Tóm tắt

IELTS Speaking được chấm theo 4 tiêu chí, mỗi tiêu chí 25%: - Fluency and Coherence — nói liên tục, mạch lạc - Lexical Resource — vốn từ đa dạng - Grammatical Range and Accuracy (GRA) — đa dạng cấu trúc, ít lỗi - Pronunciation

Bài viết này tập trung vào GRA — cách dùng ngữ pháp đúng và đa dạng trong cả 3 Parts.

Tại sao quan trọng

Band 6 GRA: "uses a mix of simple and complex structures, but with limited flexibility." Band 7 GRA: "uses a range of complex structures with some flexibility and accuracy." Sự khác biệt chính là variety (đa dạng) và accuracy (ít lỗi hệ thống). Bạn không cần nói hoàn hảo — thỉnh thoảng sửa lại tự nhiên là bình thường — nhưng cần tránh cùng một lỗi lặp đi lặp lại.

Phần 1: Ngữ pháp theo từng Part

Speaking Part 1 — Câu hỏi cá nhân

Part 1 hỏi về bản thân, sở thích, thói quen hàng ngày. Thì chính: - Present Simple — thói quen, sự thật hiện tại - Present Continuous — hoạt động đang diễn ra - Past Simple — kinh nghiệm quá khứ - Present Perfect — trải nghiệm đến hiện tại

Ví dụ câu trả lời Part 1:

Q: Do you enjoy cooking?

  • ❌ "Yes, I enjoy cooking." (quá ngắn, không có range)
  • ✅ "Yes, I really enjoy cooking, although I didn't use to when I was younger. These days I tend to cook at the weekends, which I find really relaxing. In fact, I have been trying to learn more Asian recipes lately."

Chú ý: câu trả lời tốt dùng: although (contrast), didn't use to (past habit), tend to (present habit), which (relative clause), have been trying (present perfect continuous).

Speaking Part 2 — Long Turn (1-2 phút)

Part 2 yêu cầu nói về một chủ đề trong 1-2 phút, dùng thẻ gợi ý. Cần: - Mạch thời gian rõ ràng — kết hợp Past Simple, Past Continuous, Past Perfect - Discourse markers để cấu trúc câu chuyện - Relative clauses để thêm chi tiết

Ví dụ Part 2 — Describe a memorable journey:

"I'd like to talk about a trip I took to Hội An about two years ago. To begin with, I had never visited Central Vietnam before, so I was really looking forward to it. When we arrived, the old town was lit up with lanterns, which was absolutely breathtaking. What struck me most was how well the historic architecture had been preserved. By the time we left, I had completely fallen in love with the place. If I could, I would go back there every year."

Cấu trúc được dùng: Past Perfect (had never visited), Past Continuous (was lit up), relative clause (which was), inversion cảm thán (what struck me most), conditional Type 2 (if I could, would go).

Speaking Part 3 — Thảo luận trừu tượng

Part 3 yêu cầu ý kiến về các vấn đề xã hội rộng hơn. Đây là nơi thể hiện range ngữ pháp cao nhất: - Conditionals — lập luận giả định - Modal verbs — hedging quan điểm - Passive voice — tông giọng học thuật nhẹ - Complex sentences — nối nhiều ý

Ví dụ Part 3 — "Do you think technology has improved education?"

"I think it depends a lot on how it's used. Technology can be an incredibly powerful tool — for instance, students are now able to access lectures from universities around the world, which would have been unimaginable thirty years ago. That said, there are concerns about screen time and distraction, which is why I would argue that technology should be integrated carefully, rather than simply replacing traditional teaching methods. If schools were to invest more in teacher training alongside new technology, the results would probably be far better."

Phần 2: Cách thể hiện range ngữ pháp

Đa dạng thì (Tense Variety)

Ngay cả khi trả lời câu hỏi hiện tại, cố gắng dùng nhiều thì:

Thì Ví dụ trong Speaking
Present Simple I work in marketing.
Present Continuous I'm currently working on a new project.
Present Perfect I've lived here for five years.
Present Perfect Continuous I've been studying English since I was ten.
Past Simple I studied abroad for two years.
Past Continuous I was working when I got the call.
Past Perfect I had never tried sushi before that trip.
Future (will) I think remote work will become the norm.
Future (going to) I'm going to start a new course next month.
Conditional If I had more time, I would travel more.

Trong Speaking, tránh nói quá tuyệt đối:

Muốn nói Cách nói tự nhiên
"I don't know the exact number" It might be around 50%, I'm not sure.
"I think this is probably true" I would say this is largely true.
"It's possible that..." It could be because people are more stressed.
"I believe this is important" I would argue that this is crucial.
"Maybe in the future" This may well become more common.

Câu điều kiện trong Part 3

Conditionals rất tự nhiên trong thảo luận Part 3:

Type 1 — Thực tế: - If governments invest more in public transport, air quality will definitely improve.

Type 2 — Giả định: - If I could change one thing about my city, I would definitely improve the roads. - If everyone worked from home, we would see a dramatic reduction in commuting.

Type 3 — Nhìn lại quá khứ: - If we had invested in renewable energy earlier, we wouldn't be facing such a severe climate crisis now.

Phần 3: Discourse Markers trong Speaking

Trong Speaking, discourse markers nên nghe tự nhiên hơn trong Writing. Tránh dùng "Furthermore" hay "Nevertheless" — nghe quá cứng nhắc khi nói.

Speaking vs Writing equivalents

Writing (trang trọng) Speaking (tự nhiên)
Furthermore / Moreover Also, On top of that, What's more, Plus
However / Nevertheless But, Though, Then again, That said
In addition And also, As well as that
Consequently / Therefore So, As a result, That's why
For example / For instance Like, For example, For instance, Say
In conclusion So overall, All in all, At the end of the day
It is worth noting The thing is, Actually, In fact

Fillers tự nhiên (mua thời gian suy nghĩ)

Không nên im lặng dài. Dùng fillers để mua thời gian:

  • "That's an interesting question — let me think about that..."
  • "Well, I suppose it depends on..."
  • "To be honest, I haven't really thought about this before, but..."
  • "I mean, there are so many factors to consider..."
  • "Off the top of my head, I'd say..."

Tránh lạm dụng "um", "uh". Thay bằng các cụm trên để vừa mua thời gian vừa nghe chuyên nghiệp.

Phần 4: Sửa lỗi trong khi nói

Trong Speaking, tự sửa lỗi là hoàn toàn bình thường và thậm chí được đánh giá tích cực nếu làm tự nhiên.

Cách sửa tự nhiên

  • "I went — I mean I've been to Japan twice."
  • "She works — well, she used to work at a hospital."
  • "The problem is — or rather, was more serious ten years ago."

Cấu trúc "reformulation" — diễn đạt lại

Khi không chắc từ, diễn đạt theo cách khác:

  • "It's... what's the word... it's like a feeling of being completely lost."
  • "I'd call it a kind of restlessness, you know, when you can't sit still."

Lỗi thường gặp trong Speaking

Lỗi 1: Chỉ dùng Present Simple

Nhiều thí sinh trả lời mọi câu hỏi bằng Present Simple dù tình huống cần thì khác.

  • Q: "Have you always lived here?"
  • ❌ "Yes, I live here for 20 years." (sai thì — Present Perfect cần thiết)
  • ✅ "Yes, I've lived here for about 20 years now."

Lỗi 2: Câu quá ngắn — thiếu range

  • ❌ "Yes I like music. I listen to music every day. It is relaxing."
  • ✅ "Yes, I'm really into music — I find it incredibly relaxing, especially after a long day. I tend to listen to jazz when I'm working, which helps me concentrate."

Lỗi 3: Dùng "because" kép

  • ❌ Although it is expensive, but people still buy it. (although + but = sai)
  • ✅ Although it is expensive, people still buy it. (bỏ "but")
  • ✅ It is expensive, but people still buy it.

Lỗi 4: Quên chia động từ sau modal

  • ❌ Technology can to help students learn faster.
  • ✅ Technology can help students learn faster. (không có "to" sau modal)

Lỗi 5: "Make" vs "Do" trong collocations

  • ❌ I make my homework every evening.
  • ✅ I do my homework every evening.
  • ❌ I do a mistake.
  • ✅ I make a mistake.

Chiến lược nâng cấp câu trả lời

Công thức PEEL cho Part 3

Point → Explanation → Example → Link

"I think (P) that technology has had a largely positive effect on education. This is because (E) students are now able to access information instantly, which would have been impossible twenty years ago. For instance, (E) in remote areas where there are no good schools, children can still receive quality education through online platforms. So overall, (L) I would say technology has opened up opportunities that many people would never have had otherwise."

Template câu Part 3 có range cao

Mục đích Template
Đồng ý một phần "To some extent, I agree that X, but I think it's more complicated than that."
Đưa ra hai mặt "On the one hand, X. On the other, Y. Personally, I would argue that..."
Lập luận giả định "If we were to solve this problem, we would need to first understand the root causes."
Nhìn lại quá khứ "Looking back, if more resources had been invested earlier, the situation today might be very different."

Band 6 → Band 7: Upgrade Drill

Band 6 thường đúng grammar nhưng thiếu variety — câu ngắn, cùng một thì, ít cấu trúc phức. Bốn thao tác sau đủ để nâng một câu trả lời Band 6 lên Band 7:

  1. Thêm relative clause — bổ sung thông tin sau noun
  2. Thêm modal hoặc hedging — tránh tuyệt đối hóa
  3. Thêm discourse marker — tạo cấu trúc và flow
  4. Đổi hoặc kết hợp thì — khi ngữ cảnh cho phép

Ví dụ Upgrade:

Band 6 Band 7
"I think technology is very useful." "I would argue that technology has become an indispensable part of modern life — particularly when it comes to communication and instant access to information."
"The environment is a big problem." "Environmental degradation is undoubtedly one of the most pressing challenges we face, a problem that, if left unaddressed, could have irreversible consequences for future generations."
"Young people use social media a lot." "Young people tend to spend considerable time on social media, which I think reflects a broader need for connection — though there are growing concerns about the impact on mental health."

Bài tự luyện — Upgrade những câu Band 6 sau:

  1. "People like to travel a lot these days."
  2. "Education is important for everyone."
  3. "Cities are becoming more crowded."

(Gợi ý: thêm ít nhất 1 relative clause, 1 modal/hedge, 1 discourse marker)

Bài tập luyện

Mở rộng câu trả lời

Mở rộng câu trả lời ngắn sau bằng cách thêm: một relative clause, một modal verb, một discourse marker.

  1. "I enjoy reading." → (thêm: what kind of books, how long you've read, why)
  2. "My hometown is small." → (thêm: comparison, change over time, opinion)
  3. "People use technology too much." → (thêm: hedge, example, conditional)

Đáp án gợi ý

  1. "I really enjoy reading, especially fiction — I've been an avid reader since I was about eight. What I love most is that books can transport you to completely different worlds."

  2. "My hometown is quite small, which I used to find boring when I was younger. It has changed a lot over the past decade though — in fact, it's becoming increasingly popular with tourists, which I think is partly because of its beautiful countryside."

  3. "I would say people do tend to rely on technology quite heavily these days. For instance, most people can't seem to get through a meal without checking their phones. If this trend continues, I think we might see some serious consequences for face-to-face communication skills."

Tóm tắt nhanh

Part Thì chính Cấu trúc nổi bật
Part 1 Present Simple, Past Simple, Present Perfect Modal verbs, relative clauses
Part 2 Past tenses (simple, continuous, perfect) Discourse markers, conditionals
Part 3 Mixed — Past + Present + Future + Conditional Conditionals, hedging, complex sentences

Công thức tăng điểm GRA trong Speaking: - Sau mỗi câu ngắn → mở rộng bằng relative clause, reason, or example - Dùng ít nhất 1 conditional trong Part 3 - Thay "very" bằng adverbs mạnh hơn: remarkably, incredibly, considerably - Xen kẽ active và passive để tạo tông giọng đa dạng - Tự sửa lỗi tự nhiên — không phải điểm trừ, mà là dấu hiệu của accuracy awareness