First everyone complained about TSE, now everyone complains about IBT.... why, because
1) It is hard
2) It is frustrating to complete everything, but this one test
3) Because people do not understand how the
ibt speaking is graded and/or cannot bring themselves to believe it
The speaking is scored based on how natually and normally your English is. Giving the perfect answer is STUPID! DUMB! IGNORANT! They do not care about the answer, they care about how you speak. Of course 15 seconds or 45 seconds or 60 seconds is really short. What does that tell you? They do not expect you to give them some genius lecture with deep insight into the question of "Is it better to live in a dormitory or off campus housing?", they just want to hear if you can speak English reasonably well!
Now of course if you totally misunderstand the question or answer 100% about something else, you will get a low score because you obviously did not understand the question, but that is NOT THE FOCUS.
Listen friends to my advice here please:
"Imagine you are talking to a friend. Speak naturally and with out reflection. Don't worry about mistakes. Don't think about what you just said, JUST KEEP TALKING, bullshiting is OK!. Pauses are ok! "Umm, ahhh" is OK! A wrong word is OK! What is important is natural, smooth, fearless talk. Do that, without too much accent, and you will get 26+"
Tino
PS: Sorry to be so strong, but I really want to make this point! They really do not care what you answer, they care HOW you answer. It seems like a simple concept, but I think most test takers do not understand it, and more importantly, refuse to apply it!