15 Tip for you on how to score higher in IELTS Reading test

IELTS is one of the most trusted testing systems of proficiency in the English language has 4 parts. Listening test, Reading test, Speaking test and Writing test. It’s very important for the candidates to score high in all forms of the tests to ensure their acceptance by the foreign academic authority (for those who want to study abroad) or by the companies (for those who want to work abroad). All of them need to score higher band in the IELTS. Hence the candidates need to prepare for the IELTS Reading test keeping with a view in mind that they are going to be tested by a system which is not only well reputed but also the value of their certificate matters and is well-accepted worldwide by 90,000 institutions and organizations, naturally, the parameter is very high. For students venturing out for studying abroad, usually in a country where the official language is English there is IELTS ‘Academic Training’. Those who want to work overseas need to qualify through IELTS ‘General Training’. For IELTS ‘Reading Test’ both the formats are same.

Before starting the discussion of how to score high in ‘IELTS Reading Test’ let’s discuss some basic points. One has to have at least adequate basic knowledge of English language if he wants to go for preparing for the IELTS Reading Test. By basic knowledge on English, it means that one should be grammatically strong and have a good perception of reading and understanding English. For developing in this area one should study any standard English grammar book preferably under the guidance of a good English teacher. One should read English newspapers on daily basis to enrich vocabulary and strengthen understanding of the construction of sentences. Reading newspapers doesn’t mean skimming, a thorough purposeful reading  with a keen eye to pick new words and their usage would be beneficial. A teacher would help in rectifying the pronunciation and also would help one to get the grasp of complex sentences, the usage of punctuation, identifying nouns, adjectives and adverbs and a lot more things. Moreover one has to understand what ‘International English’ is and for that reading standard English Newspapers and Famous English Magazines (preferably on the Internet to reduce the expenditure) is the best way without dissent. Everything said and done a person after preparing himself with an adequate knowledge to compete for a world-standard testing system may start his journey to achieve the goal. How should he prepare for the ‘IELTS Reading test’? The one line answer is he should download and study the practice materials available on Internet in different websites, and practice them according to instructions given. A detailed discussion would be more helpful for a candidate on ‘How to prepare?’, ‘How the test is conducted?’ and so on. So let’s proceed further.

The ‘IELTS Reading Test‘ gives a candidate 60 minutes for answering 40 questions. Questions are based on reading ‘Three’ passages with a total of up to 2750 words (approx.). The candidates are given an answer sheet on which the answers are to be entered within the stipulated time period of 60 minutes, any delay in answering will result in lowering the score. With this information in knowledge, candidates should prepare for ‘Real Exam’ like mock tests and coherent conditions.

How to make the most of the actual reading test Reading test? Perfect guidelines for that are as below:

• 1) Right at the start, one should first look out for the ‘Title’.
• 2) The question paper contains, headings, special features such as capital letters, underlining, italics also graphs, figures, and tables. One should try to understand the questions and follow each instruction
• 3) Attention to be paid to timing, it is of utmost importance. Spending too long on one passage or one question would result in a serious blunder and sure lowering the score.
• 4) No need to try and read every word. Reading should be purposeful, so as to answer questions rightly, any candidate habituated with the real life mock tests is supposed to have that the right awareness of ‘When to skim and when to scan’.
• 5) If the candidate cannot answer a single question, without wasting time he should jump for the next question.
• 6) No need to panic if one does not know the subject of the text; all the answers can be found in the text, so concentrating on reading is a must.
• 7) Any word for an answer must be taken from the text given to read, one is not given the liberty to change the form of the word or words in the text.
• 8) If a candidate comes across any unknown word or words no need to panic, the word might be useless.
• 9) Extreme caution has to be executed during spell-checking.
• 10) Well understanding the usage of ‘singular’ and ‘plurals’ is very important.
• 11) There are ‘completion’ type questions, the candidate should understand well what exactly he is asked.
• 12) If a question on ‘fill in the blank’ type reads like: ‘During the…… ‘ and the answer is summer, then the candidate should just write ‘summer’ not ‘During the summer’, that is the wrong
• 13) Paying sharp attention to the ‘word limit’ is extremely desirable. Let’s clarify: if the candidate has asked to complete a sentence using ‘Two words’, it must be two not one not three. Say the correct answer is ‘Reading skill’, one can’t write ‘skill of writing’ that is incorrect.
• 14) All questions are to be answered, as there is no penalty marking. The higher the number of correct answers, the higher the chance of scoring higher.
• 15) After completing writing answers, they should be checked with due attention.

On the internet, different websites provide sample question papers. Downloading them and practicing the mock tests repeatedly with carefully minding the time and accuracy would enable one to become a ‘Deserving Candidate’. There are certain clues which candidates should be aware with, like in the given text materials to read, ‘at least one portions contains detailed logical argument’, the candidate should understand it. The tests conducted are unbiased, i.e. it’s all the same for candidates from any streams, arts, science or commerce. Usually, a candidate must scan the text first and fast to get the clear idea of which section is relevant i.e. from which parts questions may be asked. So while preparing for the reading test candidates need to be thoroughly aware of being able to answer all 14 different types of questions. The first section of general training is ‘social survival’, it contains texts which are relevant to basics of ‘Linguistic Survival’ in the English language. The second sections contain ‘Training Survival’, this section contains texts with more complex language and some elaborated expressions. The third and the last section which is ‘General Training’, it contains verse with most complex language emphasizing on descriptive and instructive texts.

As IELTS Reading Test carries out a testing system for ‘Genuine Proficiency in English’ reading, therefore it is highly imperative for the candidates to take professional training in reputed professional ielts training institutes, amongst the dozens of Institutes a candidate should select wisely the one fits him considering the reputation, the fees structure and other factors. Reputed professional Institutes train and guide the candidates in a well-planned realistic way. They prepare the candidates with series of ‘Mock tests’ to enable them to become well accustomed with the format of the actual test. Rigidly adhering to the tips and tricks not only boosts the confidence of a candidate but also brightens the chance to score higher in the IELTS Reading test.

With an estimated number of more than 2 billion people worldwide communicate in English for official or business or academic purpose on regular basis and with rapidly increasing number of migrating students and workers worldwide the urge for learning ‘International English’ is skyrocketing. The main language on Internet is English and Internet is the gold mine of resources to more or less everyone, from students to teachers, from employees to employers. So reading and understanding the English language, to be exact the learning ‘International English’ language has become mandatory and obligatory for all persons including ambitious students and prudent professionals. IELTS sets the tunes of the ‘candidates’ on proficiency in English language making their life hassle free.

Originally posted 2016-10-19 06:53:56.