A Is For “Ask” If you are not sure exactly what is the question during the IELTS speaking section, then be sure to ask the examiner to repeat/rephrase the question – if you do not, you risk answering a different question. Try to use polite formal expressions, such as “Excuse me, please could you rephrase…
Do you have trouble with #IELTS Reading Section, True, False, Not Given type questions? Don’t worry, many students find this type of question one of the most challenging in the reading part. There are a few simple strategies that you can use to help you improve your accuracy and score while decreasing your stress. Here…
Be Prepared (Mentally and Physically) Let’s face it IELTS exams can be stressful. But what even more stressful is walking into an general IELTS exam unprepared knowing that you are going to do badly. So be prepared; Mentally: Make sure that you spend a significant time making yourself familiar with all of the material that…
Most students judge a good or bad teacher based on personalities and preferred learning styles. So what makes a good language or IELTS teacher/tutor? Like all good recipes, the ingredients for the teacher’s success are simple, easy to follow, and allow for practice and personal interpretation. First and most important quality of good foreign language…
To complete your IELTS letter writing task within 20 minutes, it is helpful to know some common phrases and set expressions. Being able to use these will allow you to express your ideas quickly and effectively, without thinking about each and every word. While you’re learning their meaning, also make sure you can spell them…
If you want to succeed on the IELTS exam, you must have a plan. You should focus on one section of the exam, like listening, and once you feel comfortable with your level, go to the next, speaking, reading and writing. From the beginning, keep a journal (in English) about your progress. In your Journal,…
There is a lot of confusion about the types of essay questions for Task 2 of the IELTS exam, and the correct structure for answering these. Some people believe there are four types of essays while other believe two and others still, believe many more. In fact, these are all true and false at the…
As a great IELTS Kung Fu mater once said, “If you stress, it is not IELTS who will defeat you, but you will have already defeated yourself.” It is very true that stress, also known as test anxiety, can be the worst enemy for a student. Stress can lead to confusion, inattention, discouragement and forgetfulness….
Pronunciation is important to get a good score in the IELTS speaking section, but the right pronunciation is not what students think. IELTS test-takers quickly learn that the listening section is mostly a British accent. At this time, it is important to note the difference between ‘accent’ and ‘pronunciation’: an accent is the articulation common…
We love feedback from our students. It helps us improve our IELTS learning materials, it helps us understand what students want and need, and it also helps us realize what many IELTS students don’t understand about studying and learning IELTS. In this blog post we will talk about some problems students have, and the solutions…
IELTS Preparation is a multi-billion dollar business worldwide. Millions of students prepare for IELTS and take IELTS every year. For many students, IELTS preparation means spending hundreds, if not thousands of dollars/pounds on IELTS courses. Sometimes these IELTS preparation courses are beneficial, sometimes they are not. Sometimes, these IELTS preparation courses teach bad habits and…
It is common knowledge that studying hard is the way to get a good score on any test, especially IELTS. This, however, is not true. Yes you need to study hard, but the best way to study IELTS is to “study smart”. What does studying smart mean? It means you don’t waste your time learning…
Studying IELTS is crucial to scoring well on the test. Setting a study schedule can help you to achieve your IELTS goals. The first point to consider when studying IELTS is when to start – the earlier you start, the better your score can be. If you are planning on taking the test in three…
Scanning and skimming is NOT enough to get a high score on the general IELTS. If you need a 5.0, then it can work, but if you need anything higher (which almost all work and immigration purposes require), you need proper IELTS reading technique – you NEED to read and understand the material, and use…
IELTS is getting to be a very popular English language test. It has been around for almost 20 years and in the last year more than one million people gained IELTS certificates for further education, employment or immigration purposes. The official IELTS website even says that because of the very large numbers of candidates in…
At present the results of the English language test of IELTS is valid for a two year period for Australian General Skilled Migration (GSM) applications. From 1st July this period will be extended to three years. This is part of the numerous changes to the GSM visa program to occur from July 1, 2012.
