PTE Summarize Group Discussion: practice questions and model answers
What the task is
New in PTE Academic from 7 August 2025, in the Speaking part.
You hear three people discuss a topic for about 2.5–3 minutes, once. Then you get 10 seconds to prepare and up to 2 minutes to speak.
Content rewards an accurate account of the whole discussion: what each speaker thinks and why, and where they agree or end up. It is also marked on pronunciation and oral fluency.
Timings from Pearson's “Summarize group discussion” article; check Pearson's current test-taker handbook before your test.
Notes and a summary structure
- While you listen: three short columns, one per speaker. Keywords only: their view, their reason, any change of mind.
- Topic (one sentence): what the group was discussing.
- Each speaker in turn: their position and the main reason, using their names.
- Where it ended: the agreement, the compromise, or what is still open.
Where marks are usually lost
- Summarising only the first speaker, or only the side you agree with.
- Adding your own opinion: the task is to report theirs.
- Stopping after 40 seconds: you have up to 2 minutes, and a full account needs most of it.
- Losing track of who said what: name each speaker.
Worked example: Recording University Lectures
The discussion
Priya: I think every lecture should be recorded and attendance should be optional. Many of us work part-time, and watching a recording at double speed in the evening is far more efficient than sitting in a hall at nine in the morning.
Tomas: I see the appeal, but when my department started recording everything, attendance dropped to about a third and the lecturers stopped asking questions because nobody was there to answer. The lecture became a monologue, which is worse for everyone.
Amara: For me the issue is equity rather than attendance. Students with disabilities or caring responsibilities rely on recordings, so removing them would hurt the people who already have the least flexibility.
Priya: Exactly, and if a lecture is only valuable because people are physically trapped in the room, that says something about the teaching.
Tomas: That's fair, and I wouldn't want to take recordings away from anyone who needs them. My worry is really about the design of the sessions, so maybe the answer is to record the content but run smaller compulsory workshops where discussion actually happens.
Amara: I could support that, as long as the workshops are scheduled flexibly and the recordings stay available to everyone rather than only to students who apply for special access.