Name: IELTS Speaking Task 2 - How to succeed
Uploaded: 2013-07-19T06:40:28.000Z
Duration: 19 min 40 s
Description: Thousands of YouTube videos with English-Chinese subtitles! Now you can learn to understand native speakers, expand your vocabulary, and improve your pronunciation...

Present continuous

Hi, my name is Emma, and in today's lesson we are going to be looking at the IELTS. The

To-infinitive

IELTS is a test that a lot of ESL students have to take when they want to go to a Canadian

university, an Australian university, an English university. So when they want to study overseas

or often times, when they want to immigrate to one of these countries. Okay? So we're

looking specifically at the speaking part of the IELTS, part two. So the IELTS speaking

task is split up into three sections. We are going to be looking at section two in this

video. Okay, so let me first explain what happens

in section two, and then we are going to look at some tips on what you should do if you

want to do well on this section, and things you shouldn't do. Okay? So let's get started.

So, in part two of the speaking component of the IELTS, you will be speaking for about

two minutes. Okay? So this part lasts for about three minutes, so you have three minutes.

The first minute you will be handed a question card. Okay?

So here is an example of a question card. It will tell you, often times, to describe

something. "Describe a museum that you have visited." It will tell you what you need to

* What you particularly remember This is just an example. Okay? So it can be

on different topics, but you will get a card that looks something like this. Okay? So you

have one minute to look at the question and to make notes, and to think: "Okay, what am

I going to say?" So that takes one minute, and then after that the examiner will tell

you: "Okay, you can begin." You must talk for one to two minutes. A lot

of students actually consider this the hardest part of the speaking component because it's

not a dialogue. Okay? The examiner isn't asking you questions and you're giving responses,

and you're going back and forth. In this part of the IELTS, you just talk and you talk for

one to two minutes. So a lot of students find this difficult because talking for two minutes,

even for some native speakers, is a little difficult. Okay, so that's what's going to

happen in this part. Okay? So what are some of the topics you might be

asked about in this part of the IELTS? Well, topics often covered include: you might be

asked about a precious item, so you might have to describe a precious item that you

own. You might have to say something about where you bought it from or: how did you get

it, what does it look like, why is it so precious? You might be asked about a special day, a

sporting event that you went to or a concert, a special trip or journey or vacation, people

who have influenced you. For example: they might ask you to describe your favourite teacher.

What was she like? Why was she so great? You might be asked about a book, music, a television

program, a movie you saw or even items of clothing. Okay, so sometimes you're asked

about historical buildings, you might be asked about a neighbourhood in your city. The key

thing that you probably will be asked is this question is often about description, not always,

but usually you have to describe something. And then they usually have three questions,

they can be: who, what, when, where, why? Okay? So these are the types of questions

that they ask. All right, so now let's look at some things

you can do in order to do well on this part of the IELTS. Okay, so what are some of the

"Dos" for the IELTS, the speaking part? Okay, number one -- very, very important -- take

notes. You're given one minute where you get to look at the question, and you're given

a pencil and you can take notes, do it. Take notes. A lot of ESL students, they think,

"Ah, I don't really want to take notes, it's a waste of time. I know what I'm going to

say in my head." What happens is while they're speaking, they forget certain key points and

they go off topic; they don't stay organized. So your notes are very important because they

keep you on topic and they keep you organized which is one thing you're marked on.

Okay, another thing that is very important -- actually this --, write keywords. So when

you're making your notes, don't bother writing sentences of what you're going to say. You

only have one minute. Just write keywords, important words that will help you to remember

what you want to say. Okay? It's very important to cover every point that

is on the card. Okay? So in our previous example it said: "Describe a museum that you have

visited." And it said: "Where was the museum?" I think it said: "What do you remember most

about the museum? And why were you at the museum?" So if you get these three questions,

make sure you answer each question. Okay? And what's a good way to know you've answered

each question? As you talk, point. So for example: this is to point as you talk, put

your finger on the point you're talking about. So if this says: "Why did you go to the museum?"

Point at this while you talk about that point, and then move your finger to the next point

as you talk about it. This will help you to remember what you've said, and to keep you

on track. Okay? Another very important thing to do is these

often ask you about your own experiences. "Describe your favourite teacher", for example.

Okay? So it's good if you can remember one of your teachers or whatever the question

asks, it's good if you use your own experience. But maybe, maybe you've never been to a concert,

maybe you've never been to a sporting event and that's what the question asks. If this

is the case: lie. Okay? Make it up. If your friend told you a story once about when they

went to a concert, steal your friend's story. Okay? It's okay to lie and to steal other

people's stories on the IELTS. The main thing is that you practice -- or not practice --, that

you speak English. So whether you tell your own story about a museum you visited or if

you've never visited a museum, pretend you went to the Louvre in France. Talk about how

you saw the Mona Lisa and how it was a beautiful painting. You can make stuff up, it's okay.

Okay, the next point of "Dos" is: expand your answers. Okay? So if it says: "Where was the

museum located?" Instead of just saying for that point: "The museum is in Toronto." Okay,

that's too short. Expand on this point. "The museum is located in the downtown core of

Toronto. It's close to the university, some very important restaurants, and the CN Tower."

Okay, not true, but just... You can expand your answer. Make it long, give examples.

Okay, another thing that is a good idea: because these questions are often about describing,

it's good to use your senses, meaning when you have to describe something, imagine it

in your mind and if you run out of things to say, think about your senses. What did

it look like? What did it smell like? What did it sound like? For some of these, maybe

you didn't taste them, like a building, but you get the idea. You can use your senses

to help you imagine the area better, or the object, or the person.

Okay, the next point: organize your speech. This is a must. Okay? So some students, when

they do this part of the IELTS, they talk, and they talk, and they talk, but there's

no organization. So what you need to do is... it's very good to have an introduction, it's

very good to have a body, and it's good to have a conclusion. It's almost like you're

doing an essay, but you're saying it. You want to introduce the topic, then you want

to address all of the points, the three points, and then you want some sort of conclusion.

You can say: "So this is why this was a very memorable experience.", "To sum up, my trip

to Holland was a fantastic experience I'll never forget." Okay? So you want a conclusion

as well. Okay, like I said earlier, it's good to imagine

in your head the object, person, or place. This is a very good thing to do. It will help

you to be less nervous as well. Okay, use introductory phrases. So when you

introduce your topic, first thing you should say: "I want to talk about blank.", "I'd like

to talk about blank.", "I'm going to talk about blank." You can use any of these, but

it's good... This can be your introduction: "I'm going to talk about my trip to Spain.",

"I'm going to talk about my teacher, Mrs. Fitzgerald.", "I'm going to talk about the

most precious object in my life which is my pocket watch." Okay? So you can say whatever

you'd like, but use an introductory phrase. This is a very important point: use transitions.

So what do I mean by that? Well, transitions help to organize what you're going to say.