Today I took the IELTS speaking test Today I took the IELTS speaking test, which I had been practicing for about a month. The IELTS test I took is located in the testing centre in Beijing Language and Culture University. The scenary inside campus was really enjoyable, yet the weather was not that pleasing because of today's air pollution. After taking identification photo, me and other candidates walked along the hall way to find our testing rooms, which was the most scary time. However, once I actually found my room and met the examiner, I didn't nervous anymore. Maybe because my mind just went blank totally. All I could remember was smiling...When the examiner asked me if I brought electronic equipment with me, I was like: "Yes...what? Oh no no no... "What was I thinking? But thank god I finally became calm and was able to think and speak clearly. The examnier was really nice, but he had a special way to make notes. When I was speaking, he sometimes dot on paper without writing down anything (which I'm not very sure). He put dots on four directions, which I think refers to the four standards in IELTS speaking test: coherence, grammer, vocabulary and pronunciation. I don't know what all of the dots mean. I don't know if more dots means more score or less. Well anyway, it's something in the past. It's time to practice for my writing, listening and reading test. Hopefully I could get a satisfying grade eventually.

IELTS writing practicing: Should government spend more money on arts? As modern life has undergone great changes, people’s ideas about how government should distribute revenue are also greatly divided. While somebody believes that government should spare more expense on arts, it is also argued that there are more valuable things for government to care about. The following essay will debate the two statements in further detail. Admittedly, appreciating fine arts is an effective way to develop citizen’s taste, through which people’s spiritual world could be colorful as well. However, the huge effect on people’s spirit would easily fail to work without a solid material foundation. Once government paid more on arts, the expenses on other things like infrastructure or pension would be less, therefore, poor people’s benefits damaged. (This is only the fisrt two paragraghs of my composition because the whole article may be too long to modify. I really hope someone would give me some advice. Thanks!)

What is the typical "Chinglish" (Chinese English) expression to native speakers?

It really suprised me when I found that native speakers would never or seldom use such expressions like "with the development of XXX".

It's so hard for me to distinguish because I've already got used to some of those mistakes.

IELTS writing practice 01: job security or job satisfaction The topic is: Some people think job satisfaction is more important than job security, other people think one should find a permanence job.Discuss both views and give your own opinion. Here is my essay: Since job is becoming a more and more indispensable part of modern life, people's attitude towards it has undergone great changes as well. Some people believe that doing the favorable job is of vital importance. However, it is also argued that people should put job security first. The following essay will debate the two statements in further detail. There are some convincing arguments supporting that job satisfaction has a great influence on people's career. Firstly, job satisfaction could bring the great sense of achievements or identity. Therefore, people tend to place more energy on their work, which, more importatntly, contributes to the success in career. Secondly, a man who has passion in his job would never fail to gain happiness. For the busy, energy-drained modern people, being in good mood at work will help them get less pressure and more health. Besides, doing the work one prefer means the higher chance to work with the like-minded colleagues, since it is people with the same value or opinion that are likely to prefer the same job. Thus, both work efficiency and satisfying comradeship will be developed. By contrast, job security will also be a sensible choice given the reasons presented below. First, for those who want to make a living, permanent job is a better choice, because it can provide stable income to make sure that they can not only sustain life but also enjoy it. By contrast, doing whatever one wants may make him trapped into unemployment or frequent job-hopping. Besides, the aim of doing a permanent job is not just restricted in simply earning money, but to fight for a rather solid reputation and a stable social network. For example, a civil servant is more likely to be considered as trustworthy compared with a freelance. Personally, I think the two statements are both valid but under respective conditions. In consideration of social class or family background, people in different situations should make different choices. With a relatively good family condition, someone are more suggested to look for an ideal job, thus he may achieve self-value through the process of chasing his dream. However, if someone is in the urgent need to support his family, then job security should be the first thing to ensure.