Discussion Skills

SPEAKING II For the 2nd semester

IRWANSYAH PUTRA

English Department of STAI-MU Tanjungpinang, 2012

Discussion Skills 1
How to express opinions agreement and disagreement

1. Express

Opinions 2. Agree/ disagree 3. Expand discussions

1.Express Opinions
(Personally), I think +[opinion] I feel that My feeling is that It seems to me In my opinion, From my point of view, If you ask me, No doubt about it, As I see it, If you ask me It strikes that

Agreement
Absolutely I agree (completely). I quite agree. I couldn't agree more. Thats exactly what I was thinking. Thats just how I see it. Thats a good point. Thats worth thinking about. Your are right. That may be.

Disagreement
I disagree. Im afraid I dont agree./ I wouldn't agree. Im sorry but I really cant agree. Im not sure I agree with you. I'm not so sure about that.

Disagreement
Do you think so? I wouldnt say that exactly. To be honest, not everybody Not really. (Im afraid) thats not how I see it. Thats not the way I see it. You cant be serious. Im not convinced by your argument. Im afraid I have a different opinion. Well, my opinion is Well, yes, but

Disagreement
Come

off it. Are you kidding? Dont make me laugh. I disagree. I dont think so. I can't agree at all. Nonsense! Rubbish! Thats ridiculous.

Expand discussions
A: [opinion expression] + [opinion] B: "Why?" A: "Because + [reason] + [signal (e.g., How about you?)]" B: Agree (then say, "Let's go to the next one.") or Disagree (then return to Line 1)

Discussion Skills 2
How to ask for and give an opinion

How to ask for information (Formal-informal) I was wondering where you stood on the question of ? Whats your opinion of? Whats your opinion on ? What do you think of /about ? How do you find ? How do you feel about ? What do you reckon about ? What / How about ?

How to ask for information

Could you please tell me your opinion on Would you please comment on Can you tell me your opinion on Im wondering whats your opinion on Can you say something on Do you think Do you agree that

How to give an opinion(Formalinformal)

It would seem to me that As far as I am able to judge As far as Im concerned Id like to point out Id just like to say From my point of view, I think If you want my opinion Personally, I think As I see it Frankly, I think

How to give an opinion

I reckon To tell you the truth, I think Well, in my opinion Believe it or not, I think One thing I should mention is that

Discussion Skills 3
1. How to ask for more detailed information 2. How to ask for clarification 3. How to give clarification

How to ask for more detailed information

I wonder if you could explain about in more detail? Could I ask you a little more about in more detail? Im afraid Im not quite clear about ... Im afraid Im not quite clear about how you DO Im interested in knowing more about ... How exactly do you DO?

How to ask for more information

Could you fill me a bit on ? Can you put me in the picture about ? Can you give more details? Can you give me some examples? Can you explain it more clearly? Can you say something more about it? Please give me an example.

How to ask for clarification

Im afraid Im not quite clear what you mean by Im sorry, I dont understand what you mean by Im sorry, but could you explain what you mean by What (exactly) do you mean by What (exactly) are you trying to say? What are you getting at?

How to ask for clarification

What do you mean by ? Hold on, do you mean ? Just a second, do you mean ? Doesn't that mean the same as ? Sorry to interrupt, but what does mean? When you say,do you mean.? You said , what do you mean? When you say, are you thinking ?

How to give clarification

Well, the point Im trying to make is that Well, what Im trying to say is that What I mean is that All Im trying to say is that Well, what Im getting at is that Ah, I mean Um, I think Well, Let me see. .

Discussion Skills 4
How to rephrase How to generalize

How to rephrase your own statements

Thats not quite what I meant Let me put it in another way Sorry, let me explain

My understanding is that I think you mean If Im right, you mean ., Is that what you mean?

How to make generalizations

Im inclined (not) to DO I tend not to Do In the vast majority of cases, In most cases, In my opinion, Generally speaking, In general, By and large, On the whole,

Discussion Skills 5
How to interrupt Other tips

How to interrupt
Id like to add something here, if I may. I have a point (to make) here. May I say something here. Can I interrupt (you) for a moment? Sorry to interrupt, but Excuse me, but Wait a minute! Hold on! Hang on!

How to express mild disbelief or surprise

Is it?, Can he? repetition of part of what the other speaker has said questions like What do you mean? or Really? or Is that so? etc.

How to ease the tone

In spoken English comment clauses like I think, Im afraid, I suppose, You know, I believe, I dare say, I hope, etc, are often used to make a negative statement less abrupt.

How to show modesty

A: Can you swim? B: Im not a good swimmer, but I go swimming sometimes. Bs answer is a good example of expressing what one can do in a modest way.

Bahasa Inggris adalah Skill sehingga tidak mungkin dipelajari sambil lalu atau ala kadarnya. Motivasi adalah kunci sukses, tuan dan puan calon Cek gu yang akan mengajar pelajaran Bahasa Inggris, kuliah yang serius, jangan ngawur, nak terus bercerite saat dosen memberi kuliah. Ingatlah selalu pesan Mak dan Pak kat kampong.