CONTENTS

1
SAMPLE ANSWERS
Sample questions and answers
from speaking part 1, 2 and 3.

TOPIC: 2
KEY VOCABULARY
Words and terms frequently
used  when talking about
education.

EDUCATION 3
WORD FORMATION
Learn how to use  wide variety
of parts of speech, such as
nouns, verbs, adjectives.

Sample answers, useful

4
COLLOCATIONS
vocabulary and resources for Find out groups of words that
usually used together by native

IELTS speaking exam speakers.

USEFUL RESOURCES
5 References to teaching and
authentic materials related to
this topic: IELTS blogs,
podcasts, videos and articles.
THETESTTAKER.COM | YOUTUBE.COM/DARIANSANDMARTIN
1. SAMPLE ANSWERS
PART 1

1. What kind of school did you go to as a child?

5. Which university/college did you attend?

- I had studied in the best school of the region. It was - Actually, I went to 4 different universities. That’s
a powerful educational institute inside and out – because I changed two during my Bachelor’s
both the building was large and beautifully made of degree and then had a double-degree abroad
glass, as well as teachers were very talented and during Master’s.
highly experienced in their sophisticated profession.

6. What your university was like?

2. Did you go to different schools or a single one?
- In grad school (my Master’s degree), I studied at
- I changed my school when transferred from grade 4 two universities that were the best business
to 5 – this is the transition we make in my country schools of Russia and Switzerland. They were
from the elementary to the secondary school.
huge in size and insightful in education.

3. What was your favourite subject as a child? 7. What did you study at university?

- I liked Math a lot when I was at school. I’d always - I studied Finance and Management. This
get high scores in exams. Plus, it’s very practical.
specialization turned out to be perfect for me and
I’ve never regretted my choice.

4. Who was your favourite teacher?

8. What is special about this subject?
- That was definitely my Math teacher. She not only
made each lecture incredibly useful and exiting, she - Basically, it is about managing money, assets,
also was our class-lady, uniting me and my investments, people, production and strategy of
classmates in various group activities.
any company, which is the basis of the world
economy.

PART 2

Describe a course you enjoyed at university. 
 The course I’d like to describe is called “LEAN Startup
You should say: Approach”. It was offered to us at the St. Gallen
University in Switzerland during my Master’s degree.
• When and where you took it The course was specifically designed to help students
• What lessons were like
 understand the theoretical approach to managing
startups, as well as try it out in practice.

• What made the course different from others

• And explain why you enjoyed the course The syllabus for this course, like for all the others, was
distributed online via our digital system. It comprised the
outline of lectures included in the course, the main
topics, and assignments we would need to do. The
curriculum of the course comprised at first some lectures
on campus, where we were to learn more about the
LEAN approach, and then – had to do a practical project
with various companies. As an integral part of the course,
we were assigned to groups, each having to choose a
specific partnering organisation. My group ended up
doing a project for PricewaterhouseCoopers, which is
large international audit firm.

The course really stood out from the others, because it

offered us a unique opportunity to work with
professionals of the consulting industry, developing a
practical solution to their business problem, which is the
most valuable for any Master’s programme. 

PART 3
1. How are priorities in education today different from those in the past?

In such a fast-changing world we are in today, priorities in education have transformed as well. In our
current society, education opens more opportunities and offers to obtain a wider skill set that was not
attainable in the past. For example, colleges and universities decide to shift from theoretical education
to practical one. Courses have become more and more digital, requiring students to learn how to be
proficient with their computers early on.

2. Is a good education more important for a boy or a girl? Why?

Substantial education is important for anyone, regardless of their gender. Both should be given equal
rights and access to education. In today’s society, women have proven that they can do tasks and get
jobs that only men used to have back in the day. Women have shown their competency in various
fields such as politics, science, sports and many others. Men, on the other hand, have equally entered
some new industries that had been considered female, such as cooking, housekeeping, fashion or
make-up. I reckon, both sexes must be given equal opportunities in their education and workplace.

3. How well do you think schools should prepare young people for working life?

Schools are considered our second home when we are young. This is where we, as kids, learn almost
everything, starting from the basics of reading and writing. Before the adulthood begins, this is the place
where one gets most of their training. Sadly, middle and high schools rarely put emphasis on practical
life skills, such as entrepreneurship, financial literacy or relationship management. In my opinion,
schools must extend their courses by guiding young people to their future careers, step-by-step.

 2. KEY VOCABULARY

a quality or accomplishment that These qualifications are just like a ticket for entry
a qualification makes someone suitable for a into the corporate world.
particular job or activity

the completion of a university I went to England to work right after my graduation.

a graduation degree course

officially register as a member of In many areas, it is possible to enroll for archaeology

to enroll an institution or a student on a classes taught for adults.
course, school, university

to apply the mind to learning and She studied biology, although her major was math.
to study understanding a subject

a series of lessons or lectures in a He took a course in basket weaving.

a course particular subject

the practice of training people to One should never forget about discipline, especially
discipline obey rules or a code of behaviour when studying.

qualification or an academic He has no degree in engineering, because he is an

a degree rank that is given after successful accountant.
completion of a course of study

 training or instruction provided by We want to support them by providing free tuition in

a tuition a teacher or tutor, especially in core subjects.
small groups

institution in which children aged Some articles may not be appropriate for children
primary (elementary) between 5 and 11 receive the first of primary school.
school stage of academic learning

classes for children aged from 11 The project will involve two primary schools and a
secondary school to 16 (or 18 in the UK) secondary school.

to go through any inspection or I recently passed my exams to become a chartered

to pass test successfully, to succeed in structural engineer.
exam
to organize or carry out They conducted a survey to study people's attitudes
to conduct something to local environmental issues.

to get something
to receive Managers who have received no formal training will
find the course of particular benefit.

to get or gain something There are regular classes where you can acquire
to acquire new expertise or improve existing skills with
professional tuition.

to be present at meetings, church The three children are now  attending the local
to attend services, university, etc.
village school.

to stop doing something, go away Both of my parents had left school at fourteen.

to leave from place or situation

something that must be done The majority of the age cohort attend beyond the
compulsory because of a rule or law
end of compulsory schooling.
 a state school that does not The comprehensive high school provides students
comprehensive select its intake on the basis of with holistic education that allows them to become
school academic achievement or
aptitude

well-rounded adults.

paid classes run in a private In fact, the percentage of secondary school pupils in
private school, funded by a wealthy England in  private education has dropped since
education individual or company comprehensives were introduced.

someone who makes progress Why do some people make progress and others
to make progress moves forward, improves, don't?
becomes closer to goals

a student who fails to complete a Years ago the official label for the dropout was
a dropout course of study
changed to the premature school leaver.

work done during a course of Approximately 50 per cent of the overall marks each
a coursework study, especially that contributes year are obtained from continuously assessed
to one's mark coursework.

the systematic investigation into While the research reveals many overlaps and
a research and study of materials and similarities, there are also some interesting
sources in order to establish facts differences.
and reach new conclusions

an area of knowledge taught in an Maybe you want to study a subject you particularly
a subject educational institution
enjoy.

hard-working (person) Industrious students will look for opportunities on

industrious their own, not waiting for help.
3.WORD FORMATION
noun Colonel Spratt highlighted the importance of the
a qualification qualification for people planning a career in marketing.
verb When medical students qualify for doctors, they face a
to qualify trouble finding work.
adjective
qualified The English Department employs well-qualified and
experienced tutors, and as a result has always enjoyed a
high success rate in examination results.

noun I went to England to work after my graduation.

a graduation
verb Sadly, a number of high-school students are inarticulate
to  graduate when they graduate and cannot properly word a sentence.

verb Failure to enroll for a full academic load does not alter the
to enroll residency requirement.
noun Today’s women make up 70 percent of professional school
an enrollment enrollment.

noun Another study showed that 26 %of schools in the country

a study fail to comply with state regulations for PE.
verb This course is designed for complete beginners who are
to study eager to study the language, as it provides an excellent
opportunity to understand and feel the language.
adjective He stops what he's doing and stares in my direction with a
studied studied indifference leaning on his broom.
 noun Polish system of education failed during the 1990s to train
education enough skilled workers, including engineers and craftsmen.
verb Le Quement was educated at a public school in England.
to educate
adjective
Well-educated Catholics, meaning those with university
well-educated education, did not suffer any disadvantage in occupational
achievement compared with their Protestant peers.
adjective
The larger issue, though, is whether such schools can
educational provide better educational benefits.

noun In recent years the value of innovation has been

an innovation demonstrated in many sectors.
verb Advertisers and websites try to innovate to engage users
to innovate through marketing campaigns that align across multiple
media.
adjective Magazines and the Internet open a huge range of
innovative innovative designer options.

noun Laforgue's life in Germany at the court of the Empress

attendance Augusta was steeped in music: it involved regular
attendance of concerts and operas.
verb On Saturday, talent scouts will attend the graduate show
attend of the fashion college Central Saint Martins, the alma-
mater to McQueen, Chalayan and numerous other stars.

average noun The figure of 119.4 indicates that GDP per capita in the
South East was 19.4% above the average in 1988.
verb For the past year, Leno has averaged 5.71 million viewers
to average each night to Letterman's 4.16, according to Nielsen Media
Research.
 adjective Most students, by definition, will be of average ability, with
average a lower grade.
phrase On average, American children watch over three hours of
on  average television each day.

noun This is your opportunity to learn from a master.

a master
verb Once you've mastered the basics of Photoshop Elements,
to master this is the book to further develop your skills to get
professional results!

adjective No one is mediocre in this world.

mediocre
Mediocrity is more often a matter of choices than inherited
mediocrity noun
ability.

noun Importantly, the lectern is never operated by the speaker

concentration who needs full concentration on the speech and
presentation.
verb
concentrate His later works concentrates on the topic of world peace.
4.COLLOCATIONS

academic
adjective+
educational
qualification
formal
acquire
verb +
gain
qualification
get

have

adult
adjective +
further
education
higher

pre-school

primary

secondary
have
verb +
receive
education
continue

complete

one-year, two-year, etc.

adjective +
Intensive
course
Advanced

intermediate, etc.

introductory

vocational
do
verb +
take
course
complete

enrol on

join

sign up for
in
preposition +
on course in
course on

college, university
adjective +
first
degree
undergraduate

higher

master's

postgraduate

business

medical

history

law
economics
degree + in +
marketing
degree in
engineering

art
have
verb +
hold
knowledge
awarded

gain

get

obtain

receive

acquire
in-depth
adjective +
general
knowledge
background

go to
verb +
attend
school
leave

teacher
adjective +
pupil
school
uniform
elementary
adjective +
high
school
secondary

comprehensive

comprehensive

co-educational

mixed
adjective +
mixed-sex
school
single-sex

summer local

rural

village  art

business

dance

drama

film

language
attend
verb +
go to
university
study at

apply for

enter

finish (at)

graduate from

leave
teacher
university + noun
graduate
university
student

undergraduate

course degree

education

term

year

vacation
5. USEFUL RESOURCES
THIS TOPIC ON IELTS BLOGS

▪ IELTS topic vocabulary for speaking test: Travel [thetesttaker.com] [ielts-simon.com]

▪ IELTS Speaking Part 2: educational TV programme [ielts-simon.com]

▪ IELTS SPEAKING part 1, 2 and 3 sample questions [ipassielts.com]

▪ IELTS Education vocabulary [ieltsspeaking.co.uk]

PODCASTS
• Podcast 50 – Universities in Australia [slowenglish.info]
• Sugata Mitra: How Much Can Children Teach Themselves? [npr.org]
• Can Schools Exist In The Cloud? [npr.org]

ARTICLES
▪ Which countries have the best education system and why? [quora.com]

▪ Schools: How should schools prepare for the future? [quora.com]

VIDEOS
▪ Ken Robinson: How to escape education's death valley [TED TALKS]

▪ Shuka Bose: Teaching one chold at a time [TED TALKS] 


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