60 ESL conversation questions about education, school, and university
Education, school, and university are great ESL discussion topics!
Get everyone talking with these ESL conversation questions about education, school, and university.
Almost everyone in the world has had direct experience with education in some way, shape, or form. So get your students talking and sharing their experiences on the education system they experienced in their home country, and their take on the way other countries educate their populations.
ESL conversation questions about school
- Is the education system different in your country? How?
- Do you think that education is important for everyone?
- Should free education be a basic human right? Why or why not?
- What attributes does someone need to be a great teacher?
- Would you like to be a teacher? Why or why not?
- Do you think that teachers are paid enough for the work that they do? Why or why not?
- What improvements would you like to make to your country’s education system?
- What are some of the things that your country’s education system does better than any other country?
- Is education highly valued in your country? Why or why not?
- Are teachers respected in your country?
- Is it common for students to graduate from high school in your country?
- Is it a legal requirement for children to attend school in your country?
- Is education completely free in your country?
- Does your country offer high quality education to all students? Why or why not?
- What would the world look like without education?
- Which country is doing the best job at educating its population?
- Are there any disadvantages to attending university, versus getting real-world training?
- Has education changed since you were young?
- How do you think education will evolve in the years to come?
- How will AI change education in the near and distant future?
ESL conversation questions about school
- Did you enjoy going to school?
- Did you prefer primary school or high school? Why?
- What were your favorite subjects in high school?
- What were your least favorite subjects in high school?
- Who was your favorite teacher in school? What made them such a great educator, in your opinion?
- What is your favorite memory from school?
- What is your least favorite memory from school?
- When you were younger, what did you want to be when you grew up? Did that goal change by the time you graduated from high school?
- Do you prefer to study with books or a computer?
- Did you enjoy doing your homework?
- Do you think that homework is important for students? Why or why not?
- What improvements could we make to the education system?
- If you could go back to school and do it all over again, what would you do differently this time?
- Did you ever go on any school trips? Describe them.
- What sports did you excel at during your school years?
- What extracurricular activities did you participate in during your school years?
- Did you ever win any awards at school?
- What is a typical school lunch in your country? Describe it.
- At what age do children start to attend school in your country?
- How old are students when they graduate from high school in your country?
ESL conversation questions about university
- What are you studying / What will you study at university?
- Is university free in your country?
- Do you think that university is too expensive?
- Do you think that secondary education should be provided free to all citizens? Why or why not?
- Does your future career require a university degree?
- If you have graduated, are you still using the knowledge that you learned at university?
- How can students balance their university commitments with other life commitments (e.g. a job)?
- What are some of the challenges that students deal with in secondary or tertiary education?
- Do you think that every career should require a university degree?
- Do you think that someone can learn more from practical on-the-job experience versus a university degree? Why or why not?
- How has online learning impacted universities?
- Do you think that in-person education is more effective than online or remote education?
- Do you prefer studying alone or in a group?
- Do you enjoy participating in clubs, organizations, or extracurrucular activities at your university?
- Do you think that networking is important for students while they are at university? Why or why not?
- What are some of the advantages of obtaining a university degree?
- What are some of the downsides of obtaining a university degree?
- What is your best advice for someone who is about to attend university?
- Do you think that everyone should attend university? Why or why not?
- What are some of the differences between secondary education (high school) and tertiary education (university)?
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