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December 2008

IELTS Listening and Speaking tips from Band 7.5 achiever

I feel very pleased to be declared the IELTS results winner of the month! I am quite happy that I got an overall IELTS score of 7.5 . Here are my tips to all the IELTS test takers (of Academic Module) in the future:

Listening test

In the Listening section of the test, it is important to pay much attention to the recording as it will be played ONCE only. You either get the answer or you dont and it is as simple as that. It is important to concentrate HARD as you hear the recording. Try to pay attention to the key words of the recording as they are probably the answers to the questions.

In order to brush up your listening skills, you might wish to attempt to listen to the English channel of your radio and try to take notes as you listen to the voice of the speaker.

Another way to practice your listening skills is to listen to English or American pop music. Try to listen to the lyrics and catch as many words as you possibly can as the pop star sings along.

Speaking test

In order to prepare for the speaking test, you might wish to make some friends with people from English speaking countries and try to have as many conversations in English with them as possible. In that way you would have more opportunities to speak in English.

In addition, you can even ask your English-speaking friends to correct your English as you talk to them. You should pay attention to the way they speak, how they pronounce the important words and their choice of words. The more you practice speaking, the greater the chances of getting a good score on your speaking test.

The general tips that apply to the writing test also apply to the speaking test, namely:

  • If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
  • Never use the passive where you can use the active.
  • Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
  • Try to keep all sentences short.
  • Make everything simple.

    • Click here to read William’s Writing tips.

    Writing and Speaking tips from high achiever

    These are the tips that helped our November’s result competition winner Rahul Puri achieve Band 7.5 in IELTS:

    Writing tips

    In writing, spelling is important so make sure that spelling errors won’t occur. Moreover, don’t repeat the words that you have already used in writing. Always try to write synonyms instead of using the same word again. Write your exam in blue ink because it leaves a better impression on examiners, they think you are more confident. Have 5 paragraphs in an essay. First paragraph intro, next three body and last one conclusion. Always write what you are asked to write. Try to give an example after every ‘body paragraph’.

    Speaking tips

    In speaking always wear formal clothes as it shows your professionalism and leaves a good impression on examiner’s mind. Try to show manners and etiquettes to them by saying Good morning or May I have a seat, please or May I come in. When the examiner gives you a topic always thank him or her. In the end always say thank you very much for your time.

    Don’t forget try to speak until you are stopped by the examiner. Try to speak 2-3 minutes on the topic given by the examiner. If you don’t know about anytime that has been asked to you, frankly say I dont have a great knowledge of this but I would still like to express my views on this topic. Simple lines like that make your life easier.

    Anyways please follow IELTS-Blog.com tips as they are really useful.

    Read Listening and Reading tips from Rahul here.