CELPIP® Speaking Task 6 sample: Privacy or an Accessible Room

Dealing with a Difficult Situation · Preparation: 60 seconds · Response: 60 seconds · Published 23 October 2026

Original practice questions in CELPIP® task formats, created independently by CELPIP Study.

Practice question

You are organizing a free pharmacy advice session at a community health fair in Gatineau. Logan, the pharmacist, prefers a quiet upstairs room for private consultations. However, the building has no elevator. Colton, the fair organizer, recommends the shared ground-floor hall, which everyone can reach. Logan could give a general medicine-storage presentation there, but personal questions could not be discussed privately. Only one space can be reserved for the session. Make your choice and speak either to Logan about using the ground-floor hall or to Colton about choosing the upstairs consultation room.

Talk to Logan and explain why you have chosen a general presentation in the ground-floor hall
Talk to Colton and explain why you have chosen private consultations in the upstairs room

Model answers

These are transcripts of a model response, provided for comparison with your own recording.

Level 7 sample answer

119 words

Logan, I've decided we should use the ground-floor hall for your session. I know you wanted a quiet room so people could ask private questions. That's useful, but the upstairs room has no elevator, and some people couldn't reach it. Since this is a community fair, I want everyone to have a chance to attend. Um, could you give the general talk about storing medicine instead? People could still learn things they can use at home. We should explain that they can't discuss about personal information in the hall. Also, perhaps you could tell them how to arrange a private conversation another time. I know this change mean more preparation for you, and I can help organize the presentation.

Why this answer is at level 7

This answer makes a clear choice, acknowledges Logan's preference, and gives a practical reason for using the hall. Compared with the higher-level answers, it develops the service trade-off less fully, uses more general vocabulary, and contains grammatical slips.

That's useful, but the upstairs room has no elevator, and some people couldn't reach it. — Content/Coherence: The contrast makes accessibility a clear reason for choosing the hall. A higher-level answer would explain more fully that this choice changes the service from private consultations to general education.
People could still learn things they can use at home. — Vocabulary: The meaning is understandable, but 'things' gives little detail about the presentation's value. A higher-level answer would describe practical medicine-storage content more precisely.
We should explain that they can't discuss about personal information in the hall. — Listenability: The privacy boundary is understandable, but the extra preposition after 'discuss' makes the sentence less natural. A higher-level answer would express this boundary smoothly and specify that questions must remain general.
Also, perhaps you could tell them how to arrange a private conversation another time. — Task Fulfillment: This offers a relevant alternative for visitors with personal questions and addresses Logan directly. A higher-level answer would make responsibility for communicating the format clearer and acknowledge that later consultations depend on availability.

Level 9 sample answer

147 words

Colton, I've decided to reserve the upstairs room for private consultations. I share your concern about the stairs, and I recognize that this choice means some visitors won't be able to attend. However, the two spaces would offer quite different services. In the hall, Logan could explain medicine storage, but anyone with a personal question would still need another appointment. The quieter room would allow those individual conversations to happen during the fair. I don't want to brush aside the access problem, though. Could we clearly describe the stairs in the event information so nobody arrives expecting an accessible consultation room? I'd also like to ask Logan whether general storage information could be made available downstairs and whether visitors could receive details about arranging an accessible consultation elsewhere. Those measures wouldn't remove the limitation, but they'd give people useful alternatives while protecting the privacy this session requires.

Why this answer is at level 9

This answer develops the choice through a thoughtful comparison of services and openly acknowledges that some visitors would be excluded. It shows greater precision and tact than the level 7 answer, but its layered requests make the practical plan less direct than the level 11 answer.

However, the two spaces would offer quite different services. — Content/Coherence: This establishes a useful organizing idea: the decision concerns what service visitors receive as well as where it happens. A higher-level answer would connect that comparison to an equally clear plan for running the chosen session.
I don't want to brush aside the access problem, though. — Vocabulary: The idiom expresses tactful acknowledgment naturally and more precisely than a general statement of concern. A higher-level answer would sustain this conversational precision while making the subsequent arrangements less indirect.
I'd also like to ask Logan whether general storage information could be made available downstairs — Listenability: The request is understandable, but its layered phrasing leads into another request within the same sentence. A higher-level answer would separate the proposed arrangements into shorter, more direct steps that listeners could retain easily.
Could we clearly describe the stairs in the event information so nobody arrives expecting an accessible consultation room? — Task Fulfillment: This gives Colton a concrete communication measure and honestly manages visitors' expectations. A higher-level answer would make ownership of the remaining arrangements equally explicit, while continuing to acknowledge that advance notice does not solve access.

Level 11 sample answer

161 words

Logan, I've chosen the ground-floor hall, which means we'll need to offer the medicine-storage presentation rather than individual consultations. Your preference for a private room makes complete sense: people should be able to ask personal questions without being overheard. The difficulty is that, without an elevator, the upstairs room would exclude anyone unable to use the stairs. For a community event, I think we should choose a format everyone can attend. We shouldn't try to squeeze confidential conversations into an unsuitable public space. Instead, could we build the session around practical storage examples and take only general questions? I'll make the format clear in the event description and introduce that boundary before you begin. If someone raises a personal concern, we could explain how to arrange a separate private consultation, subject to availability. I realize that leaves some needs unmet on the day. Nevertheless, everyone could attend the presentation, and we'd preserve an appropriate setting for any individual advice that follows.

Why this answer is at level 11

This answer combines a decisive choice with a precise explanation of the resulting service change. Its persuasive strength comes from respecting Logan's concerns, setting workable privacy boundaries, assigning clear actions, and acknowledging what the session cannot provide.

I've chosen the ground-floor hall, which means we'll need to offer the medicine-storage presentation rather than individual consultations. — Content/Coherence: The opening links the room choice directly to its consequence for the service. This gives the explanation a clear structure and makes the central trade-off explicit immediately.
We shouldn't try to squeeze confidential conversations into an unsuitable public space. — Vocabulary: The conversational verb 'squeeze' makes the practical problem vivid, while 'confidential conversations' precisely identifies what the hall cannot accommodate. The wording is specific without becoming technical.
I'll make the format clear in the event description and introduce that boundary before you begin. — Task Fulfillment: The speaker takes responsibility for explaining the session both beforehand and at its start. This turns the decision into a workable plan while keeping the reservation limited to the hall.
I realize that leaves some needs unmet on the day. — Listenability: This short, direct sentence gives the listener a clear pause after the proposed arrangements. It acknowledges the remaining drawback in natural language before the closing justification.
we could explain how to arrange a separate private consultation, subject to availability. — Task Fulfillment: The proposed response to personal concerns protects confidentiality and provides a possible next step. The availability condition keeps the suggestion realistic without promising that another consultation is guaranteed.

What moves an answer from 7 to 9 to 11

These are model answers written to show each level. The labels are practice estimates, not examiner scores.

Make a clear decision, explain it tactfully to the person addressed and develop the reasons. Acknowledge the other person’s needs and offer a practical way forward.

Content/Coherence: Level 7 models communicate the main ideas; level 9 models develop relevant details with clear connections; level 11 models sustain precise, well-integrated development.
Vocabulary: Compare adequate everyday wording with more varied, accurate choices at level 9 and flexible, precise expression at level 11.
Listenability: Higher-level delivery needs clear pronunciation, rhythm, intonation and controlled pauses. Transcripts suggest phrasing and organisation, but cannot demonstrate these audio features; a recording is needed.
Task Fulfillment: Compare how fully the response addresses the request, develops enough relevant detail and maintains an appropriate tone for the audience within the task limits.

Assess the criteria together. A longer answer or rarer words alone do not establish a higher level.

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