IELTS Part 2 and Part 3 Topics and Questions
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676. A Song (Sep, 2015) (Probably no longer used)
680.
FQ = frequent question = a question that has frequently been reported = a question that is probably in the examiner's question book
* = my guess at a question
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Notes
This might be a repetition of Topic 452, although the Part 3 might be a little different.
The words,
The line, "
Of course, for some people, the words of their national anthem would fit this topic. But not all national anthems have words - some are just composed of music.
See also the Part 3 of
Singing and Songs in Your Country
Do people in your country like to sing? See Note 10
(Possibly the question above is this)
Where do they sing?
Do you think it is appropriate to sing in public?
Are there any special places where people sing?
(Especially for East
Asians) Why do people in your country like karaoke (or KTV) so much?
Why not sing in other places?
What kinds of songs do they sing in karaoke bars?
What kinds of music do people like to sing to?
Which do you think is more important in a song, the music or the lyrics?
What effects do you think singing has on people? See Note 2
Do young people (possibly
including children) and old (or, older) people like the same kinds of songs?
(Similar to above) Do you and your parents like the
same songs (or, the same kinds of songs)?
Do children and young people such as teenagers like the same kinds of songs?
(Similar to above)
Have you ever been to a concert to listen to songs?
At school, did your whole class ever sing songs together?
Have you ever sung in a choir? (e.g., at school)
How do you think someone could become a professional singer?
Can you suggest how a person could improve their singing ability
The Music Industry
Do people in your country often listen to foreign singers (or, foreign songs)?
Do you have a favourite singer or musician?
How has the music industry changed, compared to when you were a child?
Do you think the internet is good for the music industry?
Music and Traditional Culture
Do you have a traditional type of music in your country?
Is it an important part of your culture?
(Similar to above) Do people feel that this music is very important?
How do you feel when you hear it?
Children Singing / Children's Songs
Do you think children like to sing?
(Similar to above) Do you still like listening to
(or singing) the songs that you liked when you were a child?
Do boys and girls usually prefer to sing (or, listen to) the same kinds of songs?
Is music an important subject in schools in your country?
How would you write (or, compose) a children's song?
677. An Important Celebration (Sep, 2015) (Probably no longer used)
Noise
This might be a repetition of Topic 287.
For Chinese people and other East Asians - if you choose to talk about the Spring Festival (Chinese New Year), try not to sound too much like you are speaking a rehearsed answer. The examiners have heard about this festival many times, especially if they are also English teachers. So try to make your answer original (a little different) and interesting to listen to, and not like a "speech". You might even want to consider choosing a different festival and try to teach the examiner something new, i.e., something they don't already know. Examiners appreciate learning something new from candidates.
The words, "an important holiday" can also apply to a holiday that is not part of your traditional culture but is relatively new, such as the holiday celebrating the birth of your nation (e.g., National Day in China).
Some Chinese candidates are referring to this topic as, "An Important Festival". I might be wrong but I suspect that the word "festival" might not actually be written on the card. Instead, I think these candidates are referring to the way this topic is named on some Chinese IELTS website instead of relying on their own memory of what was written on the card. For English speakers, the word "festival" is more commonly used to refer to festive or joyous publicly held events rather than events such as The Chinese New Year. Although events such as Chinese New Year are celebrated by the public as a whole, they are not really publicly held events, which means (large) groups of the public come together to celebrate them. For example, in English we have "pop festivals", where large crowds of people come together to hear live pop music performances. Other "festivals" involve the celebration of some special date such as a special religious day, when many people come to watch some kind of public performance or parade, buy special foods or engage in certain public, group activities.
See also any relevant questions from the Part 3 of
Traditional
What are some traditional celebrations that you have in your culture (country)?
What do
you (or, people) do during these festivals?
(Similar to above) How do people celebrate these festivals (holidays)?
Do people usually exchange (any special) gifts at these times?
Do
people celebrate them more with their friends or with their family?
Are there any special places where these holidays are celebrated?
Do you think that the money that is spent during these celebrations is a waste of money?
Do you think that most people know the original reasons why these traditional holidays are celebrated?
Do you think it's important to
celebrate (or, observe) these traditional festivals?
What do you think would happen if a country had no festivals? See Note 12
Do you think business affects (or, influences) traditional festivals more than traditional festivals affect (or, influence) business?
Are there any newer (festivals / events) that are celebrated in your country?
Do you ever have music festivals in your country?
Are traditional Western festivals also celebrated in your country? See Note 3
What's your opinion about celebrating Western holidays (or, festivals) in your country?
Why do you think young people are more interested in traditional Western festivals than older people?
How do you think celebrating traditional festivals and holidays is different to celebrating other events such as the Olympic Games, a concert etc?
Do you think it's important for every country to have a special "National Day"?
Holidays / Vacations from Work or School
How do people in your country generally spend their holidays (vacations) if they don't travel during these holidays?
What do you think are the benefits of having a holiday from work or school / university?
Which do you think is better, several short holidays throughout the year or just a few longer holidays?
Travel, Tourism and Traditional Festivals
Do people travel much during the traditional festivals?
Do you think many people visit some foreign countries when traditional festivals are being celebrated in those countries?
Personal Celebrations
Are
there any celebrations in your country that are more personal in nature
What are the differences between public celebrations and private ones?
Is every birthday important to you (or, to people in your country)?
Do you think (celebrating) one's birthday is more important for children than for adults?
Why do
most people commemorate their wedding anniversary?
Do you think some people
spend too much money on personal celebrations
Describe what you like to do when you have a day off, free from work or study.
You
should say:
where you go
what you do there
who you do it with
and explain how you feel at the end of this day.
Describe what you would do if you had a day off, free from work or study.
You
should say:
where you would go
what you would do there
who you would do it with
and explain why you would spend the day this way. * (the most likely last line)
or
Describe a day off that you recently had, free from work or study.
You
should say:
where you went
what you did there
who you did it with
and explain how you felt at the end of this day
See also the Part 3 of
Being Busy / Leisure Time
Is it important to you to have some time to rest from your work / study?
In your opinion, are people today happier than they were in the past?
What do people in your country like to do when they are not busy?
Do you think modern lifestyles give people enough time for leisure?
Do you think it’s
important for people to have leisure time (time to relax)?
(Similar to above) What
are the benefits of people having a day off from work or study?
Do you think students
should have more free time (time off study) than they have now?
Do old people and young people spend their leisure time or relax in the same way?
Do you think modern technology has changed the way people today spend their free time, compared to several decades ago? See Note 11
(Similar to above)
(Similar to above) Do you think men and women
generally do the same things
Do you think that men and women are equally free to participate in leisure activities outside the home?
Do you think working women today spend their after-work time in the same way that working women did in the past?
Which do you think is
better, to have one day off (several times) or to have several days off
together?
Work
Do many people work overtime in your country?
In what ways does working long hours affect one's family?
In general, how do you think the work that people do today is different to the work that people were doing several decades ago?
What effects does the development of technology have on the work that people do today?
Retirement
What is the normal retirement age in your country?
Do you think that's the best (or, most suitable) age to retire? *
Do you think it's suitable for the government to have a law about what age people have to retire?
Do you think the government should change the current retirement age?
The topic of "A Film" is almost
always in the test. So there are many past questions you could look at. I
suggest you concentrate on the past
Films in Your Country
Do you often watch films? (or, How often do you watch a film?)
What are the most popular types of films in your
country?
Do males and females prefer to watch the same kinds of films?
Are there any differences between your film watching habits now and your film watching habits when you were a child? FQx2
(Similar to above) What types of films did you watch when you were a child?
Do you think the films that children today watch are
different to the films that children watched when you were a child?
Do you think there is much difference between the films that people watch today and those of the past? See Note 8
Would you say that middle-aged (or, older, or elderly)
people like to watch the same kinds of films that young people watch
Do you think people's tastes (preferences) in films change as they grow older?
Do you think films can teach people anything? (= have
educational value)
Do you think that (popular films) should try to educate people?
Do you think people can learn facts about history from films (and TV programs)?
Do teenagers learn much from films?
Are foreign movies very popular in your country?
Do you prefer to watch foreign films or domestic films?
What are the major differences between Hollywood films
and those made in your country?
(Similar to above)
Do you prefer
Do these foreign films usually have subtitles in your language?
Are these films usually in the original language (e.g., English), or are they usually dubbed into your language?
Which do you think is better, foreign films with subtitles in your language, or foreign films that are dubbed into your language?
Do you like to watch old films?
Children and Films / Films for Education
Do children in your country watch many films?
In what ways are children's films different to films for adults?
Do you think children's films today are different to children's films when you
were a child (or, children's films in the past)?
What kinds of films do you children should, and should not be able to watch?
How would you suggest children be prevented from watching films that are only suitable for adults?
Do you think films are (or, could be) useful in education
(Similar to above) What sorts of films do you think are suitable for showing at a school?
What benefits can schoolkids get from watching a film
at school?
The Quality of Films
How would you define (or, describe) "a good film"?
(Similar) What do you think are the key points for determining the quality of a film?
Do you think modern technology helps to produce better movies?
Do you think it's necessary to have famous actors in a
film in order for the film to be "successful"
(Similar to above) Would you say that a film starring the most popular film star in your country would guarantee the success of that film?
Do you think it's really necessary to spend millions of dollars in order to make a good film?
Would you like to attend a film school?
Where People Watch Films
Where do you usually watch films?
(Similar)
How often do you watch a film in a cinema?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of watching a
film at home, as opposed to watching it in a cinema?
In what ways are cinemas today different to cinemas
when you were a child?
Can you suggest why fewer and fewer people are going to cinemas nowadays?
Do you think that's a positive trend?
Do you think cinemas might one day disappear? See Note 4
Notes
This might be a repetition of Topic 576, although the Part 3 might be a little different.
It might just say, "
See also the Part 3 questions for
Family Relations in Your Country
How important do you think one's family relationships are?
(Similar to above) Do you think having good relations with one's family is
important
Who are
more important to you, friends or family?
What
are the differences between a relationship with one's parents and a
relationship with a good friend?
Do you
think that the concern that friends have for each other is the same as the
concern that family members have for each other?
What responsibilities do family members usually have (towards other family members)?
To what
extent do you think government has responsibilities towards families? (What
responsibilities?)
Would you say that parents in your country have different attitudes towards the sons and towards their daughters?
What
would you say are the advantages of having strong relations with members of
one's family?
In what ways do family members support each other?
What kind of family activities are popular in your country?
How can people best get along with their family members?
What do you usually do with your family during national holidays and festivals?
Would you say that family members in your country are closer to each other than family members in the West, or more distant?
Why do
some family members not live with the other family members
The Structure of Families in Your Country
In your country today, what is the structure of the typical family?
How many children does the typical family in your country have?
Do families in the cities generally have the same number of children as families in the countryside?
What do you think are some of the advantages and disadvantages of big families as opposed to smaller families?
In your
country,
What
are some of the pros and cons of three generations living together?
Do you think grandparents can provide useful advice for the younger members of a family?
Whose
responsibility do you think it should be to look after old people – the
government's responsibility or the family’s?
Which do you think is better, to have families financially support old members of the family, or to have the government provide a pension for old people?
(For candidates in China) What effects do you think the "One Child Policy" has had on society?
Do you think children who have no brothers or sisters tend to be given too much attention (or, spoiled)?
Do you think people are less likely to cook meals at home and eat with the family if the family just consists of two parents and one child?
Are there many divorces in your country? *
Family Roles
Do you think that
Do you think there should be an equal sharing of the housework between a married couple?
Unlike Chinese and possibly some other languages, in English we do not always need to say "sing songs" or "sing a song" because, in 95% of cases, what we sing is automatically a "song". However, it is not "wrong" to occasionally say, "sing a song".
If the question is worded that way, then you could talk about the effects both on the people who sing, and the effects on the people who listen to songs.
Here's a question to think about, although it has never been reported in the IELTS test. "Why do McDonalds restaurants in China make such a big deal about Christmas when Christianity is very much a minority religion in China? (The total number of Christians in China is in the tens of millions, out of a total Chinese population of 1.4 billion, i.e. a small minority.) Don't forget, Christmas is basically a religious celebration, celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Of course, this same situation exists in other countries in Asia and elsewhere, and other businesses besides McDonalds such as some department stores and shopping malls also display Christmas decorations, Christmas trees, pictures of Santa Claus etc. as well as playing recordings of Christmas songs & music at Christmas time. (Hint: cultural imperialism)
Here in Sydney I see many former cinemas, built 70 to 90 years ago, that have not disappeared. Being "former cinemas" means that they are no longer "cinemas", so in that sense many cinemas have indeed disappeared. But the buildings still remain because they are not only beautiful and ornate on the outside, they also are very useful for conversion to other uses since they are so big inside. Some of them now contain several shops and restaurants inside the one building, while others are used as warehouses etc. At the same time, a few new cinemas have been built in recent years, possibly because they are more amenable to the technology of showing modern film than the old cinemas.
This is how the question was reported and it
might be accurate. However, a different question might be asked -
Remember, "traditional" applies to something that has been part of your culture for usually hundreds or even thousands of years.
Depending on the exact wording of this questions, it could be interpreted to mean "the medium of film in general", not simply popular entertainment films such as those from Hollywood.
Of course, watching many popular films is necessary for cinematography students (students studying film making).
Watching popular films would also be a good exercise for those tertiary students studying the topics of mass communication and mass propaganda.
Know the word, "choir", including the pronunciation of that word.
A question like that, asking about films "from the past" and not just in your childhood, allows you to talk about films from 30 or more years ago, even before you were born.
"In the home" and "in the family" are different. "In the home" means in the place, a flat or house, where one lives. "In the family" means "in the family relationship". For example, a man might do no work in the home (housework) but he might work 60 hours per week outside the home to finance the family.
Of course,
This is probably hinting at the fact that many people spend a lot of their free time on the internet.
A similar question might be, "What do you think it would be like to live in a country that had no festivals?"
These questions are testing grammar more than anything else.
Both a) & b) have been reported but I think a) is the more likely wording.