IELTS Speaking
Time and organisation
In the Speaking Module, each candidate has a face-to-face interview with an examiner. The interview consists of three parts and takes between 11 and 14 minutes. The examiner records the interview.
Content and task type
Part 1 lasts for 4 to 5 minutes and begins with introductions. The examiner then asks you a series of questions on two or three different topics connected to your life, your interests or what you do.
Part 2 lasts 3 to 4 minutes and is based on the candidate giving a short talk. You are given a card with a familiar topic and several prompts. You then have one minute to make notes on what you want to say before speaking for two minutes on the topic given. You do not have a choice of topic but the topics are based on your own experience, such as a person or place you know, or an event or activity you have experienced.
The examiner may ask you a brief question at the end of your talk.
Part 3 lasts for 4 to 5 minutes. Here the examiner asks you more abstract questions related to your topic and develops a more general discussion. Marking and assessment Candidates are assessed on all parts of the interview.
Remember that if you give very short answers, the examiner has very little language to assess.
The criteria are:
Fluency and coherence: how well you are able to maintain the flow of conversation, and how clearly you can express and link ideas.
Lexical resource: how appropriately and accurately you use a range of vocabulary.
Grammatical range and accuracy: how appropriately and accurately you use a range of structures. Pronunciation: how clearly you speak and how well you use the different features of English pronunciation.
The scores on these criteria are combined to give the Final Band for Speaking. There are no half bands for this module.