IELTSスピーキングの文法：Band 7+を獲得するための構文
Band 7では「多様な複雑な構文」で「頻繁に正確な文」を作ることが求められます。文法規則を暗記することではなく、多様な文法を自然に使いこなすことが大切です。このガイドでは5つの重要な構文、10個の典型的なエラー、そしてBand 6からBand 7+への文法的ステップアップを解説します。
Band 7の採点基準が求めるもの
IELTS公式のGrammatical Range and AccuracyでBand 7に必要な条件：
- 多様な複雑な構文を柔軟に使用する
- 文法的なミスは時々あるものの、頻繁に正確な文を作る
- エラーがあってもコミュニケーションを妨げない
キーワードは「多様性」です。全体で仮定法1つだけ = Band 6。仮定法＋関係詞節＋受動態を1つの回答で使う = Band 7+。
1. 仮定法（Conditionals）— Part 3の必須ツール
Part 3は抽象的な質問（「テクノロジーはコミュニケーションをどう変えたか？」「もし〜だったら？」）です。ここでは仮定法が必須——試験官は文字通りそれを待っています。
Second conditional — 現在/未来の仮定
構造：If + past simple, ... would + verb
- 「If I had more free time, I would definitely travel more often.」(Part 1: hobbies)
- 「If the government invested more in public transport, fewer people would drive cars.」(Part 3: environment)
- 「If I could change one thing about my city, it would be the traffic.」(Part 2)
Third conditional — 過去の仮定
構造：If + past perfect, ... would have + past participle
- 「If I had studied harder at school, I might have gone to a better university.」
- 「If social media hadn't existed, people would have communicated very differently.」
Mixed conditional — 混合仮定法（Band 7+！）
構造：If + past perfect, ... would + verb (今)
- 「If I had taken that job offer in London, I would be living abroad right now.」
- 「If my parents hadn't pushed me to learn English, I wouldn't be taking this IELTS exam today.」
コツ：Mixed conditionalは「wow構文」です。スピーキング全体で1〜2回使えれば、試験官は必ず気づきます。ただし無理に使わず、自然に聞こえるようにしましょう。
2. 受動態（Passive Voice）— アカデミックなトーン
受動態はスピーチをより客観的で「アカデミック」に聞こえさせます。試験官は特にPart 3で一般化や意見を述べる際に受動態を好みます。
基本形
- Present passive: 「Children are encouraged to read from an early age in my country.」
- Present perfect passive: 「The city has been transformed by rapid economic development over the last decade.」
- Modal passive: 「Stricter laws should be introduced to protect the environment.」
非人称の受動態構文（意見を述べるとき）
Part 3で特に強力な表現：
- 「It could be argued that technology has made our lives easier but less connected.」
- 「It is often said that young people today are more materialistic than previous generations.」
- 「It is widely believed that education is the key to economic development.」
Band 6 vs Band 7：
- Band 6: 「I think technology is good because it helps us.」
- Band 7: 「It could be argued that technology has fundamentally reshaped the way we live, although it has also been criticised for creating social isolation.」
3. 関係詞節（Relative Clauses）
関係詞節は2つのアイデアを1つの複雑な文にまとめる方法です。Band 7+の基本的なマーカーです。
Defining relative clauses（制限用法）
- 「The teacher who had the biggest impact on me was my English teacher in high school.」
- 「The book that I'm currently reading is about sustainable living.」
- 「The city where I grew up is a small coastal town in the north.」
Non-defining relative clauses（非制限用法、カンマ付き）
- 「My hometown, which is a small coastal city, has changed dramatically over the past decade.」
- 「My best friend, whom I've known since kindergarten, now lives in Canada.」
- 「I studied economics at university, which I now regret slightly, because I was more interested in psychology.」
コツ：非制限用法はPart 2（描写）で非常に自然に響きます。「, which...」や「, who...」を使って人や場所を描写する練習をしましょう。
4. 完了形（Perfect Tenses）
完了形は過去と現在のつながりを示します——Band 6の受験者はPast Simpleばかり使って、これを無視しがちです。
- Present perfect: 「I've been learning English for about 10 years now, and I still find new things every day.」
- Present perfect continuous: 「Lately, I've been working on improving my pronunciation, especially word stress.」
- Past perfect: 「By the time I arrived at the airport, my flight had already been cancelled.」(+ 受動態！)
- Future perfect: 「By next summer, I will have been studying for the IELTS for almost a year.」
日本人受験者への注意：日本語には英語のような完了形がありません。「since 2020」「for 10 years」と一緒には必ずpresent perfectを使いましょう：「I've lived here since 2020」（「I live here since 2020」ではない）。
5. 分裂文（Cleft Sentences）— 強調構文
分裂文は文を2つに分けて重要な情報を強調します。非常に強力なBand 7+構文です。
What-cleft
- 「What I really enjoy about my job is the variety — no two days are the same.」
- 「What I find most challenging about IELTS is the time pressure in the speaking section.」
It-cleft
- 「It was my mother who first encouraged me to learn English.」
- 「It's the pronunciation that I struggle with the most, not the grammar.」
日本人受験者のよくある10の文法エラー
| # | エラー | 間違い | 正しい |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 冠詞 | 「I go to the school every day」 | 「I go to school every day」 |
| 2 | 主語の省略 | 「Is very important」 | 「It is very important」 |
| 3 | 時制 | 「Yesterday I go to the shop」 | 「Yesterday I went to the shop」 |
| 4 | 前置詞 | 「Depend of」「Discuss about」 | 「Depend on」「Discuss ∅」 |
| 5 | 可算/不可算 | 「Many informations」「advices」 | 「A lot of information」「advice」 |
| 6 | 現在完了 | 「I live here since 2020」 | 「I've lived here since 2020」 |
| 7 | used to + 不定詞 | 「I used to played football」 | 「I used to play football」 |
| 8 | 三単現-s | 「He speak English well」 | 「He speaks English well」 |
| 9 | if節でのwould | 「If I would have time...」 | 「If I had time...」 |
| 10 | 間接疑問文の語順 | 「I don't know where is he」 | 「I don't know where he is」 |
練習：Band 6をBand 7+に変換する
Part 3の質問：「How has technology changed the way people work?」
❌ Band 6の回答（シンプルな文法）
「Technology changed work a lot. Now people can work from home. It is good because you save time. But it is also bad because you work more hours. I think technology is important.」
✅ Band 7+の回答（多様な文法）
「Technology has fundamentally transformed the workplace (現在完了) over the past two decades. What I find most remarkable is that people can now work from virtually anywhere in the world (what-cleft). If this trend continues, I believe traditional offices might become obsolete (first conditional + 助動詞). However, it could be argued that remote work has also led to longer hours and burnout, which is something we should address (受動態 + 関係詞節). If I had been asked this question ten years ago, my answer would have been very different (third conditional).」
解説：Band 7+の回答では30秒間に6つの異なる複雑な構文を使っています。これは過剰ではなく、Band 7で求められる標準です。
スピーキング文法のトレーニング方法
- 自分の声を録音する——Part 3の質問に2分間答え、録音を聞き直す。使った複雑な構文の数を数えましょう。
- 「テンプレート」を覚える——10個の既製の「公式」（例：「What I find most... is...」）を暗記し、回答に挿入しましょう。
- 毎日英語を読む——文法は教科書より読書で吸収できます。The Guardian、BBC、Mediumを読みましょう。
- 1日1構文——1つの構文（例：mixed conditional）を選び、丸1日すべての回答で使ってみましょう。