B2 First Speaking Part 4: Half the Test Is One Topic

Part 3 of B2 First Speaking runs three minutes. Part 4 runs four. Cambridge says Part 4 is about the same topic as Part 3.

Add it up: seven of the fourteen minutes of a paired Speaking test are spent on one subject you first saw moments earlier.

Half the test, one topic. That changes what preparation is worth doing.

SpeakShark is free for the kind of practice this needs, three AI conversation sessions a day with no card, each capped at five minutes and four turns.

In this guide: what Part 4 actually is · the seven minute block · why it cannot be revised · the predictable move · justifying, not just opining · who you are talking to · what we could not verify · how we researched this · FAQ

Key takeaways

Part 4 is four minutes, the longest single part of the test.
It covers the same topic as Part 3, not a new one.
Together they are seven of fourteen minutes, half the paired test.
Cambridge names two skills: expressing and justifying opinions, and agreeing or disagreeing.
The examiner asks, and you discuss it with the other candidate.

What Part 4 actually is

Cambridge's description, in full:

Further discussion with the other candidate, guided by questions from the examiner, about the same topic as the task in Part 3.

And what to practise:

Expressing and justifying opinions, agreeing and / or disagreeing.

One sentence and a short list. That brevity tells you something: there is no card, no photograph, no prompt sheet. Part 4 is a conversation about ideas, held under exam conditions, for four minutes.

The seven minute block

Put the four parts side by side and the structure of the test changes shape.

Part	What it is	Time
1, Interview	Conversation with the examiner about you	2 minutes
2, Long turn	A pair of photographs, you speak uninterrupted	1 minute per candidate, plus a 30-second response
3, Collaborative task	A question and written prompts, then a decision	2 minute discussion, then 1 minute to decide
4, Discussion	Further discussion on the same topic as Part 3	4 minutes

The test runs 14 minutes per pair, or 20 minutes per group of three.

Parts 3 and 4 together are seven minutes on one subject. Part 1 and Part 2 between them cover roughly five, split across several unrelated things.

Two consequences follow, and neither is obvious from a part-by-part guide.

Your Part 3 is an investment. If you engaged properly with the prompts, you arrive at Part 4 with positions you have already taken and reasons you have already given. If you closed Part 3 in thirty seconds, you start Part 4 cold with four minutes to fill on a subject you have barely thought about. Part 3, and why not to decide too early, is where that gets decided.

Topic depth beats topic breadth. Preparation that skims fifty subjects is a poor fit for a test that spends half its time on one. Being able to go deep on whatever lands in front of you is worth more than having a shallow opinion about everything.

Why Part 4 cannot be revised

The chain is: written prompts you have never seen, then a discussion, then a decision, then questions about that same topic.

There is no list to memorise at the end of it. Anyone offering you one is offering a guess.

What can be trained is the shape of the questions, because they always do the same thing.

The one predictable move

Part 3 is concrete: specific prompts, a specific decision. Part 4 goes outward, toward the general issue behind the specific task.

That widening is the move, and it is topic-independent. Which makes the drill topic-independent too:

Take any narrow subject. A decision you made this week, a photograph, what you ate.
Name the general issue behind it in one sentence.
Give an opinion on that issue, with a reason.
Give the counter-position, with a reason.
Keep going for two minutes.

Do that daily from different starting points and the widening stops being something you have to think about. It is the highest-return Part 4 drill available, because it is the only part of the task that is predictable. Twelve daily speaking drills from B1 to C1 and role play scenarios for speaking practice both build that repetition, and a free daily session is enough volume to keep it moving.

Justifying, not just opining

Cambridge lists "expressing and justifying opinions". The second verb is where four minutes gets filled.

Candidates who dry up in Part 4 have almost never run out of opinions. They have run out of reasons, because they treated each question as something to answer rather than something to develop.

One exchange shows the difference:

"I think school uniforms are a good idea." That is a sentence. It closes.
"I think school uniforms are a good idea, mainly because they take one decision out of a stressful morning, although I can see they matter more to parents than to the students wearing them." That is a contribution. It opens two doors, and the other candidate can walk through either.

The second version is also what the level describes. The Council of Europe says a B2 user "can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without strain for either party" and can "explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages". Advantages and disadvantages, in the descriptor itself. CEFR levels explained for speaking unpacks the rest.

And once again, disagreeing is on Cambridge's list. Four minutes of two people agreeing is four minutes of very little happening.

Who you are actually talking to

"Further discussion with the other candidate, guided by questions from the examiner."

Both roles are in that line. The examiner supplies the questions. The discussion happens between the two candidates.

Candidates who deliver every answer to the examiner, eyes forward, treating the other person as furniture, are answering a task that was not set. The examiner is the source of the question, not the audience for the reply.

Practically, the Part 3 moves carry straight over: inviting the other candidate in, building on what they said, coming back in politely when they have run long. A dominant or a silent partner is handled the same way here, and handling it is assessed rather than penalised.

Two details about the room, both from Cambridge: there are two examiners, one conducting the test and one who listens, and one of them could be examining remotely. Examiners may also enter marks using a mobile phone app, so a phone in the room is routine rather than a distraction.

For the full picture see our Cambridge B2 First speaking overview and Part 1, the interview. One level up the same part runs a minute longer and links less tightly to the previous task, covered in C1 Advanced Part 4 and the C1 Advanced format. If confidence is the obstacle rather than language, online methods to build confidence in English, why your English speaking is not improving and finding an online speaking partner are the useful reading, and how to improve English pronunciation helps if clarity slips under pressure. For pacing, a 30 day plan to improve speaking and speaking exercises for adult learners both fit around school or work.

What we could not verify

We have not reproduced the assessment criteria. Cambridge publishes its own scales and we are not paraphrasing band descriptors.

We have not published sample Part 4 questions. They are generated from Part 3 in a live test, and Cambridge's sample papers are the right place to see real ones.

We could not confirm how many questions the examiner asks in the four minutes, only that the discussion is guided by questions from the examiner.

We are not stating pass rates or average scores by part. We found no attributable figure.

How we researched this guide

The Part 4 description, the skills list, the four minute timing, the timings for the other three parts, the 14 and 20 minute totals, the two examiner setup, the remote examiner note and the marking app detail all come from Cambridge English's B2 First and B2 First for Schools exam format page, read directly in a browser.

The seven minute observation is arithmetic on Cambridge's own published timings rather than a claim we found elsewhere. Part 3 is a two minute discussion plus a one minute decision, Part 4 is four minutes, and Cambridge states that Part 4 covers the same topic as Part 3. No preparation material we looked at put those three facts together, and the conclusion only appears when they sit in one place.

The B2 descriptor comes from the Council of Europe's global scale rather than a summary of it, because "explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages" is the level defining the exact thing Part 4 asks for.

Cambridge notes that the formats are the same for both the digital and paper-based exams, so this applies whichever version you sit.

Practise speaking, from SpeakShark

SpeakShark is an AI English speaking practice app, and it is our pick for Part 4 because Part 4 is the part least served by everything else. There is no card to drill and no picture to describe. There is a four minute discussion in which somebody asks you something you did not expect and you have to justify a position out loud. You talk, the AI answers what you actually said, and you get speaking feedback while the conversation is still going. The free tier gives basic feedback; the detailed pronunciation and grammar breakdown is on Premium.

Being straight about the limits: a free session runs five minutes with four turns, which suits daily practice of the widening drill rather than simulating a full paired exam.

Start free with three sessions a day and no card. Paid sessions run ten minutes with unlimited turns. Limits are on the pricing page, and how it works walks through a full session.

We are a speaking improvement tool. We are not an exam preparation provider, and we are not affiliated with Cambridge English, the IELTS partners, Pearson or any exam board. For test format, booking and official practice material, go to the exam body directly. Use SpeakShark to make your spoken English stronger, and use official material to learn the test.

Site: speakshark.com
Support: speaksharksupport@gmail.com
Free tier: 3 AI conversation sessions per day, no card

Sources

Cambridge English, B2 First for Schools and B2 First exam format: the Part 4 description and skills list, all four part timings, the 14 and 20 minute totals, the two examiner setup, the remote examiner note and the marking app detail
Council of Europe, CEFR Table 1, common reference levels global scale: the B2 descriptor, including explaining a viewpoint "giving the advantages and disadvantages"

FAQ

What is B2 First Speaking Part 4?

It is the discussion. Cambridge describes it as further discussion with the other candidate, guided by questions from the examiner, about the same topic as the task in Part 3. It is the final part of the four part Speaking test and Cambridge states that the discussion should last four minutes, which makes it the longest single part.

How long is B2 First Speaking Part 4?

Four minutes. The whole Speaking test runs 14 minutes per pair of candidates or 20 minutes per group of three, so Part 4 alone is more than a quarter of the test. It is twice the length of the two minute interview in Part 1 and longer than the two minute discussion and one minute decision of Part 3 combined.

Is Part 4 on the same topic as Part 3?

Yes. Cambridge states that Part 4 is about the same topic as the task in Part 3. That is a stronger link than it sounds, because Part 3 runs three minutes and Part 4 runs four, so seven of the fourteen minutes of a paired Speaking test are spent on one subject that you first saw moments earlier.

What does Cambridge say to practise for Part 4?

Expressing and justifying opinions, agreeing and or disagreeing. Justifying is the operative word in a four minute discussion, because an opinion with no reason attached is a sentence that closes rather than a contribution that opens. Candidates who run out of things to say have usually run out of reasons rather than out of views.

Who do I talk to in Part 4, the examiner or the other candidate?

Both, in different roles. Cambridge says the discussion is with the other candidate, guided by questions from the examiner. So the questions come from the examiner while the discussion that follows happens between the two of you. Answering only to the examiner and never engaging the other candidate misreads the task.

How can I prepare for Part 4 if the questions come from Part 3?

Prepare the move rather than the content. The predictable pattern is a widening from the specific task you just did to the general issue behind it, so practise taking any narrow subject, naming the broader question it belongs to, and arguing both sides with reasons attached. Doing that aloud against something that answers back is the closest available rehearsal.