Tips for speaking and writing testsEnglish Corner 5 June 2014

Speaking and Writing•When doing listening and reading tests, you will

usually be asked to answer a question that has a correct answer.

•When doing speaking and writing tests, there are no right or wrong answers. It is up to you to decide what you want to say.

•The worst case scenario when doing a speaking or writing test is having no idea what to say next.

Speaking•Speaking tests are often testing your

ability to make good conversation.

•Even if you are good at making conversation, speaking tests can be difficult because they test you on topics you don’t talk about often.

Describe the place you live in•What would you say if you were asked this

question in a test?

Describe the place you live in•There are two ways to answer:

•1. The real estate agent. ▫The place I live has 2 bedrooms,

1 bathroom and a kitchen.

•2. Tell a story about your own experiences. ▫The place is noisy. ▫The kitchen is often crowded. ▫I share with several people.

More examples•Describe your parents

•Describe your favourite holiday destination

•Describe the place you work/study

Speaking – Describing•When you describe your own experiences,

you are telling a story.

•A good way to prepare for a speaking test is to prepare some stories to tell. Prepare stories about people, places, your life, and your interests.

Speaking – Describing•It is often easy to tell a story by comparing

something to that of your own country/culture.

•If they ask about Australia, you can talk about your home country. If they ask about your home, you can talk about Australia.

•E.g. Describe the place you live•E.g. What do you like about Melbourne•E.g. Do you miss anything about your hometown?

Speaking – Opinions•When people ask you a question about

your opinion, first make a clear statement about what your opinion is.

•Then, give your reasons for your opinion.

•A useful way to start is to rephrase the question.

Speaking – Opinions•Q: Do you think learning English is important?

▫A: I think learning English is important because…

•Q: Do you prefer indoor activities or outdoor activities?▫I prefer outdoor activities because…

•Q: What do you like about Melbourne?▫I like… ▫What I like about Melbourne is…

Activity

Essay writing – before you start•Before you start writing:

•1. Read the question

•2. Make a plan

Essay writing – read the question!•Before you start writing, make sure you

read the question carefully.

•E.g. High school students should spend most of their time doing homework.

Essay writing – read the question!•Before you start writing, make sure you

read the question carefully.

•E.g. High school students should spend most of their time doing homework.

• High school students – not primary school students• Most of their time – it didn’t ask if homework is good or

bad. • Doing homework – what could they do instead?

Essay writing – make a plan!•If you have time, I always recommend you

make a plan. If you don’t make a plan, the risks are:

•Firstly, you could go off-topic halfway through the essay.

•Secondly, you could get stuck and not know what to write next.

Essay writing - make a plan!•E.g. “Dogs are better pets than cats.

Discuss.”Positive Negative

Dogs are more friendly• They are loyal to their

owners• They like to play

Dogs can be naughty• They like to eat things• They can often make a mess

Cats require less maintenance than dogs• Cats are less attention-seeking• Cats don’t need to be walked

often

Counter-argument: If you don’t want to spend time to care for a pet, you don’t need to have a pet.

Dogs can be dangerous and bite people

Not all dogs are dangerous.

Essay writing – format•Introduction

▫Firstly, describe the importance of the issue▫Then, give a basic indication of your

opinion (if you wish)

•Argument 1, Argument 2, etc.

•Conclusion

Essay writing – arguments• Identify a serious problem – then explain why

your idea will fix that problem. ▫ E.g. Alcohol is one of the biggest causes of violence

related deaths. As long as people drink, there will be the risk of violence. Therefore, the best way to stop further violence is to ban alcohol.

Essay writing – arguments• Explain the problems in the logic of the other argument

▫ Even though some dogs can be dangerous and bite people, not all types of dogs are dangerous. There are many kinds of dogs which are very friendly and make great pets.

▫ It’s true that homework is useful to help children learn, but that doesn’t mean children should spend most of their time doing homework. Children should also take time to learn from the real world.

• This is a “middle ground”

Essay writing – arguments• Weighing up the arguments

▫ On one hand, children can learn a lot of useful knowledge from watching TV. On the other hand, children can also learn many bad things from watching TV. Unfortunately, the reality is that most of the messages from television do not teach good values to children.

• Notice that we put the less favoured argument first.

Essay writing - make a plan!• When asked questions such as

“Do you agree?” or “To what extent to you agree?”

remember that you do not have to 100% agree or disagree.

• When asked to “discuss”, you will usually need to consider both sides of the argument and weigh up which one is better.

Essay writing – format•Introduction

▫Firstly, describe the importance of the issue▫Then, give a basic indication of your

opinion (if you wish)

•Argument 1, Argument 2, etc.

•Conclusion

Essay writing – useful expressions•Expressing your opinion

▫I believe that…▫In my opinion,▫In this essay, I will show that…

Essay writing – useful expressions•Introducing an unfavoured argument

▫Some people say/some people would argue that…

▫One of the main arguments in support of [x] is that…

▫While it is true that [argument], [rebuttal]▫Although [argument], [rebuttal]▫On one hand, [argument]. On the other

hand, [rebuttal]

Essay writing – useful expressions•Counter-arguments / rebuttals:

▫However,▫Nevertheless,▫Despite this,▫On the other hand,

Essay writing – useful expressions•Conclusions:

▫In summary, ▫In conclusion, ▫In light of the above, ▫Given the above,

Essay writing – before you start•Before you start writing:

•1. Read the question

•2. Make a plan

Essay writing – summary• Try to avoid using words you don’t understand

well. It is more important to put forward a clear argument than to show off with fancy or unusual words.

• Make your plan based on the required word count.

If the essay is short, you will need less arguments.

• Reading opinion articles in the news may help you improve your fluency.

Essay writing – sample questions•Do you think accountants should earn

more money than nurses?

•Should teenagers be allowed to obtain a driver’s license when they are 16 years old?

•Sports people are not good role models. To what extent do you agree?