and invite him/her to the wedding. In your letter:

- Describe your future wife/husband.
- What will happen at the wedding
- Why do you want to invite him/her

8. You have had problems with a changing room in a sports center. You have made some complaints but nothing has been done about it. Write a letter to the manager stating:

- The issues with the changing rooms
- What has been done about it
- What you want the Manager to do.

9. Write a letter to colleague who gave you a book that helped you for a presentation at work. You should:

- Describe the presentation
- Why was it important
- How did it help you.

10. Your child is going on a trip to another country for 3 days. School is looking for some parents who can join the trip and you decided to apply for the same. You are interested in going with trip. Write a letter to the head of the school and include:
(JULY 2018)
- Why you want to join the team
- What you can do to assist
- Queries related to the trip.

1. City council is planning to pull down one of the historic buildings in your town, because they do not have funds to renovate it. As a citizen, you don't want it to happen. Write a letter to the city council and say

- What is the importance of the building?
- Why should it be renovated?
- Suggest a plan to raise funds and maintain the building in the future.

2. Write a letter to your friend about a job offer that can be suitable for him/her and say

- Describe the job.
- What are the facilities available?
- Why is this job suitable for him/her?

3. You recently started commuting to work by bicycle and discovered that there is a problem with bicycle parking near the building where you work. Write a letter to the building manager and say

- Explain the reason for using a bicycle to commute.
- What problems have you encountered with parking?
- What are your recommendations to solve them?

4. You work in a company and need to take a certain course. Write a letter to your manager and say

- Explain why you need this training course.
- Where and when will you take it?
- How will the company benefit from it?

5. Write a letter to your friend about a book that you have read recently. Include the following in your letter:

- Describe the book.
- Why do you want him/her to read it?
- Tell him/her how to get the book.
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Video: IELTS Writing General Task 1 - Letter Writing - phrases, tips and samples.

IELTS Sample Task 1 Letters Ebook

Audio Tutorial: General Task 1 Samples and Answers

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Struggling with General IELTS Writing Task 1? Check out these samples of Task 1 essays, a very effective way to master this task quickly is to write them out, copy them, pen and paper. Use the look-cover-write technique for this. Alternatively, if you are preparing for the Academic module, why not get familiar with the task? Have a look at these sample questions.

If you are serious about improving, IELTS Essay Correction can give you feedback on your essays in 24h, getting your work corrected will help you identify errors (Grammatical Range and Accuracy) and improve much faster. If you are in a rush to pass, you want to access these online tutorials for the exam.

IELTS Writing Task 2 is one of the most challenging components of the IELTS exam, organising your thoughts, thinking of ideas is not easy. Also, you need BOTH exam skills and language skills, find out more in this tutorial. While researching and preparing for the IELTS exam, why not check out some writing task 2 samples? Another useful tutorial can be found here -it's all about the valuable sentences and phrases you can use in your essays.

Another component for your IELTS success is Lexical Resource, here is an in depth tutorial to help you boost your essays.
Raza Jumped from 6.5 to 7.5 Using This Exact Course
To contact Ben and the team you can send an email after signing up, or send a message through the social media sites listed on this page.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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IELTS Writing: General Task 1 Letter Samples, phrases and tips.

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I think IELTS writing general Task 1 is the easiest of the writing sections because you are expected to use ready made phrases. You see, formal letter writing in English consists of standard phrases and structure, most of which are outlined below in this tutorial.

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E2 IELTS General Writing Task 1 | Informal Letters | TOP TIPS with Jay!

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IELTS General Writing Task 1: Informal Letters | 6 STEP METHOD with Jay!

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E2 IELTS Writing | How to score 8+ in Writing Task 2 with Jay!

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IELTS Writing Task: Improve Your Vocabulary With Lists

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IELTS Speaking | Super Methods with Jay!

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IELTS Speaking | FULL TEST SIMULATION with Jay!

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IELTS SPEAKING: The Best Tips and Strategies for IELTS Speaking Part 2!

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IELTS Reading | SUPER METHODS #1 with Jay!

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E2 IELTS Writing Task 2 | How to score 8+ in Vocabulary | TOP TIPS by Jay

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Passport to English - IELTS speaking test with Lester: Part 1 - Introduction

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Play a game of Kahoot! here. Kahoot! is a free game-based learning platform that makes it fun to learn - any subject, in any language, on any device, for all ages!

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Music for Deep Focus and Concentration with Binaural Beats, Brainwave Music for Studying

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Talks from inspiring teachers | TED Talks

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A great teacher can change the trajectory of your life. Here, talks from teachers you'll wish you had.

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Cutting-edge talk radio station Dubai Eye 103.8 is your 24/7 news, talk and sports fix. Stay One Step Ahead and listen live now!

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IELTS / TOEFL Essay Writing: The Topic Sentence

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E2 IELTS Reading | Sentence Completion with Jay!

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IELTS Writing: Discursive Essay IELTS Task 2

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Marking the Speaking test - Understanding IELTS

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In this short video, British Council tutor Rob talks about how the IELTS Speaking test is marked.

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One easy way to write the introduction for an argument or opinion essay is to write THREE sentences:

You can write either Situation or Opinion introductions. There's not much difference between them.

Situation Introductions

Write two sentences to describe the two sides of the present situation. The third sentence - the Thesis sentence - will describe what you are going do in your essay.

Sentence 1: One side of the present situation

Sentence 2: The other side of the present situation

Sentence 3: Thesis: What you are going to do in your essay

Who should take care of our old people?

Does Aid to Poor Countries Work?

Should dangerous sports be banned?

Opinion Introductions

In this kind you give two opposite opinions in the first two sentences. The third sentence says what you are going to do.

Does space exploration benefit mankind? (1)

Does space exploration benefit mankind? (2)

Do Athletes Deserve Their High Salaries?

As well as situation or opinion introductions, you can use the following variations:

Past and Present: One sentence about the situation in the past, one about the situation today.

Here and Elsewhere: One sentence about the situation in one place, one sentence about the situation or problem in another place.

You and Other People: One sentence about what most people do or think, one sentence about what you believe, or do, or feel.

Finally, if you are having problem thinking about an introduction, leave some space (enough for three or four sentences) and write or type it later - AFTER you write the body or conclusion.

What do you want to do now?

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One easy way to write the introduction for an argument or opinion essay is to write THREE sentences: You can write either Situation or Opinion introductions. There's not much difference between them. Write two sentences to describe the two sides of the present situation.

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A thesis statement is a sentence (or two) that states what you are going to do in your essay. It is a kind of asignpost - something that tells you where to go- or a map that shows the reader what direction your essay will take. It usually comes at the end of the Introduction.

In this essay, I will outline the arguments for and against sex education in schools.

In this essay, I will examine some reasons for the growth of the tourism industry.

You can also leave out "I."

This essay looks at ideas in favour of and against early marriage.

This essay will discuss the benefits of having universal free health care.

Signpost your essay

Sometimes the reader can tell how many parts or which paragraphs will follow the thesis statement.

I am going to analyse the effects of drugs on the individual, the family, and society.

In an essay with the thesis statement above, there will clearly be three parts - one on the effects of drugs on the individual, one part with the effects on the family, and another with the effects on society.

Be Strong

Sometimes you don't need a "will" or "going to". Your thesis statement is so strong that it is clear what your opinion is.

Beating children brutalizes parents, damages the parent-child relationship, and is completely unnecessary.

In an essay with the thesis statement above, there will clearly be three parts - one on the effects of corporal punishment on parents, one part with the effects relationship, and another which claims that beating is not needed.

Thesis sentence vocabulary

analyze, look at, examine, discuss, outline, consider, describe, focus on, decide

Examples:

This essay will examine the reasons for the high divorce rate in our society.

I will outline some of my objections to arranged marriages.

In this essay I will focus on three problems caused by corruption.

I will discuss whether large families are better than smaller ones.

This essay will consider the benefits of space exploration for the economy, for scientific development, and for the future of humanity.

What do you want to do now?

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A thesis statement is a sentence (or two) that states what you are going to do in your essay. It is a kind of asignpost - something that tells you where to go- or a map that shows the reader what direction your essay will take.

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Writing: Transitions – in addition, moreover, furthermore, another

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Writing: Transitions – THEREFORE, THUS, CONSEQUENTLY

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Here are some examples of conclusions. A good conclusion will:

rephrase the question

summarize the main ideas

give your opinion, if you haven't given it already

look to the future (say what will happen if the situation continues or changes)

but will NEVER add new information.

Should we test products on animals?

I agree that we need to make sure that animals who are used for testing new products have the minimum of suffering. However, I am convinced that animal testing is necessary, and that it will continue to benefit humans in new and wonderful ways.

Should we beat children?

In conclusion, physical punishment can be a useful method of discipline. However it should be the last choice for parents. If we want to build a world with less violence we must begin at home, and we must teach our children to be responsible.

Who are the better parents - men or women?

I think this is not an either/or question. Both men and women have strengths and skills that are important for children's psychological growth. We need to ensure that both parents play an important role in the family in order to give children a good start in life.

Who learns quicker - adults or children?

Finally, I feel that we cannot generalize about children or adults being better learners. It depends on the situation and the motivation of the person, and the level of enthusiasm he or she has for learning.

Should dangerous sports be banned?

In summary, our society would be healthier if more people took part in sports of all kinds. We should continue to try to prevent accidents and injuries. However, we should also ensure that sports are challenging, exciting, and, above all, fun.

What do you want to do now?

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Here are some examples of conclusions. A good conclusion will: rephrase the question summarize the main ideas give your opinion, if you haven't given it already look to the future (say what will happen if the situation continues or changes) but will NEVER add new information. Should we test products on animals?

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Reading: Unit 1: Distinguishing Main Ideas from Supporting Details

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This page has links to newer argument and opinion essays on this site. Some essays are listed in more than one topic.

Many of the essays have key points highlighted. Just move your mouse over the underlined words, and features such as topic sentences, thesis sentences, conclusions and introductions will be explained, or at least identified.

The essays are meant to be examples of what an IELTS candidate could do in just 40 minutes. They are not aimed at being Band 8 or 9. Instead they use vocabulary and phrases that should be familiar to anyone looking for Band 6.

See these essays sorted by date. You can also find links to older essays on this site.

Culture

Economy

Education

Environment

Families and Children

Media

Problem and Solution

Science and Technology

Society

Sports and Leisure

Travel

Work

You can also find links to older essays on this site.

New essays and comments by people in the forum!

See how other learners are writing - add your comments and upload your essays!

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This page has links to newer argument and opinion essays on this site. Some essays are listed in more than one topic. Many of the essays have key points highlighted. Just move your mouse over the underlined words, and features such as topic sentences, thesis sentences, conclusions and introductions will be explained, or at least identified.

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Many students worry about ideas. "I don't know what to say!" "I don't know anything about this topic!"

However, you don't need too many ideas for an essay in an English exam. The magic number is THREE.

Three ideas means:

Did you notice that in the 3773 layouts that the order of the two paragraphs changes depending on your opinion (mainly for, or mainly against)? Your opinion - your strongest points - come in the second body paragraph.

The best way to get ideas is to underline the main words in the question, and then to write down any words with the same meaning or which are related. Pretend it is a vocabulary exercise.

Make sure you write down the words. Don't try to keep them in your head.

The more words you write down, the more ideas you will get. Spend five or six minutes just writing down words based on the question.

Some people also use brainstorming, mind maps or other techniques.

What do you want to do now?

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Many students worry about ideas. "I don't know what to say!" "I don't know anything about this topic!" However, you don't need too many ideas for an essay in an English exam. The magic number is THREE.

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Present situation: definition / problems

Present situation: solutions

This essay will (Essay thesis, or outline)

Drug abuse is rife in many countries. Billions of dollars are spent internationally preventing drug use, treating addicts, and fighting drug-related crime.Although drugs threaten many societies, their effects can also be combated successfully.

This essay looks at some of the effects of drug use on society, and suggests some solutions to the problem.

Drug abuse causes multiple problems for countries and communities.The medical and psychological effects are very obvious.

Addicts cannot function as normal members of society. They neglect or abuse their families, and eventually require expensive treatment or hospitalization.

The second effect is on crime.

Huge police resources are needed to fight smuggling and dealing. Criminal gangs and mafia underworlds develop with the money from drugs.

However, the menace of drugs can be fought.Education is the first battle.

Children need to be told at home and in school about drugs. People need to be aware of the effects so that they can make avoid this problem

A second approach is to increase police manpower and powers to stop dealers and to enforce the law.

However the main target should be the user. Families and counselors need to talk to children and people at risk. Parents need to look at their children and help them to become responsible. Jobs are needed to give people a role in society.

Conclusion

Topic Sentence

Summary of essay: problem: solution

Future statement

In conclusion,although the problem of drugs may seem impossible to eliminate, there are concrete steps that can be taken to weaken the hold of drugs on society.

The danger from drugs is too great to ignore. We must act now to save our society.

Look at other topics:

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Present situation: definition / problems Present situation: solutions This essay will (Essay thesis, or outline) Drug abuse is rife in many countries. Billions of dollars are spent internationally preventing drug use, treating addicts, and fighting drug-related crime.Although drugs threaten many societies, their effects can also be combated successfully.

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This essay is an example of 3773 layout. The essay is in favor of the question above- it wants parents to be responsible if their children commit crimes.

Present situation

Many crimes and social problems are caused by children.Despite the damage these teenage criminals cause, parents are not held responsible in most countries.

What this essay will do (Thesis
sentence)

This essay will discuss whether parents should be forced to pay for their children's crimes.

Topic Sentence

There are many reasons why parents should not be responsible for crimes committed by teenage children.

Reason 1: Independence

First of all, teenagers today are independent. They often move out of the parent's house at 18 years of age or younger. They are expected to
learn to take care of themselves and make their own decisions, and not stay like small children attached to their parents.

Reason 2: Parents working

Secondly, parents are working. They cannot watch their adolescent
children all the time.

Reason 3: Parents have done their job

A third point is that even children from good families can sometimes commit crimes. Parents should not be responsible if they have worked hard
to raise their children properly.

Topic Sentence

However, because of the many problems young troublemakers cause, I feel we should make parents responsible.

Reason 1: Lack of Parental Control

Firstly, most juvenile crimes are committed by adolescents whose parents do not care or make any effort to control their children. If
parents had to pay fines, they might make more effort.

Reason 2: Children not mature

Another point is that even though the children may seem mature, they are not really able to make good decisions. Parents should be responsible
for raising and teaching their children until they are fully grown.

Reason 3: Children will think

Furthermore, if children know that their parents will have to pay, they will think carefully before doing getting into trouble

Future/ Personal Opinion

However, I feel strongly that if we want to reduce the number of such crimes, we need to make parents take more responsibility.

290 words

What do you want to do now?

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This essay is an example of 3773 layout. The essay is in favor of the question above- it wants parents to be responsible if their children commit crimes. Present situation Many crimes and social problems are caused by children.Despite the damage these teenage criminals cause, parents are not held responsible in most countries.

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People in the past used to be more dependent on one another, whereas nowadays they lead a more independent life. Do you agree or disagree?

Some people fear that modern life is damaging our relationships with friends and family and resulting in more loneliness and isolation. However, others believe that we are now more interdependent than ever. In this essay, I will examine whether our lives are really more independent than in the past.

It's easy to see a trend towards increasing independence. First of all, traditional families are in decline. People increasingly do not live in large, extended families, and more and more people live alone. Secondly, people move more, for work or other opportunities, and change jobs more frequently. As a result, friendships and links with family may not last. A third issue is that traditional values of consensus, obedience to authority and respect for elders are changing. They are being replaced by individualism, materialism and self-help philosophies.

However, there are also many things which haven't changed. Deep down, human nature still seeks affection, advice and support from others. Even if people are physically separated because of work or other commitments, they still seek out the help and companionship of others. A second point is that new methods of communication allow us to keep in touch easily. Facebook, Skype, email, mobile phones and messaging allow very quick and inexpensive communication and feedback. Furthermore, although people may not depend on family as much as in the past, colleagues and professional and social networks can provide even better interaction.

In conclusion, I would say that although it appears that some traditional patterns of support have diminished, people are still intensely social and we are learning new ways to live in groups. Who knows? Some of these may serve us better!

Related Posts:

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People in the past used to be more dependent on one another, whereas nowadays they lead a more independent life. Do you agree or disagree? Some people fear that modern life is damaging our relationships with friends and family and resulting in more loneliness and isolation.

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Below are lots of resources to help you prepare for the IELTS reading test.

IELTS Reading Question Types

There are several different types of questions on the IELTS reading test and each one has its own problems and strategy. Click on any of the links below for a full step-by-step guide.

This post will help you answer short answer questions more effectively by looking at a sample question, identifying common problems and giving you a strategy to use on exam day.

This article will help you answer multiple choice questions more effectively. We look at common problems and how to fix them.

In these kinds of questions, you will be given a summary of information from the text and there will be some gaps in that summary.

In this IELTS reading question, you will be given a list of incomplete sentences with no endings and another list with possible endings. Your job is to match the incomplete sentences with the correct ending based on the reading text.

In this kind of question, you will be given a number of sentences with gaps in them and asked to complete the sentences with words from the reading text.

'True, False, Not Given' questions requires you to identify if the information in a text is true or not. You will be given a number of factual statements and you have to check in the text if they are true or not. This is probably the most difficult question on the reading paper.

This article will help you match headings more effectively in the IELTS reading test. In the IELTS Reading test, you may be asked to match headings to sections of text. This type of question tests your ability to understand the main idea of each paragraph.

On the IELTS reading test, you might get a question that asks you to label a diagram. This post will:

show you examples

look at common problems

give you tips

provide you with a strategy for answering these questions.

Matching Names

In this type of question, you are asked to match someone's name, normally an expert, researcher or scientist, to a statement.

In this kind of question, you are asked to match statements to paragraphs in the reading text.

IELTS Reading Tips

IELTS Reading Practice

This article will show you where to find real practice tests for free and also show you how to improve your practice sessions.

Next Steps

We are constantly adding to our collection of resources, so if you have a suggestion please let us know. In the meantime, thank you for your patience 🙂

Click here to return to the homepage, or click one of the links below to check out more great IELTS stuff.
IELTS Preparation Writing Task 1 Writing Task 2 Vocabulary IELTS Practice

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IELTS Reading Below are lots of resources to help you prepare for the IELTS reading test. IELTS Reading Question Types There are several different types of questions on the IELTS reading test and each one has its own problems and strategy. Click on any of the links below for a full step-by-step guide.

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IELTS Band 9 Writing Sample - Body Paragraphs

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Our free online IELTS practice tests with answers will help improve your listening, reading, writing and speaking IELTS exam performance.

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The best site to practice IELTS practice tests online, with wide range of tests from Recent Actual Tests, mock tests, past papers tests to many different topics, Number and Names listening practice tests, TED talk listening practice tests and many more. Take IELTS mock tests for free for as many times you want.

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There are two types of IELTS test to choose from, IELTS Academic or IELTS General Training. All test takers take the same Listening and Speaking tests but different Reading and Writing tests. Make sure that you prepare for the correct version of the test.

Using IELTS official practice materials will enable you to:

familiarise yourself with the test format

experience the types of tasks you will be asked to undertake

test yourself under timed conditions

review your answers and compare them with model answers.

If you are taking IELTS on Computer, click here for on Computer sample test questions.
IELTS official practice test
Once you have prepared with the sample questions put your knowledge to the test with IELTS Progress Check, IELTS official online marked practice test. The test will give you an indication of your band score and provide feedback on areas to improve. Book your official practice test today.

Listening

Duration: 30 minutes

The Listening test is the same for both Academic and General Training versions of IELTS and consists of four recorded monologues and conversations.

The following IELTS Listening sample tasks are to be used with the Answer Sheet and MP3 audio files and/or transcripts. Each answer sheet indicates which recording to listen to, or if a transcript is provided.

Listening sample test 1

Listening sample 1 task - Form completion (PDF, 59KB)

IELTS listening recording 1 (MP3, 1.2MB)

Listening sample 2 task Multiple Choice(PDF, 16KB)

Listening recording 2 (MP3, 402KB)

Listening sample 3 task Short Answer(PDF, 25KB)

IELTS Listening recording 3 (MP3, 574KB)

Listening sample 4 task Sentence Completion(PDF, 17KB)

IELTS Listening recording 4(MP3, 549KB)

Listening sample 5 task Matching(example 1 - PDF, 21KB)

IELTS Listening recording 5(MP3, 2.8MB)

Listening sample 6 task Matching(example 2 PDF, 21KB)

IELTS Listening recording 6(MP3, 2.1MB)

Listening sample 7 task Plan/Map/Diagram Labelling (PDF, 25KB)

IELTS Listening recording 7(MP3, 2.7MB)

Listening sample 8 task Note Completion(PDF, 59KB)

IELTS Listening recording 8(MP3, 4.18MB)

Listening Recording 8 Answer Sheet(PDF, 16KB)

Listening Sample 9 Task Short Answer(PDF, 25KB)

IELTS Listening Recording 9(MP3, 11.8MB)

Listening Recording 9 Answer Sheet(PDF, 17KB)

Find out more about the Listening test

Academic Reading

Duration: 60 minutes

Texts for the Academic Reading test are taken from books, journals, magazines and newspapers.

A variety of tasks is used, including: multiple choice questions, identifying information, identifying writer's views/claims, matching information, matching headings, matching features, matching sentence endings, sentence completion, summary completion, note completion, table completion, flow-chart completion, diagram label completion, short-answer questions.

Downloadable Academic Reading sample tasks

Academic Reading sample task - Matching features (PDF, 22KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Table completion (PDF, 59KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Flow-chart completion (selecting words from the text) (PDF, 173 KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Identifying information (True False Not Given) (PDF, 174KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Matching headings (PDF, 92KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Matching sentence endings task (PDF, 132KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Multiple choice (more than one answer) (PDF, 223KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Multiple choice (one answer) (PDF, 256KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Note completion task (PDF, 260KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Sentence completion task (PDF, 190KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Summary completion (selecting from a list of words or phrases) (PDF, 259 KB)

Academic Reading sample task - Summary completion (selecting words from the text) (PDF, 189 KB)

Find out more about the Academic Reading test

General Training Reading

Duration: 60 minutes

A variety of tasks is used including; multiple choice questions, identifying information, identifying writer's views/claims, matching information, matching headings, matching features, matching sentence endings, sentence completion, summary completion, note completion, table completion, flow-chart completion, diagram label completion, short-answer questions.

Downloadable General Training Reading sample tasks

General Training Reading sample task - Flow Chart Completion (PDF, 40KB)

General Training Reading sample task - Identifying Information (PDF, 99KB)

General Training Reading sample task - Matching Information (PDF, 43KB)

General Training Reading sample task - Matching Features (PDF, 32KB)

General Training Reading sample task - Matching Headings (PDF, 31KB)

General Training Reading sample task - Note completion task (PDF, 211KB)

General Training Reading sample task - Sentence Completion (PDF, 19KB)

General Training Reading sample task - Short-Answer Questions (PDF, 18KB)

General Training Reading sample task - Summary completion task (PDF, 202KB)

General Training Reading sample task - Identifying information (True False Not Given) (PDF, 123KB)

Find out more about the General Training Reading test

Academic Writing

Duration: 60 minutes

The Academic Writing tests consist of two writing tasks of 150 words and 250 words.

In Task 1, test takers are asked to describe some visual information (graph/table/chart/diagram). They need to write 150 words in about 20 minutes. In Task 2 test takers are presented with a point of view or argument or problem. They need to write their response in 250 words in about 40 minutes.

Below are samples of Task 1 and Task 2.

Please note that test takers for IELTS Academic take a different Writing test in IELTS General Training.
Find out more about the Academic Writing test

General Training Writing

Duration: 60 minutes

The General Writing test consists of two writing tasks of 150 words and 250 words.

In Task 1, test takers are asked to respond to a situation by writing a letter, for example, requesting information or explaining a situation.

In Task 2, test takers write an essay in response to a point of view, argument or problem.

Below are samples of Task 1 and Task 2.

Please note that test takers for IELTS General Training take a different Writing test in IELTS Academic.
Find out more about the General Training Writing test

Speaking

Duration: 11-14 minutes

In the Speaking test, you have a discussion with a certified examiner. It is interactive and as close to a real-life situation as a test can get.

There are three parts to the test and each part fulfils a specific function in terms of interaction pattern, task input and test taker output.

In Part 1, you answer questions about yourself and your family. In Part 2, you speak about a topic. In Part 3, you have a longer discussion on the topic.

The Speaking test is the same for both Academic and General Training versions. Each of the three parts is designed to test a different aspect of your communication ability.
Find out more about the Speaking test

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There are two types of IELTS test to choose from, IELTS Academic or IELTS General Training. All test takers take the same Listening and Speaking tests but different Reading and Writing tests. Make sure that you prepare for the correct version of the test.

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IELTS TOEFL Writing  Full essay (high score)

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Transition Words and Phrases to Improve Your Writing | 120+ Transition Words for Essays

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IELTS & TOEFL Writing Task 2 - The Introduction

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IELTS General Training | IELTS Online Tests

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IELTS General Training is one of the best most wanted IELTS simulation test books. Its practice tests was taken based on real, past exam papers which submitted by students and IELTS certified teachers. Each practice test contains 4 modules IELTS Listening, Reading, Writing. IELTS General Training was published on Fri, 01/06/2017 - 07:50 .

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IELTS TOEFL Essay Writing - How to Achieve Sentence Variety

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Mixed Verb Tenses in English: Conditionals and IF clauses

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The 4 English Sentence Types – simple, compound, complex, compound-complex

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Share these recent IELTS questions & sample answers

IELTS SPEAKING TOPICS 2019

These are current IELTS topics being used in IELTS tests around the world.

A time you gave money as a gift

A recent development in your city

A situation when you found an item

A movie or TV show that made you laugh

Your ideal house in the future

An occasion when you had to search for information

A quiet place where you have spent time

A book you recently read

A person you know who cares about environmental matters

A special date in your country's history

A remote place you wish to visit in the future

A time you needed to repair a broken item

A person you know who you think is handsome/ beautiful

A beautiful city you have visited

A place where you have studied (indoor or outdoor)

An interesting lecture you attended

A project for which you needed to collect information

A sport you would like to try

A person you would like to meet

A public facility which opened recently near you (cinema, park, etc.)

FULL IELTS SPEAKING TESTS WITH ANSWERS

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 1
What do you do? Do you study or work?
I'm a business analyst with a high-profile finance company helping provide finance solutions for startup companies and entrepreneurs.

What is your job?

As I said, I work in finance and my job involves analyzing and evaluating startup companies, financing opportunities, and matching them with the best possible funding solutions which we offer from our range of investors and pre-packaged loan solutions.

Why did you choose this job?

It was one of the first jobs I saw advertised after graduating from University and it was relevant to my major which was Business Administration with a specialization in international finance.

I also thought that the company was socially aware, and I liked the fact that it was set up to help other small entrepreneurial ventures which were looking for funding to help them in their initial stages of developing in their markets.

How was your first day at the office?

My first day at work or in the office was very enjoyable; people were very friendly and two people, in particular, helped me to orient myself to the new office.

They showed me where everything was that I needed and helped me to settle into my workstation.

My immediate boss also spent some time with me which was a very valuable experience and she made me aware of what was expected and my role within the company.

She explained what I would be doing on a regular basis, she outlined my responsibilities and functions, etc.

And overall my first day was very enjoyable, it was good meeting everybody and learning a little bit more about the company and my new position.

Let's talk about being on time...

Do you wear a watch normally?

No, not anymore, I used to in the past but in the last couple of years, I've stopped wearing a watch.

I find that I'm happier and also I don't need it 'because I always have my phone with me which has a clock on it so having a watch isn't really necessary anymore, and I prefer not to wear one.

Do people in your culture usually arrive on time?

Yes, they do we, are known to be a very punctual culture and it's considered disrespectful and rude to arrive late for a meeting or an arranged appointment.

So, yes, most people turn up on time or even slightly early to avoid any problems.

Do you arrive on time?

Yes, I do, almost always. I can remember one or two occasions when there was a problem or a delay or something and I arrived late.

But in general, I always arrive on time and I plan ahead to make sure that even if traffic is bad, for example, I can still get to where I need to go on time or arrive even slightly early.

How would you feel if someone made you wait?

Well, I don't like it I think it's a sign of disrespect for other people's time and it's frustrating. I'll usually wait for somebody if they contact me to let me know that they are running late and approximately what time they will arrive, then it's not a big problem.

But if they don't contact me and they just leave me waiting, then usually depending on where I am, depending on what kind of meeting or arrangement it is, I wait for maybe 20 or 30 minutes maximum, and then carry on with whatever else I have to do that day.

I don't usually contact the person if they don't show up - it's up to them to explain the circumstances but in general, it doesn't happen very often.

It's totally understandable if someone arrives late or is delayed because of traffic or something unforeseen or circumstances which lead to them being delayed.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 2

OK, so one special day that I can remember was when I was living in Mexico for a brief period and I among the people I was working with was another girl, from England.

One of the things we used to do when we had time off was to visit the pyramids in the areas near where we lived, and we would climb the pyramids and take photographs of them.

On one occasion, we got up early and we got on a small bus which took us about 40 minutes outside the town where we were living at the time, to a small village.

The village was located at the foot of a very tall, or large, pyramid and we planned to climb it along with some of the locals.

It was a lot of fun it was very good exercise as well because the climb with all the different steps, it seemed like just claiming upstairs for a couple of hours, however, when we reached the top the view from the top of the pyramid was absolutely amazing.

We probably spent about 20 minutes or 25 minutes maybe at the top and there was a group of people who had climbed with us and we talked with some of them, we took some pictures, we rested, we had something to eat and something to drink, just a snack.

Then when we felt rested enough we started the descent, started to climb down, it was actually more difficult because of the inclination, it's a lot easier climbing up then going back down but it was actually slightly faster and by the time we arrived back down it was very early in the afternoon.

We were really hungry, so we decided to stop in the village at the bottom of the pyramid and have something to eat. We ate lunch, we had a local dish which included chicken, rice, and salad, and some other things, it was delicious and was served in a typical rustic or country style restaurant.

Then we spent a short time wandering around the small village and the marketplace which was where we looked in some of the shops, chatted with some of the people there, before we took a bus back to the city.

The entire day didn't cost a lot of money, only the cost of the bus and the food that we ate. The climbing part was actually free, so it was a very enjoyable and special day.

The reason it was a special day was 'cause it was the last time that the two of us climbed together, we had climbed many different pyramids together before, so it was the last thing that we did it together.

Shortly after that day, we went or moved to different places and so it was impossible to continue visiting the different pyramids and all the different places together, so overall it was a really nice enjoyable and special day, and it didn't cost a lot of money.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 3
Special occasions & celebrations:
Why do many people typically associate celebrating special occasions with spending a lot of money?

The clue is in the word 'special'. Normally whenever something is special, people associate it with something better than normal, so it's logical that if people have a special celebration it will cost more than a normal or regular celebration.

If you look at some of the special celebrations such as important birthdays or a wedding or anniversary, then you'll see that many people usually spend quite a lot of money because they believe it shows the importance of the occasion, how special it is for them.

Because such occasions don't happen all the time they can justify spending a lot because it's not an everyday or common occurrence. And that makes it even more special and worth spending - to make it even more memorable.

What sorts of things are essential in order to have a special celebration with family or friends?

If I think about some of the special celebrations we have had in my own family... they usually involve a lot of food and drink, and obviously, all the members of the family coming together in a nice place.

When it's a celebration with friends it might be a little bit different. We might go out to someplace to eat or even dance or something.

The most important thing of all, before considering, food, music, drink, the place, and what the people do when they are together, is simply the people that come to the celebration.

For example, when I think about family celebrations when I was younger, two of the most important people I always remember being there were my grandparents. Somehow, a family get-together without them was just not the same - so any special celebration had to include them, otherwise it wasn't special.

Spending money:

How do people spend their money differently nowadays compared to in the past?

There are probably a couple of differences, such as the fact that many young people nowadays spend money much more easily than their parent or grandparents did.

They don't plan and save and think so much about what they spend their money on - they tend to just spend on whatever they want at the time.

There are a couple of reasons for this. It's much easier to get d=credit nowadays, so it's easier to spend money you don't have. And there's a lot more peer pressure to have certain things and appear to be successful through consumption.

Some people might say that consumer trends are changing and that young people are choosing to spend their money on more socially aware companies, but at the end of the day, they are still spending more easily than previous generations.

Modern consumerism makes it easier than ever to spend money, what are the consequences of this for society?

The biggest and most serious consequence is how easy it is for people to get into debt. Because it is so easy to spend money on credit cards, etc. people can quickly lose control of their finances if they aren't very disciplined about what, or how much, they spend.

There is a lot of pressure to consume, from advertising, from peers, from society in general - consumption is seen as a good thing and is positively encouraged all the time.

Easy credit and easy payment options like swiping your credit cards, paying your phone, shopping online, etc. all these things make it potentially very easy to lose control of exactly how much you are spending.
Using credit is not a bad thing, as long as you have a stable job and are sure that you can pay your bills every month when they arrive. But today's economy is much more fragile than in the past, and subject to very dynamic changes sometimes.

Some people are still recovering from the financial crash back in 2008 because they lost their source of income due to the layoffs and downsizing which a lot of companies implemented to try and save money.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 1
Where you live:
Where are you living at the moment, is it far from here?

I live at home with my parents. Our home is about 30 minutes from here, in the suburbs of the city.

Do you like where you live? Why?

Yes, I love it. It's a nice peaceful, safe neighborhood. My family has lived there for a long time. We know all the neighbors and there are all the amenities you need close by, so it's a really great place to live.

Work:

Have you ever had a part-time job?

Yes, when I was younger.

*Alternative question if the answer is negative: Why not?

Well, my parents always wanted me to focus on my academic studies and so they never encouraged me to find a part-time job.

And after graduating from university I started working full time, so I've never worked on a part-time basis.

Where did you work?

I used to help my uncle in his store after school and on the weekends.

He used to have a convenience store, so I would help unpack stock and put it on the shelves and also help organize the back shop.

What kind of work did you do?

Like I said, I started off just helping with simple tasks like stacking the shelves and labeling products.

When I was a little older I even began to serve customers when they bought things.

My uncle taught me how to use the cash register and give the correct change and everything.

What are some of the things that people think make a job a good one?

Well, there are some obvious things, like the job being an interesting one. Most people like to have job satisfaction because they like doing it or they know it is worthwhile because it helps other people.

Then there are things related to the workplace; a good environment, good colleagues or fellow workers, having a good boss, and so on.

And of course, most people would like to receive a reasonable wage or salary for the work they do, so all these things would probably make a job a good one that people would be interested in doing.

There might be other factors also, such as it being challenging, providing a long-term career path, a position which provides social status, power, and recognition.

People & perceptions:

Why do you think different people might have different perceptions of the same job?

Because different people have priorities which vary. For some people, the money is the most important, meanwhile, for others, it's the people they work with or the actual work they do which is more important.

Some people are very ambitious while others prefer work which has a more social role in society rather than just to make more money.

So, depending on which perspective you have, you'll look at a certain job through your own personal lens, and see the things you like and dislike about it - that would explain why different people see the same job in different ways.

Do people's perceptions change as they get older? How do they change?

Yes, I think they do. It's because your life experience and knowledge eventually shape your perception of all aspects of life.

Young people tend to have a very optimistic and idealistic perception of the life and the world, while older people tend to have lived a bit more and know that it's difficult to change things and life is generally a struggle, so their perception will be tinged by their own experiences, good or bad, but based on greater life experience than a younger person's perception of the same thing.

But perceptions aren't just positive or negative, it's not a case of right or wrong; there is a lot of things on which many people have the same perception regardless of their age or experience.

How have your own perceptions changed in recent years?

Well, I would say I'm a little more cynical or skeptical now than I used to be when I was younger.

That's just because I'm not so naïve anymore, and I realize that many things are much more complex and nuanced than what I thought when I was younger.

My perceptions have changed somewhat since graduating and beginning to work and seeing the impact of decisions in the real world, and how everything affects everything else in ways I never really considered before.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 2

One day, last year, while driving my car, I took a look at the fuel gauge and noticed that the needle marked less than a quarter of a tank.

I tried to remember where the nearest service station was. I thought it should be more or less close to the place where I was going to at that time.

A few weeks before, a couple of friends had told me that it was not a regular gas station, but a high service one. They told me to go and see it for myself.

For that reason alone, I remembered it instantly. They had told me that it's not the spacious, newly remodeled one, which has about a dozen gas pumps. You need to continue a little further and then you come across a row of vehicles in the access.

Very soon I had in view the large service station, located on the corner on my right. At that time there were no more than five vehicles parked in front of the gas pumps.

I went a little further in the same direction and there, some thirty meters away, was the famous gas station my friends had told me about. I counted seven vehicles in front of mine and noticed that the row was moving to the right. I parked, turned off the engine and waited a bit.

When I eventually left the gas station, I decided that I had to go back one more time with my camera. In effect, that station had its own charm, a special touch or, even more important, a powerful and inspiring message.

The people of that business demonstrated a conviction, a high-quality outlook, a way of being and communicating for the benefit of their clients.

It was, without a doubt, a business that could not go unnoticed, a business with spirit, with a unique identity.

This is a fundamental characteristic of any successful business, related to some of the most essential questions that, as people, we often ask ourselves, like what distinguishes us? What makes us unique and different?

Many companies believe that the alpha and omega of service excellence consist of administration based on management instruments and measurement of results, that is, on doing, being on task, follow-up, analysis and the concatenation of processes, in the acquisition of the latest and most sophisticated CRM model.

Well, they are wrong. Excellence in service begins and ends in the exercise of values that are much closer to being than to doing, more intangible than tangible.

In simple words: you are helpful, or you are not. We could even hierarchize these two dimensions. First, you are, and then, that way of being must be translated into actions, actions that, in turn, if they are coherent and constant, will show that you really are.

The people working at the gas station that day gave me an unforgettable experience because of their manner, the way they treated me, and it's something I'll never forget.

They were just so helpful, and I would definitely recommend the place to my friends, well, they already know about it; in fact, they told me about the place.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 3
Customer service:
Do you think it's true that shops or stores which sell luxury/expensive products actually offer a better shopping experience to their customers?

It's probably a very subjective thing. If you like shopping in such stores then I'm sure the services they provide, and the experience, will be satisfactory; you'll feel special, you'll feel like your purchase is worth the money, and they will treat you well.

But, you could also go to a regular store and buy something and still receive good service and a good shopping experience. You know, you buy something, hand over the cash, and the people in the store treat you well. You go home with the product and you're happy.

So, what I'm saying is it depends what you want from your shopping experience. If being pampered and made to feel special is important for you, then luxury stores do that very well.

If you just want to buy something at a reasonable price. Then there are many stores which can deliver a good shopping experience. It might be more basic and less luxurious, but it's still a good experience because you got what you wanted at a good price.

How can companies benefit from giving their customers good customer service?

Probably the most common is through word of mouth (WOM) where a happy customer will tell their friends and family and others about their experience, the good service, the excellent prices or whatever it was that made their shopping experience a good one.

Such personal recommendations are very powerful and much more effective than potential customer just seeing a random advertisement or some other promotion.

A personal recommendation is much more likely to make them want to check out the store, brand, or product for themselves.

What changes do you think will occur in customer service in the future?

It'll probably become more and more personalized. Shopping, in general, is heading in a more personalized direction, so it's only natural that customer service will follow suit.

Companies and brands will try to build better and deeper relationships with their customers.

That makes sense because it costs less to keep an existing customer than find new ones. So, I expect that brands will find new and innovative ways to become a bigger part of our lives, in an effort to provide a more personal shopping experience for us, in the hope that we stay loyal to the brand.

Products & services:

What changes to products do companies typically need to make to the products they offer to make them more appealing to customers?

A lot depends on the type of product it is. For example, if it's a tech gadget, smartphone, computer, etc. then there is a constant need to update the technology, features, and functionality in order to keep it competitive and also take advantage of the latest technological advances.

For example, we'll be seeing 5G technology rolling out later next year, so expect to see a whole range of product versions being released to take advantage of the benefits that 5G will offer.

Then there are consumer trends which can drive change. For example, nowadays many millennials are really conscious about their impact on the environment, and more importantly, the impact of the products they buy and the companies they buy them from have on the environment.

So naturally many companies who target that demographic have launched 'green' initiatives to show how they have reduced the pollution associated with the production of their products, or they become involved in environmental causes through their social responsibility programs and suchlike,

Do you think that people are reluctant to buy again from stores where they have had a bad experience with a product or service?

In general, yes. I know I am. I've had one or two bad experiences with products and service, and I wouldn't buy that product again or use the same service provider I used that time.

A bad experience leaves a nasty taste in the mouth, and it can take a long time to get over it if it cost you money, or the outcome was totally unsatisfactory.

And there are so many options to choose from that there is really no need to go back to somewhere you had a bad service experience or a bad experience with q product.

There are plenty of different brands, and service providers for you to choose from. It's easier to just try a different one.

In such situations, what should companies do?

It's really difficult to persuade a customer that their bad experience was not normal, or that the company can make everything right again.

Probably the best strategy is to learn from the mistake, or the incident, and improve their products, service, etc. And focus more on their customers and eliminating the risk of a similar incident occurring again.

It's extremely difficult to win a customer back once they've had a negative experience with a brand.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 1
Work:
What kind of work do you do?

I'm doing research at the moment. I'm part of a research group at the university, investigating new applications for artificial intelligence.

Why did you choose this profession?

I've always been fascinated by technology, and so I chose to study engineering and computing at university.

When I graduated, I applied for several research positions and I was lucky enough to be accepted for the position I have now.

It was actually my first choice, so I was really pleased when I found out I had been successful with my application.

How did you feel about your first day at work?

It was strange in some ways, but familiar in others.

The people I was working with were new, but I already knew some of the supervisors and the head of the research project, so they were familiar faces.

If I remember well, the first couple of days just flew past because there was a lot to learn about the progress of the project and what each person was contributing and how my role would fit in with the overall plan.

It was exciting and exhausting at the same time, but all good.

Foreign food:

In your childhood, did you eat much foreign food?

No, not really, compared to the mount of foreign food I eat now. I can remember having pizza, and some other dishes my mother would make sometimes, Italian pasta and Thai salads were her favorite.

Do you eat foreign food nowadays?

Yes, nearly all the time. I love Thai food and Italian food, probably thanks to my mother's cooking.

One of the things I like to do with friends is visit new restaurants in town and try different types of food and different dishes. I find it very interesting comparing all the different flavors and styles of cooking.

Do you feel that the next generation will eat more foreign food than local food?

It's very likely. I mean, so many aspects of culture are becoming global nowadays, like music, clothes, and food, so yes, I can easily imagine that in the future people will be eating more of the same food, food from other countries and cultures, and less of their own local food on a regular basis.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 2

Sample Answer

I remember one particular situation, when a colleague at work was feeling particularly stressed.

Even in good times, it is not always easy to stay calm. But at that time, the economic situation was not the best and rumors of dismissals were everywhere.

Many people were afraid of losing the security of their jobs. To make matters worse, stressed bosses and coworkers transferred their tension to other workers, like the person I mentioned.

Most people can handle the pressure. But the person at the desk next to mine could not.

I saw my colleague suffering, and it was understandable that I wanted to offer help. Apart from helping her relieve her stress by listening to her concerns about work, her future and other personal issues, and letting her know that she could count on me for help if she ever needed it, I told her some of the things I do to alleviate stress when I feel extremely worried about something.

I also pointed out that she couldn't let it affect her productivity and that she needed to maintain her morale in the office.

Some people actually became violent because of the stress levels being endured. But most people who suffer from mental stress in the workplace do not become violent and the warning signs that something is wrong can be subtler.

In fact, when someone notices that a colleague has a problem, it is most likely that he or she has been suffering for some time. This is why experts suggest intervening early.

Working conditions can cause stress. Psychologists and specialists in occupational mental health say that if we put healthy, balanced people in the same trench with guns pointed at one another, the likelihood of experiencing depression and anxiety is very high.

Experts point out that the most important alerts are changes in behavior, among which are patterns at work and eating and drinking habits.

Someone can start working very hard. Or may start arriving late, look discouraged, withdrawn or angry. Behaving differently is not the problem, it's the change that is important as an indicator of a deeper problem.

When it comes to helping someone who is suffering from mental stress, it is important to approach with empathy.

You need to let the individual know you understand where the stress comes from, and that's basically what I did.

Much later, she thanked me for taking the time to listen to her worries and offer my support to her.

I actually bumped into her a few months ago and she told me she was doing fine now; she has a different job which was much less stressful and was no longer bothered by stress.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 3

Helping others & teamwork:

Has there been any other situation in which you have helped a friend?

Yes, very recently. My best friend was going through a very difficult time, personal issues with her partner, and she was always asking me for advice about what to do.

We met up several times to talk about the situation, but we also chatted on WhatsApp all the time, exchanging ideas, and she used to ask me a lot of questions as things happened at home, and about what I thought was the best thing to do.

We've always been very close, but the last couple of months have been really intense.

Thankfully now I think she has managed to solve all the issues which were causing problems and her life is getting back to something like normal again.

I'm very happy that she isn't as stressed now as she was recently. It was not healthy; she was worrying herself sick over what was happening between her and her partner.

How important is teamwork at work?

Nowadays, it's essential. Whether it's a team in the same office or a group collaboration over the internet, it's one of the primary skills all workers need to learn; to work effectively in a group.

Of course, there are still some positions which don't require you to work as part of a team, but they are few and far between. Ay most levels in most organizations, teamwork is essential for success, whether it's a small office team, a large interdepartmental team or a cross functional team across different countries.

Which other factors affect teamwork?

Some essential factors would be leadership, collaboration, and willingness to listen to the ideas of others.

It's important to let everyone in the team have a say, and then filter the ideas to come up with the best outcome.

Then, it's necessary to be able to implement the plan chosen and monitor its progress and effectiveness.

Being able to analyze, discuss, and adapt are also important skills which can help a team consolidate itself and become super productive and efficient in what they are tasked to do.

Old people & relationships:

Do you feel that older people talk more to their family than friends?

In some cases that might be true, but in others not. For example, my grandparents have their own friends, and shared friends, other couples that they talk to.

They both individually spend time with their respective friends and also do things with other couples as a foursome.

They don't just chat with the other family members. But I guess it can be very different if your grandparents are very old and stay at home all the time.

Maybe they only get to see their family and don't get out much or don't get to spend time with their old friends anymore.

In such cases, it's only natural that they will spend more time talking to family than friends.

Nowadays, how important is the role of grandparents in the life of their grandchildren?

It's still important. They have a lot of life experience and wisdom because of their age and what they have lived through. Children can learn a lot from elderly people if they want to.

They have some amazing stories from when they were young, and it's so much more interesting to hear them tell you about things as they were in the past, in their time, when they were young because life was so different then.

It's something you would never find in a book or even online, because it's a personal perspective of a time long ago. I know my grandparents have endless fascinating stories they love to tell me whenever I visit them.

They're also very astute. They know almost intuitively when something is good or bad, based on their experience, and, for example, my grandfather loves telling people what he thinks of new innovations and technology.

I think grandparents are a great learning resource for children.

Do you think the role of grandparents has changed from how it was in the past? How has it changed?

I'm not sure if it's changed that much. If anything, I think it's better now because my grandparents keeping touch by chat and calling me directly on my mobile phone.

I remember my mother telling me how she used to visit her grandmother every Sunday when she was a child. It was the only time they saw each other and spoke to each other.

Nowadays it's easier for grandparents to have a more active role in the lives of their grandchildren.

Just yesterday my grandmother sent me a funny picture of something she saw while in the market, and I could see it on my phone and I responded to her instantly. It was a lovely shared moment.

That kind of interaction is something that would've been difficult before mobile technology became popular.

I feel that my grandparents are part of my everyday life and not just people I go and visit sometimes. So, I think their role is probably more important nowadays, as they have more influence through easier communication.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 1

Do you like it when it rains?

When it rains at night time I find it quite relaxing, but I generally don't like it when it rains during the day because it just makes the day more difficult if I have to go out and do things.

Here, heavy rain can even stop the traffic for a while, so it's really inconvenient.

And if it's unexpected you can get soaked in a just couple of minutes unless you find shelter quick.

Does it rain much where you live?

When it rains, yes, but there are basically two seasons, the wet season and the dry season.

So, in the wet season, for example, it's normal for it to rain at least two or three times during the week. It's expected, and maybe more sometimes.

And sometimes at night it rains for hours and hours on end, but that doesn't usually happen during the day.

In the daytime the rain is normally heavy but short bursts, maybe 30-40 minutes maximum and then it stops.

Has it ever rained when you were outside without a raincoat or an umbrella?

Yes, I've been caught out a couple of times in recent years that I can remember.

Sometimes it seems like it won't rain and then within a short space of time, the sky darkens and then the rain comes down really heavy.

It doesn't happen often, but when it does it comes as a surprise to everyone and you either find shelter quick until the rain passes or you get soaked through if you stay out in it.

Do you think rain affects the way people behave?

Definitely, people tend to not go out as much when it's raining.

Personally, I try to plan my days better during the rainy season and avoid going out in the afternoon when it usually rains the heaviest.

It's not always possible, but the weather is certainly more on my mind at that time of year rather than in the dry season when you don't have to worry about it raining so much.

Friends:

How well do you remember the friends you had in elementary school?

I can remember them pretty well. We haven't kept in touch, but I still remember them. My family moved to another city after my sister and I had finished elementary school.

So, the friends we had later were not the same friends we had when we were younger.

When I was in elementary school I had two best friends. One of them was very funny and the other was very like me in terms of her character.

We used to spend all our free time together and go to each other's houses to play and stuff.

Are your friends today mostly the people you work or study with?

Nowadays, the friends I see regularly are those that I work with.

We usually go out after work maybe once or twice a week to do something together.

I still see some other friends from my time at university, but not as often as the friends I have at work.

Do you enjoy chatting with your friends online?

Yes, it's something we do every day. We like to keep up with what's going on and what people are doing.

It's constant, one of the great benefits of internet-enabled phones is that you can easily stay in touch with anyone if you want to.

It's almost like being there with them, you can share photos and be involved in their life even if you are not physically near them.

Just the other day one of my friends sent me some messages and photos of some clothes she was thinking of buying and asked me what I thought about them. It was just like being there in the store with her.

We could exchange ideas and comments and I helped her make her final choice. It was great to be involved.

When you meet your friends, what do you like to do?

With my friends at work, we do all kinds of different things. Sometimes in the evenings, we go for something to eat or drink, or we might go to see a movie or something like that.

A couple of weeks ago we went dancing in a new club that recently opened. And last week we went to a comedy show in a local theater here in the city. It was hilarious!

So sometimes we just go out and chat, and other times we actually plan a night out or specific activity - it just depends how we feel and what's happening in the city.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 2

Sample answer: A car journey

Okay, so a few years ago my father decided to take us on a really special car journey as a special treat. It was a historic route by classic car, a trip through Madrid.

The tour started in La Latina, on Segovia Street, near the Plaza Mayor which is full of terraces. Then it continued along the Calle de la Colegiata leaving behind the great Church of San Isidro (Madrid's patron saint) to reach the Tirso de Molina square.

Then we went south along some of the streets until reaching the Plaza de Lavapiés where the Teatro is located Valle-Inclán and, again, many terraces.

From there, we went along Argumosa street, where you can reach the Ronda de Atocha, to the rear of the Reina Sofía Museum, where there was a large library and exhibition halls.

The next destination was the Plaza de Carlos V, surrounded by the Atocha Train Station, the National Museum of Anthropology and the Cuesta de Moyano until we eventually arrived at the Paseo del Prado.

After touring the extensive roundabout, during the Paseo del Prado to the Plaza de Neptuno, we enjoyed the green spaces of the Botanical Garden on the right, the Caixa Forum and its vertical garden on the left, the great Prado Museum and the hotels Ritz and Palace, on each side of the square.

After the Plaza de Neptuno, there were some new buildings such as the Thyssen Museum, the Naval building and next to it the Stock Exchange of Madrid, and then we turned into the Plaza de Cibeles where there was a large Post Office Building, now the seat of the municipal government and the Casa América.

From there, we followed a historic route along a stretch of Calle Alcalá to the west, and we passed by several symbolic buildings such as the Instituto Cervantes and the Bank of Spain before turning to follow the Gran Vía, the Círculo de Bellas Arts.

There was some magnificent scenery created with sculptures on some roofs, such as the Casino de Madrid or the Telefónica Building, which is especially interesting if you do the journey at night.

Perhaps, the best experience was spotting the Plaza de Callao and the Capitol Cinema with its large advertising poster of Schweppes at the top.

From the Plaza Callao, we passed the theaters and cinemas (such as Rialto and Lope de Vega) until we reached the end of the street where the Plaza de España is located, with its statue of Cervantes in the center.

During the tour, we took photos of everything and the family in the most symbolic places. It was really fun to do it in a classic sports car, and in about an hour, we had traveled through the historic center of Madrid as if it was in the 60s. It was really amazing!

Follow up questions:

Do you think you will make this journey again?

I'm not sure. It was my father's idea, but we thought it would be fun. Maybe one day in the future I'll take my own children on the same tour or something similar.

Do you generally enjoy traveling by car?

Yes, as long as the scenery is interesting, but I prefer when someone else is driving so I can enjoy the views.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 3

How effective is public transport in your country?

It depends where you are exactly in the country. In most of the major cities, public transport is good and cheap, and it makes it easy to get around.

But if you go out of the cities, it can change quite a bit. There are some places where you really need your own transport, a car, or motorcycle or something to get around because the bus service isn't so frequent, or it won't take you to exactly where you need to go.

How could public transport be improved?

I suppose it would be ideal if the rural bus routes had more buses, but then again, it's a cost thing, isn't it?

There aren't so many passengers, so it's not as profitable for the transport companies to provide more buses.

In the cities, they could introduce more bus lanes in the city centers. Some of the cities have them, but if there were more, it would ease the traffic congestion even more. And make buses even faster, and so probably more popular with people for getting around.

Why should governments encourage car drivers to use their cars less often?

Well, the theory is that it will reduce congestion in busy areas like cities. And also, it will reduce co2 emissions into the atmosphere, which is a bad thing.

The problem is the practicality of such ideas. For a long time, we as a society have been encouraged to invest in our own transport, having a car has been seen as good thing, independence of mobility, as well as being something of a social status symbol.

There is also a huge industry which surrounds people owning cars, from the car manufacturers to car insurance, car maintenance, parts companies, etc. so it's a huge economic sector.

Now, all of a sudden, cars are bad because they pollute. It's really difficult to change ideas so quickly.

What irritates me sometimes is why it's always the normal regular people who have to make the changes.

Why don't governments reduce pollution and emissions in maritime transport or restrict air travel? These cause more pollution than someone driving their car to work every day.

The future of transport:

What are the advantages and disadvantages of having driverless cars?

The main advantage is you don't have to drive! Whether that's a good thing or not I don't know. Some people like driving, others don't. It's a personal thing.

Some people might say that driverless cars will be safer because computers aren't emotional, they don't get distracted, and they don't get tired, etc. but until we actually have some experience of these cars it's difficult to say if they will really be any safer.

As far as disadvantages, I can think of a few; the extra technology will make cars more expensive, to buy and maintain. Also, just like people can hack into companies and hack your email and phone now, we have to assume that hackers will be able to hack into driverless cars, which could have disastrous results.

It's an interesting development, but not all such projects improve our lives. One more thing is that if we don't have to actually drive the car, we will probably end up working even more than now because you still have to be inside the car, and the obvious thing to do would be to work on your laptop or phone on the way to work in the morning - it's more probable than relaxing and watching a movie on the way to work.

It may not be as relaxing as we all tend to think!

Will there be soon the need to invent new modes of transport such as flying cars?

You know what I'd love to see would be a personal drone vehicle. Just like you can fly a drone now using your phone, but you could attach yourself to the drone somehow and have it deliver you to wherever you want to go.

I think that would be incredible! Just imagine being able to fly directly from one point to another without having to bother with traffic jams.

Obviously, there would be potential problems, if lots of people are flying around, but if you think about the driverless cars again, they will be able to avoid each other so why not the drones too.

The energy required would be a lot less because it would only be the weight of the person and not the weight of the car and the person, and it would reduce emissions and ease traffic in the cities.

It's at least an idea that should be investigated!

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 1
Writing:
What time of the day do you prefer studying?

Personally, I like to study first thing in the morning. I find I can concentrate better when I'm fresh after a good night's sleep.

Are you fond of writing?

Yes, I like writing by hand because I find it somewhat therapeutic. I normally keep a daily journal, noting down my thoughts and observations, things like that.

What types of things do you like to write?

Well. Apart from writing in y journal, I have also written a few short stories for children. It was a project I started some years ago.

Now, I would like to find an illustrator to do the drawings, and maybe eventually I'll try and publish one or two of the stories I've written.

Have you been fond of writing since you were a child?

For as long as I can remember, I've always loved writing. Even when I was a child I used to practice writing. I used to create characters in my head and then write about their adventures.

Advertising:

What kind of advertisements are popular in your country?

Probably the same as in most countries. I mean there are TV ads and radio ads and then the ads you see on the internet every day.

I think most people find funny ads the most interesting and popular, or those which are quite different from others.

There seem to be a lot of ads for new cars at the moment, and they explain how easy and cheap it is to own a new car. Definitely more than there were in the past.

Can you remember an advertisement you have seen recently?

Yes, I saw one just a few days ago. It was on the internet and it was advertising a free degree course in Psychology.

It caught my attention because the idea of getting a degree without paying any money sounds amazing, doesn't it?

But when I clicked on it and read through the terms and conditions, it wasn't exactly free - not completely, but it was a lot less expensive than attending a traditional four-year degree at university.

Is it a good thing that celebrities do advertisements? Why?

I'm indifferent to it; really, I can understand why they do it, and why brands want them to do it, because of their influence.

But as to whether it's a good thing or not, that's a personal decision for the celebrity or the person looking at the advertisement.

If a celebrity wants to endorse or advertise a product or service, it's up to them.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 2

Talk about a place in your town/city that you and your friends often go.

You should say:

where it is

what kind of place it is

what you do there

and explain why you and your friends like it.
Sample Answer

There are various places we like to go. But one of the most popular ones is a coffee bar in one of the large shopping malls here.

The coffee bar is quite small, but the shopping mall is enormous! It has various different zones and is on three levels.

We sometimes just meet up there to have a coffee and spend some time together catching up on what's been happening and do some 'people watching'.

One of my friends likes to make a game of it, you know, guessing what people do; their job or profession, etc., or where they're going or where they've been, or what they've bought.

She's really funny sometimes and imagines all kinds of things just by looking at someone walking past.

We like it there because it's a nice place to sit for a while but there are plenty of people walking by and shops to see as well.

There's an open roof so you can see the sky and feel the breeze even though the actual coffee bar is covered and protected.

So, it's a nice fresh, relaxing atmosphere that the place has, perfect for unwinding at the end of the day.

It's easy to get to and if we feel like it, we can stroll around too, and maybe buy something, but we don't always do that. Sometimes we just meet up and then go our separate ways.

We usually go there after work, for a couple of hours, maybe once a week, it's a good opportunity to see each other for a bit and gossip.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 3
Activities:
What are some of the activities youngsters do in your country?

It depends on their age, but they like playing video games or sports outside. You see a lot of young kids on bikes and just playing in the street near where I live, which is a residential neighborhood.

Slightly older kids, teenagers, usually spend a lot of time with their friends, online, gaming, or girls in particular like to spend a lot of time at walking around the large shopping malls with their friends.

Really, I suppose they do the usual types of things that all teenagers do. Listen to music, chat, have fun with their friends, and so on.

How are activities which you do with friends and those done with parents different?

Maybe, things you do with your friends are sometimes less organized, more spontaneous. Sometimes you just meet up or get together without a specific plan in mind and then you decide what to do.

I think when you do something with your parents, typically you have a plan, or they do, and so it's different.

My parents are always busy, so when we do go out to eat or do something, they tend to be very punctual and conscious of the time, they know where we are going and exactly what we're going to do, and roughly how long it will take.

When I'm with my friends it's not usually like that - it's more relaxed.

What are some activities done by different age groups of people in your country?

Well, like I said before, young people tend to hang out with their friends, listen to music, play video games, and so on.

Young adults usually do some form of sport or they might be studying to further their professional career, and their socializing usually centers around parties and going out to eat in the trendy cafes and restaurants in town, and then maybe dancing.

Older adults, like my parents, tend to do more things at home. They'll watch TV more than young people and when they go out it's usually only for a special occasion such as a special family celebration, or to visit their friends at their home, or they might invite them over for something to eat.

Another popular activity which older people enjoy here is walking. My parents usually go a couple of times a week and they have a lot of friends who do the same, sometimes they even go in a group.

Friends:

Should students focus more on spending time with their friends or their studies?

It's probably best to focus mainly on your studies, but you shouldn't neglect your friends.

I know when I was studying my friends and I didn't see each other as often as we did before. But I think that's normal

Studying is intensive. You need to get good grades to graduate and it's your future so it's very important.

Friends are important too, but if they're true friends they'll understand that studying needs a lot of attention.

Both are important, but if you need to focus more on one of them then it should be studying; at least for a couple of years, and then things will be a bit less intense.

I have a friend who recently did her master's degree and, literally, we never saw her for almost a year. Maybe just twice for special occasions. She was so busy she had no time for anything else. But we understood.

Since she finished and graduated we've seen a lot more of her recently.

Have the ways in which friends stay in touch changed in recent years in your country? What changes have taken place?

Not so much in recent years, but generationally things are different. Mobile technology dominates now, and many people have 'friends' all over the world they chat with.

It's also so much easier now to keep up with all your friends through chat apps and FB, etc. You can update each other throughout the day without actually having to meet them in person.

It's great because you don't miss anything. It's like being there with them all the time. You can send them voice messages, pics, etc. and it's just so easy to be a part of their life and for them to be part of yours.

It doesn't matter if you live in the same city, country or elsewhere - you never need to be out of contact with them.

How do you think friendships might be different in the future?

Probably the nature of friendship won't change much. It will still be based on shared experience or interests, but I think that the next big step will be virtual reality technology which enables us to be 'virtually' with friends who are in other places.

There is an interesting project being planned at the moment to introduce virtual shopping, where you can walk around some of the most famous shopping malls in the world and purchase products - all through virtual technology.

It's just another small step to having a friend in a different country who can, for example, show you around their home or their city virtually using similar technology.

So, friendship will probably remain the same, but the things that friends do together will probably change, and the possibility of being close friends with more people you never meet physically is definitely going to be a big change.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 1

Do you work/study at the moment?
At the moment I'm a student. I'm in my final year at Sheffield
University, studying Computer Science, with a specialization in Artificial Intelligence.

Why did you choose that field of study?

Because I've always been fascinated by computers and when I was a child I learned to program simple apps, and my interest grew from that. Also, I thought it would be a good career for the future, as technology and especially artificial intelligence are becoming more and more important in everyday life all over the world.

What do you enjoy most about your studies?

Probably the fact that I'm always learning something new, expanding my knowledge, and I love the fact that the application of computer science theory can actually solve real world problems, and you can see the impact and how it is shaping the future.

What kinds of magazines do young people and old people like reading?

Oh, I'm not sure about older people. I guess many young people like reading graphic novels, more than magazines. I never read any magazines when I was growing up; I read graphic novels and books and watched loads of movies, but I can't remember regularly reading any magazines.

I suppose, thinking about the types of magazines older people read, my grandmother used to read a magazine about cooking, I can't remember the name of it, but I remember she was always trying recipes from it and she would explain all about the ingredient and so on. I guess they read whatever they're interest in.

What kinds of magazines or books did you read when you were a child?

Like I said, graphic novels mainly, and some science fiction books. I didn't used to spend that much time reading. I preferred watching movies or playing video games when I was younger. Although I spend a lot more time reading now.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 2

Talk about the most interesting city you have visited.

You should say:

Which city it is

Why it is interesting

When you visited it

and say if you would like to visit it again in the future.

And say if you would like to visit it again in the future.

Sample Answer

Okay, so while I've been here in the UK, I've visited several places but the one that really sticks in my mind the most is London. It's definitely the most interesting city I've ever been to, so far.

I went a couple of months ago during the summer vacations, with a couple of friends. We went there for a week, and it was one of the best experiences - there was just so much to do.

Luckily one of my friends is really good at planning and organizing stuff like that so she compiled a daily itinerary to make sure that we managed to see all the major tourist attractions and sights while we were there.

One of the things that impacted me the most was the diversity of London, in every sense, architecture, scenery, the people, the mixture of old and modern, it truly is an inspiring place, and luckily for us the weather was particularly good when we visited so we were able to do a lot of walking and really get a good feel for the city.

Obviously, it's a massive city, but we managed to navigate 'the tube' which is like their subway system, we also went one a couple of those big red double-decker buses you see in movies, and took a traditional London black cab, and lots of other amazing things too.

I have to admit we were total tourists for a week, we saw Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, the Houses of Parliament and all the usual things, but I would like to go back some time in the future and maybe see more of the ordinary things in London.

I'm sure there are a lot of other interesting things to see and do in London apart from the main tourist stuff, but it was a good first visit. One that I'll always remember, and being there with friends made it even more enjoyable. Maybe I'll plan another visit once I've graduated, before flying back home.

IELTS SPEAKING EXAM PART 3

Why are more and more people moving to the outskirts of cities nowadays?
Probably because many cities are becoming overcrowded, and some are very dangerous unless you live in a really nice neighborhood. Another reason could be that young people especially are more mobile these days in terms of work, and many more people are working from home or tele-working, using their laptops and phones so they don't necessarily need to live close the office or wherever their company is located. They could be living in a different place altogether.

I think it's natural for people who are planning a family to maybe want to move out of the city, or when you get older, because there are many places on the outskirts which are nicer, safer, cheaper, and yet still within easy traveling distance of the city.

So you have all the benefits of city amenities but the cost of living is less and the quality of life is enhanced.

What are the education facilities in cities and rural areas like in your country?

In terms of what's available I guess they're pretty much the same for certain levels. The main difference would be the size of schools and other educational facilities in the cities, which are obviously much bigger because the populations in cities are larger.

When it comes to schools, most rural areas cover both elementary and secondary level education equally.

In terms of tertiary education, clearly, cities have the advantage because there are not many further education or technical colleges located in rural areas, nor universities, so that is the major difference between the two areas.

Why do you think some people prefer to not live in a big city?

There might be various reasons, like wanting a quieter lifestyle, being able to purchase a larger home for less money, to offer a safer and more relaxed environment for your children to grow up in.

Big city living is not for everyone. While there are some benefits, like all the amenities, and interesting stuff you can do, many cities are polluted, overcrowded, and traffic can be very frustrating sometimes.

Living close to a city but not in it, in the suburbs, or on the outskirts, for example, is a good choice for many people.

What could be done to improve city living in the future?

One of the major concerns is the quality of air in many big cities. Too much traffic in such a densely populated area can produce really unhealthy air. More traffic calming measures need to be considered, or alternative action to limit the number of cars and other vehicles transiting in the city center, especially.

With less traffic, many other problems would be solved, such as problems finding parking space, pollution, road rage, and also noise pollution.

It would also be a good idea, and this is already happening in some large cities around the world, to include more green zones in city areas, especially when dealing with urban regeneration projects.

Having more greenery helps balance the environment, enhances air quality and also provides an environment more conducive to healthy living for city residents, allowing them to enjoy green open spaces as a change from the concrete structures which typically make up most large cities.

IELTS Speaking Exam Part 1
What is your full name?
It's [first name] [second/middle name] [surname/family name], but you can call me [the name people normally use to address you].

Where are you from?

I'm from [city] in [region].

Are you working or studying?

I'm working. I'm an architect.

Where do you live?

Here in [name of city], in [name of area/neighborhood].

Do you live in a house or apartment/flat?

I live in a house; I'm staying with my parents at the moment.

Would you like to live in the same place in future?

No, not really. I plan to move to Australia soon and would like to live there.

Have you seen any TV programs about robots?

Actually, I saw a short video just the other day about an amazing parkour robot which was able to maneuver and jump and even carry heavy loads. It was incredibly agile and versatile.

It was a big difference from some of the earlier robots that were produced. I can imagine all sorts of applications for this type of robot technology.

ROBOTS

Are you interested in robot technology? Why? Why not?

I'm not an expert or anything, but I can imagine that we'll have a lot more robots in our lives in the future - it's just natural evolution. So I'm interested in knowing about what's happening and some of the potential areas which robots might be used in and that sort of thing, but not so much the details of the robot technology.

I think that the fusion of man and robots will be difficult in some cases and there will be a lot of resistance to it by some people but it's going to happen and it'll be interesting to see the transition as we become more open to the possibilities which modern robot technology offers us.

Do you think people are becoming more comfortable with the idea of robots in society? Why? Why not?

Slowly, yes, I mean you can't ignore that it's happening. We have manufacturing plants which are equipped with robots doping the work that men did just 10 or 20 years ago. Robots are used in science and medicine and the applications in our daily lives are growing all the time.

One of the factors which will make it even easier to accept is the fact that we all rely on technology so much nowadays just to live. From computers to the internet and so on, automation is a natural process and so it's only a matter of time before everything which can be automates is - even though some people might not like the idea initially.

I think that once driverless cars are introduced and become widely accepted, that will open the door for robot technology to enter into all spheres of our daily lives, and then there will be no limits.

GOING OUT

What things do you normally take with you when you go out?

I guess the usual things, my phone, keys, purse, bag, and whatever else I might need depending on where I'm going.

Are there any differences between the things which you take with you during the day time and evening time when you go out?

No, not really. The biggest difference is in what I might wear. I'm going out for the day then I'll usually wear something comfortable, or practical, but if I'm going out at night, especially to socialize, then I'll usually dress up more and wear clothes appropriate for wherever I'm going - and who I'm going with.

But I'll still take the same things with me; my phone, keys, etc.

IELTS Speaking Exam Part 2

Describe a café you visited recently.
You should say:

when it was

where it was

what it was like

and explain who you went with and if you liked the café, and why.
Sample Answer

So about a week ago I was out with my friend, we were spending the afternoon in [name of city] and while we were strolling around we decided to stop and have something to eat and drink.

As we were walking along we noticed what seemed to be a small café on the street corner which seemed to be full of people, so we thought it must be popular and went in to give it a try.

From the outside it didn't look that big but once inside it was enormous, I mean it stretched almost the full length of the block and there must have been hundreds of people inside and outside on the sidewalk.

We found a table and sat down and spent a few minutes looking around us at the décor and the other people and just chatting; then a server arrived at our table with menus and told us about the 'specials' of the day.

I glanced at the menu to get an idea of the sort of food and drink they served, and it was an extensive choice, they seemed to have a lot of my favorite dishes and also drinks.

Then, we quickly ordered what we wanted and while we were waiting we began to notice the many old photographs on the walls of the café. They all depicted scenes from the city in the past, from the last century and earlier. Most of them were old, you know, like black and white photos, showing landmarks in the city and a good few were of the café itself showing how it had evolved over the years.

Anyway, the atmosphere was buzzing with all the people and there was some background music playing too. People were coming and going and the sound of conversation was everywhere. It was a really dynamic place.

I really liked it, the food was great and the service too, and the ambience was amazing, just full with energy, and so many people. I'll definitely be visiting it again the next time I go back to [name of city].

IELTS Speaking Exam Part 3
In your country, are social functions normally held at home or in a place outside the home, such as in a restaurant or other place?
A lot depends on the type of social function. If it's a small family event like a birthday or an anniversary then it's quite usual to just organize a party or family get-together at home and invite family and close friends.

If it's something else, a larger event like a graduation or wedding, then many people would usually organize such an event in a venue such as a restaurant or maybe even a hotel or someplace similar which can accommodate more guests, provide catering and take care of everything necessary.

Do you like to invite people to your home or do you prefer to meet them outside somewhere?

Personally I like to invite my best friend to my home because it's no problem, she just comes over and we do whatever we fancy doing. And I don't mind cooking something for her and things like that.

But if we're planning to meet up with other people I prefer to meet them somewhere outside like a café or restaurant. It's just so much easier to go out, and then at the end of the evening someone else takes care of cleaning up and all that sort of stuff and I can just go home. I guess I'm just lazy when it comes to entertaining.

Are there any advantages to inviting people to your home? What are they?

My mother is a big fan of inviting people home or entertaining people at home. She loves entertaining guests and preparing something for them to eat and everything else. She just loves having people in the house to fuss over. I'm the complete opposite.

She says she loves it because she loves having different people at home, and loves making them feel comfortable and looking after them while they visit. She also says it's more relaxing than going out, and more intimate and personal rather than just meeting people at a café or restaurant.

What are some of the reasons people might prefer to attend social functions in a venue outside the home for example, in a hotel or restaurant?

Like I said before, those places are typically bigger so they can accommodate more guests, and then there's the big advantage that someone else organizes everything and cleans up at the end of the event.

Another advantage would be that if there's a lot of guests invited then it avoids anything in your home getting damaged, because someone always knocks something over or drops a glass or something like that, you know, accidents, even small ones often happen when you get a lot of people together in one place. So organizing a social event outside the home avoids any of those problems.

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IELTS speaking topics 2018 & sample answers, special day not expensive, special day not spend a lot of money, perceptions, good experience (company/brand/shop), customer service, products & services, city living, amenities, facilities, going out,technology, robots, interesting city, magazines, work, study,

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IELTS Cue Card Sample 1 - Describe someone in your family

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Last Updated: Tuesday, 06 November 2018 11:57

Written by IELTS Mentor

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IELTS Speaking Part 2: Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card.

Describe someone in your family who you really admire.

You should say:

what relation this person is to you

what are your first memories of this person

how often you see this person

and explain why you really admire this person.

[You will have to talk about the topic for one to two minutes. You have one minute to think about what you are going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish.]

Q. What are the values of family in your country?
Q. How family bonding is necessary for happiness in life?
Q. What type of family do you like? Nuclear family or joint family?
Q. How family value and bonding have changed over the last decade?

Model Answer 1:
I have got a nuclear family that has only five members. All of us love each other very much and we share a strong bond and affection. It's quite hard to pick someone among them I admire the most. Well, if I have to choose someone, it would be my mother. I would like to thank you for this nice topic and for the time you have allowed me to talk about the person in my family I admire deeply.

I love my mother from the deepest core of my heart. I revere my mother for her adorable behaviour on top of her smartness and loving nature. She is the person I can share everything with and that's the reason I worship her so much. She is perky, charismatic, optimistic and the ray of sunshine in my life.

Possibly she is the first person I saw when I opened my eyes to this world. Someone's relationship with his or her mother is divine. I can still remember a childhood day when I was late to return home due to a programme at the school I did not know about. After an hour or so, I noticed my mother at my school. I was horrified that my mother would be angry with me and she would punish me. But, when my mother saw me, she had a warm smile on her face. Then she hugged me passionately. At that very moment, I realised how much she loves me and cares for my safety and wellbeing.

To describe her more, I would say she is kind to all in a unique way and yet proactive and in control. She loves cooking, decorating homes with innovative ideas, helping others and reading. O. Henry is her favourite writer. She hates speed driving and liars, you know what I mean!

I spent my 19 years or so with my parents but I now stay in a metropolitan city for my higher education. Whenever I get a vacation, I visit my family. On an average, I spend 2/3 months in a year with my family, hence with my mother as well. But I talk to her over the phone almost every day.

The reason I admire her, well - she is caring, compassionate, and possesses kindness and love for everyone. She is an ideal mother who raised three children and ensured their quality education and moral values. She has sacrificed a lot and had never complained about anything to us. She is the person who reminds me of the power of love and affection. How could not I admire her unconditionally?

Sample Answer 2:
A person I admire is my "mother" because she is a fighter. You may ask why? To start, my mom got pregnant with me at the age of 18 and she did not have the support of my grandparents. Her own parents wanted to kick her out of the house when they found out. She convinced them to let her stay, but she could not ask them for any help when raising the baby. Knowing all this my mom still decided to have the baby - and that's baby is me. How could I not adore her with my every breath!

Besides not having the support of her parents, she did not receive any help from my father either. Although my father cared about me, he never gave my mom money or clothes to help her maintain me as a baby. She had to provide for me on her own. Going to school and working was killing her, but she wanted me to have a good life, so she did anything that she could. My mom got pregnant again two years later, with the same man. The only difference was this time - it was worse! He abandoned her completely and her dad was sick. Now, not only did she have to provide for her two babies, but also for her parents. She was overwhelmed by everything happening; she didn't know what to do.

Finally, she decided to attend a college and become a teacher to support the family. It was not an easy thing to do. After she finished college, it took her a while to find a job. It is not easy to find a job in Nicaragua. However, my mom never quits, no matter how hard things get for her she fought through it. To provide for her offsprings and parents. I see her every single day and I wish to be with her for the rest of my life. I have never seen anyone so determined and caring and she deserved to be admired and loved.

[Written by - Rafael]

Sample Answer 3:
I have got six family members and all of them are very dear and close to me. If I have to pick a family member I genuinely admire that would be my father. My father's name is Alfred Brooke and he is approximately 50 years old. He is the kind of person I would want my offspring to be. Thank you for the opportunity to let me talk about my father.

He did his graduation at a time when formal education was not people's first choice. They would rather start working rather than going to school. My father fought for his right to the education with people who thought working or doing some sort of business has more advantages than going to schools. But my father believed that education shapes a man's life and is a power that would guide him throughout life.

I have numerous memories of my father and I see him every day now. We share a strong bond and have a mutual respect for each other. I still remember my childhood days when I used to wait in the evening for my father to return from his office. He would then play with me and help me complete my homework. I vividly remember the times when he took me to the market and bought me gifts. When I was an infant he moved to a city from our village to ensure better schooling for me. That was a decision that has changed my life path. He helped me finish my lessons and often surprised me with gifts if I could complete my study on time and I cherish these days very much.

He used to work in a Government organisation and for his devotion to work and kindness, he is revered by all of his relatives, friends and neighbours. He is humble yet dynamic, charismatic, and very social.

He believes in humanity, in God and the afterlife, good behaviour, and leads a life that can be exemplary for many. He still does most of his works himself and helps my mom with her household tasks. After retirement, he has picked up two new hobbies- gardening and teaching young children. He is a quiet and intelligent man who has a benevolent heart and that's something that makes him so admirable to me. He is still the pillar of our family and all of our family members love and respect him very much.

Tips for answering this Cue Card Topic:

You already know a lot about your family members and this cue card should be an easy one to answer. Just focus on the questions mentioned below the Cue card topic. Following questions may appear with this cue card and note the quick answers to these questions:

1. Who is he/she? : My mother / My father/ My brother/ My sister etc.

2. Your relationship with this family member: She is my mother/ he is my father etc.

3. What you do together: We walk out in the evening together/ cook together/ study together/ enjoy our conversations/ talk a lot about family issues etc.

4. What is s/he like- He/ she is kind, talented, energetic, works hard, dedicated, caring, possess a great personality, open-minded etc.

5. How long do you know him /her: From my childhood/ all of my life/ for more than 20 years etc.

6. How often do you see him/her: Everyday/ once in a month/ most of the time I stay at home/ in every three months etc.

7. Why do you like him/ her or why do you admire him/ her?: S/he loves me unconditionally, very close to me, very caring, have a good heart, talented, helpful, my best mentor etc.

8. Since grandfather, grandmother, uncle, aunt, etc could be a part of a joint family, you can describe any of them if you live in a joint family.

While talking about what is s/he is like or what qualities he /she has or even why do you like/ admire him/her you can use some of the following points:

For father: He is honest, brave, had a good heart, talented, leads an ideal life, has sacrificed a lot to up-bring us, is an exemplary person, everybody respects him, is the best person I have ever known, loves me very much, hardworking, punctual, talented etc.

For mother: She is so caring, loving, hardworking and possesses a good heart, has done a lot to up-bring us, very close to me, very understanding, one of my best friends, knows a lot of things and has so many practical skills etc.

For brother: He is so brave, talented, well mannered, knows a lot about different things, has always supported me no matter what, he is loved and liked by others, cooperative and we have many pleasant memories together, like a mentor to me, is my best buddy, taught me almost everything he knows, always protects me etc.

For sister: She is caring, a good friend, loving, a good mentor, helps you with study or on other tasks, supportive, a very good friend, talented and well-mannered.

Necessary vocabulary for this cue card:

Relatives = Your family members are also your relatives.

Nuclear family = A nuclear family, also called an elementary family, is a type of family group consisting of a pair of adults and their children.

Extended family= An extended family extends beyond the nuclear family, including grandparents, aunts, uncles, and other relatives.

Sibling = Siblings are your brothers and sisters.

Relationship Synonyms = Tie, link, attachment.

Admire Synonyms: Adore, idolise, respect, revere, honour, hold in high regard, think highly of, esteem.

Memory Synonyms: Remembrance, thoughts, reminiscence, recollection, musing.

Phrases with meanings:

Bring up = Raise a child.
Look after = Take care of.
Rely on = Depend on.
Be close to = Having a strong bonding.
Get along with = Being close and friendly.
Admire = To respect and like someone.
A bubbly personality = A person who is very happy, lively, and often optimistic.
Charismatic = Someone with great charm and attraction, especially one who inspires others.

If you prepare for this cue card you should be able to answer the following cue card topics as well with very little changes:

1. Talk about someone who cares about you a lot.
2. Describe a person whom you like very much.
3. Describe the person whom you admire most.
4. Talk about a person you know for a long.
5. Talk about a senior person whom you like a lot.
6. Talk about a person who has a great influence on your life.

Part 3 - Details Discussion:

Q. What are the values of family in your country?
Answer: That's a really important question. First of all, I believe that family values don't differ from country to country and please allow me to say that they should be the same throughout the world. As far as I'm concerned, the most important values of a family are the moral values, which enable people to draw plausible distinctions between right and wrong, good and bad, true and false. The lessons learned from the family are invaluable throughout our life. A family is the most important group that makes the life worth living.

Furthermore, family values are vital in making decisions and can be obtained by personal and life experiences with close relationships with family members. To be more specific, some examples could be: being honest and trustworthy, courageous and patient, taking up responsibilities as well as adding values to the world are the norms of our family and society. A family is utterly important and we stand for our family members no matter what. Thus 'family comes first' is the morality everyone in our country believes in. We also consider a family as the unit of a society or a country and bonding, relationship, trustworthiness, helpfulness are lessons which come with the close family ties.

Q. How family bonding is necessary for happiness in life?
Answer:Our parents are the reason for our existence and with them, we get a family. Parents are the persons we see and rely on when we open our eyes for the first time. Moreover, parents are the primary educator and they teach their children how to develop confidence, social skills, morals, values and views in life. Since they are the base of our family, closeness in a family leads people to have an intrinsically fulfilling and flourishing life.

This can be justified by the fact that children who enjoy strong family bonding tend to be happier and mentally healthier than those who are in a dysfunctional family environment.

Q. What type of family do you like? Nuclear family or joint family?
Answer:That's really an interesting question! A nuclear family is preferable to me than a joint family. The reason for my preference is possibly because I grew up in a nuclear family and it was a pleasant memory for me. Besides, in a nuclear family, the couple and their children have a stronger relationship. Fighting and quarrel are rare in nuclear families.

On the other hand, the second type of family is the extended family or joint family and includes grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins and so on. I prefer a quiet environment than a noisy one. In a joint family, this is unlikely to happen and people often do not have sufficient privacy. Therefore, I strongly believe that a family only with mum, dad and siblings would work better for me.

Q. How family value and bonding have changed over the last decade?
Answer: Unfortunately, the sacred notion of a family has lost its meaning to a certain extent in the last ten years. People don't invest in feelings anymore and don't retreat as well. Nowadays quarrels between couples are a frequent occurrence and because women are financially independent, they don't step back like they did many years ago. Moreover, a principal cause that has led to this situation is the overreliance on the Internet. When family members have some spare time they prefer to consume it by going online instead of having some family conversations. I would jump to the conclusion that people who decide to create a family should let go off their ego and in difficult times they should also think that their children want their parents to be happy and together.

[Part 3 answers are written by Maria | the UK ]

Similar Cue Card Samples you may also like:

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IELTS Cue Card Sample 1 - Describe someone in your family

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Details Last Updated: Tuesday, 06 November 2018 11:57 Written by IELTS Mentor Hits: 257610 IELTS Speaking Part 2: Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card. You should say: what relation this person is to you what are your first memories of this person how often you see this person and explain why you really admire this person.

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IELTS Materials and Resources, Get IELTS Tips, Tricks & Practice Test

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This post will furnish you with 40 useful IELTS Speaking Part 2 Tips, Questions and Model Answers of Band 9 to help you be well-prepared for the IELTS test (both General Training & Academic module).

In IELTS Speaking Part 2, you will have the opportunity to speak for longer (1-2 minutes) on a specific topic based on the information on a task card given by IELTS examiner with key points you should talk about as follow:

You will have a pencil and a paper and 1 minute to prepare for the given topic so you should make use of limited time to note down key ideas you will give a talk about during 1-2 minutes.

In all, Speaking Part 2 will takes 3-4 minutes.

How to be well-prepared for IELTS Speaking Part 2

The most effective way is to practice daily at home with your partner who can listen while you speak about a particular topic and give an advice on whether your speaking is good enough or not and comment upon your pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, etc.

Your study partner then should ask you several questions about your chosen topic using the rounding off questions.

Record yourself and self-mark in regards to the Speaking Criteria. I can also have somebody proficient in English or have experience in IELTS score your speaking.

Maximize your score by practicing daily on the latest topics in Speaking Part 2

- Make use of your preparation time (1 minute) wisely to jot down key words and main ideas for your topic. Keep in mind that you should never write down a full sentence in this preparation time because it is a waste of time and make you slow down your flow of thinking.

- During your 1-2 minute talk, try to talk about what you feel comfortable with to get the highest mark. It means that if you don't like the suggestions on the cue card, you don't need to follow them and try to follow the strategy: Introduction, main body and conclusion.

Introduction: A formal-sounding introduction is unnecessary. Instead, you can jump straight into your answer: I would love to talk about... | I prefer talking about...because...

+ Past continuous (Was/Were Verb-ing): use the past continuous to talk about something which continued before and after another action (eg: The children were playing badminton when I came back) or something that happened at a particular time in the past (I was Main body: Your talk should have a variety of tenses and vocabulary. Therefore, you should:
1. Talk about the past: Use linking words like "anyhow" to make a smooth transition into talking about the past. You can make the most of the following structures for the past tense:
+ Past simple (Verb_ed)
reading book at 8:00 pm yesterday)
+ Past perfect (Had + Past Participle)
+ Modal verb + have + the past participle (eg: could/must/should/might/must + have + known)
+ Used to Verb infinitive (when you want to talk about the past habits/actions/states that no longer exist.
+ Would Verb infinitive: Describe past habits 'With regards to the future....'. For the future tenses, you can make use of the following:
+ To be going to Infinitive
+ Will/Won't Verb infinitive 2. Give a detailed description: You can start off this by saying "So let me tell you about (X) in a little more detail." This will be a great opportunity for you to show off your usage of vocabulary, grammar, collocations, idioms. Bear in mind that IELTS examiner will evaluate all the skills (pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, fluency and coherence). However, this part 2 will especially test your fluency and "If you ask me/In my view/I would say + (opinion on topic)"You should use at least 3 tenses in your speaking to have a rich variety of grammar usage. You can start bycoherence skills.After provide IELTS examiner with a complete description, you can expand on your answer by saying:
+ The future perfect- will have + past participle
+ Present continuous to talk about fixed arrangements.

a) by b) by Conclusion: Two other possible ways to more clearly finish your answer for IELTS Speaking Part 2 are:
repeating the topic
repeating the main point, especially your main feeling in your story.
Signpost your talk at the end with words or expressions like:
"So ..." "As you can see ..." "To sum up ..."

The most important thing is that you should practice at home or with your study partner, using this strategy with many random topics choosen by your partner to make it more interesting and difficult.

IELTS Speaking Part 2 Tips by Simon
Before the exam, prepare ideas for the six main topics:

1. Describe an object (a gift, something you use etc.)

2. Describe a person (someone you admire, a family member etc.)

3. Describe an event (a festival, celebration etc.)

4. Describe an activity (e.g. a hobby)

5. Describe a place (somewhere you visited, a holiday etc.)

6. Describe your favourite (book/film/advertisement/website)

Focus on vocabulary, not grammar or linking. In the exam, try to note down as many ideas as you can during the 1-minute preparation time - hopefully you'll be able to use ideas that you have already prepared. You don't have to cover all of the points on the task card, but it helps you to structure your answer if you do. Say as much as you can for each point, and use a real example or story at the end of your description if you need to fill time. Keep going until the examiner stops you.

You can download a collection of 40 IELTS speaking part 2 tips, questions and band 9 model answers below.
These IELTS speaking sample answers will provide you with great ideas about what you can say for a different set of IELTS speaking topics. You can also make the most of these 40 band 9 answers to learn more IELTS vocabulary and how to organize your ideas and structure your IELTS speaking answers.

Free Download 40 IELTS Speaking Part 2 Tips, Questions and Band 9 Answers by Simon:

IELTS Speaking Part 2 Tips, Questions and Band 9 Sample Answers Mirror 1
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Free Download 40 IELTS Speaking Part 2 Tips, Questions & Band 9 Answers

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In IELTS Speaking Part 2, you will have the opportunity to speak for longer (1-2 minutes) on a specific topic based on the information on a task card given by IELTS examiner with key points you should talk about as follow: You will have a pencil and a paper and 1 minute to prepare for the given topic so you should make use of limited time to note down key ideas you will give a talk about during 1-2 minutes.

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A quick look at IELTS Speaking test

Duration: 11 to 14 minutes
The Speaking test will assess your use of spoken English. The test will last between 11 and 14 minutes where you will discuss a variety of topics with an IELTS examiner. Your test will take place in a quiet room with an examiner who will encourage you to keep speaking. Unlike an AI test, an IELTS examiner will be able to make you feel relaxed and confident. They're also able to understand your accent to ensure you get the best possible score. There are 3 parts to the Speaking test.
Part 1
The examiner will ask you general questions about yourself and a range of familiar topics, such as home, family, work, studies and interests. This part lasts between 4 and 5 minutes.
Part 2
You will be given a task card and the examiner will ask you to talk about a topic. You will have 1 minute to prepare before speaking for up to 2 minutes. The examiner will then ask one or two questions on the same topic to finish this part of the test.
Part 3
You will be asked further questions connected to the topic in Part 2. These questions will allow you to discuss more abstract ideas and issues. This part of the test lasts between 4 and 5 minutes.

Part 1: Introduction and questions on familiar topics

4 to 5 minutes
Part 1 of the test will start with the examiner asking you to state your name and show your identification.

Next, you will be asked general questions about yourself such as where you live or what you are currently doing (working or studying).

You will then be asked some questions about a range of familiar topics, for example, about the music you like, cooking, the weather, or movies you prefer. You will generally be asked about one or two topics.

The examiner will ask scripted questions and will listen to your answer, prompting you to extend your response with a "why?" or "why not?" if your answer is too short.

This part of the test follows a question-answer format focusing on your ability to communicate opinions and information on everyday topics by answering a range of questions.

Sample task

Have a go at this sample task for IELTS Speaking, Part 1:

Part 2: Individual long turn

3 to 4 minutes
After Part 1, the examiner will give you a topic and will ask you to talk about it for one to two minutes.

The topic will be handed to you on a card and you will also be given a piece of paper and a pencil for making notes. On the card, you will see the speaking prompt and some points you can cover in your talk relating to this.

You will have exactly one minute to prepare and make notes before you speak. The examiner will use a timer and will tell you when your time is up.

The examiner will tell you when to start your talk and will remind you that they will stop you after 2 minutes. The points on the task card will help you to think of what to say and you should try to keep talking for the full 2 minutes. They may ask you a question about what you have said before going on to the next section.

This part of the test assesses your ability to speak at length on a particular topic, using appropriate language and organising your ideas in a logical way. You can use your own experience on the topic to help complete the long turn.

Sample task

Have a go at this sample task for IELTS Speaking, Part 2:

Part 3: Two-way discussion

4 to 5 minutes
The questions in part three will be connected to the general topic that you spoke about in Part 2. You will discuss the topic in a more general and abstract way showing the examiner that you are able to express and justify your opinions, analyse, discuss and speculate on the topic in more depth.

If your long turn was about a beautiful place to visit in your city, this section might begin by talking about beautiful places and the first question might be, "Do you think it's important to maintain beautiful places in cities?"

The examiner will speak more with you in this section and may ask you to justify your opinions to see how well you are able to communicate about abstract ideas compared to the personal topics you spoke about in Parts 1 and 2.

In Part 3, you are assessed on your ability to express and justify opinions and to analyse, discuss and speculate about a range of issues connected to the general topic you spoke about in Part 2.

Sample task

Have a go at this sample task for IELTS Speaking, Part 3:

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IELTS Speaking practice questions and sample tasks | IDP IELTS

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Duration: 11 to 14 minutes The Speaking test will assess your use of spoken English. The test will last between 11 and 14 minutes where you will discuss a variety of topics with an IELTS examiner. Your test will take place in a quiet room with an examiner who will encourage you to keep speaking.

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Watch these IELTS Speaking test samples and read the examiner comments to see the differences between different IELTS bandscores.

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How well you do in speaking module will depend on the use the following criteria:

Then, it is no secret that you need to understand and use the official criteria of assessment.

A lot of sites talk about these IELTS speaking band descriptors, but not many actually go into any detail.
P.S. My goal is to create free material that's better than anyone else's paid stuff. Here's the latest attempt to knock your socks off - free.
Today I'm going to take you behind the scenes of these band descriptors (assessment criteria); so you can learn how to use them to achieve a perfect band score.

I think you'll be impressed. And if you can learn even one small insight, you can use it for the rest of your life.

By the way, after a long research and trying many methods with my students for the last 10 years, I finally got simple IELTS Writing preparation method that really works to get upto band 7.5.

I demostrate these methods in a step by step guide to make your preparation as easy as possible.

If you are inrested to study this guide , you can visit this link (you can download the free preview here).

Come back to here, you can consider this article the-

1.No fluff
2.Filtered
3.Need-to-know
4.Ultimate

1.Fluency and coherence

Hesitation

Length of turn

Repetition

Self Correction

Cohesive Devices

Situational Appropriate Speech

2.Grammatical range and accuracy

Complexity

Rules of Thumb

3.Lexical resource

Lexical range & accuracy

Use of collocation

Ability to paraphrase

Use of idiomatic items

4.Pronunciation

Intelligibility

Chunking

Rhythm

Intonation

Stress

Speech Rate

Accent

Sound good?

Yeah, you read that right... you get to follow every single suggestion I make.

However, you don't need to be Stephen King to speak and score well in IELTS. But you do need to make sure that you cover all these four points.
Though they're advanced, they aren't that complicated to implement or use. I'm going to break them down step by step in this post, and I encourage you to start using as many of them as you find useful.

Understand these 4 marking criteria of IELTS speaking test

The sub-factors associated with these 4 criteria

Why these criteria are essential

How easily you can use these elements to top the band score

So, without further delay, let's get started.

1. Fluency and coherence
What should be the first criteria of a good speaker in any language?

They need to be fluent. Isn't it ?

Fluency can be described as the ability to talk without longer pause-without saying umm..omm.. when searching for words to express something.

For example, you do not make delay of 5 seconds between 2 sentences or between 2 words in a sentence when you speak in mother tongue.

So should you while speaking in English to prove your fluency.

However, IELTS examiner looks for specific clue in your speech to review the fluency. These factors or clues are:

Hesitation

Length of turn

Repetition

Self Correction

Now, let`s discuss these features one by one.
It is generally common for novice speakers to delay the speech while wondering for appropriate words to express their feelings. .

In fact, this hesitation can occur from stress or nervousness.

But it is also true that, if you are too much relaxed then you may not perform better and your ability to improve will drop away.

Look at the following curve that illustrated the "optimum" level of stress for maximum performance.

According to this curve, when your level of nerves is just right, it is called "Goldilocks" level of stress.

More specifically, the main cause of this hesitation is a particular mindset. These candidates think using right grammar & vocabulary is the only option they have to score better.

Good news is that this idea is not true for IELTS exam. When you speak to the examiner, your most important goal is to deliver understandable massage..

Do you really have to use the perfect grammar & vocabulary to make your speech understandable? Definitely not.

Does it mean that there is no need to learn them ?

Not at all.

Particularly , if you are opting for higher band score.

In fact, candidates who scores band 7 or higher are able to speak fluently while "only rarely to search for language". At the same time the grammar and vocabulary of these candidate are almost "in nature" like native English speakers.

That means, you have to practice appropriate word or grammatical structure in specific context, hundred times to make it habitual.

Practicing this way will reduce hesitation and improve your fluency.

However, hesitation is ok to search for ideas as we do this in our native languages too.

You will need to find some phrases that can fill the 'silence', though.

For example, native speakers tend to say things like 'Well, let me think..." or "That's an interesting question." You can use these fillers as well.

If someone is fluent in any language, naturally their answer would be longer.

People won`t speak at length if they are week in English because they will find it difficult go in any detail by forming more words and sentences.

For example, research shows that in part 2 of the test, average talk (score 5.0) lasts only 39 seconds whereas candidates need to speak for 120 seconds (2 minutes).

You may think that can be happening for personal habit of speaking less.

But that is not true.

In fact, there is some evidence that candidate who scores higher usually delivers longer speech in answering any questions.

There is no doubt that longer speech will prove your fluency to impress the examiner. So, longer turn is directly linked with high IELTS band score.

But, when you speak at length, you have to organize your thoughts somehow. With a little practice and imagination, you can master these organization and able to give a fairly long answer.

Do you know that expert speakers inevitably use some structures when they speak at length.

Here is a good post about using these speaking structures.

According to a report of Forbes; president Barack Obama master his public speaking by using three techniques among which repetition is one of them.

Repetition can be helpful to emphasize an argument in your IELTS speaking test.

However, repetition during the IELTS speaking exam can be counts as negative gesture where students can lose a vital 0 .5 band score on the 9 band scale.

Look at the Band 9 descriptor under "Fluency and Coherence" in IELTS speaking band descriptor where it says: "speaks fluently with only rare repetition or self correction."

Repetition occurs when IELTS candidates unnecessarily repeat the same words over and over again.

Like:

There are different reasons behind increasing air pollution in today`s world. Air pollution is happening for using more and more car. Therefore, to solve the air pollution, we should limit the use of car.

Notice the repetitive use of "Air Pollution" and "Car" in this statement. Using synonyms and pronouns can correct this statement.

For example, we can say :

There are different reasons behind increasing air pollution in today`s world. This (pronoun) is happening for using more and more car. Therefore, to solve this problem (synonym), we should limit the use of vehicles (synonyms).

If you look at the band 9 or 8 descriptor under "fluency and coherence"; you will see it says "speaks fluently with rare (occasional)..self correction".

It is natural to make mistakes while you speak. Native speakers also make mistakes.

Once you know a mistake happens with something you have said, don't ignore it - stop, correct yourself and move on.

For example: 'I has visited...sorry, I mean..I have visited Italy last year and it was a wonderful.. '.

You don't lose points for errors that you self correct.

Unfortunately a lot of candidate makes assumptions at this stage that start correcting things would not be wise here.

Accurately self-correcting mistakes is essential to recovering your speech.. which will eventually show the examiner that you have control over the language.

However, self correction could lead to lose points if the candidate is unsure of how to offer a correction.

The examiner may consider these as minor errors or slip of tongue but with unsuccessful correction a small mistake may become a much bigger one.

In that case, the best advice is to move on by not compromising with fluency.

Now come to COHESION.

You my not impressed with the idea that the fluency solely indicates a candidates proficiency in English?

What about, the examiner doesn't understand you at all although you speak without hesitation, self-correction and repetition.

At this point of understanding, the feature "cohesion" comes in action.

It is almost universal that a good speech should contain well developed topics with a logical structure...that would be easy to follow and understand.

Let`s look at the example of a candidate answering in a IELTS speaking test.

The examiner scored her with band 8 because she "develops topics coherently and appropriately".

But, how the examiner knows that she develops the topic without losing coherence?

He used the following indicators to justify coherence:

The use of

Cohesive Features

Situational appropriate speech.

# Cohesive Features
Watch the IELTS speaking test of Anuradha from Malaysia who scored 9 by using fully appropriate cohesive features (example: if you're talking about; other than that; I think it's more; as you can see).

So, what are these cohesive device?

Cohesive devices can be described as the words or phrases that make connection and build relationship between ideas in a speech.

These devices are also known as discourse markers, linkers, connectors, or transition signals.

You surely have discourse markers in your native language which give space, rhythm and fluency to communication.

Native English speakers use discourse markers ALL THE TIME. They give us time to think, to flow, to fill the spaces, to change the subject, and to connect with the subjective feel of communication.

In IELTS speaking test, candidates must make sure that examiner can follow their speech.

To make this happen, candidates can offer some clues in their speech so that their ideas could be interpreted by the examiner.

For example, you can start sentences with following phrases:

First of all (I like to talk about my personal experiences)

Moreover (there are few incidents recorded in the last few years indicating rapid climate change)

In my view (rich countries who are mostly responsible for global warming should pay the debt to poorer nations)

On the other hand (poor countries should make innovation about how to cope with the changing climate)

I guess that (research should be carried out more extensively to protect total annihilation due to climatic change)

These clues in speech are used to signpost ideas and make to build a naturalistic spoken discourse.
The research of Applied Linguistic in University of California also suggests that "Negotiations for meaning are related to a lack of cohesive devices in non native speaker (NNS) speech".

That means, the higher proficiency level of speaker, the more complicated types of cohesive devices they can apply in speaking.

Now, If you think of using these cohesive phrase go to this link to learn more or to understand with practical example.

Remember, you need to be using a range of these phrases with some flexibility to score a 6 or a 7 for fluency and coherence in the original IELTS speaking test.

But, using one markers again and again can lead you to lose points.

Sounds interesting? Look at this interview of Justin Bieber where he uses the device "like" several times which sounds so novice.

If you are doing the same, this is easy for examiners to spot, and it can have a negative impact on the Fluency and Coherence grade.

# Situational Appropriate Speech

How do we speak?

Generally, we arrange words following grammatical rules to make a sentence.

But, do you think this tactic always work while you speak with real people?

For example, you can never start a conversation with these sentences:

How many uncles and aunts do you have? or

What is the color of your hair?

Although, there is nothing wrong with these sentences, at least grammatically.
But, the problem is Speaking English is more than linking words by grammatical rules.

In fact, it`s all about using the right sentence in a given situation.

If that's true - and it is - then your job is to ensure that situational appropriate speech stand out in all of your conversation.

Like you can say:

I guess you have come from a large family? (Instead of: How many uncles and aunts... )

Your hair looks shiny today; did you use something to color it? (Instead of: What is the color....)

Remember, using appropriate language structures in your IELTS speaking test is a tricky matter.
If you do not follow these situational discourse, you`ll be delivering relatively unconnected speech regardless of the context and loose marks.

Here is a good source where you'll learn phrases and expressions that you can use in different context during IELTS speaking test.
2. Grammatical range and accuracy

Are you filmier with the following sentence?
"I'm worried about making grammatical mistakes while I speak."

If you are a non-native speaker of English, it is very normal to make mistakes in grammar.

But, it does not mean that you are weak in grammar.

We usually make grammatical mistakes while we speak. This is because; we can only concentrate more on grammar while we write rather than speak.

On the other hand, many native speakers of English also make mistakes in grammar while speaking.

That`s why IELTS speaking band descriptor (band 7) says: "frequently produces error-free sentences, though some grammatical mistakes persist".

But, if you want to score band 8 or higher, you should produce consistently accurate sentences apart from 'slips' characteristic of native speaker speech.

That`s the accuracy part of this speaking band indicator.

Notice, there are two parts of this indicator- accuracy and range.

It means, high scores will not be awarded if a candidate only doesn't make any grammar mistakes. The score will also depend on the range of grammar.

The score in the "Range" section is based on a number of different factors including:

Complexity

Rules of Thumb

I would like to use all simple sentences in my IELTS speaking exam.
Because I think it is the easiest way to prove my fluency in English.

If you`re thinking like me and want to get a high band score, then I am telling - you`re wrong.

When all sentences in your speech are short (simple sentences), you`ll be producing choppy rhythm which sounds very unnatural.

It will be causing auditory irritation to the examiner.

For instance:

Examiner: Tell me about the place where you are from?
Candidate: I was born in a village. It is very beautiful there. The size of this village is small. All people are friendly to each other.

What do you think? Doesn`t it sound choppy?

To get band score 7 or higher, you`re expected to produce more varied sentence structures.

In fact, you need to use mix of simple, complex and compound sentence without making lots of grammar mistakes.

Let`s give the answer of previous typical IELTS speaking question now.

1/Simple: I was born in a village.
2/Compound: The size of this village is small but it is very beautiful.
3/Complex: I like to live there because all villagers are friendly to each other.

As you can see, this process is so easy. There are 2 ways to do this:

1. Use conjunctions "and/but/or" to connect two sentences.

2. Use subordinate conjunctions like "when/where/though/because/if/since etc" to combine sentences.

How can you demonstrate a wider range of grammar in your speaking?

Actually I do believe that some rules of thumb can help a lot here.

These rules of thumbs include grammatical features, e.g. relative clauses, variety of tenses.

Indeed there are some difficulties in using these features.

However, I am presenting some guidelines which can make things a lot easier for you.

Expert level IELTS candidates do not give short answers, they speak MORE! That means they use to expand answers.

An easy way to do this is to make impressive complex sentence by using relative clauses.

You need to be comfortable with relative clauses to show your advanced grammar skill in speaking.

For instance, look at this typical answer using relative clauses:

I live in Sydney which is the most populous city in Australia. The city is packed with spectacular spot that attracts tourists from all over the world.

So, we use pronouns such as which, that, whom, whose, when, where, or who to make clear which person or thing we are talking about.

Have you ever wondered about how to use this pronouns (which, that, whom, whose, when, where, or who) to make these type of sentences?

There is a wonderful guide written by Dr. Murray and Anna to sort out this problem.

# Variety of Tenses

Using relative clauses is not the only way to show range of grammar.

For instance, A poor speaker can use only present simple tense.

If the examiner notices too many sentences with same tense, your score may drop down to 5.

So, Aim For Variety!

Let`s look at the example of a typical question where the candidate use various tenses.

Question: What is your favorite film?
Answer:
Present Simple: Titanic is my favorite film.
Past Simple: I first saw this movie when I was 13.
Present Perfect: I have seen it in our local cinema hall.
Present Perfect Continuous: Since then, I have been watching Titanic in my home for several times.

Talking like this would be an good indicator of the basic tenses can use in your speech. It will boost your marks.

3. Lexical resource

Most of the time, you cannot speak with a single word.

Do you?

In fact, you need to use multiple words to coveys your speech.

Now, the question is how efficiently you can use several words to give a full picture.

This is where the second installment of IELTS speaking grading criteria is justified- Lexical Resource.

More specifically, you should check the following grading criteria under Lexical Resources:

Lexical range & accuracy

Use of collocation

Ability to paraphrase

Use of idiomatic items

Do you know there are 2,000 more frequently used words in English?
On the top of it, there are about 3000 words altogether specific to academic contexts.

Several research have suggested that advance speakers use less high frequency vocabulary in their speaking discourse. Instead, they use more academic words.

Saying that, it is now needless to say, this quantititative lexical range is used to spot expert level speakers in the IELTS test.

That means, the proficiency of using range of academic words indicate the lexical improvement of candidate`s speech.

In addition to range of vocabulary, lexical or linguistic accuracy also appears as criteria for assessing speaking.

Housen and Kuiken (2009) define accuracy simply as "error free" speech.

Any incorrect word selection in the language produced can lead to inaccuracy.

For example:

"I wish I can see them soon"
This is coded as lexically inaccurate: "wish" should be "hope".

Technically, a lexical error could be intentional or unintentional (slip of tongue).

Whatever the reason may be...the less you make these, the better your score would be.

Do you think the following words make sense?

sounds humor

sense exciting

Probably not!
Instead the following words make sense:

Because, the word "sense" goes with "humor" & "sounds" goes with "exciting".

These are all collocations.

Native speakers use these collections to for fluent production of utterance.

Collocations are chunks of words usually kind of stick together.

Are you thinking about the use of collocation in IELTS speaking test?

The Speaking Public Band Descriptors says:

Here "with some inappropriate choices" means the candidate will make slight mistake in putting word combinations (collocations) together.

That means, using appropriate collocations are useful to get high band score.

But, where can you learn these useful collocations for widening your active 'lexical resource.'

Go to this link to learn lots of lexical chunks useful for IELTS speaking.

Don't you hate it when you cannot remember a word to explain a situation, while you would be speaking with the examiner?

One powerful way to handle these tricky communication situations is to rely on paraphrasing.

Paraphrasing means to restate information in different words when the speaker forget the word ( or you don't know the word in English).

It is normal that you will face this kind of problem in your IELTS speaking test when you can`t remember some words at all.

You cannot just mumble in this situation and lose your points. Use the tricks of paraphrasing here; you`ll boost the band score at 7 or 8 level.

You can follow the rules of Forget-Explain method to make effective paraphrasing.

1. First let the examiner know that you`ve forgotten the word; by saying:

Actually, can't seem to remember the word

Let me try to put it into plain words or Let me to explain what I mean here

2.Secondly, use the following sentences to explain your word:

Well what it is

It is a kind of

In some ways it's similar to

It's actually something like a

Let us use this technique to answer a typical IELTS speaking question.
Question: How can we reduce the traffic congestion in our cities?
Answer: I think, traffic congestion can be reduced by using public transport instead of private cars. - An additional problem with cars is that they produce a lot of..... err... I can't remember the word, but let me to explain what I mean here. It `s a kind of gas that the cars exhaust (carbon monoxide). One of the most unique features of this gas is that is responsible for air pollution.

In this example, the candidates' vocabulary score is positively influenced by effective paraphrasing where he explains the forgotten word with examples that fit it best.

This example should be helpful if you stumble upon similar situation. Using this technique will directly affect your vocabulary score.

What happens when you are talking in IELTS exam, like you are in a daily life situation?

You will loose marks.

Why?

Because, you are giving an Academic (IELTS) exam.

That`s one of the reason, you should speak academically.

But,

How you can speak academically?

Using idioms is one of the ways to do this.

Incorporating idioms is considered an integral part of IELTS speaking test because they frequently occur in academic context. Such skills indicate advanced linguistic capability of candidate.

Thus, if you want to score band 7 or higher, you should put several idiomatic expression in your responses.

Idioms are so widespread in native English discourse; it would imply that proficient speakers must have knowledge of these expressions at some level.

For example:

Questions: What flowers do you like?
Answer: Well, My favorite flower is Rose. I guess that`s because I`m really into bright and bold colors like red. I also like Cynthia that blooms with blue reminds me the peaceful ocean.

This answer use idiomatic expression:"I`m really into". This means "to like something"; which can empress the examiner and prove you as a proficient speaker.

Important linguistic research also indicates the use of idiomatic expressions in academic English.

Erman and Warren (2000) has calculated in their research that 32.3% of the expressions are made of idiomatic expression in an expert academic spoken discourse.

In a nutshell, it is clear that idiomaticity must comprise a major chunk of any spoken discourse by expert level speakers in the IELTS test.

You can go to this source to learn some very useful idioms (with examples) to improve your speaking in IELTS.

Using rich lexical resources and grammar is essential is IELTS speaking,

Meanwhile, being able to properly pronounce word is the last criteria of a proficient speaker.

Everyone who speaks English has an accent like in America, Canada, South Africa, England, Australia, or New Zealand.

But, do not mix the definition of pronunciation with accent.

While, pronunciation is the reproduction of sounds in such a way that the massage pass easily so that the native speaker can clearly understand it.

That`s why, when appearing for the IELTS, rather than worrying about your accent, you need to simply focus on speaking as clearly as you can and minimizing any obvious pronunciation errors.

The IELTS examiner looks for several factors to judge your pronunciation, like:

These are the areas you need to improve in for better pronunciation.

I am now discussing all these factors one by one to make them clear.

Intelligibility means your speech is recognizable as English.

For example, you might say "Give me some water" as "Gimme some wa.ar". This is unlikely to be intelligible because of inaccurate patterns.

Most of the IELTS candidate have non-native accent. Thus, your own native accent should not affect the way you project an image to the listener.

In fact, you should acquire an accent which is "intelligible"- audience can catch the meaning of your speech with ease.

But, should you worry with your no-native accent?

No.

Because, a strong foreign accent does not necessarily improve your intelligibility.

Empirical evidence shows that in North American Indian English is more readily understood than even the BBC or British varieties while more than 80 per cent of British people struggle to pronounce common words.

That`s why intelligibility does not improve with British or American accent. For this, here are some of the things you can do:

The dictionary will give you phonetic transcription of how each letter of the word should be pronounced.

2.Identify the phonetics letters from the dictionary.

3. Use the phonetic chart and click on each symbol (I & ŋ) to hear how they sounds.

PS: Download the phonetic chart here. You'll need Adobe Flash Player to use it

4.Try to pronounce the word now and finally compare your pronunciation the previous online dictionary with audio examples.

ChunkinghelpstheIELTSexaminertofollowandundertandyourspeecheasily.

What did I say?

What I say is:

Chunking helps/the IELTS examiner/to follow/and/understand/your speech/easily.

You know what I mean?

Chunking means to present each sentence of your speech piece by piece (which may be single words or groups of words) to make it understandable.

Beware that the examiner is listening for your skill in chunking. Without proper chunking you may overwhelm the examiner to follow your meaning and loose marks.

So, chunking is an important skill you need to develop before exam.

You love to talk : to recite poems, to pray aloud, to sing a song, to chat with a friend.

But, do you apply same force to pronounce each word?

Or, YOU like to TALK with a PULSE !

Notice this English nursery rhyme :

EEny MEEny MIny MO
CATCH a TIger BY the TOE

Here the capital letters are the area where you usually speak loudly to make a rhythm.

Rhythm is a natural element of every language. Speakers of all languages talk with an obvious rhythm.

It is important that you master the rhythm of English. Otherwise your speaking discourse will be difficult to understand.

You may wonder how to master the rhythm?

It is surprisingly difficult to decide good rhythm types of spoken English.

Just remember that expert IELTS speakers will avoid stressing every word in the sentence.

Poor speakers will do the opposite.

Simply, focus on the content words while you speak. Content words are the words that are important to express the main meaning of the sentence. These are usually nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and pronouns.

More specifically, just cut the articles, prepositions, conjunctions and auxiliary verbs (is, was, has, have) - you`ll find the content words.

Look at these examples:

Intonation means the variation of pitch- making voice up and down- to express different context.

For example, note the differences in meaning (although both are same sentence):

1.The train left already. (means, it has left the station)
2.The train LEFT ALREADY? (here, someone is asking if it already left or not)

You may now understand the importance of intonation to covey meaning in English.

Listen to interesting programs in BBC Radio or the Voice of America to notice voice pitch changing to express different situations.

This will help you to attune with the intonation of English language.

Also, you can find here sixteen possible varieties of expressing emotion and attitude in English using intonation.

English speakers use to emphasis on a particular syllable or word during pronunciation.

Note the following sentences where words (in bold) are stressed more (pronounced louder and longer).

When are you coming to dinner?

I have never liked him.

It makes a rhythmic pattern of the language.
Expert level speakers use word stress to communicate accurately, even if the examiner does not hear a word clearly.

For instance, let`s say: You are speaking to fast the word like Photograph and photographer.

But, the examiner can only here the fist syllables "photo" but still understand which word you are saying because of stress you use here:

PHOto(graph)

phoTO(grapher).

On the contrary, the native language of the candidate can have stress different than English.
For example, Japanese or French pronounce each syllable with equal emphasis.

But, in many languages of Indian subcontinent stress is used in conjunct consonants.

Some of them can pronounce Diffi-cult as di-FF-i-cult (more stress while pronouncing "ff")

Like the same, Mandarin speaking Chinese will make strong nasal sound for stressing which is not a common practice in English.

Thus, when students use the native language stress pattern when speaking English, it can make it difficult to understand. On the contrary, the candidate will be losing marks for it.

You may think when you speak English faster, you become fluent.

That`s simply not true.

As a matter of fact, when you speak slowly then you speak clearly.

But, how slow it should be?

Six minutes calculated the average speaking rate of world renowned speakers is 163 words per minutes in average.

As a matter of fact, research on applied linguistics also suggest the same configuration for a proficient English speaker.

Both of these results indicated the word per minute boundaries of a speaker to be rated as fluent.

How can you limit our utterance within this particular boundary?

The answer is simple- The best way to main the speech rate is to pause between ideas. This simple technique will help you speak with more clarity. Make sure to pause after every punctuation sign.

This is essential.

Distribution of these pauses during an uninterrupted speech will make you an expert level speaker.

For example, pause after each punctuation marks (/ . and ,) when speaking the following sentence. You`ll feel the difference.

1. Climate change is a true phenomenon / in most parts of the world. However, we have to adapt with it/ to sustain in the long run.

2. I didn't mean that/ we can reverse the process of climate change, but rather, we can make a positive move/ to live with it.

You may have British, Australian or American accent but it may not help you in IELTS test.
The examiner will be OK with your as long as can be understood.

But, this understanding may be difficult if you mispronounce certain words.

So, all it matter how clear and accurate your accent is.

For example, look how the meaning is changed if you simply change the last consonant:

I mean, if you pronounce "t" instead of "d"; the meaning will change (He is a goat teacher instead of he is a good teacher)

IELTS students often leave off plural 's' and passive "ed" at the ends of words and this affects their accent too.

As a matter of fact, your native language can have particular phonological patterns that may hinder you to pronounce certain words in English.

But it is also true that we all have the same speech apparatus (tongue, teeth, lips, and jaw) and, therefore, we are all able to produce the same sounds as native speakers.

If you want to improve your accent then follow this guideline:

Listen to a presentation in

Pay close attention to the presenter's position of lips, tongue, teeth, and jaw. (When you hear a difficult word)

Speak it loud in front of a mirror.

Try to use tongue, teeth, lips, and jaw like the presenter to pronounce the word.

Follow this method every hence and thence to improve your accent immediately and significantly.

You've got to pay attention to the factors that official IELTS band descriptor is asking.

After all, at the end of the day, the examiner will assess you following these criteria.

I`ve go through these four main areas that directly affect your speaking band score.

If you understand these four concepts, you should be prepared to score high in your speaking test.

When you use these factors consistently, you'll see a dramatic improvement in your English speaking skills.

I agree, some of these factors are more difficult to understand then others.

So, it`s your turn to ask me questions for any further clarification.

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How well you do in speaking module will depend on the use the following criteria: Then, it is no secret that you need to understand and use the official criteria of assessment. A lot of sites talk about these IELTS speaking band descriptors, but not many actually go into any detail.

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IELTS Writing Task2 Explained in Details with Essay Writing Formula

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So, you want to learn everything about IELTS Academic Writing Task 2 huh? Great!

Can I be straight up with you?

It's nothing new to you. You already deal with it back in your high school.

Maybe you just forget it!

IELTS writing task-2 is nothing but a task of writing 250 words high school essay.

(Although the required standard is bit higher than your high school)

After all of those years of schooling, you`re still confused to write an essay.

Can you relate?

Wait. You are not alone. I used to be an IELTS candidate like you back in 2003, and I knew nothing about writing task-2. In fact it was just a week before the exam, I learnt about the IELTS writing section.

Now I know tons of information about them, and it was through teaching. It is through the act of IELTS teaching and in-depth research that I was able to dredge up secrets and technique I never knew before that in turn allows my knowledge of this subject to fully blossom.

Well, I am not claiming to be some sort of expert in this field, but I certainly know the basics to keep you going in order to achieve a good band score.

Shall we proceed? Good.

I really don't want to talk about anything that has no value in your IELTS test.

I'm going to outline why you should pay your attention to task-2:

In a 60 minute writing test, you`ll be spend staggering 40 minutes on it.

Two third of your writing score depends on how well you perform here.

This is where you`ll be on your own. It`s not visual prompt like task-1 where you`d have plenty of clues and data to write about the task.

By the way, after a long research and trying many methods with my students for the last 10 years, I finally got simple IELTS Writing preparation method that really works to get over band 7.

I demonstrate these methods in a step by step guide to make your preparation as easy as possible.

If you are interested to study this guide , you can visit this link.

I bet you all know these facts, but it's nice to be reminded.

It's nowhere near as difficult to teach yourself about IELTS Writing Task-2.

It`s not a rocket science.

In fact, very little you need to do to achieve a good band score anything up to 6.5. Good news, huh?

You see: We live in a jam-packed information-world. Lots of the advice out there... and you`re confused. The information surge that appears in web, books, lectures- give you no time whatsoever to absorb one until there's another.

That`s why I am providing you a 16 minutes comprehensive tutorial about writing task-2.

So, here in this tutorial, I include what you need to know minimally for not getting lost in your IELTS writing test.

VIDEO: IELTS Academic Writing Task 2 Explained

Are you looking for easy to understand video tutorial for learning all about academic IELTS writing task -2? Start with this easy to digest video about how to write your essay from introduction to conclusion:

But, unless you are not bored with reading text, here in this step by step tutorial, I include what you need to know minimally for not getting lost in your IELTS writing test.

In particular, there's 7 things you need to know in order to train yourself about IELTS essay writing.

As you follow everything exactly, you'll be able to write any IELTS essay in 30 minutes or less.

That`s all you need...Top Gun..to write better than ever.

So, without further delay, let's jump into lesson 1.

Lesson 1: IELTS Academic Writing Task 2 Topics

I guess it`s not insane to tell you that academic IELTS task: 2 is a question to write a 250 words essay in pencil & paper.

Ouch! You Know that? I know...I know...

But do you know that whenever someone comes across any task2 question, there are two things first come in mind:

#1. Whether the person knows something about the topic?

#2. How to discuss about that topic in pencil and paper?

Let`s suppose you are that person. In that case, the topic of the question is pretty much the first thing you need to relate with your experience and wisdom.

The flip side.....

Even if you can relate your knowledge with the topic, you may sweat yourself profoundly to write anything about it.

Don't worry. I`ll explain everything about the writing process.

Now, before I move on, I want you to look at the first question that may arise in your mind:

Am I familiar with the topic?

Look. Back in school, you may write essays about topics like "your memorable day in your life", "your aim in life", "a journey by train" etc.

Just forget those days..

IELTS writing Task-2 questions are focused on rather debatable issues. The topics generally cover developmental, environmental, public well-being, socio-cultural and technological related problems.

If there was no problem, there would be no reason for writing an essay, and definitely no reason for question makers to present it in your exam.

So below, I'm going to outline some topics based problems and questions.

Local development through tourism can negatively affect the social environment.

Many people believe that international tourism is a bad thing for their countries.

What are the reasons? Provide solutions to change negative attitudes?

Fast food can affect public health although it`s so popular.

In today's busy world, consumption of fast-food has increased dramatically. But frequently eating out can have serious long-term health effects.

To what extent the advantages outweigh its disadvantages?

Who` must pay for climate change?

Some people argue that individuals can do nothing to prevent the climate change.

Therefore, only governments and large companies can make a difference.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

Consumption culture is depleting the moral fabric of the society.

Some people think that modern

consumerism have a negative impact on the society overall.

Others, however, think that modern consumerism isn't inherently bad.

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Do social media distort people from partial worldviews?

Many people believe that social media (such as Facebook) reinforce individuals and society to have narrow biases.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Now listen: I don`t want you to get panicked about aforementioned IELTS essay topics.

I`ll give you plenty of education how to answer each topic related tasks.

My idea is to get you thinking about what kind of "subject matter" you can expect in your IELTS writing test.

Remember three points: (1) Spot the topic; (2) Spot the task type; and (3) Write according to the topic and the task type.

So next, we`ll discuss how to identify the question type at a glance.

Lesson 2: IELTS Academic Writing Task 2 Question Types

You know...

At the end, questions are questions.

A question would ask you a question by putting the question sign (?) at the end of it.

Well, that`s the universal perception about questions. But, in the IELTS writing task-2 you may never see the question mark (?)anywhere in the prompt.

Note: If you already have a solid idea about task-2 question types, then skip this and go to the next lesson.

Just give quick glance on this task-2:

Some people believe that anyone can learn to play music or sport well. However, others believe that people must be born with talents like these

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

You don`t see any question marks (?) in the above prompt. Do you? This example is a discussion type IELTS essay question. But, there are other types (where you could see question marks).

Now, if you really want to learn about different question types, here`s the list:

(1) Agree/Disagree : Here you see an opinion about an issue and the task asks you to write a argumentative response by supporting or rejecting that proposition.

Example:

Children all over the world should learn to speak a single, universal language fluently in addition to their native language.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

(2) Discussion Type : On this question you see two different opinions about the same issue and a question asking you to discuss both points of view and to give your own opinion about this topic.

Example:

"Some people believe that the activities of large multinational corporations most benefit the economies of developing countries. Other people take the opposite view and feel that these large multinationals are generally harmful".

Discuss both views and give your opinion.

(3) Advantages / Disadvantages Type : Here you see a specific viewpoint and you have to evaluate advantages and disadvantages based on that perception.

Example:

"Some people think that our lives are more comfortable now because of new communication technology such as cellular phones and emails. Others say it only gave us a hurry sickness, where wealways felt to be rushed and thus faster communications hardly improved our lives".

What are the advantages and disadvantages of modern communication technology?

(or, Do the advantages of modern communication technology outweigh the disadvantages?)

(4) Causes or Effects and Solutions : On the question paper, you see a statement about a contemporary problem and then two questions. One question asks you to identify the causes or effects of the problem and the other question asks you to propose solutions to the problem.

Example:

"One problem faced by almost every large city is traffic congestion".

What do you think are the causes of this?

What solutions can you suggest?

(5) Theme oriented Questions : The task presents an idea about a topic and you would be required to answer one or more questions that relate to the theme.

Example:

"Happiness is considered very important in life."

Why is it difficult to define?

What factors are important in achieving happiness?

So, those are the few many types of IELTS task-2 questions.

Confusing. Right?

Well, at the start, these categories look confusing, but it gets very understandable quickly as you go through your preparation. Don't worry!

Lesson 3: How to Write an IELTS Essay in 3 Steps

Now, the fun bit.

Did you read this lesson title- How to Write.....in 3 Steps?

Just 3 steps- you can FINISH writing!!

It`s going take you 30 minutes from start to finish.

"You should spend about 40 minutes on this task".

IF you finish in 30 minutes, what you do in the rest 10 minutes?

Well, get up and visit the exam room to see the nervous faces- making war with a pitiable piece of paper and pencil! I mean: A war to finish the essay. Just kidding..but it`s true.

It`s true that even 40 minutes is a short time to complete the essay if you don`t know how to write it.

Now, I`ll admit you are not ready to gulp down that fact that an essay can be written in 30 minutes.

So, let`s break down the process minute by minute:

Step-1: Understand the question (2 min)

Do you know what the hardest part of the writing process is?

We hate to write.

Let's face it: Who else like to sit in an exam room and struggle with a blank piece of paper when he could chat with friends outside?

But, we are forced to write sometimes in our life...an email, a letter, a job application, an IELTS essay...

And when you first see your IELTS writing question, you feel a 60 minutes pressure to start writing without waiting for a second.

But, don't start writing, slow down there!

Take a breather to explore the ideas and topic of the task.

Aka spend 2 minutes to absorb the question carefully and understand what it is asking.

Behold to find out key areas of the task that cannot be overlooked in the response.

Look at this task as an example:

Some people believe that it is good to share as much information as possible in scientific research, business and the academic world. others believe that some information is too important or too valuable to be shared freely.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

The task is asking you to write on whether it`s better to share information or not... to what extend..and specially in scientific, business and academic field.

Just keep in mind that you need to cover all these key areas in your answer.

Explore the key discussion areas of the task is powerful...

Sweetly, these are the keys to generate or think topic related ideas.

Step-2: Jot down ideas (10 min)

At this stage, don`t wait for ideas to spark in your mind.

Just ask yourself 3 basic questions (below) and wait for the magic to happen.

Tons of ideas will sprout in your mind if you do so. And as they appear in your mind, quickly write them down in the question booklet (not in the answer sheet).

Here are the questions you need to ask yourself about the task:

First Question: What situations would disprove the first/second claim?

Think about some sensitive areas where the claims fail.

For example:

Claim: Sharing as much as information is good in the field of scientific research.

Failing situation: Sharing scientific information about nuclear weapons design can be insane.

Second Question: What is unjust about the claim?

Simply think about some areas where the claim contradicts itself.

Claim: It is good to share as much information as possible in business.

Unjust: Businesses could not outperform rivals by sharing too much insider information.

Third Question: What could strengthen the claim?

Lastly, think how you can make the claim more reasonable, may be, by adding or changing some words. For example:

It is good to share as much information as possible in scientific research, business and the academic world, unless they do not cause any risk to anybody.

Now, by now, I can almost guarantee that some solid ideas are emerging in your dizzy mind.

I bet, at this stage, you are going to somewhere from nowhere.

These 3 magic questions will certainly power you up to think about a number of answering ideas.

Step -3: Write the Essay (18 min)

Alright, now, after all this you should be ready to start the writing process.

A good essay follows this simple structure:

So, let`s write down the introduction.

1. Introduction -3 Minute

An IELTS essay begins with an introduction to quickly "introduce" the reader to the topic and to state your main arguments.

In other words, here you tell the reader what the essay is about.

You should avoid long, extended introductions and thus make it short and get right to the point.

You should spend more time in writing body paragraphs.

I suggest you to write just 3 sentences in the introduction:

In the first 2 sentences, restate the topic in your own words. Don't copy words from the question here. See the example below:

Some people believe that it is good to share as much information as possible in scientific research, business and the academic world. others believe that some information is too important or too valuable to be shared freely.

Here`s is how you can write these 3 sentences:

Our lives have been revolutionized by the way we share scientific research, business and the academic information with others around the world so generously.

Some would argue that it would be better to share any information without any restrictions, while others argue that some information is too precious to be shared freely.

Although both the arguments have its own justifications, I believe that a controlled approach of information sharing is beneficial throughout all arenas.

Spoiler Alert: It`s bad to write "I will discuss both of these views and give my opinion at the end" because you`re simply copying the task instruction.

Once you are done with writing up your introduction, it's time to go for body paragraphs.

2. Body Paragraphs: 5+5=10 min

Body paragraphs are the MEAT of your essay.

Remember, well written body paragraphs will help bring you high band score.

In other words, if you want to score well, you`ve got to write good body paragraphs.

And it is tough to write-this is where the sweating starts.

One of the reasons why students struggle here is because any writing itself is hard.

There's no short-cut way that you can make writing a fun and enjoy the process.

You`ve to read a lot, write a lot to get around this fatigue.

This heavy lifting is imperative.

After all, you`ll not write in your personal diary, you`ll write for the IELTS test.

I know this sounds like a lot of work for one language test to meet.

And I am telling you to do it all in 30 minutes? Impossible.

Presenting:

The 4-point body paragraph framework:

Let`s break out the process:

Topic (Write what some people think)

Now, I must warn you about something:

When writing the topic, you must follow certain basics:

Sounds simple but don't overlook these facts. As a matter of fact, I`ve seen many low scoring candidates are making big mistakes here.

Do you think simply an example can 100% explain your claim aka the topic of your Paragraph?

When you state any example, you know everything about it. You know why you put this forward- it`s in your mind.

The only problem is that the reader has no idea what it supposes to mean.

In that case, you need to explain this in additional sentences. In other words, discuss the evidence.

I am going to recap the whole thing for your understanding:

Look...there is no point to bring an example with explanation until you show how it connects with your topic.

So, you can repeat the point by stating the outcome of your discussion.

"So it can evidently be ascertained that advancements in these spheres are positively correlated with shared boundless ideas, which then in turn benefits the society as a whole."

See blow how the above sentence resonates with the topic:

Four sentences on 4 points: Topic + Example + Validation + Outcome; every serious candidate will follow this strategy- - which in turn improves band score.

Now, rinse and repeat the same technique to write the second body paragraph by focusing on the second view of the task.

For example, you can write the second body paragraph as:

However, certain information outburst can lead to negative ramification on scientific to business sphere. For example, critical information leakage from a big company and a sensitive nuclear or bio-chemical research project can be sometimes lethal. With that said, corporate like Apple maintains their market share over the years by protecting technological secrets that give them an edge over competitors. Thus it can be inferred that all documents aren`t meant to be made public for the greater benefits.

Yes?

(3) Conclusion: 5 Minute

OK. You`re exhausted?

I absolutely agree with you.

In conclusion, the discussion of releasing or withholding all information is still under the scanner. However, probability to disperse certain types of information cannot be ruled out.

I thus favor in between-not all but a large portion can be left in the light for all.

Nevertheless this difference in attitude can leads to profound advancement of our civilization.

But, there`s a catch.

Now, we're at one of the most important sections in this entire article: IELTS essay writing structure.

You can call it strategy, formula or plan whatsoever. All are same.

What do I mean by "structure?"

Many candidates today take an ad hoc approach to writing essay. Sure, they all cover the basics- introduction, body and wrap it up with a conclusion...and....

I don't recommend this. You`ve to constantly shifting this structure as the task demands.

For instance, this was the structure for our previous discussion essay:

Situation

People`s view

Your stand

See why it's important?

This structure is completely different from previous one.

That's what I told you so. I told you to change the essay structure according to question types.

But, I am not accusing anyone who don`t understand the above IELTS writing task 2 structure for agree/disagree essays.

I totally understand this.

And that`s what I am going to explain this next (with a sample answer).

But, before I do so, I want you to know that there remain other 3 types:

Advantage/Disadvantage

Cause/Effect/Solution

Theme Oriented Question

Keep in mind that you need to follow a distinct essay structure for each of these types.

If you need a little help I would highly recommend you check out my article How to Structure Your IELTS Writing Task 2 Essay in which I run through the steps you need to take in more details. It's really not as hard as you might think!

Lesson 5: IELTS Writing Task 2 Sample Answer

OK- In the last lesson, we`ve discussed about the structure of agree/disagree type essays. Let`s put this structure in action.

Here`s is an example of agree/disagree prompt:

Prison is the common way in most countries to solve the problem of crime. However, a more effective solution is to provide people a better education.

Do you agree or disagree?

Perhaps education can have some passive influence to prevent felony recurrence; it would be judicious to lock up delinquents to maintain law and order in the long run.

OK. I don`t mind if some questions (?) bubble in your mind while you read the above sample.

Don't worry. I am here to make your life simple.

I am going to explain everything about the sample (step-by-step) now:

I begin the essay by simply restating the task in my own words.

Next, I say what`s the problem with this argument. In fact, any of those assertions (prison or education) can be a strong candidate to prevent crime; so it`s a problem and thus a debatable topic.

The last sentence is the "thesis"- where I say what I am going to discuss in this essay. I didn't take any side here, I`ll do it in the conclusion-after I demystify both arguments.

I give my decision.

With that said, I tell what should be practiced in the long run.

Lesson 6: IELTS Academic writing task 2 tips and tricks to Boost Your band score

So far, we discuss about the process of writing IELTS essays. The key with writing essay is to come up with some ideas and deliver them with a structure.

I told you earlier that there is no single approach of better writing.

There are thousands of IELTS candidates all over the world-each has own/distinct style of writing. In this plethora of writing varieties, how can an examiner decide which is poor or average or a very good answer?

To save the examiner from confusion and make it easy, the IELTS consortium has a fixed guideline to score an essay. This guideline says that a task-2 answer should be graded based on following characteristics of the text:

Task Response: Did you answer all part of the question?

Grammatical Range and Accuracy : Did you use a range of sentence from long to short by using a number of grammatical structures with accuracy?

Lexical Resources: Did you use a range of topic specific common and uncommon vocabulary to convey your thoughts more accurately?

Coherence and Cohesion: Did you write haphazardly or your ideas fits together to make an overall sense? Is it easy to follow your text from sentence to sentence or paragraph to paragraph?

That`s four trips and tricks for you to hype your band score. So, focus upon writing essay that actually answer the task with good grammar, vocabulary and organization.

Remember when I suggest you in Lesson-1 to spot the topic of the task?

I told you so because it`ll help you to come up with topic specific expressions/terminologies- that`ll make your writing job as easy as a child play.

However, there are plenty of articles and tutorials on IELTS HELP about how to write a high band IELTS essay. Check out some of these popular articles on different aspects of writing better academic task-2 essays:

It`s You To Triumph

Maybe you've been working hard to improve your IELTS writing band score...may be you haven't been and just wondering to give the test.

In any case, don`t be afraid to believe in yourself.

See: the world is full of negative distraction, all of them force you to go out of focus. Your job is to avoid them in silence and never stop believing in yourself.

I hope that this article help you on your journey to achieve an excellent IELTS writing band score.

The reason I write this tutorial about Academic IELTS writing task-2 isn`t just to give you the whole picture but also to convince you of one unarguable point:

YOU CAN DO THIS!

Yes, you can achieve whatever band score you want to achieve and travel the world to live life to its fullest.

I believe in you.

I'm constantly publishing new tutorials on this topic of improving IELTS writing task -2 in this blog.

I want it for you to prosper.

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IELTS Academic Writing Task 2: Everything You Need To Know

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So, you want to learn everything about IELTS Academic Writing Task 2 huh? Great! Can I be straight up with you? It's nothing new to you. You already deal with it back in your high school. Maybe you just forget it! IELTS writing task-2 is nothing but a task of writing 250 words high school essay.

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NEW IELTS SPEAKING TOPICS - January, 2019