Professional Documents
Culture Documents
EXAMPLE
Topic in Part 2 Possible Related Topic in Part 3
Describe an historical figure Who are the most influential people in your society? Are
there many heroes or role models today? What are the
qualities of a good leader?
TIPS:
1. If you need time to collect your thoughts use expressions (sparingly) like: 'That's a good question.',
'Well, let me think ...'.
2. Don't forget to avoid short, 'yes', 'no' answers. Try to offer examples to back up a statement.
3. Help make your contributions memorable. Try explaining a point using a short, personal anecdote.
4. If the examiner asks a question that you don't understand, take control of the situation with questions
such as those that appear below. Responding like this will show evidence of your communication skills.
A) If the examiner uses a word or phrase that you don't understand, say something like:
"Sorry but could you explain what you mean by ........" or
"I haven't come across that word/expression before. Could you explain what you mean?"
B) If you simply didn't hear something that was asked, respond with:
"Excuse me, I didn't quite catch that. Could you say that again?"
"I'm sorry, but would you mind repeating that?"
C) If you want to make sure you've understood what the examiner has asked you could say:
"Do you mean ........"
"When you say ........, do you mean/are you asking ........?
Successful students:
Comment on the question
Relate the question to their own experience
Divide up their answers
Use modals (could, might, may) the past perfect, and future tenses correctly
Comment on the question
That’s interesting. I was watching a program about that last week
That’s a big problem today. I heard Sheikh Mohammed talk about that in a speech in Dubai.
Oh, that’s very difficult to predict! I don’t think anybody really knows what is going to happen.
Wow, that’s a tough question. It depends on your point of view.
Yes, I’ve often thought about that.
Relate the question to their own experience
That’s very important because I am getting married next month
That’s an interesting question because I work in computers, so I often wonder what the future of
technology will be.
That’s a tough question because I am not an economist.
That’s funny - the other day I was in Al-Ain and someone asked me the same question.
My kids often ask me the same question
Divide up your answer
Basically, there are three ways to look at this problem. One way is to imagine….
I think there are several ways to solve this problem. I think one way would be to…
It depends on how you look at it. For example, if you were a parent, you would have one opinion,
and if you were a student, you might have another perspective.
I think two very different things will happen. First of all, there might be…
There have been several effects. One effect is that
I suppose you could break it up into two or three areas. First…
Use Modals