www.ielts.

org
Seminar: 9 February 2006
Who owns IELTS?

 British Council

 IDP: IELTS Australia

 Cambridge ESOL
What is IELTS?
 A test of communicative proficiency in English:
 for study or work in English
 tests all four language skills

 A test of international English:

 Cultural or linguistic bias minimised

 content produced and checked internationally

 variety of accents used

 A task based test:

 model of communicative competence

 whole text contexts, not discrete point

 performance-based
Who recognises IELTS?
 Institutes of further and higher education in United
States, United Kingdom, Australia, Hong Kong,
New Zealand, South Africa, Ireland
 Professional Bodies world-wide including:
 Ministry of Defence, General Medical Council in United
Kingdom
 Medical Council and Department of Immigration,
Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs in Australia
 New Zealand Immigration Service
 Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Global Candidature
600,000

500,000

400,000

300,000

200,000

100,000

0
1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
What makes IELTS a useful test?

 IELTS provides:
 a profile of a candidate's skills in all four language

areas
 an overall band score

 IELTS tests:
 the full range of proficiency levels, from non-user to

expert user
Why can IELTS results be trusted?

 Quality controls:
 test production process

 examiner training and certification

 centre management

 security and integrity

 ongoing research

 monitoring

 centralised verification of results

What do IELTS candidates have to do?

 Candidates must do all four test modules:

 Listening

 Reading

 Writing

 Speaking
Test Format

Listening
30 minutes, 4 sections, 40 items

Academic Reading General Training Reading

60 minutes, 3 sections, 40 items 60 minutes, 3 sections, 40 items

Academic Writing General Training Writing

60 minutes, 2 tasks 60 minutes, 2 tasks

Speaking
11 - 14 minutes, 3 parts
Listening Module

 Tests:
 specific and overall comprehension

 inference

 salient information

 Same for Academic and General Training candidates

 Variety of contexts (general and study)
 Variety of formats (dialogues and mini-lectures)
Reading Module

 Tests detailed and general comprehension

 Academic and General Training Modules
 Academic Module: academic texts
 General Training module: general and study-related
texts
Writing Module
 Academic and General Training Modules
 Tests:
 ability to write English appropriate to context and task
 use of language in a variety of contexts and topics
 skills at sentence, paragraph and whole text level

 Candidates rated on:

 task fulfilment
 coherence and cohesion
 communicative quality
 vocabulary and sentence structure
Speaking Module
 Same for Academic and General Training candidates
 Tests ability to communicate through speech in general
English contexts
 One-to-one interview
 Range of topics and contexts
 Range of skills and patterns of interaction
 3 parts:
 question and answer on personal topics
 unassisted short talk on a given topic
 two-way discussion on more abstract issues
What do the bands mean?
 9 band scale
 9 - expert user

 8 - very good user

 7 - good user

 6 - competent user

 5 - modest user

 4 - limited user

 3 - extremely limited user

 2 - intermittent user

 1 - non-user
IELTS and the Common European
Framework
IELTS CEF
8.0
C2
7.0
C1
6.0
B2
5.0
4.0 B1
3.0
A2
A1
IELTS Results

 Test Report Forms (TRFs)

 two year validity
 overall and module bands
 results available within two weeks
 results can be sent to receiving institutions
 no ‘pass’ mark
 security enhanced paper
 Online Verification Service https://ielts.ucles.org.uk
IELTS is ...

 a reliable and valid test of English language

proficiency
 a test of communicative ability
 a test of all four language skills
 a task-based test in which candidates perform
interactive language tasks
IELTS is not...

 a test of grammar
 a test of a student’s ability to study
 a test of a knowledge on a topic
IELTS and the Common European
Framework
IELTS and the Common European
Framework
IELTS – future developments
Electronic Downloads

 Enable IELTS recognising organisations to download

test results for all candidates that applied for their results
to be available to the organisation

 Will reduce the volume of paperwork for organisations

 The service has been available from January 2006

Computer-based IELTS
(CBIELTS)
 Validation studies 2001 onwards
 Release in 2005 in selected countries
 Listening and Reading taken on a PC
 Writing – taken on a PC or hand written
 Speaking – still face to face with examiner
IELTS scoring – current situation

 Listening and Reading reported as whole and half bands

 Writing and Speaking reported as whole bands only
 Overall Band Score reported as whole and half bands
Proposed change from January
2007
Report Writing and Speaking as whole and half bands in
line with Listening and Reading scores

Benefits
 Writing and Speaking band scores would more
sensitively reflect quality of performance

 Stakeholders could make more informed judgements

FAQs

Why does an IELTS Test Report Form (TRF) have a

recommended shelf life of two years?
FAQs

How do we ensure that IELTS is fair to all candidates

whatever their cultural background?
For more information

 IELTS Candidate Information

 IELTS Handbook
 IELTS Annual Review
 IELTS website: www.ielts.org
 IELTS Specimen Materials
 IELTS Research Reports
British Council Denmark