IELTS Speaking Part 2: Describe a change that has happened in the area where you live

How to use the preparation minute

This is a plan, not a script. Examiners are trained to recognise memorised answers and mark them down, so the aim is to know what you will cover — not which words you will use.

1. Seconds 0–15 · commit to one examplePick a real, specific instance and write its name down. Candidates who spend the preparation minute hunting for the perfect example start the long turn with nothing concrete to say.
2. Open with · what the change wasGive the specific over the general, then one detail that could only be true of your example.
3. Then cover · when it happenedAnchor it in time and then move on. This bullet is scaffolding — it should cost you one sentence, not twenty seconds.
4. Then cover · how the area was beforeDescribe the process step by step. Sequencing language — first, once that was done, after a while — is exactly what fluency is marked on.
5. Then cover · whether you think the change was positiveFinish on evaluation rather than repetition. The examiner has heard the facts; what earns marks here is what you make of them.
6. If you run out before the time doesSay what you would change about it now, or how it compares with something similar. Stopping at ninety seconds costs more than an imperfect extra sentence.

What comes next

The long turn does not end the topic. The examiner moves straight into Part 3 with something broader, often along these lines:

Who should decide how a neighbourhood develops — residents or planners?

What is being marked

Every part of the test is scored on the same four criteria, each carrying equal weight in the final band.

Voxtis is an independent practice tool and is not affiliated with the British Council, IDP, or Cambridge Assessment English. Band estimates are indicative.