ielts-yasi.englishlab.net

Updated Nov. 19, 2007

IELTS Part 2 and Part 3 Topics and Questions 

Page 14

66.    A Hotel    (September 16, 2006)  (Probably no longer used)

67.    Clothes   (October 28, 2006)  (Probably no longer used)

68.    Last Weekend   (January 6, 2007)  (Probably no longer used)

69.    An Open-air Market   (January 6, 2007)  (Probably no longer used)

70.    A Person You Live With   (January 6, 2007)  (Probably no longer used)

RETURN TO PART 2 TOPIC INDEX

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66.  A Hotel    (September 16, 2006)  (Probably no longer used)

Describe a hotel you visited (or stayed at) or have seen.

               You should say:

                           (why you went there)

                           where it was

                           what the name of the hotel was

                           what the hotel looked like (or, what type of hotel it was; or what facilities it had)

                and explain why people like to/choose to stay at this hotel.

                        [or

               and explain what the hotel was like (= explain your impressions of this hotel

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Possible follow-up question:

• Would you recommend that hotel to your friends?

• Do you often stay at a hotel?

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Part 3

Accommodation When Traveling

• When people are traveling away from home, what choices do they have for places to stay? (What kinds of hotels does China have?) FQ

• Which of these is the most popular?

• What different kinds of accommodation are there in your hometown or city? FQ

• Which one would you recommend to a friend who was visiting your hometown or city?

• What are the differences between living at home and staying in a hotel?

• Are there any 'home stays' in China for visitors?

• How have hotels changed (improved) in recent years (or, compared to the past)? FQ

Hotel Facilities and Services

• What facilities should a (good) hotel have? FQ

• When people visit a different city (or country), how do they choose which hotel to stay at? FQ

• What could be done to improve the quality of the environment (e.g., the appearance) in some hotels?

• What could be done to improve the level of service in hotels? FQ

• What kind of people (what kind of personal qualities) are best suited to work in a hotel? (= What qualities do service people in hotels need to have?) FQ

• Do you think it's important that they have these qualities?

• Do you think hotel staff should be very intelligent?

• Do you think it is worth staying at a 4 or 5 star hotel?

• (As above) What do you think of 4 and 5 star hotels?

• What are some of the things that guests can do in a hotel, both in their rooms and out of their rooms?

Tourism

• Is tourism an important industry in China? 

• How has tourism contributed to the (economic) development of your hometown (or the place where you live now or China)?

• (Similar to above) In general, how can tourism contribute to the economy of the place where tourists go?

• How has tourism developed in recent years in China? * (= recent changes)

• Has tourism had any bad effects on your hometown (or, the place where you live now; or, on China)?  FQ

• (As above) Does (or can) tourism ever have any negative affects on that tourist location or on the people who live there? FQ

• (As above) Can tourism to a certain place ever damage the culture of the people who live there? FQ

• Do you think tourists would travel to a place that didn't have good hotels?

• Do you think hotels in China that are mostly for foreign tourists should include a lot of Chinese culture in their hotels, for example, in the decorations? FQ

• (Related to above) How do you think hotels in China that are for foreign tourists can reflect Chinese culture or 'a taste of China'?

• (Related to above) Do you think a foreigner can get a good understanding of a country just from the hotel that he or she is staying in? FQX2

• What can hotel service people (hotel employees) do to help (foreign) tourists? FQ

• Do you think it's important for hotels to provide information for visitors? FQ

• Is the hotel industry an important part of China's economy? FQ

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67.  Clothes   (October 28, 2006)  (Probably no longer used)

(This topic was probably first used in the Oct. 21 test or the Oct 14 test.)

Describe an item of clothing that you recently bought. 

               You should say:

                               what it is

                               what it looks like

                               when & where you bought it                

               and explain why you bought it. *

                            or

              and explain why you like it. *

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Possible follow-up question:

• Do you often buy clothes?

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Part 3

Buying Clothes

• Do you like shopping (for clothes)? FQ

• Do you like window-shopping for clothes? FQ

• What style of clothes do you like? FQ

• What styles of clothing do you dislike? FQ

• Do many people around you like buying clothes?

• What are some influences that affect the choices young people make when they buy clothes? FQ

• Does the media affect people's choices of clothes? (Hint: advertising)  FQ

• How do you (or, how do people) choose (=decide) what style of clothing to buy? FQ

• (As above) What factors do people consider when they buy clothes? FQ

• Compare the materials and fashions of today's clothing with those of the past. FQ

• Do men and women have the same buying habits when they buy clothes? FQX2

• (Similar to above) Do men and women have the same attitudes towards clothes? FQX2 (Compare the differences)

• What are the differences between the clothes old people wear (or, buy) and those that young people wear? FQ

Uniforms and Work Clothes

• Many school students have to wear a school uniform and some people have to wear a uniform at work. What do you think of this? FQ

• Do you think employees should wear a uniform?

• Are there any good points about wearing a uniform? FQX2

• Are there any bad points about wearing a uniform? FQ

• What kinds of clothes do high school kids wear to school in China? FQ

• What do high school kids like to wear on weekends? FQ

Fashions & Brand Names

• Do you think fashion is important? (= Do you think it's important to follow the latest fashions in clothes?) Why? FQ

• Do Chinese people think the brand name of clothes is important? (Why?/Why not?) FQx2

• (Similar to above) Do you think the brand of clothing is important? FQx2

• Why do some people buy brand-name clothes? (= Why are some people willing to pay more for brand-name clothes and fashions?) FQ

• What are some (fashion) brand names that you are familiar with and what products do these brands sell?

• Do you think the price of brand-name clothes is reasonable?

• Compare brand-name clothes and non-brand-name clothes. Besides the price, is there much difference between the two?

• Do older people buy brand-name clothes?

• How much do overseas fashion trends influence fashion styles in China? FQ

• (Similar to above) Compare traditional Chinese clothing with modern (western) clothes.

• How have clothes (fashions) changed in China in the past few years (e.g., the past 10 or 20 years)?  FQ

• How has globalization affected clothing fashions around the world?

• Do people in China and western people wear different kinds of (styles of) clothes?

• Do you think it is good that people in China follow foreign fashion trends? *

• How can a person show his or her individuality (his or her personality) by the clothes they wear? DIFFICULT QUESTION

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68.    Last Weekend   (January 6, 2007)  (Probably no longer used)

Describe how you spent last weekend.

               You should say:

                               what you did

                               where you did it

                               who was with you (who you did it with)

               and explain whether or not this weekend was special, compared to other weekends. 

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Possible follow-up question:

• What do you plan to do this weekend?

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Part 3

Weekends & Recreational Time

• In China, do most people work on the weekend or do they engage in recreational activities? FQ

• (As above) In China, do many people work on weekends?

• Can you give any examples of people who have to work on weekends?

• What do people in China (or, in your hometown) do in their free time? FQx2

• Can you give me some examples of people who work on weekends? (the types of jobs)

• Do you think that everyone should work on weekends?

• Do you think it's important that people such as working people and students have leisure time on weekends? (Why?) FQ

• (As above) What are the good points about weekends? (= What are the advantages of having weekends?)

• Do you think the amount of time that people have to work now is reasonable? FQ

• What do you think of (=how do you feel about) long weekends (= 3-day weekends)? FQ

• Do you think all weekends should be longer? (Why?/Why not?) FQ

• If we had longer weekends, do you think people would need to work harder during the work week? FQ

• Do you think people are busier today than people used to be in the past? Why? 

• Why are vacations (holidays) important?

• Do you think vacations should be longer?

Working Times

• Do you think people should work in the evening (or night)? FQ

• What do you think of shift work? FQ

• (Similar to above) What are the advantages and disadvantages of shift work?

• Can you give me some examples of people who have to do shift work? FQx2

• How are families affected when a person has to do shift work?

• Do you have any ideas on how best to distribute working time and leisure time for the whole population of a city?

• How do you think the way people work will change in the future?

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69.    An Open-Air Market   (January 6, 2007)  (Probably no longer used)

Describe an open-air market (or street market) that you enjoyed visiting.

               You should say:

                               where it was

                               what you can buy there

                               how big it was

                and explain why you liked visiting/shopping at this place.

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Part 3

Different types of places to buy things

• Do people in China like buying things in open-air markets? (Why?/Why not?)

• (Similar to above) In China, are street markets the usual places that people go to when they want to buy things?

• Why is this the traditional kind of shopping in China?

• What are the good and bad points of street-markets and open-air markets?

• What are the most popular types of street market in China?

• When people (in China) want to buy something, what factors do they consider when deciding where to go shopping?

• What do people (or, you) prefer to buy in markets rather than in shops? Why? FQ

• (As above) What products are most suitable for selling in open-air markets? FQ

• Do people prefer to buy electronic items such as cell-phones in a street market or in a shop?　

• Compare open-air markets and shops (especially modern shopping malls and supermarkets). FQx2

• Is the customer service in street-markets and open-air markets the same as in (big) shops such as supermarkets? FQ

• Where are open-air markets most popular (or most commonly found)? (Hints: a) Rural areas, villages and places where poor people live; b) places where tourists visit; c) any place where there are a lot of people but not many shops; d) near a port or freight terminal, i.e., convenient places for wholesale fresh produce to be sold in the mornings.)

• Is it better to have many small market stalls all together in one place selling the same things or to have them in separate locations?

• How has the arrival of foreign businesses in China influenced local business (or, the local economy)?

Buying Habits

• How does advertising influence people's buying behavior? FQx2

• How do you think people's buying habits will change in the future? FQ

• Compare young people's and older people's spending habits. FQx2 [The question probably is not just about 'old people' e.g., over 60 years old, but more a contrast between young people (15 to 25) and 'older people' (over 35 or 40).]

• Compare the spending habits of people today and people many years ago. (E.g., 10 to 50 years ago.) FQ

• Compare the prices and the quality of goods in street-markets and in (big) shops such as supermarkets.

• In general, which do you think is more important, quality or price? FQ

• (Similar to above) In recent years, have people's attitudes about the importance of quality and price changed? (This question implies that, as people become wealthier, they become more concerned about quality than price.)

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70.    A Person You Live With   (January 6, 2007)  (Probably no longer used)

Describe a person who you live with (or who you once lived with).

               You should say:

                               who this person is (was)

                               how long you have lived together (or lived together)

                               what you do (did) together                

                and explain how well you get along with this person. * 

                                                or

                explain why you live(d) together. *

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Possible follow-up question:

• Have you ever lived with anyone else?

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Part 3

(See also the Part 3 questions for Topic #55)

Living Away from the Family

• Today, more and more (young) people are not willing to live at home with their parents. What do you think of this? FQ

• Why do they not want to live with their parents? FQ

• And why do some young people choose to continue living with their parents?

• When young people live away from their parents, who do they live with?

• In China, in the future, do you think young people will (continue to) go home frequently to visit their parents? FQ

• After most people get married, they no longer want to live with their parents. Why do you think this is?

• In the future, do you think most young people will live at home (with their parents) or will live independently?

Interpersonal Relations/Living with Others

• Do you think relationships with other people are more complex than they used to be many years ago?

• What are some of the different kinds of relationships that people in modern society have with others?

• What types of people are easiest to become friends with?

• What's the best way for two people to get to know each other? (Answer: By doing things together/by living together)

• Often, friendships and working relationships are mixed together. Why does this happen?

• What are some ways to get along well with other people? 

• What are some differences between spending time with friends and spending time with family?

• When people live together, what are the most important things (= the most important factors) to enable them to get along with each other? FQ

• (As above) What sorts of people are good to live with and what sorts of people are not good to live with? FQ

• When people live together, what are some of the ways they influence each other?

• Do old people relate to others the same way that young people do?

• Why do some people prefer to live alone? FQ

• What are some of the problems that people have when they live alone?

Buying/Renting a Home

• Do people in China prefer to buy or rent a home?

• Why do people want to buy their own homes?

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