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IELTS Preparation tips

The best ways to study for the four IELTS sub-tests: Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking

3 Strategic Steps To Guarantee  IELTS Band 7

3 Strategic Steps To Guarantee  IELTS Band 7

Just like chess, IELTS is a strategy game. When your future depends on that Band 7 in IELTS, don’t leave it to chance! Be strategic and make sure you GET IT!

What many self-prep students do is, they learn the format of the IELTS test, find some practice tests, do a few, then go to the test… only to find out that they are VERY far away from that Band 7.

Then they go back to studying, randomly picking some exercises to do, without a proper plan.

After a while they declare themselves ready and go for a second attempt… which often ends just like the first – no 7.

Instead of locking yourself into this depressing scenario, there is a better way.

How to take IELTS just once and get the score you need

Everyone has weaker skills and stronger skills. It is very rare to find someone whose Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking are equally strong.

Use this strategy for success: aim for lower scores (6 and 6.5) in your weaker skills, and for higher scores (7 and 8) in your stronger skills, and you will still get an Overall Band 7!

Here is a real life example: one of my students had a problem with Writing and Speaking, but her Reading and Listening were quite good. We came up with this plan for her. She needed to get:

  • Band 6 in Writing
  • Band 6.5 in Speaking
  • Band 7 in Reading
  • Band 8 in Listening

This was realistic and manageable, and she ended up with a Band 7 Overall, which satisfied her university 100%. You don’t need to get all 7’s to get an Overall Band 7!

Complete explanation of IELTS scoring

Your IELTS score is the average of 4 scores for Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. Here is how the overall IELTS Band Score is calculated: (Listening + Reading +Writing +Speaking) / 4 = Overall Band Score.

For example: (8+8+6+6)/4 = Overall Band 7

But this is NOT THE ONLY combination that results in a Band 7. You can get an Overall Band 7 in a number of ways:

1. 6, 6.5, 7, 8
2. 6,7,7,8
3. 6, 7, 7.5, 8
4. 6.5, 7, 7, 8

As you can see, achieving the Overall Band Score of 7 is possible if you perform well in specific areas. This means that by excelling in particular skills, like scoring 8 in one of them, you can balance out lower scores in other areas to reach an overall average of 7.

Strategy for success

1. Learn what your weaker skills are
2. Select a realistic score for each skill (from one of the 4 combinations above)
3. Average of those scores = overall Band 7

Is Speaking Different for the IELTS Online Exam?

IELTS now offers a completely online version of the exam.

This is different from computer-delivered IELTS, because you can do the online exam at home.

You also don’t have to go to a test center for the IELTS Speaking test. (If you take the computer-delivered version, you will still have to speak to an Examiner at a test center.)

Does that mean that IELTS Speaking is more like TOEFL Speaking? Are you now just talking to a computer?

No!

You still get to talk to a real, human Examiner, and the format of the exam is the same. In fact, you will be answering the same types of questions, adhering to the same timing and format, as all IELTS Speaking test candidates.

These days, you’re probably used to having video calls with people, either for work or in your personal life. If you’re not used to talking on video with other people, you will want to practice this before your exam!

Most importantly, though, the way you’re scored on your Speaking exam is also exactly the same. The Examiner is listening for the same things in order to score you in four categories: Fluency and Coherence, Vocabulary, Grammar, and Pronunciation.

On the IELTS Energy English 7+ podcast, we talk about EVERYTHING related to IELTS, for Reading, Listening, Writing, and, of course, Speaking. You can also watch all episodes as videos on our YouTube channel, IELTS Energy TV.

If you’ve never listened to the podcast, you’re missing out! We publish two new episodes every week, and they’re free! The show is hosted by Jessica Beck and Aubrey Carter. Jessica was an IELTS Examiner for 14 years, and has a Masters in Applied Linguistics. Aubrey Carter is 3 Keys IELTS certified, and has a Masters in TESOL. Both hosts have been teaching for 20+ years, and are, honestly, fun to hang out with. You’ll have so much fun that you’ll forget you’re studying!

To prepare for the highest IELTS Speaking scores, listen to the episodes listed below.

Fluency and Coherence
IELTS Energy 1319: Examiner Answers Your Burning Speaking Questions
IELTS Energy 1330: 7 Tips to Sound Natural on IELTS Speaking

Vocabulary
IELTS Energy 1325:Is IELTS the Stuff of Nightmares?
IELTS Energy 1328: Don’t Use ‘Get’ on IELTS

Grammar
IELTS Energy 1287: Don’t Make These Noncount Noun Mistakes on IELTS
IELTS Energy 1299:Who, That, or Which? Necessary IELTS Grammar

Pronunciation
IELTS Energy 1294: Fabulous Family Sample Part 3 Answers
IELTS Energy 1327: The Difference Between 7 and 8 for Speaking

Make sure to follow the IELTS Energy podcast so you never miss an episode.

Who is Jessica Beck?

Jessica All Ears EnglishJessica Beck was an IELTS Examiner for 14 years, in Taipei, Taiwan, and in Portland and Boise in the U.S. She has been a co-host of the IELTS Energy podcast from All Ears English since 2015, and created the online IELTS course, 3 Keys IELTS. Also, she has written over 20 ESL textbooks for young learners and adults. Jessica lives in Portland, Oregon, with her son and two dogs.