Speaking: Example of a Group Discussion

CANDIDATE C:
Good morning everyone. We are here to discuss ( To initiate
the discussion) the most effective way to overcome the problem of obesity. We have
four suggestions, which are to change eating habits, daily exercise, health talks and
awareness campaigns. Candidate B, would you like to share your opinion with
us?( To ask for opinion/view).
CANDIDATE B:
Yes I would, thank you, Candidate C. I strongly believe that
(To express opinion/view) the most effective is to engage in daily exercise.
Exercising increases our metabolic rate and this helps to burn calories. Exercise
such as jogging and swimming burn the excess fat accumulated under our ski. Half
an hour of exercise daily will surely help to keep obesity at bay. Do you agree with
me,(To ask for opinion) Candidate D?
CANDIDATE D:
I am sorry, Candidate B. I dont agree with the point that
you have just mentioned. I do not think that ( To disagree) daily exercise is the
most effective way to check obesity. In my opinion, I would say that (To give
opinion) awareness campaigns are a better solution because such campaigns could
influence the minds of the public. Such campaigns, if widely publicized by the mass
media, could be highly effective in getting people to be aware of the dangers of and
consequently check obesity. It is when people are aware of the importance of taking
care of their health that they will take the pains to stay fit.
CANDIDATE A:
(To interrupt)

Excuse me, (To interrupt) Candidate D, can I say something?

CANDIDATE D:

Yes, please go ahead.

CANDIDATE A:
Thank you , Candidate D. I see your point, but I am of the
opinion that (To partially agree) changing eating habits is the most effective way
to overcome the problem of obesity. This is because bad eating habit is the main
reason for obesity. We need to fight the problem from is roots. Taking a balanced
diet according to the food pyramid would reduce the intake of high fat, sodium,
sugar ,calorie- and cholesterol-laden food. Fruits, vegetable and cereals that provide
fibre reduce hunger pangs and provide essential nutrients. Lost of water flushes out
the toxins accumulated in the body. I believe (To give opinion) all these could help
to check obesity. Candidate C, what do you think?(To ask for opinion)
CANDIDATE C:
I am sorry , Candidate A. I feel that changing eating habits
is not necessarily the best solution.(To disagree).In my point of view (To give
opinion),health talks are more effective in dealing with obesity. People get more
direct information on how to choose the best type of food for them and they also
learn different ways to improve their health. There are often free screenings like
Body-Mass Index tests and health checks during these talks and this will help people
become more aware of health problems related to obesity. People can get advice
that is tailored to their personal needs.

CANDIDATE B:
I dont agree with your point, (To express disagreement)
Candidate C . I think health talks are not effective in helping to check obesity as
people merely listen and forget about the advice when they get home. People dont
internalize the information. Dont you agree with me, (To ask for support/opinion)
Candidate D?
CANDIDATE D:
You have made your view very clear. I agree with you.(To
agree) Well, now that we have presented all our view points, what do you
have to say (To come to consensus), Candidate A?
CANDIDATE A:
I support the opinion of (To agree and support an opinion)
Candidate B that daily exercise is the most effective way in checking obesity.
CANDIDATE D:

What about you(To ask for opinion),Candidate C?

CANDIDATE C:
I guess Candidate B has a very good point there.(To agree
and support an opinion). Daily exercise is the most effective solution.
CANDIDATE D:
Right, so we all agree that daily exercise is the most
effective solution to control obesity ( To express the group decision). Does
anyone have anything else to say? Otherwise, lets bring his discussion to
a close(To end the discussion). Thank you for your contributions to this
discussion.(To close the discussion)

MUET SPEAKING 800/2 TIPS - SAMPLE ANSWERS

Candidate A
Instructions to candidates:
Task A: Individual presentation

Study the stimulus or topic given.

You are given two minutes to prepare your responses.

You are given two minutes to present.

Listen to the others while they are making their presentations and
take down notes for the group discussion in Task B.

Task B: Group discussion

You are given two minutes to prepare points to support or oppose

the other candidates views.

After you have listened to everyone, try to come to a decision as to

which of the four suggestions is the best.

Your group is given ten minutes for the discussion.

Task A and Task B will be carried out consecutively.

Situation
Your brother has been given the opportunity to study in England on a
government scholarship. You and your family are very proud of him.
Decide on a special gift for him to prepare for his trip abroad.
Task A: Suggest that they give him cash. Say why.
Task B: Discuss which of the following would be most useful.
i. cash
ii. a computer
iii. some suitable clothing
iv. some Malaysian foodstuf

Candidate A
Task A: Suggest that they give him cash. Say why.
Good morning to the examiners and my fellow friends. Im very happy that
my brother has just received a scholarship to study in England. My
relatives and I would like to give him a special gift. We all think that the
best gift is money because it will be very useful for him.
The first reason is with cash he can buy the things that he needs when he
gets there. There will me a lot of things that he will need like new books,
stationery, clothes and food. He will also need to pay for transportation
like taking the bus or train to go to the university campus. As we know, it
is very expensive in England so any money we give him will be very useful.
Secondly, my brother can use the money to buy a mobile phone when he
gets to England. I think this is very important in case of emergencies so
we can contact him easily. Furthermore, he can sms us and keep us
updated with his progress in his studies there. Hence, if we really miss
him we can just give him a call.
Finally, I also think giving him money is the best choice because it is light
and doesnt take up a lot of space. If we were to give him a computer,
books or winter clothes it will be very heavy and bulky for him to bring to
England. Therefore, I think that it is much easier to bring money and buy
those things when he gets there.
In conclusion, these are some of the reasons why I think giving him cash is
the best choice. To me, it is the most useful gift we can give him. Thank
you.
Candidate B
Task A: You suggest that they give him a computer. Say why.
A very good morning I bid to one and all. My relatives and I are very proud
of my brother. He has just received a scholarship to study in England and
so we would like to give him a special gift. We believe that the best
present for him is a laptop computer.
Firstly, as a university student, my brother will have to do many
assignments. If he has a laptop computer he can bring it everywhere and
consequently, do his work anytime and anywhere. Thus, he will not have
to share the computers at the computer room with other students and he
will be able to do his work more quickly and efficiently.

Another point is that when he boards the plane from KLIA to London, he
will be able to bring the laptop with him easily because it is compact and
light compared to a desktop computer. Hence, it will not be too much
trouble to transport it to England.
Last but not least, if he has a laptop he will be able to connect to the
internet. This has two main advantages as firstly, he can do a lot of
research online. The world wide web is a fountain of information so it will
be very useful for him to make full use of this technology. Furthermore, he
can keep in touch with friends and family here in Malaysia by e-mail.
In short, a laptop computer will prove to be very useful to my brother. He
can do his assignments, research for information and keep in touch with
us using it therefore it will make the best gift. Thank you for listening.
Candidate C
Task A: You suggest that they give him some suitable clothing. Say why.
To the examiners and my fellow candidates, a wonderful morning I bid
you. My brother was lucky enough to receive a scholarship to study
overseas. We want to send him off with a nice gift so we have decided to
buy him some suitable clothing.
The main purpose for buying him some suitable clothing is because the
weather in England is very different from the weather in our country.
There are four seasons there so he will need to have different clothes for
different situations. For example, we can buy him some sweaters,
cardigans, scarves, snowcaps, thick socks and gloves and many more.
These will definitely keep him warm in winter.
The second reason is we think that he should have clothes that reflect our
Malaysian identity. This is because he will be a young ambassador for our
country so if he has a few sets of traditional clothing like the Baju Melayu
or formal Batik shirts, I am sure he will not only look good but promote our
culture overseas.
Lastly, neat clothes make a good impression. For instance, if we buy him
some everyday clothes like jeans and trousers with nice shirts and
matching ties, this will give him a good feeling about himself so he will
walk a bit straighter and talk a bit wiser. Moreover, people will look at him
and have a good impression about Malaysian students.
To conclude, I think that the best present to give him is some suitable
clothing because it will be very useful and will reflect positively on him.
Thank you very much.
Candidate D
Task A: You suggest that they give him some Malaysian foodstuf. Say
why.

I would like to wish everyone here a very good morning. As we all know,
my brother has won a scholarship to study in England. Therefore, some
relatives and I have decided to give him some Malaysian foodstuff as a
going away present.
First and foremost, one of the main problems Malaysians face when
studying overseas is that it is hard to find Halal food. We feel it is a good
idea to give him some Malaysian foodstuff because it will take time for him
to get used to the place and find out where to buy Halal food. Thus, in the
meantime he can enjoy the Malaysian foodstuff that we have given to him.
The next reason is because some of the foodstuff we are used to having
here in Malaysia is quite hard to find in UK. Most students studying
overseas really enjoy eating Maggi Mee and sambal belacan. For instance,
it is also hard to find the right spices for curry and rendang and so on so if
we supply him with enough Malaysian foodstuff, he can eat it whenever he
misses home.
The final point I have is that he can use the Malaysian foodstuff we give
him and cook it for the Westerners there. Sometimes, universities
organise events like Malaysian Night and so he and his friends can cook
some Malaysian specialities for them to taste a bit of our way of life.
Hence, the Malaysian foodstuff will be very useful to promote our culture.
In a nutshell, giving my brother Malaysian foodstuff to take with him to
England is a good idea. This is because he will have some familiar food to
eat when he misses home and he can also share it with his new friends.
Thank you for listening to my opinion.

Task B: Discuss which of the following would be most useful.

i. Cash
ii. A computer
iii. Some suitable clothing
iv. Some Malaysian foodstuf
* Work together in your respective groups and complete the following
discussion.
A: Good morning once again to everyone. We are here to focus on the
issue at hand which is __________________________________________________________.
I would like to invite anyone of you to kickstart this discussion by giving
us your point of view.
B: Allow me to begin. First of all, Im happy that our brother has won the
scholarship to study in England. Therefore, we must decide what would be
the most useful gift for him. In my opinion, I strongly believe that
_______________ _________________________________________________________________.
This is because I think he can _________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________.
For example, ______________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________.
C: I see your point but how about getting him ______________________________.
In this way, he can use it to ___________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________.
D: I dont quite agree with you because ____________________________________
_________________________________________________________________. I think it would

be more useful if we bought _______________________ for him. Does anyone

agree with me?
A: Yes, I agree with you. To add to your point, I feel that
______________________
_________________________________________________________________.
This is so he will ___________________________________________________.
C: Im afraid I dont see eye to eye with both of you. Buying that as a
present for him is not the most useful gift because
__________________________________
_________________________________________________________________.
Moreover, ________________________________________________________.
Can you all understand what Im trying to say?
B: Indeed, I do see your point of view but I still feel that the most useful
gift is __________________ because it can ___________________________________.
Another reason is ___________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________. For instance,
_______________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________.
D: Thats an interesting perspective and I agree with you that
___________________
_________________________________________________________________. However, I think
we should consider other points. We should also think about buying him
_______________________________________________________.
If he gets this as a present, he can ______________________________________ and
____________________________________________. Wouldnt you agree?
A: Im not sure I understand what you are saying. Can you explain it again,
please.
D: What I mean is we should buy him _____________________________________
because it will me more useful for him when he is studying in England.
This is because ___________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________.
A: Aaah I see. Yes, I think it would be a very useful gift too. This way, he
can _________________________________________________________________.
C: Thats a good point, but dont you think if we gave him
_____________________ it will be the most useful for him as a student. I still
believe that this is the most useful because
_____________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________.
Remember, we need to think of the best and most useful choice.

B: I agree with you, Candidate C. In addition, he can use this gift to

_____________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
________. So candidates A & D, what do you guys think?
D: Now that youve explained it like that, I also agree that it will be the
most useful. In fact, he could also use it to
_________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________.
A: As for me, I feel that it is also the most useful. When he arrives at his
university in England, he will be able to
____________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________.
C: Thats right. Well, after listening to all the points on the four choices we
have, I think it is time to make a conclusion.
D: Yes, I think so too. Does everyone agree that we should give our
brother _______________________________________ as a special going away
present?
All: Yes, I agree.
B: In a nutshell, we all agree that _______________________________ is the best
choice because firstly, he can _________________________________________,
secondly, ________________________________________________ and finally
_________________________________________________________________.
Thank you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The
End~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
What to conclude if after 10 minutes of discussion.
A) Agree = 3, Disagree = 1
Conclusion: To conclude, MOST OF US agree that ______________________
is the best choice because ________________________________.
___________________________________________. Thank you.
B) Agree = 2, Disagree = 2
Conclusion: In conclusion, we were unable to make a solid decision
because
SOME OF US stongly believe that the best choice is __________ because
_______________________________________________ while THE REST OF US think that
giving him _______________ is the most useful because _________________
___________________________________________. Thank you.

C) All Disagree
Conclusion: In a nutshell, we were unable to come to an agreement on
which of the four options is the best choice. It seems ALL OF US strongly
believe in our own points so as we have run out of time, we think that we
should each buy him a gift individually. Thank you.

GUIDELINES
1.

Practice, practical practice!

Practice preparing points on a topic within two minutes

Practice speaking in class

Practice in front of mirror

Practice note-taking skills

2.

Read widely and keep abreast with current issues

3.

Organize your ideas and thoughts quickly

Highlight key words or phrases to help you focus on the task

Use short notes

Organize key word/note in a logical order

Avoid sweeping statements or generalizations

Give reason and examples to substantiate points

Given a reasonable, practical opinion or suggestion

4.

Be calm and confident. Speak convincingly.

5.

Body language

Sit upright

Smile and be cheerful

Use appropriate, natural hand gestures

Do not look nervous or sad

Avoid fidgeting, folding your arms or shaking your legs

Avoid fiddling with your pen or tapping the table with your pen fingers

6.

Speck clearly

Ensure your voice is audible; do not mumble

Do not shout

Do not speak too fast or pause too long

Vary your too fast or pause too long

Vary your pitch and intonation

Articulate your words properly

Avoid filled pauses such as err or uuhhh

Refrain from peculiar speech habits such as you know, alright, actually

Remember not to use lah

7.

Be an participant in Task B

Do not keep quiet

Learn how to interrupt politely

Do not dominate or monopolize the discussion

Do not assume that you are always right

Use connectives and relevant expressions

8.

Observe social conventions when interacting

Address others properly

Be friendly, polite and diplomatic

Do not be upset if your opinion or suggestion is not accepted

Accept better suggestions

Avoid being personal, defensive or creating uneasiness and anxiety

9.

Pay attention to the discussion

Listen attentively when others are talking

Do not daydream

Keep to your topic and be focused. Do not go out of point

10. Keep within the stipulated time

Ensure that there is enough time for everyone to present their points

Do not spend so much time on the first point that there is insufficient time to
discuss other points. Allocate sufficient time for each point.