JULIE RYCROFT Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 Has anyone done the IELTS test recently ?. Is it difficult ?, I have to do it to get the extra 20 points and I have to score 8 out of 9 in all 4 parts any tips or advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fletchaman Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 Has anyone done the IELTS test recently ?. Is it difficult ?, I have to do it to get the extra 20 points and I have to score 8 out of 9 in all 4 parts any tips or advice. Hi Julie We are in the same boat , my OH took it last week down her in NZ, and she said it was difficult and she doesn't think she has the 8's required for the 20 points. I don't know what its like in UK but the listening part was done from a speaker not from earphones so she missed some of the speaking with people coughing, and shuffling, also in the speaking, she was asked to talk about Children's TV programmes!!, and with a daughter of 25 and a son of 23 you can imagine how gobsmacked she was at that lol. Only advice really is learn to listen deeply, remember how to write official letters Sir/Madam Faithfully sincerely, get up to speed on essay writing if your not already, and most of all don't stress everyone else in the room is in the same boat everyone says revise revise revise, but that did not make an iota of difference to OH Good Luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benthomas010 Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 I also done IELTS last week, the academic version as I need it for my career as well as requiring the points. There is an element of practice required but as a native speaker that is more so that you are used to the test format, and know what to expect. I didn't do.a great deal.od practice but found it helped a lot. I also had to talk about kids TV programmes - but I went along the route of discussing the possible educational benefits etc... you don't need to know the subject in great detail, it's your speaking they are testing not your subject knowledge I think I done well, but I will hold off on that until I get my results on Friday. There is a lot of good resource on the net. But quite a bit of crap too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fletchaman Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 I also done IELTS last week, the academic version as I need it for my career as well as requiring the points. There is an element of practice required but as a native speaker that is more so that you are used to the test format, and know what to expect. I didn't do.a great deal.od practice but found it helped a lot. I also had to talk about kids TV programmes - but I went along the route of discussing the possible educational benefits etc... you don't need to know the subject in great detail, it's your speaking they are testing not your subject knowledge I think I done well, but I will hold off on that until I get my results on Friday. There is a lot of good resource on the net. But quite a bit of crap too. ws your listening done over speakers or using headphones?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benthomas010 Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 Over speakers. They made sure everyone was happy with the sound level ahead of the test...and I had no problems in hearing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pumpkin Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 ws your listening done over speakers or using headphones?? Never heard of it being with headphones to be honest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benthomas010 Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 Never heard of it being with headphones to be honest. Nor have I. I imagine by doing it over speakers you can guarantee everyone gets the same chance. No opportunity for equipment failure. If your using headphones there's a chance they go wrong. And then what do you do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fletchaman Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 Never heard of it being with headphones to be honest. funny thought it would have been the norm in case you got a room of man flu ;-) being the only English native speaker in the waiting room before it started was surreal even a Japanese lady asked why we were taking it lol, funny enough we couldn't answer other than its worth more points than a Bachelors Degree!!!!:biglaugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jac2011 Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 Im in the same boat Julie, I will be taking it on the 20th Sept. The academic version and need 8 points! Well I need a minimum of 7 points for my nursing skills assessment but will need 8s for my points so may have to resit the general test if I get 7s in the academic! Horrible :-( Why cant they at least make it interesting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JULIE RYCROFT Posted July 21, 2014 Author Share Posted July 21, 2014 Thanks guys, kids tv eh, well I dont have kids or have any around me really so ill have to swat up on that one, ill prob have trouble with the listening one by the sounds of things. Does it ask you questions about it afterwards, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benthomas010 Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 Listening is fairly easy. The questions are in the order of the conversation, and most are really obvious. You answer as you go so you don't need to recall anything. Only one question I missed the answer. Reading i found more difficult. There is a true false not given section which I found very subjective. When I was practicing I was getting questions wrong but couldn't understand why - I asked my work colleagues and they agreed with me. Hopefully just faulty mock exams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pumpkin Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 Thanks guys, kids tv eh, well I dont have kids or have any around me really so ill have to swat up on that one, ill prob have trouble with the listening one by the sounds of things. Does it ask you questions about it afterwards, Listening is easy, it is no time for day dreaming of course but it is easy. Two people speaking unnaturally slowly and very clearly in short snippets and then a question on what they said. It is very hard for a native speaker to go wrong on either listening or speaking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benthomas010 Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 Listening is easy, it is no time for day dreaming of course but it is easy. Two people speaking unnaturally slowly and very clearly in short snippets and then a question on what they said. It is very hard for a native speaker to go wrong on either listening or speaking. Totally agree with this. I think they make it unnecessarily difficult for foreign students by using so many accents but for natives it's a price of cake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeoSurfer Posted July 21, 2014 Share Posted July 21, 2014 I did mine last month and got S: 8.0, W:8.0, L: 9.0 and R: 9.0. Partly messed up the Writing by going off topic and ran out of things to say in the Speaking but still got 8's (not bragging or anything, just pointing out you are allowed to make mistakes, don't panic if something goes wrong). On the one hand I would make sure you are aware of the format and length of the tests, on the other hand, don't read too much into it. People often over-think the Listening and Reading but the answers are all there even if the topic is random. My main Reading topic was about the history of ceramic pottery or something?! A useful thing to do is to write a load of semi-nonsense on paper in your usual writing style and see how many words you average per line, then work out how many lines you need to write so you can quickly work out how much you've done in the real thing. It was the only preparation I did but it was very useful especially when I realised I was writing bollocks and had to rescue it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fletchaman Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Listening is easy, it is no time for day dreaming of course but it is easy. Two people speaking unnaturally slowly and very clearly in short snippets and then a question on what they said. It is very hard for a native speaker to go wrong on either listening or speaking. That's not what we had, we had a conversation that we had to answer questions to whilst the conversation/speach was going on, some of the answers were up to 3 words long and not worded in straight forward answer format, so the sentence was written one way on the paper, but the sentence on the tape was worded differently, more long winded. OH guessed one because it answered the question after before she had answered the one she was listening out for, so she just carried on thinking she had missed it but realised and tried to word it how she could vaguely remember at the end! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pumpkin Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 That's not what we had, we had a conversation that we had to answer questions to whilst the conversation/speach was going on, some of the answers were up to 3 words long and not worded in straight forward answer format, so the sentence was written one way on the paper, but the sentence on the tape was worded differently, more long winded. OH guessed one because it answered the question after before she had answered the one she was listening out for, so she just carried on thinking she had missed it but realised and tried to word it how she could vaguely remember at the end! I believe the format is standard. They play the tape in sections and there are a few easy questions to answer regarding what you are hearing. Then there is another section etc. Honestly if a native English speaker is struggling with the listening test, well I am lost for words... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fletchaman Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 I believe the format is standard. They play the tape in sections and there are a few easy questions to answer regarding what you are hearing. Then there is another section etc. Honestly if a native English speaker is struggling with the listening test, well I am lost for words.. Why is that Pumpkin??? you don't have to be struggling to miss a word or sentence!! and the multiple choice i dropped one on as i had 3 answers very similar i had to keep in my head. I blame the Geordie lass and Yankee bloke on the tape meself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Becstar Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Hi there i did mine in Australia on 17 May for exactly the same reasons. I recommend familiarising yourself with the test format. There is plenty of information available online. I also recommend getting practice materials and using them prior to the test. While there is nothing in the tests to catch you out, it is definitely worth knowing what they are looking for to achieve a high score. For example, there are times when you need to show that you can use different tenses and times to show off your vocabulary. Speaking descriptors: http://www.ieltsessentials.com/pdf/Speaking%20Band%20descriptors_2014.pdf Writing descriptors: http://www.ieltsessentials.com/PDF/Writing%20Band%20descriptors%20Task%201%20and%202.pdf some of the topics that you might have to talk or speak about can seem a little bit strange. The practice materials give you a good chance to explore some of the types of areas that come up so you can think about the sort of way you would answer. I heard from a lot of native speakers who hadn't done any practice that they found it hard. I think that was mainly because it seems awkward and artificial. If you do the practice questions you will lose that awkwardness and find it much easier (I did). the part I found hardest was the listening because my mind wandered during the test and so I wasn't concentrating 100% if you can keep your concentration I'm sure you'll be fine. i felt under a lot of pressure when I did mine as I also needed to score 8.0s for the 20 points. In the end I exceeded this requirement in every area. good luck :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fletchaman Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Hi there i did mine in Australia on 17 May for exactly the same reasons. I recommend familiarising yourself with the test format. There is plenty of information available online. I also recommend getting practice materials and using them prior to the test. While there is nothing in the tests to catch you out, it is definitely worth knowing what they are looking for to achieve a high score. For example, there are times when you need to show that you can use different tenses and times to show off your vocabulary. Speaking descriptors: http://www.ieltsessentials.com/pdf/Speaking%20Band%20descriptors_2014.pdf Writing descriptors: http://www.ieltsessentials.com/PDF/Writing%20Band%20descriptors%20Task%201%20and%202.pdf some of the topics that you might have to talk or speak about can seem a little bit strange. The practice materials give you a good chance to explore some of the types of areas that come up so you can think about the sort of way you would answer. I heard from a lot of native speakers who hadn't done any practice that they found it hard. I think that was mainly because it seems awkward and artificial. If you do the practice questions you will lose that awkwardness and find it much easier (I did). the part I found hardest was the listening because my mind wandered during the test and so I wasn't concentrating 100% if you can keep your concentration I'm sure you'll be fine. i felt under a lot of pressure when I did mine as I also needed to score 8.0s for the 20 points. In the end I exceeded this requirement in every area. good luck :-) all 3 of us must be thick to find the listening hard then ;-) well done for exceeding hope we do the same Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Becstar Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 all 3 of us must be thick to find the listening hard then ;-) well done for exceeding hope we do the same Haha! Good luck and do remember that you can make mistakes and still get 8.0 or over! Just don't panic and think you've fluffed it. Fingers crossed for you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steveinmunich Posted July 22, 2014 Share Posted July 22, 2014 Did Mine in Munich, February W 7.0 S 9.0 L 8.5 R 8.5 although I am a native speaker, you really have to study for this, if not to train yourself to listen attentively, then for the structure of the test. Knowing what is coming and in what order is immensely important. As they don't repeat anything twice. I did however, as you can see with my writing take it a little for granted.. Not sure why it was so low (7.0) as I thought it was pretty good. Should really have questioned it as I needed and 8 for 20 points, instead I have settled for 7 and 10 points. Annoying as average there would be at least an 8. Listen to the free podcasts, and learn to listen to each and every word, I find native English speakers listen only to the important words in sentences as they can do it. Hope this helps a little. Best Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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