IELTS Part 2 and Part 3 Topics and Questions
Page 81
401
405.
An Occasion When You Had
to be Polite
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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401
Notes
If the first line is worded as, "
Possibly the first line says,
It is also possible that the wording is, "
See also the Part 3 for all the previous Part 2
topics about music. For example,
Topic 186,
Topic 270,
Listening to Music
What are the various ways that people use to listen to
music?
What's the most popular way for young people to listen
to music today? (Why?)
Have you ever been to a concert?
What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages
of going to see music performed live, at a concert?
What do you think are the differences between listening
to (live) music at a concert and listening to it on a recording (at home), such as a
CD or on your ipod?
Technology and (Listening to) Music
Is technology today (sometimes) used to produce music in ways that were not used before?
Musical Tastes
Copyright (Intellectual Property)
Do you think it's important for songwriters and performers to receive money for their work? *
Do you think it's fair that these people do not receive any money when people download their music for free from the internet? *
How do you suggest this problem could be solved? *
Musical Education
Do school students have music classes in your country?
What do you think are the benefits of this education?
Which do you think is better, for schools to teach how to play an instrument or to teach music history?
Do many parents in your country require their children to learn a musical instrument?
What do you think are the pros and cons of parents requiring their children to learn to play a musical instrument?
Describe a group activity that you enjoy doing (such as in a club or team or a group of friends). *
You should say:
what the activity is
who you do it with
where you do it
and explain why you enjoy it.
Notes
The first line might be, "
See also the Part 3 questions for
Group Activities in Your Country
Besides sports, what are some other group activities that people in your country engage in?
Do you think some people behave differently when they
are in a group, compared to when they are alone? (Why?)
(Similar to above)
In general, what are the differences between doing something in a group and doing things alone?
Clubs/Teams/Organizations
What kinds of teams, clubs, organizations or groups do some
people in your country join?
Are (were) there any clubs at your school or university?
What are the most popular clubs at your university (or school)?
Why do people join these groups?
Why do people join these groups when they could do these activities alone?
Do you think joining a groups/club is a good ways to make friends? (Why?)
Do you think joining a group or club is a good way to find a girlfriend/boyfriend?
The Benefits of Group Activities for People of Different Ages
Do people of different ages join the same types of groups or clubs?
Children
Why do some parents want their children to become members of a group?
Do you think it's beneficial (or, important) for children to take part in group activities?
Do you think children need to be supervised by an adult when they are in a group?
Young People/Teenagers
What sorts of group activities do teenagers like to do?
How about adults? What benefits do they get from joining a group / taking part in group activities?
Old People (or, older people)
What kinds of group activities do (some) old people do?
What are some differences between old people's group activities and those of young people?
What benefits do old people get from doing these activities
in a group?
Teamwork in the Workplace
What are some examples of people working as a group? (I.e., at work)
What are the pros and cons of working in a team?
Can you think of any examples where the results of group work are often not as good as the results of individual work?
Do you think problems can ever arise when people work as a group? *
How do you suggest these problems could be solved? *
Groups in the International Context
Can you think of any examples of group activities on an international scale? *
What are the benefits of this? *
Do you think the formation of international groups can ever cause problems? *
Do you think the globalization of business, that is, the formation of very large multi-national corporations, is always a good thing? *
Notes
* = reported by someone. Obviously there are only three points after "You should say".
For this topic, I would avoid describing a place that has had the influence of humans. For example, a beautiful park in a city would not be a good choice, even though plants and flowers are natural things and are beautiful. Strictly speaking, one could argue that such a place is a "place of natural beauty" but most English speakers would not agree that such a place fits the description of "a place of natural beauty". Similarly, be careful of describing a lake that is within a city or surrounded by human habitation, although it is possible to describe aspects of natural beauty for such a place.
It would be acceptable (and very good) if your example was a place that had some influence from humans and you mentioned how this would not be considered to be 100% "natural" by some people.
Some people find beauty in any place that is 100% natural, even a desert.
In English, we don't say, "I liked there". Instead, we say, "I liked it there." This "it" has a meaning that is something like the "it" in the sentence, "It's cold today."
See here for my personal opinion on the idea that CO2 is a "pollutant". (But don't spend too much time reading this one topic. And don't make it obvious to the examiner that you had read this website!)
See here for links to internet articles about eco-tourism
Many of the questions below are repetitions of previously used questions. See any questions in the following Part 3 sections that are related to the sub-topics shown below: Topics 57, 164, 170, 180, 217, 241, 246, 299, 306, 312, 320, 332, 339, 346, 358, & 373. These previously used questions will also give you some extra ideas for discussing the questions below.
Eco-Tourism
Do you often visit natural places?
What kinds of places do people in your country like to visit as tourists?
What are some differences between visiting a city as a
tourist and visiting a natural place?
(Similar to above)
How could natural beauty be brought to cities?
In general, what types of places in your country have
natural beauty?
(Similar to above) What are some examples of places in
your country that have natural beauty?
What benefits do city people get from visiting
beautiful natural places?
(Similar to above) What do you think are the benefits of preserving a
place such as a beautiful forest and turning it into a location for tourism?
Do you think being close to nature gives people a feeling of happiness?
Does such tourism help the economy (of the place where people visit)? (How?)
What types of people like to visit natural places?
Do young people and old people like to visit the same types of natural places and do the same types of things there?
Do you think people should be allowed to do whatever they want when they visit these natural places?
Does everyone like to go mountain climbing?
Do you think there are any possible downsides to
tourists visiting natural places?
(Similar to above) In what ways do you think tourists can (or, do) harm
the environment of the natural places that they visit?
Why do tourists sometimes pollute/contaminate these places?
If you were going a trip to a natural place, what things would you take with you?
And what things would you leave at that natural place?
Protecting the Environment (in general, not just protecting natural places) Frequent Topic
Note: Virtually all of the questions below, for this
sub-topic, have been reported by several different people. That is, they are almost all
How Environmental damage occurs
What environmental problems are there in your country?
What is the
impact of human activities on the environment?
(Similar to
above) What actions (or, activities) of humans do you think cause harm to
the environment?
Do oil companies and mining companies, for example, (sometimes) damage the environment?
What do you think should/could be done about this problem?
Do you think the exploitation of natural resources should be stopped?
Awareness of the problem
Is the government (in your country) aware of these environmental problems?
What is the government doing about these problems?
Do you think average people are aware of these problems?
Do you think education can play a part in making people more aware of these problems?
Do young people (like you) have the same attitudes towards these problems as older people, such as your parents?
Responsibility and What to do
Who do you think should be (or, is) most responsible
for doing something about these problems, the government (or companies) or
individuals?
In what ways can government help to protect the
environment
What could/should companies do to help protect the environment?
In what ways can individuals help to preserve the
environment (and/or help to repair the damage that has been done)?
Do you think everyone should pick up their trash when they visit a natural tourist site? (Why?)
What can (or, what should) they do if there are no garbage cans nearby? *
Art, Beauty and Natural Scenery
Why do you think natural scenery can give artists inspiration?
How does man-made art compare to real scenes of natural beauty? (Which is better or more beautiful?)
Notes
Almost certainly, this is a past tense topic, ("made you laugh"), not a present tense topic, ("makes you laugh"). Therefore, it is unsuitable to say, "I often watch a TV program called XYZ that always makes me laugh." That's the present tense, used to describe a habit. Since this topic is past tense, you need to talk about something that happened at a particular time in the past. So it would be suitable to talk about a particular episode of that TV program, for example, an episode that you watched about two months ago.
The word "event" in the last line just means "this occurrence" or, "this thing that happened". The meaning here is that it happened at one particular time, not something in the past that happened at several different times.
The words, "something that made you laugh" can, of course, include the meaning of "a situation that made you laugh".
See also the questions about happiness in the Part
3 of the following topics,
328,
321,
211,
Make sure you know the difference between the two words, "funny" and "fun".
See some vocabulary.
Comedy on Television/in Films
What makes people laugh in your country (your culture)?
Is comedy very popular in your country?
(Similar to above) Are comedy TV shows very popular in your country?
What do you think are the differences between seeing comedy on TV and reading funny materials in a book? FQx2
(Similar to above)
Would you like to appear in a TV comedy program?
(If you say yes to the question above) How would you make people laugh?
Do you think it's easy to translate comedy TV programs into other languages?
Comedy in Advertising Frequent sub-topic
Is comedy used much in advertisements in your country?
(Why?)
Do you think funny advertisements on TV are effective?
Humour
What do you think are the
benefits of laughter?
Can you think of any examples of something that some people think is funny when other people don't think it's funny?
Do you think there are
differences between what males and females think is humourous?
Do you think there are differences between what people of different ages think is funny?
Happiness
Notes
In the real test there is only one "and explain" line. Obviously you need to say how you showed politeness. And, depending on the exact wording of the card, it makes sense to explain why you felt it was necessary to be more polite than usual.
Most people are polite most of the time when they
interact with other people. I'm guessing this topic means, "
Politeness in Your Country (in your culture)
In general, what is "politeness"?
Why do people show politeness towards others? (= What is the purpose of politeness?)
On what occasions do people need to be (especially) polite?
What are some ways that people in your country show
politeness towards others?
Do you think politeness is something natural (innate to humans) or is it learned behaviour?
Why do we show different levels of politeness to different people or in different situations? *
Do you think people are equally polite at home (with
their family) as they
are outside the home (i.e., with strangers / acquaintances / or, with non-family members)?
What do you think are the
differences between a polite person and a friendly person?
(Possibly the above question is worded this way) Is being friendly the same as being polite?
Do you think it's possible to show politeness and friendliness t the same time?
Do you think it's possible to be too (= overly, excessively) polite?
Teaching Children about Politeness
How can parents teach
their children to be polite?
(Similar to above)
Can you think of any examples when young children are not very polite?
Do you think there is a certain age when children should be expected to be polite?
In your opinion, how should (or, how can) parents correct their children when the children are impolite?
Do young children learn about politeness at school? *
Public Awareness of Politeness
Do you think that everyone in society is aware of what is and isn't polite behaviour?
Sometimes there are occasions when the government (or some other authority) wants to remind people about being polite. Can you think of any examples of that?
What methods can (or does) the government use to remind people about some aspect of politeness? *
Truthfulness and Politeness
(Similar to above) Do you think people are (or should be) honest all the time when they speak to others?
Do you think telling lies is impolite? FQ
Are there any times when it might be polite to tell a
lie?
Which do you think is better, to always show your feelings or to sometimes conceal your feelings?
(Similar to above)
On the question of expressing what one really thinks (or feels), do you think males and females are the same?
When (or, in what situations) do you think it is acceptable to express what one really thinks?
Do you think pretending to smile is polite?
Politeness in
Sometimes people seem to be less polite (or even impolite) when they go to another country. Why do you think this happens?
Can you think of any examples of this? *
Do you think this is an important question? *