IELTS SPEAKING: FLUENCY AND ACCURACY

The Speaking Module assesses a candidate’s ability to speak in English accurately and fluently.

A person is considered to be fluent if he/she speaks:

• at a normal pace (neither too slow nor too fast that the speech becomes incomprehensible),

• without unnatural stops and pauses (i.e. without hesitating),

• without excessive and unnecessary repetition (repeating the same thing over and over again)

• With appropriate cohesion and organization (the speech should be connected, sentences should not be left incomplete in order to jump to next idea. Ideas should be linked. Haphazard sentences about irrelevant things are inappropriate and lead to lower score.)

• Clearly so that the speech is comprehensible (not too fast so that meaning cannot be grasped by listener, no mumbling nor too loud, at an appropriate pitch, words must be spoken clearly with appropriate natural pauses)


A person’s speech is considered accurate, if he/she uses:

• Accurate grammar

• Appropriate tone (formal or informal) as demanded by the situation or topic of discussion. IELTS speaking module focuses on a semi-formal, comfortable conversation but informal terms should be completely avoided.

• Appropriate vocabulary according to the context (the topic being discussed).

• Proper pronunciation. Pronunciation plays a very important role since inaccurate pronunciation may change the meaning of the word or may render the word or even whole sentence meaningless.

VOCABULARY BUILDING: HOW TO BUILD YOUR WORD POWER

BUILD YOUR WORD POWER:

Building your word power certainly pays of in the long run. You can certainly use a good variety of words to use in the IELTS writing module. Remember, the key is to use the words accurately and appropriately (just using difficult words but inaccurately can cause the candidate to lose marks, so be careful.) 

Using a good variety of words is impressive and also useful, however words cannot be memorized merely by cramming the dictionary everyday or by learning them from other sources without reference to their usage because the words memorized will be forgotten as there is no cognitive support to help remember them. Confused? Don't be. WORDS CAN BE REMEMBERED ONLY IN CONTEXT. If you don't know their usage in real life you won't remember them!!

For example:

"GREGARIOUS" might be a difficult words to memorize and later recall and use in everyday life or even in EXAMS. However, if you know that "gregarious" is an adjective, in addition to knowing its actual meaning [which is: (for people) liking to be with others or (for animals) living in groups], you will be able to use it more properly in a sentence. Similarly if you knew its actual usage in a "sentence" you will be able to remember it even better. Here's a sentence usage:

• Jennifer is a gregarious person who loves to go out with friends and family.

• Lions are gregarious animals. They always live in groups.

So now you know:

• the word's meaning,
• what part of speech it is (it is an adjective, and adjectives describe nouns)
• and how it can be used in different types of sentences

RESOURCES:

So to learn words in context use specific vocabulary books like:

• English Vocabulary in Use by MC Carthy and Felicity O Del or
• Oxford Word Power Dictionary which help in learning words in context.
• Cambridge Online Dictionary is also a good resource

IELTS WRITING: Which Essays score well at IELTS?

Which Essays score well at IELTS? Well, this can certainly be categorized as one of the million dollar questions. IELTS is a test of English, so the first obvious reply which comes to one's mind, is that essays written in good (accurate and appropriate) English can achieve a good score. However, there is a lot more to it than just English (though good command over English is certainly important). Here are a few points which give an insight into well-written, high scoring essays:

1. Essays which are relevant to the topic with no (or only minor) digressions from the main theme give a good impression. They show that the candidate has understood the topic and has the ability to write well on a specific topic.
2. Good essays are always well planned. This means that in a well-written essay, ideas are presented in a logical sequence (and not in a haphazard manner). The essays begin with an introduction, followed by arguments one after the other in a logical pattern (and do not give the impression that the writer is writing without planning or in an irregular manner. More tips on planning in the following posts.)
3. The writer argues or proves his point of view through valid examples from real life situations, facts and figures etc. Even if there are no specific examples to be shared the arguments should be logical and verifiable.
4. Good essays always show a range of appropriate and relevant vocabulary.
5. High scoring essays show accurate usage of English with no or very few grammatical, spelling and sentence structure errors.
6. The essay should be appropriately divided into paragraphs. Well-written essays have balanced paragraphs where every paragraph presents and explains a new idea or point of view (which is relevant to the main topic and linked to the previous paragraphs).
7. The use of language should be highly appropriate and should not contain inappropriate slang words or phrases. Similarly language usage is also affected by the type of material one is writing for example formal letters need to be very meticulous, polite and straight forward while informal letters can be casual and friendly depending on the person they are being addressed to.
8. The written material should be legible, i.e. it should be clear enough for the examiner to be able to read it. A piece of writing which cannot be read properly, cannot be marked properly. Though handwriting is a skill mastered earlier in life with only minor improvements possible later in life, candidates should at least try to write clearly and in a font size which is easily visible and readable by the examiner.
9. Well-written essays always leave a good impression. This means that they are concluded properly (and the examiner is not left wondering what the final thoughts of the candidate might have been!). This is just like having a first impression in the beginning and a last good impression in the end by giving an impressive ending to the piece of writing.
10. Essays falling short of the provided word limit do not score well! Therefore candidates should write sufficiently on the given topic to at least reach the required word limit, otherwise they will miss out on vital marks.

The above mentioned points will be discussed in detail in upcoming posts to shed light on individual aspects of a well-written essay. Make sure to cover all these points and the final score will speak for itself. Good Luck!

IELTS READING: THE TOPIC SENTENCE AND HOW IT HELPS

Every passage is divided into separate paragraphs and each paragraph represents a specific idea or set of ideas presented in a sequence. Hence each paragraph contains a sentence or sometimes (but rarely) a couple of sentences which introduce the topic which is discussed in that particular paragraph. Now look at the following two examples,

The first image shows how a passage is divided into individual paragraphs: (this passage is taken from the Cambridge IELTS 5)

(this passage is taken from the Cambridge IELTS 5)

Observe that the above passage is divided into separate paragraphs and each paragraph presents a specific idea or concept. Can you spot the idea being presented? Read more to learn how to locate the topic sentence and utilize in answering the questions:

What is a Topic Sentence and how to locate it?

To put it simply a topic sentence "introduces the idea or concept being discussed in the passage."

Look at the following example: the topic sentence has been underlined in red color. The passage has been taken from Cambridge IELTS 5 with answers.

Read the above paragraph. You can see that it presents a detailed discussion of what goes in a person's brain when he/she listens to a joke and then makes an attempt to understand it. However, the whole concept is quite precisely summed up in the expression: "he found evidence that understanding a joke involves widespread mental shift" You can read the paragraph again and will agree that the paragraph explains this "widespread mental shift" in detail. Hence the main theme or topic is that "understanding a joke involves widespread mental shift".

Why is Topic  Sentence important and where can it be used?

Topic sentences are used in answering questions like:

• Choosing a "heading" for paragraph(s) from a list of choices
• Matching paragraph(s) with possible topic sentences
• Answering True, False or Not Given questions.

Activity:
Read the above paragraph and try to suggest an appropriate heading for it.

SUB TOPICS

Some paragraphs have a topic sentence which explains the main topic. However, the paragraph also has sub-topic(s) which give deeper detail of what is being discussed and in many cases they provide an idea of what will be explained further or may be in the next paragraph. This can also be easily spotted in the paragraph.

Look at the following example. Paragraph taken from Insight into IELTS by Cambridge University Press.

Read the paragraph and observe that two different sentences are underlined. One in red colour and the other in blue.

• The sentence underlined in red colour shows the topic which the writer has discussed in detail in this paragraph
• The sentence underlined in blue colour shows the:
• concept the writer is going to discuss further on.
• It is also like a conclusion he has reached or the analysis he has made from his writing experiences.

CONCLUSION:
Locating and underlining topic sentences and sub-topics (or other important ideas) in the passage can help a candidate not only understand the paragraph (and the whole passage better) but also locate vital information more easily while answering questions. Remember, all the questions are from the passage and comprehending it well can help you answer questions more accurately and get a better score. :)

IELTS SPEAKING MODULE - Know The Basics

IELTS Speaking Module - Basics

The IELTS Speaking Module starts with an introduction of the candidate. The interviewer will begin with asking questions about the candidate for example,

• Where do you live?
• What do you do? or What is your occupation?
• What is your favourite pass time? or Tell me about your hobbies? etc.

This is to allow the candidate to introduce themselves, feel comfortable and confident as the candidate will be speaking about things he/she knows.

Then the interviewer will provide the candidate with a topic. The candidate will also be provided with a question paper with the topic written on it. The candidate will be allowed one minute to think about the topic and take down notes or points if he/she wishes to about the topic. The candidate will then have to talk for about two minutes on the topic.

The interviewer will move on to asking questions about the topic after the candidate has finished speaking. The questions will be relevant to the topic but may also slightly touch other related areas. The questions will be open ended. This means that there is no right or wrong answer. The candidate has to express their own point of view.

What is assessed in the Speaking Module?

The Speaking Module assesses a candidate's ability to communicate verbally in English. This includes:

• The candidate understands what the interviewer has asked them, hence his/her answers should be relevant and show their understanding. (The candidate can always ask the interviewer to repeat their question if they haven't understood what was asked.)
• Speak clearly and fluently in English (with normal stops and breaks as used in everyday spoken English).
• Use appropriate language (accurate grammar and relevant vocabulary as far as possible). For example, if the candidate is talking about a football he once bought, he may say that the ball was quite big, but not fat! Similarly if talking about a person, he may say ' the man was fat', however, if he says 'the man was thick', it will be absolutely wrong and inappropriate use of vocabulary....so candidates need to make sure they do not confuse words and use them appropriately even when speaking fluently.

(More information on using appropriate vocabulary both in speaking and writing will be provided in later posts)

IELTS PREPARATION IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME

How to prepare for IELTS in a short period of time?

Running out of time to prepare for your IELTS exam? Do not despair. Here are a few very practical and useful tips to get you back on track and ready for your IELTS exam.
Firstly, keep in mind that in this crucial time you should not harp on learning "new" stuff, you should make most of the skills and knowledge you already have. Here's how to do so:

1. Completely familiarize yourself with every single aspect of every module (Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking). It is highly essential. For example,

o How many parts does each module have?

o How many questions are there in each part?

o How much time is allowed for each module and the individual parts of that module?

o What is expected from the candidates?

o What does the answering sheet look like?

o Will I get time to transfer answers to sheet (like in Listening Module) or not (like in Reading Module.

 These are absolutely essential things and unfortunately many candidates waste time on other things while ignoring them completely. If you do not know what the paper looks like chances are that you might panic on seeing it the first time on exam day. If you already know what the "pattern" of the paper is you will feel at ease and more comfortable in attempting the questions.

2. You must have heard, "practice makes perfect", and rightly so. Practice prepares your brain for the real thing, the IELTS test. The more you expose yourself to the real exam material, the more you will get familiar with it, the more your mind will get adapted and the more "comfortable" you will feel in attempting the real exam on the big day. So practice IELTS past papers whole-heartedly and soon you will start feeling a difference.

3. Practicing also has another major benefit: it exposes you to more information and "enhances" your existing knowledge. So when practicing IELTS papers, when you encounter new and difficult words, write them down in your diary or journal and look up their meaning to give a boost to your vocabulary. So this will be like killing two birds with one stone. You will be practicing the exam papers while building your word power at the same time. (By the way, it pays to build your word power!)

4. As you practice, also take not of useful idioms and phrases which you might be able to use in your own writing in the Writing Module. Remember idioms and phrases (like killing two birds with one stone OR it pays to build your word power OR an apple a day keeps the doctor away etc.) are universal. "Everyone" can use idioms and phrases in their writing! Just make sure the phrase or idiom you are using is correct and you know how to use it accurately!

5. When you are practicing try to complete the tests within the time frame. When you start preparing, you do not need to do all the modules in one go. Do one module at a time but try to remain within the time allowed. This will prepare you for attempting the paper within the time frame on the big day.

6. When practicing IELTS papers, remember to check your answers and give yourself honest marks (but only after you have finished doing the test). This will not only give you a clear picture of where you stand, how much effort you need to put in but also help you monitor your own progress and give you a sense of achievement as you improve! This acts as a huge motivation. It’s a must try!

7. Since time is crucial, make everywhere and anywhere your learning arena. Confused? Don't be. You read the newspaper everyday or at least different articles on the Internet. Make the most of them. After you have read them ask yourself. What was it about? Was it well written? How did it benefit me? Or just simply, did I like it? If possible write down your ideas in your diary, or type on a MS document, you can even write it in an email and share with a friend. Then again, listening to the radio or news (in English) can boost your learning. Try to concentrate on what is being said. Seek out important information from just every day news. Try writing a summary of the most important news or try talking about it with a friend. You can even record it on a tape recorder or your cell phone. This will improve your speaking power and give you confidence to speak fluently.

8. Improve your concentration span. The longer you can stay focused on the set target, the better the chances of success. Do not let yourself get distracted when you have sat down to study. Keep study time separate from entertainment, work and other stuff especially when practicing papers. Try to keep conditions as close to the real exam conditions as possible, especially when you are approaching the exam day.

9. Use all the practical tactics when attempting the IELTS test (practice exam or real test). Read for meaning, underline key words in passages and in questions for better comprehension, write clearly and use accurate grammar as far as possible (as much as you know), do not waste time on one question, go on to the next, you can always come back to it. If you waste too much time on one question then you might not get time to answer other questions to which the answers you might know very well. So use time effectively; it is precious, especially in exam conditions.

10. Take lots of rest and eat a balanced diet. Do not neglect your health while preparing for exams. Health is wealth, after all. (An other useful phrase for you). So do not stay up too late, studying or "watching TV" or "surfing the Internet just for nothing", rest, sleep well and see the difference. You will be pleasantly surprised how good you feel and how ready you are for exam preparation and the real exam when you have rested and slept well. Do not take it for granted and do not ignore your own well being at any cost. This is vital for doing well in the exam.

Finally, stay focused, monitor your own progress, practice the exam papers and go well prepared on the exam day and you will see that you will feel a lot more confident in attempting the paper. The better prepared you are and the more confident you are, the greater the chances of success! Best of Luck!

IELTS Reading - COMPREHENSION SKILL: Understanding the “theme” of the whole passage

You can improve your score by improving your comprehension skills. An important part of "comprehending" a given passage or part of the passage (a paragraph) is to understand the essence and theme of it.

 

What is the theme of a passage/paragraph?
A theme is the “main” idea or concept.

 

If a reader can locate and/or understand the theme or main idea then comprehending the rest of the passage becomes a lot easier.

 

How to locate and comprehend the “theme”?

The theme of the “whole passage” can usually be found in the heading and subheading. For example look at the following examples of headings:

 

 

1. APICULTURE.

 

Beekeeping has been practiced by humans for ages.

 

 

 

2. AT THE MERCY OF HUMANS

 

Ecosystem under threat because of the development done by humans

 

 

 

3. INSOMNIA

 

Inability to sleep

 

 

• What comes to your mind after reading each of the above headings?

 

• What do you think the passage which follows will be about?

 

• Do you find it helpful to have an initial idea of what the passage might be about?

 

Most candidates of IELTS test feel more comfortable in attempting the questions if they have an idea of what the passage is about. The easiest way to do so is to read the “heading”. Most headings clearly define the theme of the passage.

 

The above headings clearly give us an idea what the passage will be about:

• Heading #1 tells us that the passage will be about “beekeeping”.
• Heading#2 tells that the passage will be about how ecosystem is badly affected by the developments being made by humans. 
• Heading#3 tells us that passage will be about “sleeplessness” (the inability to sleep).

 

FURTHER PRACTICE:

 

Magazines, News Papers, Newsletters etc both paper based and electronic (available electronically on the Internet) are excellent resources for reading headings and sub-headings in order to understand the possible theme of the passage. As you practice more, you will feel a lot more comfortable in reading different texts of which you have no prior knowledge. You will specifically be focusing on the given text and that’s what the IELTS test expects you to do: read and understand the text and then answer the questions!

IELTS READING: Which points should be underlined?

This advice is applicable to both IELTS Reading Academic and General Modules

In the previous post, the importance of underlining key points was discussed. In this post, you will learn that what are the actual important, key concepts and points which should be underlined.The whole passage is full of lots of sentences made up of verbs, nouns, articles, prepositions, adjectives, adverbs, etc. So how do we decide which words are important and need to be underlined?

Here are some important tips to pin point the points which are important. You should be looking for:

• facts (important names like Dr. Someone or Professor someone etc., some important activities like research, skydiving, mining etc.)
• figures (dates, amounts, quantities like two whales, 150 research participants etc.)
• locations
• descriptions (tall, short, gold, blue, deep, shallow, etc.)
• comparisons or contrasts

These are simple tips to get you started, as you practice you will get better at spotting the important point and there importance will be proved when they also help you answer questions.

Some more useful tips:

• Do not underline every single word as this will only confuse you when you come back to the text to look for answers.
• Do not underline articles like the, a etc unless it helps in understanding a quantity Example 1: There was only an apple on the table and nothing else. Here "an" shows quantity that is "one" apple. Example two: The baby was crying. Here the article, "the" does not need to be underlined.
• Do not underline prepositions like in, on, etc, unless they help pin point the importance of something. Example 1: I live in a bungalow. Here the prepositions "in" does not need to be underlined. Example 2: The squirrel was hiding in the tree hole and was not sitting on a branch. Here, in can be underlined as it shows significance of the location of the squirrel.

Here is an important underlining example. The following passage has been taken from Insight into IELTS (Cambridge University press). Key words have been underlined personally to show you a practical example of "how to underline" key words?

Passage courtesy of Insight into IELTS but underlined personally!

IELTS READING: Importance of Underlining Key Points

These tips are applicable to both academic and general reading modules.

Many teachers recommend their students to underline the more important ideas and key concepts in a reading passage in order to understand the passage and find answers to the questions which follow the passage. So how does underlining really helps? Underlining important points in a passage helps to:

• pin point key points
• quickly skim through the text to find answers
• Most questions ask for main ideas and if you have underlined them it is easier to get back to them in the provided passage.
• Finally, underlining key concepts helps us comprehend the topic being discussed.

So What should be Underlined? This is explained in detail in the post: IELTS READING: Which points should be underline in the passage?

IMPROVE LISTENING AND SPEAKING SKILLS THROUGH DAILY LEARNING STRATEGY

Improve your listening and speaking skills:

Preparing for IELTS means improving our English skills.We listen to English at least somewhere during the day even if English is not the First Language in our country so why not make the most of it. Everyday learning, as emphasized before, must not be ignored and certainly goes a long way when it comes to improving our English Language skills. Here is one of the many ways you can improve your English listening and speaking skills through simple everyday enjoyable practice:

Like Movies? We all do. When you have finished watching a movie, do you like talking to a friend or family member about what the story was about, how awesome the hero was or how cool the stunts were, etc. etc? If you do, try discussing it in English. You will have a good set of words to use which you have just listened in the movie or more appropriately acquired in the movie, so use them. Don't worry initially about making mistakes, with time your expression, fluency and grammar will improve. Don't feel embarrassed if you are making mistakes, we all make mistakes even native English speakers can sometimes make small mistakes because to err is human! So don't hold back and give it a try!


If you are not comfortable talking to a friend in English (just yet) then grab a recorder or use the voice recorder in your cell phone and record all you saw in the movie, how you felt, how you were influenced, did you enjoy or were bored and what improvements could have been made in the movie. Save the recording and listen to it. You can retain the recording and compare it with new ones as you record more of your experiences and you will see that your speech, expression and fluency will get a good boost just after a few times! How easy and effective is that? You have nothing to lose in trying this technique so why not get started and grab your favourite movie as soon as you get some spare time! :)

Incorporate Self-Study Strategies into Your Daily Routine

Taking out time for study in the busy schedule is in itself a challenge and mere book learning though very helpful is not sufficient on its own. So here's an easier way, incorporate learning in your daily life! Some candidates might be thinking that how can we read a book while on our way to work or practice writing while watching a movie or listening to the radio. What candidates need to fully understand is that IELTS is a test of "English", so if you cannot practice the papers on the go, you can certainly "learn" English in many different and unique ways....after all, if you are good at English you can handle any test in English!

EVERYDAY READING AND WRITING STRATEGY

• Reading the Newspaper/News on a website: Many of us like to get our daily dose of the news. We all want to stay in touch with whats happening around us and around the world. Most (authentic) Newspapers or other News sources like news on the Internet make sure to use grammatically accurate and error free English. After you have read your very favourite article, column, or a stunning piece of news just put aside five minutes to jot down the main points about it. Prefer a computer over the conventional paper and pencil, go ahead type the main ideas in a word document. This will:
• improve your understanding ( or comprehension)
• give you ideas for writing (for example prospective essays for IELTS)
• improve your vocabulary
• improve your writing expression (sentence structure and grammar)
• save you a lot of time as you do not need to set a time aside and you will be learning while doing something interesting (like reading your favourite column in the paper!
• This will improve both reading and writing skills, talk about killing two birds with one stone!

Self-Study Strategies: Know Your Learning Style

Preparing for IELTS can be a self-study venture or people can choose to take formal classes. However with the busy schedules most of us have today many of us are more comfortable with self-study strategies, like self-study books, online resources etc. However, before starting self-study try to find "your" very own learning style. How do you like to learn best?

• Reading (Visual)
• Listening (Auditory)
• Everyday practice (Kinesthetic: practically doing things)
• Making notes (learning by writing)
• Charts etc.(Visual)

There are various other ways people learn. Some have a specific learning style, others use mixed learning strategies to enhance the learning effect (like listening, watching, reading and making notes to incorporate the lesson in their mind).

You can find out your very own learning style on the following link: http://www.metamath.com/multiple/multiple_choice_questions.html

Simply put, your learning style is the way in which you feel most comfortable to study. When you are sure about your learning style, move on to read the next post about how to incorporate study in your daily routine.
Good Luck everyone!

Writing Module - Understanding the question by underlining KEY WORDS (2)

Underlining Key Words

[This advice can be applied to both academic and general training writing modules as it is basic good writing advice.]

Understanding the question is of vital importance as explained in a couple of previous posts, because this is the only way you will be able to write well on the given topic. Remember, there is no choice, you have to write on the one topic you receive for both part 1 and part 2 of the Writing Module.

So how to underline the proper words so that we make good sense of the question and jot down the right points for writing the answer.

Here is a simple example:

Money is the root of "all" evil. "Do" you "agree"?

In the above question, different words have been marked differently. Some are underlined others are quoted with inverted commas. So lets see how to interpret a simple question.

• The question is asking about: Money

What is your concept about what money means here?
It means wealth, material gains etc.

• Then the statement says: it is the root to all evil.

It is suggesting that money is the basis of evil, it leads to evil or causes people to be attracted to take up evil practices in order to acquire it.

• Then your point of view is being asked for, where the question asks do you agree?

You can safely take a point of view by giving solid arguments. These arguments can be based on:

• examples from real life (what is seen happening in every day life)
• own life experience
•  quotations you might remember
• facts and figures (only if you know them)

You can mildly discuss both views but you must take one stand and stick to it, explaining it completely with proper explanation.

The ways of writing an essay, how to take and present a specific point of view and stick to it will be explained in later posts.

Writing Module - How to comprehend the question and build a draft? (1)

It is very important to comprehend the question before starting to write (as explained in the previous post: Writing Module - Basics!)

These tips are applicable to both academic and general training module, since they are basic writing tips.

In order to comprehend the question you need to be familiar with the 5 W's and 1 H.

• What
• Where
• When
• Why
• Who, and
• How

When you read the question, try to apply every W and the H to the question, even if the answer to your proposed question is no! You can quickly jot down the answers to all the W's and H and you will have a mini draft for your proposed writing (essay, table/chart explanation, or letter, according the module you are taking academic or general).

Lets understand how to apply the W's and H to a question and build a draft:

Here's an example of a question from academic module writing, part 2:

Should rich countries help poor countries or is it the duty of the poorer nations to feed their own populations?

Here is a possible set of W and H questions you may answer to produce a small draft for your essay:
(there can be many other possibilities as well. These are only examples for your help)

Q. What are "rich" and "poor" countries?
Q. What can poor countries do for themselves?
Q.What factors contribute to poverty and how can these elements be eliminated by poor countries themselves or by the help of rich countries?
Q. Where are rich and poor countries located geographically?
Q. How can rich countries help poor countries?
Q. Which countries are actually capable of helping?
Q. When should the help be stopped? (How much help is sufficient?)
Q. with Which fields should the poor countries be helped with (food, clothing, education etc.)

As you can see there can be a bunch of possible questions but the key is to stick to the topic and by asking specific questions and answering them, jotting down useful points you can develop a good basis for writing a well-developed piece of writing (in this case an essay). You can also see here that there are more than one What, Which and How questions, it only helps to have a more detailed draft with lots of useful points to have a head start and make a good influential ending.

Writing Module - Basics!

What you need to know before you begin writing?

This is general advice regarding the writing module and applicable to both parts of academic and general training modules.

Read the question (the topic) very carefully and make sure you fully understand what you are being asked to do? It may seem very obvious but some topics may not be as clear as we might think they are. Understanding the question/topic is highly essential because if you digress from the topic or write something irrelevant you will give the examiner/assessor the impression that you have not understood the topic in the first place.

In other words, if someone cannot properly understand or comprehend a question posed in English how can he/she write well on that topic?

Digressing from the topic, or writing irrelevant stuff just to increase the number of words can cost the candidates dearly as they can lose vital marks.

How to comprehend a topic? Here's how!

Reading Module - a few basics!

These points and tips are applicable to both academic and general training modules

What is expected from the candidates?


The reading module assesses a candidate’s ability to comprehend written material in English language. Simply put, you are given a score on “how well” you can understand the given passage(s). You can answer the questions only if you understand the given passage(s).

Key to reading and “comprehending” the passages:

The key to do well in the reading module is to underline important points and key concepts, as you read the given text. Thinking it is pretty obvious? Yes it is and unfortunately also often taken for granted! Firstly, it must be understood that the questions are usually set on the key issues being discussed in the passage and if we overlook them then it might be a little difficult to answer particular types of questions.

Secondly, by underlining important points, it is easier to come back to the text and look for an answer rather than groping and looking for it by reading the whole text or a part of the paragraph again. (How to pin point key ideas will be discussed in detail in later post.)
Be confident because the questions are 100% “from” the given passage(s) and you are not required to have any additional or previous knowledge regarding the topic. (Every passage will have a set of questions which follow it. There are three passages for the candidates to read and answer questions regarding them.)

You need to:

• Be able to fully comprehend/understand text written in English.

• Have a good reading speed (points to improve speed will be discussed in detail)

• Answer the questions (answers must be written on the provided answer sheet and “not” on the question paper).

Tips on answering different types of specific questions (like True, False and Not Given, Fill in the blanks/gaps, matching etc.) will be discussed in detail in following posts.

Listening Module – Down to the basics

Introduction:

The IELTS listening module is the same for both Academic and General Training modules. It consists of approximately 40 questions. The questions may of the following type:
• Sentence completion or fill in the blanks in a diagram, description, summary, flow chart or table

• MCQ’s (multiple choice questions)

• Diagram labeling

• Matching

What is expected from you as a candidate?
The Listening module is divided into 4 sections and time is allowed to read the questions before the tape is played for each section. Time will also be given at the end to transfer your answers on a separate answer sheet. (Remember you must transfer your answers on the answer sheet when the time is allowed because only the answer sheet will be checked and marked by the examiner!)
Candidates are expected to listen to the tape and answer the questions as they listen (and later transfer to the answer sheet when time is allowed).

How to attempt:
You will be allowed to read the questions of the specific section before that section’s tape/recording is played, (for example 5 minutes will be allowed to read the questions before section 1 tape is played, then 5 minutes to read section 2 questions before the section 2 recording is played) therefore you should make the most of this time, read the questions thoroughly and try to make an idea of what the situation is about. For example,

Read the following questions: (Source:Cambridge Practice Tests For IELTS Book 5)

What comes into your mind after reading these questions?
The obvious thing which might come into our mind is that someone is buying cots and comparing the different features of each brand in order to make the right choice.

Important:
The simple purpose of reading the questions is to accustom or familiarize yourself to the situation you are just being exposed to (going to listen to in the recording). If our brain feels familiar to a situation it reacts better and absorbs information more quickly, hence answering the questions becomes easier!

USEFUL  TIP:
You should not just try to find the words to match answers in the tape and miss out on what is being said, because you need to “listen” to all that is being said in order to answer the questions. If you just keep looking for answers or words to match the answers then you might not listen carefully and even miss out the real answer


So in order to answer the questions, listen to the tape/recording. The questions are in sequence, which means you have to answer as you listen. The answer to the first question will of course be somewhere in the beginning and not at the end of the tape! So be careful as you listen.


Good Listening Strategy: Don’t Panic!

Stay focused and do not think about anything else as you attempt the paper even when you have missed out an answer. Leave it and move on so that your thoughts do not make you lose concentration and miss out on another answer. Remember the tape will be played only once! So forget all the other worries and just listen. The recording is in simple plain English and if you stay focused, success will be yours.

This was an overview of the Listening Module. Individual tips will be fully explained in upcoming posts. Best of luck!