Student Life video project: listening answers and explanations
A tutor gives two English students, Cristina and Ibrahim, feedback on a video they made about student life. She asks each of them what they enjoyed, what helped their English, what else they learned, and what they would do differently next time.
The table goes row by row, and the tutor's questions mark each new row: 'what did you enjoy', 'the most useful aspect for your English', 'any other benefits', 'what mistakes'. In every row Cristina answers first and Ibrahim second, so the gaps alternate between them.
Answer key and self-check
Type what you wrote and hit mark. Hide the key first if you haven't done the part yet. Every question number jumps to its explanation.
Q
Your answer
Answer
Questions 21-30 · Table completion (NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER)
Table completion (NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER)
Questions 21-30
How to attack this block: The tutor's questions are your map, and each row has the same order: Cristina, then Ibrahim. Several cells are already filled (using the camera, normal speed, compromising), so use them to know exactly where you are. Most answers are one word, often an -ing verb.
Question 21
Answer: homeCristina's second answer about what she enjoyed
Also accepted: student's home
Where did Cristina enjoy going?
enjoyed visiting one of the British students … I'd never been inside a British home
Question says → You hear
going to a BritishI'd never been inside a British home
Why: She visited a British student and says she had never been inside a British home before. 'British' is printed, so write home.
The trap: Using the camera is said first, but it's already in the table.
Question 22
Answer: dinnerWhen the tutor asks if he'll keep in touch
Also accepted: have dinner / come to dinner / go to dinner
What has Ibrahim asked some of the students to do with him?
invited three of them to have dinner with me next week
Question says → You hear
has asked some to ... with himinvited three of them to have dinner with me
Why: 'Invited' matches 'has asked'. The gap before 'with him' fits dinner or have dinner.
The trap: The tutor goes on about Arab dishes and what he'll make. 'Cook' or 'Arab dishes' don't fit the gap or the key.
Question 23
Answer: technicalWhen the tutor asks about the most useful English practice
What kind of vocabulary did Cristina learn?
And I also learned some technical words that
Question says → You hear
learning ... vocabularylearned some technical words
Why: 'Technical words' becomes 'technical vocabulary'. The gap needs the adjective: technical.
The trap: Following instructions is the first thing she mentions, but 'listening to instructions' is already printed.
Question 24
Answer: slangEnd of Ibrahim's answer about listening to British students
What did the British students use a lot of?
And they use a lot of slang
Question says → You hear
large amount ofa lot of slang
Why: 'A lot of' becomes 'large amount of'. The answer is slang.
The trap: Natural speed is the first reason he gives, but 'normal speed' is printed in the table already.
Question 25
Answer: cooperatingWhen the tutor asks about other benefits, after the video camera
Also accepted: cooperation / co-operating / co-operation
What did Cristina learn about working with others?
ways of cooperating, erm, and compromising
Question says → You hear
working with other people: learning aboutways of cooperating
Why: She lists three skills: cooperating, compromising and persuading. Compromising is printed, and the first gap takes the first one: cooperating (cooperation is also accepted).
The trap: The three skills come in one breath, so it's easy to write them in the wrong gaps. Use the printed 'compromising' to place the others.
Question 26
Answer: persuadingThe third skill in the same list
What else did Cristina have to do with people who disagree?
and sometimes persuading people, when they don't agree with you
Question says → You hear
people who have different viewspeople, when they don't agree with you
Why: 'People who don't agree with you' becomes 'people who have different views'. The skill before it is persuading.
The trap: 'Compromising' is said right before, but it already has its own line in the table.
Question 27
Answer: editingIbrahim's turn after Cristina's teamwork answer
What did Ibrahim learn was important?
I learnt a lot about how important editing is
Question says → You hear
the importance ofhow important editing is
Why: 'How important editing is' turns into 'the importance of editing'. One word: editing.
The trap: Filming is mentioned next ('when you're filming'), but he's saying filming isn't enough: the cutting is what improved the video.
Question 28
Answer: completeWhen the tutor asks what they'd do differently
What should they decide on at the start for each stage?
when we'd complete each separate step of the project
Question says → You hear
decide when to ... each stagewhen we'd complete each separate step
Why: They didn't set dates for when they'd complete each step. 'Step' becomes 'stage', and the gap needs the verb: complete.
The trap: Plan is the first idea ('we didn't plan very well'), but 'decide when to plan each stage' doesn't match what she says.
Question 29
Answer: experimentWhen the tutor says 'Anything else?'
What should they have done more with the camera?
we should have tried to … more with the camera … with angles, and the focus
Question says → You hear
make more effort to ... with the camerawe should have tried to … more with the camera
Why: Cristina says they should have tried to experiment more with the camera. The gap needs a verb after 'to': experiment.
The trap: Angles and focus come straight after, but they're examples of what to experiment with, not the verb the gap needs.
Question 30
Answer: longWhen the tutor asks Ibrahim if he agrees about being ambitious
What should the film not be, in Ibrahim's view?
we tried to do too much, to make … film. Next time I would make a shorter one
Question says → You hear
don't make the film tooNext time I would make a shorter one
Why: They tried to make a long film and next time he'd make a shorter one. 'Don't make it too ...' needs long.
The trap: 'Too ambitious' is Ibrahim's own phrase, but the table is about the film, not the team. 'Short' is the opposite of what the gap needs.
Ibrahim has invited students to have dinner, and the tutor then talks about Arab dishes and what to make. The table says 'has asked some to ... with him', so the answer is dinner (or have dinner).
The gap follows 'make more effort to', so it needs a verb: experiment. 'Experiment more with the camera' is said once and quickly, followed by angles and focus, which are examples, not the answer.
Ibrahim says they were too ambitious and tried to make a long film. 'Don't make the film too ...' needs long, not 'ambitious' or 'short'.
Words from this recording worth keeping
maintain the contact(What they enjoyed)
keep in touch with someone
slang(Language practice)
very informal words used in everyday speech
cooperating(General usefulness)
working together towards the same goal
compromising(General usefulness)
each side giving up a little to agree
persuading(General usefulness)
getting someone to agree with you
editing(General usefulness)
cutting and arranging film to make the final version
ambitious(What to change)
trying to do something large or difficult
inexperienced(What to change)
without much practice or knowledge
Sit this test on Langujet, then come back
The full Cambridge 5 Test 2 listening paper with the real audio: all four parts, played once, marked the moment you finish. Already done it? Take it again and listen for the traps this page showed you.
Cambridge IELTS 5, Test 2, Listening Part 3. The recording, transcript and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts of the transcript only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full material, or sit the test on Langujet.
