1.

IELTS & Academic Language

2. Challenges faced by International
Students
Health Sciences International Student Support Workshop,
6 & 15 April 2016

Jill Doubleday
Intercultural Connections Southampton http://blog.soton.ac.uk/ics/
J.Doubleday@soton.ac.uk
IELTS Academic Test overview
 IELTS = International English Language Testing
System

 Tasks candidates complete in each part - Listening,

Reading, Writing and Speaking

 How test is scored

 IELTS guidance for different types of courses

 Interpretation of band scores

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Band scores
 Band scores of 0 – 9 possible

 Overall score may be higher or lower than one or

more of the 4 skills, e.g.

Listening 6.5, Reading 6.5, Writing 5.0, Speaking

7.0 = Overall 6.5
(25 ÷ 4 = 6.25 = Band 6.5)

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Overall band descriptors

Band 9 = expert user

Has fully operational command of the language:

appropriate, accurate and fluent with complete
understanding.

4
Band 7 = good user

Operational command of the language, though with

occasional inaccuracies, inappropriate words &
misunderstandings in some situations. Generally handles
complex language well & understands detailed reasoning.

Band 6 = competent user

Generally effective command of the language despite

some inaccuracies, inappropriate words &
misunderstandings. Can use & understand fairly complex
language, particularly in familiar situations.

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IELTS Academic Test

 Listening: 30 minutes, 40 questions

 Reading: 60 minutes, 40 questions

 Writing: 60 minutes, 2 tasks

 Speaking: 11-14 minutes, 3 parts

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Listening test (30 mins)
 4 recorded texts, monologues & conversations (range
of native English speaker accents)

Band score Raw listening score /40

8 35
7 30
6 23
5 16

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Reading test (60 mins)
 3 long texts; range from descriptive & factual to discursive &
analytical

 Authentic – from books, journals, magazines & newspapers

 Academic topics of general interest for non-specialist audience

Band score Raw listening score /40

8 35
7 30
6 23
5 15 8
Writing Test: Two tasks, 60 mins
 Handwritten, no dictionary

 ‘Academic, semi-formal neutral’ style expected

 Topics of ‘general interest’

 Task One: 150 words summarising, describing or

explaining a table, graph, chart or diagram

 Task Two: 250 words in response to a point of view,

argument or problem

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Example Task 1
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The chart below shows the number of men and women in further
education in Britain in three periods and whether they were studying
full-time or part-time.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main

features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

(IELTS, undated)

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Example Task 2
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.

Write about the following topic:

The threat of nuclear weapons maintains world peace. Nuclear

power provides cheap and clean energy.

The benefits of nuclear technology far outweigh the disadvantages.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples
from your knowledge or experience.

Write at least 250 words. (IELTS, undated)

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Assessment of writing
 Examiners use detailed performance descriptors &
award a band score for each criterion

Criterion Weighting
Task achievement (Task 1) / Task 25%
response (Task 2)
Coherence and cohesion 25%
Lexical resource 25%
Grammatical range & accuracy 25%

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IELTS Task 2: conception of academic literacy
 writing as a spontaneous activity;

 writing as opinion-giving;

 evidence as anecdote, experience;

 writing as hortation (Should X be done?);

 writing as an activity separate from reading.

(Moore & Morton, 2005: 63)

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Speaking test: 11-14 minutes,
3 parts, 1 examiner
Content Time
Part 1 Answering general questions about 4-5 mins
familiar topics, such as home, family,
work, studies & interests

Part 2 1 minute to prepare on a given topic; 1-2 1-2 mins

minute monologue; examiner may ask 1
or 2 questions to finish

Part 3 Examiner asks further questions 4-5 mins

connected to topic in Part 2
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Example speaking part 2
Describe something you own which is very important
to you

You should say:

 Where you got it from
 How long you have had it
 What you use it for

And explain why it is important to you

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Assessment of speaking
 Examiners use detailed performance descriptors &
award a band score for each criterion

Criterion Weighting

Fluency and coherence 25%

Lexical resource 25%
Grammatical range & accuracy 25%
Pronunciation 25%

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Test Score Guidance
“many diverse variables can affect performances on courses of
which language ability is but one” (IELTS, 2014: 13)
,
Band score Linguistically demanding Linguistically less
courses demanding courses
7.5 - 9.0 acceptable acceptable

7.0 probably acceptable acceptable

6.5 English study needed probably acceptable

6.0 English study needed English study needed

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2. Challenges for international students
 Cultural context

 Conventions of academic study

 Time needed for reading & writing

 Group work (with home students)

 Understanding lectures

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Cultural context
 “if the lecturers would like to give some examples
that might be unfamiliar with Asian students, they
had better explain more about it beforehand, because
of culture difference”

 “please do not always … tell jokes that are only be

understood by British people or Europeans, because
not everyone could understand (…)”
(Lynch, 2015: 4)

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Conventions of academic study
Students talk about assessment:
https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/node/2851

Main points:

No previous experience of writing essays

Focus on content more than grammar

Difference in pass marks

•What is meant by ‘critical’?

•What is plagiarism? What does writing an essay/report/dissertation

mean?

= students perceive a need for lecturers to explain

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Time needed for reading
“I keep reading the articles our teachers distribute to us. However, I
do not read the articles on different units simultaneously, as there is
no good for me in doing so. […] It usually takes about three hours to
read one article (approx. 15-20 pages). Sometimes it takes more. My
technique is very time-consuming but it is the only way in which I
can do my readings effectively.”

(Rea-Dickens, Kiely & Yu, 2007: 39)

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Time needed for writing

“…the thing is that we are marked like equally with the local
students. We need to study much harder than them to get the
information. For example, to write the essays, for local students it’s
easier because the use of language, and for us, for me, is the third
language …”

(Schweisfurth & Gu, 2009: 468)

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Lightening the load

Assessment

Consider allowing extra time (Pilcher et al, 2013)

Reading: helping students manage reading load

Make clear what and how much needs to be read

Explain the rationale for reading

Consider producing guiding questions (Trahar, 2007: 19)

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Interaction & groupwork
“[During the group discussion], I talked about my idea. The
group suddenly became quiet. My idea seemed to impede
the flow of the discussion. One student in my group just
responded to me like ‘Yes, yeah, is it so?’ Then they go back
to their discussion. I know they did not care about my
opinion. They don’t try to understand what my opinion is.”

(Kim, 2011: 287)

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Encouraging interaction
“Most of the lecturers just allow the students to work in any group.
What I discover is that the students cluster around a familiar ground.
But there was one particular module leader . . . [said] ‘You, you,
you, be in this particular group’. I think it was very okay. But what I
discover that it soon was very effective, because you are, you know,
working with people from different culture, different background,
and, you know, be able to associate very well. And where you have
limitation, be able to adjust you know . . . which is very effective.”

(Trahar and Hyland, 2011: 6)

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Facilitating understanding in lectures
 Make hand-outs available before lectures

 Signpost lectures: indicate the structure

 Signal important points (“The most significant point is …”)

 Make lectures interactive – ask questions

 Incorporate pauses to give listeners processing time

 Rephrase idioms/expressions/colloquialisms:
it’s second nature = it’s automatic, you do it without thinking

woolly = ambiguous, unclear, vague

 Be careful with culturally-specific references

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Sources of help for students
Writing Centre Health Sciences is one of the pilot disciplines. Further
information is here: https://generic.wordpress.soton.ac.uk/writingcentre/about-us /
English and Academic Skills support http://
www.southampton.ac.uk/ml/international/language_support/eap.page

Prepare for Success & Study Skills Toolkit All international students are sent a link to
Prepare for Success when they’re accepted on a programme, but it’s a useful resource for
the early days too, and for all strudents. http://www.prepareforsuccess.org.uk/ . All
students and staff are enrolled on both the Study Skills Toolkit and the EAP Toolkit for
International Students on Blackboard.

Library academic skills & Enabling Services Wednesday workshops –

http://library.soton.ac.uk/sash

Wednesday workshops:
http://www.southampton.ac.uk/edusupport/news/events/latest.page?

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Intercultural Connections Southampton
Email us on intercultural@soton.ac.uk to join our mailing list and/or our staff
network:

http://blog.soton.ac.uk/ics/the-network/

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References (1)
Alghamdi, A., Kyforiji, T., Mani, A. & Sisodiya, H. 2010. Assessment and Feedback
(International Student Video). Higher Education Academy Available from:
https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/resource/assessment-and-feedback-international-student-
panel-video accessed 4/4/16

IELTS 2015 Guide for Teachers available from: http://www.ielts.org/teachers.aspx

IELTS 2014 Guide for Organisations available from: http://www.ielts.org/institutions.aspx

IELTS Sample questions available from:

https://www.ielts.org/about-the-test/sample-test-questions

Lynch, T. 2015. International students’ perceptions of university lectures in English.

International Student Experience Journal 3,1: 2-8 Available from:
http://isejournal.weebly.com/archive.html accessed 4/4/16

Kim, H.Y. 2011.International graduate students’ difficulties: graduate classes as a

communities of practices. Teaching in Higher Education, 16, 3: 281-292

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References (2)
Moore, T. & Morton, J. 2005 ‘Dimensions of Difference: a Comparison of University Writing and
IELTS Writing’ Journal of English for Academic Purposes 4: 43-66

Pilcher, N., Smith, K. & Riley, J. 2013 International students’ first encounters with exams in the UK:
superficially similar but deeply different. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher
Education 25,1: 1-13

Rea-Dickens, P., Kiely, R. & Yu, G. 2007. Student Identity learning and progression: the affective and
academic impact of IELTS on ‘successful’ candidates. In P. McGovern & S. Walsh (eds) IELTS
Research Reports Volume 7 pp59-136 Canberra: IELTS Australia & British Council

Schweisfurth, M. & Gu, Q. 2009. Exploring the experiences of international students in UK higher
education: possibilities and limits of interculturality in university life. Intercultural Education 20,5:
463-473

Trahar, S. 2007. Teaching and Learning: the international higher education landscape. Some theories
and working practices. Higher Education Academy and ESCalate. Available from:
http://escalate.ac.uk/downloads/3559.pdf accessed 6/4/16

Trahar, S. & Hyland, F. 2011. Experiences and perceptions of internationalisation of Higher Education
in the UK. Higher Education Research and Development 30,5: 623-633

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