IELTS Cue Card # 199 – Teacher who has greatly influenced your academic life
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IELTS Speaking Part 2: IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card.
Describe a teacher who has greatly influenced your academic life or studies.
You should say:
- who the teacher is/was
- what subject he/she taught
- how he/she taught the students
and explain why this teacher has influenced your academic life/studies so much.
Model Answer 1:
When I was growing up as a young boy, especially in my high school, I was more like a below-average student. On top of that, I was also not as energetic as the other boys of my age. So, it is fair to assume that I wasn’t really enjoying going to school as much as I should have. But, then came a teacher in my life who I would never forget. His name was Mr Mukit Kumar. Mr Kumar, teaching Geography, wasn’t like other teachers of my high school because he seemed more friendly with his students than his colleagues.
Anyway, I still vividly remember the first day when he asked the names of each and every student in his class. Then, he asked all of his students one by one to tell a positive thing about themselves. But, when it was my turn to answer that awkward question, I simply put my head down and kept quiet because I just didn’t know what to say. I guess, he understood my situation, so he told the whole class in my defence that I had a lot of positive things to tell about me, but I just didn’t know where to start. After saying that, Mr Kumar looked at me with a smiling face as if to tell me that I was just fine. And, that was when I felt for the first time that I could be just as good as other students.
Anyway, Mr Kumar has influenced my academic life immensely with his very easy and laidback approach to teaching. Besides, he always used to remind his students, especially me, not to think in terms of what we couldn’t do, but what we could do, even if it was a very little thing. Finally, it was because of his continuous encouragement to act and feel strong, no matter how physically weak I really was, that I developed very high self-esteem. And, needless to say, it was that high self-esteem in me that helped me excel academically at a later time.
Sample Answer 2:
I have met and liked several teachers in different years of my academic life. Among them, Mr. (…say the name of the teacher…) is someone I will always remember for his invaluable contribution to my academic success. He used to teach us history at our higher secondary level.
He was well-mannered and eloquent, to begin with. He was a great teacher, and we all liked his style of teaching. We were very surprised to know that he knew a lot about history and when he taught us, he told lots of relevant stories which made the classes more interesting. He did not believe in homework, so he always gave tasks which we had to finish before our classes end. This helped us a lot when it came to learning as it was quite engaging. Because of him, I did quite well in the board exam in History. Besides his great teaching styles, he also taught us about morality, the importance of education and how we should value our “morality” and “time” in life.
He influenced us to read books outside our syllabus which turned out to be very useful later in our lives. He inspired us to read English newspapers, journals, watch history-related channels, technology and history related magazines and so on. He was talented and very friendly to the students. He never turned down anyone whenever someone asked for his help and advice. He had an athletic body and we found him often participate in different outdoor games. He inspired us to do physical exercises and outdoor games as well.
In short, he was an exemplary person and an ideal teacher whom most of the students liked and respected. I have been greatly influenced by his punctuality, honesty, talent and good behaviour. I still remember him and the advice he gave me.
Tips for answering this Cue Card Topic:
To answer this cue card topic, take notes on the following points:
- Teacher’s name
- What subject he/she taught
- In which class/level he/she taught
- His/her teaching style
- Things I learned from him/her
- How he/she influenced me to do better in life
- What motivation I got from his/her lessons/personality/advice
Once you take notes on the above-listed points, you would be able to talk about this Cue Card topic spontaneously.
Teacher’s Name: Say the name of one of your teachers. Don’t spend time recalling a teacher’s name. You can say a fictitious name as well.
What subject he/she taught: The major in which you graduated (or graduating) should be a subject you liked in your academic years, and a teacher who has influenced you should’ve encouraged you to do your graduation on this subject as well. But there is a possibility that you liked a teacher who took the history class and later on, you did your graduation in Mathematics. So, in this case, mention how the teacher has influenced you to learn more about the history and how his/her advice inspired you to explore the subject. There can be an entirely different situation when the teacher has influenced you on something else than the subject he/she taught. For instance, you might have learned about some moral lessons from your teacher that later changed your course of actions in life.
In which class/level he/she taught: Usually we get some inspiring teachers who influence us very much at our school level and university level. Mention the exact class he/she taught in, and how old you were then.
His/her teaching style: Exemplary teachers usually have some unique ways of teaching their pupils. A good teacher makes a tough subject interesting. He/she shares many interesting stories and give references to materials outside of the academic books, and always inspire students morally and academically. Apart from that, they would explain the importance of education, how education can help you explore yourself and the world, how education flourishes human quality and your responsibilities as a student and human being. Apart from academic lessons, they talk about lots of interesting topics and issues. They usually make the lesson interesting and have a great way of delivering the lessons to the students. Finally, a good teacher does not pressurise the students to read around the clock and always patiently answer the questions asked the students no matter how silly sometimes they are. They invite questions and do a friendly interaction with the students.
Things I learned from him/her: Students learn many things from a good teacher. The first thing they learn is the importance of education and morality in life. They learn different information from the subject they read for exams, and also outside of academic subjects. They learn the responsibility, essential quality of a good citizen and so on while also get inspiration to become a good human being.
How he/she influenced me to do better in life: Usually, a teacher influences a student with his/her way of teaching, his/her own personal characters/morality/honesty/bravery, with the advice he/she gives to the students and the information he/she delivers to the students. A student can also be influenced by the good advice he/she receives from a teacher.
While answering this cue card topic, emphasise the teacher’s great teaching style, motivational speeches, an interesting and easy way he/she adopted to explain intricacies issues, his/her personality and morality and things you have learned from him/her. You should also mention how you have applied the things you learned from him/her or how those things have changed your course of actions in life.
If you can answer this cue card topic, you should also be able to answer the following cue card topics:
1. Describe a teacher from your childhood.
2. Describe a teacher whom you liked.
3. Describe a math teacher.
4. Describe a teacher from your university.
5. Describe a teacher who gave you good advice.
6. Describe a teacher who you would like to meet again.