Mat Clark – IELTS Speaking
11
If you are speaking English in the same way that you speak Chinese, you will not be
producing this important ―native-speaker feature‖ of spoken English. There are many
examples of redundant language.
Another major difference between spoken Chinese and spoken English is that
Chinese tends to recycle vocabulary.
Spoken Chinese conversations are often structured in a
way that focuses on closed
questions, in particular ―yes/no‖ questions.
Look at the following example: ―Is the food delicious?‖ The natural answer in
Chinese would probably either: ―Yes, it's delicious.‖ or ―No, it's not delicious.‖ (followed by
a reason). In spoken Chinese, it is perfectly normal to recycle vocabulary in this way.
On
the other hand, spoken English doesn't normally do this. One of the reasons is
because English conversations contain fewer closed questions and many more open
questions. Example: ―What's the food like?‖
This difference is very important in the IELTS speaking test.
Look at the following question: ―Do you like animals?‖
If the candidate answers in a spoken Chinese style, the answer would probably begin
with: ―Yes I like animals...especially...‖
In this answer the candidate is actually relying on the
language in the question to
form the answer. The candidate is not offering the examiner any original language.
We can see that vocabulary recycling has a negative effect on your score for two
reasons. Firstly, native English speakers do not do it. Secondly, the examiner will penalize
the candidate for copying the language in the question.
This point is discussed in more detail in the section on vocabulary.
Another key difference between spoken English and spoken
Chinese is that spoken
English is heavily graded. In other words, native speakers of English usually speak in
degrees. English often uses ―shades of different meanings‖. In contrast, spoken Chinese is
usually ―black or white‖.
Look at the following example question: ―Do you like watching TV?‖
Now look at the following answers:
Yes I really like watching TV...
I guess I'm quite fond of watching TV...
For
the most part, I would probably say that I quite like watching TV...
To some extent I would say I like watching TV...
Mat Clark – IELTS Speaking
12
Well, I wouldn't say I actually like watching TV...
Well, I suppose you could probably say that I'm fond of watching TV...
Do I like watching TV...well it's hard to say...
The examples above display a common feature of spoken English – the use of
―speaking in degrees‖.
Chinese answers usually begin with a definite and clearly defined yes or no followed
by supporting reasons.
There are more examples of this aspect of English later in this book.
