Self-studying IELTS Speaking by SMART CONTEXT method with PREP

Are you familiar with the sayings "kill two birds with one stone" or "one blow, seven deaths"? These idioms encapsulate the essence of the Smart Context method, pioneered by PREP, which numerous high-scoring students have adopted. Dive into the article below to discover how to effectively self-study IELTS Speaking using the SMART CONTEXT method!

I. What is SMART CONTEXT method in self-studying IELTS Speaking?

Smart Context is a method used when you self-study IELTS Speaking. In this method, test takers prepare a small number of carefully selected short script passages at home, covering various topics, with filtered content, vocabulary, and structures. Then, when you enter the exam room and encounter any given topic, you can "navigate" them towards the topics you have prepared beforehand.

For example, if you have prepared a script describing "Pizza" - a popular food in Italy, you can easily adapt it to various IELTS Speaking topics: 

• Describe a popular product made in your region. → Describe "Pizza"
• Describe something interesting you learned from the internet. → Learn how to make "Pizza"
• Describe a news/TV program/magazine you have watched/read recently. → Discuss the content related to "Pizza"

II. Sample Script Simulation: Addressing 3 Issues with a Unified Idea

1. "Time travel"

"Time travel is the topic that I'm really interested in. Theoretically, there is one scenario in which time travel is possible. That is when we travel through a wormhole. Wormholes are created by the curvature of spacetime, which is a four-dimensional space. They may teleport a person to a place that is billions of billions of miles in just a blink of an eye. One travelling at that speed may absolutely travel to the past."

2. The "Unpredictable Transformation" of the Sample Script in IELTS Speaking Part 2

Describe a book that you enjoy reading:

The one book that I really really love is "A brief history of time", written by Stephan Hawking. I read it a few weeks ago, and from it I learned a lot about time travel. There is one whole chapter in this book dedicated to this topic. According to the book, there is one scenario ... in which time travel is possible. That is when we travel through a wormhole. Wormholes are created by the curvature of spacetime, which is a four-dimensional space. They may teleport a person to a place that is billions of billions of miles in just a blink of an eye. One travelling at that speed may absolutely travel to the past.

Describe a website that you visited frequently:

The one website that I visit very frequently these days is learnphysics.vn. I often go to this website to learn about my favourite theoretical physics topic, which is time travel. According to this website, there is one scenario ... in which time travel is possible. That is when we travel through a wormhole. Wormholes are created by the curvature of spacetime, which is a four-dimensional space. They may teleport a person to a place that is billions of billions of miles in just a blink of an eye. One travelling at that speed may absolutely travel to the past.

Describe a film you watched recently:

Two weeks ago, I watched "Time travel", a documentary film about travelling through time. I really enjoyed it because time travel is my favourite theoretical physics topic. According to this film, there is one scenario ... in which time travel is possible. That is when we travel through a wormhole. Wormholes are created by the curvature of spacetime, which is a four-dimensional space. They may teleport a person to a place that is billions of billions of miles in just a blink of an eye. One travelling at that speed may absolutely travel to the past.

It's really awesome, isn't it? Understanding this method makes taking the IELTS Speaking test and self-studying much less stressful.

III. Important Considerations when Using SMART CONTEXT method in Self-Studying IELTS Speaking

1. The number of scripts to prepare when self-studying IELTS Speaking at home

Prepare about 10 to 15 sample scripts covering various diverse topics when self-studying IELTS Speaking. Note that the sample scripts should be enough to cover 50-100 IELTS Speaking topics every quarter.

2. How to prepare scripts

Carefully prepare the content and include useful vocabulary and phrases. It is important to prepare specific topics, meaning topics with specific details.

For example, "Describe a time when you traveled with an elderly person." Then use the content of specific topics to answer general topics (broad topics), like "Describe a time when you felt excited." The reason is that general topics can be approached in many different ways without going off-topic. However, if specific topics are not addressed properly in terms of content, such as the topic "Describe a time when you traveled with an elderly person," if the elements of "traveling" and "with an elderly person" are not adequately described, it is easy to be considered off-topic.

3. The need for scenario-building thinking

Although the prepared script segments for self-studying IELTS Speaking are meticulously crafted in terms of content, they may not always directly answer the question of the given prompt. This requires you to be a bit cunning and clever to insert a few guiding sentences, similar to what Teacher Tú did in the sample script above, before incorporating your prepared script at home.

4. How to choose topics for scripts

It is advisable to choose topics that you already have a fondness for or topics that you have a relatively good background knowledge in, so that the process of preparing the script is not burdensome and tedious.

PREP knows that not everyone truly has a strong background knowledge in a specific field. Furthermore, preparing a well-structured and well-vocabularied script for those scoring below 6.0 can be quite challenging and does not guarantee accuracy. Therefore, the advice for you is to learn samples from reputable, high-scoring teachers.

You can refer to the IELTS Advanced Speaking-Writing course by PREP's teacher. Each lesson provides a sample for a specific topic. From there, you can make use of the Smart Context method when taking the test and self-studying IELTS Speaking to answer various general topics.