Six tips to boost your listening
1. Again,
know the test!
I always
recommend answering the following questions before you take the test.
What
are the question types? (Each question type requires a separate strategy.)
What is the
format?
What is
expected from me for each part of the test?
What skills
do I need?
2. Practice,
practice, practice
Improve your
listening skills by becoming an active listener. Films and TV series may be fun
to watch, but going further will make a big difference. Listen to a variety of
English language resources, such as podcasts, news reports, and Ted talks,
which will expose you to new vocabulary and different accents (you may not just
hear British accents during the IELTS test recordings).
The aim is
to make listening a part of your daily life. You can find a variety of
interesting and fun content online. Start with topics you are most interested
in, before moving onto more academic material.
Being used
to hearing English will also give you the confidence you need to manage your
stress during the test.
3. It’s
all about the keywords
During the
test, the recording will be played just once, and you will be given time to
read the instructions and questions before the recording starts. Again, as you
read the questions, underline the keywords, and try to predict the context of
the recordings – who will be speaking, what the speech will be about.
I can’t
stress enough how important the keywords are. Think of other words that could
replace them, particularly, for the multiple-choice questions, as you may not
hear those exact words in the recording.
Concentrate
on the question or statement and try to predict what kind of information is
needed. Is it a noun? Is it a verb? Make sure the sentence you produce is
grammatically accurate, and you use the right form of the word.
4. Beware
of distractors
What you
hear first may not be the right answer, so watch out for distractors. For
example, the speaker may say one thing but then reverse their answer. You may
also find that the speaker mentions all the options with slight differences in
meaning. Pay attention to the details.
5. Don’t
wait too long to hear the answer
If you feel
like you’ve waited too long to hear the answer, the chances are you’ve already
missed it. A big advantage of the IELTS listening test is that you don’t need
to go back and forth to answer the questions; they are all in order, so just
relax!
6. Transfer
your answers carefully
At the end
of the paper-based test, you get an extra ten minutes to transfer your answers
to the answer sheet. Take care with spelling and capitalisation. If you’re
unsure about the correct capitalisation, you can write your answers in all
capitals. Take one last look at your answers to ensure they are grammatically
accurate and you’ve followed all instructions.
Remember,
you aren’t given any extra time to transfer your answers for the
computer-delivered test, where you need to type in your answers as you go.
What is the IELTS Listening
Test Format?
You will
have to listen to four recordings (conversations and monologues) and then
answer the questions asked. The recordings are of native English speakers and a
variety of accents are used. Remember, you can hear each recording only once.
Recording 1: You will listen to a dialogue
placed in daily life and context.
Recording 2: You will listen to a monologue
about everyday life or social context. For instance, a talk on the condition of
streets in an area.
Recording 3: You will listen to a
conversation between more than two people placed in a training or educational
context. For instance, a teacher discussing an assignment with students.
Recording 4: You will listen to a monologue
on any academic subject. For instance, a college lecture.
Helpful Tips
for IELTS Listening Test
Before the
recording begins for any section, do read all the questions carefully. This
will help follow the recordings and identify the answers easily.
Once a
section is complete, you can move ahead and read up the questions for the next
section.
At times,
there will be a list of options to make a pick from. It is not necessary that
the answers will be in the order you hear them, they may also be listed
alphabetically.
Do note the
word limits for each section. If an instruction says, ‘Write no more than two
words’, stick to it. If you write more than the specified limit, you may end up
getting no marks for the attempted answer.
Be attentive
and look out for the keywords or synonyms (words with the same or nearly the
same meanings as another word) from the question. This can help identify the
answer. For instance, if you hear in the recording: “She likes going to the gym
and playing tennis”; it could reflect on your answer sheet/ screen (in
computer-delivered IELTS) as “She is an active person.”
In questions
where you have to write down words spelled out in the recording, you need to be
well aware of the English alphabet and how they are pronounced. For instance,
the alphabet ‘W’ is pronounced as ‘double-u’).
Listen
carefully for words indicating the stage of the recording you are listening to,
e.g. ‘firstly’, ‘my next point’, ‘to sum up’. These words help identify which
question you have reached.
while
listening to a recording, you can keep crossing out the options that do not
fit. It makes it easier to find the right option.
If you have
to mention dates in any answer, remember there are various correct ways to do
so (e.g. April 24, 24th April and 24 April - all are correct).
If you face
trouble in answering any question, leave it and move on. Don’t waste time on it
and end up panicking. If you have time left in the end, come back to it later.
If you are
taking IELTS on paper, you are given 10 minutes to transfer your answers from
the Listening booklet to your answer sheet once the last recording is over. It
is best to wait till the recordings end to transfer the responses to the answer
sheet (and not in between sections) as you may end up missing some important
information about the test’s next section.
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