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You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post. yesterday my speaking exam was (((Melbourne-Australia)) - in part 1: about my name & where is my home town & describe your home town & using email instead of hand writing -part 2: describe place u visited with a lot of noise: why u went there - with who - when -do u liked it - part 3: about noise pollution & solve this issue
Posted by: Mona | Sunday, February 06, 2011 at 09:20

On 22/01/11 Australia I got speaking topic..... Part 1. Name, What yo doing?, More questions on my qualification....like why u like it? What will future scope? How important for you this course? Part 2: Describe a latest news you watched... What was the news? Who involved? What happened and why it was interesting for you? Part 3: About media and technology...
Posted by: Jay | Monday, February 07, 2011 at 07:06

My Speaking Test on Monday 7/02/11 (Melbourne, Australia) Part1. -Introducing and telling my hometown? -what do you like to do in your free time? -How does your free time important to you and will it change in the future? -Do you like dancing? -What and where was your last time to dance? Part2; -Describe one of Practical Skill that you learned (ex: cooking, driving). - How was it?

- How difficult it was? - Why and where you toke it? Part3; -Do you think Practical Skill is important? Why? -What do you think about learning a Practical skill without a teacher? -What are the differences of learning skill now a day and the past? -What you do think about Skill and Fact? -Does skill necessary for working place? -Who should response for the fee to learning a skill? Employer or Employee? - And some more questions related to skill which i can't remember... Cheers...
Posted by: huecam | Tuesday, February 08, 2011 at 09:04

Thanks every body for sharing your questions. Please, could you share us the writing task? :) Cheers
Posted by: Sara | Friday, February 11, 2011 at 06:18

task 2 It has been said that an individual behaviour in anti-social way, such as commiting a crime, society in general is to blame. What causes anti-social behaviour? Who shoud be resposnsibile to deal with it? AUSTRALIA
Posted by: saeed | Saturday, February 12, 2011 at 08:50

I just came back from my IELTS exam. The speaking and writing topics were: SPEAKING PART 1 - Introduce yourself. - What do you do? Are you a student? - Which sports you used to play when you were a kid? - There is any distinction between sports for boys and girls in your country? PART 2 - Describe a television quiz show that you would like to participate. - What's the name? - How would you prepare yourself for that? - Are those quiz shows famous in your country?

PART 3 - Are you a competitive person? - Do you find competition in your work? - What do you think about being a competitive person? Pros and Cons? - Do you think that to be competitive is part of the human being? WRITING TASK 2 -To rise standards of living in a country can cause problems in cities and rural areas. Talk about those problems and sugget solutions. ( Simon, I wasn't sure about what should I write on that, I followed your advice and I structured my text with an introduction, a paragraph about the problem, a paragraph with solutions and a conclusion. Everything was so fast, that i didn't have time to check. I'm not sure if the problem I gave is a real problem, hahha.. I would like to see you answer this one if it's possible.) Thanks for all your help, and good luck for everyone. Ps- Just something that I found out while doing the exam. As I'm use to writing my essays in the computer, I had a hard time writing it on paper. Believe me, I should have practice that before because everything is so fast that you don't have time to make any mistakes. I hope this helps!
Posted by: Gi | Saturday, February 12, 2011 at 21:02

SPEAKING task 2 examiner: let's talk about museums do you like to go to museums? when did you go to a museum last time? tell about it. (by the way, this particular question i had been ask twice - in different exams) task 3 Noise. Discribe the noisiest place that you have ever been to or experienced. Do you think there should be laws to control law? Then I have been asked about noise pollution. another exam task 3: Legislation Introduce the new law for a existing appropriate problem that a country or a place need (something like this)Then my discussion went to laws, lawers and so on....
Posted by: Elena | Sunday, February 13, 2011 at 01:26

WRITING TASK 2

Tourism develops the country but it can also cause harm. How does the country ensure that tourism benefits its development.
Posted by: Elena | Sunday, February 13, 2011 at 01:32

Ielts 12 of feb 2011 Writing topics (Not exact words but) Task 1 : You have purchased a expensive item from a shop recently.You have found the item damaged when unpacked the delivery. Write a letter to the manager of shop, in your letter you have to mention 1. what was the item 2. What was the damaged 3. what actions do you expect from the manager of shop Task 2: Most people these days believes,that, travelling abroad is a great experience for younger generation. But others think, it is a waste of time and money. Discuss the opinions and mention your point of view with suitabel example.
Posted by: QAOPS | Sunday, February 13, 2011 at 05:48

12.02.11 Kazakhstan, Atyrau Writing Task 1 was about change in island.Before there was not almost nothing, after there so many touristic buildings.Describe changes in island. Task 2: About advantages and disadvantages of working outside home Comment: Task 1: i was surprised when saw it such task, because i haven't prepared to this kind of task enough. And there is no direction south,etc. I did it in 25 min Task 2: it was normal task,quite easy.But some of my friends thought about working outside the country.at first,i thought so however then i understood.Be careful and be ready for every kind of TASK!
Posted by: Azamat | Sunday, February 13, 2011 at 07:37

exam date June 2010 Azerbaijan , Baku SPEAKING: APPROXIMATELY PART 1 ARE YOU STUDYING OR WORKING ? HOW DID YOU FEEL WHEN YOU FIRST GO TO UNIVERSITY ? WHO DOES COOK IN YOUR HOME ? DO YOU THINK TAHT YOU WILL COOK IN THE FUTURE ? :))

PART 2 WHAT IS THE THING THAT YOU HAVE BOUGHT BUT HAVE NOT USED ? HOW YOU BOUGHT IT ? FROM WHOM YOU BOUGHT IT ? WHY YOU DIDN'T USE IT ? PART 3 CAN YOU SAY SEVERAL THINGS THAT CAN BE RECYCLED ? ACTUALLY I WASN'T SURE MYSHELT TAHT I WILL ABLE TO SPEAK . BUT I GOT 6.5 FROM THIS SPEAKING PART WRITING SIMPLE PAY CHART DESCIBING PEOPLE IN DIFFERENT AGE GROUPS IN FOUR COUNTRIES IN FOUR PAY CHART SECOND PART IS THAT WHAT IS YOUR ATTITUDE TO CHILDREN' LEARING DIFFERENT LANGUAGES IN THEIR EARLY AGES ? I GOT 6 FROM WRITING
Posted by: Tabriz | Tuesday, February 15, 2011 at 15:24

Hi Gi, Have a look at the lesson below. It's similar to your topic about city problems. http://ielts-simon.com/ielts-help-and-english-pr/2010/11/ielts-writing-task-2-cityproblems.html Simon
Posted by: Simon | Tuesday, February 15, 2011 at 16:53

Dear Simon, I think I sat for the same exam as Elena's and our Writing Task 2 is rather ambiguous, don't you think? The question: "Tourism develops the country but it can also cause harm. How does the country ensure that tourism benefits its development". Many candidates said that the instruction is not direct. Should we discuss how tourism benefits development? Should we discuss the possible harm and suggest measures? Your opinion is appreciated, Simon. Writing Task 1: 4 pie charts that compare the distribution of water use across 3 sectors; Agriculture, Industry and Domestic for 4 countries; Egypt, Saudi Arabia, NZ and Canada. The listening went really fast and it was quite difficult because some answers were mentioned when you are still writing the previous one. The reading is also quite lengthy and the choices for NOT GIVEN and NO can be confusing at times.

The speaking part was rather long but very friendly 1. How do you organise your time? 2. What tools do you use to help you organise? 3. When was the last time you give a friend or a family member a gift? 4. Do you think it is easy to find a gift for friends and families? 5. What kind of gift you would like to have? 6. Describe a place near river/lake/sea that you visited when you were a child. Where is the place? Who did you go there with? What did you do there? Why you like/dislike the place? 7. Would you like to go there again? 8. What do you think are the functions of rivers nowadays? 9. What do you think of boats and ships as transportation? 10. Why people live near river/lake or sea?
Posted by: Nazri | Wednesday, February 16, 2011 at 00:54

Yes, the same. I suprised many people here are from Melbourne, Australia...)
Posted by: Elena | Thursday, February 17, 2011 at 01:19

Hi Nazri and Elena, I agree that the task 2 question seems to be written in an unusual way. Personally, (for the main body of the essay) I'd write a paragraph about the potential harm that tourism could cause. Then I'd write another paragraph about how the negatives can be avoided and/or how countries can make sure they benefit from tourism. Hope this helps
Posted by: Simon | Thursday, February 17, 2011 at 11:15

Hi. I wanna shre exam questions which I've taken on 17th of february (Azerbaijan, Baku) Reading: -Tatoos in micronesia -hot summer in 2003 - asian technology (satallites) Writing : chart describing, materials used for packaging in 3 different areas (USA,Japan, Europe) task 2: Some people think that government should provide care and financial support for people who retired while other believe that it's responsibility of each person. discuss both options and state your own opinion
Posted by: Elmin | Thursday, February 17, 2011 at 12:43

Some people believe that creative arts like painting and music, should have financial suport from the goverment. other argues that creative arts should get financial support from other sources. discuss both views and state your opinion.
Posted by: aguino | Friday, February 18, 2011 at 10:03

IELTS test on 14/03/1432 "yesterday" in Riyadh Writing task 1: It is a chart about the consumption of three materials (aluminum, plastic, glass, ?) in USA, Japan and EU in 2002. Task 2: Some people believe that a government's responsibility should provide care and financial support for people after they retire. Other said that people should help themselves. Do you agree or disagree, and what is your opinion? Speaking: Part 1: What is your home town? What is your city famous for? Do you meet new people? Did you study a history of your home town when you were a child and why? Part 2: Describe something naughty you did when you were a child. What is it? Why you do that? I'm not sure but I think tell a story about it? Why do you remember this? Part 3: Generally, it is about children and parents ( behavior, bad behavior of children now and in the past" compare, how parent can displine there children, should children do what parent say,. Hi Simon, could you please do a lesson about how we can aske questions, as I am srtugle with that somtimes. Thanks,
Posted by: Sara | Friday, February 18, 2011 at 11:23

Hi Sara The good news is that you don't have to ask questions in any part of the IELTS test!
Posted by: Simon | Friday, February 18, 2011 at 12:50

:) I konw, but I need to learn how to do a good question without any gramtical mistake, for dail coounication.

Cheers
Posted by: Sara | Friday, February 18, 2011 at 13:01

Hi Sara, Yes, that's true, but I'm afraid that 'question practice' is outside the scope of this website. You really need to find a "general English" website or teacher to help with that kind of thing.
Posted by: Simon | Friday, February 18, 2011 at 13:46

Hi all, My IELTS test was as follow: Writing task 1 A figure showing 5 materials used in Japan, Europe and USA for packaging. Writing task 2 To discuss and give our personal opinion about governments' responsability to care and to financially support people after the retiring age, or if people should save while working. Speaking p1 general questions about me and my town, and what was my town famous for. Speaking p2 to describe an ability that I was good at: what ability, where did I learn it,...(can't remember,sorry) Speaking p3 how can a teacher help a student that does not have particular abilities. What is the big influence for a child to develop a certain ability. Do you think is easy for adults to learn. This is what I remember from my test at Portugal. This was a backup test as i wasn't so confident to achieve a good result in my previous test. In my opinion, the test was similar to my first test, and fairly easy. I have to admit that this website was an excelent medium to achieve the results I wanted, L-6.5 R-6.5 W-6.5 S-8.5, overall 7 enough to apply to almost any university for my masters degree. Thanks Simon, I hope people find this contribution useful, as I found your website very valuably to study. good luck for everyone, never give up.

Posted by: Telmo Costa | Friday, February 18, 2011 at 23:42

IELTS (Acadamic) HCMC, Vietnam 19 FEB Writing task 1: line graph with 3 line about CD seeling Writing task 2: some people believe that women should play an equal role to men in contry's police force or millitary force, such as army. Others don't believe so. Discuss two ieads and what is your opinion
Posted by: Kim | Saturday, February 19, 2011 at 08:52

19-20/02/2011 Japan Hello Simon, your blogs really helped. I thank for it by posting these Qs. Writing tasks were exactly same as above(in Vietnum.) Speaking: part1:About my home town -Describe it -Have you learned the historical aspect of your town? -On what your town is famous for? About dancing(!); -Where did you see many people were dancing last time? -Have you ever learned dancing? part2:Describe outdoor activites you like -What it is -Where you do it -How often you do it part3: -What are the popular outdoor activities in your country? -Which do you think the outdoor activities more popular, in the younger generation or the older generation? -How is the outdoor environment changing? I could have some ideas about the dancing topic thanks for the blog. Cheers for everyone, K
Posted by: K | Sunday, February 20, 2011 at 04:29

Thanks for sharing guys. I'm glad the blog was useful for some of your questions. Simon
Posted by: Simon | Monday, February 21, 2011 at 10:46

Hi every one, Is there any body take the exame today? Thanks in advance,
Posted by: Sara | Thursday, February 24, 2011 at 16:57

Hi Simon! Thank you for all! I got band which i wanted. I used some of your phrases and got 6 in writing(i expected 5.5 or even 5) Regards from Kazakhstan Azamat
Posted by: Azamat | Friday, February 25, 2011 at 16:25

Hey are there anybody who takes exam on 10th march ?

Posted by: simona | Friday, February 25, 2011 at 17:12

Well done Azamat. I'm glad my phrases helped!

Posted by: Simon | Friday, February 25, 2011 at 17:28

Hi all, I took the exam today in Australia. Here is a synopsis: Writing: Task 1 We were shown two plans of a location called Mendow where some changes have taken place for building an international sports centre. The first diagram showed what the place looked like in the year 2000 and the second picture depicted what it looks like now. It also had some future plans listed to be completed in 2015. The task was to compare the two and list any significant changes that have taken place. Task 2 Countries should produce all the food that is required to feed its population and import as little as possible. Discuss this statement showing whether you agree or disagree with it. Speaking Module: Tell me about your hometown? When in school did you study much historical information about your hometown?

My cue card question was: Talk about a place where you usually like to eat lunch. Speak about 1. What the place looks like? 2. Who do you generally eat with? 3. What kind of food is served there? What do you think a restaurant can do to market itself? Would you recommend this place (the place I talked about in the cue card question) to me? Why? How do you think kids can be educated about eating healthy? Do you think food cooked at home is healthier than the food we eat outside? Why? What kind of food is considered healthy in your country? These were the questions but not necessarily in this order. The examiner was very friendly and even had a chat with me after he turned the recorder off :p haha Will update you all about my results. Good luck!
Posted by: Priya | Saturday, February 26, 2011 at 10:39

IELTS Academic Exam on 26th Feb'2011 (UK) 1.Listening section 1:Library information Section 2:Museum tour Section 3:student teacher about assignment section 4:Oak land Farmland scientific research 2.Reading: 1.origin of fruits and vegetables 2.Tidal Power 3.Collapsing Society 3.Writing: Task 1: graph shows the average working hours of workers in the year 1998-2004.and table show the number of paid holiday in the same period of time Task 2: Quality of life in big cities is becoming worse.Give the cause and measure that you think should take to solve it. Speaking: Part 1: 1.why do I choose my subject of study? 2.how my country will get benefit from it? 3.How many Language I know? How and when was I 1st started to learn in english? 4.How ofetn I practiced english?

5.how do I spend my day time?which part I like?why? 6. What The thing I dont like in my daily activities? Part 2 : Cue Card: Favourite Friend: When meet?why she/he favourite? How do you communicate with him?How she influenced me? Part 3: 1.What quality one friend must have? 2.Is it hard to make friend ship? 3.How people can become friend?is age can be a barrier?why?

Posted by: shameen | Saturday, February 26, 2011 at 21:19

Hi Guys I took the exam yesterday in Sydney, Australia. Writing Task 1 You found a small bag which contains name and address of the bag owner. Write letter to he/she in the letter - Describe where you found the bag - What is in the bag - How do you return the bag Writing Task 2 The modern invention brings many disadvantage to society, do you agree or disagree? Speaking test, I did it very bad, because it asked me about environment in the part 2. The question asked me like what you should do to protect our environment . I have no idea about environment but I just realize after I finished the speaking test that why why why why why why I dont talk about recycling. I am so dumb. Part 3, still asked me about wildlife environment but regarding wildlife. The question was about wildlife in my country and Australia and many questions about environment. Thats it. Game over..
Posted by: Ann | Saturday, February 26, 2011 at 21:33

Hi dear friends, I just came back from the test center in Canada, it was not that tough for me. The listening was a bit hard, mostly in the second part that she was explaining on the map and third part that was multi choice which was tricky. The writing was about the importance of history and different argument on if it is important. the first writing was a bar chart about the amount of money that 5 different countries spent on health via public or private sectors. speaking is different for every person...for example, my test was different from the next person that went to the same room. My topics was about my profession and how

important is to love your career and why .... and the second part about one of my close friends and how we started our relationship and .... the third part was about friendship and different questions on technology effects on relationships.... finding friends via internet, playing game via internet..... Unfortunately, they asked about OCEANIC SCIENCE from one of my friends in second part which she didn't know anything about it and she became embarrassed. Thank you very much Simon...your website is really useful and I learnt so much from it.I couldn't find such a huge useful information in any book.The information on the website helped me to be so confident. It is really appreciated. Good Luck every one
Posted by: Shirin | Saturday, February 26, 2011 at 21:52

Thanks for sharing guys.

Posted by: Simon | Monday, February 28, 2011 at 11:27

Hi, please, if anyone took the IELTS exame on 26/02/11,could you write the speaking questions? Cheers
Posted by: Sara | Monday, February 28, 2011 at 20:50

VIET NAM, Feb 26th 2011 Part 1: Where is your hometown? Have you learned about the history of your hometown at schools? How often do you write letters or email? What is your daily routine? Do you want to change your daily routine? What is your favorite time of a day? What is the time when you work best? Part 2: Describe a job which you want to try. - what this job is - where you can do this job - what skills which you have to learn - why you want to try this job

Part 3 What do you think about the relationships between colleagues at work? Do schools and universities train their students well with skills for their jobs in your country? What are the skills that universities or schools train for their students in your country? Do you think whether students should go to universities or work immediately after leaving schools?
Posted by: CAPTAIN BEAR | Tuesday, March 01, 2011 at 03:15

Dear Simon, I will be taking IELTS at British Councill of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 19 March 2011. I am considered myself as ZERO and i will working hard by doing alot of self-study via net. Anyone can join me as a group communication study at 012.616.9380 or my email ianketam at hot M and just com. I am so nervous. cheers, Rustam Affendi Abu Rahim
Posted by: Rustam Affendi Abu Rahim | Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 18:04

I'm taking it on this Saturday, in Kiev,so nervous too.=/

Posted by: Veronika | Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 18:49

hey ...anybody got exam tomorrow? i have exam tomorrow in nepal

Posted by: rajan | Friday, March 04, 2011 at 02:30

hey I have exam next week in NORWAY if somebody would like to have a study partner U are welcome to find me on Skyp by name Anakarde1 Or email me kodel89@inbox.lt we could have chat for practising and share reading texts
Posted by: simona | Friday, March 04, 2011 at 12:23

Hi Sarah, I took the exam on 26th, you can find my topic in this page. Go back for 8-9 comments. Good Luck
Posted by: Shirin | Friday, March 04, 2011 at 16:24

Hi Simon, Just had my IELTS test(academic)today.For writing task 1,there were three pie charts (Chile,Argentina and Mexico).The pie charts show how these 3 countries distribute their exports in different regions in 2004.Summarize the diagram and compare when necessary. For task 2,it's about mobile phones and internet.How can this technology be useful to the elderly? What are the suggestions that you can give to encourage the elderly to use this technology. For the speaking part,i was asked with the following questions: *do you find it difficult to buy a gift for your friends or loved ones? *talk about a small business that you know *Talk about business development *How important is teamwork in a business.
Posted by: rose | Saturday, March 05, 2011 at 16:40

hey , i had my ielts exam yesterday...my writing questions were the same as the rose ... For writing task 1,there were three pie charts (Chile,Argentina and Mexico).The pie charts show how these 3 countries distribute their exports in different regions in 2004.Summarize the diagram and compare when necessary. For task 2,it's about mobile phones and internet.How can this technology be useful to the old people? What are the suggestions that you can give to encourage the old people to use this technology. my speaking exam is on 9th march...
Posted by: rajan | Sunday, March 06, 2011 at 04:05

the same was in Kiev as in Rajan's and Rose's posts monologue was the followingyour last visit-tour relative or friend. whom? when? what where you doing?
Posted by: Veronika | Sunday, March 06, 2011 at 07:59

Hi, Simom. I just read the speaking question of Rose. In her speaking test, she has a question about the Business Development. What is that excatly? Because I am not a big fan of business. What should I do if I get that kind of question? Thank you
Posted by: georginacheung | Sunday, March 06, 2011 at 21:07

Hi Georgina, It's difficult because "talk about business development" would not be the full question it's just the topic area.

Maybe the full question was something like: "How do you think a business can develop successfully?" Just talk about using good advertising, making good products or serving customers really well. Give examples of good businesses that have grown because they do these things well. Hope this helps
Posted by: Simon | Sunday, March 06, 2011 at 21:19

Hey Simon, I get it. Thank you for replying.

Posted by: Georgina | Monday, March 07, 2011 at 11:16

No problem.
Posted by: Simon | Tuesday, March 08, 2011 at 15:53

IELTS Speaking test in the UK February 2011 Interview - What is your name? - What can I call you? - Tell me about your home town. - What do you think it is famous for? - Where did you learn about the history of your hometown? - Do you like your home town and why? Cue Card Describe a job that you would like to do. Please say: - What kind of job it is? - Where would you like to do it? - How would you like to do it? Discussion - Do you like sports? - What kind of sports have you played as a child? - Do girls and boys play the same sports in your country? - What are the ways to search for job? - What is the most efficient way in you view? - What are the challenges that one is facing while searching for a job? - Why is it becoming difficult to find a job these days? - Do you watch movies? - What kind of movies do you like? - Do you prefer to watch a movie at home or in the cinema?
Posted by: Kamran | Tuesday, March 08, 2011 at 19:17

IELTS Speaking test in Nepal 9th March 2011 Interview - What is your name? - Tell me about your home town.Is it small or big? - Do you like your home town and why? - Do u like to do household works?? is it important to do?? why do u think it is important? - do you believe in lucky number?? - Do u think it is easy to remember dates n numbers?? how do u memorize it? Cue Card Describe a vehicle that you would like to buy. Please say: - What kind of vehicle it is? - how it looks? - why do u like it? Discussion - Did u ever ride in that vehicle? - What kind of transportation facilities do u have in ur town? - what is the difference in transportation system in the past and the today?? - what type of transportation system will be in the future??? - Is there any kind of traffic jams in ur town?? - what r the solutions for the traffic jams?
Posted by: Rajan | Wednesday, March 09, 2011 at 06:41

Hey everybody :) I am just after my Ielts exAM IN OSLO :) so I should say listening and reading for me was challenging but speaking and writting quite smooth,will see how much I will get total :) SO would like to share speaking questions and Writting topic :) writting essay topic was :) SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT BENEFIT FROM INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION IS PROTECTING ENVIRONMENT,OTHERS THINK THAT INTERNATION COOPERATION IS WORLD BUSINESSESS,dISCUSS BOTH VIEWS AND GIVE YOUR opinion. Speaking part I think was quite easy and simple,no any challenging or smart question, 1 where u came from 2 where young people make meetings in your country 3 how people meetings has changed from past

4 do u often fly with plain? 5 how u often communicate with friends Topic 2 was Describe a item u have recently broken ,and tell how it happened ,have u fixed it and like that Some more questions,was DO people prefer repair things if they broke or put in garbage WHat kind of things mostly tend u broke easily How people used to behave with broken things in the past,repair or no Why people buy clothes from SEcond hand shops, It is easy to find job in your country, So for me was quite easy,I was lucky at least fro speaking:) And writting tasl 1 was Line 2 grafs in one,about Japan population from 1960 with forecast in 2040 so Good luck for everybody :)
Posted by: simona | Thursday, March 10, 2011 at 16:56

Hey simon, Could you share some ideas about simona's task 2 of writng? Why the benefit of internatinal cooperation is protecting environment? i am going to take the ielts on saturday. Because i am also in the european exam center, so i wont have the same topic as simona in oslo, right? Thank you very much.
Posted by: Georgina | Thursday, March 10, 2011 at 23:21

Simona, Thank you for sharing

Posted by: Georgina | Thursday, March 10, 2011 at 23:22

Hi Simon and everyone, I took the test on March 11 in Toronto, and some of my topics were: Writing Part 2: Studies show that there is an ever-increasing proportion of the younger population (15 and under) in some countries. What current and long-term effects can this trend cause in those countries? Speaking part 2: Describe a friend who is a leader. Thanks, Katya
Posted by: Katya | Friday, March 11, 2011 at 02:44

Hi Georgina, I won't have time to look at that question before your exam. But don't worry - you will have a different topic. Good luck!
Posted by: Simon | Friday, March 11, 2011 at 11:45

Hi, My writing task 2 topic on 12/03/11 was: Competitiveness is considered to be a positive quality among people. How does competitiveness affect individuals? Is competitiveness a positive or negative quality?
Posted by: Sam | Saturday, March 12, 2011 at 13:49

l took ielts 12 march in london. writing 2--more and more countries open their doors to the tourists .many people believe that the advantage of tourism outweiht the disadvantage of it. what is your view.discuss -describe a friend you helped him
Posted by: mahomed | Monday, March 14, 2011 at 00:27

Hello My test was in Jordon 12 March Speaking: How did you learn your English? How important is to learn a new language? Suggest a new law that could help your country. How easy do you think it can be enforced? How popular do you think that law will be? Why is law necessary? In which case do you need a lawyer? What is the most important trait that the lawyer should have? What's the most significant thing about the lawyer job? Do you think the law should be updated from time to time? Why? Do you find police job suitable for women? Why? Writing: Advantages of tourism to the host country outweigh its disadvantages. Do you agree or disagree?
Posted by: Salih | Monday, March 14, 2011 at 15:05

Hi Simon,

I appreciate if you answer my below question: Regarding the topic I just shared: Competitiveness is considered to be a positive quality among people. How does competitiveness affect individuals? Is competitiveness a positive or negative quality? --------------------------------------------------Is it acceptable if we talk about the effects of competitiveness in the first body paragraph, and in the second paragraph, we begin by saying: TO A CERTAIN EXTENT I BELIEVE THAT competitiveness is a positive quality; However, it may have some drawbacks.... Since the question is not asking directly to "give your own opinion", IS IT ACCEPTABLE THAT I HAVE USED "I BELIEVE" in the second body paragraph??? However, the question required us to give reason and example from our own experience. Thank you
Posted by: Sam | Wednesday, March 16, 2011 at 06:54

Hi Sam, I've used this topic as a lesson (see today's blog post). Your suggestion is fine, and "I believe" is a good phrase to use - even though it doesn't say it directly, the question is asking for YOUR opinion.
Posted by: Simon | Wednesday, March 16, 2011 at 16:56

Hi Simon, thanks for your great help! i got a really good score just reading ur advice about writing (esp. keeping the intro very short and working on body p.) my questions:HONG KONG-MARCH 2011 speaking: Tell me about your hometown? What do you think about museums? Why are they important? What do you celebrate in your country? How and where do you celebrate it? When do you celebrate it? How do you learn about your traditions? Is it better to learn them from older generations or book? Do you think other countries influence your country's culture? Is it a positive or negative thing? Do you think younger generation care about traditions or older generation? that is all i can remember

writing: task 1: Two charts comparing female and male driving licence holders task 2 Some ppl think governments should spend money on saving languages which are not spoken widely whereas other think they should not since it is a waste of money.

Posted by: Didem | Friday, March 18, 2011 at 07:41

Thanks Didem. I'm pleased to hear that you followed my advice!

Posted by: Simon | Friday, March 18, 2011 at 17:13

Hi Simon, Writing Task 2: Around the world, more adults will work from home, and children will study from home, as computer technology becomes cheaper and accessible. Do you think it is a postive or negative development? I have written it is a positive development. I gave reasons why adults work from home is good (1 paragraph) and why children study from home is good (another paragraph) However, I also one more paragraph how cheap computer technology help the people in developing countries. Do you think this paragraph is relevant to the question??
Posted by: Ming | Saturday, March 19, 2011 at 07:03

Hi simon March 2011 question (general training) from bangladesh writing task-1 Complain to the local environmental officer of your locality about a lot of rubbish in your area.describe the rubbish come from where, what problem did, give some suggestion to officer to prevent it. task-2 Some people think that student should attend the extra classes after finished their school, some others believe that allowed them to play. In what extent do you agree or disagree?
Posted by: ara | Saturday, March 19, 2011 at 13:39

Hi, Simon . I'd like to share with the people my yesterday's exam questions . exam date 03.19.2011

Speaking where are you from About your hometown tell me about history of your hometown Are you tought about your history at school Part 2 Describe a gift that you purchased to give somebody who this person is what you give and when why you choose him Did he like it Part3 in your country what you give as a gift ? Is this possible to give money as a gift ? is there any special ocassion that you give a gift to each other Listenin was difficult because besdies first section all other sections were just text and this made questions very difficul to be read. I found reading quite normal.there almost wasn't any insolvable question. Writing about modern life and its influence to the dependence and independence of people from each other .what is your opinion are people more dependent from each other or not ? another part was about cinema and visit here in three country .However I couldn't come to an end it was quite easy thanks
Posted by: Tabriz | Sunday, March 20, 2011 at 06:17

hi simon.. I took the exam yesterday in London. And its all the same with Tabriz. The reading part was difficult as we have to struggle with the time. The long passages made it difficult. Theres like 10 paragraph in each pasages. 1. Dinosaur 2. The Ebook 3. The Sun About the writing: Task 1 is to compare 3 different countries in terms of the cinemas,total number of visits per year and the average. It was a table though. Task 2: the same thing as Tabriz.

Listening: It was difficult because most of the part are fill in the blank. Either one word or two words. And if you cannot go with the flow,youll lose points because every speaker would include 10-12 questions. Speaking: About a new law youll propose to your hometown or government. How will it affect? How can the new law make your life easy?
Posted by: shani | Sunday, March 20, 2011 at 12:01

Hi simon, i just had my academic exam yesterday. the listenig part was ok, eventhough there was no head set for candidates and there was one loud speaker for everybody. reading was quite difficult. The topics included: research on dinosausers size popularity of e-books planets and space Writing Task 1 : A table showing number of cinemas in Three countries in 1995 & 1999 and number of total visits made by people and frequency of individual visits. Task2 :some people think, in the modern world people are more dependant on each other while others think people are more independant. Discuss both views Speaking : Hometown and its history What it is famous for Holiday and what do you do on holiday What kind of news is interesting to you How important is live news to you Cue card Describe something naughty you did when you were a kid -what -why -what happened next part 4 problems of parents in bringing up their kids Should kids always obey what parents say why some kids are disobedient at some times compre the problems parents face today and in the past. It was quite easy questions.

Now i am waiting for the result. thank you for all the support. Your site was really helpful
Posted by: vidya | Sunday, March 20, 2011 at 12:45

Hello Simon. I found this website by accident but it proved very helpful. Thank you for the precious piece of advice you share with all of us. I took the exam yesterday in Bulgaria. My writing task was: 1) a table comparing the number of cinemas and cinema visits in three countries over a 4-year period ( I followed your recommendations and I hope I did well) 2) Are people in the modern world becoming more or less dependent on each other? Discuss both sides and give your opinion. I will share with you my speaking topics on Tuesday. Good luck to everybody who is about to take the exam (it is not as scary as I expected :D)
Posted by: Gabriela | Sunday, March 20, 2011 at 15:21

It is good to share our exam questions .We can see that these questions are the same in all countries.Actually, I think that reading part was't difficult(however time will show whether it was difficult or not).mainly the vocobulary of the third part was some more unfamiliar.but, you were some more awake then answers can esayily be found.for example, there was heading with the phrase 'Solar System' to be matched with the paragraphs .and Solar System was only the last paragraph of the text. that is way you do not need to read hole text to find it. but listening indeed was very difficult. it is required from you to read fastly long questions and at the time to listen the recording and one thing , what did you write for the date in first section of listening ? november or october Examiner, in speaking might be Pakistani beacause she was sounding br br :))
Posted by: Tabriz | Monday, March 21, 2011 at 11:55

Hi Tabriz :) I wrote October 31st in the Listening Section 1. However, in my opinion listening was a lot easier than reading but I assume it depends on the individual. Good luck with the results.
Posted by: Gabriela | Monday, March 21, 2011 at 15:12

Hi Ming, Your answer seems fine to me - the last paragraph might be a bit less relevant, but it should be ok. ...

Thanks for sharing this week's questions guys! I used the "dependence" question with my students today, so I'll put our ideas on the blog on Wednesday. Simon
Posted by: Simon | Monday, March 21, 2011 at 17:07

Hi Simon, I want to score 8 band in writing. I have already scored 7 band for writing. But, I am finding it hard to reach the level of 8 band. I need your help. Looking forward to hear soon from you.
Posted by: kissa | Saturday, March 26, 2011 at 05:16

Hi Kissa, It's difficult for me to help because I haven't taught you. What you really need is a teacher who can analyse your written work and point out where improvements can be made. My best piece of general advice for achieving band 8 would be to work on the 'range of vocabulary' that you use to express your ideas.
Posted by: Simon | Sunday, March 27, 2011 at 12:11

Hi Simon, I need to score band 7 in all components of the test. Your ideas were really helpful for me on the writing task, the problem was that I did not have enough time to study them so as a result I scored only 6.5 on my first test. The most challenging ones for me are the reading and the writing tasks. Is purchasing your e-book the best way to improve my writing skills? and how could I improve my reading besides using the great tips of your website? Looking forward to hear soon from you.
Posted by: Lilian | Sunday, April 03, 2011 at 16:14

Hi Lilian, The ebook will help with ideas for common writing topics. All of the ideas are expressed using excellent vocabulary and correct grammar, so I'm sure you would find it useful. For reading, you just need to keep practising - the Cambridge books are the best because they contain real tests. Hope this helps
Posted by: Simon | Monday, April 04, 2011 at 18:57

Dear Mr. simon, Thank you for your great efforts. Referring to the exam that I did three days ago on 02-04-2011 in the UK please find the following questions:

Listening: First section: General conversation for opening File with GP ( new patient). Second section: Describe for tow teams one joniors and another seniors> Third section: academic topic about collect data for research. Fourth section: Topic gives A Brief History for shuttles and trains. Reading: Passage 1: Title> The last man who new every thing Thomas Young > auther by Andrew Robinson http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2007/jan/20/featuresreviews.guardianreview7 Passage 2: Educations theories about pupils behaviour. Passage 3: Marketing study. writing: Task 1: write about tow Bar chart . the first about puplis who studied 4 diffrent subjects in 1995> and the second one about the same things but in 2005. Task 2: some people agree to use the modern tech. in farming such as factory and creating a new products for fruit and vegatab.others oppose this statment. Discuss those and give your opinion? --------------------Mr simon I need to have an answer for a question : I'm just wondering : In the reading exam , I wrote T/F/NG instead of True/False/ Not given, is it acceptable or not? Please give a certain answer because i'm worried about that? Thanks alot
Posted by: ahmed S | Tuesday, April 05, 2011 at 00:17

Hi Simon, Thank you very much for your advices. I am sure they will be of great help.
Posted by: Lilian | Tuesday, April 05, 2011 at 19:23

can u plz give me some useful suggestion regading reading ielts practice ,and which council is better whther its idp or Bc .Thanks
Posted by: kiran sharma | Tuesday, April 05, 2011 at 20:18

Hi Simon, can u plz give me some useful suggestion regading reading ielts practice ,and which council is better whther its idp or Bc .Thanks
Posted by: kiran | Tuesday, April 05, 2011 at 20:20

I took the exam last Saturday on 2/4/2011 my exam questions were the same as Ahamed Simon, could you please discus writing task 2 the one about the agriculture
Posted by: Aisha | Tuesday, April 05, 2011 at 20:51

Thanks Ahmed. T, F, NG is fine. ... Np problem Lilian. ... Hi Kiran, IDP is like the Australian version of the British Council - IELTS belongs to them both equally (along with Cambridge University). Click the link below for reading practice: http://ielts-simon.com/ielts-help-and-english-pr/2010/11/do-some-ielts-readingpractice.html ... Hi Aisha, I'll do a lesson about the 'farming' question soon.
Posted by: Simon | Wednesday, April 06, 2011 at 17:11

Dear simon, thank you for the repaly. I want to be confident again in the email which was done they wrote ( False ) so i understand that even if they put the example in full word like False , F is acceptable by eximaner. It's confusing. I heard that the answer sheet is corrected by computer , is it true? becuse I'm wondering how can computer read the answers.
Posted by: ahmed S | Wednesday, April 06, 2011 at 17:45

Hi Ahmed, I'm sure that "F" is fine. To be honest, I'm not sure whether a computer checks the answers - it's something I need to ask about.

Posted by: Simon | Wednesday, April 06, 2011 at 17:57

Thank you very much. That means originally, Reading and listening are corrected by examiner manually through colouration the column that beside the answers and then computer accounts score. Isn't it ? Reagrds, ahmed
Posted by: ahmed S | Wednesday, April 06, 2011 at 21:05

Hi Ahmed, Examiners only mark the speaking and writing tests. Reading and listening tests are sent to a central office (e.g. in Cambridge), so I can't say for definite how they are marked there. I'll try to find out.
Posted by: Simon | Friday, April 08, 2011 at 15:25

Thanks Simon for your response. Anyway, the fundamental thing is if they ask you to write True or False or Not given , they accept your answers which were written in T&F&NG . warm regards,
Posted by: ahmed S | Friday, April 08, 2011 at 23:44

Hi everyone, Ahmed, who say that? or it is just what do you think? Cheers,
Posted by: sara | Saturday, April 09, 2011 at 22:09

Dear sara, What do you mean in your Q? If you mean writing T&F&NG instead of True & False & Not given in reading section, Mr simon told me that it was fine. You can ask him youself
Posted by: ahmed S | Sunday, April 10, 2011 at 01:28

Hi Ahmed, Please, don't be angry. I have already asked Mr Simon about that but he said to you and I, he needed to aske. I have asked you because I noticed you are completly confedent with your answer. Cheers,
Posted by: sara | Sunday, April 10, 2011 at 22:01

Hi sara, Mr simon mentioned that: "I'm not sure whether a computer checks the answers - it's something I need to ask about". So he needed to ask about how the exam is corrected ". However, He confirmed that T&F&NG are fine. Please re-read his reply. Is't clear now? regards,
Posted by: ahmed S | Sunday, April 10, 2011 at 22:21

Hi Ahmed, Thank you for your replying. What I am understanding from Simon's answer is that he wanted to aske if F, T and NG are redable through computers or not. Thanks,
Posted by: sara | Sunday, April 10, 2011 at 22:48

Hi sarah, to correct your understanding , Mr.simmons' answer is to ask if the exam generally is corrected by computer or not. regards,
Posted by: ahmed S | Monday, April 11, 2011 at 00:42

Hi Ahmed and Sara, Just to confirm - I'm sure that "T, F, NG" are accepted, but I'm not sure whether exams are checked by a computer or a human. I'll find out as soon as I can.
Posted by: Simon | Monday, April 11, 2011 at 17:38

Writing task 1 A line graph shows daily visitor of a museum in autumn and summer. Writing task 2 Some people welcome cheap air traveling but some argue that it will add more environmental problem. Please provide your opinion. Hi, Simon. I stumbled upon this blog 3 days before the ielts exam when I was kinda worried because I haven't really prepared for the writing task. I found it very helpful with very clear yet simple explanation given to all. I applied the writing technique learned from your blog...And, I just got my result today. I scored 7 ^0^ Thank you simon!!!Your blog is AWESOME!!

Regards Aly, Malaysia

Posted by: Aly | Friday, April 15, 2011 at 16:21

Hi Simon! This is from Bangkok, Thailand. 16th April 2011 Many people believe that it is important to protect the environment, but they make no effort to protect it themselves. Why do you think it is the case? What actions do you think that individuals can do to protect the environment I've written the first paragraph why protecting the environment is important. My second paragraph is about the ways people should do to protect it. Do you think that my answers are fine? Thanks a lot
Posted by: Pete01 | Saturday, April 16, 2011 at 07:54

Hi Aly, That's fantastic news! I'm glad the blog helped. ... Hi Pete, Your answer seems fine. Did you explain why people make no effort to protect the environment?
Posted by: Simon | Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 14:52

Simon If the topic "Describe something in home that was broken/stopped working" Do you think it's find to tell the examiner that I can't remember about something in home that stopped working, but recently my mobile phone stopped working temporarily? Thanks a lot for your answers!
Posted by: Pete01 | Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 15:27

16/4/2011 Australia speaking topic part1 studying/working information received from TV or elsewhere

part2 describe something that you are good at doing what is it how did you learn why do you think you are good at it what do you feel when you are doing it part3 what parents can do to support when children have special talents? How children know they have talents? What problems may smart children have when interacting with their friends?
Posted by: Elly | Monday, April 18, 2011 at 07:57

16th april 2011- UK. Task 1: There were two pie charts. One pie chart showed a foreign language course training done by employees through part time. full time or evening course. The other chart showed the reasons given by employees for learning a foreign language. Task 2: Rich countries should not offer skilled jobs to people from poor countries because they need more. do you agree or disagree? Speaking: Historic town. what is favourite about your place. about games- girls and boys. 2mts session: a piece of advice. who gave it, why and was it useful. questions on: Online business advisors- risks and advtantages associated. online business declining or growing?
Posted by: Sachin | Monday, April 18, 2011 at 17:35

Hi everyone, I have a question about whether there are any guidelines to writing answer, eg on a practice exam I got some questions wrong because I wrote "A and B" and the answer was supposed to be "A, B" (ie a comma instead of 'and') or used unshortened version of don't, wouldn't (i.e. i wrote "do not" and "would not" but the answer was marked as wrong because the correct answer used "don't" and "wouldn't". Furthermore, I've seen, in a single reading text, an inconsistent use of hyphenated words and when I wrote my answer with a hyphen it got marked as incorrect because the expected answer didn't contain a hyphen... etc.

Are these problem just specific to practice exams and do similar ambiguities in answers appear on the real exam as well? Are there any general guidelines on how to avoid writing down a correct answer in an incorrect form? thank you
Posted by: Tomas | Tuesday, April 19, 2011 at 16:00

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Comments

You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post. Hello Everyone, Good news - I got great results. L-8.5, R-7.0, W-7.5, S-8.5. This is what i wrote for task 2. Hope this helps someone. Full time university students spend most of the time studying. They should be doing other activities too. To what extent do you agree or disagree.

In todays world, majority of the prospective full-time university students are spending most of their time studying. As such, I completely agree that they need to spend time doing other activities too. This will be shown by looking at how physical wellbeing and family life is important along with education. For one, pupils need to spend time on physical activities. Take Shanghai, for example. Students in Shanghai are well known for their high education. This is demonstrated by the economic contribution they make to their countrys benefit. The drawback here is that, these pupils are becoming obese by spending most of their time on studying, and not doing any sport. Thus, as can be clearly seen from my example there is a need of physical exercise as well. In addition to this, Students need to concentrate on family relations. To illustrate, in America, pupils often traverse longer distances and live at student residences in order to commit to full-time studies. This leads to a strain in their family relations. Living with family allows them to have a sense of empathy and makes them a responsible person. This makes it clear why pupils need to indulge in other activities as well as in education. In conclusion, after looking at how important physical health and relations are in students lives; it has now been proven that pupils need to spend time on other activities as well. It is predicted that this continues to be followed into the foreseeable future.
Posted by: RN | Thursday, March 08, 2012 at 10:26

You mean that it was your subject for Task2 in 8th March ielts exam?
Posted by: Arghavan | Thursday, March 08, 2012 at 11:09

Hi Simon, While enjoying the content of the website, I realized that in Recent exam questions all content is missing. There are only 2 posts on 8th of March 2012. Will I still be able to access these valuable comments with past topics of writing and speaking exams. Thanks
Posted by: Marat | Thursday, March 08, 2012 at 14:29

Hi everyone, Plese anyone can post the writing task 2 questions of 8th march.. thankyou
Posted by: JJ | Thursday, March 08, 2012 at 20:12

Hi Simon, Can you please repost the yesterdays valuable comments with past topics of writing and speaking exams. Thanks
Posted by: Lourdes Matala | Friday, March 09, 2012 at 00:05

IELTS AUSTRALIA 10/3/2012.

SPEAKING: Talk about a letter u received. WRITING-2: In many countries the proportion of older people is increasing than younger people. Is it a negative or positive development. GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE.
Posted by: Rocky | Saturday, March 10, 2012 at 03:55

Hi Simon, just got my result....and finally i got: L. 7 R. 7 W. 7 S. 8 over all: 7.5 I am so happy...Thank you so much for this wonderful website. your website has helped me so much in preparing for this stupidest exam in the history of english language:):):) Once again thank you so much Simon. Good luck everyone and don't give up dont get disheart... I passed it on the fourth attempt. Thank you Simon and everyone
Posted by: Khushi | Saturday, March 10, 2012 at 15:02

10.03.2012 Speaking part 2: Describe an old person you find interesting to talk with. Speaking part 3. Why do some organisations want to employ older people? Do you think fixed retirement age is a good idea? Why do some people want to work after retirement? and some questions about ageing something like effects of having more older people Writing task 2: Experts say that older people ....exercise daily. (there was something like experts say that this is good for older people, sorry I can't remember) However older people are suffering from loneliness and having poor fitness. What are causes? What kind of measures should be taken to solve the problem? *Words were a bit different. Best of luck in exams!!!
Posted by: Aika | Saturday, March 10, 2012 at 15:17

Congratulations Khushi. Fantastic scores!

Posted by: Simon | Saturday, March 10, 2012 at 17:52

hi RN and Khushi, RN i found your essay clear and up to the mark.i want to ask 1 thing that did you used any formate to write your essay like for introduction,body para and all.if you can tell then i can get some idea. Khushi, please give me some tips for writing that how you did preparation and in exam how you manage writing and reading.by the way from where you finally got passed.
Posted by: siya | Sunday, March 11, 2012 at 00:22

hi, im planning to take my exam this april, but im not sure if im ready for ielts exam...my question is that how would i know if im ready to take the exam,, thank u simon..
Posted by: jen | Sunday, March 11, 2012 at 02:14

Hi Siya... I just followed Simon's advice and his format in writing. I took a one day course with Simon on reading and writing. I used to write one or two essays everyday on different topics and read a lot of band 8 and 9 essays. I did a lot of reading practice everyday. My advice for you would be write essay every single day and try to buy Simon's book its very helpful and follow his day to day lessons and practice practice and practice for reading. I took the exam in Bangor, United Kingdom. Good Luck my friend. if you need any further help I am here everyday. Sincerely
Posted by: Khushi | Sunday, March 11, 2012 at 09:02

hi I'm from saudi arabia and my test was 8 march 2012 The writing task 2 it is about children should taught in school just academic skills, but things such as cook or other activites the should learn it at home. agree or disagree? and the writing task 1 about (chart) water in australia .. sorry if i make mistake :\ i hardly remember it ! and the speaking was about Describe job you want to do : why this job? what you do?

and she asks me different question about my hometown and travel and who is get a high salary in saudi and why? and the teenager paid work ... i hope we got a high score !!
Posted by: Lamyaa | Sunday, March 11, 2012 at 18:10

Hi all, Good news for everyone, I found excellent, very cheap IELTS essays correction for only 3 per essay with a very detailed Evaluation Report and Suggestions at:http://www.bestieltscollection.info/correction-service.html
Posted by: Maya | Sunday, March 11, 2012 at 22:54

hii khushi, i also want to ask that vocubulary is very important because from last 4 times i got only 6 while i want to achive 7 in each module.u followed easay stucture of simon. u mentioned that u were reading essay of 8 and 9 band but did u make notes of an important words from that.
Posted by: siya | Thursday, March 15, 2012 at 23:43

Hi All, Had on more go today and topic was very easy for writing plus task-1 was also easy, Task-1 electricty production by 4 different types of fuel b/w 1996 to 2000. Task-2 in some countries somesutdents stay at home and go to university while some prefer to go away from home to attend university. Do adv outweight disadvantages. speaking-famous person in new hope this helps
Posted by: TAHIR | Saturday, March 17, 2012 at 20:09

THANKS Simon, Your e-book is great,I read you e-book before exam and managed to write task-2 in 30 mins becasue when I read exam question I didnt have to brainstorm ideas as I already had ideas what to write from your e-book. Another thing there are less chances of mistakes as I have copied your ideas.
Posted by: TAHIR | Saturday, March 17, 2012 at 21:27

No problem Tahir. I'm glad the ebook helped.

Posted by: Simon | Sunday, March 18, 2012 at 11:20

hi simon, i have a problem in writing task 2..because i cannot support my arguments sometimes

and i cannot prevent from using big words that is not related to the topic as well as i tend to use wordy structures..im taking academic..i go around the bush what would you advise..thank you..
Posted by: jen | Tuesday, March 20, 2012 at 06:17

how can I avail of the ebook..because im from the philippines..thank u very much..IS IT OK IF I BOUGHT THAT BOOK because im planning to take my ielts on april 21..can i have more time to read on it..
Posted by: jen | Tuesday, March 20, 2012 at 06:20

i am having problem in getting e book . i dont have pay pal account or card :(
Posted by: simona | Wednesday, March 21, 2012 at 07:09

Hi Simon, all, I found this writing task-2 topic in IELTS book. Can we brain storm on it? Very few schoolchildren learn about the value of money and how to look after it, yet this is a critical life skill that should be taught as part of the school curriculum. Do you agree or disagree?
Posted by: Marat | Thursday, March 22, 2012 at 09:37

Hello Simon, I have just received my results, here they are: Overall: 8.0 L-9, R-8, S-7, W-7. I'm delighted!!! Thank you for your lessons!They helped me a lot! :D
Posted by: Aika | Thursday, March 22, 2012 at 18:43

Well done Aika. Great scores!

Posted by: Simon | Saturday, March 24, 2012 at 23:05

hi simon, im having loer and ler scores in reading what strategy can you give me..thank you very much..how can I Avail of the ebook?im taking my exam on may 12..
Posted by: jen | Wednesday, March 28, 2012 at 01:43

Jen, look at this page to see Simon's reading strategies: http://ielts-simon.com/ielts-help-and-english-pr/2010/12/ielts-reading-advice.html You also need to practise a lot!
Posted by: Jim | Wednesday, March 28, 2012 at 11:45

I took the exam today in Turkey. The following are the speaking questions; Part 1: What is your full name? Describe your home? Why do you like your home? What kind of house or apartment do you want to live in in the future? What do you think about indoor games? Do you play any indoor game? Would you like to play any indoor game? what would it be? Part2: Describe a speacial meal you would like to eat. What would it be? where would it be? Whom would you like to share it with? Part 3: Do meals have any speacial meanings in your culture? Do meals change one region to another in your country? Do you think eating habits have changed? in what ways? Do you think what we eat is healty? Can we count on them? Do you thing that governments should control the food production? and like that. Good luck everybody! Oh by the way I wonder whether we could get half marks in reading and listening. If someone knows, please inform me. Thanks in advance.
Posted by: Hatice | Saturday, March 31, 2012 at 14:00

Dear all, It is my first time posting something in this blog. I had a general IELTS test yesterday 31 March 2012. I need 7 in each band. My problem is writing and speaking, I have attended the test couple of times. Is there anyone who want to share and practice speaking with me in a video conference? I am currently living in Australia. My skype id is harsha.shakya I believe I did well all three parts test yesterday except speaking. I am frustrated taking this exam again and again. The writing question was " Most of the jobs nowadays involve traveling a lot time. Many people have to travel during their work. What are the effect of traveling both to the parents who travel and rest of the family?"

The question did not asked for either causes or solution. So I only explain effects one paragraph for parents and another for families. Is it okay Simon? I have another test booked in 14 April and 24 April. Only yesterday I bought Simon's ebook. About speaking question I forgot all cause that was my worst speaking test. P.S Dear Simon, When we open this site it shows from the oldest to newest. How about change it to latest to oldest date. Thank you.
Posted by: Harsha | Saturday, March 31, 2012 at 17:48

I took IELTS academic today in Adana/Turkey. Last section of listening was hard for me. It was about swimmers and a special training programme. Reading topics: 1- an endangered horse type 2- essay on smeel and memory 3- not remember Essay topics: Task 1 - Two charts in bar format. first graph shows the population of countries /km2 in six countries in 2003 second graph shows the urban populatin change betwenn 2003 and 2005 in the same countries. Task 2- I do not remember exactly but something similar to "some think computer games are bad for children, other do not think. discuss but and give your opinion." In speaking I had many questions.. What does your name mean? (It was before recording). What is your name? Full name? how people call you? which kind of home do you live? Which room you like? A series of questions about indoor games: What do you think about indoor games? Do you think children should play indoor games? Would you like to play any indoor game? Which indoor game you play? Which indoor game would you like to play? Many questions on newspaper: Do you read newspaper everyday? National or local?

Do you think newspaper is important in your country? Do you think newspaper will be more important in your counrty or less important. Part2: 2 mins to talk Describe a speacial meal you would like to eat: What would it be? where would it be? Whom would you like to share it with? Why it is special for you? Section 3: A serious questions about restaurant? Which kind of restraurant you know? what makes them successfull? What is important in a restaurant? Will trainings of servant be more important in future? are there international restraurant in your city? Do you think they will increase? These are that I can remember... Last section of listening was hard for me and I had a lack of time to complete reading questions. The rest was easier for me! Good luck and work hard!

Posted by: tertok | Saturday, March 31, 2012 at 18:21

3/31/2012 UK Speaking: Part1, full name, where r u from, how do you like your hometown, do you think it is a place for young people n why part 2 an important change in your life which is positive to you Part3 do you like change the pace of change for people's life how do you think change affect in modern life (the role of man and woman/the family) how techonology affect the change
Posted by: Ansley | Saturday, March 31, 2012 at 23:57

Hi all Australia, speaking Part 2 Describe favourit sea animal??

Posted by: Jay | Monday, April 02, 2012 at 07:08

but in part 3 I was fumbling in 2 question... examiner repeted question again for me after having finished my answer..but from showing her gesture I think she was nt satisfied with my answer...perhaps I was out of other topic.. after this I was so nervours..and last 2 questions was going bad.. How it will affect my score??
Posted by: Jay | Wednesday, April 04, 2012 at 08:09

hi Simon. Am gonna to appear for test at 21st April but am not sure about my writing task2 ( essay).. Can i do it or not... Please suggest me some ideas how to prepare for it. I also had bought ur E-book... :)
Posted by: Wahab | Sunday, April 08, 2012 at 19:13

Hi Khushi and RN Congrats for such a good score Would you please advice how did you prepare for IELTS...For essays you said you followed the Simon's advice. I wonder about READING section....How to find out the answers...I am a slow reader..If I try to understand the paragraph ...managing time is problem...How did you made the base for reading skills and finding out the answers..any particular book would you advice for TIPS ..WOULD YOU PLEASE guide me about essays structure and phrases as well as vocabulary..Unfortunately I do not live closer to Simon to attend the IELTS Class. Thank you
Posted by: brohi | Tuesday, April 10, 2012 at 01:36

4/12/2012 Austria Speaking: part 1: full name, where are u from, do u like ur hometown and why, about mobile phones - do u prefer to call or send sms and why, did u have any kind of problem with mobile phone while traveling etc. part 2: describe a place u visited when u were a child, where, how u traveled and why its important to u, part 3: about traveling today by cars and planes, abt visiting new places, role of a government in it etc.
Posted by: Dina | Tuesday, April 10, 2012 at 12:34

Hi Dina Same speaking was also with me.... I took it at Sydney

Posted by: Jay | Tuesday, April 10, 2012 at 13:24

Hi Jay :) maybe this will help somebody to prepare. tomorrow is my writing part (Vienna), so i will write topics from that part as well.
Posted by: Dina | Wednesday, April 11, 2012 at 13:24

task 1: table with few different kind of houses in 3 area in some city in the UK; task 2: advantages and disvantages of playing electronic and computer games by children and our opinion
Posted by: Dina | Thursday, April 12, 2012 at 13:05

Hi; Just returned from exam in Karachi (Pakistan). Listening Section: 1) Baby Sitting form filing 2) Students discussing project 3) Student talking about a photographer 4) Lecture on Whale fishes Reading: 1) Leaflet about Bus Service of Cromwell city (Question Type: True/False/Not Given; 6 questions) 2) Barcalona City Broucher (Question type: fill in the blanks; 8 questions) 3) Holiday Policy (Question type: Fill in the blanks) 4) Account tell machine info leaflet (Fill in the comparision table for New, Secondhand and Close Store) 5) Feature on Ice age past, present and future (Question type: 9 headings for 9 paragraph and 4 True/False/Not Given) Writing: Task-1 Write a letter to you friend from whom you borrowed something and accidentially damaged. - Remind him what you borrowed. - Describe how it was damaged. - What will you do about it? Task-2 It is said by some that people should change their career at least once in their life. Do you agree or disagree?
Posted by: Muzsar | Thursday, April 12, 2012 at 14:24

Hi Muzsar, my listening part was the same today :)

Posted by: Dina | Thursday, April 12, 2012 at 18:31

Test Today - Islamabad, Pakistan. Listening - was the same as Muzsar's post above. Reading - 3 passages Passage 1 - about a Power Cleaning product for cleaning bathrooms by Ozkleen australia. (questions like who said this, who said that) Passage 2 - history of rollercoasters (label diagram and multiple choice mainly also had true, false, not given). Passage 3 - about writing childrens books... (multiple choice and true, false, not given). Writing Task 1: Table showing the percentage of the population and the types of houses they live in 3 areas of a city. housing types (horizontal axis of table)A - Flat/Apartment B - (forgot the second type) C - Semi-Detached D - Detached Areas of the city (vertical axis of table) Area1 (pop. 32,100) Area2 (pop. 31,700) Area3 (pop. 32,000) ---------------------- A - B - C - D area 1 values ... 5% - 18% - 38% - 39% area 2 values ... 76% - 14% - 5% - 5% area 3 values ... 25% - 56% - 5% - 14% Writing Task 2: some people say that playing electronic and computer games are useful for young people and other say that it is a waste of time. Discuss the views and give your opinion. This is roughly what i can remember from the test - hope it helps.
Posted by: Irfan | Thursday, April 12, 2012 at 20:47

Hi Dina & Imran; I think you both have attempted Academic Module while I am appearing for General Module.

What was the 1st answer in Listening if you guys remember: $ 37.50 ? (charges to look after child under 2 years of age for short time) While in reading there was a question which I would like Simon to reply if he can. The question was something that some part of Northern Hemisphere will be covered with Ice in future. While the in the paragraph it says: Some part of Europe, North Europe & North America will be covered with Ice in future. Is the answer TRUE OR NOT GIVEN ?
Posted by: Muzsar | Friday, April 13, 2012 at 07:55

My results: Listening: 6.0 Reading: 6.0 Writing: 6.0 Speaking: 6.0 Overall: 6.0 I needed at least 6.5 :(
Posted by: tertok | Friday, April 13, 2012 at 10:02

Listening: 7.5 Reading: 7.5 Writing:6 Speaking: 7 Overall: 7 Thanks Simon !

Posted by: Burak | Friday, April 13, 2012 at 12:54

Tips to improve vocabularly. 1-Learn the forms of the words and phrases. for example, a word is product. Product Producer production This will allow you to say more about the topic. For exapple, you can say in this manner a product of samsung. a film producer a chemical production compony. Illustrate, illustration We can say, To illustrate. There is a good illustration of this. What is illustrated in this point

An instance illustrating this in action is Now I asking everyone to give me the forms of the word "excel" and to use in different forms.
Posted by: ZIAUL HUDA | Friday, April 13, 2012 at 13:25

Listening :6 Speaking:8 Reading:8.5 Writing: 6.5 I am very dissapointed, I am really good at listening and in the exam I did great, and it is impossible for me to make so many mistakes. I do not know what happened. It is like they want you to take the exam again.
Posted by: hatice | Friday, April 13, 2012 at 14:44

Hi Muzsar, Yes, it was Academic. Actually, i didnt hear well that answer, i wrote just 37, but i heard something 37-30. i thought its 37,30 but it sounded strange to me, so i wrote just 37. i suppose i made mistake in that answer. Im afraid i did too many mistakes in reading part, it was just too difficult for me. i dont think i will get enough points in that, but i will wait for results.
Posted by: Dina | Friday, April 13, 2012 at 16:20

Hi Tomorrow I am going to pass IELTS exam in London. I`m a bit nervous. If you already passed exam, could you post the subject of the academic writing IELTS part and so on. Thank you. P.S. Tomorrow I am going to publish here the information of IELTS exam as soon as possible. It might help to someone.
Posted by: Kaka | Friday, April 13, 2012 at 16:41

Well done Burak! ... Sorry to hear that some of you didn't get the scores you needed. Don't give up! Keep trying and you will get there in the end.
Posted by: Simon | Saturday, April 14, 2012 at 11:14

Test on 14/4/2012, Vietnam Speaking: Part 1:House, Fashion, Visitors Part 2: Describe a letter Part 3: written letters and advertisements Writing

Task 1: 3 pie charts about where coffee is produced, where coffee is consumed and how the profits are distributed Task 2: News reports in the media focus on problems and emergencies rather than positive developments, which is harmful to the individual and society To what extent do you agree or disagree? Dear Simon, in task 1, the tense in the question is present tense, but when i described the charts, i only used simple past tense. Was it ok or wrong?:(( [ because i think the information without exact time is always in the past]
Posted by: Anh | Saturday, April 14, 2012 at 12:11

However, i used the present tense in the introduction, so silly was I:((
Posted by: Anh | Saturday, April 14, 2012 at 12:14

Hi Anh, where did you take the exam? I took the exam in Adelaide, Australia also in the same date as yours (14-04-2012) I'm kinda having doubts with my answers in the Listening test. did you find it easy?
Posted by: laarni | Saturday, April 14, 2012 at 14:07

Hi Laarni, I took the exam today morning. I didn't do well in the listening test. I was too nervous at the beginning of the test:(. Also, i think it was not easy:( Dear Simon, can you reverse the list of comments in this site? (The newest ones still stay at the bottom and i guess they will go to the "Next pages soon ;)
Posted by: Anh | Saturday, April 14, 2012 at 16:56

hi do you remember your answers from listening?I would like to find out answers for 2nd and 3rd part about the student and her problems with the flat etc.
Posted by: kasia | Saturday, April 14, 2012 at 19:52

hi Muzsar, I also got 37.50 for the first answer in listening. from what you have posted, i think the answer to the northern hemisphere question would be True.
Posted by: Irfan | Sunday, April 15, 2012 at 10:35

Hi Dina; If you have done your best then don't worry, everything will be fine. I think you can tolerate couple of mistakes; but that is not the case with me. Anyways don't worry everything will be in your best interest. Hi Irfan; Thanks for your input. That reading question is tricky. But thanks for your opinion. Hope, Simon responds to it.

Posted by: Muzsar | Sunday, April 15, 2012 at 18:25

Hi does anybody remember his/hers listening answers (IELTS academic 14/4/2012)?

Posted by: kasia | Monday, April 16, 2012 at 16:38

Hi Kasia, I remembered some multiple choice questions about termites and section 4 was all about torquise. It was quite hard, i think :( . I'm just praying that I'll pass the exam. I remembered answers such as mat, kidney problems, moist, noodles in fill in the blanks. I took my exam in Adelaide, Australia.
Posted by: laarni | Tuesday, April 17, 2012 at 06:11

Hi Simon ji, My name is Bikram Singh.I have some problem in writing , speaking & reading.i m practicing from 4 months.but i never get the good band.i will give the exam on 28th april 2012. so, what can i do for this ? Plz help me Simon ji.... Thanks & Regards Bikram Singh Ludhiana. Punjab.
Posted by: Bikram Singh | Tuesday, April 17, 2012 at 15:43

Hi, Simon and mates At first, I really appreciate this web site, Simon. I have been studying with this site for nearly 1.5 years. My English is being improved a lot! I took an exam in Melbourne, Australia. writing task 1 : there were 3 pie charts about areas of coffee consumption, production and the percentage of making prohibits. writing task 2: the media ........ tendency to focus on problems and emergencies rather than on positive developments is harmful to the individual and to society. do you agree or disagree? speaking 1 being asked about driving. do you drive a car? have you been to a drivers school? does your family members have cars? which do you prefer to be a passenger or to drove a car?

speaking2 descrive a tv program which you enjoy watching speaking 3 watching tv is popular free time activity. how do you think about it? what roles do tv programs have for education? do you think watching tv is wast time (harmful for people)? in the future, how changes are there on tv program? i just remember some of them, but i hope they will help some IELTS candidates.
Posted by: Tomo | Thursday, April 19, 2012 at 09:56

Thanks to everyone who has shared recently! ... Hi Anh, The problem is that my website program reverses the order of all comments (below all lessons) if I reverse them on this page. I prefer the older comments at the bottom below lessons. I'll start a new 'recent questions' page when this one gets too long.
Posted by: Simon | Thursday, April 19, 2012 at 14:37

hi simon, i took the ielts many times befor, the speaking test was fine for me where i got 7 many times excpt the last one i got 6, the question was about civil buildings.to be honest i didn`t know any example for it so i couldn`t answer it well.the examinar ask me about my opinion about it,the nigatives of this building ,any suggestion to improve it, its role in our life. so please simon can you tell me what it is? thanks very much
Posted by: mesoo | Friday, April 20, 2012 at 14:32

Hello, I am from Malaysia. I just finished my IELTS written paper today. So here are the questions : Writing : Task 1 = a bar chart comparing the percentage of adults using Internet by different age group from year 2003-3007. Task 2 = Some people say that it is a waste of time to plan for the future and better to focus on the present. Do you agree/disagree?

(well, I find that the task two topic is very general and I dont know how to properly organise the ideas...but hopefully the examiners understand what I am trying to prove)
Posted by: Anna | Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 10:59

Simon, For the Task 2 : Some people say that it is a waste of time for an individual to plan for the future and better to focus on the presence. Do you agree/disagree? When I read the question on Task 2, since it was too general, I was not sure where to start. So I wrote my essay by focusing on how planning can benefit an individual. first paragraph, I focused on how by planning can benefit a student - since every student has their own dream job, therefore they strive hard to achieve the goal. second paragraph I explained how important it is for parents to plan for the future of their children, honing them to become full-fledged adults. conclusion : based on that, it is not a waste of time to plan for future as planning benefits people. Can you comment on it? I was too scared as I got band 6 for writing before.
Posted by: Anna | Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 11:15

hi simon i really apreciate your efforts,in helping people.I was introduced to this website by a friend who use it and got good scores.my exam date is 16 June.I will like you to help me with some tips in the listening section.Iam writing the academic test. Thanks.chriss.
Posted by: taiye chriss | Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 13:20

I took the IELTS General module today in Chennai with IDP. Speaking Module was held yesterday. The examiner was very friendly. Speaking Questions: Section1: 1. Where are you from 2. Describe your home 3. What kind of home would you like to live 4. What is special about the rooms in your home 5. Do you like fashionable clothes 6. Do you read books 7. Have you borrowed book from a library as a kid Section2: Describe an interesting shop you have visited a) Where is this shop

b) Why did you find it interesting Section3: 1. Did your friends think that the shop is interesting as well 2. What do you think about advertising 3. Has the way people shop changed in the past 50 years The examiner gave me a pencil and paper to take notes for section 2 They provided head phones for listening module. The stationary needed for the exam like pen, pencil, eraser, sharpener were also provided. Reading Module: 1. Different restaurants specializing in different areas 2. BART Railway station -> True/False/NG 3. Placement advice 4. Dodo bird Writing Task1: You have been to a different country for a business meeting. You are not happy with the hotel, the organizer had arranged. Write a letter to the organizer explaining the reasons for dissatisfaction Task2: More and more people seem to forget about the meaning of occasions and see it as an opportunity to enjoy themselves. what are the reasons and what could be done about it
Posted by: sachin | Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 15:20

Hello Everyone I took the IELTS Exam (21.04.2012) in IZMIR-TURKEY Writing section: TASK 1: One Bar Chart that ask the imported clothing into European Union. (7 countries , comparison with 1997 and 2003) TASK 2: Discussion essay (with your opinion) Museums should be enjoyable or only purpose to educate..
Posted by: mehmet | Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 15:21

hello everyone, I took the academic one yesterday : here what i got at the task2 writing :( i dont remember well the exacts words sorry) some people think that museums should entertain to attract young people . Other people think that museums should be place to educate . Discuss these two opinions and give yours. i found this subject quite easy .. i told in the introduction that according to me , there was no contraciction between the educate and motivate by entertain . So afeter the introduction, i wrote a paragrah about how important museums are for education and

another one about in which wayd museums can attract kids with organizing games .. I said that educaton was the purpose and entertainement was the way .; Speaking part 2 : describe a situation when you felt a little angry ..
Posted by: sydney | Sunday, April 22, 2012 at 14:24

Hello friends, I had the exam on 21st April, 2012. Here are the writing tasks which were asked on the day : Task 1: You have purchased an item after gone through an advertisement. But some of the information in the advertisement, was wrong about the purchased product. Write a letter to the manufacturer about it. In your letter, - mention the product you purchased and about the advertisement - what went wrong with the information and describe your problem - what you want the manufacturer to do and ask for the solution Task 2: Some people believe that Children behave better when they are got rewarded for a good behavior, while some people argue that children behave better only after they got punished. Discuss both the views and give your opinion. Use your real life experience. Good luck !
Posted by: Neema | Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at 03:43

Where was youe exam, Neema

Posted by: Kiran | Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at 06:09

21 APREL 2012 EXAM in AZERBAIJAN.. writing TASK 2-Some people think that museums should be enjoyable places to entertain people, while others believe that the purpose of museums is to educate. Discuss both views and give you own opinion. Speaking- 1.what is your full name 2.where do you live? 3.do you like walking? cue card--remember a song which you were singing in your chilhdhood 1.what it was about
Posted by: Khatira | Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at 14:54

Hye, I am from Malaysia... just finished my speaking test... "describe about a website you find useful"

my husband also took IELTS and his topic was : "describe a restaurant you enjoy eating with your friends" for part 1 : 1) tell me about your home. What type? 2) what do you like about the rooms in your house? 3) what kind of house do you prefer to live? 4) do you often read newspaper? 5) are the people in your area prefer to read local or international newspaper? 7) do you play indoor games when you were child? what type of game? 8) do you know how to dance traditional dancing? part 3 : 1) do you think that the Internet can replace teacher and school? 2) do you think Internet can benefit children? (how?) 3) at what age should children be exposed to computers and internet? 4) what are the different kind of entertainment can the Internet provide? 5) what is the difference between the Internet and television in terms of entertainment? 6) in the future will the Internet become more popular than books? my husband's session : part 3 : 1) what are the things you look before you buy food? 2) in the future, will food differ from today?
Posted by: Anna | Wednesday, April 25, 2012 at 02:01

I'm from Pakistan and the question is from 14th April exam writing task 1: bar graph and line graph about Australia's tourists and tourism. Writing task 2: Nowadays men and women are working together all over the world. It is therefore logical that men should share household tasks with women? To what extent do you agree or disagree? Speaking part 1: about my name and then about clothes and fashion part 2: If I want to start a business. What it would be? With whom I would start it? From where I begin it?
Posted by: Ayesha | Wednesday, April 25, 2012 at 14:43

Listening: 6.5 Reading: 6.0 Writing: 7.0 Speaking: 8.0 Overall: 7.0 I made it, i need 6,5 for uni :) good luck to all of u! :)

Posted by: Dina | Wednesday, April 25, 2012 at 17:14

Congratulations Dina!
Posted by: Simon | Wednesday, April 25, 2012 at 17:21

Hi Dina... when did you take the exam?

Posted by: laarni | Thursday, April 26, 2012 at 05:31

I didn't make it. :( Listening: 6.5 Reading: 6.0 Writing: 7.0 Speaking: 7.5 Overall: 7.0 I need 7 in each band. :(
Posted by: laarni | Thursday, April 26, 2012 at 14:51

Congrats Dina! All the best for your future endeavors!

Posted by: Muzsar | Friday, April 27, 2012 at 06:31

Nearly Laarni! Don't give up!

Posted by: Simon | Friday, April 27, 2012 at 09:20

hi Laarni, my exam was on 12th April. Thank u all :)

Posted by: Dina | Friday, April 27, 2012 at 11:00

hi guys , i have an exam on 28/04/2012 london , i did alot of practice but still scaring from writing and reading . any one who has done recently ielts exam in london , please could you share the exam question with me thnks Rameen
Posted by: rameen | Friday, April 27, 2012 at 18:11

Tried twice got 7 and 6.5 overall but my requirement is 7 in each ,waiting for third attempt results on 4th may 2012...simon any tips as i am so near but so far. :)
Posted by: vijay mann | Friday, April 27, 2012 at 19:30

Hello Simon and other friends, Today, April 28, 2012 I took my IELTS test here in the UK. The writing test was quite easy to me. Task one we have given two bar charts. First chart was about the amount

of protein which is consumed by people per day in North America, Latin America, West Africa and India, in this chart there was two rates, animal protein and other protein. Second chart was about the amount of calorie which is consumed by people in the same countries. Task two was opinion question. Topic was "It is better for elderly people to live in special places and look after by professional people more than live with noisy and young members in their own families. To what extend do you agree or disagree with the statement". Listening and reading were quite tough to me; I am not sure about my answers. I am going to take speaking test today at 5 pm. Kind regards HEMN
Posted by: Hemn Merany | Saturday, April 28, 2012 at 14:14

Hi all.. who have IELTS exam today 28/4/2012 at any country? I need the questions please especially for the speaking part. thx in advance.
Posted by: noor | Saturday, April 28, 2012 at 14:50

Hello guys, My speaking test was: First: describe your house, what kinds of house do you like? Part two: Describe a something kind which someone did for you; say who is the person and what he/she did? Part three: The examiner asked different topics, some questions were relevant to part two. Others were irrelevant to the topic. They were about business people and social services. I have been asked about what should business people do for their local society and why? The examiner asked me a statement which was "business people contribute in their local society just to make money, what do you think?" Overall, while I think the questions and part two were not easy, I think I did well. HEMN
Posted by: Hemn Merany | Saturday, April 28, 2012 at 18:41

hi Hemn I also had test on 28.04.2012 did you remember the question 3&4 for listening part one. if yes please tell me.
Posted by: sabah | Sunday, April 29, 2012 at 10:25

Hi Sabah Honestly I can't remember any question in listening and reading, I think I was not good in both. Sorry Regards, HEMN
Posted by: Hemn Merany | Sunday, April 29, 2012 at 13:48

hi, Muzsar and all Ihad my exam on 12th april. I got L-8 R-7 W-5.5 S-7 I need 6.But I don't know what happen to my writing though i had written well. Some say u misunderstood topic and which same as Muzsar. Task-2 It is said by some that people should change their career at least once in their life. Do you agree or disagree? though another website mentioned it as below. That some people think that they should change their job at least once in career/ I am very confuse
Posted by: Harsh | Monday, April 30, 2012 at 15:11

Hi Simon & other test takers, Thank you for this website. I used it for self-study. :) I took my exam last April 28, 2012. Speaking Part 1: Do you think your hometown is good for young people? Do you prefer to phone or text someone? What problems do most people have when using mobile phones specially when traveling? Do you think you'll still use mobile phones 5 years from now? Part 2: Describe an advertisement you saw recently. Where did you see it? What was it about? Why was it memorable? Part 3: Rank all types of media according to their ability to give out advertisements and give a

reason for each rank. What type of media would you think will disappear because of the internet? Writing Part 1: Two bar charts. One about England and Wales' population size. The second was about birth and death rates. Part 2: In the modern world, people don't need animals for food and animal products, clothing, medicine, etc. To what extent do you agree or disagree? I hope this helps. Results will come out on May 11. *fingers crossed*
Posted by: nadz | Monday, April 30, 2012 at 15:21

Hi everyone IELTS 28/04/2012 Tehran, Iran Speaking test: Part 1 your name?... What do you like about your house? Cue card: which career did you want to follow when you were a child? why? what was interesting about that career? ( I cannot remember the exact words) Part 3: some questions about job satisfaction Writing Task1: two graphs, one presented data on steel demand, production and imports in the UK, the other showed the number of employee in UK steel industry Task2: Why young people get involved in crimes? reasons? solutions?
Posted by: Mahmoud | Monday, April 30, 2012 at 18:41

Hello Simon, First of all I want to thank you for your enormous work you are doing here, especially for writing tips which helped me greatly. I got my results: Listening and Reading:9 Speaking and Writing:6,5 Overall:8 That made me absolutely the happiest person on earth. :) Test was on 14.04.2012 Writing task 2 was: Nowadays in many countries women work full time, due to this reason should men and women share housework. To what extent do you agree or disagree. Speaking part 2 was: An interesting shop you have been to.
Posted by: Ayhan | Tuesday, May 01, 2012 at 00:22

Congratulations Ayhan! Great scores!

Posted by: Simon | Tuesday, May 01, 2012 at 12:05

Yeay, I just got my result... Reading : 8.5 Listening : 8.5 Writing : 6.0 Speaking : 7.0 Overall : 7.5 I need overall 7 to apply for visa and to further my study to Belfast... :)
Posted by: Anna | Friday, May 04, 2012 at 04:24

hi simon, i got w-7,s-7,r-7.5,l-7 all because of you. your e book was the key.. thanks a lot keep on teaching us chenthan
Posted by: chenthan | Friday, May 04, 2012 at 07:41

Hi Simon, I got R-9 L-8.5 S-8 W-6.5 :( I require 7 in each band. I would like to know if points will be reduced for lengthier letter/essay. Because, I had taken an additional sheet and both my letter and essay would have been way more than the minimum word limit of 150 and 250. Also, could you let me know if re-evaluation of writing is advisable. Thanks
Posted by: Sachin | Saturday, May 05, 2012 at 04:40

Hi everyone! I got my results: L-8,5, R-6.0, W-6,5, S-6,5 Overall - 7 Hmmm, it is enough for my University, but I am sad as I did not expect to get that low. Reading was the hardest part, I knew I will get low mark but speaking could/should have been better :(. Well, I dont remember exactly Writing topic but speaking was about noise :). I just want to say if you want to get high band spend more time (which I did not) studying. I was not able to study much as have 2 kids :). However, I m done with ielts, this is what makes me feel better.

I want to thank Simon for his lovely web site. I would recommend everyone this web site. Alfira
Posted by: Alfira | Saturday, May 05, 2012 at 18:07

Congratulations guys - all great scores! Thanks for your feedback and recommendations! ... Sachin, There is no word limit, but it might be a good idea to try a re-mark. There are no guarantees, but you might be lucky!
Posted by: Simon | Monday, May 07, 2012 at 12:24

Many thanks Simon for you efforts. I took the IELTS exam (academic) and my result is: Reading:8 listening:7.5 writing:8 speaking:8 my exam was quite easy, i thought IELTS would be more complicated. Tanks and best wishes for all students. carolinaoscar@yahoo.com
Posted by: Carolina Oscar | Monday, May 07, 2012 at 13:50

Listening - 7.5 Reading - 7.0 Writing - 6.5 Speaking - 7.0 Overall - 7.0 Got what i needed. Simon, it's a shame i found your site only 3 days before the test because the lessons on this site have guided me the most. I cannot thank you enough. Wishing you all the best, and hope you get all you want out of life and more...
Posted by: Irfan | Tuesday, May 08, 2012 at 11:35

Congratulations Carolina and Irfan! You both got fantastic scores, and I'm happy that my lessons helped.
Posted by: Simon | Tuesday, May 08, 2012 at 15:14

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Comments

You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post. Hi i have a trouble problem 3 times i got the same result 5.5 L5.5 R5 W5.5 S6 all the tree exams almost the same band i always practices but it still the same result.
Posted by: fahad | Friday, May 18, 2012 at 07:57

hi I did the exams twice and last time i got L 7.5 R7 W 5.5 S7 this time i m practising a lot from this site, hoping for a good result thanks simon
Posted by: sugan | Friday, May 18, 2012 at 10:16

Hey guys My exam is tomorrow and I am worrying about my writing task 2, any one who have taken IELTS test in these days kindly post the topic given in the task 2. Awaiting for info.
Posted by: RH | Friday, May 18, 2012 at 14:22

To improve the writing and reading skill, we need to read lot of articles and we have to practice as much as we can. Also, Keep up with this website and daily lessons with simon for practising.
Posted by: vivek | Saturday, May 19, 2012 at 11:24

hi Simon and everyone else,

Exam Date: 19th May, 2012 Speaking Module: Interview session: 1. question about my full name, so what I can call you in short,where are you from, what color you like to decorate your room, except you what color your friends like, are you studying or doing job, how you pick this course, what is your plan in the feature. Que Card Session: 2. Topic >>> Describe a Person ? .who is he ? .how he become successful? .how you come to know about him? Long discussion Session: 3. Question related celebrity life style: In your country, how an ordinary person become celebrity, compare the difference between past celebrities and recent one (what changes you can see), in your country have some one like politician moved to become celebrity, how the media influence on celebrities in what ways, what are the negative point of celebrities. Writing Topic Task1: The given chart shows average number of hours teaching annually done by teachers in different schools (Primary, Secondary, Upper secondary) in four countries Japan, Spain, Iceland and USA in 2001. Writing Topic Task2: The range and quality of food to buy is changed because of technological and scientific advances. Some people regard it as an improvement while others believe that the change is harmful. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. Listening Section was the toughest not to me but to other candidates as well. but reading seem to me fair enough but if someone knows how to manage the time. I would like you Simon to please write some short idea's about the this topic, its to be noted that most of the pupils who attended the test was confused with the topic including me, I want you to share your ideas not in detail but a few words would be beneficial. Awaiting for your reply. everyone take part in contributing the good work!
Posted by: RH | Saturday, May 19, 2012 at 20:28

Wow! That was a pretty quick post RH! Thanks for posting it as I was unable to recall today's task 2 question, and now i'm relieved that my paragraph structure was appropriate; however, I screwed my task 1 due to poor management of time! :-/ Yeah, I completely agree with RH; Listening was unexpectedly faster (for me, section 1 & 2); while reading passages were easier compared to my previous exam (though I almost ran out of time, and had to guess last 3/4 questions!) About Speaking: the 1st question my examiner asked me was: Is this your 1st time or have you had already taken IELTS exam before? Hahaha.. Then he began firing varieties of questions: Part 1: Name? Where r u from? - Tell me about your home in your country? - Which is your favorite room? - what makes a home special? -Are cloths expensive in your country? -What kind of clothes do you like to wear? -Have you bought clothes using internet? Part 2: Describe about a situation when you have to behave politely. - When it was? - Where it was? -What it was about? -..? What you did?? Part 3: _From where do children learn lesson to express themselves? _Do they learn better from their elders or from their friends? _Can people always tell truth? _Is it possible to be always honest? _Why some people tell everything they think? _How will people feel if they are told truth every time?
Posted by: Manaa | Saturday, May 19, 2012 at 21:07

hi Manaa, I am glad that you followed the standard method of writing an essay. Unfortunately my ideas was not much developed (task2)especially about the first paragraph that we had to write about what scientific and technological advances made the food quality improved. :( I took five minute in finding one question but failed to find (2nd paragraph) fill the gaps question 24 i think it was something like a sentence was given then we were required to find the exact word so that it could be called ......? and in 3rd paragraph i also couldn't manage the time perfectly almost in 5 question but i am pretty well sure about my first 2 paragraphs.

I found Writing Task 2 among all the components very difficult. by the way Manaa, from where you have taken the test, mine was from Islamabad AEO. I wish you including my self best of luck and my the result comes in our favor :)
Posted by: RH | Sunday, May 20, 2012 at 17:22

Hi RH, My test centre was University of Westminster, London. Sorry, I couldn't understand your above 3rd & 4th paragraphs! Were you talking about writing task 2? But...you have talked abt question 24, 5 question!! Nevermind, I hope Lady LUCK will favor all the candidates! :) Special thanks to you for your best wishes (and I'm desperately in need of it!) Cheers!
Posted by: Manaa | Sunday, May 20, 2012 at 23:18

Best wishes to both RH and manaa. I will try to gather some points about your writing task2 and i will post here after i done. It would be great if simon share some ideas for below topics. "The range and quality of food to buy is changed because of technological and scientific advances. Some people regard it as an improvement while others believe that the change is harmful. Discuss both views and give your own opinion." "Describe about a situation when you have to behave politely"
Posted by: vivek | Monday, May 21, 2012 at 09:03

Dear IELTS learners, By following the link below, you can read some nice ideas about food processing. Enjoy! Marat. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_processing
Posted by: Marat | Monday, May 21, 2012 at 10:43

hey Manaa, Sorry beside writing passage I wrote paragraph lol, I was talking about the reading module passage No2 gap filling part and there was a question like eg. the name of flip reasearch called ...(fill the gape here).... I think its not easy to remember every answers of the question, however, as compare to previous exam this one was easy in reading but writing was tough to me. Anyway, Great to know that you haven't misunderstood the question (Task2).

Waiting when the result will be announced, my prayers is with you and other candidates. Thank you vivek for your nice comment, the topic is not that tough to describe a situation when you felt very polite you can talk about your own past experience and you can make a story of your self even if you are not prepared try to step by step in each topic part there are 3 to 4 questions based on which you have to make your story to address all parts of the question.
Posted by: RH | Monday, May 21, 2012 at 11:54

Thanks for sharing guys. I'll try to use the "food and technology" question in tomorrow's lesson (22nd May 2012) here on the site. PS. Great link Marat! It's nice to see that you're researching topics on Wikipedia.
Posted by: Simon | Monday, May 21, 2012 at 14:21

Any information on recent general writing? pls share if so

Posted by: sola | Monday, May 21, 2012 at 18:33

Thanks vivek for your warm wishes and thanks Marat for sharing us information! RH, Regarding the answer of that fill in the gap question..there were 2 words inside inverted commas ...sth like- "fair snap"? I can't recall properly now! Regarding task 2 writing, I wrote about genetically modified foods, foods where additives and preservatives are added, organic foods and whole foods. I wanted to add info about fortified foods as well but I forgot to include it while writing down! :-/ Anyway, since the test is over, we have no other option than being optimistic! Cheers!
Posted by: Manaa | Tuesday, May 22, 2012 at 00:15

Good job Manaa, Nice that you have attempted that question of Reading Passage, don't worry you will get good bands. 7 to 8 days left to the announcement of result.
Posted by: RH | Wednesday, May 23, 2012 at 18:04

Dear Simon, After seven months struggle I made it. I just got my result i.e L 8, R 7.5, W 7.5 and S 8. You are not only a teacher to me but also a guide. I always follow your guidelines and

your book really helped me. I have no words but thankyou. I suggest others please don't lose your heart, be patient and work hard you will surely make it. Best of Luck to everyone. Thanks, Regards
Posted by: Kanny | Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 12:26

Very good scores kanny. I am going take the test tomorrow and its my second attempt. I didn't have much time to prepare for this exam but i aware the mistakes which i made in my first attempt and i am trying to avoid those mistakes this time. Hope to get the required scores this time.
Posted by: vivek | Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 12:35

Best of Luck Vivek. We always learn from our mistakes As you know noone is perfect. And I wish you will make it this time.
Posted by: Kanny | Thursday, May 24, 2012 at 12:39

Hi Kanny, Congratulations on getting such great scores, and thanks for sharing your experience. IELTS isn't easy, and you struggled for 7 months, but you got there in the end! Hard work and persistence are the keys to success!
Posted by: Simon | Friday, May 25, 2012 at 11:04

Hi All, Today i took IELTS speaking test and these are the question are asked. PART 1: I have been asked many questions in part1 comparing to other parts. 1. What do you do? Working or studying? 2. What kind of work you usually do? 3. In future, what job you want to do? 4. What sports do you like? 5. Why sports are important? 6. What kind of sports you want play if you get the good chance? 7. What kind of art do you like? 8. Do we need to have special skills for drawing? 9. In your childhood, are you interested in drawing? 10. Do you draw nowadays? PART 2: "Describe the friend you want to meet after long time" 1. Who is that friend?

2. What did he/she do when you met last time 3. What do you like to do when you will meet him? PART3: 1. Do friends are important? 2. What kind of friends do you want to have? 3. Is friends from all ages are needed? 4. How would you touch with them nowadays? 5. Do you contact your friends often or occasionally? 6. Is younger friends are more important than other aged friends? 7. Is friendship are lost because of the distant? 8. What ways you used to communicate with your friends? She asked many questions but she is really good. Hope i get the score which i needed. I will update listening, reading and writing questions tomorrow.
Posted by: vivek | Friday, May 25, 2012 at 14:51

Vivek, where did you do it? Could you write Writing T1 and Task2 today, pls? I am doing IELTS tmrw. I`m in the UK
Posted by: Kaka | Friday, May 25, 2012 at 23:01

I took my test in Chennai,India. I will update other modules questions today.

Posted by: vivek | Saturday, May 26, 2012 at 04:02

OK General Writing task 1 -your friend is on holiday and allow you to stay in his house 1.explain what you like about his house 2.explain him about a problem you experienced with equipment in his kitchen 3.explain how you solved it not in exact words just idea Task 2 People tend to use their own vehicles cars instead of public transport like buses and trains explain your view explain what government should do? I think last part of reading is bit hard and listening also harder than previous tests
Posted by: Mahesh | Saturday, May 26, 2012 at 16:23

sorry in part 2 what government should do to encourage people to use public transport
Posted by: Mahesh | Saturday, May 26, 2012 at 16:26

IELTS GENERAL - 26/05/2012. Sydney, AUSTRALIA.

Writing: TASK 1: Write a letter to your friend to convey that you have moved to a new residence a. Why did you move b. what did you like about the surroundings of new place c. Invite him to your new residence TASK 2: Some people think that teenagers should do unpaid work to help the society. This will help them to be better individuals and also improve the society as a whole. Do you agree or disagree? Speaking Task 2: Describe a book you read. Why did you read it. When did you read it and would you recommend it someone to read. Good Luck to all my friends who are due to take next IELTS exam.
Posted by: Rocky | Sunday, May 27, 2012 at 00:31

Hi Simon. Do you have any ebooks about reading test? Coz that part was my lowest.
Posted by: Lani | Sunday, May 27, 2012 at 07:00

Hi simon I did the IELTS test early this year already posted the questions! I got S 7.5 L7 W7 But reading 5.5 SADLY i couldnt get to the uni course i was after because i have to get at least 6 in each subtest (stupid reading test). im going to do another test. Ur website is really good. Its GREAT how people share what they did and how did they go in the recent exam questions THANKS ALL..
Posted by: Maya | Monday, May 28, 2012 at 06:04

Hi Simon: I want to say a whole-hearted thank-you for your work. I relied entirely on your site to prepare for my IELTS. Without your site and the eBook, I wouldn't have done so well in my writing tests, or I believe I have done well. ( still waiting for my results though!) BEIJING Center, China, May 26 Academic Writing 1 two maps for a park, describe changes that have made to the park ( similar to your art gallery redevelopment question. )

Writing 2 Goverment spend a lot money on arts, other people argue money should rather be spent on health and education. Discuss and give your opinions( all topics covered in you eBook) Speaking Part 2:Describe a music, should say where you heard them and how you felt about the music Part3: Different venues play different music, give examples, why it is the case, etc. I might have not done well in part 3, because I gave one or two- sentence answers, should I have say more in response to part 3 answers? Again, thank you.

Posted by: Sophie Sun | Monday, May 28, 2012 at 06:04

I took IELTS in the UK 26/05/2012 Writing Task1. Recycling - Plastik ( It was terrible for me, cos I didn`t expact this kind of question) Task2. The tradidional lifestyles are influened by tourists. Local people tend to change their traditional lifestyle to a modern way. Do u agree or disagree.( I do not remember exactly) Speaking: Which way of communication do you prefer: e-mail, letter, TV and so on.
Posted by: Kaka | Monday, May 28, 2012 at 10:26

Thanks for sharing guys. I'm glad my lessons and ebook have helped! ... Hi Lani, I haven't written an ebook for the reading test, but all of my reading materials are here on the site.
Posted by: Simon | Monday, May 28, 2012 at 16:08

Hi I am New for IELTS.please what are the latest questions foe reading ?
Posted by: Netra | Thursday, June 07, 2012 at 07:52

Any recent on academic writing? please share if so ^^ im so curious !!

Posted by: Mai | Thursday, June 07, 2012 at 13:31

speaking test

part 1 some question on home ,where are you from?about children toys? common cars at your city? patr2 ways of your communication(phone,email,letter) how you use it advantages and disadvantages? .... part 3 some general question related to phone and letter
Posted by: Mansour | Thursday, June 07, 2012 at 15:54

Hi Zambu I am from Kongo...Can anybody send me Simons e book , I cant afford huge amount of money in my natins' currency. thnx
Posted by: Zambu | Friday, June 08, 2012 at 06:46

failure again L-8 R-8 S-7 W-6.5 Last 2 attempts i got 7 for Writing and only fail in speaking. Simon please advice me is it valuable to apply for recorrection and what is the time taken for that process.
Posted by: mahesh | Friday, June 08, 2012 at 09:24

Very disappointed score again. My scores are lower comparing to last time. Only reading score is improved. I thought i did good this time in every module but the result is quite opposite. I felt so sad about the score. Anyway, i will keep try until i get the required store.
Posted by: vivek | Friday, June 08, 2012 at 09:36

Hi Mahesh and Vivek, Sorry to hear about your scores.

Mahesh: it might be worth trying a re-mark of your writing paper. I'm not sure how long it takes, but your test centre will tell you, and then you can make the decision. Good luck if you do decide to go for it!
Posted by: Simon | Friday, June 08, 2012 at 10:54

hi simon,i am upset about my result 2 times i appeared and it was 6.5,i need 7 and atleast 7.5 in listening for immigration...i practice in your web-site and its really helpful,my next exam on 21st july,pls tell me how can i improve myself...plsss
Posted by: nur | Friday, June 08, 2012 at 14:02

Hi Simon Hi Everybody 9th June 2012 Jeddah Task 2 More and more people get seriously overweight. Some people think that increasing the price of fattening foods to solve this problem. To what extent do you agree or disagree. Task 1 There was 2 charts for Trains running late and trains cancelled in 4 weeks in October and 3 weeks in November. This all what I can remember My Speaking Exam is today so Good luck to everyone
Posted by: sumu9999 Skype | Saturday, June 09, 2012 at 23:08

Hi zambu Send me ur e mail I'd. I vl help you...

Posted by: Rony | Sunday, June 10, 2012 at 06:07

speaking test from the 9th June:weather forecast-cue card

Posted by: kasia | Sunday, June 10, 2012 at 12:13

Hi Nur, You're very close to a 7, so just keep working hard!

Posted by: Simon | Monday, June 11, 2012 at 10:34

hello kasia, weather forecast!!!! hmmm could you please tell us more about the subtopics of this? i will be very grateful to you. and best of luck for your results.
Posted by: nisha | Monday, June 11, 2012 at 17:46

hi , i took ielts on 9th June, 2012

WRITING: 1.Task1: the table shows the percentage of the population aged 65 and over in UK, Canada and Germany in 1980,2000 and 2030. 2.Task2:the news does not contect to everybody'live.It is not neccessary to read newspapers or watch the television news programe. READING: matters about overweight,... LISTENING: 1.Part 1: where do you live? what sports is popular in your country? Did u like primary school or secondary school? 2.Part2: tell about a thing that you want to buy when you have money: what is it? why do you buy it? how do u use it? how do you feel when you have it ? 3.Part3: Do you think what will someone buy when they have much money? Is it happy when you have much money? .....
Posted by: DoVan | Tuesday, June 12, 2012 at 08:39

Hi simon! I have a concern about my writing tasks. In my task 1, I think it was underlength but I wrote really good comparisons. However in task 2, I think I did not have a perfectly logical essay. My question is, if I got 6.5 in task 2 but I did a really good job in task 1 but it was underlength, can i possibly still get a band 7?? tnx a lot
Posted by: jamie | Tuesday, June 12, 2012 at 16:22

hello,it wasn't exactly about the weather forecast but i had to pick up my favourite season.
Posted by: Kasia | Wednesday, June 13, 2012 at 13:16

Hi Jamie, It's possible, but we'll have to wait and see. Good luck!
Posted by: Simon | Thursday, June 14, 2012 at 12:14

Hi I got following speaking topic in my exam scribe a situation in which you were very polite. Please say

- Where did it happen? - How did you show that you were polite? - Explain why were you so polite? I hope this will help all to create their own ideas. Thanks
Posted by: Rony | Friday, June 15, 2012 at 03:44

Hi rony, thnx my email is below jamaljenti@yahoo.com thnx

Posted by: Zambu | Friday, June 15, 2012 at 04:02

Hello Simon? I am writing from Mongolia. Tnk u for your efforts. I took IELTS on 16th of June. For writing, task 1 was the table which compares the carbon dioxide production by five countries that was produced the most CO2 in 2006. For task 2, In many cities population is increasing that they do not know their neighbours and there no longer seems to be have any sense of community. What were the causes and what measures will improve...... Like that . I can not remember at all.
Posted by: Batka | Saturday, June 16, 2012 at 07:21

Hello everyone , I took ielts today, For the listening tasks they were kind of easy except the Last task which I found kind of fast and difficult one; it was about a writer for some research about a west city in UK as I remember, The reading first task was about Ethanol, and it was kind of difficult since they had a flow chart to fill in with right words from the passage. The other passage was about learning and food in an African country. The last reading task was about a museaum in Australia that was renewed, ( I think it was called NGA or GNA). There was one part that I don't remember for now. The writing tasks: 1- a line figure that show a percentage of aged people with age 65 and more with the percentage of those with 5 years old and less. Also it had a table that shows the percentage of old people according to their continents. Task2 was about having varity types of food that are not from your same country. The speaking second part was about a happy married couple, and why you considered them as a happy couple, then talking about marrege customs in your country.

Hope this will be usefull to you guys, And I hope I won't need to retake it
Posted by: Moley | Saturday, June 16, 2012 at 19:52

Hi, i took exam on 16th of June and kinda had trouble understanding the question because I think the question was written wrongly. Did anyone notice the mistake ? It said in the question that "many people prefer eating variety of foods than can produced in their local area. (not that produced in the local area). Do the adv outweig the disadvantages. The question wasnt say "that" instead it said "than", thefore changing the question's meaning overall. If anyone notice the mistake, please reply. Thank you
Posted by: Elif k | Saturday, June 16, 2012 at 21:24

i have given 2 times the ielts exam but i got only 5 band overall so give me some suggestion for improve my marks
Posted by: chhagan | Sunday, June 17, 2012 at 09:33

i took the ielts test yesterday as well and i found the reading part quite difficult! i thought the last passage about the museum in australia was really difficult, but i hope i got the scores i need! about the writing part, Task 2 was: Many people prefer food which is not produced in their own country, but has to be transported from other regions. Do you think the advantages of this development outweigh the disadvantages? (or something like this, it was written in a different way!). Can anybody give me feedback on my answers? I said the advantages outweighed the disadvantages. I started talking about vitamins etc and that its beneficial to your health. A drawback might be transportation by air, as it emits CO2 and therefore polluts the environment, but that a lot of airlines work on this as theyve introduces the CO2 taxes. Is this any good?? i need a 6.5 in writing :(
Posted by: bibidiboo | Sunday, June 17, 2012 at 15:09

i wrote completely different answer...i mentioned that imported items are more expensive that local food and that the customs and traditions might vanish if people consume foreign food.I mentioned also that the agriculture sector might suffer of redundancy because of lack of interest in local food. i also wrote that foreign food might increase the number of obese people and people suffering from diabetes or cardiac disease...
Posted by: Kasia | Sunday, June 17, 2012 at 15:36

Hi simon, i have a question, would you consider this an off- topic opinion/argument? My exam question last june 09 was the advantages of newspapers and tv news

programmes. In one of my arguments I said that newspapers and tv news programs have a connection to people's lives. It provides information about job vacancies that can help people to know many employment opportunities that may give them the life they always wanted. If these media do not exist, there maybe greater problems such as unemployment and poverty. Please give me a response.thank you
Posted by: jamie | Sunday, June 17, 2012 at 15:55

Thanks for sharing guys, and good luck! ... I think what you wrote should be ok Jamie.
Posted by: Simon | Monday, June 18, 2012 at 15:03

hi simon, can you give me some feedback on my answers? i posted them sunday 17th! thanks!
Posted by: bibidiboo | Wednesday, June 20, 2012 at 15:24

Hi again simon.! I have a question, in future years like 2030 , can i use by? Like by 2030, the US population is expected to increase? Tnx simon
Posted by: Dave | Thursday, June 21, 2012 at 05:20

Hi Bibidiboo, Those ideas seem fine, but the most important thing is the language you used to express them. ... Yes, that's correct Dave.
Posted by: Simon | Thursday, June 21, 2012 at 12:53

Hi I scored 8 in listening and reading and 7 in speaking and writing ,so overall band 7.5 ,I feel very frustrated because I need to score 7.5 in each domain ... I feel so depressed because I've started sitting this exam 2 years ago but can't pass it :(
Posted by: Kasia | Friday, June 22, 2012 at 06:08

Hi Kasia, It's very difficult to score 7.5 in each part, but you can do it! Don't give up.
Posted by: Simon | Friday, June 22, 2012 at 11:47

Thanks Simon,I have your e-book and studying it really well I feel upset because I can't start my medical internship without scoring 7.5 from each domain...I feel very down and upset.I'm giving the exam every 2 weeks because my deadline is in the middle of August.I hope that finally I will manage to score it...

Posted by: Kasia | Friday, June 22, 2012 at 12:29

Hi Kasia, Just out of curiosity, which country requires 7.5 in each domain for medical internship? Good luck for your future endeavors.
Posted by: Rocky | Friday, June 22, 2012 at 13:43

UK... The internship is called foundation programme and to enroll you need to prove your knowledge of English by submitting ielts certificate with 7.5 in each domain :(
Posted by: Kasia | Friday, June 22, 2012 at 17:47

Hi Thanks a lot
Posted by: mono | Saturday, June 23, 2012 at 18:14

Hi Simon, i took IELTS exam last 9/6/12 in UK. Managed to get 7.5 in writing after studying the topics on your e book. before i only managed to get 5.5 to 6.5. I am pleased with the result. and i applied the techniques like analysing the topic plus organising the ideas for ten minutes before writing the whole essay. i followed your 4 paragraph structure and the result was great. in task one i followed the same structure. unfortunately i failed to reach the 7.0 for both listening and speaking. but in previous exam i scored 7.5 on both areas. ill try to take another exam to attain all 7 in all areas.
Posted by: firebolt | Saturday, June 23, 2012 at 23:57

Thank you Simon for the wonderful writing course last saturday. Despite the short time I have learned a lot of techniques and strategies. For those whom have you as their main teacher they are really fortunate. I would advise any one of thinking of joining a weekend course to attend simon's one its worth every second.
Posted by: Reham | Sunday, June 24, 2012 at 15:10

Hello Simon A very huge thanks to you, at last i've got the scores I needed on the fifth attempt. That is all because of your website, it helped me a lot. Wishing you success and happiness in all you do. Again, thank you so much x
Posted by: Siad | Sunday, June 24, 2012 at 18:24

Hi guys, I'm taking IELTS (Academic Test) on Saturday. Any of you who has taken IELTS this weekend or last weekend could inform me about the topics for the Speaking test and the Writing test. Knowing the topics for the writing test would be really important for me. Thanks for your help!

Posted by: domenico | Sunday, June 24, 2012 at 22:16

Hi, Simon I took the exam on June 9th in Vietnam, the same day as Jamie . So I had the same writing question (not exactly as it was): "News nowadays shows no connection to people's lives. Therefore, it is a waste of time to watch TV and read newspapers. Do you agree or disagree? Use your experience and relevant examples to present your opinion." I did the same as you said, kept the intro and conclusion short, spending most time on two body paragraphs. The first body, I talk about "News do have a connection to our life like we need news to be kept updated, to socialize with friends and weather forecast during breaks among new coverages. In the 2nd, I talked about why we need TV and newspapers for news reports. Task 1 was quite easy, I think, which a table showing the statistics in the past and the future so I used both past tense and the future tense. I was pleased with my performance (quite complex structures, a wide range of vocabulary , different tenses ...) and I corrected some mistakes when I checked my work before the time limit. Finally, I got so disappointed with 6 for Writing. I bought your e-book and absorbed quite many ideas. I also had my sister correct my practice writing at home. She got A in writing at Brown university and she said my writing was quite good. I felt very relieved after having finishing the test but I actually failed it. I need 7.5 for writing. The first time I sit the exam, I scored 6.5. Can you think of some possible reasons for my result??? Do you think that the examiners sometimes try to keep the scores under the total score less than or equal to 7??? I heard some teachers in my city said the only test centre in my city deliberately mis-mark the writing and speaking sections performed by people who are not the learners at that centre, aiming at marketing or increasing the prestige of education there. By the way, I took it at the centre of the University of Queensland. Do you think that I should try another centre instead to score higher in the next exam? Besides, my total band score was 7 with the tree other sub-scores were 7 and 7.5 Could you give me some other advice? I found your advice great and followed it but there was no change to my writing as it was to other people here who scored higher and higher on writing :(((((((((((((
Posted by: Minh | Monday, June 25, 2012 at 10:31

Ah, I also want to ask you some questions related to the application procedures for the exam. When I applied, the center gave me a form which required information about my job/study, my purpose of taking IELTS and my preferred destinations for further education. I wrote my job as an intern teacher of English and I wanted to go to the US. Do the information influence the way the examiners worked? Why do they need these information? And is there any difference if I said I want to have IELTS to study in the US?? They did not ask me any questions related to these information during the speaking section. Thank you very much, Simon.
Posted by: Minh | Monday, June 25, 2012 at 10:41

Good luck Kasia. Keep trying!

... Hi Firebolt, I'm glad my ebook helped you to get such a good writing score. Better luck next time for the other parts! ... Thanks Reham! ... Congratulations Siad! ... Hi Minh, I'm sorry to hear about your writing score. Nothing that you mentioned seems wrong, so I can't explain why you didn't get a higher score. Maybe you were a bit unlucky with the topic (I haven't really done that one on the site or in the ebook). All I can advise is that you keep practising and try again. I'm sure you'll get your 7.5 soon! Don't worry about the other things - test centres all mark exams in the same way, examiners are never told to keep the scores down, and the information on your application form does not influence the scoring at all. The fact that you want to go to the US doesn't make any difference either.
Posted by: Simon | Monday, June 25, 2012 at 13:43

This forum is supposed to be 'recent questions' not a general chit-chat about what grades you got !
Posted by: clarity | Monday, June 25, 2012 at 15:04

Hey clarity! Simon have told everyone who has questions related to IELTS exam in all ways can post their comments here and it's his right to decide on which question to answer. so it's fine for anyone to say anything providing that they belong to the EXAM area. Besides, everybody here informed Simon of their scores because they wanted to present their gratitude and appreciation to Simon's help and guide, so it's totally natural for them to talk about their scores, just kind of experience exchange. Also, I think Simon needs to know people's feedback on their progress to see if his book and advice are right. It's none of your business to say people are chit-chatting. you want to get more information on the exam so you get here and you certainly have to filter what exam questions you need =,=
Posted by: Minh | Monday, June 25, 2012 at 15:54

hi everybody.. i had my speaking on 23/06,,

Q card was favorite street in your village/town/city Discussion section was about differences between life style in cities nd villages,,which simon has already discussed on this blog ,,
Posted by: Raj | Monday, June 25, 2012 at 20:28

Hi Raj, could you please let me know what you had for Writing Task 1 and Writing Task 2? Thanks a lot!
Posted by: domenico | Monday, June 25, 2012 at 21:16

sorry domenico, m going to attained other three module on 30/06, i will let U after my exam,,
Posted by: Raj | Monday, June 25, 2012 at 23:21

Thanks a lot, Raj! Just two quick questions about your speaking test: 1)What were exactly the points you were sked to develop in the Q card? 2) Can you remember any other questions in part three of the Speaking test?
Posted by: domenico | Tuesday, June 26, 2012 at 11:44

hi domenico it was about street,than sub questions were,name of it,where it s?,why do i like it? nd how does it look like,,? in part3,was mainly about life in cities nd villages nd also life in past nd present,,
Posted by: Raj | Wednesday, June 27, 2012 at 23:06

I just finished exam.. Task-1.. process diagram of production of fodds from supplier to supermarket via warehouse. T.2 Vistors learn overseas countries' cultural and behaviours. How they learn?? Why they can learn while others dont?? Reading is extremely difficult... Last 2 passage I didnt understand.. Simon I think IELTS has increased its level?? coz I have given this exam for 8 times in 1 year Australia, but everytime I found to get more difficult than before.
Posted by: Jay | Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 07:01

Hi Simon, I went through your website. It found quite helpful to me. I attended IELTS 2 times. (1) L-7, R-6, W-6.5, S-6 (2) L-7, R-6.5, W-6.5, S-5.5 I need 7 in all. I face the main problem with speaking now especially part2. Please advise me to proceed? I have next exam on 12th of July. Not confident enough to attend speaking though.
Posted by: Hobby Jose | Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 11:59

Hello everyone, First, I want to thank Simon for this useful website. I took the academic exam today in Turkey, I just wanted to try myself. Especially the writing and listening parts of this website helped me so much. In the exam reading part forced me, I couldn't complete it properly. I couldn't finishh he 3rd task:( Writing and listening were good enough for me. But in speaking section, I got so jumpy :((( My voice trembled. I think I am gonna get bad point for speaking section. I will name myself successfull if I can get 6 overall. If we come to questions: In writing part 2nd task was about: People say that money is the most important thing in workplaces. In 1st part there was a graph about: proportion of vehicles producing nitrogen oxide correlating with their speed. In speaking part Started asking with my name Do I have any best friends How often do I see them How do I want my friends to be.? In 2nd part the subject was: Tell some good news you heard from your family In 3rd part she asked about mass media and communicate -Posted by: Qerem | Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 14:40

Hello everybody!!! Simon, you have a very helpful site and great and easy to apply tips!!Especially for essays!!And the ebook--It has ideas for all the essays!!

I also took academic exam today in Turkey and i didn't have time to complete Reading section 3..I hope to get band 6..I HOPE!! Speaking was like this: What do you like to do on holidays?Where do you preffer to go? Tell me about your hometown.How did it change over the years? Do names have a meaning in your country?How did your parents choose your name?Would you changed it? Cue card: Describe a present you gave to someone. Who was that person? Why did you choose that present? What was his/her reaction? And after we talked about the importance to give/receive presents from friends and family, if throughout the year is any pressure on us to buy presents, and how much do people spend on presents nowadays. I wish you good luck guys and try not to loose yourself at any part because of timing..
Posted by: Gabriela | Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 16:36

today i wrote exam in UK listening- booking farm house for family nd group aged between 16-62 - mike and eve talking about tourist research - rubber production reading - bird evolution, bill small big climate change - i cnat remember - management style in companies writing about task 1 : nitride oxide pollutant emission from bus, lorries, diesel car and petrol car according speed task 2: many factors motivates people in workplace. of these money is the most important factor what extend do u agree or disagree with the statement? speaking: about my self and my job elementary school have u been there recently do u have made friends clue card: difficult thing i done? what was that? why it was difficult? how i felt when i done it? young people ambitiousness .....is it necessary ,,,,too much ambitiousness leads to disaster what u think about that,,,my native place ,,, wat i like about that,,,,wat is bad thing about my village

Posted by: lolitha | Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 18:20

Hello everybody I took IELTS yesterday in Pakistan. Got exactly the same questions in Listening, Reading & Writing as told by Qerem and lolitha. I think Reading passage 3 was a bit tricky, otherwise the whole test seemed easy. Hope to get the band that I need. Best of luck to all! And thank you Simon for this awesome blog.
Posted by: BigBoy | Sunday, July 01, 2012 at 16:34

hey bigboy can you please tell me ur exam questions?

Posted by: jasleen | Tuesday, July 03, 2012 at 17:54

i took 6 times ielts exam and i got same result 5.5 bands again, sir, tell me what can i do?
Posted by: Harmanjit singh | Wednesday, July 04, 2012 at 04:29

hye simon.. my exam is on 7th july.....plz tell me how i improve my writing task 2....
Posted by: jasleen | Wednesday, July 04, 2012 at 06:40

Please any one that is going to take his exam from now tell 12 july should help and send his exam question
Posted by: Aminu Nass | Wednesday, July 04, 2012 at 12:14

Hi eveyone, I took an General IELTS exam in UK 30th June. The listenin questions were same with Lolitha. Writing task 1: You saw an article on the newspaper about a programme which you like watching it very much. But the writer wrote bad things about this programme. Write a letter to newspaper's editor to inform him about your opinion. Writing task 2: Nowadays, some of parents allow to children to use a mobile phone in early age but some of them do not allow. What is your opinion? Speaking : Do you live in a house or apartment in your country? Which room is your favorite room? Why? What sport are common in your country and why? Do you enjoy sport? Which sport did you do? What are the benefits of doing sport? Part 2: If you had too much money, what would you have bought, why? Part 3: When people be rich what they buy in your country? How can determine people whether rich or not? Do people become rich by hard-working or does it depends on chance? Why? Good luck to everyone

Posted by: ARZU | Wednesday, July 04, 2012 at 23:15

hi every body I will take the a cademic test tommorow wish me luck
Posted by: Candle of Hope | Friday, July 06, 2012 at 17:08

my test will be on 12th July

Posted by: Looolo | Saturday, July 07, 2012 at 12:21

please Looolo and Candle of Hope share ur exams question immediately Thanks. wishing you all the best.
Posted by: Aminu Nass | Saturday, July 07, 2012 at 15:24

Hi Simon, I have one question : What can I interpret from the short Speaking Test? I got only 10 minutes test instead of common 15 min. I (personally) believed that I, at least, don't make a big mistake, so I was quited surprised with this thing. Could you share your experience in it? I took Academic Test on 30th June in Thailand. I would say that overall of the test was quite similar to Cambridge 8. Highly recommend it to be familiar with the real one. Another observation is that allocate your time wisely in reading. The difficulty of three passages is not equal!! You should not spend 20 minutes each. Find out which one is the easiest and complete it first. Normally the 3rd one is the hardest. For speaking part 2, I had not known that the examiner would stop me at exact 2 minutes. That disturbed me throughout the part 3. I still keep my fingers crossed for the result on this Friday.
Posted by: Terminal21 | Saturday, July 07, 2012 at 17:35

Hi Terminal21, The speaking test should be between 11 and 14 minutes. Don't worry if yours was around 11 minutes rather than 14. Let's wait and see what result you get.
Posted by: Simon | Saturday, July 07, 2012 at 19:11

hi every body. this is was my last ielts writing task 2 question test that was held in the uk,could any one help with a plan?

exploring other people`s culture has benefits for the tourists, however tourist industry can prevent the local people from developing their country in to a modern one. to what extent you agree or disagree thanks
Posted by: meso | Saturday, July 07, 2012 at 23:39

Dear test takers please share your taste date and country it will be easy to prepare. I took on 07.07.2012. UK. I don't remember clearly listening. Sec.1 about ticket booking to berlin etc. Sec.2 about zoo or animals. and map. Sec.3 Sec.4 lecture about intelligence. Reading. Pas. 1. about brain training. Pas. 2. about disappearance of animal. Pas. 3 about Australian education. Task 1. one line graph about age group who went on cinema once a week or more in one European city. Task 2. The only way to improve safety on the road is strict punishment od driver offenders. What extend do you agree or disagree. Speaking. task 1 sport. and place. Task 2 about remembered day in childhood.
Posted by: YK | Sunday, July 08, 2012 at 01:25

Hi: task 2 in UK (7th July) https://docs.google.com/gview?url=http://files.myopera.com/uynguyen/files/IETLSBASIC AX1CN2/IELTS+WRITING++SAMPLE+RESPONSE+FOR+CINEMA+ATTENDANCE+LINE+GRAPH.pdf&chrome=t rue">http://files.myopera.com/uynguyen/files/IETLSBASICAX1CN2/IELTS+WRITING++SAMPLE+RESPONSE+FOR+CINEMA+ATTENDANCE+LINE+GRAPH.pdf&chrome=t rue">https://docs.google.com/gview?url=http://files.myopera.com/uynguyen/files/IETLS BASICAX1CN2/IELTS+WRITING++SAMPLE+RESPONSE+FOR+CINEMA+ATTENDANCE+LINE+GRAPH.pdf&chrome=t rue
Posted by: kasia | Sunday, July 08, 2012 at 12:11

task 1 in UK (7th July) The only way to improve the safety on our own road is to have stricter punishment for driving offenders. To what extent do you agree or disagree? http://kiransielts.blogspot.co.uk/2010/10/only-way-to-improve-safety-on-our-own.html
Posted by: kasia | Sunday, July 08, 2012 at 12:13

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You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post. Speaking: Describe some interesting old person you have met. Where you have met him/her. How you find him/her interesting. Writing Task 2: (something like) Only the stricter penalties for violating traffic rules are going to ensure the safety on our roads.
Posted by: Shafaq | Thursday, July 19, 2012 at 20:36

can someone post the perfect answer for the above question.please.
Posted by: korcha | Friday, July 20, 2012 at 03:27

Interesting old person http://www.makkarielts.com/ielts-speaking/46-cue-card-interesting-old-person-1.html or http://www.makkarielts.com/ielts-speaking/47-cue-card-interesting-old-person-2.html

Posted by: Kiran | Friday, July 20, 2012 at 16:52

Hi my test today
Posted by: Layla | Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 03:28

Hi, I sat the Ielts Academic today at Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand. The topic for speaking part 2 was to describe a street in my city. Writing task 1: 2 graphs, one about the trend of population in urban and rural areas and the total, and the second graph by 3 different age groups from 1950 and projected until 2040 in countries in the Pacific Ocean. Writing task 2: something like that: the cities and towns all over the world experience a high volume of road traffic. What are the causes of this problem? What actions can be taken to solve this problem? Simon, I made a big mistake: after writing on page 1, I continued on page 4 to finish task 1. So pages 2 and 3 were blank. I told the invigilator and she told me to write at the bottom of page 1 continued on page 4 and then I wrote task 2 on a new paper, page 3 and 4. I completed my details like name and candidate number on the second paper. Do you think my writing will be taken into account despite the fact that I have written like this? I'm very worried. Thanks!
Posted by: Mireille | Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 06:29

Hi Simon, I got an exam today in Vietnam. The task 2 topic is In many cities and towns, the high volume of road traffic cause many problems. What cause this problem? What action can solve this problem? I did wrote an essay about traffic congestion. Is it address to this topic?
Posted by: Mai | Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 07:37

I just come back from IELTS exam: i took the Exam in khobar Saudi Arabia writing 1: Table showing satisfaction of student in UK university about three different facilities cafeteria service,social,academic facilities in bedrooms. writing 2: Money will be use to build a new public building (e.g Museum or Town Halls) rather than renovating an existing one. to what extant to you agreed of disagreed. Do you think Disagreeing and said the money suppose to spend on other sector of government and gives details answer the question? thanks
Posted by: Aminu Nass | Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 12:35

Aminu Nass What was the Speaking topic?

Posted by: Mustafa ULUFER | Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 13:58

Hy Mustafa, Here is My speaking test but i did it on 19/07/2012 Part 1: Ask me about either i was a student or working, which course i was studying and why i choose the course. secondly, do i like flower,have u ever gives flower as a gift to someone,have u ever buy a plastic flower, do u prefer flower inside or outside ur home. Part 2: He give me a question Describe a group of singer,mucisian in ur country. who are they who listing to them.
Posted by: Aminu Nass | Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 17:19

Aminu thanx for your information ;)

Posted by: mustafa ulufer | Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 21:37

hello there, i took the ielts today on 21/07/12 in the uk writing task2 is governments should spend money only on building new public building such as museums and towen hall insted of renovating older one. to what extend do you agree or disagree. speaking test part 2, descripe a tv programme tha you like.(on what channel it is, when it is broadcasted, what is especial about it, why it is your favourit one)
Posted by: m | Sunday, July 22, 2012 at 01:03

Hello, I took the ielts exam yesterday in the UK Writing task 2 also about government spending money on public buildings Reading was the most stressful for me because I ran out of time as the last 4 questions in paragraph 3 were T F NG Speaking: part 2 talk about exciting experience in your life Part 3: is there any chance to have an exciting experience in countryside? What the difference between exciting experience in real life and in the movies? Why we watch the movies? What the influence of the media on this? Compare opportunities between countryside and cities? are parents protecting their children more nowadays?? Part 1: who choose your name? Would you like to change your name? Why? About my job?
Posted by: Sh b | Sunday, July 22, 2012 at 09:46

Hi Simon Can I ask you advice please? Yesterday I took the exam for the first time, I need 7 in each part? I think I did well in both speaking and listening but I ran out of time in the reading part ( as i spent the last few muinutes of paragraph 2 reviewing my answers instead of starting paragraph 3) and this affected my writing as well as I felt so stressed after the reading. Is it a good idea to do the exam again next week? Because due to my circumstances if I don't get the score that I need now I won't be able to take the exam again before another 3 month and I am worried about losing the skills and in that case I might need more practice?? Thanks for your help
Posted by: Sh b | Sunday, July 22, 2012 at 09:55

Hi Mireille, I think it will be fine. Try not to worry. ... That's fine Mai. ... That seems fine to me Aminu. ... Hi Sh b, Yes, it might be a good idea to re-take the exam as quickly as you can. Try to finish every section next time. Good luck!
Posted by: Simon | Monday, July 23, 2012 at 13:16

Thanks, Simon! I believe me and Mai had the same topic for task 2. In cities and towns all over the world the high volume of road traffic is a problem. What are the causes for this problem? What actions can be taken to solve this problem? I did not write about traffic congestion. My first body para was about why there are so many vehicles on the road (more people living in cities, therefore they use more vehicles; public transport is not so appealing; cities were not planned for so many vehicles). The second body para was about what can be done to address this problem ( making public transport more comfortable, ticket prices more affordable, more routes, better schedule; encouraging people to share a car by making special lanes for cars with 2 or 3 occupants etc)

I kept my introduction and conclusion short (2 and 1 sentences respectively)and I made the body paragraphs longer like you advised us on the web. I don't think I should have written about traffic congestion. What do you think? Thanks!
Posted by: Mireille | Monday, July 23, 2012 at 20:22

Hi, I took an exam in Australia 21/07/12 My writing questions were the same as Mirielle's Speaking topic was Part 2 Describe about family news which was happy What was it Who informed to you When was it Why the news was a happy one Part 3 How do people contact with others these days? Do you think it is necessary to have regulations on the media? Simon! I have a question about writing task 1. There are two different line graphs but they have the same x axis(population) and y axis (the same period of time). The first line graph shows changes in total population, rural and urban population and the second line graph gives data about the number of population in the under 16 aged group, the 16-65 age group, the over 65 age group. I should describe from 1950 to 2040. Total population = rural + urban = <15 age group + 15-65 age group + >65 age group. Do you think which one is better? The first one is to describe one paragraph about past and the other about future. The second one is to describe one paragraph about the first graph and the other about the second graph. Thank you for your help!
Posted by: Augustine | Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 02:19

Hello Simon, I took Ielts as of 21 July 2012. Regarding writing task2, I would like to have your some advices... The question was... In the big cities, the high volume of traffic become problem. what is the cause of this problem and what can solve the problems.

I could not write well about the reasons of the high volume of traffic.(I just wrote people tend to use car because its convenient ) Instead of that I wrote a lot about the airpolution and time wasting due to the traffic jam in the city as its easier to explain... I would like to know what the exminer expect us to write about this question... If you have time, kindly let me know.

Posted by: yuko | Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 06:59

Hi simon I will be very grateful to you if you could give me some hints about this particular essay topic i.e. Governments spend a huge sum of money on arts ,some believe it should rather be spent on health and education .Discuss both points of view and give your opinion. I don't have problem writing about health and education but I don't get the statement saying government spend money on arts ??so what kind of arts does that mean?/ Looking forward to see your point of views Thank you
Posted by: sibyl | Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 14:36

Hi, Simon. I have just took IELTS General Training in Surabaya, Indonesia on July 21, 2012.Hope this might useful for other IELTS takers. There are the scripts & questions : Listening Section 1 A father was phoning an educational toy company, namely Rimona. He was going to buy some presents for his son, Peter, a 6 years old boy and Amelia, a 4 years old girl. He bought a model wooden truck which cost 8.99, whereas her daughter also given a small box of chocolate. Q: Fill in the blank according to the recording (10 questions) Section 2 A radio talk between Jane and a radio speaker about Queensland Travel festival. They emphasize that this festival is different from usual events because there is a free live music performance. They also mention about Toowomba and Macquary building as part of the festivals. Q: Multiple choices (ABC), choose 2 and 3 from what they have provided. Section 3 Two students are conducting questioners survey about university facilities, include some back draws and suggestions from respondent.

Q: Fill in the blank in a table and choose a pie chart of the questioner result. As well as multiple choices (ABC) Section 4 Donna chan, a university researcher explains to audience about her studies, why she loves her jobs and some new findings on new mammal in the ocean. Q: Fill in the blank in a table and multiple choices (ABC) Reading (GT) Section 1 A code of conduct of a public library,include how should their staff behave and book reservation methods they have.Any complain should be written to chief librarian and they will response maximum in seven days after receipt any mail. Q: True False Not given questions Section 2A There is description about some restaurants somewhere in a street of Sydney, with its all features and specialities. Q: Matching to find a right restaurant or cafe according to their specifications. Section 2B A passage about an agency employment's ( temp) code of conduct, how they able to make income by finding a job for a job seeker, also some restrictions they have to comply according to the law. Q: Fill in the blank Section 3 A text about job clubs, how they were built, what were the purposes, some suggestions to improve the club in order to be more effective. Q: Rephrasing some sentences in order to answer the questions. Section 4 A text about a journey or expedition of two best friends in dune somewhere in Mongolia,near the Gobi desert. This text also including how they did the expedition and some obstacles they had. In the end, they made a remarkable journey and succeed climb the dune to the top. Q: Matching some paragraphs with main idea in every single paragraph. And also fill in the blank. Writing (GT) task 1

We need to make a letter to your manager and ask for his/her comments regarding our article which will be published in a famous magazine next month. In this letter, we should say: What had you written in the article? Why did you write it ? What makes so special about your writing? Writing (GT) task 2 In some countries nowadays, single young adults prefer to live outside their homes with parents, they usually leave their home for study or work in different places. Do you think this trend have some advantages or disadvantages? Speaking Section 1 What is your full name and where are you coming from? where do you live ? House or apartment? Why do you choose to live in house? Which room do you like the most in your house? Did you go to your previous elementary school after a long time you had graduated? Did you still make contact with your old classmates?how? Do you like flower? Why/ why not? Have you ever giving flower to somebody?When, where, to whom and what occasion? Section 2 Talk about a program tv channel that we enjoy watching regularly We should say: What is the tv program channel's name? When do we usually watch? Why do you prefer to watch this program other than any other programs? What is the inside of the program itself? Section 3 Which do you prefer to watch movie in cinemas or homes?why? Do you think some television Channel broadcast can be considered a good entertainment media? why? Do you think TV Channel is useful to lonely people?
Posted by: Daniel Sentosa | Wednesday, July 25, 2012 at 07:55

Hi Mireille,

'Traffic congestion' just means 'lots of traffic', so it's fine to use that expression. ... Hi Augustine, From what I understand, I'd probably describe each graph separately because they seem to show different things (in spite of the axes being the same). ... Hi Yuko, I think your ideas are fine. I'll try to use that question in a future lesson. ... Hi Sibyl, "The arts" can include things like theatre, galleries, museums, concerts etc. These can be described as 'leisure' and 'cultural' activities, whereas health and education can be considered 'essential' services. ... Thanks for sharing so many questions Daniel!
Posted by: Simon | Wednesday, July 25, 2012 at 13:15

After seven months of trying I finally got (General training) Listening 9 Reading 8.5 Writing 8 speaking 8.5 thanks Simon. Without your help I wouldn't have been able to get 8 for the writing section. Writing topic I got: Task 2: Some say It is the governments duty to take care of everyone who is disadvantaged. Give your opinion. (This is the gist of it. I can't remember the exact wording) Task 1: You got a ticket to a sporting event. But you cannot attend it due to some reason. Write a letter to your friend offering him the ticket. (Again this is the main idea of it. I can't remember the specifics sorry) Ive failed this exam 3 times. Results first time: Reading 9

Listening 8.5 Speaking 9 writing 7.5 Results Second time: Reading 7 Listening 8 Speaking 8 writing 7.5 Results third time Reading 8.5 Listening 9 Speaking 8 writing 7.5 And I finally got 8 or above for all bands on the 4th attempt. Through this what I've learnt is its not down to luck. Hard work is what will get you through. And finally, just do what Simon says. He knows what he is talking about. I can assure you that.
Posted by: anonymous | Wednesday, July 25, 2012 at 15:12

hi anonymous, Just got a question for you if you saw this message, are you a native speaker?
Posted by: Robert | Wednesday, July 25, 2012 at 15:58

Hi anonymous amazing score!!!! Congrats, I am wondering if you can help me in speaking and reading test please let me know if you have time. I am to take the test end of august- I am desperate this is my forth attempt .thanks
Posted by: Cel | Wednesday, July 25, 2012 at 19:17

Hi Robert, I'm not a native speaker but I've been studying English since I was in grade 3 and my parents were are in English. Cel: I'm sorry buddy, but I don't have the time to help you out. However, I can give you some tips. For reading:

To improve my reading speed I kept reading newspapers like the wall street journal, Newyorker. Sydney morning herald (Australia) is a pretty good as well. All these papers have online versions so it wont cost you anything to read them. As for speaking. The only that I can think of is to speak with other native speakers or if you can't find them, then try to find people who speak PROPER English. Another good resource is the BBC world service. You can stream it online.
Posted by: anonymous | Thursday, July 26, 2012 at 12:46

Thanks a lot anonymous! (for useful tips) If you find something useful for improve score please report us!
Posted by: Bekhzod | Thursday, July 26, 2012 at 17:37

Hi i attempted my speaking test on 23rd of july ,Part 2 question was What would you like to buy if you had some money. Discussion Topic :Do you think people from richer countries migrate to poorer countries ?why? What are popular sports in your country? Do u think richer countries should do more in helping poorer countries?why why not?
Posted by: ahmed | Thursday, July 26, 2012 at 20:38

Simon thank you for your help!I have attended your writing class once and use your site. It was so helpful for me.I have received my Ielts results with overall band 7:)) Listening 7.5 Reading 8.0 Writing 6.5 Speaking 6.5 Good luck for all Ielts students.Keep going and you will achieve your results.
Posted by: Elle | Friday, July 27, 2012 at 01:45

Congratulations anonymous and Elle. It's fantastic to hear the success stories of people following the blog. Thanks for sharing!
Posted by: Simon | Friday, July 27, 2012 at 12:17

Hi everyone I just finished my test in Australia. Writing questions are: Task 1: 3 bar charts, one chart is weekly working hours for employees and another is about owners/managers. Third one is the total number of both. Working hours consist of part time, full time and overtime.

Task 2: Some people argue that arts, like painting and music do not have directly improve people's lives. Government should spend more money on other things. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Listening part and reading parts were quite simple this time . I am waiting to do my speaking in the afternoon. Good luck to all of you. Cheers, Penny
Posted by: Penny | Saturday, July 28, 2012 at 04:54

Sorry that's three pie charts

Posted by: Penny | Saturday, July 28, 2012 at 05:47

I have finished my test at Singapore too. They are same as Penny's mentions above. However, My speaking test is on this monday. I hope it will has someone share it:D.
Posted by: Paijin | Saturday, July 28, 2012 at 11:58

Hi guys, This is the task 2 writing topic that I went through today's test . International tourism is a big industry.some people believe tourism creates tension between people based on cultural differences.Do you agree or disagree?
Posted by: sibyl | Saturday, July 28, 2012 at 17:35

Hi dear friends, I took IELTS in the UK. 28/07/2012 Listening section. Section 1: women looked for flat in Australia country. questions same how mauch contact detail etc. Setion 2: about volunteer. Multiple choice, choice from table. Section 3: bout students reseach. I think was about households. Section 4: was lecture about buildings and how they destroy by several factors. Reading. Passage 1. about Arbergs or emars something like that it used for perfumer etc. it is difficult to produce. This text was strange especially about wheels. Passage 2. about Titans' photo and amateur astronauts. discussion about do researchers need this amateurs.

Passage 3. About human behaviour. Writing task 1. Onle line graph about global population in billion. The second was 2 pie charts. There were about regions Asia Europe etc in percentage. Wtiting 2. What extend do you agree or disagree. International turism most develop in this industry. People tension ets I forgot sorry. Speaking same questions. Part 2 was about weather which i like. Good luck! I we are definitely all get 9. or 9.5 :)
Posted by: YK | Saturday, July 28, 2012 at 19:19

Today i took the exam and the writing topic was: Nowadays, international tourism is the biggest industry in the world. Unfortunately, international tourism creates tension rather than understanding between people from different cultures. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion? sadly I did not find any ideas, so i wrote of the point.
Posted by: Solomun | Saturday, July 28, 2012 at 19:40

Hi Solomun, from my point of view it's is to agree on this essay as you can write people get murdered,they become victims of sexual abuse.they break rules of that country etc.
Posted by: Tahir | Sunday, July 29, 2012 at 01:18

I have a speaking exam on July 29, in Uzbekistan. Here are some questions which I can remember: part 1: do you live in a house or apartment? which room is your favourite room? What kind of sport types popular in your country? What kind of car popular in your country? part 2: Describe married happy couples: who are they? why do you think are they happy? In what age people should marry? Should people spend much money for marriage weddings?
Posted by: Jamshid | Monday, July 30, 2012 at 12:51

Hello Simon. Here's my writing questions. I took the exam in Sydney Au, 28/07

task 1 3 pie charts which describe the percentage of number of hours worked (part time, full time, longer hours) by the employees, managers and the total workforce task 2 arts like music or painiting does not improve one's quality of life therefore the government should not allocate funds within this area. do u agree or disagree?
Posted by: Naomi | Tuesday, July 31, 2012 at 08:00

hello everyone, I give the exam on 28th of july in United Kingdom. I also faced the same question written above by solumun. And I wrote like sayingIntro- I do not completely agree that tourism brings only misunderstanding among people however this have various advantages and disadvantages Para 1- advantages: 1- economic: creates employment opportunities for thousands of people as we can see millions and millions of people move for sightseeing and sunbathing every year. 2- provides opportunity to explore cultural and traditional identity of a particular nation 3- some country completely rely on tourism for their livelihood and the other thing is that this can be the attraction for a huge multinational investment. Para 3- disadvantages 1- destruction of natural resources by building entertainment complexes, hotels, pubs and resorts in a rapid rate. like clearing rain forest and spoiling beaches which had made the wild life vulnerable for extinction 2- more tourists mean more waste production as a result this put a strain on the local resource on a particular country. 3- with the influx of tourists could also bring their ill social practices like alcoholism, prostitution and lack of respect to elderly people. conclusion: people should not stop travelling from one country to another but they should not cause damage to the environment and culture of that host country. Can't we write this way!!!!!! speakingpart 1- name/ what can i call you/ where do you from/ tell me more about the place where you come from/ what difference had you felt in your place now as compared to the past/ what effect had it made? part 2- describe about the old monuments/ buildings that you know how does it look like why is it popular what importance does it have do you think government need to preserve it?

part 3- discussions what do you prefer living on a old buildings or new one and why? what do you think youngster today are least interested in history or visiting such historic buildings and why so you think so? do you think government need to spend money on such historic buildings and why? thak you very much!!!!!!! keeping my fingers crossed. Hoping to get 7 in each section!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: nisha | Tuesday, July 31, 2012 at 08:21 Post a comment

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Wednesday, August 01, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'discussion' introduction

Last week we looked at a 'problem and solution' introduction. Today I'll use the same technique (2 sentences: topic + basic answer) to write a 'discussion and opinion' introduction. Here's a question (from Cambridge IELTS 6): Successful sports professionals can earn a great deal more money than people in other important professions. Some people think this is fully justified while others think it is unfair. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion. Here's my 2-sentence introduction: It is true that sports stars often earn huge salaries. While there are some good reasons why this is the case, I personally believe that it is wrong for these people to be paid more than other professionals.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (4) Wednesday, July 25, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: problem & solution introduction

My advice for task 2 introductions is to write them very quickly. Just write 2 sentences: one to introduce the topic, and one to give a basic answer. Let's look at how to do this for a "problem and solution" question: The number of plants and animals is declining. Describe some reasons for this problem and suggest some solutions. Here's my introduction:

It is undeniable that wildlife habitats are being destroyed and whole species of plants and animals are disappearing. There are several causes of this alarming trend, but measures could certainly be taken to tackle the problem. Note: In the second sentence you don't need to give any causes or solutions; save your ideas for the main paragraphs.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (16) Wednesday, July 18, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: idea and paragraph

My students and I followed the advice in last week's lesson to write a paragraph for the topic below. The number of plants and animals is declining. Describe the problem and suggest some solutions. Ideas for describing the problem:

over-farming, land needed for crops and animals cutting down trees destroys natural habitats, animals become extinct industrial waste in rivers, sea chemicals kill fish and plants, interrupt natural cycles / food chain

It seemed that we had 2 main ideas, so we wrote a 2-idea paragraph: There are two main reasons why plants and animals are disappearing. Firstly, in many parts of the world trees are being cut down to make way for farmland on which to grow crops and keep animals. The result of this is that natural habitats are being destroyed, and in some cases whole species of animals are becoming extinct. Secondly, human activity is also responsible for the destruction of aquatic life as domestic and industrial waste is pumped into rivers and seas. This chemical waste kills plants and fish, interrupting natural cycles and having a devastating effect on food chains. (99 words)
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (28) Wednesday, July 11, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: from ideas to paragraph

I always tell my students to plan ideas for their main body paragraphs. Let's look at how to put some ideas together to make a paragraph. Here's the question: The main reason people go to work is to earn money. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Ideas for one main paragraph:

agree that money is the main reason people work people look at salary first, they rarely take a salary cut need to live, pay bills, food etc. look after our families, save for the future otherwise, most people would probably choose not to work

Full paragraph using the ideas above: I agree that the majority of people work in order to earn money. Before taking any other factors into account, it is normal to first consider the salary that a particular post offers, and it is rare to hear of a person who happily takes a cut in pay when beginning a new job. We all need money to pay for our basic necessities, such as accommodation, bills and food. Many adults also have families who depend on the wages they earn, and at the same time they are conscious of the need to save for the future. If we no longer needed money, I doubt most of us would choose to continue in our jobs. (116 words)
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (23) Wednesday, July 04, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: before you start writing

Before you start writing your task 2 essay, you need to do two things:
1. Plan your overall essay structure (ideally 4 paragraphs) 2. Spend some time thinking of ideas for the main body paragraphs

Here are two recent exam questions that you could try writing a plan for: The main reason people go to work is to earn money. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Many people prefer to rent a house rather than buying one. Describe the advantages and disadvantages of renting.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (32) Wednesday, June 27, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'unpaid work' essay

Some people think that all teenagers should be required to do unpaid work in their free time to help the local community. They believe this would benefit both the individual teenager and society as a whole. Do you agree or disagree? Many young people work on a volunteer basis, and this can only be beneficial for both the individual and society as a whole. However, I do not agree that we should therefore force all teenagers to do unpaid work.

Most young people are already under enough pressure with their studies, without being given the added responsibility of working in their spare time. School is just as demanding as a full-time job, and teachers expect their students to do homework and exam revision on top of attending lessons every day. When young people do have some free time, we should encourage them to enjoy it with their friends or to spend it doing sports and other leisure activities. They have many years of work ahead of them when they finish their studies. At the same time, I do not believe that society has anything to gain from obliging young people to do unpaid work. In fact, I would argue that it goes against the values of a free and fair society to force a group of people to do something against their will. Doing this can only lead to resentment amongst young people, who would feel that they were being used, and parents, who would not want to be told how to raise their children. Currently, nobody is forced to volunteer, and this is surely the best system. In conclusion, teenagers may choose to work for free and help others, but in my opinion we should not make this compulsory. (250 words, band 9)
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (24) Wednesday, June 20, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: completely disagree

When you completely agree or completely disagree with the question statement, you don't need to write about the other side of the argument. Just state your opinion and give reasons. Today I'll show you how to write a 'disagree' essay for this question: Some people think that all teenagers should be required to do unpaid work in their free time to help the local community. They believe this would benefit both the individual teenager and society as a whole. Do you agree or disagree? Here's my 4-paragraph plan:
1. Introduction: introduce the topic of unpaid work for teenagers, and make it clear that you completely disagree with the idea of requiring (forcing) young people to do this. 2. First reason: explain why this idea would not benefit teenagers e.g. they are already busy with school work, they should be allowed to enjoy being young, they have many years of work ahead of them when they finish their studies. 3. Second reason: explain why this idea would not benefit society e.g. forcing young people to work goes against the values of a free society, the current system of volunteering is better, this idea would be impossible to enforce. 4. Conclusion: repeat your opinion that requiring teenagers to work benefits neither the teenagers nor society as a whole.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (20)

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: fully respond to the question

One of the things that the examiner will check carefully is whether or not you have fully responded to the question. Here's a question that a student sent me: Some people think that all teenagers should be required to do unpaid work in their free time to help the local community. They believe this would benefit both the individual teenager and society as a whole. Do you agree or disagree? The student who sent me this question wrote about the advantages and disadvantages of unpaid work for teenagers, but completely forgot to mention the benefits and/or drawbacks for society as a whole. If you don't fully answer the question, it's extremely difficult to get a band 7.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (22) Wednesday, June 06, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: introduction without opinion

My normal advice for task 2 introductions is this: write two sentences - one to introduce the essay topic, and one to give a basic answer to the question. But what should you put in the second sentence (basic answer) if the question doesn't ask for your opinion? Here are two example questions:
1. Many people believe that an effective public transport system is a key component of a modern city. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of public transport. 2. Crime rates tend to be higher in cities than in smaller towns. Explain some possible reasons for this problem, and suggest some solutions.

Here are two sample introductions:

1. Officials in many cities are keen to develop efficient public transport systems. While public transport has many benefits, there are also some drawbacks which are worth considering. 2. Cities generally experience higher levels of criminality than towns or villages. There are various reasons for this, but measures could be taken to tackle the problem.

Hopefully you can see that it's quite easy to write an introduction for these types of question. The approach is the same (topic + basic answer) whether the question asks for your opinion or not.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (28) Wednesday, May 30, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'food technology' topic

Here are some ideas for last week's topic. The ideas are adapted from the 'genetic engineering' chapter in my ebook. The range and quality of food that we can buy has changed because of technological and scientific advances. Some people regard this change as an improvement, while others believe that it is harmful. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. Positives of advances in food technology:

Farmers can produce crops that grow bigger and faster. Genetically modified crops may be more resistant to disease or insects. This could be important for food production in developing countries. Faster growing cereals, fruit and vegetables will mean more profit. Foods can be modified to look perfect and last longer. They may be more attractive to customers.

Negatives of advances in food technology:

Many people distrust foods that have been modified or processed. They prefer organic foods which are produced without chemicals. Farming without fertilisers or pesticides is more environmentally friendly. There may be risks involved in the genetic engineering of foods. Genetically modified crops might change whole ecosystems. Food chains could be broken if crops are resistant to predators.

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (36) Wednesday, May 23, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: the importance of planning

When the question topic is difficult, planning becomes even more important. If you start writing your essay straight away, without preparing some ideas first, you will probably get stuck and start to panic! Take this recent exam question: The range and quality of food that we can buy has changed because of technological and scientific advances. Some people regard this change as an improvement, while others believe that it is harmful. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. I think you'll agree that this is a tricky question. My advice would be to spend about 10 minutes planning. Follow these steps before you start writing:
1. Take a couple of minutes to read and understand the question. 2. Decide what each of your 4 paragraphs should contain. 3. Spend around 6 minutes noting down ideas for the two points of view.

Click here to download an essay plan template that I use with my students.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (43) Wednesday, May 16, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: both sides or one side?

Can you see the difference between the two questions below? A) Explain the positives and negatives of this development. B) Is this a positive or negative development? and these two questions: A) What are the advantages and disadvantages? B) Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages? and these two questions: A) Discuss both views and give your opinion. B) To what extent do you agree or disagree? Answer: The difference is that for all of the (A) questions you must explain both sides of the argument, whereas the (B) questions can be answered by giving both sides orby supporting only one side, depending on the view that you express in your introduction. This is still the most common confusion that students ask me about. Make sure you understand the difference between the questions above; if you're still unsure, look through all of my task 2 lessons to see further advice and examples.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (23) Wednesday, May 09, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'prisons' topic

In today's lesson I'll try to explain what makes a good paragraph. We'll analyse a paragraph that I wrote with some of my students. Paragraph about the purpose of prisons: On the one hand, criminals do need to be punished in some way. A person whocommits a crime must learn that unlawful actions have consequences. Prison sentences punish offenders because they lose their freedom, and are separated from family and friends. In this way, prison acts as a deterrent to make people think carefully before breaking the law. Last year in the UK, many people were given a prison sentence for rioting, and hopefully this punishment will deter them from similar behaviour in future. Analysis:

The paragraph contains 5 sentences, with a total of 85 words. This is the kind of length I suggest aiming for.

The first sentence is short and simple. We often call this type of sentence a 'topic sentence' because it introduces the topic of the paragraph. Sentences 2, 3 and 4 develop the main idea in a logical, step-by-step way: crime has consequences - loss of freedom is the punishment - this stops people from breaking the law. Sentence 5 contains a real example. Remember that good vocabulary is the key to a high score. I've underlined the best words and phrases in the paragraph.

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (25) Wednesday, May 02, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'university' topic

The book I mentioned in Monday's lesson (What are Universities for?) reminded me of this question from Cambridge IELTS 7: Some people think that universities should provide graduates with the knowledge and skills needed in the workplace. Others think that the true function of a university should be to give access to knowledge for its own sake, regardless of whether the course is useful to an employer. What, in your opinion, should be the function of a university? Here are some ideas:

It would probably be easiest to argue that universities should fulfil both roles (providing vocational skills and knowledge for its own sake). We could use examples to help us generate ideas: try to make a list of some vocational degree courses (that provide training for a specific job), and a list of courses that do not lead to a particular job. Write one main paragraph explaining the benefits (to the student and to society in general) of the two types of course.

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (17) Wednesday, April 25, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'hobbies' essay

I wrote the following essay with some of my students. We tried to keep it clear, concise and well-organised, but it's still good enough for a band 9. Some people believe that hobbies need to be difficult to be enjoyable. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Some hobbies are relatively easy, while others present more of a challenge. Personally, I believe that both types of hobby can be fun, and I therefore disagree with the statement that hobbies need to be difficult in order to be enjoyable.

On the one hand, many people enjoy easy hobbies. One example of an activity that is easy for most people is swimming. This hobby requires very little equipment, it is simple to learn, and it is inexpensive. I remember learning to swim at my local swimming pool when I was a child, and it never felt like a demanding or challenging experience. Another hobby that I find easy and fun is photography. In my opinion, anyone can take interesting pictures without knowing too much about the technicalities of operating a camera. Despite being straightforward, taking photos is a satisfying activity. On the other hand, difficult hobbies can sometimes be more exciting. If an activity is more challenging, we might feel a greater sense of satisfaction when we manage to do it successfully. For example, film editing is a hobby that requires a high level of knowledge and expertise. In my case, it took me around two years before I became competent at this activity, but now I enjoy it much more than I did when I started. I believe that many hobbies give us more pleasure when we reach a higher level of performance because the results are better and the feeling of achievement is greater. In conclusion, simple hobbies can be fun and relaxing, but difficult hobbies can be equally pleasurable for different reasons. Note: Notice that we used examples as the basis of both main paragraphs.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (34) Wednesday, April 18, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'hobbies' essay plan

Did you try planning some ideas for last week's essay question? Some people believe that hobbies need to be difficult to be enjoyable. To what extent do you agree or disagree? When I wrote my list of hobbies, I realised that some were easy and others were difficult. As a result, I'd say that "I partly agree" with the statement. Here's my 4-paragraph essay plan:
1. Introduction - write 2 sentences: introduce the topic, and give an overall answer. 2. Main paragraph - about difficult hobbies. My examples: swimming, football, chess. Most sports and games are difficult, but the challenge makes them more enjoyable, especially when you can see that you are improving. 3. Main paragraph - about easy hobbies. My examples: photography, reading, cinema. In my opinion, you do not need to be an expert to enjoy taking photos, reading books, or watching films. I find these activities both easy and enjoyable. 4. Conclusion - repeat / summarise your answer in one sentence.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (16) Wednesday, April 11, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: examples give you ideas

If you can't think of any good ideas for an essay, try thinking about some examples first. Plan your essay around the examples. Take this question: Some people believe that hobbies need to be difficult to be enjoyable. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Use examples to give you ideas:

Make a list of some hobbies: either your own hobbies, or some typical hobbies that you can easily write about. Label each hobby 'easy' or 'difficult'. Look at your list. Is there a balance between easy and difficult hobbies, or is your list one-sided? The answer to this question will give you your overall opinion. Finally, write down a few reasons why each hobby is easy or difficult. Is there a connection between the difficulty of the hobby and the enjoyment you get from it?

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (22) Wednesday, April 04, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: question types

Here are the four types of question from last week's lesson:
1. 2. 3. 4. Opinion Discussion + opinion Problem + solution 2-part question

Important points to remember:

1. An 'opinion' question asks for your view, not the views of other people, and you don't have to give both sides of the argument. Just make your opinion clear in the introduction, then explain it in the rest of the essay. 2. A 'discussion' question requires you to write about both sides of the argument, and you should write a similar amount for each view. If the question also asks for your opinion, you don't need an extra paragraph. Just make it clear in the introduction and conclusion which of the two views you agree with. 3. Type 3 is easy. Simply write a paragraph explaining the problem(s) and a paragraph explaining the solution(s). Some questions ask about 'causes' or 'effects': these would be part of the 'problem' paragraph. 4. For type 4, just answer the two questions. Write one paragraph about each.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (31) Wednesday, March 28, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: four question types

Here are 4 questions that illustrate the different types of task 2 question. Can you name each type? Can you explain the big difference between the first and the second type?

1. Some people think that the only purpose of working hard is to earn money. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion? 2. Some people believe that punishment is the only purpose of prisons, while others believe that prisons exist for various reasons. Discuss both views and give your opinion. 3. The number of plants and animals is declining. Explain this problem and suggest some solutions. 4. Many people around the world are choosing to move to live in cities. What problems do people experience in big cities? Should governments encourage people to move to smaller towns?

I'll explain the differences in detail next Wednesday, but feel free to discuss your ideas in the "comments" area below.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (30) Wednesday, March 21, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: topic sentences

A good way to start a paragraph is with a short, simple sentence that introduces the main idea of the paragraph. Teachers often call this a topic sentence. I normally write my topic sentences by thinking about how many points I want to mention in the paragraph: 1. If I only have one point or idea, I usually state it straight away: In my opinion, junk food is the main cause of childhood obesity. (then explain this opinion and give examples in the rest of the paragraph) 2. If I have two or three points or ideas, I dont usually mention them directly in the topic sentence: There are two main causes (or several causes) of childhood obesity. (then explain using firstly, secondly... or something similar) Have a look through the essays that youve written in the past, and compare them with some of mine. Did you begin your main paragraphs with good topic sentences?
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (19) Wednesday, March 14, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: agree, disagree, or both?

For 'agree or disagree' essays, do you think you should give both sides of the argument or just one side? The answer is that you can do either. A) Essay structure for one side of the argument:
1. Introduction: topic + your opinion (either agree or disagree) 2. First idea to support your opinion 3. Second idea to support your opinion

4. Conclusion: repeat your opinion

B) Essay structure for giving both sides:

1. 2. 3. 4. Introduction: topic + say that you 'partly agree' On the one hand,... On the other hand,... Conclusion: repeat that you accept elements of both arguments

Remember: it's very important to get the introduction right. This tells the examiner whether you are going to give one side of the argument or both sides.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (18) Wednesday, March 07, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: firstly, secondly, finally

A few people have asked me whether using "firstly, secondly, finally" to organise a paragraph is too easy. My answer is that using easy organising language like "firstly, secondly, finally" allows you to focus on the real content of what you are writing - topic vocabulary, collocations, examples. This is what the examiner wants to see. You can get a band 9 using "firstly, secondly, finally" if the ideas between these linking words are good. Some simple alternatives to "firstly, secondly, finally" could be:

The main reason why I believe... is... / Another argument is... / Also,... One problem is that... / Furthermore,... / Another drawback is that... From a business perspective,... / In terms of education,... / From a social point of view,... (this could work for the paragraph in last week's lesson)

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (16) Wednesday, February 29, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'technology' essay

Several people have asked me about this question from Cambridge IELTS 8. I wrote the essay below with the help of some of my students. A few simple linking features are highlighted. Nowadays the way many people interact with each other has changed because of technology. In what ways has technology affected the types of relationships that people make? Has this been a positive or negative development? It is true that new technologies have had an influence on communication between people. Technology has affected relationships in various ways, and in my opinion there are both positive and negative effects.

Technology has had an impact on relationships in business, education and social life. Firstly, telephones and the Internet allow business people in different countries to interact without ever meeting each other. Secondly, services like Skype create new possibilities for relationships between students and teachers. For example, a student can now take video lessons with a teacher in a different city or country. Finally, many people use social networks, like Facebook, to make new friends and find people who share common interests, and they interact through their computers rather than face to face. On the one hand, these developments can be extremely positive. Cooperation between people in different countries was much more difficult when communication was limited to written letters or telegrams. Nowadays, interactions by email, phone or video are almost as good as face-to-face meetings, and many of us benefit from these interactions, either in work or social contexts. On the other hand, the availability of new communication technologies can also have the result of isolating people and discouraging real interaction. For example, many young people choose to make friends online rather than mixing with their peers in the real world, and these virtual relationships are a poor substitute for real friendships. In conclusion, technology has certainly revolutionised communication between people, but not all of the outcomes of this revolution have been positive. (257 words, band 9)
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (33) Wednesday, February 22, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'art and science' topic

A student sent me this recent exam question: These days people pay more attention to artists (writers, painters and so on) and give less importance to science and technology. To what extent do you agree or disagree? This seems to me to be a perfect question for a "balanced opinion" answer (i.e. both art and science are given equal importance). However, notice that you need to disagree with the question statement in order to give this balanced response. Here's my recommended 4-paragraph essay plan:
1. Introduction: we could accept that artists are popular nowadays, but disagree that science and technology are treated as less important. 2. Main paragraph about the popularity of artists. I'd use examples as the basis for this paragraph. If you don't know any writers or painters, you can talk about actors and musicians. 3. Main paragraph about the importance of science and technology. I'd write about the popularity of mobile phones, computers and tablets. Maybe I'd use Steve Jobs or Bill Gates as examples of people who are famous for the technologies they created.

4. Conclusion: paraphrase the argument that you presented in the introduction.

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (32) Wednesday, February 15, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: introductions and conclusions

Many students waste time writing long introductions and conclusions. These two paragraphs should be short and simple; a long, complex introduction or conclusion will not give you a high score. Just make your introductions and conclusions quick and concise, and spend your time writing really good main body paragraphs. Here's my introduction and conclusion for the topic of my last two writing lessons: Introduction There are various benefits and drawbacks of books, radio and television as ways to convey information. In my view, television is definitely the most effective of these three media. Conclusion In conclusion, although books, radio and television each have their advantages and disadvantages, it seems to me that the impact of television is greater.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (42) Wednesday, February 08, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: books, radio, TV

Here are my 'main body' paragraphs for last week's question. Notice that it's possible to put advantages and disadvantages together in the same paragraph. Also, you need to be careful not to write too much! Advantages / disadvantages of books: The main advantage of books is that they are usually considered to be reliable sources of information. People tend to refer to books when they want to research a subject in depth, and for this reason they continue to play an important role in education. On the other hand, books quickly go out of date, and therefore they are not the best medium for communicating news stories. Advantages / disadvantages of radio: Radio is a much more effective medium than books for the communication of up-to-date information. We can listen to news broadcasts about events as they happen, and a key benefit of radio is that we can listen to it while doing other activities, such as driving or working. The main drawback of radio, when compared to books or television, is that there is no visual element; we cannot see what the broadcaster is describing. Advantages / disadvantages of TV, and my opinion:

In my opinion, television is the most effective of these three media because it brings us closer to reality than a book or radio programme ever can. For example, we can watch events as they take place on the other side of the world, or we can see the body language of a politician who is being interviewed. The disadvantages of television are that programmes tend to be short and interrupted by advertisements, meaning that information is presented in limited depth.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (33) Wednesday, February 01, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'media' topic

Several people have asked me about the following question from Cambridge IELTS book 4. Compare the advantages and disadvantages of three of the following as media for communicating information. State which you consider to be the most effective.

comics books radio television film theatre

Usually I recommend writing 4 paragraphs, but for this question I think I would write 5 paragraphs:
1. Introduction: state which 3 media you are going to write about (e.g. books, radio, TV), and say which you think is most effective (e.g. television). 2. Advantages and disadvantages of books. 3. Advantages and disadvantages of radio. 4. Advantages and disadvantages of TV (mention again that you consider this the most effective). 5. Conclusion: summarise and repeat your opinion.

Maybe you can share your ideas about the advantages and disadvantages of these 3 media, and Ill use them to write an essay for next weeks lesson.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (33) Wednesday, January 25, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: full essay

Today I'm attaching the full essay (click here) that we've been working on for the last 2 weeks. Here are some points to notice:

There is a clear 4-paragraph structure, and the essay is easy to read because the ideas are developed in a logical way. The introduction is short, but it covers everything that the question asks you about. The main paragraphs make up around 70% of the essay. These paragraphs are the key to a high score. The conclusion is very short, and simply summarises what I had already written. Never put any new ideas in the conclusion. I focus on expressing my ideas well, using a range of relevant words and phrases. I'm not thinking about 'complex grammar' or linking phrases.

Note: I went a bit "over the top" with this essay. It's 310 words long, and more than good enough for band 9. You might not be able to write like this, but hopefully you can learn something from it.
(go over the top: to do something that is more than what is considered normal or suitable)

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (20) Wednesday, January 18, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: main body paragraphs

Here are my 2 main body paragraphs for last week's question. I tried to use an "Idea, Explain, Example" structure for the first paragraph, and a "Firstly, Secondly, Finally" structure for the second. Main body paragraphs: On the one hand, having a defined career path can certainly lead to a satisfying working life. Many people decide as young children what they want to do as adults, and it gives them a great sense of satisfaction to work towards their goals and gradually achieve them. For example, many children dream of becoming doctors, but to realise this ambition they need to gain the relevant qualifications and undertake years of training. In my experience, very few people who have qualified as doctors choose to change career because they find their work so rewarding, and because they have invested so much time and effort to reach their goal. On the other hand, people find happiness in their working lives in different ways. Firstly, not everyone dreams of doing a particular job, and it can be equally rewarding to try a variety of professions; starting out on a completely new career path can be a reinvigorating experience. Secondly, some people see their jobs as simply a means of earning money, and they are happy if their salary is high enough to allow them to enjoy life outside work. Finally, job satisfaction is often the result of working conditions, rather than the career itself. For example, a positive working atmosphere, enthusiastic colleagues, and an inspirational boss can make working life much more satisfying, regardless of the profession.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (32)

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: rules for introductions

Many people decide on a career path early in their lives and keep to it. This, they argue, leads to a more satisfying working life. To what extent do you agree with this view? What other things can people do in order to have a satisfying working life? In today's lesson I just want to look at how to write an introduction for this type of question. My simple rules for task 2 introductions are:
1. Write 2 sentences: introduce the topic, then give a general answer. 2. Mention everything that the question mentions. 3. Don't save any surprises for the conclusion; give your opinion in the introduction if the question asks for it.

Here's an example introduction: It is true that some people know from an early age what career they want to pursue, and they are happy to spend the rest of their lives in the same profession. While I accept that this may suit many people, I believe that others enjoy changing careers or seeking job satisfaction in different ways. I'll look at the main paragraphs next week.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (46) Wednesday, January 04, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 2: using the word "I"

Here is a question that a lot of students ask: Is it acceptable to use "I" or "my" in IELTS writing? As an ex-examiner, my advice is that you should use phrases like "I believe" or "in my opinion" when the question asks for your opinion e.g To what extent doyou agree or disagree? Some teachers tell students not to use "I" in academic essays, but this advice is really for university academic writing, not IELTS.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 2 | Permalink | Comments (31)

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Thursday, July 26, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: ages and age groups

It's easy to make small mistakes when describing ages and age groups. Here are some examples that should help. One person:

He is 10 years old. He is a 10-year-old. He is aged 10.

More than one person:

The children in the class are all 10 years old. It is a class of 10-year-olds (or "10-year-old children"). The children in the class are all aged 10.

Age groups with more than one person:

The chart shows the preferred hobbies of children (who are) between 10 and 12 years old. The chart shows the preferred hobbies of 10- to 12-year-olds (or "10- to 12-year-old children"). The chart shows the preferred hobbies of children aged 10 to 12.

Note: If you miss the hyphens (-), it's not a big problem. It won't affect your score.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (13) Thursday, July 19, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: full essay about 2 bar charts

Here's my full essay for the 'age group bar charts' question:

The bar charts compare students of different ages in terms of why they are studying and whether they are supported by an employer. It is clear that the proportion of students who study for career purposes is far higher among the younger age groups, while the oldest students are more likely to study for interest. Employer support is more commonly given to younger students. Around 80% of students aged under 26 study to further their careers, whereas only 10% study purely out of interest. The gap between these two proportions narrows as students get older, and the figures for those in their forties are the same, at about 40%. Students aged over 49 overwhelmingly study for interest (70%) rather than for professional reasons (less than 20%). Just over 60% of students aged under 26 are supported by their employers. By contrast, the 30-39 age group is the most self-sufficient, with only 30% being given time off and help with fees. The figures rise slightly for students in their forties and for those aged 50 or more. (178 words, band 9)
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (20) Thursday, July 12, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: choosing which details to include

In last week's lesson I wrote an introduction and overview for a question about two bar charts. For paragraphs 3 and 4, we need to describe each chart in detail. I usually find that 3 sentences are enough for a good 'details' paragraph, which means that we only need to choose 3 things to describe for each chart. 3 sentences about the first chart:
1. Compare the percentages for students under 26. 2. Mention the overall trend as students get older, and that the proportions are the same for the 40-49 age group. 3. Compare the percentages for students over 49.

3 sentences about the second chart:

1. Write about the two youngest age groups. 2. Write about the 30-39 age group. 3. Write about the two oldest age groups.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (15) Thursday, July 05, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: bar charts with age groups

A few people have asked about the question on page 52 of Cambridge IELTS 5. It shows two bar charts with age groups. Click here to see the question. As usual, I recommend writing 4 paragraphs:
1. 2. 3. 4. A quick introduction to say what the charts show. An overview of the main features - one sentence for each chart. Describe the first chart in detail. Describe the second chart in detail.

Here's an example introduction and overview: The first bar chart compares students of different ages in terms of why they are studying their chosen courses, and the second chart compares the same age groups in terms of the help they require at work. It is clear that the proportion of people who study for career purposes is far higher among the younger age groups, and decreases steadily with age. The need for employer support also decreases with age, but only up to the point when employees enter their forties.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (19) Thursday, June 28, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: paraphrasing

The easiest way to start your Task 1 essay is by paraphrasing the question. Paraphrasing means writing something in a different way (using your own words). Here are some simple changes you can make:

graph = line graph chart = bar chart diagram = figure shows = illustrates (or 'compares' if the graph is comparing) proportion = percentage information = data the number of = the figure for the proportion of = the figure for people in the USA = Americans from 1999 to 2009 = between 1999 and 2009 from 1999 to 2009 = over a period of 10 years how to produce = the process of producing in three countries = in the UK, France and Spain (i.e. name the countries)

Tip: "The figure for / figures for" is a great phrase that not many people use (e.g. the graph shows figures for unemployment in three countries).

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (20) Thursday, June 21, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: more than one chart

Many students are still worried about questions with more than one chart. Here are some tips:
1. If there are 2 charts, they often show different information. Don't worry about comparing them. Just do: introduction, overview, then one paragraph for each chart. 2. If the units are different (e.g. one chart shows 'millions' and the other shows 'percentages'), you can't usually compare them. 3. If the units are the same, you can probably compare the charts. 4. If there are 3 or 4 charts, you can usually compare them.

To see an essay about 2 different charts click here (Cambridge IELTS 6, p98). To see an essay about 4 related charts click here (Cambridge IELTS 7, p101).
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (13) Thursday, June 14, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: why I'd start with task 1

Students often ask whether it's better to do task 1 or task 2 first. In my opinion, it's best to start any exam with something quick and easy that gives you confidence. Hopefully you'll agree that the quickest and easiest part of the whole writing test is the introduction to task 1. You don't need to think too much about the introduction to task 1; simply rewrite the question statement by changing a few words. Click here to read one of my lessons about introductions, and then read this lesson about paraphrasing. If you practise these techniques, you'll start your IELTS writing test with confidence.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (10) Thursday, June 07, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: 'chart without years' essay

The chart below shows numbers of incidents and injuries per 100 million passenger miles travelled (PMT) by transportation type in 2002.

The bar chart compares the number of incidents and injuries for every 100 million passenger miles travelled on five different types of public transport in 2002. It is clear that the most incidents and injuries took place on demand-response vehicles. By contrast, commuter rail services recorded by far the lowest figures. A total of 225 incidents and 173 injuries, per 100 million passenger miles travelled, took place on demand-response transport services. These figures were nearly three times as high as those for the second highest category, bus services. There were 76 incidents and 66 people were injured on buses. Rail services experienced fewer problems. The number of incidents on light rail trains equalled the figure recorded for buses, but there were significantly fewer injuries, at only 39. Heavy rail services saw lower numbers of such events than light rail services, but commuter rail passengers were even less likely to experience problems. In fact, only 20 incidents and 17 injuries occurred on commuter trains. (165 words, band 9) Note: Don't worry about the repetition of "incidents and injuries" in this essay. There are no perfect synonyms for these words, although I managed to use "problems" and "such events" later in the essay. The most important thing is to describe the data clearly and make some good comparisons.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (27) Thursday, May 31, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: bar chart without years

Last week we saw that there are two types of bar chart: 1. those that show changes over time 2. those that compare different items The important thing to remember about the second type is that you can't describe increases and decreases. Let's look at this type in more detail. The chart below shows numbers of incidents and injuries per 100 million passenger miles travelled (PMT) by transportation type in 2002.

Here's my advice for a 4-paragraph essay:

1. Introduction: Explain what the chart shows by paraphrasing the question. 2. Overview: Look for two main things - in this case, we could mention the highest item and the fact that there were more incidents than injuries for all five transport types. You don't need to mention any numbers at this point. 3. Details: I'd probably group together the two highest items (demand response and bus) in this paragraph. Remember that you can't talk about an increase or decrease; you can only compare the numbers. 4. Details: I'd group the three types of rail transport together for this paragraph. Write some nice comparison sentences!

Note: You don't need to know what 'demand-response' transport is (it's an American term which I've never used), but click here if you want to know.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (32) Thursday, May 24, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: change or comparison?

While line graphs always show changes or trends (increase, decrease etc.), this is not always true for bar charts, pie charts and tables. Here is a bar chart that does show 'change':

And here is a bar chart that shows 'comparison' rather than change:

Can you see the difference? How will this difference affect what you write in your essay? I'll go into more detail about the two charts next week, but the important thing for now is to see the difference.
(Charts taken from US Department of Transportation website)

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (21) Thursday, May 17, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: find the mistakes

Can you find the mistakes in the paragraph below?

In 1980, the US produced 131 millions of tonnes of waste. Japan was in second place with 28 millions, while the figures for Poland, Portugal and Ireland were less than 5 millions. In 1990, the US was 151, and in 2000 it rose to 192 millions. Note: Some of the mistakes are not related to grammar.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (37) Thursday, May 10, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: verbs exercise

I've missed out the verbs in the following description. Choose them from the list to fill the gaps. For some of the gaps, more than one verb is possible. Missing words: risen, created, recorded, is, produced (x2), managed, given, had (x2), stood, were, increased The US, Japan and Korea ______ by far the most waste. In 1980, the US ______ 131 million tonnes of waste, while the figure for Japan ______ at 28 million tonnes. No figure ______ ______ for Korea in 1980, but in 1990, 31 million tonnes of waste ______ ______ in that country. By 2000, waste production in the USA ______ ______ to 192 million tonnes, while Japans figure ______ ______ to 53 million tonnes. However, Korea ______ to reduce its output to 19 million tonnes. Ireland, Poland and Portugal only ______ a total of around 30 million tonnes of waste between them, adding the figures for all three years together. Note: The above description is not a full essay.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (17) Thursday, May 03, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: 'waste' table

Last week we looked at the following question:

The table below shows the amount of waste production (in millions of tonnes) in six different countries in three different years over a twenty-year period.

Here are my answers to last week's questions:

1. It's fine to repeat the word 'waste' because there isn't really an ideal synonym ('rubbish' and 'garbage' have a more limited meaning). However, we can vary our sentences by writing things like 'waste output', 'waste materials' or 'the waste that was produced'. 2. The most noticeable feature must be that the US produced by far the most waste in all 3 years. Use this idea in you 'overview' paragraph. 3. The general trend is that waste production rose in every country apart from Korea. This could be your second 'overview' idea. 4. I would write one main paragraph comparing the 3 countries with the highest figures (US, Japan, Korea), and a separate paragraph about Ireland, Poland and Portugal. Try to use some 'comparing' language when describing the countries (e.g. while, whereas, by contrast) and some 'trend' language when describing the years (e.g. increased, rose, fell).
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (17) Thursday, April 26, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: table about waste

A student sent me the following question from a recent IELTS test: The table below shows the amount of waste production (in millions of tonnes) in six different countries in three different years over a twenty-year period.

A few things to consider before you write your essay:

1. 2. 3. 4. Can you think of a few alternative ways to write "waste production"? What is the most noticeable feature of the table? Is there a general trend over the period of time shown? How can you separate the information into 2 groups (in order to write 2 paragraphs about specific details)?

I'll share my answers to these questions next week.

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (21) Thursday, April 19, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: singular or plural?

Students often make simple mistakes with singular and plural forms, especially in Writing Task 1. The problem is that the words used on graphs, charts and tables are usually singular. So, the labels on a chart could be:

single parent graduate only child laptop computer

But when you write a sentence, you might need to use a plural:

The number of single parents increased. In 1999 nearly 55% of graduates were female. The UK has the highest number of only children. More laptop computers were sold in the UK than any other country.

Don't just copy the words from the graph or chart. Think first about how to use them correctly.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (8)

Thursday, April 12, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: essay about 2 bar charts

Last week I suggested a way of writing introductions for 2 charts. Today I'm attaching a full sample essay for this type of question. Click the following link to open my essay: download bar charts essay
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (9) Thursday, April 05, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: introduction for 2 charts

You might find it easier to introduce two different charts by writing two separate sentences. Here is an example question about a graph and bar chart: The charts below give information about travel to and from the UK, and about the most popular countries for UK residents to visit. Here is my 2-sentence introduction: The graph shows numbers of visits to the UK and trips abroad by UK residents. The bar chart shows the five most popular destinations for UK travellers.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (14) Thursday, March 29, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: analyse model essays

Maybe you read my line graph essay last week, but did you really study it? Here's some example analysis of last week's essay:

Structure - 4 paragraphs: introduction, overview, 2 specific details Paraphrasing - proportion of the population = percentage of people (find more examples) Overview - overall trend, then biggest change Selecting key information - first year (1940), middle years (1990, early 2000s), end of period (2030 to 2040) Comparing - in each country, most dramatic, and, compared to, by contrast, while, slightly lower, respectively (analyse my sentences to learn how to use these words correctly) Verbs - compares, increases, is expected to see, were, rose, remained... (look carefully at the use of tenses)

It's possible to read model essays quickly and learn a little. It's also possible to spend a long time studying them carefully and learn a lot!
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (16)

Thursday, March 22, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: full essay

Here's my full essay for last week's line graph question: The line graph compares the percentage of people aged 65 or more in three countries over a period of 100 years. It is clear that the proportion of elderly people increases in each country between 1940 and 2040. Japan is expected to see the most dramatic changes in its elderly population. In 1940, around 9% of Americans were aged 65 or over, compared to about 7% of Swedish people and 5% of Japanese people. The proportions of elderly people in the USA and Sweden rose gradually over the next 50 years, reaching just under 15% in 1990. By contrast, the figures for Japan remained below 5% until the early 2000s. Looking into the future, a sudden increase in the percentage of elderly people is predicted for Japan, with a jump of over 15% in just 10 years from 2030 to 2040. By 2040, it is thought that around 27% of the Japanese population will be 65 years old or more, while the figures for Sweden and the USA will be slightly lower, at about 25% and 23% respectively. (178 words, band 9)
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (18) Thursday, March 15, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: graph showing future years

Several students have asked me about the following question from Cambridge IELTS book 5 (page 29). The graph below shows the proportion of the population aged 65 and over between 1940 and 2040 in three different countries.

Here are the steps I would follow to write my essay:

1. Introduction: write one sentence to introduce what the graph shows. Just paraphrase the question statement (i.e. change a few words). 2. Summary: describe 2 main things e.g. the overall trend for all 3 countries, and the biggest change that you can see. 3. Details: compare all 3 countries in 1940, then in 1990. 4. Details: describe the dramatic increase predicted for Japan, and compare all 3 countries in 2040.

Note: Try writing some essay plans like the one above. Planning makes you think about selecting and organising, so it's a useful skill to practise (even if you don't do a plan in your exam).
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (30) Thursday, March 08, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: 'process diagram' details

Here are my 'details' paragraphs to finish the essay I started last week: Looking at the coffee production process in detail, coffee beans must first be picked in the fields. These beans are then dried, roasted, and cooled before being put in a grinding machine, which turns the beans into coffee granules. At the sixth stage in the process, the ground coffee is mixed with hot water, and the resulting mixture is strained. Next, the mixture is frozen and then passed once again

through the grinder. After that, the ground, frozen liquid is dried in a vacuum so that the water evaporates, leaving the coffee granules. Finally, these granules are packed into coffee jars for delivery to shops. Did you notice the passives and sequencing phrases? - Passives: must be picked; are dried, roasted and cooled; is mixed... - Sequencing: then; and; at the sixth stage; next; after that; finally...
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (13) Thursday, March 01, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: 'process' introduction and overview

Last week I gave some advice about how to write an overview (summary) for process diagram questions. Here's the question again: The diagram below shows how coffee is produced and prepared for sale in supermarkets and shops.

(Click on picture to make it bigger. Source: 'Meanings into Words Upper-Intermediate')

Here's my introduction and overview: The picture illustrates the process of coffee manufacture and preparation for sale on the market. It is clear that there are 11 stages in the production of coffee. The process begins with the picking of coffee beans, and ends at the packing stage.

Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (16) Thursday, February 23, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: process diagram summary

When describing a process diagram, most students have no problem describing the stages in the process step by step. However, not many students are able to write a good summary (or 'overview') of the process as a whole. Think about how you would summarise this process:

(Click on picture to make it bigger. Source: 'Meanings into Words Upper-Intermediate')

Here are my tips for summarising process diagrams: Write 2 sentences: - First say how many stages there are in the whole process. - Then say how/where the process begins and ends.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (25) Thursday, February 16, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: grammar mistakes

Can you find the mistakes in the following sentences?
1. The first table shows us the rate of marriage and divorce between 1970 - 2000. 2. While the divorce rate increased from 1 million to 1.5 million during the same period. 3. As from 1990 to 2000 marriage rate has decreased relatively from 2.5 to 2 million.

4. As shown in table 1 that the total number of marriages were high in 1970. 5. Finally few people got divorced in 1970 than 2000.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (43) Thursday, February 09, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: avoiding common mistakes

Here's some advice to help you avoid common mistakes in IELTS writing task 1:
1. Don't copy the question for your introduction. You should paraphrase the question (i.e. rewrite it using some different words). 2. Don't forget to separate your paragraphs clearly. 3. Don't forget to write a good summary/overview of the information. A quick one-sentence conclusion is not good enough. I prefer to put the overview straight after the introduction, and I try to write 2 sentences describing the information in general. You won't get a high score if you don't write a good overview. 4. Don't describe items separately (e.g. 2 lines on a graph). You should always try to compare things if it is possible to do so. Instead of describing 2 lines separately, compare the 2 lines at key points. 5. Don't try to describe every number on a chart or graph (unless there are only a few numbers). A key skill in task 1 is being able to choose the key information and describe or compare it well. I usually mention around 6 or 7 numbers in my main paragraphs. 6. Don't spend longer than 20 minutes on task 1. Practise spending 5 minutes on each of your 4 paragraphs. Stop yourself after 20 minutes; remember that task 2 is worth more marks.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (21) Thursday, February 02, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: line graph exercise

The graph below gives information about car ownership in Britain from 1971 to 2007.

The graph shows changes in the number of cars ______ household in Great Britain ______ a period of 36 years. Overall, car ownership in Britain increased ______ 1971 and 2007. In particular, the number of households with two cars rose, while the number of households ______ a car fell. In 1971, ______ half of all British households did not have regular use of a car. Around 44% of households had one car, but only about 7% had two cars. It was uncommon for families to own three or more cars, ______ around 2% of households falling into this category. The one-car household was the most common type from the late 1970s ______, although there was little change in the ______ for this category. The biggest change was seen in the proportion of households without a car, which fell steadily over the 36year period ______ around 25% in 2007. In contrast, the proportion of two-car families rose steadily, reaching about 26% in 2007, and the proportion of households with more than two cars rose ______ around 5%. Fill the gaps in the essay with the following words: almost, to, figures, per, between, by, over, with, without, onwards
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (47) Thursday, January 26, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: you don't need a conclusion

You don't need to write a conclusion for IELTS writing task 1. You need to write an "overview" of the information.

But why don't you need to write a conclusion? What's the difference between a conclusion and an overview? First, a conclusion is really a final judgement, decision or opinion. This is perfect for the task 2 essay, but task 1 asks you to write a description without analysis or opinions. On the other hand, an "overview" is a simple description of the main points. It is a summary of the information shown in the graph or chart. Second, a conclusion should be at the end of a piece of writing. An overview or general summary could go either at the end or near the beginning. Personally, I think it's a good idea to describe the main features of the graph or chart near the beginning of your essay. So, my suggested essay structure for task 1 looks like this:
1. Introduction: what does the chart show? 2. Overview / summary: what are the most noticeable features? 3. Specific details: try to write 2 paragraphs.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (19) Thursday, January 19, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: how to describe future years

Several people have asked me how to write about future years on a graph or chart. For example, what tense should you use if the graph shows the year 2025? Try this exercise: take a description of past years, and rewrite it with future years. Past: In 1999, the proportion of people using the Internet in the USA was about 20%. The figures for Canada and Mexico were lower, at about 10% and 5% respectively. In 2005, Internet usage in both the USA and Canada rose to around 70% of the population, while the figure for Mexico reached just over 25%. Future (I've changed the years and the verbs): In 2015, the proportion of people using the Internet in the USA is expected to beabout 20%. The figures for Canada and Mexico are likely to be lower, at about 10% and 5% respectively. In 2025, it is predicted that Internet usage in both the USA and Canada will rise to around 70% of the population, while the figure for Mexico should reach just over 25%.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (17) Thursday, January 12, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: comparing numbers

Fill the gaps in the following text using the words below it. If you find any of the gaps difficult, miss them and come back to them after doing the easier ones.

Emigration from the UK The number of people leaving the UK for 12 months or more ______ ______ record ______ in 2008, ______ an estimated 427,000 people emigrating. This ______ ______ from 341,000 in 2007. There has been a large ______ ______ the number of people emigrating for work related reasons, particularly those with a definite job to go to. In 2008 an estimated 136,000 people emigrated from the UK to take up a definite job, ______ ______ 100,000 in 2007. - in - high - increase - up - reached - with (x2) -a - compared - was
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (39) Thursday, January 05, 2012

IELTS Writing Task 1: describing 2 charts

Here are some tips for writing about 2 charts, graphs or tables: 1. Introduction Write one sentence, but introduce each chart separately e.g. "The first bar chart shows..., and the second chart illustrates..." 2. Summary of main points Write 2 sentences. If the information in the charts is not connected, find one main point or general trend for each chart. If the charts are connected, try to make comparisons. 3. Main body paragraphs If the 2 charts are completely different (e.g. a graph and a table), write a separate paragraph about each. If the charts are the same, and show the same information (e.g. 2 pie charts), don't describe them separately; the examiner will want to see comparisons. In this case, you could write one paragraph describing all of the information, but I still prefer to write 2 paragraphs because it makes the essay look more organised.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (20) Thursday, December 29, 2011

IELTS Writing Task 1: accuracy

The gap-fill exercise below should test whether you can describe numbers accurately. I'll put the correct answers in the 'comments' area tomorrow. UK Household Expenditure in 2009 Household ______ ______ highest in the transport category, ______ 63 a week. This included 21.10 per week ______ purchase of vehicles, 31.80 on the operation of personal transport (such as petrol, diesel, repairs and servicing) and 10.50 on transport services such as rail, tube and bus fares. Food and non-alcoholic drink purchases ______ 51 to weekly household expenditure 13.10 of which ______ ______ on meat and fish, 3.70 on fresh vegetables, and 3.00 on fresh fruit. Non-alcoholic drinks ______ ______ 4.00 ______ weekly expenditure, and 2.10 per week was spent on chocolate and confectionery. Fill the gaps with the following words: spent, spending, for, on, at, of, accounted, contributed, was (x2)
Posted by Simon in IELTS Writing Task 1 | Permalink | Comments (31)

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Extra

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Friday, July 27, 2012

IELTS Speaking: add detail

Many students worry too much about grammar. For speaking parts 2 and 3, it's more important to worry about the quality of your answers. The best way to improve the quality of your answers is by adding detail. Example: Describe your best friend. Say when you met him/her. Short answer about when we met: I met my best friend at school when I was 11 years old. Detailed answer about when we met: I met my best friend at school when I was 11 years old, so we've known each other for ... years. I remember we sat next to each other in my first science lesson at secondary school, and we had to work together to do an experiment. We got on straight away, and we've been friends ever since. Notice that by adding more information I've also used more/better vocabulary and grammar.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (13) Friday, July 20, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 2: use what you know

Don't worry if you get a question that you haven't prepared for. You can usually use ideas that you prepared for a different topic. For example: Describe a piece of advice that you gave (or that someone gave you) Why not say that you advised your friend to visit London? Then you could use all the good vocabulary from this lesson. Or you could use this lesson to talk about advice that your father gave you. For example, say that your father told you to work hard. Then you could use great vocabulary such as 'major influence', 'hard-working', 'role model', 'set a good example', 'positive outlook on life'. Think quickly during the one-minute preparation time: What can I use that I've already prepared?
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (14) Friday, July 13, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 3: 'politeness' topic

Two weeks ago I showed you a part 2 question about a situation in which you were polite. Let's have a look at some related questions for part 3 of the test: In your countrys culture, how do you show that you are being polite? We really value politeness and good manners in the UK, and there are many types of polite behaviour. One of the first things we learn as children is to say "please" and "thank you". As adults, I think we are careful not to be too direct in the language we use. For example, we would never say "Bring me the bill" in a restaurant because this kind of

direct instruction would sound rude. It would be much more polite to say "Could we have the bill, please?". Are we less polite with members of our families than with people we dont know? I suppose it's normal to be a bit more relaxed about politeness with family members. Most people tend to speak in a more informal way at home; in the UK, we still say "please" and "thanks", but it's fine to use colloquial language and things like nicknames that you would never use with someone you didn't know.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (11) Friday, July 06, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 3: comparing past and present

In part 3 of IELTS speaking, you might be asked to compare the past with the present. The examiner will be listening to your use tenses. For example: Are there any differences between the types of people who were seen as celebrities in the past and those who are celebrities nowadays? Yes, I think there have been some big changes in the types of people whobecome famous. In the past, before the invention of television, I suppose therewere very few national or international celebrities; maybe kings and queens, military, political and religious leaders were the only household names. With the advent of TV and radio, performers such as actors and musicians became more well-known. However, we now seem to have a completely new breed of celebrity as a result of 'reality' television programmes; these are people who don't really have any special skills as performers, but who are famous for just being themselves.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (6) Friday, June 29, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 2: choose your topic quickly!

One of the most important things to practise for IELTS speaking part 2 is choosing your topic quickly. Take this question for example: Describe a situation in which you were very polite. You should explain

where the situation took place how you showed that you were polite and why you needed to be so polite.

It would be easy to waste your one-minute preparation time worrying about what situation to choose. If you still haven't decided what to talk about when the examiner asks you to start speaking, you'll be in real trouble! Task: Give yourself just 10 seconds to choose your polite situation. It doesn't really matter

what situation you choose; the key is to give yourself enough time to prepare some ideas.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (20) Friday, June 22, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 1: 'work' topic

Here are some example questions with short, direct answers. Remember that part 1 is like a warm-up; you are not expected to give long, complex answers for this part. 1. Do you work or are you a student? Im a qualified doctor, but at the moment Im studying English so that I can work in this country. 2. Do you enjoy your job? Yes, I really enjoy my job. Ever since I was a child I have always wanted to be a doctor; Ive always wanted to be able to help people. 3. What's the best thing about your job? The best thing about my job is that I can make a difference in peoples lives. Its a great feeling to see someone recover after an illness because my colleagues and I were able to help. 4. Do you prefer working alone or with others? Why? In a hospital you have to work as part of a team. Ive got used to working with others, and I think you can achieve a lot more as a team than you would alone.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (23) Friday, June 15, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 3: explain, alternative, example

In part 3 of the speaking test, you need to give longer, detailed answers. A good way to do this is by organising your answers according to the following steps:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Idea: answer the question directly. Explain: give a reason or explain your answer in more detail. Alternative: explain an alternative (e.g. the opposite) to your answer. Example: give an example to support your answer. Another idea: sometimes you think of another idea while you are speaking. Just add it on the end of your answer.

You can give a really good answer without including all five steps, but you might find it useful to practise including all five, as I've done here: Why do you think some people prefer to buy products from their own countries rather than imported items?

(idea) I suppose its because those people want to support the economy of the country they live in. (explain) If they buy something that was made in their own country, they know that they are contributing to the salaries of workers within the same country, (alternative) whereas if they buy imported items, a foreign company and its employees will benefit. (example) For example, if I buy some meat that originates from a local farm rather than a farm in another country, Im helping one of my fellow citizens to carry on in business. (another idea) Also, I think that trust is an issue; people might feel that they can trust domestically produced items more than imported ones.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (13) Friday, June 08, 2012

IELTS Speaking Advice: record, transcribe, analyse

Here are some steps that you could follow when practising for the speaking test:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Choose a real speaking test from one of the Cambridge books. Record yourself answering one or all of the parts of the test. Listen to the recording and transcribe it (write down everything you said). Analyse the transcript. How could your answers be improved? Take some time to prepare better answers for the same questions. Try the same questions again! Record yourself, transcribe and analyse. Repeat the process a few times until you are happy.

Imagine if you did this kind of hard work every day for a month. I'm sure you'd be more confident and better prepared than you are now.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (25) Friday, June 01, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 2: formula phrases

A student asked me whether the following formula is useful for speaking part 2:

I guess I could begin by saying something about (point 1) and I think I would have to choose... Going on to my next point which is (point 2), I really need to emphasise that (explain point 2). And now with reference to (point 3), the point I want to make here is that (explain point 3). And so finally, if I have time, in answer to the question of (point 4), really I should mention that...

So, are these 'formula phrases' a good idea? My answer is no! As an English speaker and ex-examiner, I find these phrases annoying. It's obvious that they are memorised, and they do not address the question topic. Please don't expect the examiner to be impressed by this kind of thing.

There are a couple of benefits to learning a formula: it gives your answer some structure, and it might make you feel more confident during the test. However, the disadvantages are greater:
1. Your focus is on the phrases you have memorised, when it should be on answering the question with relevant ideas. 2. The examiner thinks that you are using memorised phrases because you are unable to produce good language spontaneously. In other words, your use of long formula phrases suggests that your level of English is lower.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (20) Friday, May 25, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 2: foreign culture

Here are some ideas for last week's question. 1. Which culture and how I know about it I'm going to talk about France and French culture. I know France quite well because it was the first foreign country that I visited as a child. I've been on several family holidays there, and I lived and worked in Paris for a while after finishing university. 2. Cultural differences The first thing that comes to mind when I think about France is the bread! I love the fact that French people buy fresh baguettes every morning, usually from small local bakeries or 'patisseries'; it makes a change from the loaves of sliced bread that most of us buy from the supermarket here in the UK. One slightly negative difference I noticed in Paris is that Parisians don't seem to make friends with their work colleagues to the same extent as we do here. 3. What I like about it I really like the caf culture in France. You can always find somewhere interesting to sit and have a coffee and chat to friends or just watch the world go by. I actually put on a bit of weight when I lived in France because I got into a habit of having a croissant or a cake in every nice caf that I found. Another thing I could mention is that the last time I went to France on holiday, I played a game called boules every day. The game consists in throwing metal balls as close to a target ball as possible. Its the perfect game for a relaxing afternoon when the weathers hot. Tip: Notice that I included personal examples or experiences in my answers. It's easy to talk for 2 minutes if you can tell a story or two.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (8) Friday, May 18, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 2: 'foreign culture' topic

Describe a foreign culture that you like. You should say

what culture it is and how you know about it what differences there are between that culture and your own and why you like that foreign culture.

For this question, you don't need to discuss 'deep' cultural issues. Just choose a foreign country that you have visited, and talk about anything that is different from your own culture (language, food, customs, behaviour, typical activities etc.). Feel free to share your descriptions in the comments area below this lesson. I'll post my description (or I'll use the best one of yours) next week.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (33) Friday, May 11, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 1: 'accommodation' topic

Here are some questions that I found on the official IELTS website, ielts.org. The answers below are my examples. Remember to keep your part 1 answers short and simple. You don't need to show off in part 1. 1. Tell me about the kind of accommodation you live in. I live in a house that has a living room, a kitchen, two bedrooms, a bathroom and a small garden. It's not a very big house, but it's just right for me. 2. How long have you lived there? I've lived there for about five years. It's the first house that I've owned; before that I was renting an apartment. 3. What do you like about living there? I like living there because I think the house reflects my personality: I decorated it myself, I chose all the furniture, and everything is where I want it to be. 4. What sort of accommodation would you most like to live in? If I could, I'd buy a bigger house near a beach or in the mountains, preferably somewhere with a warm climate.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (13) Friday, May 04, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 2: take ideas from other topics

Describe a time when you received some money as a gift. You should say:

who gave it to you what the occasion was how you felt and explain what you did with the money.

If you think about some of the topics we have already prepared, the question above should be quite easy. Some ideas:
1. You could say that you received money for your birthday and took your friends out for a meal. Take some ideas from this lesson. 2. You could say that you bought yourself a new phone (see this lesson). 3. You could say that you used the money to pay for a holiday or trip, and use ideas from this lesson.

Note: I'm not recommending that you learn my answers word-for-word. Just try to take some of my ideas and adapt them to your own answers.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (24) Friday, April 27, 2012

IELTS Speaking Part 2: describe a website

In Part 2 of IELTS Speaking, you might be asked to describe a website that you use: Describe a website that you often use. You should say:

what type of website it is how you found out about it what it allows you to do, and why you find it useful.

Here are some ideas, with some of the band 7-9 vocabulary underlined:
1. Facebook is a social networking website. It's a free website that allows you to keep in contact with friends or find people you've lost touch with. It's one of the most popular websites in the world, with millions of users in different countries. 2. All of my friends use Facebook. One of my friends sent me an email inviting me to join. I signed up and I've been using it ever since. 3. Facebook allows you to keep up to date with what friends are doing. You have a profile page with information and status updates so that you can tell everyone what you're doing. You can post messages to other people's pages. You can upload photos and videos. I find Facebook most useful for organising my life, keeping in touch with friends and storing photos. I think social networking websites have become part of everyday life.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking |

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Monday, July 30, 2012

IELTS Reading: academic and general

There is a difference between the types of articles used in the academic and general reading tests. However, the types of questions and the techniques for answering them are the same. For this reason, I recommend using both types of exam paper for practice. The main technique for finding answers in both reading tests is the 'keyword' technique: search in the passage for the key words in each question. Here's a table of keywords from the GT test in Cambridge book 6, page 118:

Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (4)

Monday, July 23, 2012

IELTS Reading: paragraph heading

Read the following paragraph about the inventor Thomas Edison. Thomas Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. He was one of the first inventors to apply the principles of mass production and large-scale teamwork to the process of invention, and because of that, he is often credited with the creation of the first industrial research laboratory. Edison is the fourth most prolific inventor in history, holding 1,093 US patents in his name, as well as many patents in the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. He is credited with numerous inventions that contributed to mass communication and, in particular, telecommunications. Choose the best heading for the paragraph from the list below. A) The creator of the first industrial research laboratory. B) A pioneering and prolific inventor. C) Edisons contribution to mass communication.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (44) Monday, July 16, 2012

IELTS Reading: paragraph headings

Match the correct headings with the paragraphs below. 1. The causes of stress among employers and employees 2. The increase in work-related stress 3. The increase in visits to physicians 4. Stress has wide-ranging effects on the body and on behaviour A) The number of stress-related disability claims by American employees has doubled according to the Employee Assistance Professionals Association in Arlington, Virginia. Seventy-five to ninety percent of physician visits are related to stress and, according to the American Institute of Stress, the cost to industry has been estimated at $200 billion$300 billion a year. B) It is clear that problems caused by stress have become a major concern to both employers and employees. Symptoms of stress are manifested both physiologically and psychologically. Persistent stress can result in cardiovascular disease, a weaker immune system and frequent headaches, stiff muscles, or backache. It can also result in poor coping skills, irritability, jumpiness, insecurity, exhaustion, and difficulty concentrating. Stress may also perpetuate or lead to binge eating, smoking, and alcohol consumption.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (49)

Monday, July 09, 2012

IELTS Reading: difficult vocabulary

Some IELTS reading questions cause problems because of difficult vocabulary. Read the following sentences from Cambridge IELTS 4, page 46.

We've had a tradition of doctors being fairly powerful and I guess they are pretty loath to allow any pretenders to their position to come into it. A better educated and less accepting public has become disillusioned with the experts in general, and increasingly sceptical about science. Those surveyed had experienced chronic illnesses, for which orthodox medicine had been able to provide little relief.

Find the words in the sentences above which have the following meanings:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. long-term or persistent having doubts or reservations reluctant or unwilling conventional or normal disappointed when something is not as good as you thought it was

Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (15) Monday, July 02, 2012

IELTS Reading: collecting vocabulary

Whenever you read something in English, it's a good idea to write useful vocabulary in a notebook. But don't just write individual words, write the related words too. For example, do you know which verb is usually used with the noun "commitment"? As an example, read the following short text: A New Years resolution is a commitment that an individual makes to a personal goal, project, or the reforming of a habit in the coming year. Some examples include resolutions to lose weight, learn something new, or give up a habit such as smoking. Recent research shows that while 52% of participants in a resolution study were confident of success with their goals, only 12% actually achieved their goals. A separate study in 2007 at the University of Bristol showed that 78% of those who set New Years resolutions fail. Men achieved their goal 22% more often when they engaged in goal setting, a system where small measurable goals are set, while women succeeded 10% more when they made their goals public and got support from their friends. Here is some key vocabulary from the text:

make a commitment to something

give up a habit be confident of something set measurable goals make something public get support from

Remember: understanding the meaning of a word is not the same as being able to use it correctly.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (22) Monday, June 25, 2012

IELTS Reading: another keyword table

Here's my keyword table for test 1.3 in Cambridge IELTS book 4:

This test also contains some tricky words to describe shapes and movement. Look them up in a dictionary if you don't understand them. Line shapes: curved, wavy, bent, dashed. Movement: spinning, wobbling, jerking.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (8) Monday, June 18, 2012

IELTS Reading: more keywords

Last week I did a reading test from Cambridge IELTS 7 (page 48-52) with one of my classes. Here is some of the vocabulary that helped us to get the answers:

The fifth row of the above table is interesting: "20% outside the local area" means the same as "80% was within the local area". Another question confused some of my students: If a survey showed that "households spent seven hours a day on transporting themselves and their goods", does this mean that it was "a survey of household expenditure on transport"?
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (13) Monday, June 11, 2012

IELTS Reading: paragraph heading

Read the paragraph below and choose the best heading from the list. Reading underwent serious changes in the 18th century. Until 1750, reading was done intensively: people tended to own a small number of books and read them repeatedly, often to a small audience. After 1750, people began to read extensively, finding as many books as they could, and increasingly reading them alone. Libraries that lent out their material for a small price started to appear, and occasionally bookstores would offer a small lending library to their patrons. Coffee houses commonly offered books, journals and sometimes even popular novels to their customers. 1. The appearance of the first public libraries. 2. Intensive and extensive reading habits. 3. The reading revolution.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (42) Monday, June 04, 2012

IELTS Reading: some sites for daily practice

People often ask about extra reading practice: Is it a good idea to read newspapers or magazines, and which ones are the best for IELTS practice? Two good places to find articles are The Economist and National Geographic. Try to spend a few minutes every day reading something from one of these sites. Make a note of some new words or phrases, and gradually your reading will improve.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (19)

Monday, May 28, 2012

IELTS Reading: keywords

Here's a table showing the keywords that helped us to get the correct answers to last week's Yes, No, Not Given exercise.

Remember: you can only be sure that you have the correct answer when you can point to specific words in the passage that have a similar meaning to the words in the question.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (10) Monday, May 21, 2012

IELTS Reading: yes, no, not given

Read the following passage about 'habits'. All our life, so far as it has definite form, is but a mass of habits, William James wrote in 1892. Most of the choices we make each day may feel like the products of wellconsidered decision making, but theyre not. Theyre habits. And though each habit means relatively little on its own, over time, the meals we order, what we say to our kids each night, whether we save or spend, how often we exercise, and the way we organize our thoughts and work routines have enormous impacts on our health, productivity, financial security, and happiness. One paper published by a Duke University researcher in 2006 found that 40 percent or more of the actions people performed each day werent actual decisions, but habits. Do the statements below agree with the ideas expressed by the author? Write YES, NO or NOT GIVEN.
1. The majority of choices we make on a daily basis are conscious decisions. 2. Saving money is the key to financial security. 3. Habits account for at least 40 percent of the things we do each day.

Note: The passage above comes from a book I read recently called The Power of Habit. If you're looking for a book to read, I definitely recommend it.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (57) Monday, May 14, 2012

IELTS Reading: paragraph headings

Here are my top 4 tips for how to answer 'paragraph headings' questions: 1. Do these questions last 'Paragraph headings' questions are difficult, especially because the answers will not be in order in the text. For most other types of question, the answers will be in order in the text. So, do the other questions first, then you will be familiar with the text when you return to the 'paragraph headings' questions. You might even find that you are able to match some of the paragraphs really quickly because you remember what they were about. 2. Start with the shortest paragraphs Instead of starting with the first paragraph, why not start with the shortest paragraph? If there is a really short paragraph, it should be easier to match it to a heading. Then you will have fewer headings to choose from for the longer paragraphs. 3. Look for similar words As with most types of IELTS reading question, you should be able to find words in the paragraph that are similar to words in the heading. 4. Move on if you are spending too much time 'Paragraph headings' questions often take a long time. Don't allow yourself to use more than 20 minutes for each reading passage. If you haven't finished after 20 minutes, move on to the next passage.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (14) Monday, May 07, 2012

IELTS Reading: keyword table

The table below shows some of the keywords that help you to find the answers to test 4, passage 1 in Cambridge IELTS book 6. If you have book 6, try the test using the table to help you.

Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (4) Monday, April 30, 2012

IELTS Reading: choose the best summary

Yesterday I recommended reading descriptions and reviews on amazon.com. Here's an example description, with a quick exercise below. Description of the book What are Universities for? Across the world, universities are more numerous than they have ever been, yet at the same time there is unprecedented confusion about their purpose and scepticism about their value. What Are Universities For? offers a spirited and compelling argument for completely rethinking the way we see our universities, and why we need them. Stefan Collini challenges the common claim that universities need to show that they help to make money in order to justify getting more money. Instead, he argues that we must reflect on the different types of institution and the distinctive roles they play. In particular we must recognise that attempting to extend human understanding, which is at the heart of disciplined intellectual enquiry, can never be wholly harnessed to immediate social purposes - particularly in the case of the humanities, which both attract and puzzle many people and are therefore the most difficult subjects to justify. At a time when the future of higher education lies in the balance, What Are Universities For? offers all of us a better, deeper and more enlightened understanding of why universities matter, to everyone. Which statement best summarises the book's message? A) We do not necessarily need universities nowadays B) Universities should be harnessed for social purposes C) Universities must justify the money they are given D) We need to change our understanding of the role of universities
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (38) Monday, April 23, 2012

IELTS Reading: true, false, not given

Look at the following extract from a text about diaries: Many diaries of notable figures have been published and form an important element of autobiographical literature. Samuel Pepys (1633-1703) is the earliest diarist who is wellknown today; his diaries, preserved in Magdalene College, Cambridge, were first transcribed and published in 1825. Pepys was amongst the first who took the diary beyond mere business transaction notation, into the realm of the personal. According to the text, are the following statements true, false, or not given?
1. Samuel Pepys is more famous today than he was during his own lifetime. 2. Pepys kept a diary for purely business reasons.

Please share your answers in the "comments" section below. Can you explain your answers? I'll add the correct answers tomorrow.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (57) Monday, April 16, 2012

IELTS Reading: easy questions first

A good technique for the IELTS reading test is to do easy questions first. If you get stuck on difficult questions, miss them. Do the easy questions, then return to the tricky questions later. What's the easiest type of question? The easiest type of question is probably any question that contains a name, number or date. For these questions, it should be easy to scan the text to find where the answer is. If you find it difficult to get started in the exam, look for a question with a name, number or date, and start there. An easy question will help you to start confidently.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (2) Monday, April 09, 2012

IELTS Reading: multiple choice exercise

Read the following passage about 'learning styles'. The term learning styles refers to a variety of ways of learning. The learning styles theory is based on the observation that most people prefer an identifiable method of interacting with, taking in, and processing stimuli or information. The idea of individualised learning styles originated in the 1970s, and acquired enormous popularity. Proponents say that teachers should assess the learning styles of their students and adapt their classroom methods to best fit each student's preference. The basis and efficacy of these proposals are extensively criticised. Although children and adults express personal preferences, there is no evidence that identifying a student's learning style produces better outcomes, and there is significant evidence that

the hypothesis (that a student will learn best if taught in a method deemed appropriate for his or her learning style) may be invalid. Choose the best answer (A, B, or C) for questions 1 and 2 below. 1. The idea that people should learn according to their preferred learning style A) has influenced all teachers. B) became popular around 40 years ago. C) has never been disputed. 2. There is no evidence that A) people have learning preferences. B) the hypothesis might be wrong. C) it is beneficial to identify students preferred learning styles.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (51) Monday, April 02, 2012

IELTS Reading: paragraph heading

Choose the correct heading for the paragraph from the list below. A) The environmental impact of estuaries B) The human impact on certain coastal areas C) Why estuaries will disappear An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries are amongst the most heavily populated areas throughout the world, with about 60% of the worlds population living along estuaries and the coast. As a result, estuaries are suffering degradation by many factors, including overgrazing and other poor farming practices; overfishing; drainage and filling of wetlands; pollutants from sewage inputs; and diking or damming for flood control or water diversion.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (76) Monday, March 26, 2012

IELTS Reading: multiple choice

Read the following text and answer the multiple choice questions below. In linguistics, a corpus (plural corpora) is a large and structured set of texts (now usually electronically stored and processed). A corpus may be used to help linguists to analyse a language, or for the purpose of dictionary writing or language teaching. The British National Corpus (BNC) is a 100-million-word text corpus of samples of written and spoken English from a wide range of sources. The corpus covers British English of the late twentieth century from a wide variety of genres with the intention that it be a representative sample of spoken and written British English of that time. 1. What is a corpus?

A) A type of large dictionary. B) A single written text. C) A tool for language analysis. 2. Why was the BNC compiled? A) For the purpose of language teaching. B) To document written and spoken English from a particular period in time. C) To document the history of the English language.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (57) Monday, March 19, 2012

IELTS Reading: keywords

Vocabulary is the key to doing well in IELTS Reading. Usually there are "keywords" in the questions that are similar to the words you need to find in the text. For example, if the text contains the word "global", the question might use the word "international". The table below shows keywords for Test 4 in Cambridge IELTS book 4:

Try making your own keyword tables for other practice tests. It's a good way to improve your vocabulary, and it will help you to see how IELTS reading questions are made.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (12) Monday, March 12, 2012

IELTS Reading: find the similar words

In the IELTS Reading test, you need to be able to match words in the questions with words in the passage. Read the following text, then try the exercise below. What is an 'elevator pitch'? An elevator pitch is an overview of a product, service, person, group, organisation or project, and is often part of a fund-raising, marketing, brand or public relations program. The name "elevator pitch" reflects the idea that it should be possible to deliver a short

but effective presentation in the time span of an elevator ride from the ground floor to the directors boardroom on the top floor of a building. An elevator pitch is often used by an entrepreneur pitching an idea to an investor to receive funding. Venture capitalists often ask entrepreneurs to give an elevator pitch in order to quickly weed out bad ideas and weak teams. Other uses include job interviewing, dating and professional services. Proposals for books, screenplays, blogs and other forms of publishing are often delivered via an elevator pitch, which may be presented in oral, written or video formats. Which words or phrases in the passage are similar to those below?
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. a summary succinct gain financial backing eliminate spoken

Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (32) Monday, March 05, 2012

IELTS Reading: paragraph headings

Read the following passage about cognitive behavioural therapy: A) Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is a psychotherapeutic approach: a talking therapy. CBT aims to solve problems concerning dysfunctional emotions, behaviours and cognitions through a goal-oriented, systematic procedure in the present. B) The particular therapeutic techniques vary, but commonly may include keeping a diary of significant events and associated feelings, thoughts and behaviours; questioning and testing cognitions, assumptions, evaluations and beliefs that might be unhelpful and unrealistic; gradually facing activities which may have been avoided; and trying out new ways of behaving and reacting. Relaxation, mindfulness and distraction techniques are also commonly included. C) Going through cognitive behavioural therapy is not an overnight process for clients; a typical course consists of 12-16 hour-long sessions. Even after clients have learned to recognise when and where their mental processes go awry, it can in some cases take considerable time or effort to replace a dysfunctional process or habit with a more reasonable and adaptive one. CBT is problem-focused and structured towards the client. It requires honesty and openness between the client and therapist, as a therapist develops strategies for managing problems and guiding the client to a better life. Choose the best headings for paragraphs A, B and C from this list:
1. A slow process 2. A new type of therapeutic approach 3. The benefits and drawbacks of CBT

4. A goal-oriented therapeutic approach 5. CBT therapists are always honest with their clients 6. The range of CBT interventions
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (58) Monday, February 27, 2012

IELTS Reading: paragraph headings

Read the following paragraph and choose the best heading. Phonics refers to a method for teaching speakers of English to read and write that language. Young learners are taught to associate the sounds of spoken English with letters or groups of letters. For example, they might be taught that the sound /k/ can be represented by the spellings c, k, ck, ch, or q. Using phonics, the teacher shows the learners how to blend the sounds of letters together to produce approximate pronunciations of unknown words. Phonics is a widely used method of teaching children to read and decode words. Children begin learning to read using phonics usually around the age of 5 or 6.

A) A new method for language learning B) How phonics benefits children in the UK C) Children learn to link sounds with spellings D) Children learn the rules of spelling
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (60) Monday, February 20, 2012

IELTS Reading: how to do 'T, F, NG' questions

Let's look at how we found the answers to 3 questions in last week's lesson: Question 1 - False The question says that "laughter is biologically important" but the passage says that laughter "serves no biological purpose". As you can see, the answer is false because the passage says the opposite to what the question says. Question 5 - True The question says that "Graeme Richie's work links jokes to artificial intelligence" and

the passage says that "Graeme Richie studies... jokes in order to understand... reasoning in machines". There is definitely a link between his study of jokes and 'machine intelligence'. Question 6 - Not Given The answer to question 6 is 'not given' because the passage doesn't mention anything about comedians using personal situations. We know that comedians use situations in their jokes, but we do not know whether these situations are personal. These 3 questions illustrate the difference between 'true', 'false' and 'not given'. - True = part of the passage expresses the same idea as the question. - False = the passage expresses the opposite or a different idea. - Not Given = some information is missing, so we cannot answer true or false.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (19) Monday, February 13, 2012

IELTS Reading: more practice

The following exercise comes from Cambridge IELTS 5, page 43. Here are the questions with the relevant part of the text below each one. Study the questions and the text sentences carefully. Decide whether the statements are true, false or not given. 1. Arthur Koestler considered laughter biologically important in several ways.

Arthur Koestler dubbed it the luxury reflex: 'unique in that it serves no apparent biological purpose'.

2. Plato believed humour to be a sign of above-average intelligence.

Plato expressed the idea that humour is simply a delighted feeling of superiority over others.

3. Kant believed that a joke involves the controlled release of nervous energy.

Kant felt that joke-telling relies on building up a psychic tension which is safely punctured.

4. Current thinking on humour has largely ignored Aristotle's view on the subject.

Most modern humour theorists have settled on some version of Aristotle's belief.

5. Graeme Richie's work links jokes to artificial intelligence.

Graeme Richie studies the linguistic structure of jokes in order to understand not only humour but language understanding and reasoning in machines.

6. Most comedians use personal situations as a source of humour.

A comedian will present a situation followed by an unexpected interpretation.

7. Chimpanzees make particular noises when they are playing.

Chimpanzees have a 'play-face' - a gaping expression accompanied by a panting 'ah, ah' noise.

Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (40) Monday, February 06, 2012

IELTS Reading: keyword table

Here's a table of key vocabulary from Cambridge IELTS 8 (test 1, passage 1). Remember that there are always words in the passage that are similar to words in the questions. If you find the similar words, you've found the answers.

Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (17) Monday, January 30, 2012

IELTS Reading: keywords

Here's a table showing the key vocabulary from last week's reading exercise. I recommend making a keyword table every time you practise a reading test.

bolster (verb) = support or strengthen

Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (11) Monday, January 23, 2012

IELTS Reading: true, false, not given

Today's questions are about the passage that I used last week. This time you need to decide whether the statements below are true, false or not given. Read the following text about the printing press: From a single point of origin, Mainz, Germany, printing spread within several decades to over two hundred cities in a dozen European countries. By 1500, printing presses in operation throughout Western Europe had already produced more than twenty million volumes. In the 16th century, with presses spreading further afield, their output rose tenfold to an estimated 150 to 200 million copies. The operation of a press became so synonymous with the enterprise of printing that it lent its name to an entire new branch of media, the press.

In Renaissance Europe, the arrival of mechanical movable type printing introduced the era of mass communication which permanently altered the structure of society. The relatively unrestricted circulation of information and ideas transcended borders and threatened the power of political and religious authorities. The sharp increase in literacy broke the monopoly of the literate elite on education and learning and bolstered the emerging middle class. Answer TRUE, FALSE or NOT GIVEN:
1. By the beginning of the 16th century, the printing press was in use in several different countries. 2. The printing press was popular because it was so easy to operate. 3. Movable type printing can be linked to a rise in the number of people who could read and write. 4. Printing had a negative effect on the middle classes.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (61) Monday, January 16, 2012

IELTS Reading: paragraph headings

Match two of the following headings with the paragraphs below. I'll reveal the correct answers tomorrow.
1. 2. 3. 4. Rapid sales of printing presses. The revolutionary impact of the printing press. New information and ideas. The printing boom.

From a single point of origin, Mainz, Germany, printing spread within several decades to over two hundred cities in a dozen European countries. By 1500, printing presses in operation throughout Western Europe had already produced more than twenty million volumes. In the 16th century, with presses spreading further afield, their output rose tenfold to an estimated 150 to 200 million copies. The operation of a press became so synonymous with the enterprise of printing that it lent its name to an entire new branch of media, the press. In Renaissance Europe, the arrival of mechanical movable type printing introduced the era of mass communication which permanently altered the structure of society. The relatively unrestricted circulation of information and ideas transcended borders and threatened the power of political and religious authorities. The sharp increase in literacy broke the monopoly of the literate elite on education and learning and bolstered the emerging middle class.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (65) Monday, January 09, 2012

IELTS Reading: practise 'general' tests too

The General Training reading test is a bit different to the Academic test. However, the techniques you need to use to find the answers are the same: - Underline key words in the question. - Look for those words, or words with the same meaning, in the passage. General Training questions are sometimes a bit easier than those in the Academic test, so I often give my students a section from a GT test as an introduction to the reading exam. Here's an example GT test section from the official IELTS website: click here
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (21) Monday, January 02, 2012

IELTS Reading: matching

Today I've attached a matching exercise so that you can practise using the method I described in last week's reading lesson. Click here to download

The answers are given on the last page, but try not to look at them until you've done the exercise.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Reading | Permalink | Comments (12)

Next

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People who think this choice has a positive impact on society believed

thatpeople, who choose to live away from their families, can both easily gain self-confident and learn how to livebythemselve

s. These two causes are vital for their futures. Because of the fact that, they can stand by the negative andpositive

sides of the life without any help from their parents. Therefore when their parents pass away, they can get

usedtothis condition easily.believed wrong tense. Us e believe.no commas, it is not a non-defining relative

clauseselfconfident wrong part of speech. Use the noun selfconfidencefuture s there is only one future in

life.future, because of the fact.(one sentence)stand by wrong word. Use cope withthe life no article

necessary. Use life; were talking about life in general.conditi on wrong word. Us e situation.On

the other hand, other people think that people who are at specific age groupscan learn many life lessons from

their parents because family concept is the onlyfor shaping someones attitudes. For example, many adults do not

want to livewith their parents because of maturity. Generally, adults who are at adolescenceperi od assume they

have already grown up so they should be free. Despite of this, if they separate from their homes, they can have wrong

attitudes from their social circle such as drinking alcohol, using drugs. Therefore, they should notstay away from their

families.other dont repeat the same word. Use some.at wrong word. Us e in.concept. attitudes.concep

ts are the only way to shape a persons attitudes.Genera lly,adolescents.. despite thishave wrong attitudes

learn the wrong attitudes.

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Also, the family tie is a very important for the communication on society. In other words, if the family tie of

people is lost, people would not communicatewit heachother very well because miscommunicati on can lead to psychological

distress.With the psychological distress, they cannot tell their negative or positive feelingsto anyone because

when they live awayfromtheir families, they do not learn howthe ideas are shared with parents.family ties are very

important for communication in society.tell a better word would be express.the ideas.No article necessary. Use

ideas; we are talking about ideas ingeneral.In conclusion, people should not decide living away from their

families until theyaremarried exempt from special conditions as finding job another city which isdifferent

from their hometowns.deci de to live away.except for in special circumstances such as finding a job in another

city which isdifferent from their hometown.Final comments andapproximate IELTS band scoreT a s k R e

s p o n s e 5 The essay does not answer the question as it does not develop any kind of argument to say how much

you agree or disagree with the statement.Coher ence and Cohesion6

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In particular, you need to look at

how you use cohesive devices in order toimprove your score.Lexical Resource6You use some impressive

vocabulary, e.g. miscommunicati on and psychologybut you make too many wrong word choices.Gramm

atical Range and Accuracy 6I get the feeling that some of the language you use is translated directly fromyour mother-

tongue. You need to use more complex structures accurately inorder to achieve a higher

score.Approxi mate overall I ELTS score(a lo