SPEAKING TEST

Requirement
Duration : 20-25
Weighting : 20% 2 Task format
MINUTES

Task B: Group
Task A: Individual
interaction (4
presentation
candidates to a group)
Preparation : 2 minutes
Preparation : 2 minutes
Presentation : 2
Discussion : 10
minutes
minutes
Evaluation Criteria
SEATING ARRANGEMENT

CANDIDATE A CANDIDATE B

EXAMINER

CANDIDATE C CANDIDATE D
 Task A
Individual Presentation

Task B
Group Discussion
 Guidelines
• Candidates are given 1 minute to read the
instructions and tasks given.
• They read the situation carefully and identify the
key words to help them understand the topic and
the two tasks.
• They can ask the examiners for meaning of
words if in doubt, or seek clarification if they
do not understand the task.
* No marks will be deducted.
* It is advisable for them to do so, rather than to
perform the tasks wrongly.
 Task A : Individual Presentation
• 2 minutes to prepare the points
• Jot down points and sub-points orderly

• Elaborate by explaining, giving reasons,

and examples
• 2 minutes to present the points
• Jot down other candidates’ points while
the candidates are presenting their ideas
 Format of Individual Presentation
I. Greeting (E.g. Good morning everyone)
II. Situation
III. Topic of Presentation (Refer to Task A)
IV. Presentation of Points
A. First Reason
1. Explanations
2. Details
3. Examples
 B. Second Reason
1. Explanations
2. Details
3. Examples
C. Third Reason
1. Explanations
2. Details
3. Examples
V. Conclusion
A. Restate the topic of presentation / the
task
B. Sum up the main points
 Note management
◦Every student will be
A) B)
given a blank piece of A4 1. ______ 1. ______
paper to write notes 2. ______ 2. _______
◦Try to think of at least 3 3. ______ 3. ________
points with 2 examples
each
◦If you are candidate C, C) D)
1. _____ 1. ____
write in that section only
2. _____ 2. ______
◦Take notes of your
3. _______ 3. ______
friends’ ideas when they
are presenting
 Situation:
A) Flight KL to
You live in the capital of Malaysia and
your friends is getting married in Bangkok
1) Most direct way non-stop
Bangkok. A group of you would like to
attend the wedding. Decide the best Fast, x
way to get there. waste time
Candidate A
You suggest going by flight Book
2) Cheap fares early, best
Candidate B
price
You suggest going by car. Many
Candidate C budget
airlines,
You suggest going by train. eg. Air
Candidate D Asia
Discount
3) Group fares for group
You suggest going by bus.

Go
together
Task A
Each 2-min presentation should include 5 important elements:
1. Greetings
2. Repeat situation from the question
3. State the point given to you
4. 3 points with relevant explanation & examples
5. conclusion
Question
Task A : Individual Presentation
Situation :
Nowadays there are various ways for one to
obtain information and gain knowledge.
Candidate A :
In your opinion, one way to obtain
information and gain knowledge is through
the internet.
Microsoft Office
Word 97 - 2003 Document
The candidate is given 2 minutes
to jot down his / her points.
Task A : Individual Presentation
A. Provides a vast array of information resources
1. Subjects / Topics – Science, Language, Sports, Current Issues, etc.
2. Websites, Blogs – e.g. Food Blog
3. News – Star Online
4. Multimedia and video clips – from www.youtube.com
B. Provides information on education especially for students
1. Learning activities on various subjects
2. Exercises and revision guides to practise – e.g. SAT, ILETS
3. Assignments and projects
C. Data transfer and storage
1. File sharing – email to friends, colleagues to share information
2. Fast / immediate distribution of information – within seconds, saves
time and cost
3. Easy to download and copy
4. Organise and save information in folders – pendrive, CD
D. Accessibility
1. Broadband service – Unifi, Maxis
2. Free wi-fi – at cafés & shopping malls
USEFUL EXPRESSIONS
STEP 1 • Good morning everyone.
Begin your presentation by greeting the • Good morning examiners and all my
examiners and candidates. friends.
• A very good morning to the examiners
and friends.
STEP 2 • The situation states that…
State the situation/ task given • Based on the situation given,…
• According to the situation given,…
• The situation I have been given is… 

STEP 3 • In my opinion,…
Start your presentation by stating your • I believe that…
viewpoint or by introducing your first point. • It is my view that…
Then move on to your main point.  • Based on my experience, my opinion is
that…
To introduce the first point • First of all, I propose…
• For a start, I would like to suggest…
• I would like to begin by… 

To signal a main point • My main point is…

• It is important to…
• One important reason is…
• The most important factor is…

To illustrate a point • Therefore…

• This means that…
• This is because…
• On top of that…
• According to…

To provide an example • For example,…

• For instance,…
• One example is…
• Take for example…
• …such as…
To start a new point
To refer to what you have said
To signal cause and effect  •
• Secondly,…
• My next point is…
• Another suggestion is…
• Next, I would like to highlight…
• Another point that I would like to emphasize
is…
• Next, we come to…
• Moving on to my next point, which is…
• As I have said earlier,…
• I mentioned earlier that…
• As I said at the beginning…
• I have pointed out earlier that…
This…in turn can lead to…
• For this reason…
• As a result…
• Due to…
• As a consequence…
• …so that…
• …because of…
To signal that you are about to move on to a • So, what can be done to solve this
possible solution problem?
• What should we do?
• Let’s look at some of the possible ways…
• Now, let’s consider some possible solutions

To signal that you are drawing a conclusion • Thus…

from what has been said earlier • Hence…
• Therefore…
• As a result…
• So, we can see that…
• This in turn can lead to…

To conclude • In conclusion…
• In a nutshell,…
• In short,…
• Therefore, my suggestion…
• As a conclusion, I suggest that…
• Let me conclude by saying that…
Sample Answer (Individual Presentation of Candidate A)
Good morning everyone. Nowadays there are various ways for one to
obtain information and gain knowledge. In my opinion, one way to obtain
information and gain knowledge is through the internet.
This is because the internet provides a vast array of information on
various topics such as Science, Language, Sports, Current Issues, and the
list goes on. To search for information, the user just has to type the topic and
a list of websites will appear on the computer screen. For instance, if the
user wants information on food, he just has to type the word “food”. From
there, he can go to various websites on food such as food blogs like
“feedmelah.com”. If the user wants to read the news, he can go to Star
Online and if he prefers to view information in multimedia form, he can go to
www.youtube.com.
Other than that, the internet is also useful for students as
there are various learning activities and exercises for them to
practise. For example, there are revision guides for students who
wish to take SAT or ILETS exams. They can also surf the net for
information through search engines like google or yahoo to do
their projects and assignments and find pictures from google
image or yahoo image.
 Data transfer and storage are also possible through the net.
Distribution of information is easy and fast as it can be done within seconds
through the email. This is convenient as one does not have to go to the
library or to a friend’s house to discuss the group project. Besides that,
users can download or copy information and save it in a folder, pendrive or
CD. This saves them time and money on books and transport.

Another benefit of using the internet is its accessibility. Wi-Fi and

broadband service like Unifi and Maxis are affordable and internet
connections are accessible at most places. There are also internet access
points in many public places such as shopping centres like Paradigm Mall
and cafes such as Starbucks and McDonald’s. Users just need to bring their
own laptop, i-pad or tablet to search for information online.

As the internet has so much information to offer and it is fast, easy,

and convenient to use, it is undeniable that the internet is one of the best
ways to obtain information and to gain knowledge. Thank you.
Task B
USEFUL
PHRASES/ EXPRESSIONS
FOR
THE
GROUP
DISCUSSION
 Useful expressions to initiate a
discussion in group interaction
To start a discussion • I would like to start the discussion by
saying that…
• We are here to discuss…
• I would like to express my view regarding
this matter…
• Let’s look at some possible solutions…
• Let’s begin this/ our discussion by…
• Allow me to begin…
• May I begin by saying… Useful
expressions to initiate a discussion in
Group Interaction
To ask for an opinion • What is your opinion?
• What do you think about…?
• What is your view on…?
• May I know your opinion regarding…?
• What do you feel about…?
• Do you agree that…?
• What do you think we can do to…?
• Would you like to share your opinion
on…?
• Would you like to offer your
comments…?

To give an opinion/ state point of view • I think…

• I believe…
• I must say…
• In my opinion…
• From my point of view…
• I would say that…
• Personally, I feel…
• I am sure that…
• As far as I am concerned…
To express strong agreement • I strongly agree.
• I agree completely.
• That is certainly true.
• Yes. I am sure you are right.
• Absolutely!
• Exactly! I couldn’t agree with you more…
• You have hit the nail on the head…
• You’ve made your point very clear.
• You have made an absolutely convincing
argument. I completely agree…

To express agreement • I agree with you.

• You are right.
• That is true.
• I share the same view.
• I am of the same opinion.
• I am glad you mentioned that.
• I see your point.
To express partial agreement • You could be right but…
• That is true but…
• I see your point but…
• You have a point but…
• That may be so but…
• Your suggestion is good but…
• I do not entirely agree with you.
• I agree to a certain extent, but…
• That’s true to a certain extent, but…
• I think you are right to say that. However,
…

To express strong disagreement • I disagree completely.

• That can’t be true at all.
• That is absolutely untrue.
• That’s totally out of the question.
• No. I don’t like this suggestion.
To express disagreement • I disagree.
• I don’t see it that way.
• I beg to differ.
• I don’t think so.
• I am not convinced that your suggestion
will work.
• This will give rise to other problems. On
the contrary,…
• I understand what you’re saying but I
don’t think that’s practical / the correct
solution.
• I would consider …as more important…
• I think it would be better if… * I think
you are mistaken.
 Useful expressions to maintain a
discussion in group interaction
To accept ideas/ opinions/ suggestions
• That’s a good idea.
• That sounds great!
• That’s fine with me.
• I can’t agree more.
• I support your suggestion.
• I have no objection to that.
• Your suggestion is acceptable to me.
• I am in favour of Candidate C’s
suggestion.
• That’s a great suggestion. You’ve got my
support.
• You’ve made your point very clear.
To reject ideas/ opinions/ suggestions  • I appreciate your opinion but…
• I do see your point but…
• I understand your concern but…
• That is interesting but…
• You have a good point there but …
• I am sorry, I can’t agree with you.
• I am afraid we do not share the same opinion.
• I am sorry, I can’t accept what you have just said.

To ask for clarification •  What do you mean by…?

• I am sorry I missed your point. Could you please
explain…
• I am afraid I am not quite sure of what you meant.
Could you please clarify…
• Sorry, I don’t follow you. Would you mind giving an
example?
• Can you please explain further on…? Do you mean
to say that…
• May I know why…?
• Do you mind telling me more about…?
• Could you please explain that to me again?
To interrupt • Excuse me, can you please repeat
what you have just said?
• Excuse me, can you please clarify
that?
• Allow me to interrupt…
• Excuse me, but isn’t it true that…
• Sorry to interrupt but I have to say
this…
• Excuse me, could I just ask you a
quick question?
• I am sorry to interrupt but I think we
need to get back to our topic.
• I am sorry I have to stop you. Can
we get back to our topic on…?
To conclude • In conclusion,…
• As a conclusion,…
• To conclude,…
• In a nutshell,…

To state a group decision (total agreement) • We all agree that…

• Our decision is that…
• We have decided that …
• We have come to the conclusion that…
• We have come to an agreement that… 
To end the discussion •  Does anyone have anything else to say?
Otherwise, we shall end this discussion
here
• If you have nothing more to add, we shall
stop here.
• It has been an interesting discussion.
Since we have come to an agreement, I
guess it is time to end our discussion.
• As all of you have come to an agreement,
let’s bring this discussion to a close.

to close a discussion • Thank you for your contributions to this

discussion.
• Thank you for a fruitful and interesting
discussion.
• Thank you very much for your attention
and participation
 IF NOT EVERYONE CAN AGREE
3 agree 1 disagrees If three candidates agree on one of the
arguments, while one candidate strongly
agrees with a different argument, the
‘leader’ of the group may conclude the
discussion like this:

Example: ‘In conclusion, most of us agree

that exercising moderately is the most
effective way to overcome stress. Thank
you for your attention.
2 agree, 2 disagree If two candidates agree on one argument while
the other two candidates agree with another
argument, the ‘leader’ of the group may say
something like this:

Example: ‘To conclude, we are unable to come

to a group decision because some of us
believe that exercising moderately is the most
effective way to overcome stress, because
exercising moderately produces the feel- good
hormone and promotes restful sleep. The rest
of us, on the other hand, are of the opinion
that good time management is the best way to
overcome stress because we can get things
done in a systematic manner so that work
does not accumulate over time. Thank you.’
No one agrees with It is also possible that all four candidates
anyone hold strongly to their individual
arguments where all four candidates
cannot agree on one argument. A group
decision may not be achieved at the end
of the 10-minute discussion. The ‘leader’
of the group may then say something
like this:

Example: ‘We are unable to come to an

agreement on the most effective way to
overcome stress. All of us strongly
believe in our own views though we
agree with some of the arguments
presented. Thank you for your
contribution to this discussion.’
8 Smart Tips For Scoring In Speaking

1. Memorization technique
First understand then learn all the
multipurpose introduced here because they
work in all situations

2. Fishing technique
Read the situation carefully the ask the
examiners what it means (even if you are
sure understand because they could give
you extra points or vocabulary)
3. Parroting technique
If you really go blank, don’t worry. Just
say you agree then repeat everything
your friend just said. You’ll still get
marks for participation

4. Bimbo technique
If you have absolutely nothing to say,
repeat this sentence:” I’m sorry, I don’t
understand your point. Can you please
explain it again?”
5. Cooperative technique
If your friend can’t remember a word/phrase
or has trouble explaining their ideas, you
must help him/her by suggesting other
words/phrases/ideas. You will get points for
teamwork.

6. Equal opportunity technique

Never control a conversation by wanting to
talk all the time and never giving others a
chance. Instead, always ask other candidates
their opinion. Encourage the quite ones to
speak up and you will get higher marks.
7. anti-donkey technique:
Pay attention to the time and when it gets
closers to the end of 10 mins, just try and
agree with one persons. (even if you really
don’t think so in real life, no point being
stubborn in the test.)

8. Concluding technique:
Make sure you agree before going into exam
room who will be doing the conclusion. Pay
close attention to the time and steer everyone
to making the right conclusion.
It’s ok if…
1. All of you can’t agree on a single point.
- You should be able to decide on a single point
within 10 mins of discussing, but if you don’t there
is no penalty.

2. Your group doesn’t have a conclusion.

- No penalty but if you manage to do a conclusion
you will logically score higher because your
discussion is more structured.

All you have to do is discuss

actively 10 minutes!!!!
 Finally….
Don’t panic if you
didn’t do well in Task 1.
You can still pass if you
participate actively in
Task 2.