Part 1
Giám khảo
Did you have a bike when you were a child?
Thí sinh
Yeah, I remember. I have, I had one in the past, so it was my birthday gift and I indeed played it for a couple of times. But, uh, I don't remember when did I abandon it because I, I just stopped riding it after all.
Giám khảo
Do you think bikes are popular in your country?
Thí sinh
I would say not really. So I'm a Hong Kong person, so in this city not much of us would choose to use this as a daily transportation. Umm and we we do agree that it is kind of eco friendly, but it's not that convenient at all.
Did you have a bike when you were a child?
Điểm: 62.0Gợi ý: Answer the question directly and avoid repeating or correcting yourself. Use the past simple consistently: say “I had one” rather than “I have, I had one,” and “I rode it” rather than “I played it.” Also, use natural expressions such as “a few times” and “stopped riding it” instead of “for a couple of times” and “abandoned it.” Add one specific detail about where or why you rode the bike to make the answer more developed.
Ví dụ: Yes, I had a bike when I was a child. It was a birthday present from my parents, and I rode it around my neighborhood a few times. However, I eventually stopped using it because I became more interested in other activities.
Do you think bikes are popular in your country?
Điểm: 68.0Gợi ý: Give a clear topic sentence and avoid repeating “so” and “we.” “I’m a Hong Kong person” is less natural than “I’m from Hong Kong,” and “daily transportation” should be “a means of daily transport” or “daily transport.” Explain the lack of popularity with specific reasons, such as Hong Kong’s crowded roads, steep hills, limited cycling space, or efficient public transport. Use a linking word such as “although” to connect the contrasting ideas.
Ví dụ: I wouldn’t say bikes are very popular in Hong Kong. Although they are environmentally friendly, cycling is not very convenient because the city is crowded and many areas are hilly. In addition, most people rely on the MTR and buses, which are faster and more practical for daily travel.
× Yeah, I remember. I have, I had one in the past, so it was my birthday gift and I indeed played it for a couple of times.
✓ Yeah, I remember. I had one in the past, so it was my birthday gift and I indeed played it for a couple of times.
The speaker is describing a possession in the past, so the simple past form had is required. The form have is present tense and does not fit the past-time context.
× Yeah, I remember. I have, I had one in the past, so it was my birthday gift and I indeed played it for a couple of times.
✓ Yeah, I remember. I had one in the past, so it was my birthday gift and I indeed played it a couple of times.
We do not normally use for before a number of occasions with the expression a couple of times. Use a couple of times without for. Use for with a duration, such as for a couple of weeks.
× But, uh, I don't remember when did I abandon it because I, I just stopped riding it after all.
✓ But, uh, I don't remember when I abandoned it because I just stopped riding it after all.
When a question is embedded after phrases such as I do not remember, it becomes an indirect question. Indirect questions use statement word order: subject plus verb. Therefore, when I abandoned it is correct, not when did I abandon it.
× I would say not really. So I'm a Hong Kong person, so in this city not much of us would choose to use this as a daily transportation.
✓ I would say not really. So I'm a Hong Kong person, so in this city not many of us would choose to use this as daily transportation.
Us refers to people, and people are countable. Therefore, use the countable quantifier many, not the uncountable quantifier much. The phrase not many of us means that only a small number of people in the group would choose this option.
× I would say not really. So I'm a Hong Kong person, so in this city not much of us would choose to use this as a daily transportation.
✓ I would say not really. So I'm a Hong Kong person, so in this city not many of us would choose to use this as daily transportation.
Transportation is generally an uncountable noun when it refers to a general way of traveling, so it does not need the article a in this expression. Use as daily transportation. Alternatively, you could say as a daily means of transportation.