PTE Academic Mastery: Re-tell Lecture

The ‘Re-tell Lecture’ question integrates listening and speaking skills, and requires you to understand and re-tell a lecture.

Number of items3-4
Prompt LengthUp to 90 seconds
Time to answer40 seconds
ScoringPartial credit
Communicative skills, enabling skills and other traits scoredListening and speaking

Oral fluency, pronunciation

Content

Subskills testedListening: Identifying the topic, theme or main ideas; identifying supporting points or examples; identifying a speaker’s purpose, style, tone or attitude; understanding academic vocabulary; inferring the meaning of unfamiliar words; comprehending explicit and implicit information; comprehending concrete and abstract information; classifying and categorizing information; following an oral sequencing of information; comprehending variations in tone, speed and accent.

Speaking: Speaking for a purpose (to repeat, to inform, to explain); supporting an opinion with details, examples and explanations; organizing an oral presentation in a logical way; developing complex ideas within a spoken discourse; using words and phrases appropriate to the context; using correct grammar; speaking at a natural rate; producing fluent speech; using correct intonation; using correct pronunciation; using correct stress; speaking under timed conditions.

Strategies
  1. Focus and listen carefully, especially to the introduction and conclusion. The primary idea is introduced at the beginning and upon which the supporting details will be built. Try to deduce the argument the speaker is trying to make and the examples that he is citing.
  2. Write notes and include the context words. You don’t have to write every single word you hear. However, if you have paralegal skills, then the odds are in your favor.
  3. Look at the image that might appear on the screen when the lecture will start playing. The image will basically give you an idea what will be discussed in the lecture. Look for any words that describe the image so you can have a better understanding of the message the speaker wants to convey.
  4. Prepare introductory and concluding phrases or use transitional words and phrases that connote addition of a new idea.

Introductory and concluding phrases can be:

  “The speaker discussed/described/talked about…”

  “The lecture was regarding/talked about…”

  “To conclude, the speaker…”

  “Overall, the lecture was…”

Sample transitional words and phrases are in addition to, furthermore and moreover.

 

 

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