Should old buildings be protected, even when they are expensive to keep?
A strong Part 3 answer takes a position in the first clause, supports it with one reason and one concrete case, and then names where it stops being true. Around a minute.
The question, as the examiner gives it
Should old buildings be protected, even when they are expensive to keep?
no preparation, about 1 minute to speak
A band 7 to 8 answer
About 125 words at a natural pace — roughly what 60 seconds holds.
Answer it yourself first
Record your own answer first. A model you have read three times comes out with a flattened rhythm, and examiners are trained to hear exactly that. Read it afterwards for the vocabulary and the shape, not to memorise the sentences.Generally yes, though I think the case is usually made badly. People argue on grounds of beauty and heritage, which is a matter of taste and therefore loses to a number on a spreadsheet every time. The stronger argument is that demolition is irreversible. You can always knock something down in ten years if the cost proves unbearable, and you can never put it back, so the asymmetry alone justifies caution. I would also say that protection should mean use rather than preservation. A building kept empty as a monument is a liability that eventually loses the argument. Find it a function, even an ugly commercial one, and it pays for itself and stays part of the city rather than becoming an exhibit in it.
The words that earn marks
Each one links to how it is pronounced.
- heritage
three syllables with the stress on the first
- demolition
four syllables with the stress on the third
- irreversible
five syllables with the stress on the third
- asymmetry
four syllables with the stress on the second
- preservation
four syllables with the stress on the third
- liability
five syllables with the stress on the third
- exhibit
three syllables with the stress on the second
How a strong answer is built
- 1Agree, then reject the usual argument for it.
- 2Give a stronger argument based on asymmetry.
- 3Add a qualification about what protection should mean.
- 4Close with the practical version of the principle.
Sounds to watch
The ones this answer leans on most.
Straight answers
How long should my answer to “Should old buildings be protected, even when they are expensive to keep?” be?
About 60 seconds. Long enough for the answer plus a reason or an example, short enough that the examiner can get through the rest of the set.
Should I memorise the model answer?
No. Record your own version first, then read the model for the shape and the vocabulary. A memorised answer changes rhythm and pace noticeably, and examiners are trained to hear it — it usually costs more than the better wording gains.
Does sayit score this answer?
It scores what a microphone can observe: an estimate from fluency and pronunciation only — not an official band, and not a mark for vocabulary or grammar.
What the band on your result means
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