IELTS Speaking Part 2: Describe an occasion when you were not allowed to use your mobile phone

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 · when and where it happenedAnchor it in time and then move on. This bullet is scaffolding — it should cost you one sentence, not twenty seconds.
3. Then cover · why you were not allowed to use itTwo sentences: the fact, then one detail that could only apply to your example.
4. Then cover · what you did insteadSequence two or three concrete actions rather than summarising. Past tenses live here, and this is where accuracy is easiest to demonstrate.
5. Then cover · how you felt about itFinish 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:

Should there be more places where phone use is restricted?

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.