Please assess my IELTS Speaking :)

[hokinhdat]

Hi everyone,

This is my first attempt for the IELTS speaking test. Would appreciate all of your inputs so that I can improve.

http://www.ieltsnetwork.com/download/file.php?id=429

I'm from Vietnam, and I'm planning to sit the test in Feb 2015, so I've only got a month left to prepare for it. I think that I'm still weak at vocabulary for some topics, and also the cohesion and coherence in my speech. Any tips on wrapping up my speech ?

Also, I would appreciate some tips on being concise yet comprehensive in my content so that I wouldn't exceed the 2-minute limit. I wonder if the examiner would let me finish my speech if it lasts for 2.5 - 3 mins.

The topic is as follows:
Describe your favourite season.
You should say:
- what the season is and when it occurs
- what the weather is like during this season
- what your typical activities are during this season
and explain why it is your favourite season.

Thank you in advance for your help .

Best,
Dat

P.S. I'm also curious to know roughly what band score my current speaking skill could mostly achieve.

[lmoore]

Hello, Dat, and thank you for sharing this information about the lunar new year in Vietnam! It sounds like a lot of fun, especially the “lucky money” part.
First, I want to say that you’re going to be fine on the IELTS. I cannot give you an estimated band score, but I will say that you will have no problem getting whatever score you want as your mistakes are very minor and few.
Your pronunciation is very easy to understand, and your accent is like that of a native. It sounds like you’ve grown up around a lot of English speakers. I would, however, encourage you to watch the “th” sound, as it often sounds like you’re saying “d.” You might consider doing some studying of syllable emphasis to improve your overall pronunciation as well. For example, you said “grandCHILDREN” instead of “GRANDchildren.” The emphasis on this word is on the first syllable. You also said “with ONE another” instead of “with one ANOTHER.”
The organization of your speech was good, although I would encourage you to use more transition words to link one idea to the next. As far as coherence goes, I think you might have spent a bit too much time talking about the activities of the day. This could also be why you spoke for a little longer than you should have. I understood the flow of your speech, and that is the most important thing. Using transitions and staying more focused in your answer would help improve this area, though.
Your vocabulary level is high. I heard “glutinous,” “as compared to,” “determined,” and “so-called.” One error was “busy with our own APPLICATIONS in life.” This word doesn’t make sense in this context. You might have said, “busy with our own lives.” You also said, “the weather is pretty cooling,” but you might have said, “the weather is pretty COOL.”
As far as grammar goes, you have a solid grasp of it, but here are a few notes:
-determined based on – The phrase is “determined BY.”
-usually on the first day of the new year we would/ our grandparents would give out
/ we would gather at - WILL instead of would
-we eat with some sweet and sour pickles – we eat IT with some. . .
Best wishes as you continue to practice!

[hokinhdat]

Dear Imoore,

I wonder how you would like me to address you.

First of all, thank you so much for putting aside the time and effort to listen and critique my speaking. Your comments are indeed very useful. They help me become more aware of my mistakes which are usually unknown to me.

As for my accent, I used to have a heavy Vietnamese accent, but I guess watching tons of American TV series like Friends, Heroes, The Big Bang Theory, etc. did help a lot. That's how I improved my accent. It's indeed very difficult, if not impossible to get rid of my L1's influence, though doing so would drastically improve my speech's understandability. I wish I had the chance to live with and talk to native speakers on a daily basis though.

Oh, regarding one of your comments, what I said was "busy with our own obligations in life", but perhaps it sounded like "applications" haha.

I hope to post more recordings here and look forward to your comments so that I can improve further. I think adding "transition words" is a great advice as it enhances the cohesion of my sentences. Will try to incorporate your advice into my next recording.

Thank you so much!

Best,
Dat

[hokinhdat]

My Speaking Attempt 2 Would appreciate your valuable feedback! I hope I have some improvements this time compared to my first attempt. I wonder if my marks will be deducted if I used too many fillers like "uh...umm..." while searching for words to express my ideas.

http://www.ieltsnetwork.com/download/file.php?id=436

Cue Card:

Describe your holidays
-Where do you go for the holidays and how long do they last?
-Who do you go with?
-Talk about any interesting things happening during your holidays.

[lmoore]

Hi, Dat,
You really hit the nail on the head with this speech. You incorporated several transitions, some of which were rather sophisticated. I heard “Let me tell you my best experience,” “We did several exciting activities. One of them is. . .” I also like how you brought the speech back around to a conclusion with the black sand beach story. I also heard, “overall.”
Your vocabulary was really good as well. I heard “rarely,” “spectacular,” “eye-opening,” and “cuisine.” You pronounced them all really well. I would suggest that you work on the “u” in spectacular, however. The “u” should sound like “yoo” in this word instead of “oo.”
I also liked how you gave different examples of fruit. That also helped the organization of your speech.
and immerse in different countries – immerse MYSELF
we can even swim there at the beach – we COULD for past tense
eye-opening and enjoyable trip – AN eye-opening and enjoyable trip
Your watching television definitely helped with your accent. I am glad that you shared this so that other students can gain encouragement from your experience.
Best wishes as you continue to practice!

[lmoore]

Also, I don't think you used too many fillers.

[hangvu]

hey there. i'm from vietnam too and i also take ielts in feb.
btw, must say ur accent is really good. love that

[hokinhdat]

Hi Hang,

Thank you for your compliment. I haven't got much time to prep for the test recently...

My test is on 12 Feb (HCMC), what about yours? Perhaps we can say hi to each other at the testing venue haha.

All the best for your preparation and the IELTS test.

Best,
Dat

[hokinhdat]

Hi, Dat,
You really hit the nail on the head with this speech. You incorporated several transitions, some of which were rather sophisticated. I heard “Let me tell you my best experience,” “We did several exciting activities. One of them is. . .” I also like how you brought the speech back around to a conclusion with the black sand beach story. I also heard, “overall.”
Your vocabulary was really good as well. I heard “rarely,” “spectacular,” “eye-opening,” and “cuisine.” You pronounced them all really well. I would suggest that you work on the “u” in spectacular, however. The “u” should sound like “yoo” in this word instead of “oo.”
I also liked how you gave different examples of fruit. That also helped the organization of your speech.
and immerse in different countries – immerse MYSELF
we can even swim there at the beach – we COULD for past tense
eye-opening and enjoyable trip – AN eye-opening and enjoyable trip
Your watching television definitely helped with your accent. I am glad that you shared this so that other students can gain encouragement from your experience.
Best wishes as you continue to practice!

Hi Imoore,

I really appreciate your detailed critique and constructive feedback. I really hope that I can be a contributor of one of those success stories, so that I can share my strategies with IELTS takers too. We'll see in Feb! haha

Hope you're doing well.

Best,
Dat

[Sherie]

Hi Dat
I hope you don't mind me jumping in; I've been following your thread. My name is Sherie, in UK and recently took the test. I have not got my results yet but already know that I did not do particularly well in the writing; I'm going to register to resit on Feb 12 like you. Would you mind sharing?

[Sherie]

I can share my experience if that's any help.

[hokinhdat]

Hi Dat
I hope you don't mind me jumping in; I've been following your thread. My name is Sherie, in UK and recently took the test. I have not got my results yet but already know that I did not do particularly well in the writing; I'm going to register to resit on Feb 12 like you. Would you mind sharing?

Hi Sherie,

Hope your overall result was still good though! I guess I'm also not as confident about writing as the other skills.

Could you share with me the topic for the writing module that appeared on your writing test, and your speaking test too?

What's your desired overall band score though, if I may ask?

Dat

[saqibali]

I am not looking for speaking partner but I can give you some time and volunteer to help you.