IELTS & TOEFL - How to give your opinion

TRANSCRIPT

Hello everyone. My name is Emma, and in today's lesson we are going to look at ways to give your opinion. So this video is very useful for anyone who will be writing the IELTS exam, the TOEFL exam, as well as anyone who wants to become a better speaker or a better writer. Okay, so in this video we will first look at some common expressions we use to give our opinion, and we will look at ways to strengthen these expressions to make them stronger and to show that we feel very strongly or not so strong about something.

Okay, so let's begin. I have here the most common way to give your opinion: "I think..." So why do I have an "x" here? Well the problem is students overuse "I think..." "I think this, I think that, I think this, I think that." It gets very boring. And so if you're doing the TOEFL or the IELTS, the problem with using "I think..." is you're going to get a lower mark because that's considered basic English usage. So in order to get a higher mark or if you're just interested in becoming a better speaker or writer, I've listed some expressions that will really help aid you in expressing your opinion. So let's look at some other expressions you can use. And these all pretty much mean "I think..."

So the first expression: "As far as I'm concerned," okay? "As far as I'm concerned,...". Okay, one question you often get on IELTS, on TOEFL is: "Should boys and girls go to the same school or should they go to different schools?" What I could say or I could write: "As far as I'm concerned, boys and girls should go to separate schools." Okay? One thing that's important to note: there's a comma. "As far as I'm concerned," and then you write your opinion. Okay?

Our next expression: "In my opinion,..." This is better than "I think" -- it's still a bit overused though. So I would recommend using some of these other expressions. But "In my opinion,..." is still okay to use, just don't use it too often. "In my opinion, in my opinion," -- I guess if we use the same example as before --, "boys and girls should go to separate schools." Okay?

Our next expression, again, it means the same thing as "I think...", it's just a nicer way to say it. I've given you two options. You can say: "It seems to me that..." or "It appears to me that..." These are excellent to use in writing. So if you're doing the TOEFL essay where you give your opinion on something, agree or disagree essay, or the IELTS essay this is a good one to use. One question that's often asked in the TOEFL and I think also the IELTS: "Do parents make the best teachers? Do you agree or disagree?" So I could say: "It seems to me that parents do make the best teachers.", "It seems to me that parents do not make the best teachers." Notice one other thing about this expression, whereas we have a comma here and here, "It seems to me that..." there's no comma. Okay? So any time we have "that", you don't have to worry about a comma.

Okay, our next expression: "I would argue that..." So again, we have "that", no comma. "I would argue that the death penalty is not a good form of punishment." Often times, the TOEFL may ask you if you agree or disagree with the death penalty. You could use: "I would argue that the death penalty is the best way to deal with criminals." So it all depends on your opinion, but you can either agree or disagree with this statement.

Another way to say "I think...": "From my point of view," or "From my perspective," Okay? Notice we have a comma for both of these. "From my point of view," okay, so now I'm not going to use an IELTS or TOEFL example, I'm going to use a superhero example. "From my point of view, Cyclops is a horrible superhero." So again, just for anyone who likes to argue,
this is a good one to use.

The last one is a very high formal way of saying your opinion. "I am inclined to believe that..." So you wouldn't use this with your friends. If you have an argument with your friends, maybe you're talking about the best place to live in the world or the best place to travel to, if you said: "I'm inclined to believe that France is a great place to visit." Your friends would find your language too formal. But you can use this in writing, in formal writing. If you're writing the TOEFL or the IELTS, you can use this expression. And again, at the end we have "that", we don't have a comma. Okay?

[nourineberrekia]

to be honest, i think emma is one of the major teachers on youtube. i strongly believe that she is confident and methodogical teacher

[Dirsrmohammed]

As far as I am concerned, your videos are helping me to get a better score on the TOEFL test, so keep on posting more lessons to bust us to the English level that we seek to approach.

[luanramos]

your speaking is easy to listen. thanks a lot emma you are the best

[Dirsrmohammed]

I am inclined to believe that you are one of the best teachers, whose way of explanation is outstanding. Thus, please keep it up to the level of your expectations and keep on making it much better than its.

[MrSportslover]

Comment as well as revision
I am inclined to believe that Emma is the best English teacher on YouTube.

[arturosaenzelviajero]

I will take the TOEFL ibt in 10 days from now and all this tips have been very useful for me! Thank you!!

[عبير-ثك]

If you ask me, i think that emma’s vedios are really light and comfortable to watch and learn at the same time
I’m confident of that

[PhamTung]

Your voice is very clearly and that make me easy to listening

[shiryinglepringle]

This is wonderful! I am currently working on an argumentative paper for my social studies and this is definitely the best video I've seen. I believe with your help, I will get an A on my paper! :D

[bluewazeyt]

God.... This is good. Shes can become youtuber too because how her speak is clearly!!! Big support on you Teacher emma!

[deymeypongror]

Honestly speaking, I am keen on the way that you teach. I can benefit a lot from yours.

[riquelmebatista]

As far as I am concerned, you are the best teacher on youtube, i don't have doubts about that !

[assefasenbato]

What a clear accent on your mouth, really I appreciate the way you teach. Thanks for your productive tutorial and keep it doing please!

[angelzarzuela]

I am confident Enma is a very good English teacher, her explanetions are clear enough.

[ousapheach]

if you ask me Emma is my best teacher. thx

[brunosilvaleo]

From My point of view This is the best place to learn english, I am inclined to believe that Emma is the best teacher...

[diegoscapin]

I strongly agree with those who love Ms. Emma. In my opinion, she has the softest tone of voice: her manner of asking 'ok?' in addition to her smile are disarming. Great trait in a teacher and generally in a human being

[rohitsupa]

One of the best English teachers I've ever came across

[tgbnhyujmify]

I am inclined to believe that Emma is one of the best Esl teacher.

[raphael]

I'll pass my TOEFL exam in a few months, and I'm fell on your videos. Very good teacher, very nice, smilling and happy :) Good job !