Oral Examination Tips

It's that time of the year again! The oral exams. Though some may view it with trepidation, others will see it as an opportunity. An opportunity to bag as many marks as possible. To get that proverbial money in the bank :)

The oral examination is divided into 3 parts;- Reading, Picture Discussion and General Conversation

Reading
In the reading component, read the article with clarity and watch your pronounciation. Do not mumble. If the examiner starts to use expressions such as these;- "Hahh?", "What?", "Say again?", "Can you read louder?", "Are you talking to the table ?", or Zzzzzzz (Examiner is sleeping), then you run the risk of getting into trouble.

Use varied intonation in your reading. Do not read in monotone. Nobody likes to hear a voice like a 'robot' right?

Picture Discussion
In the picture discussion component, talk about;-
1) the settings (where you think the event is taking place)

2) general observations of the incidents in the picture which are normally spoken in the third person eg, The boy is seen walking with his sister.
(Note: This is a low-level skill and one with which, if you are skilled enough,talk about till the cows come home. Not encourage.)

3) infer some details about the pictures. Use your opinions to talk about what you think will happen in the next moment. Voice your opinions in the first person eg " I think...", "I believe....", "In my opinion....."
eg, In my opinion, the boy should be holding onto his sister's hands when they are crossing the road. This is a safety aspect one should consider when crossing a busy road like the one depicted in the picture. Failure to do so may result in an accident since the sister looked so lost and occupied with eating her ice cream and may not be aware of the dangers on the road.

4) Sum up your picture description with a lesson that can be learnt from the picture
eg, From this picture, one lesson we can learn is to be careful when crossing roads, no matter how 'safe' they may look since danger can be found everywhere and not to take safety for granted.

5) Above all else, remember to use present tense to describe the picture.

General Conversation
This section ties closely with the topic of the picture description. For this section, just relax and try to engage in a meaningful dialogue with the examiner. Be friendly. Smile. This is the time for you to shine :)

That's all the tips that I can think of at this moment. All the best for your Oral Examination and carpe diem!