TOPICS - SPEAKING 2 – CHO KHÓA 2011

ALL the topics are taken from the book Let’s talk 3, Leo Jones. Students should review the relevant
lessons to use suitable vocabulary and expressions for each topic.
EXAM FORMAT: students will be called in pairs by the judges of the exam room; one of the pair
will pick up a random topic. The judges will decide the role of the students (A or B) right then.
Afterwards, students will sit separately to prepare their roles during 3-5 minutes (for example, A
students take the left side seats and B students take the right side seats). This separate preparation is
to improve the communication and reaction of English-majored students

1. A: you are at a birthday party with your close friend. You are so timid, so you ask your friend
about what you should say and do when you first meet a person. Then, show your opinions on what
s/he says. Discuss what important things to do during a conversation are and what you shouldn’t do
and say in the first conversation with someone.
B: you are at a birthday party with your close friend. Discuss what are important things to do
during a conversation and what you shouldn’t do and say in the first conversation with someone.
2. A: ask your friend if s/he prefers working with a partner or a group and discuss the advantages
to working with a partner and with a group.
B: ask your friend if s/he prefers working alone to working with others and why. Ask your friend
what s/he will do if s/he has a problem.
3. A: ask your friend when s/he felt annoyed, embarrassed and anxious and why. Share your ideas
about those facts.
B: ask your friend when she felt delighted, proud and surprised and why. Share your ideas about
those facts.
4. A: ask your friend if s/he would do or say anything when witnessing a crime (robbery, theft,
shoplifting, etc) and why or why not.
B: ask your friend to choose which crime is more serious between burglary (breaking into a house
to steal things) and mugging (attacking and stealing money from someone) and why.
5. A: tell your friend a crime story you read on a newspaper and ask what s/he thinks of it.
B: tell your friend a murder story on newspaper and ask if the murderer deserves the death penalty
and why.
6. A: ask your friend what type of class learning s/he likes and why
B: ask your friend if s/he likes presentations in class and why or why not. Discuss the advantages
and disadvantages of presentations.
7. A: ask your friend what s/he thinks about corporal punishment (the physical punishment of
students), if we should apply it in education and why or why not
B: ask your friend what s/he thinks about detention (punishment where students must stay after
school), its advantages and disadvantages
8. A: ask your friend what kinds of things are hard for him/ her to remember, what kinds of things are
easy for him/ her to remember and what s/he usually does to remember things.
B: ask your friend to describe some study techniques s/he uses and the efficiency of those
techniques.
9. A: ask your friend what languages s/he would like to learn and why; and what language s/he thinks
would be the most difficult/ the easiest to learn and why.
B: ask your friend what s/he would do if s/he had a language problem in a foreign country. (E.g. at
a foreign restaurant where nobody can speak English and s/he cannot speak their language (e.g.
Hungarian, Cambodian, etc))
10. A: ask your friend about some ways to exercise and ask him/ her to point out the advantages and
disadvantages of each activity.
B: ask your friend how to stay healthy (except exercise and sports) and what s/he usually does if
s/he is not feeling well. (having a cold, a cough, a stomachache, etc).
11. A: ask your friend what situation can stress people and when s/he may feel stressed.
B: ask your friend how to reduce stress and share your ideas about that.
12. A: ask your friend what the most serious/ unbelievable / amusing news has been these days and
why s/he thinks so.
B: ask your friend what kinds of people have been often in the news lately, what kinds of news
stories s/he often reads or hears and why
13. A: ask your friend what qualities are necessary for friendship and ask him/ her to describe his/ her
best friend.
B: ask your friend at what age s/he would like to get married and why; ask him/ her to list some
ways to look for a partner
14. A: ask your friend to describe his/ her personality; and ask what other qualities s/he would like to
develop and why
B: ask your friend what topics s/he would like to talk about and what topics s/he doesn’t like and
why not.