Technology and society: IELTS Speaking Part 3 questions & answers

Opening question

Warm-up: close to home

1. Cause and effect

   Why do some people find it hard to keep up with new technology?

   2
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   Sample answerBand 8Main causeAnother causeEffect

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

   The main reason is the sheer pace of change. Just as someone gets used to one system, it's updated, the buttons move and they have to start all over again. There's also a confidence issue, particularly among older people, who may worry about pressing the wrong thing and breaking something or being scammed. Consequently, they end up avoiding technology altogether or relying on their children, which can leave them cut off from services that have moved online, such as banking or government forms.

   the sheer pace of change

   how extremely fast things change

   start all over again

   begin again from the very beginning

   cut off from

   unable to reach or use

   83 words · about 36 seconds spoken

Development: society

1. Compare

   How has technology changed the way families spend time together?

   3
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   Sample answerBand 8ThenNowWhy it changed

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

   When I was small, evenings meant the whole family gathered around one television, arguing over what to watch, or playing board games at the kitchen table. Nowadays it's common to see a family in the same room with everyone absorbed in their own screen, one watching a series, another gaming, another scrolling. The shift happened because entertainment became personal. Once each person had their own device, there was no longer any need to compromise, and that shared experience, frustrating as it sometimes was, quietly disappeared.

   absorbed in their own screen

   concentrating fully on their own device

   no longer any need to

   it was not necessary any more to

   frustrating as it sometimes was

   although it was sometimes annoying

   85 words · about 37 seconds spoken

2. Opinion

   Do you think people depend too much on technology today?

   4
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   Sample answerBand 8My viewWhyExampleBut

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

   In certain respects we do, especially when it comes to basic skills we've stopped bothering to learn. If a device does something for us, our own ability tends to wither, and we don't notice until the device fails. Plenty of people can't find their way across their own city without satellite navigation, or remember a single phone number apart from their own. On the other hand, depending on tools is hardly new. We rely on cars and calculators without anyone calling it a problem, so the real question is whether we're losing skills that actually matter.

   when it comes to

   on the subject of

   tends to wither

   gradually becomes weaker

   hardly new

   not new at all

   96 words · about 42 seconds spoken

3. Pros and cons

   What are the benefits and risks of a society that is always connected?

   5
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   Sample answerBand 8UpsideDownsideOn balance

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

   Being permanently connected has obvious benefits. Help is always a message away, news spreads instantly in an emergency, and people can work, study or see a doctor from virtually anywhere. The risks are subtler but serious. Constant notifications erode our attention, the line between work and rest almost disappears, and vast amounts of personal data are gathered with every click. Connectivity is enormously valuable, then, as long as people keep the ability to disconnect, which is becoming a skill in itself.

   a message away

   easy to reach by sending a message

   erode our attention

   gradually weaken our ability to focus

   a skill in itself

   something that needs practice on its own

   81 words · about 35 seconds spoken

Depth: the abstract and the future

1. Opinion

   Should there be more rules about how personal data is collected and used?

   6
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   Sample answerBand 8My viewWhyExampleBut

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

   Yes, I'm firmly in favour of tighter regulation. Most people click 'accept' without reading a word of the terms, so in practice they have no real idea what they're agreeing to or who their information is being sold to. A good example is when someone searches for a health condition and suddenly finds adverts related to it following them across every website, which feels deeply intrusive. That said, rules need to be workable. If they're too heavy-handed, small businesses could drown in paperwork while the big players simply hire more lawyers.

   firmly in favour of

   strongly supporting

   deeply intrusive

   seriously invading someone's privacy

   drown in paperwork

   be overwhelmed by forms and documents

   91 words · about 40 seconds spoken

2. The future

   How do you think everyday life will be different because of technology in fifty years?

   7
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   Sample answerBand 8PredictionBecauseBut

   1. Prediction→
   2. Because→
   3. But

   Fifty years is a long time, but I'd guess that most routine chores will be handled automatically, from driving to cooking to managing household bills. We're already seeing the early stages of that with smart devices and driverless car trials, and each generation of technology tends to become cheaper and more reliable than the last. Whether that makes life better is another matter. We might gain enormous amounts of free time and still feel just as busy, simply because new demands always seem to expand to fill the space.

   the early stages of

   the beginning of

   is another matter

   is a separate and different question

   expand to fill the space

   grow until they use all the available time

   89 words · about 39 seconds spoken

3. What if

   If a new technology suddenly stopped working, how would people cope?

   8
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   Sample answerBand 8If soResultWider effect

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

   If something like the mobile network suddenly went down, the first reaction would probably be sheer panic, because so many basic transactions depend on it. People would scramble to find cash, write down phone numbers and actually knock on neighbours' doors, and older people who remember life before it would suddenly be in great demand for their know-how. In the longer term, it might be a valuable wake-up call. Societies would probably build in more backup systems and think twice before making essential services entirely digital.

   sheer panic

   complete fear and confusion

   a valuable wake-up call

   a useful warning that makes people act

   think twice before

   consider carefully before doing something

   86 words · about 37 seconds spoken

4. Pros and cons

   Does technology bring people closer together or push them further apart?

   9
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   Sample answerBand 8UpsideDownsideOn balance

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

   In one sense it brings people closer than ever. Families scattered across continents can see each other's faces every week, and people with rare illnesses or niche interests can find others like them. Yet it can also drive a wedge between people who are physically together. A couple sitting at dinner both staring at their phones is a familiar sight, and online spaces can split people into hostile camps. So technology seems to amplify whatever we bring to it. Used deliberately it connects us, but used mindlessly it isolates us.

   drive a wedge between

   cause separation or disagreement between

   a familiar sight

   something people often see

   hostile camps

   groups that strongly oppose each other

   90 words · about 39 seconds spoken