IELTS Speaking test Part 1: Band 5.5 answer

In this post I’m going to share a video of a ‘Band 5.5′ candidate answering questions in Part 1 of the IELTS Speaking test. This example shows you why it is important to extend your answers if you want to get a high band. Below the video, I’ve included the examiner’s comments.

IELTS Speaking test Part 1

Examiner’s comments

This candidate is not really willing to respond at length and many of her answers are short. However, she does respond directly to the examiner’s questions.

There is some hesitation and although some markers are used effectively, there is occasional loss of coherence (loud … because … annoying sometimes).

She mainly demonstrates quite simple vocabulary in this part of the test, but uses this effectively to talk about a range of topics.

There is some inappropriacy (they’re trying us to speak) but there is also evidence of appropriate noun modification and less common expressions (I’ve got my own room; younger brother; once in a while; really unclear; nearly everyone; it’s always good to …).

Overall, she tends to keep to simple structures with a high level of accuracy. However, there are hardly any examples of complexity in this part of the interview and many sentences are incomplete. Her pronunciation is clear throughout with only minor mispronunciation of phonemes. However, her responses are short and there is insufficient evidence of a wide range of phonological features used to convey meaning.

In spite of this candidate’s confidence, she does not demonstrate the features of performance that are necessary to reach Band 6.