I will give a quick overview of the module’s practice procedures. I prepared for the IELTS exam for a total of three months, which is a reasonable amount of time.
Listening
In my opinion, this module is the simplest. You have a total of 40 minutes to listen to the conversation (roughly for 30 minutes) and simultaneously write the answers into the blanks as you hear them. You have the final 10 minutes to write your responses on the answer sheet.
Strategy
Perform at least one listening task each day. There are numerous YouTube channels that can give you daily practice materials.
Always aim for a listening score of at least 35 out of 40.
Keep the Cambridge books for the final days of preparation because there are only a limited number of them.
Try to work as hard and as quickly as you can; this will prepare you for your exams since the pace of the actual exams will be relatively slower.
Make a self-evaluation Check the section where you are consistently scoring poorly. It was the maps section in my case.
Writing North, South, East, and West on the map will make it easier for your eyes to search in the maps section because the information will be directly stated to the east of the sea or in the south compartment.
In the MCQ section, the speaker will probably mention all three options, but the correct answer will be the one that matches the question the closest.
Always cross the answers you are absolutely certain are incorrect as you are listening because there are always two better options than three.
Stream subtitle-free English movies and television shows.
Reading
Reading was, for me, the part that was the scariest, but I soon realized that reading was all about practice.
Reading requires both focus and quickness.
There are many ways to approach reading, but the first is to skim and scan it. You only have one hour to read the passages, and they may be lengthy, so if you read them all, you won’t finish.
Most of the time, but not always, the answers can be found between the middle lines of the passage, so skim it quickly and look for alternatives to the questions.
As you don’t have time to duplicate the answers later, immediately write them on the response sheet after checking your spelling and using only capital letters.
Since false and not given are somewhat similar to one another, I found that the true, false, and not given categories were the most challenging.
I practiced and improved greatly by watching YouTube videos, where there are many excellent tutorials on how to distinguish between categories and find the answers.
The list of headings is the section that will take time, so read it attentively and don’t try to skim it because you need to comprehend it clearly.
You may find a lot of reading articles on the internet, especially about IELTS fever, which you can download, print, and then solve.
We only have 15–16 official IELTS Cambridge books, so retain them for the next 20 days.
Strengthen the areas where you are weak, and always check what band you are stopped on.
Never lie to yourself while verifying your answers, because even if one letter is incorrect, the entire response will be regarded as incorrect, so practice with honesty.
Speaking
Speaking is all about following the marking criteria correctly, and unlike other modules, YouTube will help you the least in your speaking module.
Choose a practice partner who is better than you in English and vocabulary.
Never practice with someone who will demotivate you or laugh at you when you make a mistake.
There are several groups on Facebook just for IELTS tests, so seek them out and join them to easily find a partner. Always choose someone who aims to attain an 8 band or above.
On exam day, do not arrive too early because speaking is conducted on a different day and the scene there is too silent, which might heighten your nervousness while looking at applicants who are also apprehensive, so arrive 20 minutes before the exam and be cool and confident.
You can also practice recording yourself speaking and listening to it again to see where you fall short.
You should first understand the rules and marking system, as it is well known that even native English speakers frequently receive lower scores.
The reason for this is that the examiner is looking for an IELTS-speaking structure rather than faultless English.
Therefore, study the first page of the Cambridge speaking section; it will tell you exactly what to do.
For example, many candidates try to show off their excellent level of English by using difficult terms to impress the examiner, but in reality, the examiner will penalize them because it is a regulation that no rehearsed responses or words are allowed, so do not forcefully fit any phrases that may sound unreal.
The examiners encounter dozens of candidates every day, so they can tell your level of English within the first 20 seconds, so be as natural as possible.
You can just practice tuning, vocabulary, and sentence building.
Examiners are trained to be expressionless, so don’t be afraid to be nice.
Writing
Fix a systematic structure for writing and evaluate which forms work best for you.
Be as formal as possible.
To put it simply, read newspapers for structure formations and be formal.
Words should not be repeated.
Read the vocabulary and use formal terms. Write in the manner in which we have read formal textbook paragraphs from infancy.
Task 1 should take no more than 15 minutes because Task 2 is worth extra points.
Task 2 can be written in an informal manner, but trust me when I say that the more formal the better.
You should practice so frequently that you remember the word count.
Do not write less than 30 words. A tiny extra is acceptable, but not more than a 30-word expansion.
All four modules should be done every day for three months with a timer.
Don’t rush; be confident by practicing more.
Thank you, and may everyone who reads this receive a high grade.
