Cambridge B1 Preliminary Speaking Exam - How to Do Parts 1-2 — Transcript

Full transcript

1. 0:01Hi, I’m Gina.
2. 0:02Welcome to Oxford Online English!
3. 0:04In this lesson, you can learn how to do parts one and two of the Cambridge B1 Preliminary
4. 0:11speaking exam.
5. 0:13The B1 Preliminary exam is the new name for the Cambridge PET exam.
6. 0:17The new B1 Preliminary speaking test, which was introduced in 2020, is similar to the
7. 0:23old PET speaking exam, but with some small differences.
8. 0:27If you need help to prepare for your B1 Preliminary exam, or to improve your English generally,
9. 0:32don’t forget to check out our website: Oxford Online English dot com.
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16. 1:04right of your screen.
17. 1:06Now, let’s see what happens in part one of the Cambridge B1 Preliminary speaking exam.
18. 1:16In part one of the B1 speaking exam, the examiner will ask you and your partner some basic questions.
19. 1:22You talk to the examiner.
20. 1:24You don’t talk to your partner in part one.
21. 1:27At the beginning of your speaking test, the examiner will say: “Good morning.
22. 1:32Can I have your mark sheets, please?”
23. 1:35Then, the examiner will ask each of you: “What’s your name?
24. 1:40Where do you live?”
25. 1:43Answer in *full sentences*.
26. 1:45Don’t just say “Gina.”
27. 1:48Say “My name is Gina.”
28. 1:51Don’t just say “Milan.”
29. 1:53Say “I come from Milan,” or, “I live in Milan.”
30. 1:59After that, the examiner will ask each of you “Do you work or are you a student?”
31. 2:06The examiner might ask extra questions, like “What job do you do?” or “What subject
32. 2:13do you study?”
33. 2:15Here, try to add more information to your answers.
34. 2:19Show the examiner what you can do in English!
35. 2:22For example, instead of saying “I’m an accountant,” say “I’m an accountant.
36. 2:27I’ve been working in the accounting department of a construction company for the last ten
37. 2:31years.”
38. 2:33Instead of saying “I’m at university,” say “I study graphical design at the university
39. 2:38here in Bonn.
40. 2:39I’m in my second year, so I’ll graduate in two years.”
41. 2:43Look at these two examples.
42. 2:45Do you notice anything?
43. 2:48They both use two different verb tenses.
44. 2:51The first example uses the present perfect.
45. 2:54The second example uses a future form, with ‘will’.
46. 2:59You should try to do this, too!
47. 3:01Say something about how long you’ve been doing your job, or your course, or say something
48. 3:07about the future.
49. 3:10What about you?
50. 3:11How could you answer this question?
51. 3:15Try to make an answer now.
52. 3:18Make one or two sentences, add details, and use more than one verb tense.
53. 3:25Pause the video and say your answer out loud now.
54. 3:30Could you do it?
55. 3:31If you need more practice, pause again and repeat your answer several times, or try different
56. 3:38answers.
57. 3:39Next, the examiner will ask you and your partner one or more questions.
58. 3:44These questions could be about different simple topics, like your hometown, your family, your
59. 3:50home, your free time, your future plans, and so on.
60. 3:54Look at some examples.
61. 3:58When you answer these questions, think about the same points you saw before: add details
62. 4:03to your answer, and try to use a range of language.
63. 4:07One point: what if you don’t understand the question the examiner asks?
64. 4:13Just ask the examiner to repeat the question.
65. 4:17You can say ‘I’m sorry, could you repeat that, please?’
66. 4:22Or, ‘Can you say that again, please?’
67. 4:26Don’t worry about having to ask this.
68. 4:29It’s normal, and it won’t affect your score.
69. 4:33Let’s look at our example questions again.
70. 4:38Could you answer these?
71. 4:40Pause the video and try it now.
72. 4:44How did you do?
73. 4:46Now, let’s look together at some more ways to improve your answers and your score.
74. 4:51First, like you heard before, try to use different verb tenses if possible.
75. 4:57Look at a sample answer for the first question.
76. 5:02This is not bad, but you can always improve your answers!
77. 5:06For example ‘On Saturday, I played tennis with a friend, and then on Sunday I had lunch
78. 5:11with my family, which we do every week.’
79. 5:15You’re just adding a few words, but it all helps to add detail to your answer, and it
80. 5:19helps your score, too.
81. 5:22Next, try to use a range of adjectives in your answer.
82. 5:27Look at a sample answer for the second question.
83. 5:31Again, this answer is quite good!
84. 5:35But, again, it could be better.
85. 5:39Adjectives like ‘interesting’, ‘nice’ and ‘good’ are OK, but they’re general.
86. 5:47Try to use more specific adjectives and phrases.
87. 5:51For example ‘I live in Thessaloniki.
88. 5:54My town is a great place to live because it has many excellent restaurants and some fascinating
89. 6:00museums.’
90. 6:03You can see here that you’re not just changing the adjectives, you’re also adding words
91. 6:09to make the answer more descriptive.
92. 6:12You don’t just say ‘My town is nice’, you say ‘My town is a great place to live’.
93. 6:21You don’t just say ‘good restaurants’, you say ‘many excellent restaurants.'
94. 6:28OK, adding one word, like ‘many’, doesn’t make a big difference.
95. 6:33But, it does make a small difference, and if you do this all the way through your B1
96. 6:39speaking exam, it will count.
97. 6:41Now, let’s look at a sample answer for our third question.
98. 6:47What do you think?
99. 6:49Good answer?
100. 6:51Again, it’s not bad, but it’s short; answers like this don’t give you a chance to use
101. 6:57your English and show the examiners what you can do.
102. 7:00Sometimes, students ask “What do I do if I don’t know what to say?”
103. 7:05Firstly, you can make something up.
104. 7:07Your answer doesn’t need to be true.
105. 7:11You can say ‘I think I’ll live in New York in the future.
106. 7:14After I finish university, I want to move to Manhattan and work in the advertising industry.’
107. 7:21It doesn’t need to be true.
108. 7:23You can make up something interesting!
109. 7:26Secondly, even if you don’t know what to say, you can still give some ideas.
110. 7:33For example ‘I don’t know where I’ll live in the future.
111. 7:37I guess after I graduate, I’ll probably stay here for a couple of years.
112. 7:42After that, I wouldn’t mind moving to another city, or even another country if I can find
113. 7:48a good job there.’
114. 7:51In this way, you can turn a basic answer into a full, interesting one, even if you’re
115. 7:58basically still saying ‘I don’t know’.
116. 8:01Now, let’s look at how to do part two of the B1 preliminary speaking test.
117. 8:10In part two of the Cambridge B1 speaking exam, the examiner will show you a photo.
118. 8:15You need to describe what you see in the photo.
119. 8:18You have one minute to talk.
120. 8:20At the start of part two, the examiner will say: “Now I’d like each of you to talk
121. 8:26on your own about something.
122. 8:27I’m going to give each of you a photograph and I’d like you to talk about it.”
123. 8:33In part two, you speak on your own.
124. 8:36When your partner speaks, you just listen, or just relax for a minute.
125. 8:40There’s no connection between the two photos.
126. 8:44The examiner will give you an idea about the topic of the photo.
127. 8:48For example, the examiner might say: “Here is your photograph.
128. 8:53It shows people in a cafe.”
129. 8:56You don’t have any thinking time.
130. 8:58You should try to start talking as fast as you can.
131. 9:02So, how do you start?
132. 9:05First, give a general description of what you see in the photo and what is happening.
133. 9:11Let’s look at a photo.
134. 9:14A common mistake which students make is focusing too much on detail from the start.
135. 9:20For example, someone might say ‘In this photo, there is some kind of computer or machine
136. 9:25on the left.’
137. 9:27That’s not wrong, but it’s not the best way to start.
138. 9:31Start with a *general* description.
139. 9:33For example ‘In the photo, I can see a young man who seems to be at the airport.’
140. 9:39After your general introduction, you need to describe the photo in more detail.
141. 9:45When you describe the photo in detail, imagine the examiner cannot see the photo.
142. 9:51Don’t use your finger and point to things in the photo; use your words to describe what
143. 9:57you see.
144. 9:58How can you do this?
145. 10:00You need to use prepositions of place to say what things are in the photo, and where they
146. 10:06are.
147. 10:09Look at another photo.
148. 10:11Here’s a challenge for you.
149. 10:13Can you use the preposition phrases you saw before, and make at least three sentences
150. 10:18about this photo?
151. 10:20Pause the video and do it now.
152. 10:24Could you do it?
153. 10:25There are many possible answers, but here are three examples: ‘In the bottom right,
154. 10:30there are some vegetables: broccoli, pepper and cauliflower.’
155. 10:35‘On the left, there’s a man with his hand over his mouth.’
156. 10:40‘At the bottom, there are two bowls, one with carrots inside, and the other with courgettes.’
157. 10:47You can also use the phrases ‘at the front’, ‘at the back’ or ‘next to’ to talk
158. 10:54about where things are.
159. 10:56For example ‘At the back, there’s a shelf with some containers.’
160. 11:02‘The woman is sitting next to the man and holding a notepad.’
161. 11:08Review prepositions of place before your B1 preliminary speaking exam, and remember to
162. 11:14use them when describing the photo in part two!
163. 11:18Sometimes students ask: “I don’t know what to say!
164. 11:21How can I talk for a full minute?”
165. 11:23It’s not difficult.
166. 11:25Here’s why.
167. 11:26The photos almost always contain people.
168. 11:30That means you can describe the people, say what they look like, what they’re wearing,
169. 11:34and what they’re doing.
170. 11:36This should give you lots of things to talk about.
171. 11:38Look at another photo.
172. 11:41Think: what could you say about the people in this photo?
173. 11:47Think about three questions: what do they look like?
174. 11:51What are they wearing?
175. 11:54What are they doing?
176. 11:56Try it now!
177. 11:58Pause the video and say as much as you can.
178. 12:03Could you do it?
179. 12:04Let’s see an example.
180. 12:06On the left, there’s a small girl.
181. 12:08She looks like she’s about ten years old, and she’s smiling and playing a game with
182. 12:13her parents.
183. 12:14She’s wearing a purple long-sleeved top, and she has thick curly hair.
184. 12:18The girl’s parents are sitting next to her.
185. 12:21They’re also smiling and laughing while they play the game.
186. 12:25The man has curly hair, like his daughter, but the woman has straight hair.
187. 12:29We can’t see her full face, because her hair is in the way.
188. 12:32She’s wearing a sleeveless turquoise blouse, while the man’s wearing a blue shirt with
189. 12:37a white t-shirt underneath.
190. 12:40You see?
191. 12:41Just by looking at these simple details, you can find lots to say.
192. 12:45Finally, you don’t just have to describe what you see.
193. 12:49You can also give your opinions or make guesses about things in the photo.
194. 12:55Look at one more photo.
195. 12:58What’s the woman doing?
196. 13:00Is she at home, or at work, or somewhere else?
197. 13:04Why?
198. 13:06What’s she doing there?
199. 13:09What about the man?
200. 13:10What’s he doing?
201. 13:13You might think: “I don’t know!
202. 13:15How should I know what she’s writing, or why?”
203. 13:16But, you don’t need to know.
204. 13:18You can make guesses and give your opinions.
205. 13:22For example ‘In my opinion, they must work for a company which makes things, maybe furniture.’
206. 13:28You can improve your answer by adding a reason, like this.
207. 13:33In my opinion, they must work for a company which makes things, maybe furniture, because
208. 13:39the man is working with some wood in the background.
209. 13:43You could also say ‘I think it’s a relaxed place to work, because they’re both wearing
210. 13:48casual clothes’.
211. 13:51Or, ‘She’s talking on the phone.
212. 13:54Maybe she’s taking an order from a customer.’
213. 13:59You can also talk about what people are thinking or feeling.
214. 14:03For example ‘She looks quite happy and relaxed.
215. 14:07I guess she enjoys her job and it’s not too stressful.’
216. 14:12So, let’s review: start with a general description of what you see, use prepositions of place
217. 14:18to say where things are, describe the people you see, and then give your opinions about
218. 14:23what’s happening.
219. 14:25If you do these things, it should be easy to talk for a minute!
220. 14:28Try to keep talking until the examiner stops you.
221. 14:31Don’t worry if the examiner stops you, or if you feel that you haven’t finished.
222. 14:37You don’t need to describe everything.
223. 14:40Just keep talking, and the examiner will stop you
224. 14:43when your time is over.
225. 14:46Want more practice?
226. 14:47In this section, there are four photos.
227. 14:51Try to describe them.
228. 14:53Use a timer, and try to talk for a minute.
229. 14:56If you want, you can write your answers down, and share them with other students in the
230. 15:00comments!
231. 15:01That’s it for this lesson.
232. 15:03Good luck if you have a B1 speaking exam coming up soon.
233. 15:06Thanks for watching!
234. 15:07See you next time!