Method guide
Respond to a Situation: the method
A speaking task built for everyday English. You read and hear a situation, get twenty seconds to think, then forty seconds to say what you would actually say. The score rewards sounding right for the situation as much as sounding fluent, so the method is mostly about choosing well before you open your mouth.
What this guide covers
The Respond to a Situation task page explains the format, what Pearson means by appropriacy and the mistakes that cost the most. This guide is the method: the three decisions to make in the 20 seconds of preparation, a four-step shape for the 40 seconds of speaking, a register table you can learn in an afternoon, two worked examples and drills.
Scoring is partial credit, not right or wrong. A response that achieves the goal in plain but well-judged English will score better than an elaborate one in the wrong register, or one that forgets half the task. Pearson's own guidance makes four points worth building every answer around: respond to what is asked and stay on topic; achieve the goal the situation describes; use your own ideas and language, not memorised responses; use expressions that suit the situation and the person.
The 20 seconds: answer three questions
- Who am I talking to? A manager, a landlord or a stranger means formal and polite. A friend or family member means relaxed and warm. This one decision sets your vocabulary for the whole answer, and it is the decision candidates most often skip.
- What do I need to achieve? Put it in one verb: apologise, request, explain, decline, suggest, complain. That verb is the heart of your answer. If the prompt has two parts ("explain what happened and what you will do"), you have two verbs, and both need to be heard.
- What are my two or three points? A reason, a detail, a proposed next step. Two or three is enough for 40 seconds. More than that and you will run out of time before the close.
Twenty seconds is enough for all three if you take them in order. Register first, because it changes every word that follows. Verb second, because it is the thing the scorer is listening for. Points last, because they are the easiest to find.
The 40 seconds: a four-step shape
| Step | What it does | Roughly |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Open | Greet the person and say why you are speaking to them. | 5 seconds |
| 2. Explain | Give the reason or background in one or two sentences. | 10 seconds |
| 3. Act | Make the request, apology, suggestion or offer. This is the goal of the task. | 15 seconds |
| 4. Close | Thank them, agree a next step, or check it works for them. | 5–10 seconds |
Pearson's instructions ask you to say what you would say in the situation. The most natural way to do that is to speak to the person, as if they were in front of you, rather than describing what you would tell them. "Hi Priya, I'm really sorry" is a response. "I would apologise to my colleague" is a description of one. Speaking directly also makes your choice of register obvious to the listener.
Worked example 1: informal, an apology
Last week you borrowed a colleague's laptop charger, and now you cannot find it. Your colleague has asked for it back. Explain what happened and what you will do.
The three answers: a colleague you borrow from is a friendly peer, so relaxed but respectful. Two verbs: apologise and explain, plus a plan. Points: where I looked, where it might be, what I will do about it.
Hi Priya, I'm really sorry, but I have to tell you something about your charger. I've looked everywhere, at my desk, in my bag and at home, and I'm afraid I can't find it. I think I may have left it in the meeting room on Thursday. I've already asked the front desk to check lost property. If it doesn't turn up by tomorrow, I'll buy you a new one, the same model. In the meantime, you're welcome to use mine. Again, I'm sorry for the trouble.
87 words. Open with the apology, explain, act (search, replace, lend), close.
Worked example 2: formal, a request
The heating in your rented flat has not worked for three days and the weather is cold. Call your landlord, explain the problem and ask for it to be repaired quickly.
The three answers: a landlord means formal and polite. Verbs: explain and request. Points: how long, the effect, what I am asking for and by when.
Good morning, Mr. Osei, this is Daniel from flat four. I'm calling about the heating, which stopped working on Monday and still isn't on. It's been very cold the last few nights, and with a young child in the flat I'm quite concerned. Would it be possible to send someone to look at it today or tomorrow? If a repair will take longer, I'd be grateful if you could arrange a temporary heater in the meantime. Thank you very much for your help, and please let me know when to expect the engineer.
95 words. Open with name and purpose, explain with a time and an effect, act with a request and a fallback, close with thanks and a next step.
Compare the two openings. "Hi Priya, I'm really sorry" and "Good morning, Mr. Osei, this is Daniel from flat four" are both correct, for different people. Swap them and both answers lose appropriacy points before the second sentence.
Getting the register right
| Purpose | To a friend | To a manager or official |
|---|---|---|
| Asking | "Could you do me a favour?" | "Would it be possible to…?" |
| Apologising | "Sorry about that, my fault." | "I apologise for the inconvenience." |
| Declining | "I'd love to, but I can't make it." | "Unfortunately, I won't be able to attend." |
| Suggesting | "How about we…?" | "Perhaps we could consider…" |
| Complaining | "To be honest, I'm a bit annoyed about…" | "I'd like to raise a concern about…" |
| Closing | "Talk soon!" | "Thank you for your understanding." |
Mixing registers is a common way to lose appropriacy: a warm "Hey!" to a landlord, or a stiff "I regret to inform you" to your sister. Choose once, in the 20 seconds, and stay there.
Self-marking checklist
After every recorded practice answer, listen once and tick each line. Anything unticked is tomorrow's drill.
- I spoke to the person, not about them.
- My first sentence was about this situation, not a stock opening.
- Every part of the prompt was answered (two verbs if there were two).
- The register matched the listener from the first word to the last.
- I used most of the 40 seconds and finished with a close, not a trailing sentence.
- No pause came close to three seconds.
Drills
- The register switch. Take one situation and answer it twice: once to a friend, once to a manager. Same points, different words. Ten situations, twenty answers. This makes the register decision fast.
- The one-verb drill. Read twenty prompts and say only the verb (or two verbs) for each, within five seconds. This is the skill that stops you from forgetting half the task.
- The three-point drill. For ten prompts, write three points in the 20 seconds, on paper, then speak. After a few days, keep them in your head instead.
- The full run, timed. Four prompts in a row on the real 20-second and 40-second timers, recorded, marked against the checklist above.
- The no-stock-opening drill. Record ten answers and listen only to the first sentence of each. If any two first sentences could be swapped between prompts, they are too generic. Rewrite them.
A fifteen-minute daily routine
- Four minutes: the one-verb drill on ten prompts.
- Eight minutes: three full timed runs, recorded.
- Three minutes: self-mark the three runs. Note which line of the checklist fails most often; that is the next day's register-switch or three-point drill.
Sources: Pearson, A guide to the Respond to a Situation task; Pearson, PTE Core test format (Speaking & Writing); Pearson, PTE Core Test Taker Score Guide. The situations and responses on this page were written for this guide.