How do I get a Band 9 in IELTS Speaking?

Summary

This video script outlines the distinctions in IELTS speaking test performances between high-scoring (Band 7-9) and lower-scoring (Band 5-6.5) candidates. It emphasizes the pitfalls of memorization and the importance of natural conversation in achieving higher scores. The speaker advises avoiding overly long or short responses, sticking to the main topic, and demonstrating a genuine command of English, including vocabulary and grammar, across a range of topics in parts one, two, and three of the test.

Takeaways

• 📚 The IELTS speaking test is divided into three parts, each with distinct characteristics and expectations.
• 🔍 Band 9 students are easily recognizable by examiners for their natural conversational style and ability to answer questions directly and naturally.
• 🚫 Memorized answers are a red flag for examiners, often leading to lower scores as they indicate a lack of genuine communication skills.
• 📈 Band 5 to 6.5 students often over-memorize and give excessively long answers, which can lead to going off-topic and sounding robotic.
• 🏙️ In Part 1, students are tested on personal topics like work, study, home, and hometown, where predictability allows for memorization but detracts from natural communication.
• 📝 In Part 2, rigid adherence to bullet points can hinder natural speech flow and lead to a decrease in fluency and coherence.
• 🔄 The use of tricks like PPF (Past, Present, Future) in Part 2 can backfire as examiners are well-aware of these tactics and they may not fit all cue card topics.
• 🌐 In Part 3, abstract questions require more developed answers, but many students struggle due to a lack of memorized content, leading to short and insufficient responses.
• 📉 Memorizing lists of vocabulary and idioms can actually harm a student's grammar and vocabulary score if they cannot be used effectively in natural conversation.
• 💡 Band 7, 8, and 9 students focus on the main topic in Part 2 and use bullet points as a guide rather than a strict structure, maintaining a natural and fluid conversation.
• 🌟 To achieve a higher band score, students should aim to avoid memorization, maintain a natural conversational tone, and demonstrate a broad range of vocabulary and grammar in their responses.

Q & A

What is the main focus of the video?

The main focus of the video is to show the difference between what Band 7, 8, or 9 students do in the IELTS speaking test compared to students scoring between Band 5 and 6.5.

How is the IELTS speaking test divided?

The IELTS speaking test is divided into three parts: part one, part two, and part three.

What do Band 5 to 6.5 students often rely on during the IELTS speaking test?

Band 5 to 6.5 students often rely on memorized answers.

Why is relying on memorized answers not effective for improving IELTS scores?

Relying on memorized answers is not effective because the test is designed to assess the ability to speak and clearly communicate in English, not the ability to memorize answers.

What is a common mistake students make in part one of the IELTS speaking test?

A common mistake in part one is giving very long, detailed answers that go off topic because the students have memorized them.

How do Band 7, 8, and 9 students approach part one of the IELTS speaking test?

Band 7, 8, and 9 students answer questions directly and naturally, adding only a little more detail to adequately answer the question.

What is a common strategy that students use in part two that is not recommended?

A common but not recommended strategy is rigidly following the bullet points on the cue card, which can lead to a disjointed and unnatural response.

How should students approach part two of the IELTS speaking test?

Students should focus on the main topic of the cue card and speak naturally about it, using the bullet points as a guide rather than a strict outline.

What challenges do students face in part three of the IELTS speaking test?

In part three, students often give very short answers because the questions are more abstract and unpredictable, making them uncomfortable.

How do high-scoring students handle difficult or unfamiliar topics in part three?

High-scoring students attempt every question, developing their answers with explanations, examples, and evidence, even if they are not familiar with the topic.

Outlines

00:00

🗣️ IELTS Speaking Test: Band 7-9 vs. Band 5-6.5

This paragraph discusses the differences in performance between high-scoring (Band 7-9) and lower-scoring (Band 5-6.5) candidates in the IELTS speaking test. It highlights that Band 9 students are recognizable by examiners for their natural conversational style, as opposed to lower-scoring students who often memorize answers and give overly long responses. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of clear communication in English, rather than memorization, and notes that Band 9 students answer questions directly and naturally, avoiding the robotic or overly formal speech common among lower-scoring candidates.

05:00

📚 Strategies for IELTS Speaking Test Success

This paragraph focuses on strategies that can help improve IELTS speaking scores. It advises against memorizing long answers and rigidly following bullet points in Part 2, as these can lead to unnatural speech and a lack of fluency. Instead, candidates are encouraged to focus on the main topic and speak naturally, using bullet points as a guide rather than a strict structure. The paragraph also warns against using tricks like the PPF (past, present, future) strategy, which may not always be applicable and can be easily recognized by examiners as a memorized approach.

10:01

🔍 Understanding the IELTS Speaking Test Structure

This paragraph delves into the structure of the IELTS speaking test, particularly the differences in approach needed for each part. It explains that while Part 1 questions can be predicted and are often memorized by lower-scoring students, Part 3 questions are more abstract and unpredictable, requiring genuine communication skills. The paragraph also discusses the common mistake of giving short answers in Part 3, which can indicate reliance on memorization rather than actual language proficiency. It emphasizes the importance of attempting every question and developing ideas, even if the topic is unfamiliar.

15:02

🌟 Achieving a High Score in IELTS Speaking

The final paragraph summarizes the key points for achieving a high score in the IELTS speaking test. It contrasts the behavior of lower-scoring students, who may give up easily or show signs of distress, with that of higher-scoring students, who engage in natural, well-developed responses across a range of topics. The paragraph stresses the importance of not just memorizing vocabulary and grammar, but truly mastering them for effective use in conversation. It concludes with an invitation to join a free IELTS speaking course for more detailed guidance on improving speaking skills.

Keywords

💡IELTS speaking test

The IELTS speaking test is a component of the International English Language Testing System, which assesses the oral English proficiency of non-native speakers. It is divided into three parts, and the video script discusses the differences in performance between various band scores. The test is central to the video's theme, as it aims to highlight the strategies and pitfalls of different scoring levels.

💡Band score

A band score in IELTS represents a candidate's proficiency level, ranging from 1 (non-user) to 9 (expert user). The script contrasts the approaches of students with lower band scores (5 to 6.5) versus those with higher band scores (7, 8, or 9), emphasizing the techniques that lead to higher scores in the speaking test.

💡Memorized answers

Memorized answers refer to the practice of students learning and reciting pre-prepared responses to potential IELTS questions. The script warns against this approach, as examiners can easily identify memorized answers, which do not reflect genuine communication skills. An example from the script is where lower-scoring students regurgitate answers about their hometowns.

💡Part one

Part one of the IELTS speaking test involves the examiner asking the candidate questions about their personal life, such as their work, study, home, and hometown. The script points out that this is the only part where questions can be predicted, and it criticizes the memorization strategy often used by lower-scoring candidates.

💡Part two

Part two requires the candidate to speak for up to two minutes on a given cue card topic, which includes a main topic and four bullet points. The script discusses how some students rigidly follow these bullet points, which can lead to unnatural speech patterns and a lack of fluency.

💡Part three

Part three consists of more abstract questions that prompt a discussion of ideas. The script notes that lower-scoring students often give short answers in this section, which is counterproductive as more development of ideas is required for higher band scores.

💡Fluency

Fluency in the context of the IELTS speaking test refers to the smooth and effortless flow of speech. The script emphasizes that higher-scoring students exhibit greater fluency, while those relying on memorization tend to have pauses and hesitations, indicating less natural language use.

💡PPF (Past, Present, Future)

PPF is a strategy mentioned in the script that some students use to structure their part two responses by discussing the topic in terms of past, present, and future. The script criticizes this approach as it can be predictable and may not allow for natural conversation, which examiners can easily identify.

💡Vocabulary range

Vocabulary range refers to the variety of words a speaker uses. The script points out that students who memorize lists of vocabulary or idioms may actually perform worse, as they struggle to use these words effectively and naturally in their speech.

💡Grammatical structures

Grammatical structures pertain to the arrangement of words and phrases in speech according to the rules of grammar. The script suggests that higher-scoring students demonstrate a better command of various grammatical structures, which is a key aspect of the IELTS speaking assessment.

💡Natural conversation

Natural conversation is the ability to speak English in a way that mirrors how native speakers communicate. The script contrasts this with the robotic and formal speech of lower-scoring students, highlighting that examiners favor candidates who can converse naturally, as demonstrated by higher band score students.

Highlights

IELTS speaking test differences between Band 7, 8, 9 and struggling students.

IELTS speaking test is divided into three parts with distinct strategies for high scorers.

Memorized answers can be easily spotted by examiners and do not improve score.

Part one questions are predictable, but memorization is not the goal of the test.

Long answers that go off-topic are common among lower-scoring students.

Formal and robotic speech can indicate nervousness and hinder natural communication.

Higher Band students have a natural conversation flow, unlike formal academic speech.

Direct and concise answers with adequate detail are preferred in Part one.

Part two involves a cue card with a main topic and bullet points.

Rigidly following bullet points is unnatural and can lead to trouble.

Using 'Past Present Future' strategy can backfire in unpredictable cue cards.

Part three asks abstract questions requiring more developed answers.

Short answers in Part three can indicate reliance on memorization.

Memorizing vocabulary lists can lower grammar and vocabulary scores if not used effectively.

Attempting every question in Part three shows a good command of English.

Developing ideas with examples and explanations is key in Part three.

A wide range of vocabulary and grammar structures is expected in higher Bands.

Avoiding common mistakes can dramatically improve IELTS speaking score.

A free IELTS speaking course is offered for more detailed information.

Transcripts

- [Chris] In this video,

we're going to focus on IELTS speaking,

and we're gonna show you the difference

between what a Band 7, eight or nine student does

in the IELTS speaking test,

compared to someone who is struggling and is getting

about five to 6.5 on the IELTS speaking test.

And the IELTS speaking test is divided into three parts,

part one, part two and part three.

And there are some things that Band 9 students do

that are very recognizable by examiners.

And they're also things that a Band 5 to a 6.5 student

that is very, very, very different

in part one, part two and part three,

completely different

when it comes to the IELTS speaking test.

So this video, we're gonna go through the differences

so that you can avoid these things

and do more of these things,

and then improve your IELTS speaking score.

So one thing that these students do

is there are lots of memorized answers.

The examiners can spot these right away,

and I'll show you a few other little tricks

that the examiner might play on you to really determine

whether these are memorized answers or not,

but it is extremely obvious.

So part one is the only part of the IELTS speaking test

where you can predict the questions.

So you will probably be asked about whether you work

or study, your home, your hometown, things like that.

What a Band 5 to 6.5 student will do

is they will memorize answers

and then just regurgitate them.

But this is not actually helping them improve their score,

because think about what is being tested.

Are they testing your ability to memorize answers?

No, they are testing your ability to speak,

to clearly communicate in English.

Memorization and clear communication in English

are not the same thing.

Linked to this one,

these students will often give very long answers.

So you will ask the student for example,

about their hometown and they will not only just tell you

a little bit about their hometown,

they'll talk about the history and the architecture

and the places tourists go to

and places where people go to eat

and the transportation links.

And it's because they have memorized all of these things.

This is not how you naturally answer a question.

This will often also so lead them to going off topic.

So again, you'll ask them,

tell me a little bit about your hometown,

and they'll regurgitate this memorized answer,

and they will go off topic.

And they will also sound very formal.

Not always,

but a lot of the time these students sound very robotic.

So this might be to do with

that they're very nervous, they're stressed out.

Often students who feel this way

will talk in a very formal, academic, robotic style,

or they have been told by their teacher

that IELTS is a very formal academic test,

therefore you must speak to the examiner in this way.

And then also in some cultures,

that is just how you naturally speak to a teacher

or someone in authority.

Again, what are they testing?

They're testing if you move to London or New York or Sydney,

one of these English-speaking places,

will you be able to talk to people?

Very rarely will you be speaking to people

in a very formal academic setting.

You will normally be speaking to people

just normally, naturally.

So this again, is an indication to the examiner

that you are towards this end of the spectrum,

and they're not going

to give you one of these higher scores.

Band 7, eight, and nine students,

it feels like a normal conversation.

When you are speaking to someone, especially at a Band 9,

it doesn't feel like an IELTS test.

It just feels like you're in a coffee shop

with a friend or a colleague,

and you're just talking naturally about these topics.

Because they are just answering questions directly,

and they're answering them very naturally.

And in terms of development,

in terms of the length of their answer.

So they are developing their answers enough,

but not going off topic.

And generally they don't give very, very, very, long,

long-winded answers in the same way.

And many students would think like the longer my answer,

the higher my score, not necessarily.

And these students don't really think

about length or development at all, really.

They just think about,

have I adequately answered this question?

So Band 7, eight, and nine students in part one,

what they will generally do is answer the question directly

and then add a little bit more detail.

That could be an explanation,

an example, some further detail.

They're going to give the examiner enough information

to judge their pronunciation, their fluency,

their grammar, their vocabulary,

but they're not going to memorize, give memorized,

very, very, very long answers like these students.

Move on to part two.

In part two, you will be shown a cue card

that will have a main topic,

and then it will have four bullet points,

and you'll have one minute to prepare your answer,

and then the examiner will ask you

to speak for up to two minutes.

So these students, what they do

is they often rigidly follow the bullet points.

So you'll get four bullet points.

What the students will do

is they will often talk about bullet point number one,

then bullet point number two,

then bullet point number three,

then bullet point number four.

And this is a very unnatural way to speak about a topic.

And often they will get at least one of the bullet points

they don't feel very comfortable talking about,

and that gets them into all sorts of trouble

because they will start to be mh, ah, mh,

I don't really know how to deal with this bullet point.

Okay, let's move on to the next one.

And then whenever they finish talking

about the fourth bullet point,

often they have run out of things to say,

and their fluency goes down even more.

So they really rely on the bullet points,

and can't really talk about anything

other than the bullet points.

Again, this is often not the student's fault.

They have often been taught that you must do this.

You do not have to do this.

You can use the bullet points if you want,

use them to help you if you want.

But the only thing you need to do

is talk about the main topic at the top of the cue card.

So they will run out of ideas.

And this will affect their fluency.

And this can also mean

that the rest of their test is just a disaster

because they think they have failed at this stage.

And often they will be speaking for around one minute,

and then they have nothing else to say,

and they just get really, really stressed out.

Not always, but it can affect part three as well,

because the more stressed you are,

that's going to affect not only your fluency,

but it can also affect your pronunciation,

your grammar and your vocabulary, the four marking criteria.

Some other students in part two.

So they use some kind of a trick.

So they learn some kind of a trick strategy

that they think will trick the examiner

into giving them a higher score.

An example of this is something

that we often see, which is PPF.

Now, when I was teaching

at the British Council more than 10 years ago,

we would teach PPF and which is past present future.

But we would just use it

to help students fill out their answer in part two

if they couldn't speak about some of the bullet points.

But what we see these days

is there are many YouTube channels and online resources

that teach students, just talk about the past,

then just talk about the present,

then just talk about the future.

If you do that, it's really easy.

And you kinda trick the examiner

into giving you a high score.

Well, the problem is is that you will often get cue cards

where you cannot talk about the past

or you cannot talk about the present

or you cannot talk about the future,

or it's really, really difficult for you to do that.

And often that leads to a poor performance,

bad fluency, students getting stuck.

So you're not going to trick the examiner

into doing anything.

And to be honest, this is probably

the most popular way of doing this now these days.

The examiners hear this 20 times a day.

It's not going to trick them into giving you a high score.

They know what you're doing.

So if you are memorizing answers in part one,

and then you think that you're going to trick the examiner

using PPF and then some other trick in part three,

the examiner has seen it a hundred times.

What Band 9 students do is,

the main thing they do is they focus on the main topic.

So this is the main topic at the top of the cue card

for the whole two minutes when they're speaking,

they will be talking about that main topic.

So they don't really focus on the bullet points.

They just speak naturally about the main topic

for the two minutes.

And they use the bullet points,

but they're used to use the bullet points

to help them speak naturally.

So this student is relying exclusively on the bullet points.

This student is looking at the main topic

and talking just naturally about the main topic.

And they might use some of the bullet points,

they might not, because their main focus

is just speaking naturally about the main topic

for the whole two minutes.

Then we move on to part three.

Part three, they're going

to ask you more abstract questions.

Part one is about you,

part three is more a discussion of ideas.

Part three, the questions

will be a little bit more difficult,

and often this results

in these students giving very short answers.

So this is kind of the opposite of what you should be doing.

In part one, the answers don't need to be that long.

But because they have memorized those answers,

they give very long answers in part one.

Part three, you need to develop your ideas a lot more,

so you should be giving longer answers.

But these students are giving very short answers

'cause they don't feel comfortable talking about this,

'cause they cannot memorize these part three answers.

Because part one is predictable,

part three is completely unpredictable.

So this is the little trick that IELTS are playing on you.

If you are giving very long memorized answers in part one

on questions that you predict are coming up,

they will always ask you questions that are unpredictable,

that are very strange.

This is where you often hear people complaining

about the speaking test and saying,

well, why are they asking me about hats or cakes

or these very strange topics?

It's to test you on a range of different topics

that you are not expecting.

And if you're giving these very long memorized answers

and then very short answers here,

it's a clear indication that you are relying on memorization

and you don't actually know how to speak in English.

Memorization and actually communicate in English

are two very, very different things.

This student will often also memorize lists of vocabulary,

lists of idioms, lists of phrases,

and this will actually lower their grammar

and their vocabulary score

because they'll never be able to use them effectively.

They also might not attempt some answers.

So part three, one of the things that they will do

is they will ask you increasingly more difficult questions

to really test, are you a Band 6.5 or are you a Band 7

or are you a Band 8 or are you a Band 9?

They will stretch you

by asking you more difficult questions.

If you get to part three and you just shake your head

or say I don't know,

you're basically just saying to the examiner,

I don't deserve to be here, I deserve one of the scores.

You often get the impression

that these students just Want it to be over.

So these students are just exhausted at this stage

'cause the examiner has really stretched them.

This is getting to the 12, 13, 14-minute stage.

And you can tell that by giving very short answers

or not answering them at all,

the student just wants this to be over.

And again, that's an indication

that you don't deserve one of these higher scores.

And the range will be limited.

So the examiner will ask you

maybe three different topics here,

a fourth topic here, five or the fifth

or six different topic here.

What the examiner is doing

is they are testing your range of vocabulary

and your range of grammar.

Often these students

will memorize vocabulary and memorize grammar.

So when the examiner asks them a question

that they weren't expecting,

the range is obviously very, very limited.

So this is why you should not memorize new words

and phrases and idioms, you should learn them effectively.

So if we can trust that

with the Band 7, eight or nine student,

what they will do in part three of the IELTS speaking test

is they will at least attempt every question.

Even if they don't know the answer

or they're not familiar with the topic,

they will at least attempt it.

This student will often either laugh or say, I don't know,

or just shake their head or just start crying.

That very rarely happens, but I have seen it happen.

Whereas this student will be, again,

it's like being in a coffee shop with someone.

If you were with your friend in a coffee shop

and you ask them about a topic they don't know about,

they would say, well, I've never even thought about that.

I don't really know much about that.

But if I had to give an answer, this would be my guess.

And they will explain what they think

based on the knowledge that they have.

And there will also be lots of development.

So they will answer the question directly.

And then again, you're talking about ideas,

so they will explain why they think that

or explain why other people think that.

They will give examples

to help provide evidence for their point of view.

They will really develop those answers.

And finally, they will have no problem

or little problem talking

about a range of different topics and scenarios.

So they will get to the end

and it will be clear to the examiner.

When we asked you about the three different topics here,

you had no problem with lots of great topics,

specific vocabulary in here.

Same with the topic we asked you about here.

And then there's two or three different topics in here.

You had no problem talking about those.

And then they're going to ask you about different scenarios

requiring you to use different grammatical structures.

They'll ask you about the past, the present, the future.

They'll ask you to compare things,

to talk, give your opinion about things.

They'll ask you to use conditional structures.

And these students

have no problem answering any of the questions.

Not because they're so familiar with the topics,

but they have just a great command of English

and just like a native English speaker,

you can ask them about anything and they can comfortably

and naturally talk about anything.

Now, do you need to be at a native English speaker level

to get about nine?

No, absolutely not.

Certainly not for a Band 7 or a Band 8.

If you really want a Band 7, eight or nine

in IELTS speaking test, it's not so much doing these things

as not doing these things.

If you just avoided all of this

and did a little bit more of this,

you would dramatically improve your score.

If you want more information

on how to improve your IELTS speaking score,

I have a free course that you can get.

Just go into the description below and click on it

and you can join our free IELTS speaking course,

it goes into all of this in a lot more detail.

Now, there are three parts of the speaking test

and there are four marking criteria.

I intentionally didn't go into detail

on the four marking criteria, I'll do that in another video.

Hope that you enjoyed this.

If you didn't, feel free to give it a dislike, unsubscribe,

go and check out another IELTS channel

if you didn't like it.

If you did like it, and you want more information,

click on the description below

and join our free speaking course.

Thank you very much.

And I hope you enjoyed the video.

(upbeat music)