The
Introduction
Phase of the Speaking Test
Note that EVERY
candidate is asked these questions, exactly (or almost exactly) as they are
written here.
The
Standard Introduction Questions
1. “Good morning (good afternoon). My name’s X. Can you tell me your full
name, please?”
(= Please tell me your name.)
2. “What can I call you?”
(= What shall I call you? = What should I call you? =
What would you like me to call you?)
3. “Can you tell me where you’re from?” (= Where are you from?)
4. “Can I see your identification, please?”
(= Could I see your identification,
please? = May I see your identification, please?)
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(The
examiner is usually referred to as "he" on this page because "he
or she" is too cumbersome. Actually, about 40% of the examiners are
female.)
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The ‘Introductory’ phase of the test
consists of a greeting from the examiner, followed by four questions. The main
purpose of this part is to check the candidate’s identity. At the same time,
the examiner begins to get an impression of the candidate’s English ability.
Although this is part of the test, you
should not give long, detailed answers because:
a)
Long, detailed answers are not appropriate for these questions and,
b)
The examiner wants to do this part of the test quite quickly, in about 30
seconds.
Since this is the very beginning of the test
and since the examiner wants to do this part quickly, try to avoid causing the
examiner to ask you to repeat what you just said.
The four questions are standard questions
that are used in every test. Therefore, since we know exactly what the questions
will be, it is a good idea to look at them in order to avoid making unnecessary
mistakes.
When the examiner first turns on the tape
recorder, he makes short a statement into the tape recorder, stating such
information as the date, location and the candidate’s name.
- Then
the examiner says something like: “Good
morning. My name’s John. Could you tell me your full name, please?”
- Many examiners say these three
sentences together, without pausing after saying, “Good morning. My name's X.”
Because the examiner does not pause to wait for the candidate to return the greeting, most candidates just
answer the question without returning the greeting. However, it’s both good
manners and more friendly to return a greeting. In other words, you should
include “Good morning.” or “Good
afternoon” in your answer. If you can catch the
examiner’s name (without asking him to repeat it because he wants to do this
section quite fast) then you should also include his or her name in your answer.
-
Don't say, “Good
morning, Mr. John.” The words Mr., Miss, Mrs. and Ms. are
only used before a person's surname and “John” is not (usually) a
surname. The examiner usually just says his or her given name (first name),
not their full name.
-
A suitable reply is: “Good
morning, John. My name is Wang Jianfeng.” If you do not
include his name, it doesn’t matter too much but remember that the
examiner is a human being and hearing you say his name would be a pleasant
surprise for him! He will think of you, “What a nice person!”
-
Throughout the
speaking test, it is best to use the contracted forms of English whenever
possible but in this first answer, it is perfectly appropriate to say, “My
name is” rather than, “My name’s”.
It is appropriate here because when a person states his or her name
in a situation such as the IELTS interview, they usually want to say it very
clearly so that the listener makes no mistake with the name. Don't forget,
the examiner is verifying your identity here.
-
It’s ok to say, “Good
morning, John. My full name is Wang
Jianfeng.” but it’s not really necessary to repeat the word,
“full”. However, you definitely must say your complete name – don’t
just say, “My name’s Wang.”
-
Even though you are
speaking a Chinese name, you still should speak it clearly for the
foreigner. This is because it is important for the examiner to confirm that
it really is you sitting there and not your brother or someone else. The
examiner has your application form in front of him and your name is written
on it in hanyu pinyin. Remember, the examiner does not want to waste time by
asking you to repeat your name because he didn’t hear it clearly.
-
Don’t say, “My
Chinese name is _____”.
It is completely unnecessary to say the word, “Chinese” because the
purpose here is to check your legal identity, that is, your real name; you
only have one legal name and that is your Chinese name. The wording of the
question, “... your full name ...” shows that this is a serious question
and that the examiner wants you to say your real name. Your English name, if
you have one, is no more significant than a nickname; you can change it at
any time.
-
Don’t say, “Wang
is my family name and Jianfeng is my given name.” The question
didn’t ask you to explain your name. Sometimes there is a Part 1 topic
concerning ‘Names’ and in such a topic, explaining your name could be
suitable. But not here.
Saying that also gives the examiner the
feeling that your answer comes from an IELTS book. You should avoid causing
the examiner to think this because examiners very much prefer original
answers from you. The only time when it might be
appropriate to explain which is your surname and which is your given name is
if you are a Chinese person doing the IELTS test overseas.
-
Don’t call the
examiner, “Sir”, “Miss” or “Madame”. If you didn’t hear his or
her name, just say, “Good morning.” without saying his or her name.
Using “Sir”, “Miss” or “Madame” is a sign that you either
consider the examiner to be a teacher or that you are being unnecessarily
formal or that you consider the examiner to be your ‘superior’– you
should think of the examiner as an equal, not as someone superior to you. If
you think of the examiner as an equal, you will speak more openly, be more
relaxed and get a better score than if you think he or she is a superior,
or some kind of ‘examining god’. Remember, westerners are usually less
formal than Chinese people.
-
The examiner’s
question was, “Could you tell me your full name, please?” and this
sounds like a “Yes/No” question. However, this form of question is not
really a “Yes/No” question; it’s an indirect question, which really
means, “What is your full name?” Indirect questions are considered more
polite than direct questions.
-
Whenever you are
asked such an indirect question, you should not answer with, “Yes” or,
“Yes, I could.” Native English speakers sometimes do answer such
questions by first saying a very quick, “Yes” but you
should not say that because the examiner might think that you think it
really is a “Yes/No” question.
-
Some candidates give
an answer such as this: “My name is Wang
Jianfeng but you can call me Robert.” This answer is quite
acceptable and quite natural in a non-test situation, for example, if you
meet a foreigner on the bus. But I suggest you don't say that in the IELTS
Speaking test because some examiners might think that you already knew what
the second question is (“What can I call you?”) and that you had
rehearsed your answer and examiners don’t like answers that seem to be obviously
rehearsed. Not only that, adding the words, “... but you can call me
...” in a situation where someone is verifying your identity is a
little unsuitable.
- I
would say it is better not to add, “... but you can call me
...” in the Speaking test. Instead, wait for the examiner's second
question.
- Then
the examiner will say: “What
can I call you?” (Or, “What shall I call you?”)
-
You don’t
need to use an English name! But if you do use an English name, make sure
that it is simple and easy for the examiner to understand the first time you
say it. It’s probably best to use a fairly commonly used name. For
example, no English speaker chooses to be called, “Apple”, even as a
nickname. This kind of name could cause the examiner to ask you to repeat
your name because he might not be sure he heard it correctly.
-
If you do choose to
say an English name, make sure that you can pronounce it correctly!
Mispronouncing your own English (nick)name is an unnecessary mistake and
would not give the examiner a very good impression. For example, if your
English name is Harry, don’t say, “Just call me Hairy.” Or, if your
English name is Justin, don’t say, “Just call me Justine.”( Justine is
the female form of Justin and is pronounced differently).
-
Occasionally, a
candidate says something like, “Just call me by my English name, Yuki.”
But Yuki (and Suki) are Japanese names, not English names. And ‘Pierre’
is a French name (meaning, Peter). You won't lose points in the Speaking
test by making such errors but you won't impress the examiner with such
basic errors of fact (not errors of English). If you use a name other than
your Chinese name, find out if it is in fact an English name or not.
-
Most examiners are (or
should be) used to candidates saying, “Just call me Xiao Wang” but, to
be on the safe side, it might be better if you said, “Just call me Wang.” or, “Just call me Jianfeng.” without using the word “xiao”.
-
If you have a two-word
name such as Liu Xiang and if this is what you would like to be called,
don't say the name in exactly the same way as you said it in your answer to
the first question. For example, for the first answer, you should say
something like, “My name is Liu Xiang”, with the stress on your name.
But for the second question, you should say something like, “Just call me
Liu Xiang”, with the stress on the word “just”, not on your name this
time because it is not something new.
-
Many candidates say
something like, “You can call me
Stephen.” That
answer is ok but you should not pronounce ‘can’ as ‘kćn’.
Instead, you should pronounce it as ‘kən’ or even, “k’n” –
it should be pronounced in a quick, short way, not long as in ‘candle’
or ‘Canada’.
-
‘Can’ is
pronounced as ‘kćn’, a)
when we ask a question – “Can you help me?”, “Can you swim?” and,
b) when we want to emphasize, for example, when we say, “Yes, I can.”
However, it is pronounced as ‘kən’ or even, “k’n” when we
speak sentences such as: “I can speak English”, “I can drive a car”
and “I can play the piano.”
-
Some examiners will
not notice the pronunciation of this word but even those who don’t notice
will still feel that your English sounds natural if you say, ‘kən’
or sounds a little unnatural if you say, ‘kćn’.
-
Don’t say, “You
may call me Stephen.” because ‘may’, in this kind
of situation, is used when
giving permission to, or speaking to a person of inferior status.
-
Some candidates say: “You
can call me by my English name, Stephen.” That’s acceptable but
the examiner knows that Stephen is an English name, so why say it?
Certainly, you should avoid the mistake of saying, “You
can call me my English name, Stephen.” – this is a grammatical
mistake – you must use the word, ‘by’ in this expression. Similarly, “You
can call my English name, Stephen.” is incorrect.
- If
you feel that it's suitable and interesting to tell the
examiner where you got your English name or why you chose a certain English
name, then it is quite natural to add a small comment about that. Examiners
are interested in learning something new from candidates and they would like
a naturally stated piece of extra information. But keep it very short. (The
fact that your high school English teacher gave you your English name is not
interesting enough to say in this situation.)
- The
third question that the examiner will ask you is: “Could
you tell me where you’re from?” (Or, “Can you tell me
where you’re from?”)
Again, this is an indirect question, which
really means, “Please tell me where you’re from.” So don’t begin your
answer with, “Yes.”
-
Just saying,
“I'm from Heilongjiang.” or “I'm from Harbin.” is answering the
question but, since these questions are checking your identity, you should
give a more exact answer, i.e., don't just say the name of the province
where you are from and don't just say the name of the city or town – say
both.
-
In Chinese, you say
the province first and then the city or town. But in English, it is the
reverse of this – you should say the city or town first, followed by the
name of the province.
-
Some candidates say:
“I come from Shenyang, Liaoning Province.” That answer is not wrong but
it could be a little better. How? By using the contracted form of English:
“I’m from Shenyang, Liaoning
Province.” As a general rule, you should use contracted
English as much as you can, or as often as you remember in the IELTS
Speaking test. It’s the natural way to speak English and it’s more
fluent.
-
For this question, it
is suitable, (and perhaps a good idea) to add a small amount
of extra information if you want but try to say it quickly and in a short
sentence. For example you could say: “I’m
from Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning Province.” Or, “I’m from Shenyang, Liaoning Province. That’s in north-east
China.” (In that sentence, put the word stress on ‘east’, not
on ‘China’ because if you are doing the test in China, the examiner
knows you are from China so there is no need to emphasize that word.)
-
Make sure you don’t
make a grammatical error such as: “I’m from Shenyang, Liaoning,
north-east of China.” ‘North-east
of China’ means out of China (for example, Korea). The
correct phrase here is, ‘in the north-east of China’ or, ‘in
north-east China’.
-
If you come from a
small city, town or village then it is perfectly acceptable to add that kind
of information to your answer: “I’m from
Bai Shan City, a small city in Jilin Province, not far from the border with
North Korea.”
-
If you do the test in
your hometown (city), you should say something like this: “I’m
from here, Beijing.” And put the stress on the word,
‘here’. Don't answer the question in the same way you would if you were
doing the test away from your hometown. Your situation is different to many
other people and you should express this difference.
-
If you do the test in
your hometown (city), don’t say: “I’m a
local people” – ‘people’ is plural! However, it is quite
natural to say, “I’m a local person;
I’m from here, Beijing.”
-
If you’re from
Beijing and you do the test in China, don’t say: “I’m
from Beijing, the capital of China.” I think the examiner knows
that Beijing is the capital of China!! But if you do the test overseas, for
example in Australia or England, that answer is suitable.
-
Also, if you do the
test in your hometown it sounds a little inappropriate to use the word
‘come’ in your answer because you never traveled to get to the test; you
didn’t ‘come’. For example, “I come from Beijing.” sounds a little
strange if you are doing the test in Beijing. On the other hand, “I’m
from Beijing” sounds better, but as stated above, you really should
express the fact that your situation is different to that of other
candidates.
-
It is not suitable to
say something such as: “I’m from Qingdao, a beautiful coastal city in
Shandong.” Why is this not suitable? Firstly, it sounds like a
advertisement. Secondly, and more importantly, the word, ‘beautiful’ is
your opinion but the four questions in the introductory phase
of the test are really asking for facts, not opinions. It
would be acceptable if you just said, “I’m from Qingdao, a coastal city in Shandong.”
Describing Qingdao as
‘beautiful’ is not a major problem and you shouldn’t worry too much
about making that kind of slightly inappropriate reply. The
major problem with that answer is that you could cause the examiner to suspect
that your answer came from an IELTS book, instead of being your own, original
language.
On the other hand, if you said, “I’m from Xian, the capital of Shaanxi Province and it's also a
famous historical city”,
the answer would be more acceptable because the words, ‘famous’ and
‘historical’ sound more like facts rather than opinions.
-
Throughout the test,
don’t ask the examiner questions – it is the examiner who asks the
questions! It is inappropriate (although quite natural in a normal, non-test
situation) to say something such as: “I’m from Xian, the capital of
Shaanxi Province. It was the ancient capital of China for several dynasties.
Have you ever been there?”
-
Some candidates worry
about which place they should say when they answer where they come from. You
should choose the place where you grew up. If the address on your
application form is different to the place where you grew up, it is entirely
appropriate, and a good idea, to quickly explain your situation, for
example: “Well, I grew up in Changchun,
Jilin Province but I've been studying in Beijing for the past four years.”
Examiners know that many people move to different places to study or work.
-
Some people think that
they should answer by saying the name of the place where they were born. But
if you were born in Wuhan and your family moved to Beijing when you were
eight, you probably don't know much about Wuhan. In this example, to say
that you were from Wuhan would not normally be a problem in the introduction
phase of the test but it could cause a problem later in the test. For
example, there is often a Part 1 topic, ‘Hometown’,
and the examiner might ask you to talk about Wuhan. If this happened, you
would then have to explain your true situation because you don't remember
much about Wuhan. It would have been much better if you had explained your
situation in the introduction phase of the test because if you wait until
you are forced to explain your true situation, the examiner
might start to wonder if you really are the person on the application form! Be
honest and clear when you answer the 4 introduction questions. In the
other parts of the test, it doesn't matter if you tell a few small lies (or
even big lies!) – this is an English test, not an interview for a
job – but keep in mind that it is more difficult to talk in detail and
convincingly about things that are not true. And if the examiner realizes
that you have told a (major) lie, he or she could lose some respect for you.
This would not normally affect your score but if the atmosphere of your ‘conversation’
(the test) is spoiled then the examiner might be a little less
patient or friendly and that could affect your performance.
- The
final introduction question is: “Could
I see your identification, please?” You should have your 身份证
in your hand or on the table in front of you,
ready to give to the examiner.
-
Note that the examiner
doesn't really ask you to say anything. If you say nothing as you give your
ID card to the examiner, most examiners will not mind. (I remember that
when I was an examiner, I gave a final score of 7 to some candidates who
said nothing when they gave me their ID card. The important thing is what
you say in the rest of the test, not what you say, or do not say, as you
hand over your ID card!)
-
Nevertheless,
although most examiners would not consider it impolite if you didn’t say
anything, it would be best if you did say something. There are two reasons
for this: a) it is possible (although unlikely) that your examiner might
believe that you should say something, and, b) you have an
opportunity here to say something original.
- More
than 80% of candidates say, “Here
you are.” (or, “Sure.
Here you are.”) as they hand over their ID card. There is nothing
really wrong with this small sentence – it is suitable and it sounds
polite. However, many candidates in China have learned this sentence from a
book but have never actually heard a native speaker say it, even in a
recording. The fact is that this small sentence is most frequently used in spoken
English and is spoken quite fast and smoothly, with the major stress on the
word, ‘Here’. If you can say it so that it sounds ‘natural’, that
is, so that the examiner does not immediately think, “That’s from an
IELTS book!”, then it is ok. But my advice is try to find something else
to say because it sounds a little too rehearsed and since almost everybody
says it, it is so predictable and boring for examiners!
-
Some
candidates say, “Of
course.” or, “Of
course. Here you are.” I recommend that you do not
reply, “Of course” to any of the introduction questions because it
sounds somewhat overly polite, formal and unsuitable. (This is
my personal opinion, which might not be shared by every other native English
speaker or IELTS examiner.) To me, it sounds too much like the language used
by service people such as waiters. For example, if you were eating in an
expensive, high-class restaurant and you said to the waiter, “Could I have
a menu, please?”, a typical reply from the waiter would be, “Of course,
Sir. Here you are.” Don't confuse the polite language of a service person,
speaking to someone of ‘higher
status’, with the polite
language spoken between people of equal status.
-
Unfortunately, it is
difficult to find something original to say as you hand over your ID card,
especially now that most people in China have new ID cards. Before the new
cards came into use, some people could have said things such as: “My
card’s a bit old and tattered. I need to get a new one.”; “My hair was
long in this picture but that was five years ago.”; or, “I look like a
child in this picture.”
-
But
if you can find something original and interesting to say about your ID
card, consider saying that instead of, “Here you are.” as you show your
card to the examiner. For example, in some parts of China, ID cards have
hanyu pinyin as well as Chinese characters, and if you come from Xinjiang or
Tibet, you might also have some non-Chinese writing on your card.
-
You
should definitely not use the phrases, “Here
you go.” or, “There you go.”
as you hand over your ID card. The reason for this is that these phrases
sound too casual and can sound condescending (i.e., speaking down to
someone), and are used in situations such as handing an ice-cream to a child
or giving money to a beggar.
- For
this fourth question, I have advised you more on what you should not
say than on what you should say. To sum up, if you can't think of anything
original (and interesting) to say, just say a quick, “Sure.” as you hand
over your ID card.
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Final Note
Except for the obvious grammatical errors that I
have mentioned here, slightly inappropriate answers will not usually cause you
to lose points in the test. However, if you frequently give the examiner a poor
impression of your understanding of suitable English, and a poor impression of
your communication skills in this introductory phase of the test, it could influence the examiner's judgment.
Remember, first impressions are often the strongest.
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