More IELTS Myths

Here is another set of IELTS myths that I often encounter, but not as much as the first set. 

·         A specific sub-test is harder than the others – most of the students asking this was directing the myth towards speaking and writing. The rationale behind these was simple, the thought of an interview made some people nervous; as for writing, most of our students would say that they haven’t written essays in some time now or they’re insecure about their opinion.  Whatever the case may be, this myth just isn’t true.

IELTS Myths

Since I first opened the doors of my IELTS review center in 2009, numerous myths and theories about the IELTS exam and examiners have been asked.  These myths have come about because of what we hear from people who has taken the exam before.  This entry will discuss the myths I have encountered the most times.

·         The exam in a certain area or country is much easier than here – this is definitely in the top 3 myths I’ve heard.  This myth can usually be heard from someone who didn’t meet their required score, took it in another area or country and acquired the score they wanted.  This myth is of course not true, the IELTS exam is a standardized, global exam.  What this means is that no matter where you are taking the exam, the level of difficulty will almost be the same. 

What to expect from IELTS Speaking

There are no distinctions between the general training module and the academic module in the speaking test.  The speaking test is an oral interview between the candidate and the examiner.

All speaking test are recorded and last around 14 minutes. The speaking test consist of 3 parts, all 3 parts are designed to fulfill functions in terms of interaction patterns.  In the first part, the examiner will do a quick introduction and will ask some personal questions about the candidate, a scenario similar to meeting someone new; this part will typically last for no more than 5 minutes.

What to expect from the IELTS Writing

The IELTS writing test is the most obvious difference between the academic module and the general training module.  Both module have 2 tasks given to the candidate, the obvious difference is the first task.

The general training module requires the candidate to respond to a situation that they could encounter in their daily life and write a letter accordingly.  The task could be anything from asking for information from a government office or making a request from a landlord; the candidate should use the proper format and follow instructions, especially with starting or ending the letter.  The candidate must write the letter with at least 150 words.

What to expect from IELTS Listening

The IELTS listening has 4 sections; the questions are arranged so that the answers appear in the same order as the listening.  The accents used in the listening may include British, Australian, New Zealand and American, but it is mostly British. 

The first 2 sections tend to deal with everyday situations, and the last 2 sections tend to deal with education or training.  Sections 1 and 3 are dialogues; wherein section 1 could be a dialogue between a tenant and landlord, and section three could be a dialogue between a university student and his professor.  Sections 2 and 4 are monologues; section 2 could be the tenant describing the house and lot he’s renting, and section 4 could be the professor discussing about the class he’s teaching.

What to Expect from the IELTS Reading Test

60 minutes to answer 40 questions would be too simple to have a feel for what we need to expect and thus prepare for the IELTS reading test. 

You do have an hour to answer 40 questions, but what about the reading materials? There are 3 reading passages with a variety of questions with a number of question types or task types.  Some sample of the task types are: multiple choice, identifying information, identifying writer’s view, matching headings, sentence completion and so much more.

How IELTS Reading & Listening is being Scored

The listening and reading modules both contains 40 items and each correct item is given 1 mark; with a maximum possible raw score of 40. The raw score is translated to a band score, ranging from 1 to 9.  The reading and listening modules are the objective parts of the exam, you really can’t contend with the results.

The questions for all IELTS test are pretested and standardized; there will inevitably be minor differences in the level of difficulties across tests.  The band scores are set so that all the candidates’ results relate to the same scale.

How IELTS Writing is being Scored

You should know that although the general training and academic writing task1 may be different, they are still scored in pretty much the same manner.  Task2 is the same for both general training and academic module.

If you already know which IELTS module you need to take, you can start practicing your writing.  If you’re taking the academic module, you can start looking and interpreting graphs, charts and maps; if you’re taking the general training module, you can start practicing writing letters to people around you.

How IELTS speaking is being Scored

 I used to do a lot of speaking mock exam, it was a long process but I got to know our students better.  I would ask them after the interview what they think they needed to work on or what their concerns were. 

The students tend to worry about the topic they might get for the second task.  “What if I don’t know anything about the topic?” was the biggest concern.  Second was probably pronunciation.  It is therefore good to know how you’re being graded and what the examiners are looking for.

5 tips for IELTS Speaking

The speaking test is comprised of 3 tasks.  In the first task, the interviewer will introduce himself/herself to you and proceed to ask questions about yourself, and this usually last about 5 minutes.  In the second task, you will be given 2 minutes to discuss a specific topic; a pen and paper will be provided and you’ll be given 1 minute to prepare for your monologue; after the 2 minutes, the interviewer will then ask a few questions about what you just discussed. The third task a simple question and answer.

·         Don’t be nervous – a lot of the problems people encounter with the speaking test is only due to the fact that they were too nervous.  When I was conducting a speaking mock exam, I had a hard time listening or understanding the students.  They tend to speak too fast or too slow and sometimes even mumble, just relax.

5 tips for IELTS Writing

There are 2 types of writing test depending on whether you’re taking the general training or academic exam.  These 5 tips are relevant for both types.

·         Manage your time – you are given 1 hour to answer 2 tasks in the writing test.  Task1 accounts for one third of the score, while task2 accounts for the other two thirds.  Therefore it is logical to spend 20 minutes on the first task and 40 minutes for the second task. 

5 tips for IELTS Listening

The listening test last for 30 minutes, you are then given 10 minutes to transfer your answers to the answer sheet.  Here are some tips to help improve your test score.

·         Focus – the exam last for 30 minutes, try not to lose your focus.  It is very important not to lose your focus since there will be instances in the dialogue and monologue where the speaker will state an opinion or change their mind.  The answer will have to of course be the fact or the final decision. 

5 tips for IELTS Reading

Test takers are given 1 hour to read and answer the 40 questions in the reading test.  Most people will not have time to read all the passages in detail and answer the questions.  Here are some tips to help improve your test score.

·         Read the questions first –Instead of reading the passage in details and trying to remember everything. Finding out what you need to watch out for while reading the passage may help speed things up for you.

IELTS FAQ

Here are some questions we often got from people coming to our centre.

What is IELTS?

I got asked this question a lot, by people just passing by our centre.  International English Language Testing System or IELTS is an English proficiency exam used by companies, schools and embassies to gauge your level of competency in the language they use to communicate.