IELTS Speaking · Part 3
Social media and communication: IELTS Speaking Part 3 questions
Last updated 2 September 2026
In short
Discussion questions
The examiner usually opens the discussion with: "Why do you think social media has become so popular?", then works up from concrete to abstract.
Warm-up (concrete)
How has social media changed the way people keep in touch?
Comparison
Development (societal)
Do you think people communicate better or worse because of social media?
EvaluationWhy do some people share so much of their lives online?
Cause & effectWhat are the dangers of spending a lot of time on social media?
EvaluationShould there be limits on how children use social media?
Opinion
Depth (abstract & hypothetical)
How do you think the way people communicate will change in the future?
SpeculationIf social media had never been invented, would people be happier?
HypothesisIs face-to-face conversation becoming less important than it used to be?
Opinion
Useful vocabulary for this theme
Band 7+ language for discussing social media and communication.
- keep in touch
- stay in regular contact with someone
- “Social media makes it so easy to keep in touch with old friends.”
- go viral
- spread very rapidly and widely online
- “A short clip of my hometown went viral last month.”
- scroll through
- move down through a feed of posts
- “I tend to scroll through my feed first thing in the morning.”
- a follower count
- the number of people who follow your account
- “Some people care far too much about their follower count.”
- post an update
- share new information on a social platform
- “I only post an update when something genuinely exciting happens.”