Ielts faq ielts general informaton

Is spelling important? Yes, it is. If the answer is spelled incorrectly, it will be marked wrong. So, pay attention to the spelling.

Can I write T instead of True for the True, False, Not Given questions? Yes, it is possible to write a letter instead of a word.

Do all answers come in order? No, only some of the question types have answers which follow the order of the information in the passage. You need to learn which ones do and don’t. We will look at this at a later date.

How can I improve my reading skills?

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  Develop skills of each type of question in reading – focus on just one type of question each day to improve your technique.
  
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  Develop your speed-reading skills – the passages are long, and time is limited so you need to build up your speed.
  
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  Develop your ability to scan – IELTS reading is not about understanding everything, it’s about locating answers.
  
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  Read academic articles on various topics – read BBC news, the new scientist, the economist etc.
  
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  Practice – use practice texts to improve your skills and techniques, develop concentration, test your timing, and know your band score.
  

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  How can I improve my score for matching headings? There are a number of issues with matching headings. Firstly, you need to identify the main point of the paragraph or section. The main point could be the first sentence, in the middle or at the end of the paragraph. This is testing your ability to see the difference between a main point and supporting points. Secondly, spend time looking more closely at the headings. Think of what they mean, paraphrase the words and spot headings which seem to be similar to each other. Thirdly, you don’t need to approach the headings in order. I recommend you start with a heading which is distinctly different in content to the others – it will be quicker and easier to find. Fourthly, don’t waste time, if you can’t match the heading, then move on to the next heading. There are often more headings than you actually need. Lastly, don’t just try to match key words, try to match meaning. If the heading says “a description of…”, then you need to look for a paragraph which contains adjectives and descriptive language rather than looking for the word description. So, don’t just match the key words, try to predict the type of language you might find in that paragraph.
  

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  IELTS WRITING TEST INFORMATION
  

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