Developing Ideas & Opinions for

Part 3 Speaking
Task 2 Writing
Introduction to part 3
• Answer questions about a variety of contemporary
issues and academic topics
• Common question types:
◌ Give a personal opinion
◌ Level of agreement with other opinions
◌ Compare advantages and disadvantages
◌ Future prediction
◌ Hypothetical questions
 Speaking part 3

Education Family Entertainment School/University Work/Job

Questions may be very familiar, such as family, entertainment, or education. However,

part 3 questions require your opinion and a deeper explanation. Also, topics could
actually be more academic as in questions involving the environment or crime.
What happens if I
do not have much
knowledge about
(or do not like)
the topic?
 • The best answers will focus on a simple idea.
• It is not a test of knowledge, and there are no right or wrong answers
• It is all about your ability to communicate the way you think

IELTS speaking questions never require 'knowledge', only simple

ideas and opinions
How to prepare
◌ Develop ideas for academic topics - Task 2 Writing
◌ Examiner will rephrase questions or words if you ask
(Part 1 and 3)
◌ Answer questions clearly. Provide own as well as other
people’s opinions.
◌ Give reasons for your views with reasonable evidence,
explanation, and some general and specific examples
◌ Work hard on pronunciation
 Organizing your ideas
MAIN IDEA EVIDENCE
Which can be:
• reasons
• explanations
• examples

(Try giving two for each answer – e.g. main idea à explanation à example.)

Q: What other factors, apart from standard of living, can make a country a good place to live?
A: Well, in my view, one thing that’s extremely important is food. I mean, we eat several times a day,
every single day, so it seems reasonable to say that enjoyable food makes a country a good place to live.
Personally, I’ve moved around the world a lot, and the countries where I’ve been happiest have also been
the places where I haven’t just liked the cuisine, but loved it. I’d say another important factor is…
 Alternative structure
Opposing view Your view + Why it’s better

Q: What do you think is the point of assessing the quality of life in

different countries?
A: That’s a good question. Some people seem to think it’s not at all
important because it’s all so subjective. I completely disagree with
that though. Comparing our own country with others helps the
government to decide how to focus its resources. So in the UK, for
example, we often look to the German health service to try to work
out how to improve our own.
Class Practice
Let’s try these questions. Try to 1) give your opinion and 2) support
your opinion with reasonable evidence and explanation
(Idea > Explain > Example)
Idea > Explain > Example
1. Do you think children watch too much TV?
2. Should people be worried about the increasing
availability of fast food?
3. Is it a good idea for governments to censor films?
4. Do you think that governments should invest money in
space technology and exploration?
5. Besides the health benefits, why should children be
encouraged to play sports?
 Idea > Explain > Example
6. Have video games had any positive effects on child development?
7. Do celebrities make good role models for people?
8. Does tourism have a positive effect on the environment?
9. Are advertisements having a negative influence on society?
10. Should the parents of children who commit crimes have to pay fines?
11. Is it possible for a city to become over-developed?
 Technique #2: ‘PERSPECTIVES’
(different ways of looking at an issue)
How do you think the Internet will affect our lives in the future?
 Personal perspective
I think the Internet will have a huge impact on our lives. More and more
people are using social websites to keep in touch with friends. I think the
Internet will probably replace TV because most channels are already
available online.
 Economic perspective
Also, I think we'll do more online shopping. Web-based companies like
Amazon are already really successful. In the future, there will probably be
more companies that only sell via the Internet, and I expect we'll spend
more money online than in traditional shops.
 Educational perspective
Schools and universities might also use the Internet to provide courses,
so online learning will probably become a normal part of life.
 The link between P3S and T2W
Do the benefits of tourism outweigh the drawbacks?
 Benefits of tourism
1. Personal perspective: Tourism is a popular leisure activity.
Tourists can relax, have fun, ‘recharge their batteries', and
experience different customs and cultures, for example sight-seeing,
sunbathing, visiting monuments, and tasting new cuisine. Travel
opens our minds. It can also broaden our horizons.
2. Economic perspective: The tourism industry is vital for some
countries, since people rely on tourism for their income. In addition,
tourism attracts investment from governments and companies. It
creates employment due to demand for goods and services, such as
hotels and entertainment venues, and it helps to improve the
standard of living.
 Drawbacks of tourism
• Environmental perspective: Tourism can have a negative impact on the
environment, because excessive construction of roads, hotels and
infrastructure destroys natural habitats and spoils the landscape. It also
creates pollution and waste, and puts pressure on local resources such as
food, water and energy.
• Economic perspective: Tourism may cause a rise in the cost of living. The
prices of goods and services go up, and tourists may buy second homes,
which forces up property prices in these areas. All of this affects local
people.
• Cultural perspective: Local traditions may be lost, since traditional jobs and
skills die out, for example farming and fishing. Local people may be forced
to work in the tourist industry.
 PRACTICE
ü What are some key disadvantages of going abroad to study?
ü What are the advantages of tourism to an economy?
ü What are the drawbacks of being self-employed? What are the benefits?
ü Will robots become common in people’s lives in the future?
ü Tell me about some of the environmental problems that are affecting countries these days
ü Some people think that crime will be reduced with stricter penalties. Do you agree?
ü What are the advantages of using websites such as Facebook and Twitter?
ü What are the positive and negative aspects of living in a big city?
ü Compare the benefits of using the Internet to complete homework with the drawbacks.
ü Describe some of the changes in education you think will take place in the next 20 years.
DESCRIBING PEOPLE FOR
PART 2 SPEAKING
 What Part Two involves
• The examiner will give the candidate a card with a general topic on it
• The candidate must speak about the topic for 1-2 minutes without interruption
• Examiner will provide paper and pen. They may be used to organize ideas for 1 minute
and may also be used while candidate speaks.
• Follow-up question - simple, requires simple answers.
 Goals
Display a wide-variety of specific English skills in an organized way for an extended period of time. Not to
complete the card or only supply facts
• Fluency & Coherence – Speaking smoothly (not quickly) and in an organized way that is easy to understand
• Vocabulary – Using a range of words and forms… being descriptive…paraphrasing…accuracy
• Grammar – Sentence structures…verb tenses…adjectives…referencing/pronouns…easy to understand?
• Pronunciation – Easy to understand final sounds…intonation and word stress that shows meaning
 Preparation

Why? You will have four different points on your speaking card. You don’t need to talk about all of
them but they will help you think of things to say. You can make notes on each of the four sub topics
in the four parts of the grid.

• You will have to talk about the topic for 1 to 2 minutes.

• You have one minute to think about what you're going to say.
• You can make some notes to help you if you wish.
 Task card
EXERCISE
Listen for the signals, pauses, and key words to guess what the general topic is and what the specific points
on the topic card are.

Talk about______________________________________________________

You should say:

• ______________________________________________________________
• ______________________________________________________________
• ______________________________________________________________

And also say _________________________________________________________

Video
Describe a time when you helped someone.

You should say:

• Who you helped and why
• How you helped this person
• What the result was
• And explain how you felt about helping this person
Describe someone you know or know about who has a lot of
responsibility.
You should say:
- What that person is like
- What kind of responsibility that person has
- How well that person deals with his or her responsibilities
And say if you would like to have the same responsibilities or
not, and why
Describe someone who is your hero, is the hero of someone you know, or is a hero of many people.
You should mention:
- What that person is like
- Why that person is a hero
- How that person is different from other people
And say if you think that person likes being thought of as a hero or not, and why
Describe a musician, singer or other artist
you like or know about.
You should say:
- What kind of thing they make
- How long they have been working
- How they are different from other artists
And say whether you like this person’s work
or not, and why