Tips for IELTS Listening Test

In the listening part of IELTS test, four recordings are played. You have to listen to them and answer the given questions for each recording. The time allowed for this module is 30 minutes.

Recording 1: conversation between two individuals on topics of routine activities
Recording 2: monologue, e.g., documentary or speech
Recording 3: conversation among three or four individuals, e.g., family members discussing an issue.
Recording 4: monologue on academic topic, e.g., teacher delivering a lecture

   Tips for IELTS Listening test:

Here are some important tips to score high in the listening part of IELTS.

1. The recording is played only once. Be attentive to grasp each information shared in the recording.
2. You have to attempt the questions while listening to the recordings. You are not given a separate time for writing your answers.
3. The questions are in the order of information shared in the recording. This means, you have to listen to the recording as well as to focus on the questions so that you can easily pick up information asked in the question.
4. Write your answer as short as possible to save your time. The answers are generally short (e.g. one or two words, or a short sentence) and thus, should not be written unnecessarily long.
5. Answers with spelling mistakes do not receive marks. Therefore, try to write the correct spellings of words.
6. If you have to write a ‘word’ as heard from the recording, and this is a noun such as a name of a month or day (e.g., January, Monday), write its first letter as capital.  
7. If a question has options, i.e. A, B, C, D. Write just only the letter of correct option (e.g., A, B or C) in the answer-sheet, rather than writing the whole option.
8. Give attention to key information spoken in the recording such as terminologies, dates, times and name of a person. Such pieces of information are generally asked in the listening test.
9. If you could not hear information relating a question properly, just stop thinking about it and start focusing on the other question because the recording goes on and you will miss many other questions. Therefore, if you miss information for one question, simply move on to the other question.
10. The recording includes narrations having different accents. Be attentive to grasp each information correctly.
11. Some questions are indirectly based on the information shared in the recording. Its answer may not be directly present (or spoken) in the recording. For such a question, you have to predict or assume the answer based on the relevant information shared in the recoding.
12. You will be given a few minutes at the end to transfer your answers into the answer-book. Check your answer speedily. Make corrections and add missing information, if any.
13. Listening test requires multi-tasking skills. You must be able to hear the recording carefully, focus on the answers, and write the answer at the same time.

   Guidelines for preparation for IELTS Reading test

1. Listen to English news during your preparation period. They use standard English and helps a lot in improving listening skills.
2. Listen to documentaries during your preparation period. This is very important because one of the recordings is usually a part of some documentary. Documentaries use a formal style of speaking and a wide range of vocabulary. Practice listening to them. Take a pencil and a paper and note down the key information shared in these documentaries while listening to them. It will enhance your power of grasping information from the played audios.
3. Watch English movies. They offer a range of conversations among various characters. IELTS listening test includes a conversation among people. Therefore, watching English movies will familiarize you the nature of English conversation as well as help you understand how the words are spoken (or pronounced) in formal and informal conversations.  
4. Listen to English music from different singers having different accents. This helps you understand how words are uttered in different accents. Similarly, the words of the songs are sung in a tone that is generally different for normal spoken style. Therefore, trying to understand the words of songs make you easily grasp words when uttered in normal style of speaking.