IELTS Speaking - Part 2 & 3 (third)

Here are some more practice questions for the Part 2 & 3 of the Speaking Test.

SCHOOL
Describe a school which you went to. You should say:
                When you went there
                how many people studied there
                how long you spent there
And explain what you liked and disliked about it.

Part 3

Attitudes to education
How has education changed in your country in the last ten years?
Is a good education more important to a boy or a girl? Why?

The focus of education
How well do you think schools prepare young people for working life?
Do you think schools should teach subjects like art, music and dancing? Why (not)?

Education and technology
How important is it for schools to have computers for their students?
Is the Internet a valuable educational tool?

* * * * * * * * * *

RESTAURANT

                Describe a restaurant you enjoyed going to.
You should say:
                where the restaurant was
                why you chose this restaurant
                what type of food you ate in this restaurant and explain why you enjoyed eating in this restaurant.

Part 3

Restaurants
Why do you think people go to restaurants when they want to celebrate something?
Which are more popular in your country: fast food restaurants or traditional restaurants? Why do you think that is?
Some people say that food in an expensive restaurant is always better than food in a cheap restaurant-would you agree?

Producing food

Do you think there will be a greater choice of food available in shops in the future, or will there be less choice?
What effects has modern technology had on the way food is produced?
How important is if for a country to be able to grow all the food it needs, without importing any from other countries?

* * * * * * * * * *

MEETINGS

                Describe a meeting you remember going to at work, college or school.
You should say:
                when and where the meeting was held
                who was at the meeting
                what the people at the meeting talked about and
explain why you remember going to this meeting.

Part 3

Going to meetings
What are the different types of meeting that people often go to?
Some people say that no-one likes to go to meetings- what do you think?
Why can it sometimes be important to go to meetings?

International meetings
Why do you think world leaders often have meetings together?
What possible difficulties might be involved in organizing meetings between world leaders?
Do you think that meetings between international leaders will become more frequent in the future?
Or will there be less need for world leaders to meet?

* * * * * * * * * *

FRIENDSHIP
                Describe a friend of your family you remember from your childhood.
You should say:
                who the person was
                how your family knew this person
                how often this person visited your family
And explain why you remember this person.

Part 3

Friendship
What do you think makes someone a good friend to a whole family?
Do you think we meet different kinds of friend at different stages of our lives? In what ways are these types of friend different?
How easy is it to make friends with people from a different age group?

Influence of friends
Do you think it is possible to be friends with someone if you never meet them in person?
Is this real friendship?
What kind of influence can friends have on our lives?
How important would you say it is to have friends from different cultures?

* * * * * * * * * *

PARTIES
                Describe a party that you enjoyed.
You should say:
                whose party it was and what it was celebrating
                where the party was held and who went to it
                what people did during the party
and explain what you enjoyed about this party.

Part 3

Family parties
What are the main reasons why people organize family parties in your country?
In some places people spend a lot of money on parties that celebrate special family events. Is this ever true in your country? Do you think this is a good trend or a bad trend?
Are there many differences between family parties and parties given by friends? Why do you think this is?

National celebrations
What kinds of national celebration do you have in your country?
Who tends to enjoy national celebrations more: young people or old people? Why?
Why do you think some people think that national celebrations are a waste of government money?
Would you agree or disagree with this view? Why?

* * * * * * * * * *

COMPETITION
                Describe a competition (e.g. TV, college/work or sports competition) that you took part in.
You should say:
                what kind of competition it was and how you found out about it
                what you had to do
                what the prizes were
And explain why you chose to take part in this competition.

Part 3

Competitions in school
Why do you think some school teachers use competitions as class activities?
Do you think it is a good thing to give prizes to children who do well at school? Why?
Would you say that schools for young children have become more or less competitive since you were that age? Why?

Sporting competitions
What are the advantages and disadvantages of intensive training for young sportspeople?
Some people think that competition leads to a better performance from sports stars. Others think it just makes players feel insecure. What is your opinion?
Do you think that it is possible to become too competitive in sport? In what way?

* * * * * * * * * *

USEFUL ITEM
                Describe a piece of electronic equipment that you find useful.
You should say:
                what it is
                how you learned to use it
                how long you have had it
And explain why you find this piece of electronic equipment useful.

Part 3

Technology and housework
What kinds of machine are used for housework in modern homes in your country?
How have these machines benefited people? Are there any negative effects of using them?
Do you think all new homes will be equipped with household machines in the future? Why?

Technology in the workplace
What kinds of equipment do most workers need to use in offices today?
How have developments in technology affected employment in your country?
Some people think that technology has brought more stress than benefits to employed people nowadays. Would you agree or disagree? Why?

* * * * * * * * * *

ENJOY
                Describe something healthy you enjoy doing:
You should say:
                what you do
                where you do it
                who you do it with
and explain why you think doing this is healthy.

Part 3

Keeping fit and healthy
What do most people do to keep fit in your country?
How important is it for people to do some regular physical exercise?

Health and modern lifestyles
Why do some people think that modern lifestyles are not healthy?
Why do some people choose to lead unhealthy lives?
Should individuals or governments be responsible for making people’s lifestyle healthy?
What could be done to encourage people to live in a healthy way?

* * * * * * * * * *

SPORTS
                Describe a game or sport you enjoy playing.
You should say:
                what kind of game or sport it is
                who you play it with
                where you play it
And explain why you enjoy playing it.

Part 3

Children’s games
How have games changed from the time when you were a child?
Do you think this has been a positive change? Why?
Why do you think children like playing games?

Games and competition
Do you think competitive games are good or bad for children? In what ways?
How can games sometimes help to unite people?
Why is competition often seen as important in today’s society?

* * * * * * * * * *

CHOICE
                Describe an important choice you had to make in your life.
You should say:
                when you had to make this choice
                what you had to choose between
                whether you made a good choice
And explain how you felt when you were making this choice.

Part 3

Important choices
What are the typical choices people make at different stages of their lives?
Should important choices be made by parents rather than by young adults?
Why do some people like to discuss choices with other people?

Choices in everyday life
What kind of choices do people have to make in their everyday life?
Why do some people choose to do the same things every day? Are there any disadvantages in this?
Do you think that people today have more choices to make today than in the past?

* * * * * * * * * *

MUSIC
                Describe a song or a piece of music you like.
You should say:
                what the song or music is
                what kind of song or music it is
                where you first heard it
And explain why you like it.

Part 3

Music and young people
What kinds of music are popular with young people in your culture?
What do you think influences a young person’s taste in music?
How has technology affected the kinds of music popular with young people?

Music and society
Tell me about any traditional music in your culture?
How important is it for a culture to have musical traditions?
Why do you think countries have national anthems or songs?

IELTS Task 2 (Introduction and Paragraph writing) - Recommended Videos !

Writing Task 2 is important. Moreover, writing it perfectly is crucial in scoring in IELTS Exam. Task 2 is twice as important as Task 1 and therefore the Essay plays an important role in getting better score. 

Here are two Videos that elaborate on structuring your 'Introduction' and 'Paragraph'. 

Highly recommended videos in order to understand the scoring.

Structuring your 'Introduction' Pragraph!!

Structuring your 'Body' or say 'Paragraph' !!

IELTS BOOKS (1-9)

Here's a link to download all the Cambridge IELTS Books (1-9).

Cambridge IELTS BOOK 1

Cambridge IELTS BOOK 2

Cambridge IELTS BOOK 3

Cambridge IELTS BOOK 4

Cambridge IELTS BOOK 5

Cambridge IELTS BOOK 6

Cambridge IELTS BOOK 7

Cambridge IELTS BOOK 8

Cambridge IELTS BOOK 9

ALL BOOKS

IELTS Speaking - All 4 Criteria of the Module explained (Highly recommended Videos)

The Speaking Module tests a Candidate in 4 Criteria. Below, you'll find all the Criteria discussed briefly.

Videos; highly recommended for all IELTS Candidates.


Fluency and Coherence

Lexical Resource (Vocabulary)

Pronunciation

Grammar

IELTS Reading Strategies - True, False, Not Given (Recommended Video)

Here is another beautiful Video from EngVid. Emma shares some amazing tips for IELTS Reading - True, False, Not Given. Please watch it and enrich your Reading Skills.

Listening Test Strategies (Recommended Video)

Here is another video from YOUTUBE which explains basics Listening Test strategies. Students need to attend the test with clear head about what they are going to get in the test. Preparing ahead will inject ample confidence and you end up scoring as per your potential. Be calm, be ready and face it.

Free IELTS e-books !

If you have a 'Kindle App' in your Phone, you can download the following e-books free of cost from the Amazon website. Kindle App can be easily downloaded and is Phone friendly. Download the App and enjoy the reads.

The e-book 'How to Speak and Write Correctly' will hone your skills in Speaking and Writing Subtest of the IELTS Exam. Click on the image below and it'll take you to the exact location.

Here are some other books that are free and will help you on your IELTS/ENGLISH LANGUAGE.

Memorize 7000 IELTS VOCABULARY with 100 Sentences


The Grammar of English Grammars


Practical English Composition: Book II.


Fifteen Thousand Useful Phrases

History of IELTS !!

This website doesn't hold the copyright of the 'HISTORY OF IELTS'. The information was thoroughly searched in the Internet and presented here.

IELTS test takers and the organisations which rely on IELTS test results benefit from IELTS continuing investment in quality assurance, research and development to ensure that the test remains robust and relevant.

International teams of writers contribute to IELTS test materials and we invest in on-going research to ensure that IELTS remains fair and unbiased – wherever and whenever the test is taken – and that IELTS encourages, reflects and respects international diversity and is fair to anyone who sits the test, regardless of nationality, background, gender or lifestyle.

The rigorous processes used to produce the test materials ensure that every version of the test is of a comparable level of difficulty, so that candidates’ results are consistent wherever and whenever they take the test.

These and the other benefits of IELTS today build on our history of English language testing over many decades.

The beginning

The English Language Testing Service (ELTS), as it was then known, made its first appearance in 1980 when it replaced the English Proficiency Test Battery (EPTB), a traditional largely multiple choice test battery that had been used by the British Council in its overseas student recruitment operation since the mid 1960s for the purpose of screening international applicants to universities and colleges in the UK.

The new test had an innovative format that reflected changes in language learning and teaching theory and developments in language testing. In particular, the ELTS was influenced by the growth in ‘communicative’ language learning and ‘English for specific purposes’. Test tasks were based on an analysis of the ways in which language was used in academic contexts and were intended to reflect the use of language in the ‘real world’.

Test format

The ELTS test offered a choice of six modules covering five broad areas of study of UK tertiary education, plus one non-specific area. The six modules were:

1. Life Sciences

2. Social Studies

3. Physical Sciences

4. Technology

5. Medicine

6. General Academic

There was also a Non-Academic test for vocational candidates.

Each candidate was required to take three sections in their subject area or module and two common tests in the General section:

M1 Study Skills	G1 General Reading
M2 Writing	G2 General Listening
M3 Individual Interview

A further feature of the test was that the three subject area modules were thematically linked: candidates were required to write on a topic connected to one of the texts in the Study Skills paper. Similarly, in the Interview the candidate would be asked to discuss a topic already covered in M1.

The ELTS Revision Project

ELTS continued in the form outlined above until 1989. During the 1980s the test numbers were quite low (4000 in 1981 rising to 10,000 by 1985), and it was clear that there were practical difficulties with the administration of the test, relating to the number of test items and the time taken to complete the test; there were also powerful reasons for change on the grounds of test redundancy.

In 1987 British Council and UCLES EFL (now known as Cambridge ESOL) commissioned Edinburgh University to conduct a validation study. (see Criper and Davies, 1988; Hughes, Porter and Weir, 1988). Following this report the ELTS Revision Project, under the academic direction of Professor Charles Alderson of Lancaster University, was set up to oversee the design and construction of the revised test. (Alderson and Clapham, 1993)

There was consensus to broaden the international participation in the revision project and in response to this the International Development Program of Australian Universities and Colleges (IDP), now known as IDP Education Australia, joined British Council and UCLES to form an international partnership, reflected in the new name for the test: The International English Language Testing System. The immediate outcome of this partnership was the secondment of an Australian academic, Professor David Ingram of Griffith University, to the revision project.

The recommendations of the revision team to simplify and shorten ELTS were accepted and a compromise was sought "between practicality and maximum predictive power". The number of subject-specific modules was reduced from six to three and the Non-Academic test was replaced by the General Module. IELTS (the International English Language Testing System) first became operational in 1989. (Clapham and Alderson, 1997)

Format of the 1989 IELTS

From 1989 IELTS candidates took two non-specialised modules, Listening and Speaking, and two specialised modules, Reading and Writing. The non-specialised modules tested general English while the specialised modules were intended to test skills in particular areas suited to a candidate's chosen course of study. Specialised reading and writing modules (incorporating a direct link between the reading and writing activities) were available in three discipline fields which linked together related fields that had previously been separate modules in the ELTS battery, as shown below:

Module A – Physical Science and Technology

Module B – Life and Medical Sciences

Module C – Business Studies and Social Sciences

Reading	Module A	Module B	Module C	General
Writing	Module A	Module B	Module C	General
Listening	Non-specialised Module
Speaking	Non-specialised Module

Over the next five years the number of people taking the test rose by around 15% each year so that by 1995 there were over 43,000 candidates in 210 test centres around the world.

1995 revision of IELTS

In keeping with the commitment of the IELTS partners to respond to developments in applied linguistics, measurement theory and teaching practice, further modifications to the test were implemented in April 1995. In addition to a number of modifications to improve security and administration, there were three areas of significant change:

The field-specific Reading and Writing Modules A, B and C were replaced with ONE Academic Reading Module and ONE Academic Writing Module. Details of the research behind this change to the test design can be found in Clapham (1996) who concluded that the different subject modules did not appear justified in terms of accessibility to specialists. In addition, the thematic link between the reading and writing activities was also removed to avoid confusing the assessment of reading ability with that of writing ability.

General Training Reading and Writing Modules were brought into line with the Academic Reading and Writing Modules in terms of timing allocation, length of written responses and reporting of scores. The difference between the Academic and General Training Modules is in terms of the content, context and purpose for testing rather than the scales of ability.

Measures were introduced to gather data on test performance and candidate background so that issues of fairness relating to test use and users could be more effectively monitored.

A brief summary of the 1995 revision of IELTS can be found in Charge and Taylor (1997).

Continuing development

In keeping with this history of innovation, the IELTS partners continue to be committed to the ongoing development of the test. A revision project for the Speaking Test was launched in 1998 and the revised IELTS Speaking Test was introduced in July 2001. New assessment criteria for the Writing Test were operational from January 2005. A computerised version of IELTS was also introduced in 2005 at a number of IELTS centres. Information on all these projects can be found in past issues of the IELTS Annual Review, and in Cambridge ESOL’s quarterly publication - Research Notes.

The current test retains many of the features of the 1980 ELTS including the emphasis on the comprehension of extended text in the receptive papers (Reading and Listening), and the direct testing of performance through a face-to-face Speaking test and the use of the essay and report formats in the Writing test. Other innovations such as the links of theme and content between papers and the experiment with subject specific modules have proved less successful and have not survived into the current incarnation. However, the distinction between academic and vocational purposes has stood the test of time and is still reflected in the choice of Academic and General Training modules. In recent years, the candidature has continued to grow rapidly, and by 2003 the total number of Academic and General Training candidates had exceeded half a million.

A full account of the development ELTS/IELTS and its place in the history of testing English for academic purposes is in preparation as a volume in the Studies in Language Testing series.

Score processing, reporting and interpretation

All IELTS marking takes place at the test centre by trained markers and examiners.

Markers are trained to understand the IELTS marking policy and are required to demonstrate that they are marking to standard before they are allowed to mark Listening and Reading papers. Markers are re-tested every two years to ensure that their marking remains up to standard. Systematic monitoring and double marking of a proportion of answer sheets is carried out at each administration.

Examiners for the Writing and Speaking sub-tests are recruited and trained in line with agreed standards. They are required to demonstrate that they are marking to standard every two years in addition to on-going monitoring of their performance.

Candidates receive scores on a Band Scale from 1 to 9. A profile score is reported for each skill. The four individual scores are averaged and rounded to produce an Overall Band Score. Overall Band Scores and scores for each sub-test (Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking) are reported in whole bands or half bands.

Overall Band Score

Candidates receive a Test Report Form setting out their Overall Band Score and their scores on each of the four sub-tests: Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. Each of the sub-test scores is equally weighted. The Overall Band Score is calculated by taking the mean of the total of the four individual sub-test scores.

Overall Band Scores are reported to the nearest whole or half band. For the avoidance of doubt, the following rounding convention applies; if the average across the four skills ends in .25, it is rounded up to the next half band, and if it ends in .75, it is rounded up to the next whole band.

Thus, a candidate achieving 6.5 for Listening, 6.5 for Reading, 5.0 for Writing and 7.0 for Speaking would be awarded an Overall Band Score of 6.5 (25 ÷ 4 = 6.25 = Band 6.5).

Likewise, a candidate achieving 4.0 for Listening, 3.5 for Reading, 4.0 for Writing and 4.0 for Speaking would be awarded an Overall Band Score of 4.0 (15.5 ÷ 4 = 3.875 = Band 4.0).

On the other hand, a candidate achieving 6.5 for Listening, 6.5 for Reading, 5.5 for Writing and 6.0 for Speaking would be awarded band 6 (24.5 ÷ 4 = 6.125 = Band 6).

For more information on how IELTS test material is produced, please see the

IELTS Question Paper Production Process (PDF, 98KB).

Listening and reading

IELTS Listening and Reading papers contain 40 items and each correct item is awarded one mark; the maximum raw score a candidate can achieve on a paper is 40. Band scores ranging from Band 1 to Band 9 are awarded to candidates on the basis of their raw scores.

Although all IELTS test materials are pretested and trialled before being released as live tests, there are inevitably minor differences in the difficulty level across tests. In order to equate different test versions, the band score boundaries are set so that all candidates’ results relate to the same scale of achievement. This means, for example, that the Band 6 boundary may be set at a slightly different raw score across versions.

The tables below indicate the mean raw scores achieved by candidates at various levels in each of the Listening, Academic Reading and General Training Reading tests during 2006 and they provide an indication of the number of marks required to achieve a particular band score.

The Academic and General Training papers are graded to the same scale. The distinction between the two modules is one of genre or discourse type. Academic papers may contain source texts featuring more difficult vocabulary or greater complexity of style. It is usual that, to secure a given band score, a greater number of questions must be answered correctly on a General Training Reading paper.

Writing and speaking

When marking the Writing and Speaking sub-tests, examiners use detailed performance descriptors which describe written and spoken performance at each of the 9 IELTS bands.

Writing

Examiners award a band score for each of four criterion areas: Task Achievement (for Task 1), Task Response (for Task 2), Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource and Grammatical Range and Accuracy. The four criteria are equally weighted.

Speaking

Examiners award a band score for each of four criterion areas: Fluency and Coherence, Lexical Resource, Grammatical Range and Accuracy and Pronunciation. The four criteria are equally weighted.

Versions of the band descriptors for Writing and Speaking have been developed to help stakeholders better understand the level of performance required to attain a particular band score in each of the criterion areas. IELTS examiners undergo intensive face to face training and standardisation to ensure that they can apply the descriptors in a valid and reliable manner.

Examiner information

IELTS examiners are qualified, experienced English language specialists. The Speaking and Writing Modules of the IELTS test are assessed by certificated examiners. IELTS examiners are required to re-certificate every two years and their performance is closely monitored to ensure global standards are maintained.

It is the responsibility of each IELTS test centre to recruit and train a pool of examiners. Centres recruit on a needs basis and nominate examiners who meet the following requirements:

1. Applicants must be native speaker (or a non-native speaker of an overall IELTS Band 9 – with a 9 in both Speaking and Writing modules);

2. Applicants must have a relevant TEFL qualification eg CELTS/DELTA;

3. Applicants must have at least three years relevant teaching experience; and

4. Applicants must have an undergraduate degree (or equivalent).

5. The applications of the nominated examiners have to be approved by a qualified examiner trainer. After approval the examiner undergoes face-to-face training, conducted by an accredited IELTS trainer and is required to do the certification assessment.

If you are interested in becoming an IELTS examiner and you meet the requirements outlined above, please contact your local test centre.

IELTS Listening - Before, During, After !

Before Listening 

1. Read questions

2. Underline keywords

3. Predict possible answers

4. Consider answer types (no./name/noun/verb)

5. Synonym/Paraphrase

6. Brainstorm/Imagine the situation (if your brain prepares to listen something and when you actually listen it, it will be easy)

During Listening

1. Concentrate (Vocabulary, news, grammar)

2. Listen and write at the same time.

3. Take care of distractions (write all opinions down, continue concentrating and lastly, circle the final option)

After listening 

1. Check answers (spelling, expand abbreviations, check grammar)

2. Guess unknown answers immediately

IELTS - Listening (What to transfer to the Answer Sheet)

  

You'll get 3 major QUESTION TYPES in the IELTS Listening test. At the end of the LISTENING TEST, that is, at the end of your 30 minutes, you'll have 10 minutes to transfer your answers to the ANSWER SHEET. During this 10 minutes, you have to make sure that you transfer all of your answers from the Listening Booklet. While transferring, pay special attention to 'what to transfer'. Here are some tips on what to transfer;

For multiple-choice questions and picking pictures – just copy the letter of correct answer.

For sentence completion – just copy your answer, not the whole sentence. 

For gap-fills – just copy the word you have chosen for the gap.

For answers written in short (like prof. Advise) – write the full version (professional advise).

Check that all the answers are clear and understandable.

IELTS - Listening Strategies

IELTS Listening Strategies

1. Instructions will keep you safe

Every task in the IELTS Listening test has its instructions. It may sound stupid, but you really need to read them carefully. Why? Because they will tell you exactly what to do with the information, how many words you can use to answer, is there a table you must fill, is there a list to choose words from, how many items you must name, etc. And if the answer must be in 3 words – write exactly 3 words, because writing 4 or 5 words will get you  0 score.

2. Answer as you listen

Write the answers as you hear them, leave nothing for later. It means that when any part of the listening is over, you won’t be able to remember any of the answers. After listening the 4^th question, you won’t be able to hear the answers for 1 or 2. The reason behind ‘answer as you listen’ is that you immediately forget the sentences after you have heard them – because of stress, foreign language, constant flow of information etc.

3. Look ahead. Keep moving forward

If you miss one answer and are stuck on the same one, the chances are you’ll miss others too. To prevent missing a sequence of answers, always look one or two questions ahead. It is hard and sounds confusing at first but after a little practice it becomes natural and helps a lot. Even if you miss the answer, admit it that there is no way you can now make up to it therefore move to the next one immediately.

4. Know the clues

The answers of the listening test are usually pronounced clearer and louder. Therefore it is easier to hear and understand. If you can’t hear something clear means there is no answer there. This is something you should realize once you practice few listening tests. A good clue to an answer is when you hear a repetition of a word, a word being spelled out or a number being dictated.

5. Listen for specifics

When you are listening, look for descriptions and details, such as dates, places, telephone numbers, opening hours, years, transportation. If you hear them but don’t know where to place them yet – write them on the margins of the Listening booklet. Later you will have some time to check your answers. Going over the questions that you couldn’t answer during the Listening passage, you might see that what you’ve written on the margins fit.

6. Gap-fill strategy

Look at the words around the gap to understand what’s missing, a noun, an adjective or a verb. Once you have picked a word, write it above the gap and then read the whole sentence to be sure that it makes sense.

7. Unexpected turn

You might hear speaker starting to say one thing and then, suddenly, continuing to something completely different. This is a trap, so make sure you don’t fall for it. The rule here is ‘The last word counts’. For example, if the speaker says, ‘I want to visit that gallery on Monday. No wait, I’ve just remembered that it is closed on Monday, so I will go on Wednesday’. And the question is ‘when’-the correct answer here is Wednesday, and Monday is a trap.

8. Check the grammar

If the answer you give is grammatically incorrect – it can ‘t be the right one. Checking the grammar of your answers will give you an idea whether your answer is correct or not, especially in tasks like Gap fill and Sentence Completion.

9. Generalizations

You might hear speaker first give a list of things and then say them all in one word. For example, ’Well, I like to swim, hike, and camp – to be involved in outdoor activities’. If the question is ‘What kind of activities...’ the correct answer is ‘outdoor’ and not ‘swimming’, ‘hiking’, or ‘camping’.

10. Divide and concur

The recording divides questions into groups, so every time you are instructed to answer a group of 4-5 questions. There are 20-30 seconds of silence before each group.

First thing you should do when the tape starts playing is understand which group of questions you need to answer. For example the tape says: ‘Look at the questions 1-4’. It means that you have about 20 seconds to look at those questions. Go over the questions, read them and underline keywords. Keywords are the words that contain the main idea of the question. They will help you guess what you will hear- numbers, opening hours, names, locations etc.

Draw a line under the question 4, so you won’t look further before it’s time. This dividing technique is very efficient because every time you concentrate on limited number of questions, it makes you more focused and in control.

11. Use your time wisely

During the test, you have a little time between passages. Use it to check and complete your answers.

12. Avoid distractions

Don’t get confused or carried away by all the different background voices you are going to hear. The recording uses several different voices – of younger and older people, men and women. You may also hear different accents – Australian, British, American, Japanese, etc. The background noises also vary. It can be of airport, cafe-shop, street, University lecture hall and many more. Be ready for those kind of voices and don’t let them distract you, because that’s what they exactly want.

13. Copy answers smartly

After the listening test, you will be given 10 additional minutes. During the test, you are supposed to write all the answers in the Listening booklet. Therefore, these 10 minutes are given to you to copy your answers to the Answer Sheet, and you should use them smartly. Pay attention to the following guidelines (even though they sound simple-they are BIG time savers).

              

14. And finally, if you’ve missed some questions, the last 10 minutes is the best time to guess.

You can also try going through some good reads from Amazon. You need to download them to your e-reader in order to read. Here are some recommended e-books for you.