0. Background

Undoubtedly, English is a crucial skill for my future development. However, ChatGPT currently has some limitations and cannot be applied at will in my work. To gain a deeper understanding and use of ChatGPT, even without an urgent need, I chose to take the IELTS exam for the second time with ChatGPT's assistance, transitioning from paper-based to computer-based testing. This preparation process has led to new insights into ChatGPT's capabilities.

1. Expectations vs. Reality

Initially, I believed that ChatGPT would revolutionize my personal proficiency, potentially boosting my efficiency by 500%, but it seems the reality may be closer to 50%. This isn't to downplay its usefulness, but rather to acknowledge a reality: no matter what tool one uses, true personal improvement requires long-term effort and accumulation of knowledge. Tools can assist, but they cannot replace our commitment and hard work. Without this firsthand experience, it may have taken longer for me to understand this seemingly obvious fact.

At first, I doubted myself as I didn't see a significant improvement after using ChatGPT. However, as time went on, I realized that ChatGPT doesn't completely overhaul the learning process. Instead, it serves as a tool to improve learning efficiency, addressing more superficial issues. For instance, no matter how exceptional your English teacher is, can they increase your IELTS score from 5 to 8 within a month? The odds are against it. Conversely, for those with a solid foundation, high scores can be achieved without any aid. Hence, it's vital not to overly rely on tools, ignoring the importance of personal effort.

2. How ChatGPT Helped

While ChatGPT helps source materials, understanding the content requires our time and effort. At present, its most effective assistance is substituting the need for paid teachers to organize materials, correct assignments, and answer some questions. However, the learning abilities that need to be honed still depend on our efforts.

Specifically, during this preparation process, ChatGPT provided me with the following assistance(the relevant Prompt is at the end of the article):

• Reading: It was particularly helpful in providing in-depth explanations for questions I still didn't understand after reading the solutions. I could ask questions continuously until I fully understood. It could also provide satisfying answers for complex sentences. However, improving reading ability comes more from my daily English information input rather than ChatGPT's assistance.
• Writing: ChatGPT was immensely helpful in correcting my essays and organizing materials. Its correction capabilities are undoubtedly stronger than Grammarly Premium, not only fixing grammatical errors but also analyzing task response (TR) and coherence and cohesion (CC), and summarizing topic words. Yet, for me, the biggest challenge was memorizing these analyses and summaries, converting them into my knowledge.
• Speaking: ChatGPT helped connect different topics and generate personalized speaking materials based on my experiences. If the generated sentences were too complex, I could request simpler versions. For unfamiliar topics, it could also provide fresh perspectives.

In this information-overloaded era, we are accustomed to passively receiving information and often reluctant to think and reflect deeply. We hope for direct answers, yet, in less technologically advanced times, such as the Qing Dynasty(16th to 19th centuries), people could still master English through personal effort. The tool might not be the key issue. Our learning anxiety, impatience, and an excessive pursuit of efficiency preventing deep learning might be the real problems. A teacher once warned me that regardless of the method, you could master English if you can persevere. If the ultimate goal is to use the language proficiently, an efficiency-first approach is likely a trap. So, I've often jokingly said to friends that using ChatGPT to learn English equates to "bad students having too many stationery."

3. Potential Improvements

So, what can truly revolutionize our learning process?

1. Super-long-term memory, overcoming current token limitations, ChatGPT can remember all your learning processes.
2. Digital learning process, revealing our unnoticed issues through data analysis.

Automatically associating historical learning content, discovering what you don't know you don't know - that's truly disruptive. Plugin learning? Terrifying! That's not the future I want. The capability should remain in human hands.

In conclusion, ChatGPT currently cannot directly help me improve my scores significantly. It merely solves the problem of finding a teacher. Genuine growth relies on self-reliance. That's why I feel fortunate to have prepared for this exam.

For more on how to use ChatGPT in learning, I recommend reading "Assigning AI: Seven Ways of Using AI in Class" by Ethan Mollick of the Wharton Business School.

The article discusses seven ways of using AI in the classroom. As a threat and an opportunity, teachers need to embrace the benefits of AI and promote its responsible use for learning. The seven different approaches to utilize AI in the classroom include AI-tutor, AI-coach, AI-mentor, AI-teammate, AI-tool, AI-simulator, and AI-student. Though there are risks and challenges, the capacity of AI for assisting students' learning process is undeniable, offering opportunities to promote social mobility, unlock potential, and improve lives.

4. Prompt Share

Lastly, here are some prompts I used during my preparation. But I must stress, compared to understanding and internalization, prompts really aren't that important.

4.1 Overall Plan

As an IELTS Academic teacher, your task is to guide students in creating a personalized study plan based on their background. The student will provide you with their target band score, current band score, test type, and other relevant information. Based on this information, please create a specific study plan that includes targeted practice exercises and materials tailored to the student's individual needs. The plan should be designed to help them improve their weaker areas while also building upon their strengths. Please ensure that the study plan is realistic given the amount of time available for preparation and provides clear goals and milestones for progress tracking. Additionally, please consider incorporating strategies for improving test-taking skills such as time management and stress reduction techniques.

“””

Target Band:

Current Band:

Duration:

Other information:

“””

4.2 Reading

You are now a professional IELTS Academic Reading Teacher, dedicated to helping students understand how to develop the correct answers and provide clear explanations for their queries. As students present you with questions and their answers, you will assess their responses, provide feedback, and patiently explain any discrepancies between their choices and the correct answers. Additionally, you will identify common mistakes made by the students and offer practical advice to help them avoid similar errors in the future. If you understand these responsibilities, please reply with 'understand'.

Let's think step by step. What can I learn from my mistakes? How can avoid the same mistake?

4.3 Writing

4.3.1 Part 1 Guidance

I want you to act as an IELTS Academic writing instructor, specifically for IELTS Writing Task 1. You will be provided with a student's writing and a sample essay. Your mission will be to:

1. Thoroughly understand the structure, language, and requirements of Task 1 by studying the sample essay.
2. Analyze and critique the student's essay. Use Markdown syntax to indicate any mistakes in grammar or vocabulary. Provide suitable corrections, replacements, or suggestions for these errors. Additionally, count and document the total number of grammar and spelling errors.
3. Highlight any repetitive or inappropriate expressions used by the student. Suggest better alternatives and explain why these choices would improve the quality of the writing.
4. Finally, based on your evaluation and the student's writing, generate a detailed and specific list of key takeaways or tips that the student should bear in mind for future similar tasks. These tips should not be generic but should directly pertain to the student's work and the common mistakes observed. This advice could involve effective essay structuring, appropriate language usage, and common pitfalls to avoid.

Remember, your role is to provide clear, constructive, and applicable feedback to help the student improve their IELTS Writing Task 1 skills. Please format your response using Markdown for clarity.

“””

<Sample essay>

<Student’s writing>

“””

4.3.2 Part 2 Framework

I want you to act as a professional IELTS Academic writing instructor, tasked with improving a student's skills for IELTS Writing Task 2. Upon receiving a topic and the student's outline on this topic, I'd like you to provide detailed guidance and feedback, adhering to the following steps:

1. Start by teaching the student how to deeply analyze the provided topic, focusing on understanding its scope and developing balanced ideas for both sides of the argument. Point out any crucial considerations they should keep in mind while discussing the topic.
2. Assess the student's perspective based on the IELTS Writing Task 2 assessment criteria, and provide feedback. Consider the following questions:
3. Give specific examples to demonstrate how the student can address all aspects of the task, present a clear position, and support their ideas with relevant examples. If you find any inappropriate views, gently correct them and offer alternative suggestions. If the student has overlooked any significant viewpoints, highlight these and propose examples to augment their response.
4. Proceed to improve the student's outline based on your advice to fully address the question.
5. To wrap up, identify and explain the topical vocabulary, similar paraphrases, and common sentences related to the task. If the topic is about education, for instance, suggest keywords, phrases, and paraphrases for future use, such as 'vocational skills' for 'practical skills', 'career prospects' for 'employability', and 'academic advancement' for 'intellectual growth'.

Your response should be clear, constructive, and geared towards improving the student's Task Response based on the assessment criteria. Please format your response using Markdown for clarity.

“””

<Topic>

<Student’s outline>

“””

Compose a five-paragraph IELTS essay that adheres to a 280-320 word limit, strictly following the given outline. Ensure that your essay aligns with the listed IELTS writing evaluation criteria:

Task Response

• Fully address every aspect of the prompt.
• Keep all ideas and supporting evidence directly relevant to the question.
• Refrain from overgeneralizing the subject.
• State your opinion clearly and maintain it throughout the essay.
• Reinforce your points with clear, concrete examples (avoiding ambiguous research and survey results).

Coherence and Cohesion

• Structure your essay in a logical, understandable manner, from introduction to conclusion.
• Demonstrate clear progression (introduction, main ideas with supporting examples, conclusion).
• Use a variety of linking words and phrases.
• Start each sentence uniquely, avoiding repetition of introductory phrases like 'Firstly', 'Secondly', 'Thirdly'.
• Implement referencing (e.g., 'These issues...') and substitution (e.g., 'problems/issues') correctly.
• Devote a separate paragraph to each idea, ensuring sufficient paragraphs.
• Include a distinct introductory and concluding paragraph.

Lexical Resource

• Employ a diverse, topic-relevant vocabulary.
• Choose precise vocabulary over general words.
• Avoid using memorized phrases, clichés (e.g., 'double-edged sword'), and proverbs.
• Correctly use collocations (e.g., 'environmental problem', 'global issue').
• Incorporate appropriate uncommon words (e.g., 'detrimental to', 'cultural diversity', 'measures').
• Apply correct forms of words, including adverbs, nouns, adjectives, and verbs.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy

• Utilize both simple and complex structures correctly.
• Showcase a range of grammatical structures (e.g., conditional, present perfect, relative clauses, modal verbs).
• Avoid overly long and complex sentences.

As you craft your essay, prioritize presenting clear arguments, supplying relevant examples, and maintaining a formal tone. Lastly, proofread your work for spelling and punctuation errors before submission.

4.3.3 Part 2 Revision

I want you to act as an IELTS Academic writing instructor. Given a student's essay, your task is to conduct an in-depth analysis and provide constructive feedback. Here are the steps you should follow:

1. Start by assigning an overall band score to the essay as well as sub-scores for task achievement, coherence and cohesion, lexical resource, grammatical range, and accuracy. Elaborate on why you assigned each score, citing specific examples from the essay to substantiate your assessment.
2. Then, critically evaluate the student's perspectives based on the IELTS Writing Task 2 assessment criteria. Use the provided checklist to ensure that the student has adequately addressed all parts of the question, that their ideas are relevant, that they have avoided over-generalizing the topic, that their position is clearly stated and consistent throughout the essay, and that their arguments are supported by clear and specific examples.
3. Make use of Markdown to highlight any grammatical or vocabulary errors in the student's essay, suggesting appropriate corrections. Count and report the total number of these errors.
4. Point out any repetitive or suboptimal expressions used by the student, offering better alternatives where possible.
5. Based on your evaluation, draft a comprehensive summary of key takeaways or tips for the student to remember in future exams. This should include examples from the essay and advice on effective essay structuring, appropriate language and tone usage, as well as common pitfalls to avoid.
6. Afterwards, provide a high scoring (preferably band 9) example response to the same writing topic that aligns closely with the student's viewpoint. In the event that a band 9 example is not available, share the highest-scoring response you have, along with its corresponding band score.
7. Deduce topical vocabulary and similar paraphrases from the high-band example, specifically those that can be used in essays on similar topics. For instance, if the topic is education, you might include keywords, expressions, and paraphrases like "hands-on experience" for "practical skills", "job readiness" for "employability", and "cognitive development" for "intellectual growth".
8. Lastly, conduct a comparative analysis between the high-band example and the student's original essay. Detail why the high-band example is superior and indicate the phrases and expressions from it that the student should remember and use in future writings.

Ensure that your feedback is clear, concise, and comprehensive, offering the student detailed guidance for improvement. Make sure to use Markdown format for your response.

“””

<Topic>

<Student’s essay>

“””

4.3.4 Memory Aid

I want you to act as a linguistic memory aid. I have been preparing for the IELTS Academic Writing exam and have compiled a list of various topic-specific words and their paraphrases, but I'm finding it challenging to remember all of them. I need you to regroup these words according to their related topics to make these words easier to remember(I do not need to remember them all. However, according to your help, I can quickly recall some of them during the exam). You are also free to add or remove any words and paraphrases that you believe would be beneficial for my preparation.

“”” <Provided Topic> <List of Words and Paraphrases>

“””

4.4 Speaking

4.4.1 Part 1

I am preparing for IELTS speaking part 1. I will input the topic, potential questions and my intend answers. You should help me develop the answers based on them with Fluency and coherence, Lexical resource, Grammatical range and accuracy and Pronunciation. Please note, your answer should match the speaking assessment criteria with at least a 7.0 band and should be speaking style. Additionally, it also could be remembered easily for a 6.0 band student. If the student’s answer is not well-developed, you should expand it based on part 1 structure and content(not too long, speaking for 20 seconds is enough)

<Format example>

“”” <Provided Topic> <List of Questions>

“””

4.4.2 Part 2

I want you to act as an IELTS speaking part 2 tutor and evaluator, where you will assist me in preparing for the exam while focusing on the given topic and my transcript. Your help should be divided into the following steps:

1. Critically analyze the provided topic and my transcript, considering the content and structure.
2. Enhance the transcript with a focus on fluency and coherence, lexical resource, grammatical range and accuracy, and pronunciation to align with the IELTS speaking assessment criteria, targeting a score of at least 7.0 band with a natural speaking style.
3. Modify the improved transcript to make it more accessible and memorable for a 6.0 band student. In doing so, use simpler vocabulary and incorporate expressions commonly used by native speakers.
4. Ensure that the final transcript is between 250 and 300 words in length.

Please find the topic and my transcript below:

<Topic> <My transcript>

I am preparing for IELTS speaking part 2. One of the most effective ways for the Part 2 task is to group Part 2’s topics into several similar topics. To prepare efficiently, I want you and me to cooperate seamlessly to make the transcripts for each similar topic.

I will input several similar Part 2 topics and my initial thinking, you should follow the instructions step by step:

1. Evaluate the topics and my transcript and make them can include all topics. Like the format example, each transcript’s main body is all the same, only a little different to match the topics respectively.
2. Improve them with Fluency and coherence, Lexical resource, Grammatical range and accuracy and Pronunciation to match the speaking assessment criteria with at least a 7.0 band and should speak style.
3. Next, you will improve those similar transcripts to be remembered easily by a 6.0 band student. You should use less complex words but use more native speakers’ expressions.
4. Finally, you should ensure to Write at least 250 words but no more than 300 words.

<Format example>

“””

• Topic 1: Describe your first day at school that you remember. You should say: Where the school was How you went there What happened that day And how you felt on that day
• Topic 2: Describe an impressive English lesson you had and enjoyed. You should say: What it was about When you had it What the teacher did And why you enjoyed the lesson
• Topic 3: Describe a piece of good news that you heard about someone you know well. You should say: What it was When you heard it How you knew it And explain how you felt about it

My initial transcript:

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这篇文章的中文版本：

期望与现实：有关 ChatGPT 辅助语言学习的暴论