PTE Speaking score low even though your English is good? Read this
You speak English every day. You might even use it at work. So why is your PTE Speaking score lower than your Reading? The computer is listening for something different from a person.
In Read Aloud and Repeat Sentence, PTE Academic is scored by computer, and it scores three things: content (did you say the words), pronunciation (can you be understood), and oral fluency (how smooth and steady your speech is). Many good speakers lose marks on fluency without knowing it, because the habits that are fine in conversation cost marks here.
Habit 1: going back to fix a word
Read Aloud text: Urban gardens are becoming popular in many large cities.
Habit 2: speaking too fast
Some students think speed shows fluency. It does not. Rushing blurs your words, and the computer cannot recognise them, so your content and pronunciation scores drop. Aim for your normal, clear speaking pace, with small natural pauses at commas and full stops.
Habit 3: silence at the start
After the tone, the microphone waits for you. If you stay silent for about 3 seconds, it stops recording, and you cannot try again. Start speaking soon after the tone, even if you begin with the first few words you remember.
Repeat Sentence. You hear: Students must submit their assignments before the end of the week.
How to practise
- Record yourself on Read Aloud every day. Listen back only for stops and restarts, and count them.
- Read the same text again with zero restarts. Accept small mistakes.
- For Repeat Sentence, practise saying what you remember in one smooth flow, even if it is not every word.
- Keep your voice at a normal volume, with the microphone near your mouth but not touching it.
- Practise in the real format as often as you can. NextBand students do this in the NextBand Room between classes.
Good English is your starting point. The work is teaching your voice what the computer is listening for.
Exam rules change. Always check with the exam provider and the organisation you are applying to.
Want help with this?
Book a class and we work on it together, build your free roadmap to see where you stand, or ask us a question first.
