A common mistake in the IELTS Listening module – watch

out!

In a couple of days’ time many of you will be sitting your IELTS exams and I thought this would be a good time to
tell you about one common mistake that has been hurting the scores of other test takers.

As you know the Listening test consists of 4 sections. Before each section you will hear some instructions and
there will be some time to look at the questions. Then the recording will begin playing and you will need to listen
and write down your answers. You will be writing the answers right in the Listening booklet, next to the questions
they belong to.

As you also know, at the end of the Listening test the answers must be written on the Answer Sheet. And here is
the part you need to pay attention to: some people mistakenly choose to copy the answers to the Answer Sheet
during the time they are given before each section begins. This is a BIG mistake, because that time is for you to
concentrate on reading the questions about the new section (that is about to begin), it is the time to try and
understand what’s coming – it should not be used for looking back or copying answers.

After the test you will be given 10 whole minutes to copy all your answers to the Answer Sheet and only then you
need to be doing that. Any time spent on copying during the actual test is WASTED, it’s not doing you any good –
in fact it distracts you and therefore harms your score.

Listening tips

This is considered to be the hardest skill to improve for most people. In reality, it is one of my weaknesses. To
improve listening, you have no choice but to practice every day, practice as much as you can.

There are a lot of English channels where you can listen and try to understand what they are talking about. If
you’ve got difficulty in understanding these universal channels, perhaps you need to learn more daily vocabulary
and try to practice some easy listening books. The key here is just main idea. As long as you still understand what
they are talking about, you will be fine. The purpose of this way is that you can familiarize with English and correct
your pronunciation in basic words (the words you have known). Therefore, this is also an excellent way to prepare
for speaking.

However, you MUST avoid BBC. There is absolutely nothing you can learn from BBC. If your level of English is
good enough to understand BBC, you don’t need to come here and seek advice; just do practice tests, it will save
your time.

When doing Listening Practice Tests, you also have to catch the main ideas as well. However, this time you must
practice listening to details too. The main ideas will help to you determine what the key words are and focus on
the important section. Stress and intonation are also helpful. Sometimes, a lot of unnecessary details make you
confused and then you can’t catch the key words.

To sum up, the key for listening is Listen to English as much as you can.

Know your clues

The answer is usually pronounced louder and clearer, it is easier to hear and understand. If you can’t hear
something clearly (because the speaker swallows words or whispers), then probably the answer is not there.
Practice and you’ll learn to tell the difference.

A good clue to answer is when you hear a repetition of a word, a word being spelled out (G A R F U N K E L) or
a number dictated.

The following conversation is a classic example of repetition:

Mary-Joe: “These days there are many changes in our company policy”

Kathy:”Oh, what kind of changes?”

It is clear that the word “changes” is a clue to an answer.

Listening Tip # 4 – Answer as you listen

What I mean here is that you need to listen and write the answer at the same time.
Make no mistake – it is not a very natural thing for you, so you have to practice a lot doing this.

The reason you have to “answer as you listen” is that you immediately forget the sentences after you have heard
them. This is what the stress, listening to foreign language and constant flow of information do – they make you
forget. After hearing the third sentence you won’t be able to repeat the first. It means that when any part of the
Listening test is over – you won’t be able to remember any of the answers.

So write them as you hear them, leave nothing for later.

Listening: distractions

Continuing the previous post, here comes

Listening Tip # 3 – don’t let them distract you

(oh boy, are they good at that! )

In the Listening section of IELTS 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
noise is also different. It can be of an airport, a cafe-shop, a street, a University lecture hall, you name it. Be
ready for it and don’t let it distract you – because that is exactly what they want. Ignore the noises and listen for
the answers.

Of course, the accent you hear the most is British. Suggestion:when you are studying for IELTS, listen to as
much British accent as you can. Where can you get it? I liked what BBC have – visit BBC site by
clicking here. You can listen there to news (and read the transcript), learn the news vocabulary, learn the
pronunciation, etc. Try it, you might like it.

A very good site to use for listening exercises in American English is VOA News – click here to visit it. This is how
they recommend using their site:
“The short sentences, limited vocabulary and slow pace of speaking make it easy to understand. It succeeds in
helping people learn English in a non-traditional way. People around the world practice their listening and speaking
skills by recording the programs and playing them repeatedly. Internet users can also listen to programs on the
Special English Web site while reading the text.”

Hang in there, people, more tips are coming!

The IELTS Reading test: 9 free resources to help you get a

better score

What do you do to get a higher score in the IELTS Reading test? Increase your speed by reading more texts, that’s
right. But not just any texts – there is a certain kind of reading passages you will find in the IELTS test more
often.

Many of you were asking me: “What should I read?” and here’s the answer: reading passages in the past IELTS
tests came from the following sources:

1. The Economist – a weekly newspaper focusing on international politics and business news and opinions.

2. The Economist Technology quarterly

3. New Scientist – a weekly science and technology news magazine, considered by some to be the world’s best,
with diverse subject matter.

4. American Scientist – an illustrated bimonthly magazine of science and technology.

5. The Geographical Journal – publishers of original research and scholarship in physical and human geography.
6. Interscience – online editions of scientific, technical, medical and professional journals

7. Australian geographic – an entertaining and fact-filled reference for anyone who loves and is fascinated by
Australia and all things Australian.

8. The British museum – online publications.

9. Illustrated London News – a pictorial example of a historic social record of British and world events up to the
present day.

In all of these websites there are articles you can read online (no need to subscribe, they are free) . This way you
will get familiar with the style and level of articles you are likely to see in a real IELTS exam. Practice in reading
using these resources and you will kill two birds with one stone, improve your reading speed and expand your
vocabulary. Those of you taking the IELTS test to study in England will find this page interesting.

IELTS Reading tips from Phuong – how he got Band 7

Doan Hung Phuong, who got Band 7 in IELTS, shares with us his secrets for success in the Reading test.

Reading tips

I must say that this skill is based on intelligence very much. I was advised that reading various type of articles is
the best way to prepare for IELTS. In reality, I have never done that, simply because I don’t have time. I hate
reading. But the fact is that in this skill I got the highest score. I have no idea why, not because I am an intelligent
man, but maybe, just maybe because I can understand the main idea very well.

Reading requires a great deal of vocabulary. But when my friends tell me that I got the high score because I have
a good range of vocabulary, I totally disagree. Vocabulary is important, but you don’t need to know every word.
You should only know keywords, the words that can change completely the answers.

Pay a particular attention to the grammar structure. You may see various types of grammar structures, but try to
understand them all, they will be helpful for your writing. Most of us have limited vocabulary, but if you are weak
at grammar, you don’t know what the text refers to, and obviously, you lose main idea. As a result, you can’t
guess the meaning based on context.

Catching the main idea in reading is also important. You must have known that skimming and scanning are 2
essential tools in reading. Both rely on understanding of main ideas. Therefore, if you can’t catch main ideas in a
short time, you will suffer. But how to practice getting main ideas in a brief time? I must say that reading various
articles in this case is helpful (even though I’ve never done so). But I tried to do reading tests every day, and tried
to understand the main idea of every passage.

Another way to practice Reading is Speed Reading. I have known this method from English centers but to many
people, maybe this is still a strange way. You choose a short easy passage (about 500 words) and then read
quickly (for both main idea and details). Please note that the passage you choose must be easy. If there are more
than 5 words that are completely new to you, perhaps it is not a good passage for the speed reading. In addition,
reading as quickly as possible is NOT the key. If you read so fast that you have to read again, there are no
benefits gained from this practice. The key here is main ideas, and next is details. Besides understanding all main
points, you should try to remember as much details as you can. In speed reading exercises, there are 10
true/false question for you to do at the back. These questions will measure your accurate comprehension.

Besides skimming and scanning, I found that reading intensively is also important in the IELTS test, especially to
understand tough questions. Some questions or particular sentences, you need to read and try to understand
every single word. Especially with true/false/not given (or yes/no/not given) questions, a single word can change
the whole meaning.

After finishing the reading practice test, you MUST check all wrong answers, try to explain why you were wrong
(you may need someone who has a good level of English to help you) and think of another way to answer those
questions faster. You will gain the necessary experience by doing this before the real test.

In brief, guessing is the key in reading. You must guess logically and academically. Take time to practice reading,
you will see that your reading skills will improve in just a short period of time.”

The IELTS Reading test: how to practice smarter

Well, your IELTS exam is getting closer and you are practicing harder, solving more IELTS tests, reading passages,
etc. But is this the most efficient way of practicing?

The best tip I can share with you is this: when you check your answers versus the correct ones, pay special
attention to those you got WRONG. There always will be a chance to congratulate yourself later on those you’ve
got right.

When you are going over the wrong answers one by one, try to understand why your answer is wrong, why the
answer from the answer key is correct, and most importantly – why you made that mistake. Remember it and
make sure you never make it again.

See what trap you walked into, what are your “weaknesses”, what type of task is the hardest for you. If, for
instance, most of your mistakes are in “True/False/Not Given” type of questions – double-check your answers
there. Or is your problem on the “Matching headings” task? Then pay extra attention to that kind of question

Do’s and don’ts of IELTS essays (Band 7+)

As promised, today we are sharing Kathrine’s tips for writing a high scoring IELTS essay. Following these simple
principles increased her Band score from 7 to 8.5 in Writing, and the same can happen for you! If you aren’t
familiar with the term “do’s and don’ts”, it’s really simple: do’s are the things you should do, and don’ts are the
things you should avoid.

The Do’s of IELTS Essay

– Conciseness (8-15 words per sentence)

– Cohesion (link ideas, paragraphs, sentences together)
– Coherence (all ideas should be easily understood by the reader)
– Composition (use the correct essay structure)
– Answer the question fully (cover all points asked in the task statement)

Band 7+ essays need

a) more complex sentence structure

b) more complex vocabulary
c) more complex grammatical use and variation

– Use the official writing task 2 form to practice and check what 250 words look like in your own handwriting
– Read many essay topics
– Read many sample essays
– Know the right structure for all essay types
– Know when to give your opinion

– Add examples from your own experience if asked

– Use smart words and noun groups
– Use punctuation correctly
– Separate the arguments “for” and “against” into different paragraphs
– Use the right tone (essays are always formal)
– Only use possessive/personal pronouns when giving your opinion
– Lead from one paragraph to another well – connecting words are vital!
– Vary grammar
– Write neatly as it values the reader-writer relationship
– Write maturely to reflect mature way of thinking
– Make a plan in 3-5 minutes: it makes your essay more organised, mature and conveys the positive image of
YOU.
– Make your opinion very clear: formal and reasoned point of view, give details.

The Don’ts of IELTS Essay

– Write too many words if your English is average (aim for 250-265)
– Use contractions such as “don’t”, “shouldn’t”, etc
– Overuse connecting words (assessors expect that!)
– Jump from one idea to the next: link, link, link!
– Mix arguments “for” and “against” in the same paragraph
– Use the wrong tone (essays are always formal)
– Use abbreviations
– Repeat words or overuse primitive verbs (does, makes, gets)
– Cross out many things
– Write illegibly
– Use idioms too frequently or inappropriately
– Write in a babyish manner (bad grammar and poorly developed ideas)
– Become a clock victim (constantly look at the clock and panic)
– Start writing without a plan
– Forget to leave a blank line between paragraphs
– Use generalisations (“All”, “Every”) as this reflects an immature way of thinking
– Use simple sentences if you want a high score
– Use cliches as they are often too informal
– Use ‘lazy’ expressions (“and so on”, “etc”).
– Copy part of task question
– Agree with both sides – choose one side to make your opinion clear
– Let adrenaline make you arrogant
– Go off topic

These tips are not exhaustive but will give you some important points how to pass the IELTS Writing test with a
high Band Score.

Essay Writing

As an IELTS writing instructor, I am often asked by my students what the secret is to successful essay writing.
When I tell them ‘lots of practice, lots of guidance and lots of patience’, they usually look at me a bit disappointed
as though my answer was too obvious.

So I tell them, ‘just follow the 4 Cs.’

‘The 4 Cs?’ they ask with new interest.

Yes, the 4 Cs: conciseness, cohesion, coherence and composition. Each needs to be employed properly if you want
to score well on your Task 2 essay. In this short article, which I am writing exclusively for www.ielts-blog.com, I
would like to touch on each of the 4 Cs and describe how you can use these powerful ideas to heighten your IELTS
score.

So let’s begin with conciseness. Unlike other languages which prize long and very elaborate sentences, proper
written English is language that says a lot in few words. Students often falsely believe that the longer a sentence
is the more academic it sounds.

Writing longer sentences in your response is problematic for 2 reasons. The first is it heightens the chances of
errors related to coherence. The second is it makes it more difficult for you to control the grammar of the
sentence, leading to silly grammatical mistakes. Too often, students receive disappointing marks on their IELTS
essay simply because their long sentences led them to issues with coherence and grammar.

So how long should a sentence be? Including cohesive phrases (the second ‘C’ in our list), typical sentences are
somewhere between 8 and 15 words.

Now let’s take a look at how to write these cohesive phrases.

Cohesion refers to words and phrases that help ideas link together. Cohesive phrases include wordings like…

Because of this, …
As this shows, …
As can clearly be seen from this example, …
It is clear that…
Thus, the idea that…
To illustrate this, …
After analyzing both points of view, …
To provide a summary, …
Without a doubt, this causes…
What I always suggest to students is to commit many of these phrases to memory and learn how to use them
properly. When you get to your examination, you can use these phrases with confidence, which will not only save
you time but also reduce the chances of grammatical mistakes.

Our third C is coherence, which is the notion that all ideas you present in your essay should be easily understood
by your reader. As you can probably guess, using the cohesive phrases above correctly can really help to boost
the coherence in your essay as they clarify your ideas. Coherence is also greatly improved by proper grammar, so
make an effort to brush up on this prior to your examination.

Our final C, composition, refers to employing a proper essay structure. This means including a thesis (in the case
of an argument essay), at least 2 supporting ideas, real-life examples, proper discussion of those examples as well
as some kind of summary and finally a reasoned conclusion. To break it down, an argument essay is most likely
going to contain 15 sentences partitioned into 4 paragraphs and follow a pattern something like this:

Introduction paragraph

 A background sentence giving some background information on the essay topic.

 A more detailed sentence linking the background sentence to the thesis.
 A thesis that presents your point of view on your given topic.
 An outline sentence declaring the 2 points you are going to use to support your thesis.

Supporting paragraph 1

 A topic sentence illustrating the first point you will be presenting to support your thesis (this point taken
from your outline sentence).
 A sentence showing a real-life example of this topic in action.
 A discussion sentence that shows how your example links or proves your topic sentence.
 A conclusion sentence that links this entire paragraph back to your thesis.

Supporting paragraph 2

 A topic sentence illustrating the second point you will be presenting to support your thesis (this point
taken from your outline sentence).
 A sentence showing a real-life example of this topic in action.
 A discussion sentence that shows how your example links or proves your topic sentence.
 A conclusion sentence that links this entire paragraph back to your thesis.

Conclusion paragraph

 A summary sentence that briefly states the 2 points you discussed in your supporting paragraphs.
 A restatement of your thesis using different words.
 A prediction or recommendation based on the topic you have been given.

By employing a logical structure like this you fulfill your essay’s requirement for proper composition.

So, in a nutshell, the 4 Cs make up the essential elements in a successful essay. Conciseness keeps sentences
brief, cohesion helps the sentences link together, coherence maintains understanding in the essay
and composition links all parts of the essay together logically.

Make an effort to use the 4 Cs properly and I guarantee your IELTS written mark will improve.

The IELTS Writing test: a common mistake

Before we begin, there is something else you need to know. In the recent post about the difference between the
formal and informal writing styles there was a mistake. Although it was caught and fixed almost immediately on
the website, the erroneous version was sent to your emails before we could stop it. To clarify, the words
“children”, “many” and “much” are formal equivalents of informal “kids”, “a lot of” and “heaps of”. My apologies, if
the previous email confused you.

And now to the common mistake in the IELTS Writing test. As you may know, there are 2 tasks, Writing Task 1
and Task 2, and in both Academic and General Training modules Task 1 is shorter (150 words) than Task 2 (250
words). Often people decide to write the Task 2 first, before writing Task 1. No problem so far, but we are getting
to the really important bit.
It is essential that you pay attention to the Answer Sheet and write your answers in the right places. There are 2
marked spaces on the Answer Sheet that you get in the Writing test, one says “Task 1” and the other says “Task
2”. To avoid confusing the examiner who will check your work, you need to make sure that the the essay is written
under “Task 2” and the report (for Academic) or the letter (for General Training) – under Task 1.

If worse comes to worst and you’ve mixed the two spaces, don’t panic. First, finish writing your tasks – wherever
you’ve started to write, don’t worry about the wrong spaces, just take care of the contents and the paragraphing
as usual. After the Writing test is over you can ask staff at the test center to affix a note to your work explaining
where each task is. It will help the examiner locate the right task and your score won’t suffer.

IELTS writing: using transitional phrases

This post was contributed by Mr. Nipun Jain, the head of Benchmark – our evaluation team. On behalf of all the
readers I would like to thank Mr. Jain and all the fine teachers of Benchmark.

Transitions

Transitional words and phrases are what gives your essays coherence, we need them to join sentences and
thoughts together. Look at the lists below. These are transitional phrases that you can memorize and keep in your
arsenal for the IELTS writing module.

AGREEMENT: also, plus, in addition, further, furthermore, moreover, additionally, to add to that, next, in
accordance with, accordingly, in agreement, finally, for instance, for example, in exemplification, exemplifying
that, in fact, factually speaking, in terms of, and so forth, looking at the nexus between, in coordination with,
along those lines, collectively speaking, generally speaking, indeed, undoubtedly, obviously, to be sure.

CONTRAST: however, contrastingly, in contrast, on the contrary, on the other hand, To put it into perspective,
from a different angle, nonetheless, nevertheless, but, yet, a catch to this is, sadly enough, as a hindrance,
looking at the holdups, oddly enough, instead, in direct opposition, still, and rather.

4 ways to get in trouble with your IELTS Writing tasks

If you have an IELTS exam this weekend, this post can literally save your score. Many people get in trouble with
their IELTS Writing tasks for no reason, just because they don’t realize some things are not acceptable in IELTS
letters, essays or reports. Here is a number of ways you can get in trouble with your IELTS writingtasks:

1. Using informal English in the IELTS Writing tasks.

Informal English is OK for your Speaking test – it is not OK for your Writing test. Even though not every informal
word gets penalized, the more formal your style is, the better your score will be. To demonstrate the difference,
informal expressions such as “loads of / tons of” should be replaced with “many” or “much”; “fed up with” should
be replaced with “lost his patience”, etc.

2. Using contractions.

Contractions are “it’s” instead of “it is”, “I’ve” instead of “I have”, “we’re” instead of “we are” (these are only a few
examples). Contractions are a bad, bad thing to use in your essay, they don’t save you much time and can cost
you marks. Do me a favor and forget about contractions in your IELTS writing. Write “should not” instead of
“shouldn’t”, “could not” instead of “couldn’t”, “would not” instead of “wouldn’t”. You get the idea.

3. Using slang.

You can use slang any time talking to your friends, but this is the only place where it belongs, in a conversation
between friends. Keep it out of your IELTS essays, letters or reports. You can’t write “dunno” instead of “don’t
know”, “wanna” instead of “want to” or “gonna” instead of “going to”.

4. SMS-like spelling.

We all are typing SMS messages, chatting on Skype and the like, and there is a bunch of shorter ways to write
longer words. We type “u” instead of “you”, “c” instead of “see”, “IMHO” instead of “in my humble opinion”. None
of these can appear in your IELTS exam, unless you are specifically trying to mess up and get a lower score than
you deserve. You need to write the full word and spell it correctly, period.
 IELTS Writing: connective words (part 4)

This is the post about connective words and here you will find words to use in sentences referring to examples,
describing reasons or sequencing events in time.

Time

 for instance

There are many schools in many countries where you could study, for instance the schools in London or
Birmingham.

 one example

One example of how to get better at cooking would be to start reading recipes.

 for example
 just as

I wanted to be home already just as much as a thirsty man in the desert wanted water.

 in particular

I am referring to my exams, in particular, IELTS and TOEFL.

 such as
 namely

My friends, namely Andy and Cindy, have told me about this new exhibition in the city.

 to illustrate

Reason

 since

Since you asked, I’d like to tell you my story

 because (of)
 due to

Due to the teacher’s illness this lecture is canceled.

 owing to
 the reason why
 in other words
 leads to

This assumption leads us to believe that …

 cause

The cause of this unfortunate accident was…

Time

 before
 since
Since 2005 I have been working in …

 as
 until

Until now I wasn’t able to find anything like it.

 meanwhile

Meanwhile, I would like to ask you to be patient.

 at the moment

At the moment I am experiencing financial difficulties.

 when
 whenever

Whenever I call him, he appears to be very busy.

 as soon as
 just as

Certainty

 obviously

I was very disappointed, obviously because my expectations were too high.

 certainly

I will certainly let her know your opinion.

 plainly

You are plainly wrong

 of course
 undoubtedly

She is undoubtedly very beautiful

Condition

 if
 unless

I won’t be able to participate, unless we schedule the meeting in the morning.

 whether

Whether you like it or not, this is the truth.

 provided that

I can guarantee a good result, provided that you study.

 so that

I can send you the documents so that you would have proof.

 depending on

We can have a picnic this weekend, depending on the weather.

Summary

 in conclusion
 in summary
 lastly
 finally
 to sum up

To sum up, I strongly support the efforts of our society to help the environment.

 to conclude
 to recapitulate
 in short

Addition

 in addition

In addition, I would like to point out that my neighbor is disturbing me late at night.

 and similarly

Your life will change forever and similarly, your whole family will feel the change.

 likewise

Some people have little time for a hobby, and have likewise little will to get one.

 as well as

Beauty, as well as smarts, is a remarkable quality

 besides

We aren’t friends. Besides, I don’t feel it’s my place to set him straight.

 furthermore

Computers are getting faster and faster these days; furthermore, their cost is getting lower and lower.

 also
 moreover

I’ve been wanting a change for a long time, moreover, I feel I deserve one.

 and then too

 not only … but also
Not only is this product good for your hair, but also for softening your skin.

Sequence

 first(ly) initially

Initially, you would start putting a plan together.

 second(ly)
 to begin with

To begin with, you will need to commit a portion of your time to studying.

 then
 next
 earlier/later

Later on there comes a stage when your skills are put to a test.

 after this/that
 following this/that

Consequence

 as a result

I studied well and as a result, I got a high score.

 thus
 so
 therefore

I was younger and therefore less experienced.

 consequently
 it follows that
 thereby

I upset my friend, thereby causing her pain.

 eventually
 then in that case
 admittedly

Admittedly, he is the smartest person I know.

Contrast

 however

The book is expensive, however it is worth it.

 on the other hand

She says she feels fine, but on the other hand, her face is pale and she doesn’t look healthy.
 despite
 in spite of

In spite of the difficulties, the task was completed.

 though

He still insists, though he knows that won’t do any good.

 although
 but
 on the contrary

The music didn’t lift her spirit, on contrary, it made her feel weak and vulnerable again.

 otherwise
 yet instead of

He felt unwelcome, yet instead of leaving, he stayed.

 rather

Eggs for breakfast is not a good idea, I would rather have some toast.

 whereas

He was her true love, whereas for him she was just another girlfriend.

 nonetheless

While they didn’t trust each other, nonetheless they worked together for many years.

 even though
 compared with
 in contrast
 alternatively