Australia, UK, Canada, US, New Zealand, Ireland.
If you want to work, study or live at any of these places
then the first test that comes to your mind is an
IELTS Test.
And you watching this video means that either you are thinking of booking an IELTS test or..
your test is tomorrow. :P
Either way, welcome..
because today we are going to talk about the most feared round
and what you can do to prepare for it
because in today's video we are going to see..
What is the IELTS Test Format but more specifically
what is the IELTS Speaking Test Format.
10 IELTS Speaking Tips.
But most importantly, towards the end I'll give you a Bonus Tip
so that you get over the nervousness of appearing for the Speaking round.
But before that, if you like what I am saying
make sure you hit that big fat 'like' button because
it tells me that I should make more videos about English and Communication.
Let's begin.
So here are the 4 things that you need to know about the IELTS Test Format.
It has 2 main modules.
IELTS Academics is for studying abroad
and IELTS General Training is if you want to work abroad
or for immigration purposes.
At the end of the test, you will get a band score from 1 to 9.
1 being the lowest and 9 meaning that you are an expert user of the English language.
While booking you can either choose the paper-based test or
computer-delivered test. Both the tests are same
but the mode of taking the test is different.
Some people find the computer-delivered test better because
it is easier to see the word-count, make notes, no handwriting issues etc..
Finally, comes the structure. The test is divided into 4 parts..
Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking.
We've discussed the format and how to prepare for
each of these rounds in my previous video.
If you haven't watched it already, then do check it out.
I've left the link in the description.
As mentioned earlier, today our focus is the Speaking round.
The speaking round lasts for around 11 to 14 mins
and has 3 parts.
Part 1 is Introduction.
For about 4 to 5 minutes, the interviewer will ask you
questions to get to know you better.
So expect questions about your family,
work, interests, what movies you like, what music you like ..
In part 2, you will be given a topic card and 1-min to prepare on that topic.
After that one minute, you are expected to speak continuously on that topic
for about 1-2 minutes without any interruption from the examiner.
Don't worry, the topic does not test your GK or current affairs.
It will be a general topic like...
The last vacation you took, your ideal job
or describe a well-known person that you admire the most.
After you are done speaking, part 3 will be a conversation
between you and the examiner.
It'll last for around 4 to 5 minutes where the examiner
will ask you questions related to the topic in part 2.
Throughout the speaking round, the examiner is testing you on 4 parameters.
#1: How fluent you are i.e your ability to form complete sentences.
#2: How vast your vocabulary is.
#3: Your grammar.
And #4: Pronunciation.
Even if you have a thick Indian accent like me,
it doesn't necessarily work against your favour
as long as you maintain a rhythm and your pronunciation is correct
for the examiner to understand you.
With these 4 parameters in mind,
let's look at the 10 speaking tips that will help you
prepare for this round.
I have divided these tips into 2 parts.
5 things to do 'before' and 5 things to do 'during' the test.
So, let's start with 5 speaking tips that will help you
BEFORE you appear for the test.
#1: Get to know your speaking style.
Open the voice recorder app on your phone,
hit the record button and start speaking on random topics like..
My favourite food item, why I love my city,
my favourite book etc..
Now play it back and when you do, notice 3 things..
1. How is your pronunciation?
2. Are you using any cuss words like oh shit, oh f*&k, God dammit!
3. Are you using too much of modern slang, like..
Salty, LIT, Basic, Extra, LOL etc..
Because only when you hear yourself back
do you realise what pronunciation you need to set right and
what slang you need to cut down.
#2: Develop your vocabulary.
Vocabulary is one of the parameters the examiner is testing you on.
So open a thesaurus and find synonyms of the words you use often.
For example, suppose you use the word 'Awesome' a lot.
So learn as many of it's synonyms, like..
Breath-taking, impressive, astonishing ..
because the more words you use, the better your band score will be.
Another way to improve your vocabulary is
to learn how to express your feelings better
using this 'Feelings Wheel'.
As you can see, each feeling branches out to
multiple specific emotions. So instead of just saying 'happy' use a relevant emotion
like hopeful, loving, optimistic, powerful..
Isn't this the simplest way to learn or what?!
If you want to know more about how to improve your vocabulary easily
then check out this video.
I have left the link in the description.
Tip #3: Do not memorise your answers.
Ofcourse we know that Part 1 is going to be introduction
but that doesn't mean that you are going to learn your Intro by heart
because an examiner can spot this
and might give you zero to less marks if the answer looks prepared.
#4: Know the English equivalent of your local words.
See, I am from Hyderabad.
So if somebody asks me about my city, I will talk about
Biryani, Charminar and Hi-tech city.
But the examiner might not know what these are!
So whenever I mention them, I follow it up with a quick description of what these are.
For example, my favourite dish is 'Biryani'.
'Biryani' is a type of rice pilaf that's very famous in my city.
Similarly, 'Roti' is flat-bread.
'Charminar' is a monument with four minarets located in Hyderabad.
Infact, 'Hyderabad' is a city in the Southern part of India.
You see what I mean?
Instead of the examiner thinking that you are pronouncing something wrong,
let the examiner know what that word means
or what it's significance is.
#5: The only way to get a better band score in the speaking round is
to speak as much as you can in English.
So talk to your friends, find a group with whom you can speak in English with..
or just have random conversations with people
especially with the one's who are trying to sell you something..
either over phone or in the mall (although, 'COVID19'... so stay, indoors!)
Now, here are the 5 speaking tips to follow during the test.
#1: Try not to use the same words over and over again.
This city makes me happy,
the food makes me happy,
the people make me happy!
Instead, use more adjectives.
This city is 'magnificent'.
The food here is 'delicious'
and the people here are so 'welcoming'.
Did you see that?
These are just simple words but they show variety.
In part 2, when you are given a topic
and one minute to prepare,
write down bullet points related to that topic during that one minute.
For example, suppose your topic is... 'Describe a well-known person that you admire and why?'
then write down bullet points related to..
Who this person is? What qualities about them you like the most? Why are they famous?...
because these bullet points will give a nice structure to your talk
and will also act as a guide incase you go blank while speaking.
#3: Maintain a steady pace.
Try not to speak too fast because then we sound nervous,
make mistakes and pronounce words incorrectly.
So maintain a steady pace and may be speed up or slow down
at a few places esp. when you are telling a story.
#4: Give a little bit more detail.
Don't just give one word answers.
Suppose you are talking about your hobbies..
Don't just say...'I like badminton!'
Give a little bit more detail..
Why do you like badminton?
Whom do you play with?
How does it make you feel?
The examiner wants to know if you can speak in English fluently.
So, speak up!
And #5: Finally, relax.
Don't think of the examiner as an examiner.
Think of them as your friend
because then you will finally focus on your English
and the conversation instead of worrying about how they are judging you or
what band score they will give.
And one of the ways of getting used to facing the examiner is to use 'Cambly'.
This video is bought to you by them
because this app helps you conduct 1-on-1 private speaking classes
with IELTS tutors around the world..
from US, UK, Canada.. who are available 24X7.
These tutors will help you practise by conducting
mock-IELTS speaking classes and they'll provide feedback
on how to improve your IELTS speaking score. Just like this...
'On Cambly, our teachers are trained to..
train students for the IELTS. So we can
practise the tests with them and we will write down all of their mistakes..
that they make and we will give them their mistakes.
And then we will work on their mistakes.
Slowly, they will improve and at the same time we will teach them..
idioms and their confidence will grow,
the more they are on Cambly!'
Talking to these tutors can help because
they are experienced native speakers
and some are examiners as well.
And if you are preparing for IELTS then I've got a sweet deal for you.
If you use the link in the description, then you will receive
a flat 37% discount on all the 3-month packages.
So check out Cambly and decide if it's the right
speaking partner for you.
So, those were the top 10 speaking tips that
will help you get a better band score.
Now, before I tell you the Bonus Tip,
don't forget to 'Subscribe' to my channel and hit that 'Bell' icon
because I make Career, Finance and English-related videos regularly.
IELTS is an English language proficiency test
which means that there is no right or wrong answer.
The examiner just wants to find out if you can express your ideas
and your opinions in English fluently.
And the only way to do that is to practise as much as you can.
So today's Bonus Tip is this...
'Give yourself enough time!'
Suppose, you are currently at Band 6 and you want to reach Band 8
then give yourself enough time to reach Band 8
before you appear for the test.
It's not about which location you take the test from,
it's not about how many times you take it.
It's just about how prepared you are.
So you go find that friend and start speaking to them in English.
And I'll go and work on my next video.
But before I say good-bye, I have a happy announcement about my company, 'Skillo'!
Over 500 start-ups had applied to the Telangana Start-up incubation program called 'Lab 32'
and we were among the 45 start-ups that got selected! (Yay!)
Instead of just making 12 minute videos on Youtube,
we are creating full-fledged courses for you on 'Skillo'
and the first course is titled, 'Interview Preparation'
which will have 15+ videos covering the most asked behavioural questions during interviews.
I am still building the course, so if you have specific requests
about which questions I should cover in that course,
then comment below and let me know!
And if you want to help me design the product,
then follow me on Instagram because I keep posting
options to ask you which design you like the best
or which logo you like better.
After all, we are building the product for you..
so your opinion matters the most to me.
For more updates on the release date of the course, stay tuned!
I promise to see you again in the next video, until then..
Keep fighting the Urban Fight to be Fit!