The fluency and coherence bank.

PREP on everything. No marker twice.

Every prompt below is answered on the PREP backbone: Point, Reason, Example, Point. One rule makes the drill bite.

Within any one set, never use the same discourse marker twice. If ‘however’ has been spent, the next contrast needs ‘that said’, ‘on the other hand’, ‘even so’. The rule forces the variety the fluency-and-coherence descriptor rewards, and it exposes the two or three markers you lean on. Record everything; the coherence faults you cannot feel while speaking are obvious on replay.

One point, properly developed.

One minute each. A clear position, one reason, one concrete example, and a closing sentence that lands.

• HabitsIs it better to do difficult work in the morning or the evening?
• LearningShould everyone learn to cook properly?
• TechnologyAre paper books worth keeping?
• MoneyIs it wise to lend money to friends?
• LeisureDo people need hobbies that have nothing to do with screens?
• HealthShould employers care about their employees’ fitness?
• HomeIs it better to rent flexibly or own permanently?
• TimeWhy do some people always run late?

Signal every shift.

Ninety seconds each, at least two distinct perspectives, and a marker announcing each turn: from the individual to society, from cost to benefit, from now to the future.

• SocietyWho benefits most from volunteering: the helper or the helped?
• EducationShould university education prepare people for work, or for life?
• MediaIs it a problem that most people get news from the same few platforms?
• EnvironmentCan economic growth and environmental protection really coexist?
• CultureDoes globalisation make cultures more interesting or more alike?
• WorkWill a four-day working week ever become normal? Should it?
• FamilyAre families becoming closer or more distant in your country?
• CitiesShould city centres be closed to private cars?

Same topic, four lengths.

The fluency ladder from Chapter 3: speak on one topic for 30, then 60, then 90 seconds, then two minutes, recording each round.

Round one is simple statements that keep moving; round two adds reasons, an example and three markers; round three adds a personal connection and a broader perspective; round four is full Part 2 length on the 5W+H frame. Five topics that work: a person who influenced you; a place you return to; a skill you want; an event you remember; a device you use daily. On replay, mark every pause over three seconds and ask which kind it was: language-finding or content-finding. They need different remedies.

How coherence breaks by language background.

One targeted drill per cohort.