Read Aloud is the first question type that appears in the Pearson Test of English, both in the PTE Academic and PTE Core. It requires students to have great Reading and Speaking skills to get high scores. The test evaluates students’ Pronunciation, Content, and Oral fluency, so let’s explore our strategy built to conquer these grading elements.
Fundamental information
Task: Text appears on the screen, we need to read the text aloud
Prompt Length: Text up to 60 words
Timer: 70 seconds (35 prep seconds and 35 seconds to read aloud)
Frequency: 6-7 questions
Skills assessed: Reading, Speaking
The above information is the same for PTE Academic and PTE Core.
Again, Read Aloud is evaluated based on Pronunciation, Content, and Oral fluency. Detailed evaluation is as follows:
Content: Each replacement, omission or insertion of a word counts as one error: Maximum score depends on the length of the question, which is up to 60 words. Thus, we know that it’s important to read all the words on the screen without adding any new words (of course we need to practice a lot to achieve this goal). If PTE takers do not have much time to prepare and they are yet not confident about their pronunciation, this grading element is what PTE takers can aim for the highest score because it’s easier to master compared to Pronunciation and Oral fluency.
Pronunciation: The proctors will listen to your pronunciation and offer a score from 0 (non-English) to 5 (native-like).
Oral fluency: This aspect assesses how smooth your speech is including rhythm and phrasing compared to native speakers scoring from 0 (disfluent) to 5 (native-like)
Our strategy is developed based on how the question is graded in order to help PTE takers obtain the highest score in their abilities.
Step 1: Practice reading silently
Each Read Aloud question offers us from 30 to 40 seconds, let’s take an average of 35 seconds, to prepare before recording, so we use this amount of time to read them silently. DO NOT READ ALOUD until you are recorded because it’s the rule, we are not allowed to do so.
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Besides improving your Pronunciation to get high scores in this grading element, we need to pay attention to our Oral fluency (rhythm and pauses) and Content.
The Content grading aspect is simple, we only need to read all the words without adding new words or missing available words. As we have 35 seconds of preparation, make sure to practice reading in silence carefully.
Regarding Oral fluency, we will concentrate on rhythm and pauses, there are several principles to follow.
a. Pausing rules:
We pause after seeing Relative pronouns, Punctuation, and Conjunction. For example, in the following sample question (question number 02 Part 1: Read Aloud for FREE accounts), “ / “ is where we need to pause.
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A 2015 report from the US Department of Health and Human Services says that / PBDE exposure in utero and infancy (via breast milk) / may have an effect on hormones in the body, / including thyroid hormones, / which / play a key role in nervous system development. / And evidence suggests exposure might be linked to developmental issues in kids.
Except for the full stop, we need to pause a bit longer around 0.5 – 0.75 seconds, we pause around 0.25-0.5 seconds for the rest of them.
Based on this Pausing rule, we also know that, from case to case, we can drop some ending sounds to make our speech smoother in which we have two (different and not similar) consonants. Let's take a look at the following example:
A 2015 report_from the US Department of Health and Human Services says that PBDE exposure in utero and infancy (via breast milk)may have an effect on hormones in the body,including thyroid hormones,whichplay a key role in nervous system development.And evidence suggests exposure might_be linked to developmental issues in kids.
(1) A 2015 report_from the US Department.. : Report has the ending sound /t/, which is completely different from the first sound of the next word /f/ (please read on to part c. Linking rules for a better understanding of Similar consonant sounds). Hence, we can drop the ending sound /t/ in this case.
(2) And evidence suggests exposure might_be linked... : It is the same explanation as (1), the ending sounds /t/ and /b/ are completely different as well.
b. Stressing rules:
We stress important words or phrases by skimming through the text and identifying the main content, then we focus on related keywords or phrases, especially verbs.
In the above example, the text is about PBDE exposure research, which may have an effect in the body and link to developmental issues in kids. As a result, we need to stress the following words, which are related to research content: PBDE exposure, hormones, evidence, and developmental issues.
c. Linking rules:
There are THREE rules to follow:
Rule 1: Linking (Two) Same Consonants
If the ending sound of one word is the same as the first sound of the next, and they are both consonants, then we only speak one. In our question, we have "...play a key role in nervoussystem development...". Nervous has the ending sound /s/, and System has the first sound /s/, which is the same and a consonant. Hence, we only pronounce it once: nervou_s_ystem.
Another example in our question is "...And evidencesuggests exposure might be...". Evidence has the ending sound /s/ (from the letters 'ce'), and Suggests has the first sound /s/, which is the same and a consonant. In this case, we also pronounce it once: eviden_s_uggests.
Another example: Thattime, we traveled across the country in five weeks. We have the /t/ sound in That and Time, which is the same and a consonant, so we also pronounce it once: Tha_t_ime.
How about this? - Lookcool. Do you think we should link these words? Yes, we can because even though there are different letters (Letter 'k' and Letter 'c'), they are the same sound as /k/. Therefore, we can link these words: Loo_k_ool.
Rule 2: Linking Similar Consonant Sounds
When we say Similar Consonant Sounds, it means the Voice and Unvoiced Consonant Pair. In English, we have the following pairs:
/t/ and /d/ -> I need_two cups of water.
/k/ and /g/ -> The tea is a kind of dark_green colour.
/p/ and /b/ -> We sleep_better if the room has no light at all.
/f/ and /v/ -> Have you got enough_vacation?
/s/ and /z/ -> Would you like a cheese_sandwich?
/θ/ and /ð/ -> Is it worth_the time?
It doesn't matter which position the sounds are. You can link /t/ to /d/ or /d/ to /t/. It's all the same to other pairs.
Nevertheless, there are two exceptions that we CAN NOT link, including:
/tส/ and /dส/ -> Would you like strawberry or orange_juice?
/ส/ and /ส/ > It is not a good idea to sabotage_ships!
In our sample question, we have "...and Human Servicessays thatPBDE exposure in...". Services has the ending sound /z/, and Says has the first sound /s/, so we can link these sounds.
Rule 3: Linking Consonants to Vowels
By following this rule, we link one word that ends with a consonant to the next word that starts with a vowel.
Here are a few examples from our practice questions:
A 2015 report from the US Department_of Health and Human Services says thatPBDE exposure in_utero and_infancy (via breast milk)may have an_effect_on hormones_in the body,including thyroid hormones,whichplay_a key role in nervous system development.And_evidence suggests_exposure might be linked to developmental_issues_in kids.
All of them are where we can link by simply identifying a consonant of one word and a vowel of the next. If you don't know which are consonants and which are vowels, let's take a look at the following International Phonemic Chart in American and British versions.
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We strongly recommend students master the International Phonetic Alphabet chart not only to read content smoothly and confidently to aim for the highest scores in the Pearson of English Test, but also to improve their speaking and listening skills when they go study abroad.
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It’s your task to practice silently in the 35 seconds of preparation and cover all the above notices to get ready for reading aloud in the next 35 seconds. We strongly recommend that PTE Academic takers move their cursors while practising, which helps identify where to pause and stress more easily.
Step 2: Read the text Aloud
After preparing, it’s time to read the text aloud. There are some tips that you need to bear in mind.
Only read after hearing the “beep” sound;
If you stop for more than three seconds, the recording will stop;
Read it at a normal pace because there is no need to rush;
Remember what you practice silently earlier and apply the same to read aloud.
If there is still time when you finish, take a deep breath before moving on to the next text, which helps increase your concentration and ease stress.
Things to avoid
Read the text aloud before recording: It’s not permitted, if you do, it’s a sign of rule-breaking, which could lead to a disqualified result.
Underestimate the preparation step: Pearson gives us up to 35 seconds to prepare is that they know it’s crucial to help you as a test-taker to get the highest score out of it. So use it, and use it effectively to get a higher score.
Don’t pay attention to punctuation: Punctuation’s function is to make our Writing clearer, smoother, more attractive and readable. When we see a comma and a full stop (common punctuation in our test), we need to stop around 0.25 and 0.5 seconds respectively. Besides, Relative Pronouns are where we also need to pause as well. Refer back to Step 1 and check the Pausing rules if needed.
Practice makes perfect!
Live-Interactive PTE Practice Platform
No matter what question types we are focusing on, keep in mind that only everyday practice improves our scores. Regardless of how great the strategy is, if you don’t put effort into practising, it will be of no value at all.
On the PTE Practice – TADE Hub, when it comes to Part 1: Read Aloud, we offer instantly detailed feedback based on Content, Oral fluency, and of course Pronunciation. Pearson also uses these grading elements to judge test-takers' skills before offering a certain score.
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Content: The PTE Practice Website shows the text and highlights words that you miss, make sure that you check them carefully as each omission will be counted as a mistake, and they will deduct your scores.
Oral Fluency: The Practice website judges your fluency to see how similar your sound is compared to native speakers including rhythm and phrasing.
Pronunciation: In our feedback, we highlight words in Red, Orange, and Black. Red words mean it’s bad pronunciation and you need to devote lots of time to practicing that word. Orange words mean it’s average, and Black words are good. When PTE takers practice on the PTE Practice Website, please make sure that your environment is quiet without any sound interfering as it could affect our grading system negatively, which leads to not-so-accurate results.
