INTRODUCTION TO IELTSGET TO KNOW THE FORMAT

overview compiled by Kate Elliottfor use at Mongol Aspiration Laboratory School,

UlaanbaatarSeptember 2013

IELTS (the International English Language Testing System) is designed to assess language ability in the key areas of: speaking, listening, reading and academic writing. An IELTS exam is a pre-requisite for university entrance into university studies in Australia, Canada, Ireland, the UK, the USA and New Zealand. Every year, over 1.4 million people take an IELTS test. They come in two forms: ‘academic’ and ‘general training’. All candidates sit the same listening and speaking tests. Once candidates’ exams have been assessed, they receive an overall score, from 0 to 9. Universities tend to require an IELTS score of between 6 and 7 as a minimum entrance requirement; some universities set a minimum score in each of the four sections of the exam.The four sections are as follows: • Listening - 4 sections, 40 questions, 30 minutes • Speaking - 15 minutes allocated (interview format)• Reading (academic/general training) 3 sections, 40 questions, 1 hour • Writing (academic/general training) 2 pieces of writing, 1 hour

Explanation of IELTS band scores: http://www.examenglish.com/IELTS/IELTS_Band_Scores.htmlIELTS band score calculator: http://www.examenglish.com/IELTS/IELTS_Band_Score_Calculator.htmlHow IELTS compares with other international English exams: www.examenglish.com/examscomparison.php

Listening40 q’s30 mins

6 – 25-286.5 – 29-317 – 32-337.5 - 34-358 - 36-378.5 – 38-399 - 40

SECTION 1 of ‘Listening’Questions 1-3MCQs – choose one correct answer out of 4 possible answersQuestions 4-6Write no more than three words for each answerQuestions 7-8 Circle two (2) answer categories (e.g. A and B) out of five (5)Question 9-10Circle two (2) answer categories (e.g. C and E) out of five (5)

SECTION 2 of ‘Listening’Questions 11-13Circle three (3) answer categories (e.g. A, C and D) out of five (5)Questions 14-15Respond to each of two questions with no more than three (3) words per questionQuestions 16-20Fill in the spaces (one space per row of five rows) with a number (e.g. 3) or no more than three (3) words

Listening (continued)Section 3 – ‘Listening’Questions 21-25MCQs - choose the one (1) correct answer out of three (3) possible answers Questions 26-30Complete notes (5 gaps on the one topic) with no more than three (3) words per line

Section 4 – ‘Listening’Questions 31-35Complete each sentence with no more than three (3) words Questions 36-40Fill each space (one space per row for five rows) in a table with a number (e.g. 3) or no more than three (3) words

IELTS Listening – exam tips• Before listening to the tape, reading the instructions and questions

with care• Ask yourself, who are the speakers? Where are they located? What is

the purpose of their speaking?• Remember to listen, read and write at the same time: you will only

hear the audio recording once.• Listen for signpost words (e.g. ‘however’, ‘finally’ and ‘although’) as

they will help you to anticipate what the speaker is about to say

Listening part 1 www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening_part1.htmlListening part 2 www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening.htmlListening part 3 www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening_part3.htmlListening part 4 www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening_part4.htmlListening test 2 part 1

www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening_test2_part1.htmlListening test 2 part 2

www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening_part2.htmlListening test 2 part 3

www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening_test2_part3.htmlListening test 2 part 4

www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening_test2_part4.htmlListening test 3 part 1

www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening_test2_part1.htmlIELTS Listening iTunes app

www.examenglish.com/ielts/ielts_listening_iphone_app.html

Practise

Tests

Academic Reading40 q’s60 mins

6.5 - 38-307 – 31-337.5 - 34-358 – 36-378.5 – 38-399 - 40

Reading passage 1: questions 1-15Reading passage 2: questions 16-27Reading passage 3: questions 28-40

IELTS Reading – exam tips • Skim each text to achieve a basic understanding of what it is about

and who the intended audience is• Read the title and any sub-headings with care• Think: what is the main purpose of each paragraph? Each

paragraph has one main idea. The questions will focus on these.• Remember that the questions appear in the same order as the text

(big hint!)

Academic Reading (continued)

Section 2 (20 mins)Questions 16-24Classify nine (9) statements as each referring to one (1) of three (3) peopleQuestions 25-27MCQs: choose the best answer of four (4)

SECTION 1 – ‘Academic Reading’ (20 mins)7 paragraphs of text (one A4 page)Questions 1-7Identify whether statements 1-7 agree ‘yes’ or disagree ‘no’ with the reading passage. If no information is given, write ‘not given’Questions 8-13Complete a summary (6 words) by filling in the gaps using words provided from a box of 9 words. There are more words provided than there are spaces. Questions 14-15Identify which paragraphs state the information summarised by each of the two sentences provided. Write down the name (e.g. ‘G’) of the appropriate paragraph.

Academic Reading (continued)Section 3 (20 mins)Questions 28-30MCQs: identify the best two (2) answers of five (5) provided Questions 31-36Classify six (6) opinions as belonging to one of five (5) peopleQuestions 37-40Complete a paragraph based on information provided in the passage using one (1) or two (2) words from passage three for each answer.

Academic Writing1 hour Writing Task 1 - 20 minutesRead the graph provided. Write a report for a university lecturer to describe the information conveyed by the graph. Write at least 150 words. Writing Task 2 – 40 minutesPresent an argument/case to an educated reader with no specialist knowledge on a given topic. A topic is stated (approx. 30 words), then a question is posed, e.g. ‘to what extent would you support or reject this idea?’. Write at least 250 words that show evidence of your own ideas, knowledge and experience. Support your lines of argument with examples and relevant evidence.

SpeakingPart 1: General information (e.g. topic: family)

-Is it large or small?-What do they do?-When were you last all together? What did you do?-What do you do together on special occasions? -Is there a member you are especially close to? Why?

Part 2: Talk on a topic for 1 or 2 minutes (e.g. describe a holiday recently taken)

Tell me about: where you went and why, who you went with, what you did, say what made the trip memorable to you-Had you been on a trip like this before? Do you think travel broadens the mind? Why or why not?

Part 3: Discussion topics (e.g. travel, environmental and other problems)

-- describe how the tourist industry has developed in your area/other areas--describe what things your area offers tourists--evaluate the type of tourists that come to you area-How has tourism changed in your area?-Evaluate how tourism is good for a country’s economy-Speculate about the benefits that tourism can bring to a country

Tape-script (samples)

From: Milton J., Bell H and Neville P 2006, ‘IELTS: Practice Tests 1’, Express Publishing: Berkshire, UK.

Student essays (samples)

From: Milton J., Bell H and Neville P 2006, ‘IELTS: Practice Tests 1’, Express Publishing: Berkshire, UK.

Student sample essays (continued)

From: Milton J., Bell H and Neville P 2006, ‘IELTS: Practice Tests 1’, Express Publishing: Berkshire, UK.

Suggested answers (spoken)

From: Milton J., Bell H and Neville P 2006, ‘IELTS: Practice Tests 1’, Express Publishing: Berkshire, UK.

Suggested answers (spoken) – continued

From: Milton J., Bell H and Neville P 2006, ‘IELTS: Practice Tests 1’, Express Publishing: Berkshire, UK.

Practise tests:• IELTS listening practice (Youtube): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcazMrxUI6U (work, over

50s)• IELTS listening practice – exercise and TV http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScwRdRyLtaE http://www.examenglish.com/IELTS/IELTS_listening.html• Online grammar testing: http://www.examenglish.com/IELTS/ielts_grammar_test.htm • Online vocabulary testing: http://www.examenglish.com/IELTS/IELTS_vocabulary.htm

IELTS study support:• IELTS – secret to writing faster and higher-quality

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoL5nDUMqvU• IELTS listening test strategy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCqhhQYeL6E• Writing introductions and paragraphs:

http://www.examenglish.com/IELTS/ielts_writing_task2_Introductions_and_Conclusions.htm• The 570 most-commonly used words in academic IELTS tests:

http://www.examenglish.com/vocabulary/academic_wordlist.html

Useful linksTips on taking IELTS exams: http://www.examenglish.com/IELTS/?gclid=COzukL6vs7kCFU1f3god2ycA0gOnline practise test: http://olpt.s3.amazonaws.com/online-practice-ket/index.htmlPhrasal verbs (Cambridge App): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=air.org.cambridge.Phrasalverbs&hl=en

Vocabulary for essays: http://free.ebooks6.com/Vocabulary-for-essays-pdf-e1251.pdfIELTS: http://free.ebooks6.com/INTERNATIONAL-ENGLISH-LANGUAGE-TESTING-SYSTEM-pdf-e1240.pdfImplicit Memory: how it works and why we need it: http://free.ebooks6.com/Implicit-Memory-How-It-Works-and-Why-We-Need-It-pdf-e10111.pdfNew insight into IELTS:

http://free.ebooks6.com/New-Insight-into-IELTS-download-w1261.pdfHow to prepare for IELTS:

http://free.ebooks6.com/How-to-prepare-for-IELTS-pdf-e1254.pdf

Happy Studying!