What does the 45 Hours course include?
The IELTS speaking test assesses your ability to speak in three different contexts, for 11-14 minutes.
The 1st part of the test consists of questions about your personal interests, work, friends, family, etc.
In the 2nd part, you should speak about a topic for 2 minutes and the examiner won’t interrupt you while you speak.
The 3rd part of the test involves questions to assess your general opinion on a given topic.
The Speaking test is the same for both Academic and General Training tests.
You are scored on your;
1.Fluency and coherence (rare self-corrections, smooth flow, topic development)
2.Lexical resources (wide range of vocabulary, use of idiomatic expressions)
3.Grammatical range and accuracy (appropriate and consistent use of accurate grammatical structures)
4.Pronunciation (range of pronunciation features such as sounds, stress and etc.)
We at Rosie Fernando Academy of English will provide you with practical tips on how to tackle the Speaking test when you participate in the mock tests in our course. This means each of you will have the opportunity to take part in mock Speaking tests with our tutors with individual attention to all, in a real exam-like setting. Your progress will be discussed and feedback will be given on how well you performed along with your probable scores.
Now, let’s see what you can do to improve your speech according to the above yardsticks. Here are some tips you can practice to score a band 9 for your IELTS speaking test.
1.Use cohesive devices appropriately.
You should use a range of appropriate cohesive devices to expand information and to retain the smooth flow of your speech. We use cohesive devices,
to add information- moreover, in addition, to add
to make a new point- to begin with, firstly, I believe
to contrast – whereas, nevertheless, conversely
to give examples – for instance, for example
You can also use adverbs of time, such as usually, rarely, often, frequently and occasionally to describe the time of an event.
2.Do we have to speak fast to be fluent?
The answer is no. Since some might speak slowly even in their mother tongue, speed cannot determine one’s fluency. Don’t speak too fast. Relax and show the examiner that you can speak about any given topic.
3.Use of complex vocabulary
If you are comfortable using complex vocabulary items, you are free to use them. But, when you consciously try to select the best possible word to use during you speak, you might pause. And sometimes you tend to replace the word with a more complex word. This affects your fluency. Instead, make your answers simple and clear. But you still can use some complex words to make your answer more outstanding.
4.Elaborate
When the examiner asks questions about your preferences don’t give yes/no or short answers. You should elaborate on your answer with at least 2 sentences. Also, if you have already elaborated on the answer to the question in a previous question, don’t get confused. You can add more to the answer and elaborate.
5.Be talkative
Being informative is a good trait of a competent speaker. But note that your knowledge is not assessed. Examiners are going to score on your ability to answer questions. Also, examiners might interrupt you during part 1 and 3. Don’t get confused or misinterpret this as being rude. They are just timing your test!
Also, when you want the examiner to repeat the question, you can use the below statements.
Sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.
Could you say that again?
Could you repeat that, please?
6.Run out of things to say?
This often occurs in part 2, where you have to speak for 2 minutes straight. You can follow these three steps to keep your speech going without finishing it early.
Introduction- You can explain a story/ background story or use a humorous statement/incident
Body – Give examples using personal or others’ experiences and explain your story maintaining the curiosity
Conclusion – Wrap up your story with a creative statement
If you can’t think of any story to relate, you still can create a new story!
7.Don’t use fillers
Most of the students use common filler sounds such as ah, um, uh and words such as “you know”, “I mean” and “like”. Students tend to use these fillers to gather their thoughts before speaking. Instead, use phrases such as, “This is an interesting question” and “I never really thought about this before”, to gather your thoughts.
We insist you use these tips while you practice for the test. Don’t forget to time and record your speech to evaluate it later!
