生活
Some people like to shop in large grocery stores and department stores. Other people prefer to shop in small specialty stores or shops. Which do you prefer? Explain why.
I favor department stores more than those small specialty stores. One reason is that anything I want can be purchased from large grocery stores, so it is an ideal place for me to buy dresses, tops, shorts, bags and shoes at the same time. Another reason is that other entertainment facilities can also be offered by large grocery stores. When I get bored and tired, my parents or friends can go to café or restaurant and treat ourselves with a movie afterwards.
Some teachers think that it is important for students to sit in assigned seats, that is, to sit in the same place every day in class.Other teachers think that students should be allowed to choose where they will sit, and they allow them to sit in different seats on different days.Which do you think is better? Explain why.
From my perspective, I prefer the latter option. One obvious advantage of it is that students are able to have discussions conveniently with other group members who are focusing on the same projects. Proximity do facilitate this kind of discussions. Also, it may enable students to establish relationship with more people in the same class. If the seat is fixed, a student’s social connection is very likely to be confined to those around him. A typical case of it is that my nephew who was assigned to sit in the front row in high school, could not even name those sat in the back row after one semester.
Think of one place where you have never visited but where you would really like to go. Explain what it is that interests you about this place.
The place I would love to visit is Santorini. It is a fascinating little island in Greece. It is actually getting more and more popular among young people these days, especially newly-weds who tend to hold their weddings or spend their honeymoons there. I guess they are drawn to this charming island mainly because it really looks like a romantic and poetic paradise, with the blue sea, the clear sky and the white attics. You know, it is just a perfect place for you to take some amazing photos, rest your mind and spend some quality time with the love of your life. So it is definitely a must-go place for me and I would like to go there with my fiancé in the future.
Some people say that childhood is the best time in a person's life. Other people disagree. What is your opinion? Explain why.
In my eyes, childhood is indeed the best period of time in one's life. Being a kid is probably the most care-free phase throughout one's life. On the one hand, you are taken good care of by both your parents and grandparents, so you don't have to worry about how to make a living. You are free from stress or anxiety. After all, you are not the breadwinner. On the other hand, you enjoy your pure and sincere friendship with your little buddies who perhaps live just next door to you. There is much less competition, comparison or peer pressure among little kids. So you are loved, cherished, or even pampered. Childhood really seems like a peaceful and joyful time where you are not bothered by the trivial or mundane things that keep bugging adolescents and adults.
When some people have a little extra money, they like to spend it right away on something they enjoy. Others prefer to save the extra money. Which do you like to do? Explain why.
I will definitely save it up, because this money could promise my life standard even though I will have a big cost. For example, before my marriage, I used to spend all of my salary for fun. I love traveling so usually I planned 3 or 4 trips a year. But, when one day I considered buying my own apartment and getting into marriage, I found nothing from my bank savings. I felt myself in total despair. So I loaned a lot of money from the bank. And ever since then, my life changed. I began to work very hard, cut all my travel plans, and save every extra penny for my savings. What a painful experience!
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?People today have healthier lifestyles than people did 100 years ago.Use specific examples and details to support your opinion.
Yes, I agree with the statement for the following reasons. Firstly, People attach greater importance to their health than 100 years ago. Since people are busy with their jobs, they find it necessary to keep a balance between life and work. Secondly, people like travelling to different places when they are free. Because people’s living standards have increased tremendously, they would like to enjoy life to a great extent. These are the reasons why I think people today have healthier lifestyles than 100 years ago.
Some people believe it is important for university to provide funding for student entertainment, such as movies or concerts on campus. Others believe that university money should only be used for academic purposes. Which view do you agree with? Explain why.
In my opinion, the money should be used in entertainment rather than academic purpose. The reasons are as below. To start, college life can be really stressful, students have so many classes and assignments each day, so a little movies or concerts can do a lot good to them. Help them easy up and remain a better mood. So it’s a good way to balance their study and life. Furthermore, it’ll be healthier to spend their leisure time doing such entertaining things, otherwise, they may stay at their dorm or hang out in the library, which is a little boring, and if the university can hold some interesting events, it’ll be a good way to kill time.
What characteristic in a house or apartment do you think is the most important for making it a good place to live? Choose one quality or characteristic. Explain why you think it is important.
Speaking of one quality that makes a house or an apartment a good place to live, it must have plenty of windows. First, if a house has many windows, it could offer the people who live in it better scenery to appreciate, whether it’s a glorious city view or spectacular natural scenery. With this, while feeling quite tired after work, they could take a look at outside world and refresh their mind. Second, plenty of windows would make the interior environment bright, which is very essential to people’s mood and health. When people are in a dark surrounding, they tend to be upset, impatient and depressed. On the contrary, brightness could bring them a better mood and in a long run would do good to their physical health as well. Therefore, having plenty of windows is a characteristic in a house or apartment that I value.
Talk about a special opportunity that was given to you. Explain why the opportunity was important.
I was given an opportunity to study in the US one summer. This opportunity is very important to me for several reasons. Firstly, it was the first time I went abroad. I had imagined going abroad ever since I was a little kid. I never got a chance until that day I received a call from an administrator in my college telling me that I was granted the opportunity to study abroad for the summer vacation. Secondly, I learned and experienced a lot from this opportunity. In this exchange program, I was assigned a partner who was also a college student in the US. He introduced me to his family, took me out to valley faire and instructed me how to use Linux in the computer lab.
Talk about a social or political event that is celebrated in your country. Describe the event and explain how people in your country celebrate it. Use details and examples in your explanation.
Speaking of a social or political event that is celebrated in my country is an educational reform back in 1987. The reason why it is of great significance is that it truly opens a new door for lots of talents in all walks of life and they had the opportunity to acquire self-achievement since then. For instance, before 1987, all people in China were encouraged to learn Russian rather than English because at that time China maintained a closer tie with Soviet Union and the government wanted to put this relationship to the greatest extent. In this case, people who are proficient in English language didn’t have even the slightest chance to play their part. However, after 1987’s educational reform, the leaders put much emphasis on English because they wanted to establish a connection with those more advanced western countries. Under this circumstance, the English professionals had the chance to bring their advantage into full play and changed their fate ever since. In short, the 1987’s reform in education is the very big event that my country usually celebrates.
Some people prefer living in a big city. Other people prefer living in the countryside, away from urban areas. Which do you think is better? Explain why, using specific details in your explanation.
Compared to living in a city, I would like to live in the countryside. The reasons are as below. Firstly, living in the countryside means we can appreciate the healthier environment. Nowadays, people living in city have to suffer the air and water pollution caused by the high speeding development of industry. Secondly, we can enjoy the slow pace of life in the countryside. In big cities, pedestrians are always walking fast and it seems like they would feel unwilling to stop. But with the easy life style of countryside, they don’t have to deal with the high pressure resulted from working and living. So it’ll be much more comfortable to live there. That’s why I prefer to live in the countryside.
If you were given the choice of a school or work assignment, would you prefer to write a long report or give a speech in front of a large group of people? Use details and examples to explain your choice.
I would rather to choose the long report rather than a speech. One reason is as for me, I don’t like speak in public. Speaking in public means I have to recite my words lots of time and practice repeatedly for I’m afraid to forget what I want to say when I’m standing on the stage. Second reason is I think writing a long report will help me learn more knowledge than just prepare a speech. To finish a report I need to research a lot and carefully organize my paper. So I will choose a long report as my assignment.
If friends from another country were going to spend time in your country, what city or place would you suggest they visit? Using details and examples, explain why.
I would suggest them to visit Chongqing. I lived there for five years so I am familiar with it. Firstly, Chongqing has a unique scenery. It’s a mountainous city. Because of this special terrain, the buildings and Pedestrian Malls are built in a different way from other cities. For example, the fourth floor of one building may be the ground level of another one. Secondly, Chongqing has many kinds of delicious food. Hot pot is like world-famous. Everyone in China knows it originate from Chongqing. Besides, there are some other famous food such as Kung Pao Chicken and double-cooked pork slices. Anyway, if one goes to Chongqing, one will feel that every meal is a feast.
Talk about a time when you accomplished something you did not think you could do. What did you accomplish? Why did you think you could not do it?
When I was a sophomore, I took IELTS. I got 8.5 in Listening section which is almost the full mark,9. Originally, I didn’t think I could get above 7 because I couldn’t really follow the speakers’ speed and my vocabulary wasn’t big. So I wasn’t confident. But I knew that my weak point was in listening section, so I listened to the IELTS recordings whenever I had time. When I was walking along the street, I listened to the recordings. When I was relaxing, I listened to the recordings. When I was taking a nap, I listened to the recordings. Besides, I bought a book to enlarge my vocabulary. I think it were these efforts I paid that helped me get 8.5.
People set a variety of goals for themselves throughout their lives. Describe one goal you would like to achieve in the future, and explain why this goal is important to you. Include specific details in your explanation.
As a senior student that always sit in front of the laptop or books, I think I like a very unhealthy lifestyle, you know, kind of sedentary lifestyle. Actually, I'd like to make some changes to keep fit. As a result, the goal I'd like to achieve in the near future is to keep doing certain exercises at least once a week. Firstly, I need to start with some easy sports, like jogging. These kinds of sports don't need much space and many facilities to do, all you need is just a pair of sneakers. Then, after several months of regular jogging, I will begin to show up in the gym to join the aerobics classes. In this stage, I will need greater amount of exercises and more professional training. Finally, I'd like to book a badminton court at least twice a month to playing badminton with my family members, which can strength the family bonds as well. It is not easy to achieve this goal for me actually, because I have heavy workloads every day. But once I decided to make a difference, I will spare my time for sports. Because for me, it's really important to improve my health condition.
Some people buy food that is already prepared. Other people buy fresh food and prepare meals themselves. Which do you prefer? Explain why, using details and examples in your answer.
I would rather buy fresh food and prepare it myself. First, food which is already prepared will be much more expensive than raw material because labor cost keeps increasing nowadays. And prepare those food material won’t cost us too much time. Second, sometimes food material prepared by others can be unhealthy or even harmful to our health, because additive and preservative will be added into food during the process. These substance are used to make food look like it is still in good conditions. If we buy raw material and handle it ourselves, we can avoid this kind of bad things. So prepare food ourselves is better compared with getting processed food.
Some people like to study in public places where there are other people around. Others prefer to study in places where there are few or no people around. Which kind of place do you prefer? Explain why.
"Personally speaking, I prefer to study in places where there are other people around. First, I can get motivated by the diligence of people around me. For example, I have been preparing for TOEFL in the library in my college. Every time, I get tired with the endless vocabulary I need to memorize and feel like giving up, I look at people who are studying around me. Most of them have been studying really hard for hours without even a rest. By looking at them, I feel inspired and reenergized. Second, I can always ask other people for help if I study somewhere with other people around. Like one time, I was stuck with a math question. I had been working on it for half an hour and couldn’t figure it out. Then, I turned to a girl sitting next to me for help. She helped me solve the problem in 2 minutes, which really saved me a lot of time. "
Talk about a place you enjoyed going to or visiting when you were a child. Describe the place. Explain why you enjoyed it.
When I was a child, I enjoyed going to an Internet Bar. It is still open now. It's only 5-minute's walk away from my home and sits beside the street. The internet bar is not very big. It only has two rooms and each is full of computers. In summer vacations, My friends and I usually went there early in the morning playing many computer games such as Age of Empire, Star War and Counter Strike. The owner of the bar is a very kind person. He opened the door very early in the morning just for us. My friends and I occupied a room, sit side by side and yelled to each other when we were playing games. It was a lot of fun.
Talk about an important experience that you recently had. Describe what happened and explain why it was important to you.
I recently attended a prayer meeting of BAHAI. The host is a couple. They hold the meeting at their apartment every week. We prayed in the living room together and recited the scripture. Also, we all talked about our happy events and unhappy events happened recently and exchanged our ideas about everyone’s events. It was important to me because it’s the first time I attended a small prayer meeting like that and we talked without concealment. It’s like a whole new experience to me. In addition, I made some friends there.
Choose an accomplishment that required you to work very hard. Explain what the accomplishment was and why it was important to you.
The biggest accomplishment I’ve ever achieved is an assignment from my computer science class last semester. It required us to create a program that simulate the system of school library which including the book searching and borrowing as well as returning, and even the renewal. And each one of our class had to be creative to get a relatively high mark. And it took me more than a week with only a little sleep to get it done in time and luckily for me, I got an A on it. This project was quite important to me because it accounted for sixty percent of my final score in this course. And I was really glad it turned out that I accomplished a pretty good job.
Do you think that eating healthy food is easier or more difficult today than it was 40 or 50 years ago? Use examples and details to support your answer.
It' s definitely more difficult. Now that fast food is everywhere, I can' t help myself from going into those restaurants that serve fried chicken, burgers and pizza. When I don' t know what to eat for lunch, I would reach for McDonald' s next to my school. I have to admit that they' re really tasty, and I can never go wrong with a beef burger combo. However, in the past, there weren' t this many choices. Most people who earn a regular salary would cook at home, and it' s usually healthier—at least the food wouldn' t be so greasy, and there would be more vegetables rather than meat. So I think it is becoming more difficult to eat healthy food right now.
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
Students benefit more from classes with a large number of students than they do from smaller classes.
Use specific examples and details to support your opinion.
I don’t agree with this statement. I believe students benefit more from small classes than from large classes.. First of all, there are many students in a large class and it’s usually in a big lecture hall. Teachers or lecturers will always focus on their own topic. There aren’t as many interactions in it as in a small class. In small classes, students are allowed to make discussions. Also, students can get more attention from teachers and thus have more opportunities to voice themselves. Secondly, in a large class, if there is a point a student doesn’t understand, he or she might be left behind, while in a small class, teachers give attention to every student, so no one will be left behind.
Choose a place you go to often that is important to you and explain why it is important. Please include specific details in your explanation.
I often go to the basketball court near my apartment. It’s very important to me because I play basketball there everyday and basketball is my favorite sport. Ever since I was a little boy, I have been playing in that court with my friends. When in junior high, I practiced shooting and dribbling in that court nearly everyday till late at night. Besides, the court is the reminder of an awful lot of my valuable memories. I still can remember that how I started out shooting badly and then after several weeks’ practice, I could shoot well and dribbled well. I can also remember many friends with whom I played basketball and form teams. Without that court, I couldn’t possibly make so many friends. So it’s very important to me.
Talk about a time a friend or a family member helped you in the past. Describe how the person helped you then explain why this was important to you.
When I was in the third summer vacation in the college, I found a job in downtown. I lived on campus at that time but the campus is very far away from downtown so I got to find a place to live nearby. There was one friend who studied in another college located near downtown. He called me to live with him in his dorm since all his roommates were gone. He introduced me to his campus and told me where to eat, where to buy necessities and where to work out. I didn’t have to pay anything for this housing service. Also, living in his dorm saved me a lot of time. I shorten the travel time from 2 hours to 20 minutes.
Your university plans to open a café inside the campus library. Do you think this is a good idea? Explain why or why not.
I think it' s absolutely a great idea. First, it would be a great place to take a break from study, especially when exams are coming up. While getting refreshments, I could have some small talks with my friends in the study group. In this way, I wouldn' t get a headache from staring at the computer screen for several hours in a row. Also, it would be really convenient to get coffee. Often times I would feel really sleepy and tired in the morning. At this point, it would be awesome if I could easily grab a latte in the library on my way to the self-study room. The minute I take a sip of my coffee, I' m completely picked up and ready to start a new study session.