CUE CARD: FEMALE LEADER

Đề: Describe a female leader you like.

You should say:

• who is she

• where is she from

• what she does for others

and explain why you like her.

Model answer:

There are very few people, at least, people who like to remain informed about the political development of this world, who don’t know about "Angela Merkel". In fact, she is considered as the most powerful woman in this world today, and she also happens to be the de facto leader of the European Union. Well, a female leader I really like and admire is none other than the charismatic German Chancellor “Angela Merkel”.

This great female leader, one of the best female leaders, in my opinion, the world has ever seen, maybe from German, but she certainly has left her marks in dealing with each and every international political crisis since she took her office as a German Chancellor in the year of 2005.  Also known as the “leader of the free world”, this great world political figure was born in 1954 in the city Hamburg and has been elected to rule German for 4 consecutive terms, a feat which no female politicians have ever achieved in the world’s history.

As a political leader, her political activities are easily noticeable, but it is the intentions behind those activities that have made her a great leader. In fact, Angela Markel’s decision to allow more than one million political refugees, displaced because of wars, into German was a landmark decision which would make the world remember her for a long, long time. Besides, providing financial help to other countries, especially in Europe, is also something that the world would remember very gratefully because it helped stabilize the economy of the entire world little over a decade ago.

Finally, I really like Angela Markel because she seems to be a very charismatic and intelligent leader who understands the dynamics of world politics much better than the other contemporary leaders. I like her also because she is not afraid to take unpopular decisions in order to uphold the principles of humanity. Finally, I like her because her leadership approaches help bring the world community together instead of actually dividing them over some petty differences.

TỪ VỰNG CHỦ ĐỀ “LEADER”

• Charismatic leader: nhà lãnh đạo có uy tín

• Uphold /ʌpˈhoʊld/ (v): gìn giữ (to defend or keep a principle or law, or to say that a decision that has already been made, especially a legal one, is correct)

• Initiative /ɪˈnɪʃ.ə.t̬ɪv/ (n): thế chủ động (readiness to embark on bold new ventures)

• Stewardship /ˈstuːərdʃɪp/ (n): cương vị quản lý (the position of someone who manages the affairs of others)

• Steadfast in something /ˈsted.fæst/ (adj): kiên định (marked by firm determination or resolution; not shakable)

• Cultivate /ˈkʌl.tə.veɪt/ (v): phát triển (to try to develop and improve something)

• Spur /spɝː/ (v): thúc đẩy (to encourage an activity or development or make it happen faster)