VISUAL MATERIALS FOR THE SPEAKING TEST

 Part 1: Reading:
 Task 1:

IS LUXURY WORTH IT?

Last week, my friend Agon made some money and he wanted to celebrate by buying a
nice Gucci jacket. So he went to Gucci with $500 in his hand, ready to buy.
He found a jacket he liked, it fit him well. It’s made in Italy. It had the Gucci name on it.
The leather felt nice and the jacket was amazing. He was about to buy it until he saw the
price $5000. $5000 for a jacket!
Agon put the $500 back in his pocket, left the store and never looked back. This, my
friends, is the luxury clothing market. It’s a market with very expensive things that are
clearly not worth the price.
And according to studies, to make a luxury item, it costs 8% of the price, the remaining
92% goes to the stuff. Because at the end of the day, someone has to pay for the luxury
brand expensive rent, someone has to pay for their expensive ads, someone has to pay for
their expensive fashion shows. And that someone, you, me, Agon, all of us. This is the
fake price of luxury.
So what is the real price of luxury items? To find out, we sent our teammate Franco to
the same country where Gucci is made – TO ITALY. To make the same luxury jacket for
the fraction of the price! And here we hired world-class fashion designers to make our
jacket. And in two days, they made the same expensive Gucci jacket we saw with our
“logo” on it for 8% of the Gucci price!
Yes! Instead of buying a $5000 Gucci jacket. We bought a flight around the world, stayed
at a hotel, rented an Italian car, ate Italian food, saw Italian nature, made Italian friends
and made our own Gucci jacket that is fully customized with just as high of a quality for
less than a $1000.
This project is on the extreme side, but the idea is simple. Most times…Luxury is not
worth the price.
 Task 2:

PARIS VOTES TO BAN ELECTRIC SCOOTERS BY SEPTEMBER

If you like riding electric scooters in Paris, be sure to plan a trip before September.
People who live in the French capital voted recently to ban the vehicles.
The city said Sunday on Twitter that 89 percent of voters were in favor of banning
scooters. However, only about 7 percent of its residents voted in what was called a
“public consultation.”

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said she would respect the vote. Hidalgo said at a news
conference, "from September 1, there will be no more electric scooters for rent in Paris.”

Scooter operators pointed to the low number of voters and said they hoped to seek a
compromise (thỏa hiệp).

A spokesperson for Lime said it hopes to work with the mayor to “avoid a step backward
for Paris.” A representative for Dott criticized the vote, saying the low turnout included
mostly older voters.

French Transport Minister Clement Beaune is a possible candidate in the next Paris
mayoral (thị trưởng) election in 2026. Beaune appeared to agree with the scooter
operators. In comments to a French broadcaster (phát thanh viên), he called the vote “a
massive democratic flop (một thất bại dân chủ lớn).”

Paris permitted electric scooters for the first time in 2018. By 2020, the city had cut the
number of companies that could operate scooters to three and restricted their speed to a
maximum of 20 kilometers per hour. At the time, the city gave the companies a contract
that lasts until September.

In hopes of being permitted to continue operation, the scooter companies also offered to
add more restrictions (những hạn chế). They included limiting users to those over 18 and
adding license plates (Biển số xe) so police could identify those who broke traffic rules.

In 2021, 24 people died from scooter-related accidents in France, including one in Paris.
Last year, the city registered (đã ghi nhận) 459 accidents with electric scooters and
similar vehicles, including three dead.

One person who voted to ban the scooters was Audrey Cordier, a 38-year-old doctor. “In
my work,” she said, “we see a lot of road accidents caused by scooters, so we really see
the negative effects.”

Other voters said they would like more restrictions, but not a full ban.
Thirty-five-year-old Pierre Waeckerle said, “I don’t want scooters to do whatever they
want … but banning them is not the priority.”

 Part 2: Interview

 Your Daily Routine

1. What time of the day do you like best?
 I like working in the morning because it’s the start of the day. I can always feel
energetic and enthusiastic when I learn something in the morning. It’s the best
time for me to remember things.
2. When do you do most of your study?
 I like studying in the morning because it’s the start of the day, I can always feel
energetic and when I learn something new, it’s the best time for me to remember
things.
3. Would you like to change your daily routine (in any way)?
 I think I should get up a little early because morning is the start of the day, I can
always feel energetic and when I learn something new, it’s the best time for me to
remember things.
4. How much time do you think people should spend working per week?
 It’s a hard question. I think eight hours is reasonable. However, a lot of people in
china have to work overtime; I think the government really should do something
to protect these people.

 Part 3: Solo speech:

 Where you would go if you have a day off

Describe where you would go if you have a day off
You should say:

 where the place is

 who you would go
with
 what you would do
 and explain why you want to spend your day there.
Sample:
If I have a day off, I would go to the beach with my best friend, Lee. I love the ocean
because it’s the origin of life. When I look at the immense ocean, all my worries and
anxieties will become trivial. Fortunately, my hometown isn’t very far from a port
city. If I have a day off, I would go there with my friends the day before and stay
overnight. The next morning, we will get up very early to see the sunrise. I always
think the sunrise at the ocean is very beautiful and marvelous. Then, we could go
swimming. I love swimming very much and I believe it’s the best way to exercise
because of the natural water resistance we need to fight with while we swim. Then, the
fresh sea food will be a must. I love sea food because it’s very nutritious and tasty.
Most sea food doesn’t require complicated cooking process. Even if we just boil
shrimp or crab in water, they’ll still taste good. At night, I’ll walk at the beach with
my friend and we can talk about many things in life. For me, this is the perfect day off
I can imagine. Since it’s so easy to achieve, I feel I should do it this weekend, right
after my test.

 Part 4: Discussion
1. Why do people need breaks?
 Just as the old saying goes, “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”, people
need breaks to relax themselves, to get refreshed and to regain their passion and
energy in continuing their pursuit of careers. It is hard to imagine that a person can
work or study non‐stop 24 hours a day like machines. After all, life is not only for
work.

2. What can make people feel stressful?

 Well, stress can be caused by various factors. For example, unpleasant conditions or
events can cause stress, such as financial problems, a divorce, health issues or
pressure at work. However, sometimes, even desirable situations can cause stress,
such as exercise, dating, moving to a new home or taking a long trip.

3. Would you like to have long holidays or short holidays? Why?

 To be frank, I like holidays, no matter whether it is a long one or a short one. If I
have a long holiday, I may choose to travel a long distance away to experience
something that is totally different from what I have experienced in my hometown.
And if I have a short holiday, I could have a chance to stay with my family or my
friends, or just stay alone to enjoy a period of peaceful time.

4. Should people have holidays?

 Definitely. Just as the old saying goes, “all work and no play makes Jack a dull
boy”, people need holidays to relax themselves, to get refreshed and to regain their
passion and energy in continuing their pursuit of careers. It is hard to imagine that a
person can work or study non‐stop 365 days a year like machines. After all, life is
not only for work.
5. Do men and women spend holidays differently?
 To some extent, yes. Due to their different pursuits and different interests in life,
they may tend to do differently. For example, men may like to join with their
friends for some ball activities or just play computer games together. However,
women may choose to go shopping or just window shopping with their friends.

6. How have working hours changed compared to the past?

 Well, with the advancement of civilization, people are enjoying a better welfare
than in the past. One example is the shortening of working hours. I remembered
when I wan in primary school, I had to study for 9 hours a day and 6 days a week
and my parents had to work for 9 hours a day and 6 days a week. But now, only 8
hours a day and 5 days a week is required.

7. What’s the difference between female and male lifestyle?

 Generally, with the liberation of women in the society, it seems that men and
women are similar in almost every field, and so, there are not many differences
between their lifestyles. What is different is the gap between individuals due to their
different pursuit and interest in life, not because of their genders.

8. What do you think are the changes of lifestyle compared to a couple of years ago?
 Compared to a couple of years ago, the lifestyle does change a lot. For example,
people are sleeping later and getting up later, because the evening lives are greatly
enriched. Also, people seem to be busier than in the past, since the life pace is now
faster and people are having higher aims in life.

9. Do you think the lifestyle will change in the future?

 Yes, the world is developing through changes, and no one can resist the wheels of
history. With a higher aim in life, with the efforts to improve the life level, with the
enhancement of working efficiency, people in the future are surely to enjoy a
happier life than people now.

10. Do people prefer working or having holidays?

 Well, it’s hard to say for sure, since views about life may differ from person to
person. Some people may not feel at ease when they are free, without any work to
do, while others may hope to have holidays all the year round. It is something
depending on people’s pursuit and interest in life.

11. Do people work more compared to the past?

 I think so. Nowadays, a lot of people feel busier because they need to work a lot in
order to get promoted and be a good worker. Because of the competition, a lot of
people need to learn new things in order to keep up with the fast developing society.
Also, certain positions need people to spend more time and energy on their jobs,
such as managers.