The IELTS is an English proficiency test taken by various
English speaking countries such as the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New
Zealand for non-native speakers of the English language looking to migrate to
these countries for studies or work. The IELTS is a global test, accepted by
all English speaking countries and is not subject specific.
The countries you are seeking to go to, want to make sure
that you can understand the language of work and instruction in that country.
The country wants to make sure that if you are enrolled in a University, you
can understand the medium of instruction and if you are working, you can
communicate with others and follow the rules of the organization.
In India, for most people, English is a foreign language.
The medium of instruction right up to graduation or high school in a majority
of areas in India is in the vernacular or the mother tongue of the region where
you study. Therefore, it is important to know that if you are not very
proficient in English, but have dreams of traveling abroad, brush up your English
skills and prepare for these tests.
Before enrolling for any of the tests, please make sure
which country/university you are applying to and how much is the score
expectation.
The IELTS has four parts to the test—Listening, Reading,
Writing and Speaking.
LISTENING:
The listening test is important because the test takers want
to understand if you can follow a conversation or a lecture .These
conversations are usually in foreign accents—British, Scottish, Canadian (IELTS). If you want to practice, listen to a lot of radio programs in
English and watch TV programs/films from English channels, to understand
various expressions. Although English is an international language, it is
spoken differently in various countries .Familiarize yourself with the way it
is spoken in these countries. Also, if
you have never been exposed to foreign accents, start watching English
movies—if not in the theatre, at least on TV. The movies you watch on TV will
mostly be with American accent---but you will get used to it, by and by and
your ears will be able to accept other accents as well.
READING:
All the tests give at least 2-3 reading passages; about
500-700 words in length and you have to find answers to the questions from the
passage. Reading comprehension is an important part of these tests and the key
questions will be based on your understanding of the vocabulary and your
expertise in gleaning out information from the passages. The reading test will
carry on for an hour or more, so it might get a bit tiring and difficult for
you, even if your English is good.
Practice by reading English newspapers and magazines and
books. You can start with simple English reading like small fiction stories and
then gradually start reading non-fiction. The passages are taken from scientific;
historical therefore the reading is pretty heavy and is not very interesting.
Since the reading test is long and you have to finish
reading more than one passage, practice by reading quickly and skimming through
information and taking down notes. See if the notes you have taken gives a good
summary of the passage you have read. A good summary is about one-thirds the
length of the passage.
Improve your vocabulary by going through the meanings of
words you do not know, using a dictionary.
WRITING:
The writing tests come in the form of composing a letter (IELTS—general)
or an essay (IELTS-- academic) or compiling data (IELTS).
This is a tough test since this tests your vocabulary,
grammar and spellings. Even a good English speaker may not write well.
Since the writing tasks are timed –about half an hour to one
hour, the key here is to structure and write down your thoughts in a limited
time. You also have to finish early to edit your response so that your mistakes
are minimized.
Brush up your grammar; practice writing simple essay topics
and write letters pertaining to your work or subject—place an order, complaint
letter, introductory letter etc.
SPEAKING:
This is a test most candidates are nervous about as you are
expected to speak impromptu on a given topic and answer questions posed by the examiner
(IELTS). The questions may be asked by a live examiner. All your answers are
taped and analyzed by test examiners later.
You are marked for your coherence and understanding of the
topic and not really for your accent or pronunciation. As long as you display
that you can speak fluently, and understand the task, you will not fail the test.
Many candidates do not do well on the test just because they get nervous or
tongue-tied and lose time thinking.
Practice speaking with a friend or a person who knows good English.
Speak on different topics for five minutes and ask your friend to converse with
you on different topics.
Start practice months
before the test
A mistake most candidates make is to register for the test
close to the admission or visa deadline. The downside of this is that if you
fail the test, your admission gets cancelled and you lose your registration
money. It will be a good idea to take a test date three to six months in advance---that
way you will have enough time to prepare and take care of your other course
work or studies or office work.
If you are not good in English, take at least three months
to coach yourself. Get yourself a good English teacher to coach you or enroll
in a coaching institute.
