Part 2 · Band 6

Describe a person who encouraged you to achieve a goal.

Illustrative target band for this model answer · 221 words

AI-completed learning example

Well, I think motivation plays a role in the success of every person's life. Actually, I know many people who inspire me a lot throughout my life. Among them, I would like to talk about a person who encouraged me to achieve my goal. To begin with, the name of this person is none other than my high-school English teacher, Ms. Rahman. I met her when I was preparing for my university entrance examination, and my goal was to improve my English enough to pass it. At first, I found the reading section especially difficult, so I sometimes felt that I would not succeed. Ms. Rahman noticed this and encouraged me to keep working instead of giving up. She helped me make a simple weekly study plan, recommended books, and stayed after class to explain questions I had found confusing. What I appreciated most was that she praised my effort, not just my results. That made me more confident and motivated me to practise regularly. Eventually, I passed the examination and reached my goal. I still remember her advice that steady progress matters more than being perfect straight away. Overall, she encouraged me through practical support and kindness, and her influence has stayed with me. Whenever I face a difficult task now, I try to remember her words and keep going.

Answer analysis

Fluency & Coherence

The answer follows a clear spoken sequence: it introduces Ms. Rahman, explains the challenge, describes her support, and ends with the result and lasting influence. Details such as the weekly plan and after-class explanations help develop the story rather than simply listing qualities. To practise delivery, speak for two minutes using only five prompts: person, goal, difficulty, support, outcome; then check that each prompt leads naturally to the next.

Lexical Resource

The response uses relevant phrases such as “university entrance examination,” “weekly study plan,” and “steady progress,” which make the account specific and easy to follow. Some wording in the opening—especially “plays a role in the success of every person's life” and “inspire me a lot”—is broad and slightly repetitive. For a more precise opening, name the kind of support that mattered, such as encouragement through practical help and confidence-building.

Grammatical Range & Accuracy

There is a useful mix of simple and more complex sentences, including “Although” is not used, but the sentence “Whenever I face a difficult task now, I try to remember her words and keep going” shows clear subordination. The preserved phrase “Actually, I know many people who inspire me a lot throughout my life” has a tense mismatch between “know” and the time span “throughout my life.” Review present perfect forms for experiences continuing up to now, while keeping the rest of the narrative in the past.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation cannot be assessed from text, so this is a practice guide, not an assessment of a recording. Try stressing the main information in “university entrance examination,” “weekly study plan,” and “steady progress.” Group the story into thought units at sentence boundaries, with a brief reset before “At first,” “What I appreciated most,” and “Overall.” Record one run-through, then check whether each key phrase is clear and each group is easy to follow.

A transcript shows language and organisation. Fluency, delivery and pronunciation require an audio recording; the synthetic voice demonstrates the text, not the original speaker.

  • Replace the broad opening with one sentence that previews the particular qualities you will explain, such as Ms. Rahman's practical help and encouragement.
  • Practise the life-long experience sentence with the present perfect: distinguish “I have known” from “I know” when using “throughout my life.”
  • Give the story a two-minute timed run-through using five cue words—goal, difficulty, plan, result, influence—and include one concrete example of her help under each relevant point.

Plan your answer

Try your own response before reading the samples.

Ideas to explore

  • Name one specific goal and explain why it mattered to you.
  • Describe two concrete ways the person supported you, such as setting small targets and giving feedback.
  • Explain what changed after the encouragement and what you learned from the experience.

Suggested structure

  1. Briefly introduce the person and your relationship.
  2. State the goal and why you found it challenging.
  3. Give specific examples of how the person encouraged you.
  4. Describe the result and reflect on why the support mattered.
Useful vocabulary & examples
set manageable targets
choose small, realistic steps towards a larger goal

My mother helped me set manageable targets for practising my speaking.

offer gentle feedback
give suggestions in a supportive, non-critical way

After each practice, she offered gentle feedback on one thing I could improve.

grow in confidence
become more self-assured over time

I began to grow in confidence as I spoke more often in class.

break a goal into steps
divide a larger aim into smaller actions

It became easier to make progress once I broke my goal into steps.

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