FCE (B2 First) Speaking Exam Part One - Cambridge FCE Speaking Test Advice

Hello, I'm Mia.

Welcome to Oxford Online English!

In this lesson, you can learn about how to do the Cambridge FCE Speaking Exam Part One.

Even if you have a good level of English, the FCE Speaking Test can be challenging.

In this lesson, you can see what to expect in part one of the Speaking Test and how to

improve your score.

You'll see what kind of questions you'll be asked, how you can answer them well, and also

some useful advice on how to feel more confident during your exam.

Part One: what to expect in part one of your FCE Speaking Exam.

What happens in part one?

Part one is simple.

It lasts for about two to three minutes.

In this part of the exam, the examiner will ask you questions about yourself.

For example, "Where are you from?"

Or, "Tell me something about your family."

You could also be asked questions about your opinions.

For example, "Tell us about a film you really like," or, "What's your favorite part of the

day?"

Different topics you could be asked about include your hometown, country, work and study,

sports and leisure, family and friends, travel and holidays, hobbies and entertainment.

You'll normally be asked two or three questions.

This part of the test is a question-and-answer between the examiner and the candidates.

You won't talk to the other candidate during this section, although it's really good to

listen to their answers too.

The examiner may ask you the same question as your partner, with a simple, "And what

do you think," or, "How about you," instead of repeating the whole question again.

If you are listening, you can avoid repeating the same answer as your partner and will show

that you are following the conversation.

Part Two: How to improve your score in the FCE Speaking Exam part one.

So what does the examiner look for?

In this part of the test, the examiners will look at three things: grammar and vocabulary:

whether you can use more complex words, phrases, and sentence structures, and whether your

language is accurate and clear, discourse management: whether you can build longer answers

with connections between your ideas, pronunciation: how clearly you speak, and whether your stress

and intonation are correct and natural.

Let's look at what you can do to improve your marks in grammar and vocabulary and discourse

management.

First, let's look at grammar and vocabulary.

You need to use a variety of grammatical structures, especially some more difficult structures,

to demonstrate your level.

Look at the following answers to the question: "Where would you like to go on holiday in

the future?"

"I would like to go to Paris.

It's a romantic city, and I want to see it."

This is a good answer.

It uses the correct tenses and gives more information.

Now look at this answer: "If I had the opportunity, I would like to travel to Paris because it

is such a romantic city and looks really beautiful."

This answer is even better.

Why?

Because it uses the second conditional, "If I had," as well as the words for emphasis,

"so" and "really," and also the conjunctions, "because" and "and."

These features make the answer longer, more complex, and better connected.

This will give you higher marks in the exam.

You also need to show that you have a wide vocabulary.

Try to use different phrases and adjectives, so that you don't repeat yourself.

For example, learn some more advanced vocabulary related to common topics in part one, such

as phrasal verbs, idioms, or adjectives that you can easily use in a sentence.

Then try to use them in your speaking exam.

This will improve your marks and impress your examiner.

Look at these example answers: "I went to the cinema, but it was empty."

"I went to the cinema, but it was deserted."

The second sentence uses a less-common adjective and immediately demonstrates that you have

a bigger vocabulary.

Next, let's look at discourse management.

Remember, that means building longer, coherent, and fluent answers.

How can you improve your discourse management score during part one?

Make sure you use conjunctions, like "and," "or," or "but."

Try to also use more complex linking words, like "although," "however," or "on the other

hand."

These can help you connect and contrast your opinions, for a higher mark.

Look at the following sentences: "I'm going to meet my friend later today.

We're going to go to a shopping center."

"I'm going to meet my friend later today, and we're going to go to a shopping center

because it might rain.

On the other hand, if the weather is nice, we might go to the park instead."

The second sentence uses the simple conjunctions, "and," "because," and "on the other hand,"

to connect the ideas.

This sounds more fluid and natural.

This will give you a higher mark in your discourse management score, as you will sound more like

a native speaker.

Another important part of discourse management is fluency.

It is important to avoid hesitations where you can.

One way to do this is to use an expression to give yourself more time while you think.

For example, "That's a good question."

"Well, let me think."

"Let me see."

This will make you sound more natural and avoid hesitations.

Part Three: How you can appear more confident.

Naturally, you might feel nervous before your FCE speaking test.

This is normal, but it can also affect your performance.

So let's look at some ways that you can feel and appear more confident in the exam.

If you're confident and positive, you'll make a good impression on the examiner and also

find it easier to talk naturally and fluently.

Warming up: it's a good idea to warm up before your speaking exam, so that you're more relaxed

when you begin.

A good way to do this is to speak to the other people waiting with you, in English.

This way, you are already used to speaking in English when you begin the exam and don't

have to suddenly change languages.

Smile: when you meet your examiner, smile.

Be friendly.

If you smile, you immediately appear happy and confident, even if you're extremely nervous.

If you're positive and friendly with the examiner, they will respond well to you, and this will

help you feel more comfortable around them.

Remember to smile naturally.

You don't want to scare anyone.

Body language:your body language can say a lot.

Remember to sit up straight and look at your examiner when you're speaking to them.

Making eye contact makes you appear more confident and in control.

It's also a good idea to turn to your partner and listen when they speak.

These simple things will improve your marks in the exam because you are showing that you

have good communication skills and are interested in what people have to say.

Try to speak naturally.

This is really important, as when you're nervous, you might try to speak too quickly, which

can lead to mistakes and also make it difficult to understand.

Make sure you speak naturally and clearly, to avoid this.

This will also help you get higher marks on your pronunciation, as you'll be understood

more easily.

Be yourself.

My most important tip is to be yourself in the exam.

It's okay to make jokes or use humor or express your opinions.

Showing your personality, instead of trying to be some kind of FCE robot, lets you express

yourself well in English, and the examiner will see this.

Remember that in part one of the FCE Speaking Test, the examiner will ask you about familiar

topics, for example, your home or family.

This will help you to relax and be yourself, from the beginning of the exam.

Part Four: sample questions and answers.

OK, now that you know what's going to happen in part one of your FCE Speaking Exam and

how to be more confident, going in, let's look at some sample questions and answers.

These will help you see what makes a good answer and also review the tips and points

we looked at earlier on in this video.

Our first question: "Where do you live?"

It is very likely you will be asked this question at the beginning of your exam.

Look at the following answers: "I live in Spain."

"I live in a pretty town in the south of Spain."

The second answer is better, as it is longer and includes more details and description.

Remember that it is important to answer in full sentences in the speaking exam, as this

will improve your marks and discourse management.

Here's another sample question: "Tell us about a TV show you've seen recently."

A lot of the questions you may be asked are likely to be very open questions, similar

to this one.

These open questions are great because they give you a good opportunity to express your

opinions and use some of your phrasal verbs and adjectives.

Look at this answer: "Yesterday, I watched a show about animals.

It was funny."

This is OK, but it's quite basic for FCE level, and there aren't any details.

Here's another answer.

"Recently, I've been watching 'Making a Murderer.'

I'm interested in crime and psychology.

So I enjoy this TV show a lot."

You can see here how using more advanced vocabulary and grammar can make your answer more interesting

and detailed.

This answer would help you get a higher score on your speaking exam.

Now look at this question: "Are you interested in sport?"

Again, this is a very open question, which is good, as it lets you personalize your answer.

Look at this answer.

"Yes, I'm interested in sport."

What do you think?

It's not a great answer.

It's quite short and doesn't give any additional information.

What about this one?

"Yes, I'm interested in sport.

I really like basketball and swimming.

In fact, I swim every day."

You can see here how giving a longer answer gives more information.

However, this answer doesn't flow very well and is still quite basic.

So how should it be done?

"Well, yes, I'm interested in sport.

I really like basketball and swimming because they're great exercise, and you can practice

them outside.

In fact, I love swimming so much that I swim every day."

You can see here how using conjunctions makes the answer sound more natural and allows you

to build longer answers.

You can also see how saying something simple, like, "Well," at the beginning of your answer

gives you more time to think and produce a better answer.

Now that you've seen some example questions and answers, I hope you have a good idea of

what to expect in part one of your FCE Speaking Exam.

That's the end of the lesson.

Thanks very much for watching!

I hope you found it useful.

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