Speaking
B1 Preliminary Speaking takes about 10-12 minutes for a pair of candidates, with two examiners: one who talks to you and one who only listens and scores. Four criteria are marked: Grammar and Vocabulary, Discourse Management (organising and extending what you say), Pronunciation, and Interactive Communication. The test has four parts, and each one gives you a different chance to show spoken language.
The four parts
- Part 1 (2-3 minutes): an interview. The examiner asks about you - your home, school or work, free time, likes and dislikes.
- Part 2 (about 3 minutes): each candidate describes a photograph for about one minute; the partner then answers a short question about it.
- Part 3 (about 3 minutes): a collaborative task. You and your partner discuss a situation, using ideas on a page, and decide together.
- Part 4 (about 3 minutes): a discussion with the examiner, linked to the Part 3 topic, asking for opinions and reasons.
Worked example (Part 2)
Photograph: a busy outdoor street market. "In this photo I can see a street market. In the foreground a woman is buying fruit from a stall, and behind her there are people carrying bags. It looks as if it's summer, because they're wearing T-shirts. The atmosphere seems lively - the customers are smiling and talking to each other." Reasoning: the description moves from the general scene to specific detail, uses present continuous for actions in progress, and uses looks as if and seems to speculate rather than state facts. Four angles - scene, people, actions, mood - fill the full minute without listing objects.
Traps that cost marks
- One-sentence answers. In Parts 1 and 4, always add a reason or an example ("...because I prefer being outdoors").
- Listing objects in Part 2 instead of describing and speculating about what is happening.
- Deciding alone in Part 3. Turn to your partner, ask "What do you think?", agree and disagree; the decision must be reached together.
- Silence while your partner speaks. Interactive Communication is a marked criterion, so respond and build on what you hear.
- Unsupported opinions in Part 4. An opinion with no reason or example earns little.