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How to Answer ANY IELTS Speaking Part 3 Question — Transcript

by English Pro Tips - IELTS Preparation · 3,302 words · 510 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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0:00IELTS speaking part three can feel
0:02difficult because the examiner can ask
0:04you about almost anything. But here's
0:06the good news. Although the topics
0:08change, the type of questions are
0:10actually quite predictable. In fact,
0:13most part three questions fall into just
0:15eight common question types, once you
0:18know what type of question you're
0:20answering, it becomes much easier to
0:22know what you're going to say and how to
0:24structure your answer. My name is Eli
0:27and I used to be an IELTS examiner. I've
0:29evaluated thousands of speaking tests
0:31and I know what students need to do to
0:33get a high score based on the IELTS
0:35marking criteria. In today's lesson,
0:37we're focusing on IELTS speaking. Do you
0:40think children should have homework
0:42every day? Should government spend more
0:44money on public transport? Do you think
0:47people rely too much on technology
0:50nowadays? Opinion questions often begin
0:53with phrases like, "Do you think, do you
0:57agree? should or is it a good idea to
1:00when you get an opinion question you can
1:03use the E method to build your answer E
1:08stands for respond elaborate example
1:12first respond give the examiner a clear
1:15answer to the question you can say
1:17definitely I think so yes generally
1:20speaking yes probably not I don't think
1:23so I wouldn't necessarily say that or
1:26you can use my favorite it depends or it
1:29depends on. Next, elaborate. Explain
1:32your answer and give the examiner a
1:34reason. Useful phrases here include the
1:37main reason is that or one reason for
1:40this is that's because or I think this
1:43is mainly because finally give an
1:46example. You can say for example, for
1:49instance, or a good example would be.
1:52And remember in part three, your
1:54examples should normally be about people
1:56or society in general rather than about
2:00your own personal experience. Let's see
2:02how this works. Do [snorts] you think
2:04children should have homework every day?
2:07Probably not. The main reason is that
2:09children need time outside school to
2:12relax and develop in other ways. For
2:15example, if a child has several hours of
2:17homework every evening, they may have
2:19much less time for exercise, hobbies, or
2:23spending time with their families. This
2:25is a strong answer because the student
2:27first responds clearly with probably
2:29not. Then they elaborate by explaining
2:32why children need time outside school.
2:35Finally, they give a general example
2:38showing what could happen if children
2:40have too much homework. So instead of
2:43giving a one-s sentence opinion, the
2:46student has developed one clear idea
2:49into a complete answer. That's the E
2:52method. Respond, elaborate, example. If
2:56you want to practice this, go to the
2:58lesson below where you can download the
3:01PDF, do quizzes, and even get AI
3:04feedback on your answer. What I'd
3:06recommend is to first watch the video
3:09until the end, then do the quizzes one
3:11by one, then write your own answers and
3:15get AI feedback. Finally, the next day,
3:18review the PDF and write your answers to
3:21these questions again. This spaced
3:24repetition is what really helps you to
3:27learn. Remember, you can start all of my
3:29courses for free at englishprotips.com.
3:33The second question type is reasons and
3:36causes. These questions ask you to
3:39explain why something happens. You might
3:42get questions like why do some people
3:44prefer to live in big cities? Why are
3:48fewer people reading newspapers
3:50nowadays? What are the main reasons
3:53people change jobs? These questions
3:56often begin with why. What are the
3:59reasons or what causes? A useful way to
4:02answer is to start with phrases like
4:05there are probably a few reasons for
4:07this. One of the main reasons is another
4:10reason could be this might be because or
4:14one possible explanation is. Notice that
4:17some of these phrases use hedging.
4:19Hedging means using language that makes
4:22your answer sound less absolute. In part
4:25three, this is really useful because you
4:28are often talking about large groups of
4:31people and you usually can't say that
4:33something is true for everyone. So
4:35instead of saying people move to cities
4:38because there are more jobs, you could
4:40say one reason people may move to cities
4:44is that there tend to be more job
4:48opportunities. Useful hedging language
4:50includes may, might, could, probably,
4:54perhaps, tend to, often, generally in
4:57some cases, and for some people. Let's
5:00look at an example. Why do some people
5:03prefer to live in big cities? There are
5:06probably a few reasons for this. One of
5:08the main reasons might be employment
5:11because larger cities tend to offer a
5:13wider range of job opportunities. For
5:16example, someone working in a
5:18specialized field such as finance or
5:20technology may find it much easier to
5:23find suitable work in a major city than
5:26in a small town. This is a strong answer
5:28because the student identifies a clear
5:31cause and then develops it rather than
5:34listing lots of different reasons. They
5:36also use hedging naturally with
5:39probably, might be, tend to, and may.
5:43This avoids making an overgeneralization
5:46like everyone moves to cities because of
5:48work. Finally, the example is general
5:52rather than personal which is exactly
5:54what we want in part three. So for a
5:57reason or causes question, think what
6:00might be causing this? Why might this be
6:02happening? And how can I explain that
6:05without making an overly general
6:08statement? The third question type is
6:10effects and consequences. These
6:13questions ask you to explain what
6:15happens as a result of something. You
6:18might get questions like how does
6:20advertising affect children? What effect
6:23has technology had on the way people
6:26communicate? What are the consequences
6:29of people working long hours? A really
6:33useful technique for these questions is
6:35something I call the power of two.
6:39Instead of trying to think of three or
6:41four or five different effects, try to
6:45just think of two. Two ideas are usually
6:48enough to give you a welldeveloped
6:51answer and they're also very easy to
6:54signpost. You can say there are probably
6:57two main effects. Firstly,
7:00secondly, or I think it affects people
7:03in two main ways. The first is The
7:06second is this makes your answer much
7:09easier for the examiner to follow. It
7:12also gives you enough time to actually
7:14develop each idea rather than just
7:17producing a long list. Useful
7:20consequence language includes this can
7:22lead to this may result in as a result.
7:26One consequence is this means that and
7:30in the long term this could let's look
7:33at an example. What effect has
7:35technology had on the way people
7:38communicate? I think it has affected
7:40communication in two main ways. Firstly,
7:43it has made communication much faster
7:46and more convenient. people can contact
7:49someone on the other side of the world
7:51almost instantly which makes it much
7:54easier to maintain relationships over
7:56long distances. Secondly, it may have
7:59made some forms of communication less
8:02personal. For example, people might send
8:04a quick message instead of having a
8:07proper conversation and as a result,
8:09some interactions can feel less
8:12meaningful. This is a strong answer
8:14because the student introduces two clear
8:16effects and signposts them with firstly
8:20and secondly. So the examiner can follow
8:22the answer easily. The student also
8:25develops both ideas instead of simply
8:28listing them. The first effect is
8:30positive and the second is more negative
8:32which gives the answer some balance. And
8:35notice the consequence language which
8:37makes it and as a result. So, when you
8:41get an effects or consequence question,
8:44remember the power of two. Choose two
8:46strong ideas, signpost them clearly, and
8:49develop each one. When you're writing
8:52your own answer to this question, see if
8:54you can follow the power of two.
8:56Practice using I think there are
8:58probably two main effects. Firstly,
9:01secondly, remember the more time that
9:04you spend practicing these phrases now
9:07in your preparation time, the more
9:09natural you'll be able to use the
9:11phrases in your real IELTS test. The
9:14fourth question type is advantages and
9:17disadvantages. These questions ask you
9:20to think about the positive and negative
9:23sides of an issue. You might get
9:25questions like, "What are the advantages
9:27of working from home?" "Are there any
9:30disadvantages to children using
9:33technology at school?" "What are the
9:35benefits and drawbacks of living in a
9:38big city?" A really useful technique for
9:41these questions is what I call the
9:43multiple perspectives method. Instead of
9:46staring at the topic and trying to think
9:47of ideas, ask yourself, "Who [snorts] is
9:50affected by this?" For example, if the
9:52topic is working from home, you could
9:54think about the perspective of
9:56employees, employers, families, or even
10:00society as a whole. Looking at the topic
10:02from different perspectives makes it
10:05much easier to generate ideas. You can
10:08use phrases like from an employes
10:11perspective, from an employer's point of
10:14view for families, from a wider social
10:18perspective. Useful language for
10:21advantages includes one major advantage
10:25is one benefit is this can be beneficial
10:29because and one positive aspect is for
10:33disadvantages you can say one drawback
10:36is one potential disadvantage is the
10:40downside is or this can create problems
10:43because let's look at an example what
10:46are the advantages and disadvantages of
10:49working from home. I think it depends on
10:52whose perspective you consider. From an
10:55employes point of view, one major
10:57advantage is flexibility. People can
10:59often avoid commuting and may have more
11:02control over their working day, which
11:04can improve their work life balance.
11:07From an employer's perspective, though,
11:10one potential disadvantage is that it
11:12can be harder to manage teams and
11:14maintain good communication. For
11:16example, if employees rarely meet face
11:19to face, collaboration may become more
11:22difficult. This is a strong answer
11:24because the student doesn't just think
11:26about the topic in a general way. They
11:28look at it from two different
11:30perspectives, the employee and the
11:33employer. That immediately gives them
11:36two relevant ideas. They also clearly
11:40signpost the change in perspective with
11:43from an employes point of view and from
11:46an employer's perspective which makes
11:48the answer easy to follow. So when you
11:52get an advantage and disadvantage
11:55question use the multiple perspectives
11:59method. Ask yourself who is affected by
12:02this and how might it be positive or
12:05negative for them. The fifth question
12:07type is comparisons. These questions ask
12:10you to explain how things are similar or
12:14different. You might get questions like,
12:16"How are schools today different from
12:19schools in the past?" "Do younger and
12:22older people use technology
12:24differently?" "How is living in a city
12:27different from living in the
12:29countryside?" A useful way to answer
12:31these questions is to compare the two
12:34things point by point. In other words,
12:37choose one area of comparison, explain
12:40the differences, and then move on to
12:43another area if you need to. For
12:45example, if you are comparing schools
12:48today with schools in the past, you
12:50could first compare technology and then
12:54compare teaching styles. This makes your
12:57answer much more organized. Useful
13:00comparison language includes compared
13:02with, whereas, while, in contrast. On
13:06the other hand, the main difference is,
13:09one similarity is, and both. You can
13:12also use phrases like these days, in the
13:15past. Younger people tend to, whereas
13:18older people are more likely to. Let's
13:21look at an example. How are schools
13:23today different from schools in the
13:26past? I think there are a couple of
13:28major differences. Firstly, compared
13:30with the past, schools today make much
13:33greater use of technology. Students can
13:35use laptops, interactive whiteboards,
13:38and online resources. Whereas in the
13:40past, lessons depended much more heavily
13:42on textbooks and the teacher. Secondly,
13:46teaching styles have probably become
13:48more interactive. Students today are
13:51often encouraged to discuss ideas and
13:54work in groups while lessons in the past
13:57tended to be more teacher centered. This
13:59is a strong answer because the student
14:01compares the two periods point by point
14:04rather than talking generally about the
14:07past and then generally about the
14:09present. The first comparison is
14:11technology and the second is teaching
14:14style. They also use clear comparison
14:18language such as compared with, whereas,
14:21and while which makes the relationship
14:25between the ideas very easy to follow.
14:28So when you get a comparison question,
14:31think what are the main areas I can
14:33compare and what language can I use to
14:36show the similarities or differences
14:39clearly. The sixth question type is
14:41changes and trends. These questions ask
14:44you to explain how something has changed
14:46over time or what trends you have
14:49noticed. You might get questions like
14:52how has the way people shop changed in
14:55recent years? How have people's
14:57attitudes towards work changed? Has the
15:00way children spend their free time
15:02changed compared with the past? This is
15:05another situation where the power of to
15:07is really useful. Instead of trying to
15:10think of lots of different changes,
15:12choose two clear changes and develop
15:16them properly. You can say I think there
15:19have been two main changes. Firstly,
15:23secondly, or one major change is another
15:28noticeable change is useful language for
15:31talking about change includes there has
15:33been a shift towards people are
15:36increasingly it has become much more
15:40common too these days compared with the
15:43past and whereas in the past you can
15:47also talk about gradual trends using
15:49phrases like over time. In recent years,
15:53more and more people are or there seems
15:56to be a growing tendency to let's look
15:59at an example. How has the way people
16:01shop changed in recent years? I think
16:04there have been two main changes.
16:07Firstly, people are increasingly
16:09shopping online rather than going to
16:12physical shops. This has made shopping
16:14much more convenient because people can
16:16compare prices and buy things without
16:19leaving home. Secondly, people seem to
16:22expect much faster service than they did
16:25in the past. For example, next day or
16:27even same day delivery has become much
16:30more common. Whereas people used to be
16:32more willing to wait several days for an
16:34order. This is a strong answer because
16:36the student identifies two clear changes
16:39and develops each one. They signpost
16:42them with firstly and secondly, which
16:44makes the answer easy to follow. and
16:46they use useful trend language such as
16:50increasingly has become much more
16:53common. And whereas notice that they
16:56don't try to list five or six different
16:59changes. They use the power of two to
17:02keep the answer focused and
17:04welldeveloped. So when you get a change
17:07or trends question, think what are the
17:09two biggest changes and how can I show
17:12the difference between now and the past.
17:16The seventh question type is future and
17:18predictions. These questions ask you to
17:21speculate about what might happen in the
17:25future. You might get questions like,
17:27"How do you think people will travel in
17:30the future? Do you think people will
17:32continue to work from home? Will
17:34physical shops eventually disappear?"
17:37The key thing to remember is that you
17:39don't know what will happen. So you need
17:42language that shows different levels of
17:45certainty. If you think something is
17:47very likely, you can say, "I think it's
17:50highly likely that there's a good chance
17:52that I can definitely see." Or, "I'd
17:55expect." If you're less certain, you can
17:58say, "It's possible that, we might see,
18:01it could be that. There's a chance that
18:04or I wouldn't be surprised if." And if
18:07you think something probably won't
18:09happen, you can say, "I think it's
18:12unlikely that." I can't really see or I
18:15doubt that. You can also buy yourself a
18:18little time thinking with phrases like,
18:20"It's difficult to predict with
18:21certainty, but or obviously no one knows
18:25exactly what will happen." But when you
18:28talk about the future, useful time
18:30expressions include in the next few
18:33years, over the next few decades, in the
18:36long term, eventually at some point in
18:40the future, and further down the line.
18:43Let's look at an example. Do you think
18:45physical shops will eventually
18:47disappear? I think that's unlikely, at
18:50least in the foreseeable future. There's
18:52a good chance that online shopping will
18:54continue to grow because it's convenient
18:57and people can often find better prices
18:59online. However, I can't really see
19:02physical shops disappearing completely.
19:04Some people still want to see or try
19:07products before buying them. So, in the
19:09long term, I think we're more likely to
19:12see a combination of online and physical
19:15shopping. This is a super strong answer
19:17because the student doesn't pretend to
19:19know exactly what will happen. They show
19:22different degrees of certainty with
19:24phrases like unlikely, there's a good
19:27chance that, and I can't really see.
19:31They also use a future time phrase in
19:34the long term. And they explain the
19:36reasoning behind their prediction rather
19:39than simply saying yes or no. So when
19:42you get a future or prediction question,
19:44think how likely is this? What language
19:47can I use to show that level of
19:49certainty? and why do I think this might
19:54happen? The eighth and final question
19:56type is problems and solutions. These
20:00questions ask you to identify a problem
20:03and explain how it could be solved. You
20:06might get questions like what problems
20:09can tourism cause for local communities?
20:13What can governments [clears throat] do
20:14to reduce traffic congestion? What
20:18problems can arise when people work very
20:21long hours? A useful way to answer these
20:24questions is to make sure that your
20:26solution directly matches the problem.
20:29If the problem is traffic congestion,
20:32for example, a strong solution might be
20:35improving public transport or
20:37discouraging people from driving into
20:40city centers. A weak answer would be to
20:43suggest something unrelated. Useful
20:46language for introducing problems
20:48includes one major problem is one issue
20:51is this can lead to this can create
20:54problems such as or one of the main
20:57challenges is for solutions you can say
21:01one possible solution would be to one
21:04way to tackle this would be to
21:07governments could a practical step would
21:10be to or this could be addressed by you
21:13can also use the power of two here. If
21:15you want to give two problems or two
21:18solutions and the multiple perspectives
21:20method can help you think of ideas by
21:23asking who could take action,
21:26individuals, businesses, schools, local
21:28authorities or governments. Let's look
21:30at an example. What can governments do
21:32to reduce traffic congestion in cities?
21:36I think there are probably two main
21:38things governments can do. Firstly, they
21:40could improve public transport so that
21:42people have a reliable alternative to
21:45driving. For example, cheaper and more
21:47frequent buses or trains could encourage
21:50more commuters to leave their cars at
21:52home. Secondly, governments could make
21:54driving into Cinti centers less
21:57attractive, perhaps by introducing
21:59congestion charges or reducing the
22:01amount of parking available. This is a
22:04strong answer because the student gives
22:05two clear solutions and both of them
22:08directly address the problem. The first
22:10solution makes public transport more
22:13attractive while the second makes
22:15driving less convenient. The student
22:18also signposts the answer clearly with
22:21firstly and secondly and develops each
22:24idea instead of just listing solutions.
22:26So when you get a problem and solution
22:29question, think what exactly is the
22:31problem? who can do something about it
22:34and what solution would directly address
22:37it. Now, if you really want to improve
22:39your IELTS answers, what I suggest is
22:42that now you go to the lesson in the
22:44description, do the quizzes, and then
22:47write your own answers for these
22:49questions. Try to use at least two of
22:52today's expressions in each answer.
22:54You'll get feedback on your answer and a
22:57corrected version to help you study.
23:00Remember guys, practice makes perfect.
23:03You can get all this and more at
23:05englishprotips.com.
23:07Best of luck with all of your studies
23:09and I'll see you in the next lesson. By
23:11then.

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