在雅思口語考試中，關于文化、傳統的話題一直以來都是考官常問的題目，而面對這樣的問題，考生往往都懷有“既愛又恨”的感情。“愛”是因為，中國的傳統文化本來就博大精深，理所當然有很多可以在外國考官面前炫耀一番的精彩內容;但是，又“痛恨”自己在知識經驗上的匱乏，所以能夠說道關于文化的也就是現在考生嘴邊常掛的那些，如：Chinese New Year, Dragon-boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Day, Tomb-sweeping Festival等等。
　　不僅如此，對于回答的具體內容更是干澀乏味，比如描述Chinese New Year時，常聽到考生眾多且雷同的回答：We usually have a good time during the festival. The whole family members have a delicious dinner, and friends and relatives come together to have fun. Parents usually give money to children, so they can buy many things they want. 又或者是：On that day, we usually eat moon cakes and watch the round moon in the sky. It is very beautiful, and the story behind it is more beautiful. 我想任何一個來中國呆過兩年的老外都應該早已熟悉了這樣的模式，對文化背后的故事可能比我們自己的學生還要清楚;而且，在這樣的內容中，其實根本沒有體現出中國的春節文化到底是怎樣表現的。那可想而知，最后的結果輕則無新穎內容，重則沒有回答題目的核心內容。
　　如果調整一下回答關于“Chinese New Year”的內容，也許會讓考官有“耳目一新”的感覺。
　　The Chinese are very superstitious and that means they take symbolism seriously. Locals come to market to buy good luck charms. Customers at snack are scooping up all sorts of New Year's treats. 這段話總述了中國人過年的表現，在后面的內容中將具體講述怎樣過年和特殊的習俗。
　　It's a tradition for all of us Chinese to get these sesame balls during Chinese New Year. We use them to worship our ancestors and we say if we have more sesame balls at home then more gold and silver will come into our house. It's really to bring us more wealth in the New Year. Roasted melon seeds symbolize coins, so this means scooping up lots of money. Rice cakes in the shape of fish are big sellers too. In Cantonese the word for fish sounds the same as the word for savings. 這段話從傳統的飲食細節上進行描述，這一點是很多同學所忽視的。大部分同學僅僅告訴考官我們有delicious food，但忽視了和文化有關的飲食習慣;換句話說delicious food可以放在任何一個場合，而非是針對該題目的描述。
　　Another item that locals want to buy for the New Year for good luck is red underwear. Red symbolizes wealth and prosperity and the Chinese want new clothes for the New Year from head to toe and underneath. My aunt buys three lingerie sets every New Year, believing red will bring her good luck. Lunar New Year is the most profitable time of year for this lingerie store.
　　The banks are also very busy with customers ordering brand-new bills to give away as New Year's gifts to younger relatives or junior colleagues. It's considered good luck for the giver and recipient. 除了飲食習俗外，春節中還有很多其他的風俗，所以這個部分的內容最好要比飲食多一些，來突出更多新穎的內容，如傳統的紅色和壓歲錢。這樣做的目的也是為了增加回答內容的豐富性和多樣性。