Stage I  General Questions

关于个人情况

1.    Major / Work

l      Are your working or studying?

l What subject are you studying?

l      Why did you choose that subject? 

l      Is this a popular subject at your university? 

l      What’s the best part /difficulty of your studies?

l      For university students: What's the most interesting thing about your subject? (Why?)

l      For high school students: Which of your subjects is the most interesting? (Why?)

l     What work/job do you do?

l           Why did you choose that job/that kind of work? 

l           Do you enjoy your job?

l           Could you describe your typical working day?

l           Are you planning to change your job in the near future? (Why?/Why not?)

2.    Hometown

l                 Where are you from?

l                 Where do you live now? 

l                 Could you describe your hometown a little? / What kind of place is your hometown?

l                 What’s the oldest part (area/section) of your hometown?

l        Does your hometown have any special tourist attractions?

l        What forms of transport do visitors use to come to your hometown?

l        How could your hometown (be improved in order to) attract more visitors?

l                 How has your hometown changed in recent years (e.g., the past 20 or 30 years)? 

关于衣食住行

1.    Clothes and fashions

      l        Do you like shopping (for clothes)? (Why?/Why not?)

l        What kind of clothes do you like best? (Why?)

l        Do you prefer casual (=informal) or formal clothes? (Why?)

l        Do you like the latest fashions? (Why?/Why not?)

l        How often do you go shopping for clothes? 

l                 Why do some people frequently go shopping for clothes?

l                 How important to you is the color of (your) clothes?

2.    Flats & Houses

      l        Where do you live now –  in a flat or a house (or a dormitory)?

       l        Who do you live with?

l                 Do you like the place where you live? (Why?/Why not?)

l        What's the best thing (the best part) of your home ( = the place where you live)?

l        Do you think your home needs any improvements?

l                 Are you planning to move to live in a different place? (Why? Where? /Why not?)

3.    Parks and Public Gardens

l        Are there many parks or public gardens where you live (or, in your hometown)? 

l        Do you think parks and public gardens are important to a city? (Why?/Why not?)

l        Do you ever go to any of these places? How often?

l        What do you like to do when you go to a park or public garden? 

4.   Food and cooking

l                 What kind of food do you like best?

l                 What are the changes of the eating habit of Chinese?

l                 Do you often eat out?

l                 What do you think is the most important to a good restaurant?

l                 Which meal is the staple/main meal in China?

l                 Do you think breakfast is important?

5.  Age

l         Which age is special in your country?

l         How do people celebrate birthdays? 

关于个人爱好

1.    Computers

l           What do you do with computers?

l           Do you think that children should learn to use computers?

l           Do you think that life is better with computers?

l           When did you begin to use computers?

l           What’s the influence of computers on you?

2.     Music and reading

l        Do you like music/drawing? (Why? What kind?/Why not?)

l        Is music important to you? (Why?/Why not?)

l        When do you listen to music/draw?

l        In what ways does music affect people?

l        Compare the music that young people like and the music that old(er) people like.

l        Do you play any musical instruments? 

l                 Do you think it's important for children to learn (to play) a musical instrument?

l        What kinds of things do you like reading? 

l        What types of book do you dislike reading?

l        Why do some people dislike reading?

l        Do you think reading is important? (Why?/Why not?)

l        What is the function of (the purpose of) reading

3.    Photo taking

l        Do you like photography (= taking photographs/taking pictures)? (Why?/Why not?)

l        How long have you liked taking photographs?

l        When (on what occasions) do you take photos?

l        Do you prefer to take pictures (= take photos) of people or of scenery? (Why?) 

l        Why do you think people like taking photographs when they visit another place?

l        What factors make a good photograph?

4.  The media

l                 What are the differences between TV and newspapers?

l                 Do you love reading newspapers? What kind of newspapers do you love reading?

l                 Do you love computers?

l                 What influence do computers have on kids?

l                 Do you often use e-mails? What’s the difference between e-mails and letters?

       5.    Relaxation & Games

l                 What do you usually do to relax?

l                 What are the popular games in China?

l                 What kind of game do you like to play?

l                 What sports do you love most?