Retell Lecture needs a clear account of what you heard, not a generic speech wrapped around a few keywords. Use a structure to select and connect the lecture’s ideas, while changing the language for every recording.
In current PTE Academic, the lecture can last up to 90 seconds. You then have 10 seconds to prepare and 40 seconds to speak. Pearson assesses how accurately and thoroughly you retell the main information, along with oral fluency and pronunciation. Pearson Academic Speaking & Writing format
A flexible four-part structure
- Topic: “The lecture explains...”
- Central claim: State the speaker’s main message.
- Connected support: Add two or three linked points, examples or stages.
- Outcome: Give the conclusion, implication or final development if the lecture provides one.
The labels guide your decisions. Do not recite them mechanically. If the lecture is chronological, organise your response by stages. If it compares two theories, lead with the contrast.
Notes that preserve relationships
Write short content cues and mark links:
cause:warmer watereffect:less oxygencontrast:shallow ponds more vulnerableexample:summer fish deathsconclusion:monitor temperature + oxygen
Avoid full sentences during listening. They consume attention and encourage you to miss the next point.
Original worked lecture
Urban ponds can support insects, birds and small aquatic animals, but their health changes quickly during hot weather. As water warms, it holds less dissolved oxygen. At the same time, algae may grow faster when fertiliser washes in from nearby gardens. When algae later decompose, that process uses still more oxygen, placing fish under stress. Shallow ponds are especially vulnerable because their whole water column heats rapidly. Planting vegetation around the edge can reduce runoff and provide shade, although managers still need to monitor oxygen during prolonged heat. The main lesson is that pond health depends on connected factors rather than temperature alone.
Notes: urban ponds; heat up, oxygen down; fertiliser, algae up; decay uses oxygen; shallow worse; edge plants shade + reduce runoff; monitor; connected factors.
Model response:
The lecture explains why urban ponds can become unhealthy during hot weather. The speaker says warmer water holds less dissolved oxygen, while fertiliser runoff can increase algal growth. When the algae decompose, they use additional oxygen and may place fish under stress. Shallow ponds are particularly vulnerable because they heat quickly. Vegetation around the pond can provide shade and reduce runoff, but monitoring is still necessary during long hot periods. Overall, pond health depends on several connected factors, not temperature by itself.
The response names the topic immediately, connects causes and effects, and ends with the speaker’s conclusion. It does not invent figures or opinions.
Review your delivery
Check whether a listener could reconstruct the lecture’s logic. Remove repeated openings and empty praise such as “This was a very interesting lecture”. Speak at a natural pace. If one detail disappears from memory, continue to the next main point rather than restarting.
Repair fragmented notes before speaking
If your notes look like separate facts, spend preparation time adding three marks: a star beside the main claim, an arrow between a cause and result, and a box around the lecturer’s final implication. Speak from those relationships.
Suppose the recording says: “Concrete absorbs heat during the day and releases it slowly, while street trees provide shade that lowers people’s heat exposure.” Notes such as “concrete stores heat; trees shade; lower exposure” preserve those stated links. Repair them as: “Concrete retains heat, whereas trees provide shade and reduce exposure.” Add arrows or causal language only for relationships you remember hearing. Grammar can reconnect remembered ideas, but it must not invent them.
For broader speaking structures, read PTE Speaking Templates 2026. Hide the script and ask another person or a text-to-speech tool to read it once. Give the timed response from your notes, then browse Academic Retell Lecture practice.
