IELTS Energy 1461: Is This a 4 for Fluency and Vocabulary?
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This is an IELTS Energy Podcast, Episode 1461. Is this a 4 for fluency and vocabulary?

Welcome to the IELTS Energy Podcast from All Ears English, downloaded more than 22 million times with former IELTS examiner Jessica Beck and Aubrey Carter, the IELTS whiz. If you are stuck with a low score, our insider method will help you get the score you need to unlock your dreams. Get your estimated band score now with our two-minute quiz. Go to allearsenglish.com

Today we'll share the definition of band 4 on speaking for fluency and vocabulary, learn from our very funny model answers for a band 4, then find out how to improve to a band 9, also from our amazing model answers.

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Aubrey, we had a fantastic listener question that we're going to talk about today, right? Yes, I'm excited to dive into this. A lot of you that are prepping for IELTS might not have any idea what score you would get. You might...

end up with a four if you really don't understand the scoring system. That's worst case scenario. Today, we are going to tell you everything you need to know to make sure that does not happen. Yeah. So even if, guys, even if you're sure you're not going to get a four, like even if you're like, I'm

definitely at least a six. Definitely listen still today guys because we're going to define each scoring category and tell you what the examiner is listening for plus give you some very funny model band for answers. But most of all guys just listen up to find out what the examiner wants to hear.

Yes. All right. So let's first read the question. This is from Sanjay, who said, Good evening. Two months ago, I took my IELTS exam. Sadly, I only got four bands in speaking. So my question is, how can I improve my English to get band six?

This is such a good question because if you score a four, there's a good chance you have no idea why, right? That's really what's pushing you up to the higher bands often is understanding the scoring system and knowing what the examiner's listening for. So this is an awesome question because a lot of you might not understand the scoring system enough to know what would even happen.

give you a four. And that can be a real problem. You need to make sure that you know what the examiner's listening for in order to get the six or the seven that you need. Yeah. I mean, shoot, guys, even native speakers might rock up to the IELTS exam having no knowledge of what they're expected to do, which fair, right? They're natives. They think,

I got this. And then they're asked a question like, how often do you go shopping? And they'll give like a two word answer, you know, once a week. That was three words, but that was a once a week. That's, you know, four or lower. I mean, that's not even a complete sentence. Right. Imagine they get a four and it's like, well, you didn't give enough detail, but I answered the question. Like you just don't know enough what is required. And that can give you a low score just because

You don't have all the details. Exactly. So this is going to be super fun today, guys. We're going to go one by one, give you the definition of a four for each category, and then model that in an answer. And of course, tell you how to do better. So Aubrey, what is a four for fluency and coherence?

Okay, so for fluency and coherence, unable to keep going without noticeable pauses. So a lot of hesitation between words, thinking of the word that you need, right? Speech may be slow with frequent repetition. So speaking too slowly, trying to think of vocab, repeating the same ideas, repeating the same words, often self-corrects.

So we've talked about that, you know, you can correct yourself one or two times, no problem. But if it's happening often, then your score is being pulled down. Well, it wrecks your fluency. I mean, imagine like what is fluency? Fluency is when a listener can hear you and have no problem following you. It is smooth. It is natural, right? And so all of these things Aubrey is saying, why?

wrecks, right? Ruins that fluency, that smoothness that we want to hear as a listener. Aubrey, what's the rest of that four description?

And then it says, can link simple sentences, but often with repetitious use of connectives. So these are the linking words, the transitions that we talk about a lot. If you're repeating using the same ones over and over, sure, you're linking simple sentences, but you're repeating the linking phrases. Again, can score a four for that.

I call this the and, and, and, because, because, because problem. Next, next, next. Yes, totally. Right? Okay. So let's try and model what this is. Aubrey, can you ask me that question, please? All right, Jessica, give us a good band four answer here. Do women pay more attention to their health than men?

Health in women and men, women and men, women, women exercise and, and, and men, men exercise, men exercise.

It's so hard. The perfect answer. I know it is difficult for you guys out there. I can see this being a boost of confidence. Like, okay, I know my answers are better than that. I know, totally. Awesome.

Because yeah, what you're hearing, you're hearing a lot of hesitation, repetition of both vocabulary ideas, connectives, and a lot, the filler um over and over and over, all of these things that are keeping you from scoring higher than a four. Totally. So...

I mean, let's keep this simple, guys. How do we get better in fluency and coherence? Well, you need to speak smoothly. You need to jump from one word to the next easily without repetition, without ums and uhs and pauses, and you need to use a variety of linking words.

Exactly. Should we give a higher scoring example of an answer for this, Jessica? Sure. You know what? It just occurred to me, Aubrey, that we're giving you guys a lot of material for each scoring section right here. So today we are going to do the first two categories, fluency and coherence. And

And the next episode, we will do the last two categories because we're giving you a lot of great models and information today. Love that. Good idea. So this will be a part two series. Definitely come back Friday to hear the second two scoring categories. And that way we can give you a low scoring and a high scoring example for each category.

Exactly. Exactly. All right. So Aubrey's going to provide a much higher scoring answer to that same question. And again, guys, we're only listening and focusing on fluency and coherence right now. So as you listen, think about why Aubrey's answer would score well here. All right. Aubrey, do women pay more attention to their health than men?

Ooh, for me, absolutely not. I definitely pay less attention to my physical well-being than the average man that I know. I am really terrible about eating all of the unhealthy things. I exercise, but not really for my health, but rather because I think it's fun. So without a doubt, this is a stereotype that is not true for me personally, but in general, it's true for me.

I have a feeling that I am the exception to the rule and most women do care about their health. Thank you. Now, again, that is what you want to happen to prove your fluency. You want the examiner to interrupt you like I just interrupted Aubrey, right? Because remember guys.

The examiner must ask you a certain number of questions in that short time span, so we will interrupt you. All right, so obviously for fluency and coherence, that would be a nine. We can think of fluency and coherence like this.

Did it sound easy for you to speak English? Did it sound like you enjoyed speaking English? Yes and yes, right? But more specifically, let's think about the coherence itself. So fantastic phrases there, even in a part one answer saying without a doubt, but in general. So these sort of transition phrases, don't save them for part three. These are great for part one as well.

Yeah, and I love that you pointed out this is good for the examiner to interrupt you, especially for fluency and coherence. It shows you could have spoken for a long time about that. That is showing your fluency. Save on Cox Internet when you add Cox Mobile and get fiber-powered internet at home and unbeatable 5G reliability on the go. So whether you're playing a game at home or attending one live,

You can do more without spending more. Learn how to save at Cox.com slash internet. Cox internet is connected to the premises via coaxial cable. Cox mobile runs on the network with unbeatable 5G reliability as measured by UCLA LLC in the U.S. to age 2023. Results may vary, not endorsement of the restrictions apply. All right, let's move on to the next scoring category of vocabulary. Aubrey, how can students sadly get a four for vocab?

Yeah, let's look at the scoring system here for four. Resources sufficient for familiar topics, but only basic meaning can be conveyed on unfamiliar topics. So think about part three here. If you're asked a question that's a little more difficult, if it's clear to the examiner that this is pretty unfamiliar and you're really searching, you're having a difficult time providing any kind of detail, any kind of information on that unfamiliar topic,

that's going to be a four. Exactly, exactly. And also it is in the exact words that you choose, are they correct or not, right? So a four student is going to

as the descriptor says, have frequent inappropriacies and errors in word choice. So you're using the words wrong, right? So this is very important for you guys to take note of though. Don't take risks on exam day. If you take a risk and you use that phrase incorrectly, it will lower your vocabulary score. So only use words that you're sure of.

Yes. And then also rarely attempts paraphrase. So this is part of this might be repetition of similar ideas said in the same way or repeating the question. So you're asked a question, you say it back exactly the way they asked it as your filler. Instead, try to paraphrase it, say it another way if you need a second to think to show the examiner that you are able to restate that to paraphrase. Exactly. Exactly.

I find this also is exhibited when students are stopped because they can't think of a vocabulary word. You can show your paraphrasing abilities by defining or giving examples of a word that you can't think of. That is also paraphrasing.

Great example, right? The examiner sees that, that second where you can't think of the word you were looking for. What do you do then? Do you say it another way? Do you paraphrase the idea? And you can't have a long pause while you think of how to paraphrase it or your fluency and coherence is going down. So you have to practice that to be able to, if you get stuck, can't think of the exact word that's on the tip of your tongue, paraphrase it, say it another way.

Exactly. Exactly. All right. So we're going to reverse our roles and Aubrey is going to give the ban, for example, because it's more difficult. It will be difficult. All right. So here's a part three question. Could governments do more to promote healthier lifestyle options?

Yes, governments could do more to promote healthier lifestyle options. The healthiest lifestyle option I can think of is attending a gym frequently and governments could promote that healthy lifestyle option. Okay, good.

There weren't any mistakes in word choice because that's really hard for us to do. We're like, what word is wrong here? But something that is a lot of repetition. Yeah. The feature of the four there. We we heard repetition. We heard the exact words from the question used a lot. Right. That guys, that is such a four.

All right. Are you ready to give us a better example, Jessica? Let's see six or higher for the same question. Could governments do more to promote healthier lifestyle options? Oh, for sure. I mean, I think a lot of people these days are very resistant to governments having any control over their lives. But I think

if it impacts their health, their literal lifespan, then yes, the governments should take action. The first example that comes to mind, which is really famous, you might have heard of it, is when New York banned those enormous buckets of soft drinks. And initially, people pushed back. They were like, no, I want to have my bucket of soda. But why? Like, you don't need that. So I don't even care if people are mad at first.

They'll get used to it, right? So yes, I think the government should take action to have less processed food available, replace fast food chains with healthier options, even chains like Chipotle. I mean, it's a chain, but it's healthy. I love Chipotle.

Nice. Okay, thank you. Oh man, so much great vocabulary. Notice the difference, right? All I did was repeat the vocabulary from the question and then tried to answer the question, but not using anything but the vocabulary for the question. Whereas Jessica used all of these interesting details, which

pulled out this more interesting vocabulary, resistant to control, impacts your literal lifespan. And then specific details, this example of New York banning enormous buckets of soft drinks. This is all band nine vocabulary. It's less common. And it's coming because instead of just repeating the question in order to make sure you don't make a mistake, you're sharing examples, you're sharing details from your life, what you know about this question. And then I love this

strategy that you guys can use. If ever there's something you think is kind of silly or foolish, the way Jessica said, "But why? You don't need to do that." Right? Instead of saying like, "I think this is a foolish mistake." This gives you more interesting intonation and vocabulary. Use this chunk. It's very fun.

Don't be afraid to be a little bit silly to show some passion, right? Some outrage slash enthusiasm. I mean, whatever emotion is behind what you're saying, go full force into that.

Absolutely. Okay. I'm excited for part two of this. So guys, make sure to follow if you're not, because we will go into the other two scores, grammar and pronunciation. What could make you get a four and how can you avoid that? Make sure that you boost your scores on all four sections of the score for the speaking exam. Awesome. These are very fun episodes. I'm excited to meet you again in the next part, Aubrey. And guys, we'll see you next time. Awesome. See you there. Bye. Bye.

Thanks for listening to IELTS Energy. Hit subscribe now and don't forget to find your estimated band score at allearsenglish.com slash myscore.