IELTS Speaking Part 3 discussion questions

The six question types, and how to answer each

• Opinion

  Do you think… / Should… / Is it important…

  My view→Why→Example→But

• Pros and cons

  What are the advantages and disadvantages…

  Upside→Downside→On balance

• Compare

  How has… changed / Is… better than…

  Then→Now→Why it changed

• Cause and effect

  Why do… / What effect does…

  Main cause→Another cause→Effect

• The future

  How will… change / Will… still…

  Prediction→Because→But

• What if

  If… what would happen / Imagine…

  If so→Result→Wider effect

Try one of each

1. Opinion

   Can ordinary individuals really make a difference to the environment?

   Answer it

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   Sample answerBand 8My viewWhyExampleBut

   1. My view→
   2. Why→
   3. Example→
   4. But

   To some extent they can, though I'd be wary of overstating it. On their own, one person's recycling or shorter showers barely register, but individual choices add up and, more importantly, they send signals to businesses and governments about what people want. Look at how quickly supermarkets started offering refill stations and plastic-free packaging once enough shoppers began complaining. At the same time, it would be naive to think personal virtue can replace regulation, because the biggest sources of emissions are industries and energy systems that no individual controls.

   barely register

   are hardly noticeable at all

   individual choices add up

   small personal actions together become significant

   it would be naive to think

   it would be unrealistic to believe

   89 words · about 39 seconds spoken

   From Environment and conservation

2. Pros and cons

   What are the advantages and disadvantages of shopping online?

   Answer it

   Get it scored

   Sample answerBand 8UpsideDownsideOn balance

   1. Upside→
   2. Downside→
   3. On balance

   The main attraction is choice and convenience, since you can find almost anything, read other buyers' reviews and have it delivered without setting foot outside. The drawback is that you can't touch or try things on, so a lot ends up being sent back, and all that packaging and extra transport takes a toll on the environment. So it makes perfect sense for practical, standardised items like batteries or books, whereas for clothes or furniture there's still a lot to be said for seeing things in person.

   without setting foot outside

   without leaving your home at all

   takes a toll on

   causes damage or harm to

   a lot to be said for

   has many advantages

   87 words · about 38 seconds spoken

   From Shopping and consumerism

3. Compare

   How do people's tastes in music tend to change as they get older?

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   Sample answerBand 8ThenNowWhy it changed

   1. Then→
   2. Now→
   3. Why it changed

   When we're teenagers, music is often tied up with identity, so we cling to whatever our friends are listening to and dismiss everything else as embarrassing. As people get older, they tend to become far more open-minded, and it's quite common for someone in their forties to discover jazz or classical music they'd have mocked at fifteen. I'd put that down to confidence, because once you no longer need music to prove who you are, you're free to simply enjoy it.

   tied up with identity

   closely connected to your sense of who you are

   dismiss everything else as

   reject everything else as being

   put that down to

   believe that is the cause of it

   81 words · about 35 seconds spoken

   From Music and performance

4. Cause and effect

   Why do you think some people read far more than others?

   Answer it

   Get it scored

   Sample answerBand 8Main causeAnother causeEffect

   1. Main cause→
   2. Another cause→
   3. Effect

   Upbringing probably plays the biggest part. Children who grow up surrounded by books, with parents who read to them at bedtime, tend to see reading as a natural pleasure rather than a chore. Temperament comes into it as well, since some people are simply more comfortable sitting still with their own thoughts, while others crave constant stimulation. The result is that the gap widens over time, because keen readers build up vocabulary and stamina, which makes every new book easier, whereas reluctant readers find it more and more of an uphill struggle.

   rather than a chore

   as something enjoyable, not an unpleasant task

   comes into it as well

   is also a factor

   an uphill struggle

   something that stays difficult and needs great effort

   92 words · about 40 seconds spoken

   From Reading and learning

5. The future

   How might the way people access information change in the future?

   Answer it

   Get it scored

   Sample answerBand 8PredictionBecauseBut

   1. Prediction→
   2. Because→
   3. But

   My hunch is that searching will largely give way to simply asking. Rather than scrolling through pages of links, people will put a question to an AI assistant and get a single spoken or written answer. It's quicker and requires no skill at all, and the technology is already improving at a remarkable rate. The danger is that we'll see only one answer and stop comparing sources, which could make people more vulnerable to errors or bias built into whichever system they happen to use.

   My hunch is that

   I suspect that, without proof

   give way to

   be replaced by

   at a remarkable rate

   surprisingly fast

   85 words · about 37 seconds spoken

   From The internet and information

6. What if

   If a country had no festivals at all, what effect would that have?

   Answer it

   Get it scored

   Sample answerBand 8If soResultWider effect

   1. If so→
   2. Result→
   3. Wider effect

   If a country had no festivals whatsoever, life would feel noticeably flatter, because there'd be nothing to break up the year or give people a sense of anticipation. People would probably feel more isolated, since festivals are one of the few occasions when neighbours, colleagues and distant relatives all make the effort to see each other. In the long run, I'd expect a weaker sense of national identity, and whole industries, from tailoring to confectionery, that depend on festive seasons would struggle to survive.

   break up the year

   divide the year with special moments

   make the effort to

   try hard to do something

   In the long run

   over a long period of time

   84 words · about 37 seconds spoken

   From Festivals and celebrations

All 28 discussion themes

• 
  Reading and learning9 questions with samples
• 
  Education and schools9 questions with samples
• 
  Work and careers9 questions with samples
• 
  Skills and success9 questions with samples
• 
  Technology and society9 questions with samples
• 
  The internet and information9 questions with samples
• 
  Social media and communication9 questions with samples
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  Media and news9 questions with samples
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  Travel and tourism9 questions with samples
• 
  Culture and tradition9 questions with samples
• 
  Festivals and celebrations9 questions with samples
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  Food and diet9 questions with samples
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  Health and fitness9 questions with samples
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  Environment and conservation9 questions with samples
• 
  Nature and wildlife9 questions with samples
• 
  Cities and urban life9 questions with samples
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  Housing and community9 questions with samples
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  Transport and traffic9 questions with samples
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  Shopping and consumerism9 questions with samples
• 
  Money and finance9 questions with samples
• 
  People and relationships9 questions with samples
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  Family and upbringing9 questions with samples
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  Childhood and memories9 questions with samples
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  Art and creativity9 questions with samples
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  Music and performance9 questions with samples
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  Sport and competition9 questions with samples
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  Leisure and relaxation9 questions with samples
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  Goals and the future9 questions with samples