#54 - IELTS Speaking test in Uganda – June 2016

Test # 54

Personal Questions

– What do you do for a job?

I work as a junior software developer at a firm called Aspire Technology Solutions. It’s a local firm in my city.

– How long have you been working there?

Not very long, I joined them this March, so it’s been 4 months now.

– What is the best part of your job?

The best part of my job is all the techniques and office strategies that I get to learn from my colleagues. Some of them are experienced for 5-6 years now in this industry and can predict problems relating to a subject even before any signs are seen…I find this very impressive.

– Is it a morning or an evening job?

It is an afternoon job actually. I’m there from 12 in the noon to 5 in the evening. It is kind of like a part time job.

– Did you change many jobs before this one?

No not many…this is my third job. The first one was an unpaid internship during my college days which lasted for 6 months. The second was a friend’s company that I joined immediately after my exams got over. I learned some soft-skills there so that I don’t seem completely naïve at a formal job interview.

– Do you plan to stay in this job for a long time? Why?

Yes I do…as I said they employed me for just 5 hours a day right now as there are no vacancies for a full time employment there, I plan to learn quickly and impress my employers enough to make them give me a full time job there with a proper designation. Of course, if my preparations for me going abroad to study prove fruitful, then I would not be able to continue with the job.

Cue Card

Describe a memorable dinner with friends. Please say

– Who organized it and why?

– What kind of food was served?

– What was the main topic of conversation?

I recently had some friends over from Canada. They actually are my classmates from school who moved there later on. Anyways, they were visiting Mumbai after 13 long years and we decided to go for dinner in a very authentic Indian cuisine restaurant. They insisted on having North Indian as they don't get very good North Indian food in Canada. I and another local friend planned the dinner and went to a place called Spice Craft. The ambience was made to look like a North Indian's home, and my friends liked the place very much. We got talking about each other meanwhile we waited for the food to arrive. We talked about our present careers and future goals, and personal relationships. We also got a bit nostalgic and reminisced about out school days and all the fun we had together. We also gossiped about some other classmates and the evening turned out to be a pretty great one! We enjoyed the food as much as we enjoyed each other's company….we had ordered authentic Indian kebabs, naan breads and spicy curries with cottage cheese or potato dumplings, and Indian beverages like lime water and spiced buttermilk. We all liked the food a lot and were quite full by the time we finished our meal.

Discussion

– Is having a meal together as a family important? Why?

Definitely it is essential to have meals with your family sitting properly at a dining table. I read in a magazine somewhere that eating your meals separately and away from a designated eating area in your house attracts a lot of negativity and sadness. I don’t know if this is true or not, but nowadays many people eat like this only, and the quality conversations that are supposed to be done with the family members don’t happen. Many times the parents don’t have any idea whether their child is going through some difficulty in life. All these things weaken the family bonds.

– How does cultural identity of a place reflect in the eating habits and types of food?

I’d like to explain this with an example of how people in my country have food with people of some other countries. In India, we are traditionally required to sit erect on the floor cross-legged and eat with our hands from our individual plates and bowls. In England on the other hand people are required to sit on a dining table and are supposed to only eat with cutlery, and the tableware also changes for each course. Obviously the food for such arrangements will also be conducive; for instance you can’t eat chapatis with a knife and fork, and it would be very awkward to eat a steak with your hands. So, this is how the cultural identity is depicted.

– Do you think fewer families are eating meals together these days? Why?

I think yes because first of all joint families are getting reduced, so there are not many members in nuclear families that will be an encouragement for the family to sit together...there are sometimes only 2 members in a family in a city, and if both are working, they may not be able to match their meal times always. Children also have schools or tuitions in the afternoon so they cannot take part in the lunch time with the family.

– Is there an advantage to having people of different age groups eat together?

Ummmm I haven’t ever thought about this actually…but I think it is a good thing as family mealtime is the perfect opportunity to display appropriate table manners, meal etiquette, and social skills….so observing grandparents, parent, uncles and aunts, and them observing teens and children can be a very good opportunity be leading each other by example, and not just by talks….like if my family is eating lasagne and my grandparents do not know how to eat that then they can observe me and my sibling and learn how to eat a dish that is not traditionally ours. Family meals foster warmth, security and love, as well as feelings of belonging. It can be a unifying experience for all.