FCE Speaking Part 2: One Minute, Two Photos, and the Marks That Hide in It

What happens in FCE Speaking Part 2?

Each candidate gets two photographs with one question printed above them. You talk on your own for about a minute: you compare the two photos and answer the question. When you finish, the interlocutor asks your partner a short question about your photos, and they answer for about 30 seconds. Then you swap roles with a new pair of photos. The whole part takes about four minutes, per Cambridge English's published B2 First format.

• Your turn: about 1 minute, two photos, one printed question — compare and answer
• Your partner's response: about 30 seconds on a question about your photos
• Then the roles swap with a second pair of photos
• Part 2 in total: about 4 minutes of the 14-minute test

Two things make this part different from the rest of the exam. It is the only time you speak alone for a sustained stretch, and the task is written down in front of you. Both are gifts: nobody interrupts you, and the question tells you exactly what to do.

What does the Part 2 question look like?

The printed question names the theme and asks you to do one thing beyond comparing: say why, how, or what the people might be feeling. Two photos of people eating might come with "Why might the people have chosen to eat in these places?"; two photos of people exercising with "What might the people be enjoying about these activities?"; two photos of journeys with "How might the people be feeling?"

The task has two halves and both are scored. Compare the photos, then answer the question. A candidate who only compares has done half the job; a candidate who describes each photo in turn ("In the first photo there is a market. There are many people.") has done none of it, however good the grammar.

How is Part 2 scored?

Across the whole speaking test, the assessor scores four criteria from 0 to 5: Grammar and Vocabulary, Discourse Management, Pronunciation and Interactive Communication; the interlocutor adds a Global Achievement mark. Nothing is scored part by part, but the long turn is where Discourse Management shows most: a minute that is organised, connected and kept going, with the comparing and speculating language that Grammar and Vocabulary rewards at B2.

• Grammar and Vocabulary: a range of structures used accurately enough — comparatives, modals of speculation, linking words — not only the present simple
• Discourse Management: relevant, connected, extended speech with little hesitation; you answer the question and keep the thread
• Pronunciation: clear and intelligible, with sensible stress and intonation; an accent is not a fault, mumbling is
• Interactive Communication: shows mainly in Parts 3 and 4, but the 30-second response counts here too

Speaking is one of the four papers and carries 20% of the overall Cambridge English Scale score; 160 to 179 overall is a B2 pass. The full picture of the four parts and the marks is in the FCE speaking exam guide.

What should the minute sound like? A 60-second plan

A plan that works for any pair of photos, because it follows the task rather than the pictures:

1. 0–10 seconds — the link and the difference: "Both photos show people buying food, but the first is a busy market and the second is someone ordering on a phone at home."
2. 10–30 seconds — answer the question for the first photo, speculating: "The people at the market might have chosen it because they like to see what they're buying, and perhaps because shopping there is part of their routine — it looks quite social."
3. 30–50 seconds — answer it for the second photo, contrasting: "The man at home, on the other hand, probably wants to save time. He seems to be in a hurry, so he may be ordering dinner after work."
4. 50–60 seconds — close with a preference or a conclusion: "Personally, I'd rather go to the market, although during the week I'd probably do the same as him."

What language marks B2 in the long turn?

Comparing, speculating and giving reasons, in connected sentences. Compare these two openings on the same photos of a market and a phone order:

• B1: "In the first photo there is a market. People buy food. In the second photo a man uses his phone. He is at home." Correct, and it does not compare, speculate or answer anything.
• B2: "Both photos show people buying food, but while the market looks busy and social, the man at home seems to be in a hurry — he's probably ordering dinner after a long day." One sentence: a link, a contrast, two speculations and a reason.

The B2 toolkit is small and worth making automatic: "both… but", "whereas", "while", "in contrast" for comparing; "might", "could", "may", "probably", "perhaps", "seems to be", "looks as if" for speculating; "because", "so that", "which means" for reasons. Examiners are listening for range used naturally, not for rare words.

What about the 30-second response?

When your partner's minute ends, the interlocutor asks you one question about their photos — "Which of these places would you prefer to eat in?" — and you have about 30 seconds. Answer it directly in two or three sentences with a reason: "The market, definitely, because I enjoy choosing things myself, and it's a nicer way to spend a Saturday." Do not compare their photos again and do not restart your own minute. Listen while your partner talks, so the question does not catch you cold.

Which mistakes cost B2 marks in Part 2?

1. Describing the photos one after the other instead of comparing them. This is the most common mistake and the most expensive.
2. Listing what you can see ("a table, two chairs, a lamp"). Objects are A2; what the people might be doing and why is B2.
3. Ignoring the printed question. If it asks why, say why; if it asks how they feel, say how they might feel.
4. Stopping before the minute is up. Add a difference, a possibility or a preference; the interlocutor will stop you when the time is up.
5. Opening both photos with the same memorised line ("In this picture I can see…"). Examiners hear it as a script.
6. Answering the 30-second question with one word, or using it to talk about your own photos again.
7. Speaking too quietly. The assessor sits across the room and Pronunciation is a fifth of the mark.

How do you practise the long turn at home?

1. The 60-second drill: pick any two photos — a newspaper, a stock-photo site, your own phone — write a why or how question above them, set a timer, speak, and record it. Twice a week is enough to feel the difference within a month.
2. Listen back once and count: did you compare in the first sentence, did you answer the question for both photos, and did you reach the minute? Those three yeses are the whole task.
3. Build a phrase bank from the toolkit above and use it until it comes without thinking; say the phrases aloud, not just read them.
4. The upgrade drill: transcribe the first 30 seconds of a recording and rewrite it with a comparison, two speculations and a reason, then say the new version until it sounds natural rather than recited.
5. Practise the 30-second response with a partner who asks you one question about photos you have not seen for long; it trains the quick, direct answer.
6. Do at least one full mock in the exam's shape, with someone reading the question aloud and handing you the card, two weeks before the exam.

How do you know if you are ready for Part 2?

The honest benchmark: a full minute, comparing and speculating from the first sentence, answering the printed question for both photos, with two or three hesitations at most and no slide into description. If you run dry at 40 seconds or keep listing what you see, the drills above are the next two weeks. If you are not sure you are at B2 at all, the free English level test places you in a CEFR range in five minutes, and B1 vs B2 English draws the line this exam sits on. The other three parts are in the FCE speaking exam guide; the same task one level up is CAE Speaking Part 2.