How to use IELTS speaking practice with answers to improve your speaking performance in the IELTS speaking test
Many people ask the question: How can I do IELTS speaking practice?
There are a variety of different things you can do to practice and improve your performance for the IELTS speaking test.
Apart from obviously learning more English vocabulary and grammar there are some important points to remember when you practice for the IELTS speaking test.
Your answers should be relevant and appropriate, don’t try and give artificially long and detailed answers in Part 1 of the IELTS speaking test. It will seem forced and unnatural. Listen to the question carefully and try and answer exactly what it asks.
In Part 2 of the IELTS speaking test, pay attention to the grammatical tense of the question on the cue card. If the question is about a past experience – then make sure you answer appropriately. You will have 1 minute to plan your answer and up to 2 minutes speaking time. Practice timing yourself and organizing your thoughts in 1 minute – and speaking for 2 minutes on each topic if you can.
Part 3 discussion questions give you the opportunity to really show how well you can express yourself in English. Try and give examples and sufficient detail so that the examiner can really understand what you are saying. This is the part of the test which normally requires you to talk about possibility, probability and make suggestions or offer possible solutions and/or reasons.
It’s important that you can use such language if you want to maximize your IELTS speaking test score. If you’re not sure – spend some time revising the necessary grammar points – and then try to use them in your answers.
IELTS speaking practice on your own
Okay, so you’re on your own – how do you practice IELTS speaking? First, become familiar with the type of questions you will be asked in each of the three sections of the speaking test. There are examples of each section on this blog. Think about your answer to each question – can you say exactly what you want to say? Or do you need to learn some particular vocabulary to express your answers better?
Practice timing yourself for Part 2 questions so that it becomes natural for you and you can organize your thoughts like bullet points in your mind – then aim to talk for 2 minutes on each topic giving examples, reasons and as much detail as you can.
How do you know if your answer is good?
Record yourself speaking your answer and then when you have finished – listen to yourself and analyse what you hear. Are you confident when you speak? Are you fluent? Do you stop and pause too much? Could you have described something better? Is your pronunciation okay? Did you speak for a full 2 minutes?
Become aware of how you sound and how you speak in English. Practice recording yourself each time and try and improve your performance. Practice and repeat – you should get better each time.
Get an IELTS speaking practice partner
If you know someone else who is going to be doing the IELTS speaking test – you can practice together. Ask each other the questions and again, analyse the answers. What can your partner improve? Does your IELTS speaking partner easily understand what you are saying? Are there any parts of your answer that the other person had difficulty understanding? Why was it difficult? Can you both speak for 2 minutes on each topic?
Practice, listen, analyse and then try to correct any problem areas.
Using a tutor for IELTS speaking practice
This method is quite similar to the other two methods except that your tutor should have more experience and knowledge of the IELTS speaking test and will be able to guide you and give you detailed feedback on the things you have to improve and learn to get a better IELTS speaking test score. You can also ask your IELTS tutor to provide you with sample answers for the questions you practice with.
All the IELTS speaking questions with answers on this blog are in the same format as in the real IELTS speaking test. Use the different topics to become familiar with kinds of subjects you might be asked to speak about.
Clearly, there are many different possible answers to each question depending on your nationality, culture and personal experiences. The answers given here should be used as a guide, for some ideas, and possible inspiration. Do not try to memorize complete answers – IELTS examiners are trained to identify this and it will not sound natural.
Learn the format of the IELTS speaking test, practice responding to the questions and you should eventually speak naturally, fluently and with confidence using your own ideas, thoughts and experience to give examples.