The Speaking section measures your ability to speak in English about a variety of topics. There are six questions. Record your response to each question.
In questions 1 and 2, you will speak about familiar topics.
In questions 3 and 4, you will first read a short text and then listen to a talk on the same topic. You will then be asked a question about what you have read and heard.
In questions 5 and 6, you will listen to part of a conversation or lecture. You will then be asked a question about what you have heard. You may take notes while you read and while you listen to the conversations and lectures. You may use your notes to help prepare your responses.
At the real test, you will not have a transcript. However, to help you analyze your score, we’re including the transcript below. Do not look at the transcript before you complete the test.
Your responses will be scored on your ability to speak clearly and coherently about the topics. For some questions, your responses will be scored on your ability to accurately convey information about what you have read and heard.
Question 1
In this question, you will be asked to talk about a familiar topic. After you hear the question, you will have 15 seconds to prepare your response and 45 seconds to speak.
Get your timer ready!
Click to hear and see the prompt for Question 1.
What city would you like to visit? Explain why you would like to go there. Include details and examples in your explanation.
In this question, you will be asked to give your opinion about a familiar topic. After you hear the question, you will have 15 seconds to prepare your response and 45 seconds to speak.
Get your timer ready!
Click to hear and see the prompt for Question 2.
Click to hear and see the prompt for Question 2.
Some people enjoy having a pet animal. Other people do not want a pet. What is your opinion about having a pet? Include details and examples in your explanation.
In this question, you will read a short passage about a campus situation, listen to a conversation, and then speak in response to a question about what you have read and heard. After you hear the question, you have 30 seconds to prepare your response and 60 seconds to speak.
Read the following information from a university website.
Reading Time – 45 seconds
First, set your timer to count down from 45 seconds. Next, click here and read the text.
NEW BLOCK SCHEDULE
Starting in the fall quarter, students will be able to take classes in an entirely new way. Now they will have the option to take English composition classes linked with subject–area courses in “blocks” as an integrated learning experience. There will be three interest tracks: Society and the Individual, the Natural World, and Business and Leadership. Each track will be offered in multiple blocks of time, giving students more flexibility around their busy schedules. Students can concentrate their classes in mornings or afternoons on four or five days a week, or in mornings and afternoons twice a week.
Now close the passage and listen to the recording. When you hear the question, begin preparing your response.
Click to see Question 3.
The man expresses his opinion about the block schedule. State his opinion and explain the reasons he gives for holding that opinion.
In this question, you will read a short passage, then listen to a lecture on the same topic, and then speak in response to a question about what you have read and heard. After you hear the question, you have 30 seconds to prepare your response and 60 seconds to speak.
Read the following information from a textbook.
Reading Time – 45 seconds
First, set your timer to count down from 45 seconds. Next, click here and read the text.
PROVERBS
A proverb is an expression that conveys a bit of traditional wisdom that has been passed down from previous generations. The language of a proverb is simple and direct, offering advice on how to live. In most cases, the origin of a proverb is unknown. The images in proverbs usually refer to everyday objects and experiences. A proverb’s effectiveness lies mainly in its simplicity and its memorability. Several linguistic techniques aid our ability to remember proverbs, such as rhythm, rhyme, and parallelism. Another common technique is alliteration, the repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of two or more words.
Now close the passage and listen to the recording. When you hear the question, begin preparing your response.
Click to see Question 4.
Define what a proverb is, and use the examples from the talk to explain the effectiveness of proverbs.
In this question, you will listen to a conversation. You will then be asked to talk about the information in the conversation and to give your opinion about the ideas presented. After you hear the question, you have 20 seconds to prepare your response and 60 seconds to speak.
Click to see Question 5.
The students discuss two possible solutions to the woman’s problem. Briefly describe the problem. Then state which solution you prefer and explain why.
In this question, you will listen to a short lecture. You will then be asked to summarize important information from the lecture. After you hear the question, you have 20 seconds to prepare your response and 60 seconds to speak.
Click to see Question 6.
Using points and examples from the lecture, explain how the future is portrayed in advertising.
Preparation Time: 20 seconds Response Time: 60 secondsDo not look at the transcript and key points until after you finish the test.
Click to see key points for Question 3
Key points:
• The man supports the new block schedule; he thinks it is a good idea.
• One reason he gives is that it seems like a more efficient use of time, both in class and outside class. Reading topics would be integrated. Study time would be more focused and interesting.
• Another reason is that it seems like a better way to meet people in your interest area. You would get to know your classmates and professor better.
Transcript for Question 3
M: Hey, did you hear about the new block schedule for next year? W: Yes, I did. I’ve never taken classes that way before, in three–hour blocks instead of separate one–hour classes. What about you? M: I’ve never done it either, but I think it’s a great idea. It sounds like a more efficient use of time—not just in class, but outside of class too. I mean, if all your reading is integrated, sort of based on related topics, then your study time would be more focused and more interesting. You wouldn’t have to spend time on subjects you don’t care about. W: Hmmm. Yeah, it does seem like a more efficient way to study … things more coordinated and all. M: It also seems like a better way to meet people in your interest area, you know, because there are different tracks for science, business, and humanities. Everyone in your block would be focused on the same content. You could get to know your classmates better, and your professor too, because you’d all be together for three hours a day. W: That does seem like a plus. I hardly know any of my professors this quarter. M: You’d probably like the block schedule. W: Yeah, I might.
The man expresses his opinion about the block schedule. State his opinion and explain the reasons he gives for holding that opinion.
Click to see key points for Question 4
Key points:
• A proverb is an expression that conveys traditional wisdom or offers advice on how to live. The language of a proverb is simple and direct. The images refer to everyday objects and experiences.
• The speaker gives the example of this proverb: Look before you leap. This proverb illustrates the effectiveness of simplicity and memorability. It is easy to remember because it uses alliteration, the repetition of the “l” sound in “look” and “leap.”
• The speaker also gives this example: A friend in need is a friend indeed. This proverb is effective because it is about the everyday experience of friendship. It contains rhythm (friend, need, friend, deed), rhyme (need, deed), and parallelism (friend in need, friend indeed). It also uses alliteration in the repetition of the “f ” sound in “friend.”
Transcript for Question 4
Now listen to part of a talk in a linguistics class.
Look before you leap. A friend in need is a friend indeed.
What do these statements have in common? Well, they’re both proverbs, and they’re both very old. They’ve been around for hundreds, maybe thousands of years, in one version or another, in different cultures.
Look before you leap. The message is simple. Open your eyes and understand a situation before you act. Look before you leap. Don’t act— don’t leap—before you see where you’re going. It’s good advice. Look before you leap. Why is this statement so effective? Why will you be able to remember it? Think about the language, both the sound and the meaning.
Okay. Let’s take another, one of my favorites. A friend in need is a friend indeed. I heard this a lot when I was a child. My grandfather often said it. A friend in need is a friend indeed. The message is clear. False friends will disappoint you. They will not help you when you need them most. True friends will help you when you need them most. And if a friend of yours needs help, be a true friend and help. A friend in need is a friend indeed. What is it about the language of this statement that makes it so effective?
Define what a proverb is, and use the examples from the talk to explain the effectiveness of proverbs.
Click to see key points for Question 5
Key points:
• The woman’s problem is that she wants to go to a party for a professor, but she must work in the lab at the time of the party. Her professor is retiring, and she wants to say good–bye to him.
• One possible solution is to find another person who will agree to work her shift in the lab.
• Another solution is to visit the professor at another time, for example, to go to the professor’s office.
• Opinions about the preferred solution will vary.
Transcript for Question 5
Listen to a conversation between two students.
M: Hi, Jenna! Are you coming to the retirement party for Professor Lemay? W: Uh … I don’t know. I didn’t know about the party. When is it? M: Tomorrow, at three o’clock, in the reception room at the University Center. Everyone—I mean, most of the people we know will be there. I hope you can come. W: I’d really like to! Professor Lemay was one of my favorite teachers. But, wouldn’t you know, I just agreed to take the afternoon shift in the lab tomorrow. I have to be there all afternoon to monitor the cultures for Dr. Young’s research. M: Oh, that’s too bad. Do you have to do it? I mean, can’t you ask someone else to do it for you? W: I don’t know. It might be hard for me to find someone else with such short notice. M: You should try anyway. You should be at this party for Professor Lemay. It’s your chance to say good–bye. W: I’d like to see him before he leaves. Maybe there’s another time I can visit him before he goes. Maybe I can find him in his office later this week. I could stop by his office on Friday. Maybe he’ll still be there. Do you know when he’s leaving campus? M: I’m not sure. W: I hope I get a chance to say good–bye. I’d like to thank him for all the help he gave me.
The students discuss two possible solutions to the woman’s problem. Briefly describe the problem. Then state which solution you prefer and explain why.
Click to see key points for Question 6
Key points:
• Advertising portrays the future in bright colors and strong lines. Colors attract us. Examples: red, blue, a golden sunset, a rainbow of colors. Strong lines direct our attention forward. Examples: triangles, arrows, tall buildings.
• Advertising shows the future as a kinetic force, something moving at a very high speed. Examples: fast–paced cars, computer technology, a person leaping across space, a dynamic city, a high–speed train.
• Advertising portrays the future as something positive: brighter, promising, full of potential, something we can control. Examples: universities, financial securities, insurance, teaching children, saving energy, protecting the environment.
Transcript for Question 6
Listen to part of a lecture in a communications class.
As image makers, advertisers send powerful messages about what the future may be like. When researchers examined several hundred ads, they identified three general characteristics in images of the future.
First, the colors are bright, and the lines are strong. The future is depicted in bold, vivid colors, mainly hues of red and blue. Colors attract us to a particular web page, or a page in a magazine, or a television screen. We see the company of the future bathed in a golden sunset or a shimmering rainbow of colors. Strong lines direct our attention forward. Triangles, arrows, and tall buildings jut into the sky, leading our imagination into the future.
Second, many ads show the future as a kinetic force, something moving at a very high speed. There are images of fast–paced cars and computer technology rushing us to the forefront of a global race. The kinetic force may be a person leaping across a deep, wide, or empty space—all the way into the future. The image rushes us to a world beyond our horizon—beyond the dynamic city, the high–speed train, the kinetic force.
Third, the future is portrayed as something positive: brighter, promising, full of potential. The future is also something we can control. Ads show us that we can prepare and plan for the future. If we want a secure future, ads tell us we can invest in universities, financial securities, or insurance. And to ensure that there will be a future at all, we are asked to teach our children, save energy, and protect the environment.
Using points and examples from the lecture, explain how the future is portrayed in advertising.
Do not look at the transcript and key points until after you finish the test.
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