IELTS Daily Practice — 2026-11-09

Study information

• Study day:
• Target: Band 7.5–8.0
• Estimated time: 95–110 minutes
• Priority: Speaking and Writing; light Listening and Reading maintenance
• Main objective: Describe a person who influenced your learning or career with a clear story, flexible language, and developed reflection; then write a balanced opinion essay with specific support.

Band note: The model language below contains features associated with Band 7.5–8.0, such as coherent development, flexible vocabulary, and controlled complex sentences. It does not guarantee a particular score.

1. Four-skill plan

2. Speaking focus: a person who influenced you

Part 2 cue card

Describe a person who has influenced your learning or career.

You should say:

• who this person is;
• how you know them;
• what they taught you or how they influenced you;
• and explain why their influence has been important.

Planning method: person–moment–change–reflection

• Person: teacher, colleague, manager, family member, or friend.
• Moment: one conversation, assignment, mistake, or piece of advice.
• Change: what you did differently afterwards and the result.
• Reflection: why the lesson is still useful now.

Avoid listing several people. One specific episode is more effective than a general description. “Influence” means a person’s effect on your decisions, behaviour, or development.

Model answer A — student version

The person who has influenced my learning most is my high-school English teacher, Ms Li. I met her when I was preparing for an important school examination, and at that time I mainly memorised vocabulary and grammar rules. I could complete written exercises, but I was afraid to speak because I thought every mistake would make me look unprepared.

One day, she asked me to explain a short news story to the class without reading from my notebook. I made several grammatical mistakes, but she focused first on whether my ideas were clear. Afterwards, she showed me how to organise an answer with a main point, an example, and a short conclusion. She also encouraged me to keep a small notebook of useful expressions rather than isolated words.

This changed my approach to English. I began practising in shorter, more regular sessions and tried to communicate before worrying about perfection. My confidence improved, and I became better at developing an answer instead of giving one-sentence replies. What I value most is that she taught me learning is a process of refinement, not a test of whether I am naturally talented. That idea still helps me when I study something difficult.

Model answer B — working-professional version

The person who has influenced my career most is a former colleague who taught me the value of evidence-based communication. I worked with him on a assignment involving repeated difficult situations, and my early updates tended to mix confirmed facts, possible causes, and personal opinions in one long paragraph. Although I was trying to be thorough, the team found it difficult to decide what action to take.

He showed me a much clearer way to report an issue. First, I should state the exact symptom and the conditions under which it occurred. Then I should separate observations from hypotheses, provide the relevant log location, and finish with the next action or unresolved question. On one occasion, I used this structure to describe a failure that occurred only after a particular sequence of steps. The team was able to reproduce it more quickly and narrow the investigation.

His influence has been important because it changed both my writing and my way of thinking. I now try to make an update useful to the reader rather than simply complete from the writer’s perspective. This has reduced misunderstandings, improved my confidence in meetings, and helped me explain complex problems to people who do not share the same background. The broader lesson is that professional communication is a practical problem-solving skill, not just a language skill.

Part 3 questions

1. Why are some people influenced more by colleagues than by teachers?
2. Should successful professionals be required to mentor younger people?
3. Can a person learn important lessons from someone they dislike?
4. Has social media changed the way young people choose role models?

Answer frame: direct answer → reason → example → qualification or result. Aim for 3–5 developed sentences. Use one concession where appropriate: Although…, I would argue that…

3. High-frequency expressions and upgrades

Personal practice

Complete and say these sentences with your own details:

1. A particularly formative influence in my life was ______, who ______.
2. Whereas I once ______, I now ______.
3. The broader lesson I drew was that ______.
4. This was not an overnight change; instead, ______.

4. Writing focus — Task 2 discussion and opinion essay

Task

Some people believe that young people should follow the advice of older and more experienced people, while others think young people should make their own decisions. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Recommended structure

1. Introduction: paraphrase the two views and give a direct opinion.
2. Body 1: explain the value of experienced advice, with one realistic example.
3. Body 2: explain the importance of independent decisions, including a limitation of relying on others.
4. Conclusion: summarise the balanced position without introducing a new idea.

Useful language

• Older people can offer insight based on direct experience.
• Advice is most valuable when it informs a decision rather than replacing it.
• Young adults need opportunities to develop judgement through manageable risks.
• Blindly following advice may prevent people from taking responsibility for the outcome.
• The most constructive approach is to combine guidance with personal evaluation.
• This allows individuals to benefit from experience while retaining ownership of their choices.

Model response (about 285 words)

There is debate about whether young people should mainly follow the advice of older, more experienced individuals or make decisions independently. Although experience can prevent avoidable mistakes, I believe young people should listen carefully to advice and then make their own informed choices.

On the one hand, older people may provide practical insight that cannot be gained from books alone. They have often faced similar problems and can explain the likely consequences of different choices. For example, an experienced professional may warn a new employee that accepting an attractive role without checking its responsibilities could lead to excessive stress or limited development. Such guidance can help young people identify risks that they have not yet learned to recognise. It may also save them time and money, particularly in decisions involving education, employment, or personal finance.

On the other hand, advice is not universally applicable, because circumstances and personal goals differ between generations. If young people simply follow instructions, they may fail to develop judgement or take responsibility for the results. A graduate who chooses a career only because a relative considers it prestigious, for instance, may eventually discover that the work does not match their interests or strengths. Making a considered mistake can be educational, provided that the consequences are manageable and the person reflects on what happened.

In my view, the best approach is neither complete dependence nor deliberate rejection of advice. Young people should ask experienced people for perspectives, test those perspectives against reliable information, and then decide according to their own situation. This process allows them to benefit from accumulated knowledge while gradually developing independence.

In conclusion, older people’s advice can reduce unnecessary risks, but it should not replace personal decision-making. A combination of guidance, critical evaluation, and individual responsibility is the most effective way to support young adults.

Self-check: five measurable points

• Underline the opinion in your introduction and conclusion. Do they match?
• Put a star beside one specific example in each body paragraph.
• Circle every and, but, and because. Replace one repeated connector with a more precise alternative.
• Check six noun phrases for articles, countability, and plural endings.
• Check five complex sentences for subject–verb agreement and punctuation.

5. Listening maintenance

Before your normal IELTS audio, read this original mini-task and predict the answer type.

Message: “The career seminar will begin at 10:15 in the library meeting room. Attendees should bring a pen and their student ID. The first speaker has changed from Dr Patel to Ms Green, who will discuss workplace communication. Questions will be collected on cards during the break.”

1. Start time: ______
2. Location: ______
3. Required identification: ______
4. New first speaker: ______
5. Questions will be collected when? ______

Answers: 1) 10:15, 2) the library meeting room, 3) student ID, 4) Ms Green, 5) during the break.

Strategy: listen for corrections and replacements. When the speaker says one name or time and then changes it, the second version is usually the answer. Also check whether the answer requires a person, place, time, or event.

6. Reading maintenance

Use one IELTS passage containing matching information, headings, or multiple-choice questions. Spend 90 seconds predicting each paragraph’s main idea, then answer five questions in 12 minutes.

Strategy: for matching questions, match the meaning rather than an identical word. For multiple choice, predict an answer before examining the options, locate the evidence, and eliminate choices that are too broad, too narrow, or contradicted.

Original mini practice

Mentoring programmes can benefit new employees by giving them access to practical knowledge and informal support. However, a successful programme requires clear expectations on both sides. If mentors are treated as permanent problem-solvers, new employees may become dependent rather than gradually developing their own judgement.

Question: What condition does the passage identify as important for a mentoring programme?

Answer: Both the mentor and the new employee need clear expectations; otherwise, the new employee may become dependent.

Paraphrase pair: informal support = practical help that may not be part of a formal procedure.

7. Pronunciation and recording

• Shadow these two openings: “The person who has influenced my career most…” and “Although experience can prevent avoidable mistakes…”
• Stress the key contrast: EXperience / INdependent / INformed CHOICES / PERsonal reSPONsibility.
• Practise the final consonants in influenced, changed, helped, and decisions. Do not drop the /t/, /d/, or /z/ endings.
• Record the Part 2 answer for two minutes. Listen once without reading and mark pauses, repeated words, unclear endings, and whether the change/result is specific.
• Re-record with only two targets: one better transition and one more precise example.

8. Common errors and corrections

9. Review and next-day preparation

End-of-day review

• Retell the Part 2 story in four stages: person, moment, change, reflection, without looking at the model.
• Answer the four Part 3 questions again and include one concession phrase, such as although, while, or however.
• Re-read your essay and record word count, time used, one grammar correction, one vocabulary upgrade, and one underdeveloped idea.
• Score yourself from 1–5 for fluency, lexical flexibility, grammar control, pronunciation, and idea development. Write one piece of evidence for each score.
• Add one Listening or Reading error-log entry: question type, your answer, correct answer, evidence, and prevention rule.

Prepare for

• Choose a place that is important to you and prepare one specific memory connected with it.
• Bring two sensory details and one change over time for the Speaking Part 2 answer.
• Review today’s contrast language: whereas, although, on the other hand, and neither…nor….
• Write five sentences using advice, experience, influence, responsibility, and independence accurately.