UNDERSTANDING

of LISTENING

The first two sections of the test are concerned with social needs.

The final two sections are concerned with situations related more closely to educational or training
contexts.

All the IELTS listening topics are of general interest and it makes no difference what subjects you are
planning to study or what work you intend to do.

A range of English accents and dialects are used in the recordings which reflects the international
usage of IELTS

Section One (Question 1 – 10)
In the first section there is a conversation between two speakers. For example – a conversation about
travel arrangements, booking accommodation, or decisions on a night out.

Section Two (Question 11 – 20)
The second section is a monologue (a speech by one person). It will be set in an everyday social
context. For example – a speech about student services on a University campus or arrangements for
meals during a conference.

Section Three (Question 21 – 30)
Section three is a conversation between up to four people. For example – a conversation between a
tutor and a student about an assignment or between three students planning a research project.

Section Four (Question 31 – 40)
The final part is another monologue. It is a lecture or talk of general academic interest such as a
university lecture.

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You will be provided with instructions on the test paper on how to answer the questions, and they are
clear and easy to follow. You will be given examples of any unfamiliar question types.

During the IELTS listening test, you are given time to read the questions and enter and then check your
answers. You enter your answers on the question paper as you listen and when the tape ends ten
minutes are allowed for you to transfer your answers to an Answer Sheet.

One mark is awarded for each of the 40 items in the test.

IELTS LISTENING TABLE BAND DESCRIPTOR

Exercise 1:
Spelling Letters and Numbers
1. Spell correctly the names of the Scottish cities and towns you hear (recorder:1.2B)
1. 6.
2. 7.
3. 8.
4. 9.
5. 10.

2. Write down full of sentences you hear in the recording (recorder:1.2A)
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.

3. Write down the full of sentence of what you have heard (recorder:2.1)
21.
22.
23
24. ..
25.
26.

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 27.
28.
29.
30.



TYPE of QUESTIONS

TABLE COMPLETION
Table completion in IELTS listening is a common type of question. It can appear in any section
of the listening test. Spend time preparing the headings and the predict the missing content
of the table. Pay attention to the numberof words possible for the answers. After you have
prepared the table and the missing answers, listen to the recording and write doen the
answers as you listen. In the real test you can listen only once.

Exercise 2:

SENTENCE COMPLETION
In this type of question, you are given a sentence taken from the listening, and you have to decide
which word fits in the gap.
Remember though that the sentence will not be exactly the same as what you hear on the audio - it
will be paraphrased (using different words to what you hear).

Strategy of sentence completion
1. Look the sentences before you start to get an idea of what you will be hearing.
2. Pay particular attention to the words that come before and after the gap to help you notice
when the word is spoken.
3. Try to guess what may go in the gap - is it a place, name, number, or something else?
4. Remember that the words you see in the sentence may be synonyms of the words from the
audio, so you may be listening out for words with similar meanings.
5. Write the exact words, phrases or numbers that you hear in the gap on your question paper.
6. Always check the word limit - your answer will be marked wrong if you exceed the number of
words allowed.

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Exercise 3 :

5






MATCHING WORDS/SENTENCE/PRHASE/PICTURE/MAP
The matching test item format provides a way for learners to connect a word, sentence, phrase ,
picture or map in one column to respondinng word. This task type assesses the skill of listening for
detail. It often assesses the ability to follow a conversation involving interaction between to people.

Exercise 1

Listen to a travel agent talking about interesting places to visit in wales. Match the correct
activities and beaches with each place. Some of the choices may be used more than once.

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 1. Circle the correct answer

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MUTIPLE CHOISE QUESTIONS
In this type of question you are usually given three or four choices of answer. It is commonly found in
parts two, three and four of the listening test. The question will be harder the further on you get in
the section of the test. There are certain things in this kind of question that can easly trip you up and
lead to mistake. Learning about these will improve your ability to listen and identify the correct answer

Exercise :
Listen to the talk and choose the correct answer
1. Atlantis was
A. A legendary island
B. An island named after the ocean in which it was supposed to have been located
C. An actual island which has disappeared
D. Both A and B

2. According to the selection, today the Atlantic is
A. Romantic rather than business-like
B. Completely lacking in romance
C. Less important to business than in the days of the sailing ships
D. Important in world commerce

3. The Spaniards discovered that calms were not common
A. Just south of the equator
B. Just on the edge of steady trade winds
C. In a narrow belt along the equator
D. Near the coast of South America

4. The area was perilous because
A. Ship could easily be wrecked there
B. There was no wind
C. Ships had no power other than the wind
D. Both A and B

5. Thirst was a grave problem because
A. The sun was often very hot
B. The water supply was limited
C. Horses required a lot of water
D. All of the above

6. Horses were probably thrown overboard in order to
A. Conserve water
B. Lighten the ship
C. Spare them the agonies of thirst
D. Spare the men the trouble of caring for them

7. Proof of the Spaniard’s placing high value on their horses was their
A. Taking them to America
B. Crediting them with souls
C. Regretting their loss
D. All of the above

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8. The selection says that sailors called the area the “horse latitudes” because
A. The Spaniards told them it was haunted by the ghosts of horses
B. They regretted the loss of the horses
C. They had dreams about the lost horses
D. The Spaniards had named it that

Listen carefully and choose the correct answer A,B or C
9. Joanne says that visitors to Darwin are often surprised by
A. The number of young people.
B. The casual atmosphere.
C. The range of cultures.

10. To enjoy cultural activities, the people of Darwin tend to
A. Travel to southern Australia.
B. Bring in artists from other areas.
C. Involve themselves in production.

11. The Chinese temple in Darwin
A. Is no longer used for its original purpose.
B. Was rebuilt after its destruction in a storm.
C. Was demolished to make room for new buildings.

12. The main problem with travelling by bicycle is
A. The climate.
B. The traffic.
C. The hills.

13. What does Joanne say about swimming in the sea?
A. It is essential to wear a protective suit.
B. Swimming is only safe during the winter.
C. You should stay in certain restricted areas.

You will hear Peter Walsh being interviewed for a job. Listen and choose the correct answer for
each question.
14. How long has he been in his present job?
A. Since 2005
B. For about three years
C. For three months

15. Why does he want a new job?
A. For a change
B. To earn more money
C. To get promotion

16. What does he like most about his job?
A. The right to take action and make decisions
B. His colleagues
C. Working conditions

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17. What kind of person are they looking for?
A. Someone prepared to work overtime
B. Someone who is punctual
C. Someone who wants to get on

18. What qualifications does Peter have?
A. A degree
B. A school leaving certificate
C. A postgraduate diploma

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 UNDERSTANDING of READING


IELTS Reading Exam Information
The IELTS reading exam is divided into three sections of increasing difficulty.
This test requires you to answer 40 questions in 60 minutes.

In my opinion, the IELTS reading exam can also be seen as a vocabulary exam. The reason is
that you need a wide range of vocabulary to understand the passages of text given to you.
You must also have an awareness of synonyms if you wish to identify the information required
to answer the questions correctly.

IELTS Reading Question Types
There are several different types of questions on the IELTS reading test and each one has its
own problems and strategy. step-by-step guide to answering each question type you could
receive on the IELTS reading exam:

Short Answer Questions
This post will help you answer short answer questions more effectively by looking at a sample
question, identifying common problems and giving you a strategy to use on exam day.

Multiple Choice
This article will help you answer multiple choice questions more effectively. We look at
common problems and how to fix them.

Summary Completion
In these kinds of questions, you will be given a summary of information from the text and
there will be some gaps in that summary.

Matching Sentence Endings
In this IELTS reading question, you will be given a list of incomplete sentences with no endings
and another list with possible endings. Your job is to match the incomplete sentences with
the correct ending based on the reading text.

Sentence Completion
In this question type, you will be given a number of sentences with gaps in them and asked
to complete the sentences with words from the reading text.

True, False, Not Given
‘True, False, Not Given’ questions requires you to identify if the information in a text is true
or not. You will be given a number of factual statements and you have to check in the text if
they are true or not. This is probably the most difficult question in the reading paper.

Matching Headings Tips and Strategy
This article will help you match headings more effectively in the IELTS reading test. In the
IELTS Reading test, you may be asked to match headings to sections of text. This type of
question tests your ability to understand the main idea of each paragraph.

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Labelling a Diagram
On the IELTS reading test, you might get a question that asks you to label a diagram. This post
will show you examples, look at common problems and provide you with a strategy for
answering these questions effectively.

Matching Information to Paragraphs
In this kind of question, you are asked to match statements to paragraphs in the reading text.
This post will look at example question types and show you my step-by-step strategy for
matching information to paragraphs. In this type of question, you are asked to match
someone’s name, normally an expert, researcher or scientist, to a statement.

IELTS Reading Time Management
One of the most challenging parts of IELTS reading is completing it within the time that you
are allocated.

IELTS Reading Practice
The links below will direct you to multiple reliable sources of IELTS reading practice papers:
Cambridge Past Papers books
British Council
IELTS Essentials
IDP
It’s important that you use reliable materials when you practice IELTS reading because this is
the only way of getting an accurate idea of your current ability. The post below will show you
how to find reading practice materials and demonstrate how you can improve your practice
sessions from home:


RECOGNIZE PARAPHRASE
WHY DO YOU NEED TO UNDERSTAND PARAPHRASING?
In the IELTS test, your job is basically to understand the questions and then find the exact
sentences in the passage, which contain the answer accordingly. However, the words you see
in the questions will never be repeated entirely in the passage since the exam is not meant to
test your ability to compare similar words but to test your English, or to be more precise, your
understanding of the language. That’s why the questions will be paraphrased-said in a
different way with the meaning being kept the same. It is therefore important to understand
how paraphrasing is made.

EXAMPLES OF PARAPHRASING
Paraphrasing involves taking a set of facts or opinions and rewording them. When
paraphrasing, it is important to keep the original meaning and to present it in a new form.
Basically, you are simply writing something in your own words that expresses the original
idea.

PARAPHRASING BLOCKS OF TEXT
Paraphrasing can be done with individual sentences or entire paragraphs. There are several
examples of paraphrasing listed below for both long and short blocks of text.

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PARAPHRASING SENTENCES
Here are some sentences that have been paraphrased:
• Original: Her life spanned years of incredible change for women.
• Paraphrase: Mary lived through an era of liberating reform for women.
• Original: Giraffes like Acacia leaves and hay and they can consume 75 pounds of food a day.
• Paraphrase: A giraffe can eat up to 75 pounds of Acacia leaves and hay every day.
• Original: Any trip to Italy should include a visit to Tuscany to sample their exquisite wines.
• Paraphrase: Be sure to include a Tuscan wine-tasting experience when visiting Italy.

PARAPHRASING PARAGRAPHS
Here is an example of paraphrasing of a longer passage taken from the Duke website.
Original Passage:
In The Sopranos, the mob is besieged as much by inner infidelity as it is by the federal
government. Early in the series, the greatest threat to Tony’s Family is his own biological
family. One of his closest associates turns witness for the FBI, his mother colludes with his
uncle to contract a hit on Tony, and his kids click through Web sites that track the federal
crackdown in Tony’s gangland.

Paraphrased Passage:
In the first season of The Sopranos, Tony Soprano’s mobster activities are more threatened
by members of his biological family than by agents of the federal government. This familial
betrayal is multi-pronged. Tony’s closest friend and associate is an FBI informant, his mother
and uncle are conspiring to have him killed, and his children are surfing the Web for
information about his activities.

The main point of this passage is that problems within the family are as bad as or even worse
than problems caused by the federal government. Details about this betrayal include one
family member turning informant, a hit being put out on Tony by family members, and Tony’s
kids tracking his activities.

Here is a summary of some of the changes made during the paraphrasing process:
• Early in the series = first season
• More threatened = greatest threat
• Closest friend and associate = one family member
• His mother colludes with his uncle = his mother and uncle are conspiring
• His kids click through Web sites = his children are surfing the Web

Paraphrasing and Synonyms
In order to do well on the IELTS test you have to understand what paraphrasing and synonyms
are because Cambridge use them so much in the reading and listening tests and expect you
to use them in the writing and speaking tests.
Paraphrasing is simply rephrasing or saying the sentence again, so that it has the same
meaning, but with different words.

Example
Most men drive cars to work.
The majority of males use automobiles to get to their jobs.

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As you can see, both sentences mean exactly the same thing but I have used different words.
I have used mostly synonyms to do this, i.e. words with the same or similar meanings.
Most – majority
Drive – use
Cars – automobiles
Work – job

Why is this important?
We have to understand how Cambridge actually makes the IELTS reading tests in order to be
successful. The people who write the tests take a piece of writing and they then use
paraphrasing and synonyms to make many of the questions. Therefore if you don’t
understand this, it is like walking in the dark with no lights. Understand it and suddenly your
world becomes brighter.


READING EXERCISE 1
SKIMMING 1 : Read the next once for the gist (overall idea) and then in detail:

It is almost impossible to write of the Arts in Australia without mentioning the building that
fist put the country firmly on the world cultural map – the Sydney Opera House. Completed
in 1973 after 14 years of much heated discussion and at a cost of almost £60 million, it is not
only the most well-known Australian building in the world but perhaps the most famous
design of any modern building anywhere. Its distinctive and highly original shape has been
likened to everything from the sails of a sailing ship to broken eggshells, but few would argue
with the claim that the Opera House is a major contribution to world architecture. Set amidst
the graceful splendour of Sydney Harbour, presiding like a queen over the bustle and
brashness of a modern city striving to forge a financial reputation in a tough commercial
world, it is a reminder to all Australians of their deep and abiding love of all things cultural.

The Opera House was designed not by an Australian but by a celebrated Danish architect. Jorn
Utzon, whose design won an international competition in the late 1950s. However, it was not,
in fact, completed to his original specifications. Plans for much of the intended interior design
of the building have only recently been discovered. Sadly, the State Government of the day
interfered with Utzon’s plants because of concerns about the escalating cost, thought this
was hardly surprising – the building was originally expected to cost only £5.5 million. Utzon
left the country before completing the project and in a fit or anger vowed never to return.
The project was eventually paid for by a State-run lottery.

The size of the interior of the building was scaled down appreciably by a team of architects
whose job it was to finish construction within a restricted budget. Rehearsal rooms and other
facilities for the various theatres within the complex were either made considerably smaller
or cut out altogether, and some artists have complained bitterly about them ever since. But
despite the controversy that surrounded its birth, the Opera House has risen above the petty
squabbling and is now rightfully hailed as a modern architectural masterpiece. The Queen
officially opened the building in 1975 and since then, within its curved and twisted walls,
audiences of all nationalities have been quick to acclaim the many world-class performances
of stars from the Australian opera, ballet and theatre.

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1. WORD DEFINITIONS: Find the single words in paragraphs 1 and 2 which mean the following:
1. Pleasing, attractive
2. Characteristic
3. angry
4. (to) advance steadily
5. Excited activity
6. trying hard
7. Permanent, lasting
8. rashness

2. Next, find the single words in paragraphs 3 and 4 which mean the following:
i. meant
ii. considerably
iii. meddled with
iv. (to) promise
v. made smaller
vi. unimportant
vii. limited
viii. (to) applaud loudly
ix. known as
x. money plan

3. WORDS & PHRASES WITH SIMILAR MEANINGS: Refer to the passage in Exercise.
I. Well-known design
II. Angry talk
III. Located amidst
IV. Competitive world
V. Original designs
VI. Restricted budget
VII. Petty quarrelling


SKIMMING 2: Read the next once for the gist (overall idea) and then in detail:

Almost everyone with or without a computer is aware of the latest, technological revolution
destined to change forever the way in which humans communicate, namely, the Information
Superhighway, best exemplified by the ubiquitous Internet. Already, millions of people
around the world are linked by computer simply by having a modem and an address on the
‘Net’, in much the same way that owning a telephone links us to almost anyone who pays a
phone bill. In fact, since the computer connections are made via the phone line, the Internet
can be envisaged as a network of visual telephone links. It remains to be seen in which
direction the Information Superhighway is headed, but many believe it is the educational
hope of the future.

The World Wide Web, an enormous collection of Internet addresser or sites, all of which can
be accessed or sites, all of which can be accessed for information, has been mainly responsible
for the increase in interest in the Internet in the 1990s. Before the World Wide Web, the ‘Net’

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was comparable to an integrated collection of computerized typewriters, but the introduction
of the ‘Web’ in 1990 allowed not only text links to be made but also graphs, images and even
video. A Web site consists of a ‘home page’, the first screen of a particular site on the
computers to which you are connected, from where access can be had to other subject
related ‘pages’ at the site and to thousands of other computers all over the world. This is
achieved by a process called ‘hypertext’. By clicking with a mouse device on various parts of
the screen, a person connected to the ‘Net’ can go travelling, or ‘surfing’ through a web of
pages to locate whatever information is required.
Anyone can set up a site; promoting your club, your institution, your company’s products
simply yourself, is what the Web and the Internet is all about. And what is more, information
on the Internet is not owned or controlled by any one organization. It is, perhaps, true to say
that no one and therefore everyone owns the ‘Net’. Because of the relative freedom of access
to information, the Internet has often been criticized by the media as a potentially hazardous
tool in the hands of young computer users. This perception has proved to be largely false
however, and the vast majority of users both young and old get connected with the Internet
for the dual purposes for which it was intended-discovery and delight.

1. WORD DEFINITIONS : Find the single words in paragraphs 1 and 2 which mean the following:
a. certain to become
b. complete change
c. a machine unking computers
d. given as an example
e. found everywhere
f. location (of activity)
g. interconnected group
h. vast, huge

2. WORDS & PHRASES WITH SIMILAR MEANINGS: Refer to the passage in Skimming 2.
a. joined by :
b. telephone links :
c. large group :
d. negotiating a maze :
e. comprises :
f. dangerous tool :
g. most people on the ‘Net’ :

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 UNDERSTANDING SENTENCE COMPLETION
In sentence completion question types, you will be given a number of sentences with gaps in
them and asked to complete the sentences with words from the reading text.

These questions are as much vocabulary tests as they are reading tests because they require
you to be aware of paraphrasing (using different words to repeat a sentence so that it has the
same meaning) and synonyms (words with the same or very similar meanings).

Example:
Complete the sentences below
Choose No. MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.
38. Von Frisch discovered the difference between dance types by changing the position of
the..............
39. The dance outside the hive points in the direction of the..................
40. The angel of the dance from the vertical shows the angle of the food from................

As you can see there are three incomplete sentences that we must complete.
Note that it says NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer. This means
that we can write one or two words only. If we write any more than this, we get the
question wrong.

Also, note that it says ‘from the text’. This means that we can’t change the words from the
text.
The word limit and whether we should use words from the text or not can change from
question to question so read them carefully.

Sentence Completion Tips
a. Check how many words it asks you to write. If it says ‘no more than two’, you can
write one or two words. If it says ‘no more than three’, you can write one, two or
three words. Remember that numbers are written numerically, such as 72, count as
one word and hyphenated words, such as state-of-the-art, count as one word.
b. Sometimes the question will state ‘using words from the text’ or ‘from the text’. In
this case, you should only use words from the text and not change them or use
different forms of the words. If it does not say this, then you are allowed to change
the words as long as the meaning is the same.
c. The answers appear in the same order as the questions. The answer to number 1 will
be above number 2, and the answer to number 3 will be below the answer to
number 2.
d. Remember that your answer should be grammatically correct. Check the type of
word that fits in the space. Is it a verb, noun, adjective or adverb? This will help you
answer the question correctly.
e. When scanning for your answer, make sure you are thinking about paraphrasing and
synonyms.
f. Find where the answer is located in the text before you try to answer the question.
Remember where before what.
g. Read the questions before reading the text.

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Sentence completion strategy
This is my suggested strategy. There are many different strategies and you should use the
one you feel comfortable with. You can also adapt this strategy to what suits you.
Ø Read the instructions carefully, noting how many words you can write and if they
want you to include the exact words from the question or not.
Ø Read the incomplete sentences first. Think about what word form can be used and
try to predict the answer. Also, think about keywords and how they could be
represented by synonyms or paraphrasing.
Ø Locate where the information is located by scanning quickly. If you can’t locate the
answer quickly, move on.
Ø Read the incomplete sentence again.
Ø Study the reading text more carefully to establish the answer.
Ø Check your spelling.
Ø Repeat with the other sentences.

Exercise 1

The origins of birds
The science of evolutionary relationships has undergone a major change in recent
decades. It used to be the case that all the features of organisms were important in
working out their family tree. But following the work of German entomologist Willi
Hennig, many evolutionary scientists now believe that the only features which carry
any useful information are the evolutionary ‘novelties’ shared between organisms.
Mice, lizards and fish, for example, all have backbones – so the feature ‘backbone’
tells us nothing about their evolutionary relationship. But the feature ‘four legs’ is
useful because it’s an evolutionary novelty – a characteristic shared only between the
lizard and the mouse. This would suggest that the lizard and mouse are more closely
related to each other than either is to the fish. This revolutionary approach is called
cladistics, and it has been central to the idea that birds evolved from dinosaurs.

The ‘birds are dinosaurs’ theory was first developed by English palaeontologist
Thomas Huxley (1825–1895). According to some accounts, one evening Huxley went
to dinner still thinking about a mystery dinosaur bone in his lab. He knew he was
dealing with the lower leg bone (tibia) of a meat-eating, two-legged dinosaur
belonging to the classification known as theropods, but attached to the tibia was an
unidentified extra bone. On the menu that evening was quail, a small bird similar to a
pheasant, and Huxley noticed the same strange bone, attached to the quail tibia on
his plate. He later realised that it was in fact the bird’s anklebone. More importantly,
Huxley concluded that its forms in both dinosaur and bird skeletons were so similar
that they must be closely related.

Huxley’s idea fell out of favour for fifty years following the 1916 publication of The
Origin of Birds by the Danish doctor Gerhard Heilmann. During this time, Heilmann’s
theory was widely accepted. Heilmann had noted that two-legged, meat-eating
dinosaurs lacked collarbones. In later evolutionary stages these bones fuse together
to form the distinctive ‘Y’- shaped bone in a bird’s neck, known as the furcula.

19
Heilmann proposed the notion that such a feature could not be lost and then re-evolve
at a later date, so dinosaurs could not be the ancestors of birds.
Then, in the late 1960s, John Ostrom from Yale University in the US, noted 22 features
in the skeletons of meat-eating dinosaurs that were also found in birds and nowhere
else. This reset the thinking on bird ancestry and once again Huxley’s ideas caught the
attention of the scientific community. Subsequent work has found up to 85
characteristics that tie dinosaurs and birds together. But what of Heilmann’s missing
bones? It turns out that not only did many dinosaurs have collarbones, these were
also fused together into a furcula. Unfortunately for Heilmann, the fossil evidence was
somewhat lacking in his day, and the few furculae that had been found were
misidentified, usually as belly ribs.
US ornithologist Alan Feduccia and palaeontologist Larry Martin are two vocal
opponents of the dinosaur theory. They contend that birds evolved from some
unknown reptile at a time

long before dinosaurs. Their reasoning is that flight is most likely to have started from
a tree- climbing ancestor, yet all the proposed dinosaurian ancestors were ground-
dwellers. But the dino-bird supporters contend that an unknown dinosaurian bird-
ancestor could have been tree-dwelling, or that birds evolved flight from the ground
up by chasing and leaping after insects. Most of Feduccia and Martin’s case against
the ‘birds-are-dinosaurs’ hypothesis is based on differences between birds and
dinosaurs. Supporters of cladistics, however, maintain that differences between
organisms do not matter, as it is the similarities between them that count. Evolution
dictates that organisms will change through time, so it is only the features which
persist that carry useful information about their origins.

Most people on either side of the debate do accept, however, that the ancient winged
creature known as Archaeopteryx is an ancestor of today’s birds. This is in spite of the
fact that its form is distinctly non-bird-like, with a long bony tail, and teeth instead of
a beak. The ‘birds- are-dinosaurs’ supporters contend that, if clearly-preserved
feathers had not been found alongside two of the seven Archaeopteryx specimens, it
would probably have been identified as a small dinosaur. However, Archaeopteryx
does have some bird-like features, such as a furcula and bird-like feet, that suggest
that it is too bird-like to be considered a dinosaur.

Over the last few decades several dinosaurs with bird-like features and primitive birds
with dinosaur-like features have been found in several countries, connecting
Archaeopteryx back to dinosaurs, and forwards to modern birds. Sinosauropteryx,
excavated from 130-million- year-old rocks in northeast China, is one example. It is a
dinosaur skeleton surrounded by a halo of fuzz, thought to be primitive feathers. And
a reassessment of other dinosaurs reveals such bird-like features as hollow bones and
a foot with three functional toes, characteristics that appeared over 50 million years
before Archaeopteryx took to the air. And Rahonavis, a primitive bird from
Madagascar is more bird-like than Archaeopteryx, yet retains some distinctive
dinosaur features, including a long and vicious claw at the end of its wing. Over a
century since Huxley’s discovery, it seems that cladistics may have finally settled the
‘dino- bird’ debate.

20

Questions 1 – 5
Complete the sentences below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer

Write your answers in boxes 1-5 on your answer sheet.
1. Huxley formulated his theory while studying a dinosaur belonging to a group called
............
2. Heilmann rejected Huxley’s theory because of the apparent absence of ............ in
dinosaurs.
3. Feduccia and Martin believe that the ancestor of today’s birds was a kind of early
............ .
4. In cladistics, the ............ between organisms’ characteristics are of major
importance.
5. The dangerous ............ on a primitive bird from Madagascar adds weight to the
‘dino-bird’ argument.

Exercise 2
3D heart printed using multiple imaging techniques
Congenital heart experts from Spectrum Health Helen DeVos Children's Hospital have
successfully integrated two common imaging techniques to produce a three-
dimensional anatomic of a patient's heart.

The 3D model printing of patients' hearts has become more common in recent years
as part of an emerging, experimental field devoted to enhanced visualization of
individual cardiac structures and characteristics. But this is the first time the
integration of computed tomography (CT) and three-dimensional transesophageal
echocardiography (3DTEE) has successfully been used for printing a hybrid 3D model
of a patient's heart. A proof-of-concept study authored by the Spectrum Health
experts also opens the way for these techniques to be used in combination with a
third tool - magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

"Hybrid 3D printing integrates the best aspects of two or more imaging modalities,
which can potentially enhance diagnosis, as well as interventional and surgical
planning," said Jordan Gosnell, Helen DeVos Children's Hospital cardiac sonographer,
and lead author of the study. "Previous methods of 3D printing utilize only one
imaging modality, which may not be as accurate as merging two or more datasets."

The team used specialized software to register images from the two imaging
modalities to selectively integrate datasets to produce an accurate anatomic model of
the heart. The result creates more detailed and anatomically accurate 3D renderings
and printed models, which may enable physicians to better diagnose and treat heart
disease.

21
 Complete the sentences below.

Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
6. A three-dimensional......................... of a patient's heart was created by
integrating two imaging techniques.
7. Spectrum Health scientists have found a way to combine and use three
techniques: computed tomography, three-dimensional transesophageal
echocardiography and ...................
8. The new method of 3D printing is more efficient than previous methods because
it merges two and more .....................
9. With more accurate 3D renderings and.............. , physicians will be able to better
diagnose and treat heart disease.

Exercise 3
Worms
About a quarter of the world's population could have worms living in their guts. For many
years experts have recommended treating large groups at risk of infection - but is this mass
approach worthwhile?

Evidence showing the benefits of large-scale deworming projects has come under scrutiny
in recent weeks - the debate has even been dubbed "worm wars". Parasites, such as
roundworm, hookworm and whipworm could be living inside more than 1.5 billion people
according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

"People are usually infected through contaminated food but hookworm larvae can also
burrow into feet, get into blood vessels and make their way to the heart and lungs. From there
they can climb up to the oesophagus* and be swallowed, ending up in the gut where they
grow.

Worms are not usually fatal but in serious cases they can cause abdominal pain, diarrhoea,
loss of appetite, weight loss, fatigue and anaemia. In children, they can also contribute to
malnutrition, stunted growth, and absences from school. A nurse gives deworming treatment
to a boy in India

*oesophagus – throat

Complete the sentences below.

Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.
10. Now scientists doubt whether it is................. to treat large groups of possibly
infected people.
11. The expers called the debate.................
12. Hookworm larvae might make his way to the...................and then be swallowed
13. Although dangerous, worms are rarely..........................

22

UNDERSTANDING SUMMARY COMPLETION
There are two types of questions of summary completion type; one with the options (usually
synonyms) given below the question and the other with no options. In the first type, it becomes more
complicated to find answers since here, after you find a word from the passage, you have to think of
synonym of that word in order to find its answer. And in the second type, there will be word instruction
given which you must follow to find your answer from the passage.

Understand Question Well to Relate with Passage
The first and the most important thing to do before solving summary completion question in IELTS
reading is to understand the question properly. Since the paragraph or in other words, summary is
written in such a way that it becomes difficult to understand which part of the text it is referring to.
Without getting an overview of the question, you may not be able to solve it well.

Underline Main Keywords
Though the sentences in the summary completion question is the rewritten form of IELTS reading
passage, there are some words that are same or similar to the words in the passage through which
you are able to identify the paragraph from the passage from which it is extracted. Hence, always
underline the main words in the passage and use them to identify the suitable paragraph from the
passage.

Choose Answer from Options Grammatically
When you are given options out of which you have to find the right one, checking out the sentences
grammatically will work well in IELTS reading summary completion questions. For example, you may
see that a noun would fit in the blank and hence you can ignore verb, adjective etc. from the options.
Similarly, if you think that answer should be a plural word, you can ignore all the singular words in the
options box. Many a times, it is found that summary completion question is in the form of passive
voice sentences while reading passage is in active voice. Hence, in this case, you may need to change
form of verb in the answer according to the question statement.

Shortlist Options and Choose Closest Option
Out of the given options, you should always first try to shortlist options by understanding the question
as well as the appropriate paragraph in the IELTS reading passage. Let’s say, from 10 options, you have
chosen 2 as the likely answers. Then, again reread the paragraph as well as the question to finally
choose the one, out of the shortlisted two, which you believe to be closer to the blank in the question.
For instance, if you believe option 1 seems to be 60% as your answer while option 2 seems to be 40%
as your answer, you should go with option 1 with more probability of being your answer.

Answer Follows Order
Lastly, in the summary completion IELTS reading passage, question is in the form of short summary
which is a kind of brief of the passage written in the order of occurrence of information, hence you
will find answers of your questions in the sequence of information given in the passage.

23
Exercise 1
'This Marvellous Invention'
Of all mankind’s manifold creations, language must take pride of place. Other inventions – the wheel,
agriculture, sliced bread – may have transformed our material existence, but the advent of language
is what made us human. Compared to language, all other inventions pale in significance, since
everything we have ever achieved depends on language and originates from it. Without language, we
could never have embarked on our ascent to unparalleled power over all other animals, and even over
nature itself.

But language is foremost not just because it came first. In its own right it is a tool of extraordinary
sophistication, yet based on an idea of ingenious simplicity: ‘this marvellous invention of composing
out of twenty-five or thirty sounds that infinite variety of expressions which, whilst having in
themselves no likeness to what is in our mind, allow us to disclose to others its whole secret, and to
make known to those who cannot penetrate it all that we imagine, and all the various stirrings of our
soul’. This was how, in 1660, the renowned French grammarians of the Port-Royal abbey near
Versailles distilled the essence of language, and no one since has celebrated more eloquently the
magnitude of its achievement. Even so, there is just one flaw in all these hymns of praise, for the
homage to language’s unique accomplishment conceals a simple yet critical incongruity. Language is
mankind’s greatest invention – except, of course, that it was never invented. This apparent paradox is
at the core of our fascination with language, and it holds many of its secrets.

Questions 1 – 4
Complete the summary using the list of words, A-G, below. Write the correct letter, A-G, in boxes 1-4
on your answer she

The importance of language
The wheel is one invention that has had a major impact on 1 ............ aspects of life, but no impact has
been as 2 ............ as that of language. Language is very 3 ............ , yet composed of just a small number
of sounds. Language appears to be 4 ............ to use. However, its sophistication is often overlooked.

A difficult B complex C original D admired
E material F easy G fundamental


Exercise 2
Academic Reading Summary Completion (selecting words from the text)

The instructions accompanying do-it-yourself products are regularly cited as a source of unnecessary
expense or frustration. Few companies seem to test their instructions by having them followed by a
first-time user. Often, essential information is omitted, steps in the construction process are taken for
granted, and some degree of special knowledge is assumed. This is especially worrying in any fields
where failure to follow correct procedures can be dangerous.

Objections to material in plain English have come mainly from the legal profession. Lawyers point to
the risk of ambiguity inherent in the use of everyday language for legal or official documents, and draw
attention to the need for confidence in legal formulations, which can come only from using language
that has been tested in courts over the course of centuries. The campaigners point out that there has
been no sudden increase in litigation as a consequence of the increase in plain English materials.
Similarly, professionals in several different fields have defended their use of technical and complex
language as being the most precise means of expressing technical or complex ideas. This is
undoubtedly true: scientists, doctors, bankers and others need their jargon in order to communicate

24
with each other succinctly and unambiguously. But when it comes to addressing the non-specialist
consumer, the campaigners argue, different criteria must apply.

Questions 1 – 5
Complete the summary below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer. Write your answers in boxes
1-5 on your answer sheet.
Consumers often complain that they experience a feeling of 1 ............ when trying to put together do-
it-yourself products which have not been tested by companies on a 2 ............ . In situations where not
keeping to the correct procedures could affect safety issues, it is especially important that 3 ............
information is not left out and no assumptions are made about a stage being self-evident or the
consumer having a certain amount of 4 ............ .
Lawyers, however, have raised objections to the use of plain English. They feel that it would result in
ambiguity in documents and cause people to lose faith in 5 ............ , as it would mean departing from
language that has been used in the courts for a very long time.


Exercise 3

It is almost impossible to write of the Arts in Australia without mentioning the building that fist put
the country firmly on the world cultural map – the Sydney Opera House. Completed in 1973 after 14
years of much heated discussion and at a cost of almost £60 million, it is not only the most well-known
Australian building in the world but perhaps the most famous design of any modern building
anywhere. Its distinctive and highly original shape has been likened to everything from the sails of a
sailing ship to broken eggshells, but few would argue with the claim that the Opera House is a major
contribution to world architecture. Set amidst the graceful splendour of Sydney Harbour, presiding
like a queen over the bustle and brashness of a modern city striving to forge a financial reputation in
a tough commercial world, it is a reminder to all Australians of their deep and abiding love of all things
cultural.

The Opera House was designed not by an Australian but by a celebrated Danish architect. Jorn Utzon,
whose design won an international competition in the late 1950s. However, it was not, in fact,
completed to his original specifications. Plans for much of the intended interior design of the building
have only recently been discovered. Sadly, the State Government of the day interfered with Utzon’s
plants because of concerns about the escalating cost, thought this was hardly surprising – the building
was originally expected to cost only £5.5 million. Utzon left the country before completing the project
and in a fit or anger vowed never to return. The project was eventually paid for by a State-run lottery.

The size of the interior of the building was scaled down appreciably by a team of architects whose job
it was to finish construction within a restricted budget. Rehearsal rooms and other facilities for the
various theatres within the complex were either made considerably smaller or cut out altogether, and
some artists have complained bitterly about them ever since. But despite the controversy that
surrounded its birth, the Opera House has risen above the petty squabbling and is now rightfully hailed
as a modern architectural masterpiece. The Queen officially opened the building in 1975 and since
then, within its curved and twisted walls, audiences of all nationalities have been quick to acclaim the
many world-class performances of stars from the Australian opera, ballet and theatre.
GAPFILL: The following is a summary of the passage in Exercise 2. Choose word from the box below
and refer to the passage to fill the gaps:

25
The Sydney Opera House is one of the most famous (1) .................. building in the world. Officially
opened in (2) ................ its eye-catching and (3) ........................ shape was the dream of a Danish (4)
................... called Utzon. Unfortunately, his design for the (5) ............................ could not be
completed for financial reasons. Nonetheless, the building was finally ready after (6) ......................
years of (7).......................... and argument and is now (8) ......................... as a (9) ........................... of
modern architecture. World-class performances are regularly given in the Opera House by Australian
(10) ........................ from worlds of opera, ballet and theatre.

Architecture 1973 famous queen controversy
£5.5 million interior artists modern hail
acclaimed exterior originally 14 petty
architect 1975 rehearsals masterpiece distinctive
star curve £60 million the 1950s

26
 UNDERSTANDING MATCHING

MATCHING HEADINGS
This article will help you match headings more effectively in the IELTS reading test.
In the IELTS reading test you may be asked to match headings to sections of text. This type of question
tests your ability to understand the main idea of each paragraph.

Headings are short sentences that summarise the information in a paragraph. You have to pick the
one that best summarises the information in a paragraph.

You will be given between 5 and 7 headings and asked to match each paragraph in the reading text to
one heading. There are always more headings than paragraphs. In this post we will look at:
1. Common problems
2. Tips
3. Strategy
4. Practice

Common Problems
1. Below is a list of common problems my students tend to have. Have you experienced any of these
problems?
2. Later in the post we will look at tips to overcome these problems and a strategy for answering this
kind of reading question.
3. There is too much information to get through and not enough time.
4. Trying to match a word or words from the headings to a word in the text.
5. Some of the headings may appear to have the same meaning.
6. Some students only read the first sentence of each paragraph and do not understand the main idea
of the paragraph.
7. Spending too much time on one paragraph or heading.
8. Answers are not in the same order as the text.

Tips and Solutions
1. Do this question first. By doing this you will be able to get the general meaning of the text as a whole
and this will help you with the rest of the question that requires you to take a more detailed look at
the text.
2. You are not expected to read every word of the text. This will take too long and you don’t have time
for this. In this kind of question you are only expected to understand the main idea of each paragraph.
A good way to do this is to read the first one or two sentences and the last sentence of the paragraphs.
You can also briefly look at the rest of the paragraph but you don’t have to read every word.
3. If there are words you don’t understand, don’t worry about this. Again, you should only worry about
the general meaning of the paragraph as a whole, not individual words. Even native speakers will fail
to understand every word in the IELTS reading test.
4. Be aware of synonyms. Many students look for words that match exactly with words in the text and
ignore synonyms. For example, a keyword in the heading might be ‘Beautiful’, however the word
you’re looking for could be many different synonyms of ‘beautiful’ like ‘attractive’, ‘pretty’, ‘lovely’ or
‘stunning’.
5. If there are two or three headings that are similar, write them beside the paragraph and try to find
out the difference between the two headings. What are the keywords? How does this change the
meaning? Which one matches the paragraph best?
6. If you still can’t decide which one suits best, move on and come back to it later. The answer will
normally be easier to find after you have matched some more headings.
7. Ignore anything you already know about the topic. You are being tested on the text only.

27
8. Don’t read too quickly. Some teachers advise that students should just ‘skim’ the text because you
don’t have much time. In my experience, this leads to students not understanding most of the text
and making mistakes. It is better to do this a little slower and actually understand what is in front of
you.
9. Don’t panic if you know nothing about the general topic of the reading text. The IELTS reading test
is not a knowledge test and you are not expected to have prior knowledge of the topic.
10. Don’t look at the headings first. This will automatically make you look for specific words in the text
rather than the main idea. Remember it is your ability to find the main idea that is being tested, not
your ability to find specific information. Instead of reading the headings first, ignore them and get the
general meaning of each paragraph first by reading the first and last sentences.

Strategy
1. If this type of question is on the test, do it first.
2. Don’t look at the headings.
3. Read the first one or two sentences and the last sentence of each paragraph to understand the
general meaning of the paragraph. Don’t worry about highlighting keywords in the test. Try to sum up
the general meaning of each paragraph in one or two words.
4. Look at the headings and identify keywords within each heading.
5. Match any headings that are very obvious and you are sure about.
6. For the others, write 2 or 3 headings beside the paragraph. Identify the difference between each of
the headings. Establish if there are any synonyms in the paragraph to keywords in the headings.
7. If you still can’t pick one, move one. The answer will often reveal itself later.
8. Repeat until finished.

Practice
Let look at an example question. Below are two paragraphs from an article called ‘Trees in Trouble-
What is causing the decline of the World’s giant forests?’

Match the two paragraphs with one of the following three headings:
1. How wildlife benefits from big trees
2. Factors that enable trees to grow to significant heights
3. How other plants can cause harm

‘Trees in Trouble- What is causing the decline of the World’s giant forests?’

Paragraph 1 - Big trees are incredibly important ecologically. For a start, they sustain countless other
species. They provide shelter for many animals, and their trunks and branches can become gardens,
hung with green ferns, orchids and bromeliads, coated with mosses and draped with vines. With their
tall canopies basking in the sun, they capture vast amounts of energy. This allows them to sustain
much of the animal life in the forest.

Paragraph 2 - Only a small number of tree species have the genetic capacity to grow really big. The
mightiest are native to Northern America, but big trees grow all over the globe, from the tropics to
the boreal forests of the high latitudes. To achieve giant stature, a tree needs three things: the right
place to establish its seedling, good growing conditions and lots of time with low adult mortality.
Disrupt any of these, and you can lose your biggest trees.

If you look at the above paragraphs you will see that they are full of difficult words like ‘bromeliads’,
‘basking’ and ‘stature’. If you try to read and understand every word you will get nowhere.
Instead we just look at the first and the last sentences and with some highlighting of keywords and an
awareness of synonyms it is apparent that the answers are:

28

Paragraph 1- How wildlife benefits from big trees
Paragraph 2- Factors that enable tree to grow to significant heights

Exercise 1
Simplicity reigns at London's biggest design festival.

(A) With upwards of 300 product launches, installations and exhibitions, London's annual nine-day
design festival is a showcase of head-spinning choice. In many ways that's the beauty of the
extravaganza, everyone has a different experience and takes something unique away from it. There
were however some intriguing themes and trends in this year's edition that spoke to larger social or
cultural preoccupations.


(B) One was the launch of two consumer electronics products designed to simplify and beautify our
technology-addled lives. Both chose the new London Design Festival venue of Somerset House to
show their wares. The first was a mobile phone launched by Swiss company Punkt and designed by
Jasper Morrison that allows users to make calls and texts only (well, it has an alarm clock and an
address book too). Punkt founder Petter Neby doesn't believe it will replace your smart phone but
suggests users fit it with the same SIM card as your main phone and use it in the evenings, weekends
and on holiday.


(C) The other electronics launch came from the unlikely French sibling duo of the Bouroullec brothers.
Though tech companies like Samsung are usually prescriptive about their products the Bouroullecs
(who admitted they found most TVs sad and ugly) seem to have been given free rein. Their new
television for the mega Korean brand looks more like an item of furniture than an ultra-large and ultra-
slim piece of tech. More importantly, it comes with simplified on-screen interaction and a 'curtain
mode' that turns your screen into a shimmering pattern during ads or half-time. Again, their focus was
on dialing down digital insanity.


(D) Customizable online furniture was also very much in vogue at this year's festival. But rest assured,
weird and unreliable software or off-the-wall designs sent to a 3D printer somewhere and arriving
months later, seem to be a thing of the past. Customization may finally have come of age. Two
examples were Scandi-brand Hem that combinded good design by the likes of Luca Nichetto, Form Us
With Love and Sylvain Willenz with affordable price points. The fact that the brand opened a pop-up
store in Covent Garden during the festival is a recognition of the importance of both physical and
online spaces that work seamlessly together.


(E) Another online configurable brand to make its debut after years in development was Warsaw-
based Tylko. Like Hem, Tylko has spent time and money on very powerful and easy-to-use software,
but with only three designs - a table, a shelf and salt and pepper mills - it has a way to go. Its augmented
reality app is simple to use however and its table has been developed with a nano-coating option that
really does appear to keep pesky stains at bay. Craft and 'making' in all its forms was once again a big
hit and nowhere more so than at TENT, the East London design event that gets better every year.


(F) A definite highlight was the massive space taken over by the Design & Crafts Council of Ireland and
filled with weavers and potters doing their thing and showing their wares. Irish Design had another

29
delectable stand over at the Rochelle School in East London too. The Souvenir Project was a series of
nine non-cliché 'souvenirs' made in Ireland and included a rainbow plate by Nicholas Mosse Pottery
that featured rows of animals, flowers and watering cans and commemorated the legalization of
same-sex marriage in Ireland in May 2015.


(G) If there was one material that could be said to define the festival it might just be Jesmonite, the
wonder man-made building composite. Lighter and more sustainable than concrete, its dramatic
capabilities were brought to life by London-based design studio PINCH and their tour-de-force limited
edition Nim table and Swedish artist Hilda Hellström's giant colorful volcano made for the restaurant
in London's Ace Hotel. A show called Matter of Stuff near Covent Garden was in on the jesmonite act
too, but even more intriguingly was presenting vases made out of Propolis, a resinous material
collected by bees and used to seal gaps in hives that, according to their designer Marlene Huissoud,
behaves like glass.


(H) Finally, this was the year that Chinese Design finally displayed a well-edited and inspired showcase
of products. Despite the mouthful of a title, Icon Presents: Hi Design Shanghai stand at 100% Design
was a meaningful selection of designers exploring materials and ideas. Young design duo Yuue's
offerings were the most representative of a new conceptual approach to design that seems to be
emerging. Their lamps were functional but also thought-provoking and humorous. What more could
one want from the stuff that surrounds us?

Questions 1-8

The text has eight paragraphs A-H. Which paragraph contains the following information? Write the
correct letter, A-H, in boxes 1-8 on your answer sheet.

1. Examples of customization
2. Unusual keepsakes
3. A new approach
4. A simple cell phone
5. Unbelievable material
6. A strange TV
7. Number of products shown on the festival
8. Three designs of a software

Exercise 2
Match Headings Questions 1-5
The reading passage has five paragraphs, A-E.
Choose the correct heading for paragraphs A-E from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, i-x, in boxes 1-5.

30
1 Paragraph A

2 Paragraph B

3 Paragraph C

4 Paragraph D

5 Paragraph E

A
Despite its bad reputation, stress historically had a vital role to play. Commonly referred to as the
‘fight or flight’ mode, the sudden release of stress hormones like adrenalin and cortisol causes the
heart to beat faster, airways to dilate and blood vessels to open up, all of which push the body towards
optimal performance and, ultimately, survival. In the rest of the animal kingdom, this is still often the
difference between life and death. As he springs off to freedom, the lucky gazelle who escapes the
lion can thank this primal evolutionary response.

B
In ordinary modern life, although we’re in little danger of being stalked by wild beasts down city
streets, our bodies react to stress in the same ways. Experiencing anxiety, fear and stress is considered
a normal part of life when it is occasional and temporary, such as feeling anxious and stressed before
an exam or a job interview. It is when these acute reactions are prolonged or cannot be switched off,
however, that serious physical, social and cognitive issues can result. In contrast to the normal
everyday stress of modern life, chronic stress is a pathological state which can significantly interfere
with daily living activities such as work, school and relationships, wreaking havoc on the body’s
immune, metabolic and cardiovascular systems.

C
Of major concern is the impact on the brain. Researchers have found that the hippocampus, the
control centre of memory and our ability to learn, can physically shrink in response to prolonged
release of stress hormones like cortisol which result from chronic stress. Neurons in this area do not
just get smaller, but actually die, which weakens the neural connections, affecting the way memories
are organised and stored in the brain. A chronically stressed person would recognise this as a ‘brain
fog’, and it also has ramifications for other areas such as creativity and adaptability.

D
While this part of the brain gets smaller, another area, the amygdala, which is involved in processing
emotions, can grow with chronic stress. Across species, a larger amygdala has been found to correlate
with aggression and this, coupled with the weakened connection to the prefrontal cortex, the brain’s
decision-making centre, can profoundly impact mood and behaviour. With the link between emotions
and decision-making compromised, a person is much less able to stop and reflect, becoming instead
reactive and short-fused. Think of the difference between being able to tolerate a screaming child and
instead giving in to the desire to scream back.

E
In the past, it was accepted that there was a limited number of neurons in the brain and as they died
off as a result of ageing, stress or substance abuse, for instance, they were lost forever. It turns out,
however, that this is not the case and that stem cells within the brain are actually able to create new
neurons. In other words, lost neurons can be replaced. What makes this discovery even more powerful
is the fact that replenishing neurons is rather straightforward. One of the most powerful stimulants

31
for neuron growth is physical activity. So, in addition to its role in the reduction of stress hormones in
the first place, and its ability to stimulate the release of endorphins, exercise has now been shown to
contribute to the repair of the chronically stressed brain.


Exercise 3
Libraries
A. The earliest libraries that we know about were different from present-day libraries, as their
contents were mainly government records. Archaeological findings from ancient cities of Sumer
revealed temple rooms full of records of commercial transactions, or inventories. Things were much
the same in the government records of Ancient Egypt. The earliest private or personal libraries
containing both non-fiction and fiction books appeared in classical Greece.


B. Library materials such as books, articles, and CDs are usually arranged in a certain order, according
to a library classification system, so that you can find particular items quickly. In addition to public
areas, some libraries have additional rooms where reference materials are stored. Often a
professional librarian works from a reference desk or other central location, to help users find what
they are looking for.

C. Many visitors to libraries do not know how to use the library effectively. This can be because they
are shy and embarrassed to ask questions, or because they are not used to libraries. These problems
were behind the library instruction movement in the US., which encourages library-user education. In
fact, library instruction has been practised in the U.S. since the 19th century.

D. Managing a library involves tasks such as planning what new books to buy, designing classification
systems, preserving materials (especially rare and fragile manuscripts) and developing library
computer systems. Long-term tasks include planning library extensions and developing community
services such as adult literacy programs.

E. In North America, among other countries, libraries in poor communities are relatively expensive to
run, but arguably less important to the community than essential services, such as police, firefighters,
school, and health care. At any rate, many communities are beginning to feel they have no option but
to close down, or reduce their library services to balance their budgets.


Questions 1-5

Match paragraphs A-E above with the headings i-vii. Some headings may not be used.

32
1. Paragraph A .................

2. Paragraph B .................

3. Paragraph C .................

4. Paragraph D .................


Exercise 4
LESSONS FROM THE TITANIC

A From the comfort of our modern lives we tend to look back at the turn of the twentieth century as
a dangerous time for sea travellers. With limited communication facilities, and shipping technology
still in its infancy in the early nineteen hundreds, we consider ocean travel to have been a risky
business. But to the people of the time it was one of the safest forms of transport. At the time of the
Titanic’s maiden voyage in 1912, there had only been four lives lost in the previous forty years on
passenger ships on the North Atlantic crossing. And the Titanic was confidently proclaimed to be
unsinkable. She represented the pinnacle of technological advance at the time. Her builders, crew and
passengers had no doubt that she was the finest ship ever built. But still she did sink on April 14, 1912,
taking 1,517 of her passengers and crew with her.

B The RMS Titanic left Southampton for New York on April 10, 1912. On board were some of the richest
and most famous people of the time who had paid large sums of money to sail on the first voyage of
the most luxurious ship in the world. Imagine her placed on her end: she was larger at 269 metres
than many of the tallest buildings of the day. And with nine decks, she was as high as an eleven storey
building. The Titanic carried 329 first class, 285 second class and 710 third class passengers with 899
crew members, under the care of the very experienced Captain Edward J. Smith. She also carried
enough food to feed a small town, including 40,000 fresh eggs, 36,000 apples, 111,000 lbs of fresh
meat and 2,200 lbs of coffee for the five day journey.

C RMS Titanic was believed to be unsinkable because the hull was divided into sixteen watertight
compartments. Even if two of these compartments flooded, the ship could still float. The ship’s owners
could not imagine that, in the case of an accident, the Titanic would not be able to float until she was
rescued. It was largely as a result of this confidence in the ship and in the safety of ocean travel that
the disaster could claim such a great loss of life.

D In the ten hours prior to the Titanic’s fatal collision with an iceberg at 11.40pm, six warnings of
icebergs in her path were received by the Titanic’s wireless operators. Only one of these messages
was formally posted on the bridge; the others were in various locations across the ship. If the
combined information in these messages of iceberg positions had been plotted, the ice field which lay
across the Titanic’s path would have been apparent. Instead, the lack of formal procedures for dealing
with information from a relatively new piece of technology, the wireless, meant that the danger was
not known until too late. This was not the fault of the Titanic crew. Procedures for dealing with
warnings received through the wireless had not been formalised across the shipping industry at the
time. The fact that the wireless operators were not even Titanic crew, but rather contracted workers
from a wireless company, made their role in the ship’s operation quite unclear.

E Captain Smith’s seemingly casual attitude in increasing the speed on this day to a dangerous 22 knots
or 41 kilometres per hour, can then be partly explained by his ignorance of what lay ahead. But this
only partly accounts for his actions, since the spring weather in Greenland was known to cause huge

33
chunks of ice to break off from the glaciers. Captain Smith knew that these icebergs would float
southward and had already acknowledged this danger by taking a more southerly route than at other
times of the year. So why was the Titanic travelling at high speed when he knew, if not of the specific
risk, at least of the general risk of icebergs in her path? As with the lack of coordination of the wireless
messages, it was simply standard operating procedure at the time. Captain Smith was following the
practices accepted on the North Atlantic, practices which had coincided with forty years of safe travel.
He believed, wrongly as we now know, that the ship could turn or stop in time if an iceberg was sighted
by the lookouts.

F There were around two and a half hours between the time the Titanic rammed into the iceberg and
its final submersion. In this time 705 people were loaded into the twenty lifeboats. There were 473
empty seats available on lifeboats while over 1,500 people drowned. These figures raise two
important issues. Firstly, why there were not enough lifeboats to seat every passenger and crew
member on board. And secondly, why the lifeboats were not full.

G The Titanic had sixteen lifeboats and four collapsible boats which could carry just over half the
number of people on board her maiden voyage and only a third of the Titanic’s total capacity.
Regulations for the number of lifeboats required were based on outdated British Board of Trade
regulations written in 1894 for ships a quarter of the Titanic’s size, and had never been revised. Under
these requirements, the Titanic was only obliged to carry enough lifeboats to seat 962 people. At
design meetings in 1910, the shipyard’s managing director, Alexander Carlisle, had proposed that forty
eight lifeboats be installed on the Titanic, but the idea had been quickly rejected as too expensive.
Discussion then turned to the ship’s décor, and as Carlisle later described the incident … ’we spent
two hours discussing carpet for the first class cabins and fifteen minutes discussing lifeboats’.

H The belief that the Titanic was unsinkable was so strong that passengers and crew alike clung to the
belief even as she was actually sinking. This attitude was not helped by Captain Smith, who had not
acquainted his senior officers with the full situation. For the first hour after the collision, the majority
of people aboard the Titanic, including senior crew, were not aware that she would sink, that there
were insufficient lifeboats or that the nearest ship responding to the Titanic’s distress calls would
arrive two hours after she was on the bottom of the ocean. As a result, the officers in charge of loading
the boats received a very halfhearted response to their early calls for women and children to board
the lifeboats. People felt that they would be safer, and certainly warmer, aboard the Titanic than
perched in a little boat in the North Atlantic Ocean. Not realising the magnitude of the impending
disaster themselves, the officers allowed several boats to be lowered only half full.

I Procedures again were at fault, as an additional reason for the officers’ reluctance to lower the
lifeboats at full capacity was that they feared the lifeboats would buckle under the weight of 65
people. They had not been informed that the lifeboats had been fully tested prior to departure. Such
procedures as assigning passengers and crew to lifeboats and lifeboat loading drills were simply not
part of the standard operation of ships nor were they included in crew training at this time.

J As the Titanic sank, another ship, believed to have been the Californian, was seen motionless less
than twenty miles away. The ship failed to respond to the Titanic’s eight distress rockets. Although the
officers of the Californian tried to signal the Titanic with their flashing Morse lamp, they did not wake
up their radio operator to listen for a distress call. At this time, communication at sea through wireless
was new and the benefits not well appreciated, so the wireless on ships was often not operated
around the clock. In the case of the Californian, the wireless operator slept unaware while 1,500
Titanic passengers and crew drowned only a few miles away.

34
K After the Titanic sank, investigations were held in both Washington and London. In the end, both
inquiries decided that no one could be blamed for the sinking. However, they did address the
fundamental safety issues which had contributed to the enormous loss of life. As a result, international
agreements were drawn up to improve safety procedures at sea. The new regulations covered 24 hour
wireless operation, crew training, proper lifeboat drills, lifeboat capacity for all on board and the
creation of an international ice patrol.

LIST OF HEADINGS

1 Ignorance of the impending disaster
2 Captain’s orders ignored
3 Captain’s over-confidence
4 Rough sea conditions
5 Faulty design
6 Iceberg locations not plotted
7 Low priority placed on safety
8 Number of lifeboats adequate
9 Inadequate training
10 Ice warnings ignored

Match these paragraphs of ‘Lesson From The Titanic’ with headings above.

1) Paragraph D
2) Paragraph E
3) Paragraph G
4) Paragraph H
5) Paragraph I

35
MATCHING INFORMATION
In this kind of question, you are asked to match statements to paragraphs in the reading text. Click
here for an example.

The statements could be reasons, descriptions, summaries, definitions, facts or explanations. What
they are doesn’t really matter. You are not expected to have specialist knowledge in the reading test.

You do not need to understand what the whole paragraph is about, just find specific information in
the paragraph and match it to one of the statements. The answer will normally be contained in a
whole phrase or sentence, rather than a single word.

Tips

v Do this question last. If you do other questions first, you will become familiar with the passage
and this will help you identify the correct information more quickly and easily.
v Try to find names, place names and numbers in the questions. These are often easier to find
in the text.
v Be aware that there may be synonyms. For example, you might see ‘34%‘ in the question but
it might say ‘just over a third‘ or ‘about a third‘ in the text.



Strategy
v This is my suggested strategy. There are many different strategies and you should use the one
you feel comfortable with. You can also adapt this strategy to what suits you.
v Read the instructions carefully.
v Read the questions first. Think about synonyms and how you could paraphrase the
statements. This will help you identify the answer. Saying each statement in your own words
can help do this.
v Quickly skim the reading text to try to understand the general meaning of the text.
v Read the question statements again and predict which paragraph contains the answer.
v Scan the text paragraphs you think might contain the answer for synonyms. If you find a
possible answer underline it.
v Check back with the question statement and mark the answer if correct. If not, move on to
other paragraphs

Exercise 1
It is almost impossible to write of the Arts in Australia without mentioning the building that fist put
the country firmly on the world cultural map – the Sydney Opera House. Completed in 1973 after 14
years of much heated discussion and at a cost of almost £60 million, it is not only the most well-known
Australian building in the world but perhaps the most famous design of any modern building
anywhere. Its distinctive and highly original shape has been likened to everything from the sails of a
sailing ship to broken eggshells, but few would argue with the claim that the Opera House is a major
contribution to world architecture. Set amidst the graceful splendour of Sydney Harbour, presiding
like a queen over the bustle and brashness of a modern city striving to forge a financial reputation in
a tough commercial world, it is a reminder to all Australians of their deep and abiding love of all things
cultural.

The Opera House was designed not by an Australian but by a celebrated Danish architect. Jorn Utzon,
whose design won an international competition in the late 1950s. However, it was not, in fact,
completed to his original specifications. Plans for much of the intended interior design of the building

36
have only recently been discovered. Sadly, the State Government of the day interfered with Utzon’s
plants because of concerns about the escalating cost, thought this was hardly surprising – the building
was originally expected to cost only £5.5 million. Utzon left the country before completing the project
and in a fit or anger vowed never to return. The project was eventually paid for by a State-run lottery.

The size of the interior of the building was scaled down appreciably by a team of architects whose job
it was to finish construction within a restricted budget. Rehearsal rooms and other facilities for the
various theatres within the complex were either made considerably smaller or cut out altogether, and
some artists have complained bitterly about them ever since. But despite the controversy that
surrounded its birth, the Opera House has risen above the petty squabbling and is now rightfully hailed
as a modern architectural masterpiece. The Queen officially opened the building in 1975 and since
then, within its curved and twisted walls, audiences of all nationalities have been quick to acclaim the
many world-class performances of stars from the Australian opera, ballet and theatre.

MATCHING SENTENCE HALVES: Refer to the text in above and match the halves of the given sentences
together

a. The Sydney Opera House … + …………………….
b. The city of Sydney is … + …………………….
c. Plans for the interior of the building … + …………………….
d. The interior of the building was unfortunately never … + …………………….
e. It seems that some artists are only … + …………………….
f. The cost of the project … + …………………….

g. … interesting to audiences from all over the world.
h. … have recently been implemented.
i. … built like a queen on Sydney Harbour.
j. … completed by Jorn Utzon.
k. … was the most well-known building in Australia.
l. … was not completed in accordance with the architect’s original plans.
m. … described as trying hard to survive in the business world.
n. … were lost for many years.
o. … interested in complaining about the facilities.
p. … was eventually met from the proceeds of gambling

37

Exercise 2
Please match the sentences with the names that given by information

38
Questions 1–4

Look at the following ideas (Questions 1–4) and the list of researchers below.
Match each idea with the correct researcher, A, B, C or D.
Write the correct letter, A, B C or D, in the boxes 1–4 on your answer sheet.
1 the importance of yoga in decreasing the main hormone linked to stress
2 the advantage of yoga compared to relaxation in decreasing stress and anxiety
3 the significance of yoga in relation to existing cases of heart disease
4 the connection between practicing yoga and improvements in the circulatory system

List of Researchers
A Caroline Smith
B Jayadeva Yogendra
C Andreas Michalsen
D Vijay Bharshankar

39
 UNDERSTANDING TRUE, FALSE, NOT GIVEN (YES, NO, NOT GIVEN)

T RUE-FALSE-NOT GIVEN QUESTIONS
True, False, Not Given questions require you to identify if information in a text is true or not.
You will be given a number of factual statements and you have to check in the text if they are
true or not. This is probably the most difficult question on the reading paper. This post will:
• look at example questions
• discuss common problems
• define ‘True’, ‘False’ and ‘Not Given’
• give you tips and advice
• provide you with a strategy to use on exam day

In this article when I refer to ‘statements’ I am talking about the questions, not the text in the
main reading article.

EXAMPLE TRUE, FALSE, NOT GIVEN QUESTION
As you can see above, you will be given a number of factual statements and asked to look at
the text and decide if the statement is true, false or not given.

COMMON PROBLEMS
The biggest problem here is the ‘not given’ option. Most students are not used to answering
questions like this and it causes them lots of problems because they are not sure what to look
for. They also spend too much time making sure that it is ‘not given’ and this affects the rest
of their test.
Students also fail to understand exactly what each statement means and therefore cannot
identify if it is true or false. Many focus on keywords instead of understanding what the
statement as a whole means.
Another common mistake is identifying keywords in the statements and then trying to find
words that exactly match them in the text. You can do this, but more often the words will be
synonyms.
Finally, some students fail to understand exactly what true, false and not given actually mean
and get confused. Now let’s look at solving these common problems.

WHAT DO TRUE , FALSE AND NOT GIVEN MEAN?
The most important thing to remember is what the words ‘true’, ‘false’ and ‘not given’
actually mean and therefore what IELTS wants you to write.
• If the text agrees with or confirms the information in the statement, the answer is TRUE
• If the text contradicts or is the opposite to the information in the statement, the answer is
FALSE
• If there is no information or it is impossible to know, the answer is NOT GIVEN

True means that the meaning is the same. It is just similar then it is FALSE. Remember that we
are dealing with factual information so there is no room to say it is similar or nearly the same.
Lots of students have argued with me during practice and said the statement is true because
it ‘kind of’ means the same. There is no ‘kind of’ with these questions, only facts.

40
Very important- Just because an answer is NOT GIVEN does not mean there are no words in
the statements that match words in the text. This is something that confuses people, if words
match then it must be TRUE or FALSE, right? Not really. This is not a good way to think about
these questions because there probably will be matching words for NOT GIVEN answers, they
just don’t have enough information to answer the question as a whole.

Top 10 Tips
1. Ignore anything you already know about the topic and don’t make assumptions. Base your
answers on the text only.
2. Identify any words that qualify the statement, for example some, all, mainly, often, always
and occasionally. These words are there to test if you have read the whole statement because
they can change the meaning. For example, ‘Coca-Cola has always made its drinks in the
U.S.A.’ has a different meaning from ‘Coca-Cola has mainly made its drinks in the U.S.A.’
3. Be careful when you see verbs that qualify statements, such as suggest, claim, believe and
know. For example, ‘The man claimed he was a British citizen,’ and ‘The man is a British
citizen’ mean two different things.
4. There will be at least one of all three answers. If you don’t have at least one ‘true’, ‘false’
or ‘not given’ you have at least one answer wrong.
5. Don’t skim and scan the text to find the final answer. You will have to read the appropriate
part of the text very carefully in order to understand what the author means.
6. Don’t look for words that exactly match those in the statements. You should also look for
synonyms. Remember that you are matching meaning, not words.
7. If you can’t find the information you are looking for, then it is probably ‘not given’. Don’t
waste time looking for something that is not there.
8. If you have no idea what the answer is put ‘not given’. You probably have no idea because
the answer is not there.
9. Answers are in the same order they appear in the text. Do not waste time going back. Keep
on reading.
10. YES/NO/NOT GIVEN questions are slightly different because they deal with opinion.
TRUE/FALSE/NOT GIVEN questions deal with facts.

TRUE, FALSE, NOT GIVEN STRATEGY

This is my suggested strategy. There are many different strategies and you should use the one
you feel comfortable with. You can also adapt this strategy to what suits you.
1. Always read the instructions carefully and make sure you know if it is a TRUE/FALSE/NOT
GIVEN or YES/NO/NOT GIVEN question.
2. Read all the statements carefully, trying to understand what the whole sentence means
rather than simply highlighting keywords. Watch out for qualifying words such as some or
always.
3. Try to think of what synonyms might be in the text. This will help you identify the matching
part of the text.
4. Match the statement with the correct part of the text.
5. Focus on the statement again and then carefully read the matching part of the text to
establish if it is true or false. Remember the meaning should exactly match that of the
statement if it is true.

41
6. Underline the words that give you the answer, this will help you focus and you can check
back later. Again, be careful there are no qualifying words in the text.
7. If you can’t find the answer, mark it as ‘not given’ and move on to the next question.
8. If you are really unsure or can’t find the answer, mark it as ‘not given’.

PRACTICE 1:
Look at this statement, taken from the first sentence in the reading below:
Chiles originate in South America and have been eaten for at least 9,500 years.

Here are some example IELTS True False Not Given statements with answers:
1. Chiles come from South America – True
2. People began eating Chiles in the last few centuries – False
3. South Americans were the first people to start eating Chiles – Not Given


Exercise 1
C H I L I E S
Chilies originate in South America and have been eaten for at least 9,500 years. Organised
cultivation began around 5,400 BC. Christopher Columbus was the first European to
encounter chilies, when he landed on the island of Hispaniola in 1492. He thought it was a
type of pepper and called it the “red pepper”, a name still used today. After their introduction
to Europe they were an immediate sensation and were quickly incorporated into the diet.
From there they spread to Africa, India and East Asia.

The reason for the chili’s “hotness” lies in a chemical called Capsaisin. Capsaisin causes
temporary irritation to the trigeminal cells, which are the pain receptors in the mouth, nose
and throat. After the pain messages are transmitted to the brain, endorphins, natural pain
killers, are released and these not only kill the pain but give the chili eater a short lived natural
high. Other side effects include: an increased heart rate, a running nose and increased
salivation and sweating, which can have a cooling effect in hot climates.
The reason for the presence of Capsaisin is thought to be to deter animals from eating the
fruit. Only mammals feel the burning effects; birds feel nothing. As birds are a better method
of distributing the seeds, which pass intact through their guts, Capsaisin would seem to be a
result of natural selection.

The smaller chilies tend to be the hottest. This may reflect the fact that they tend to grow
closer to the ground and are therefore more vulnerable to animals. The heat of a chili is
measured on the Scoville scale. The hottest types such as the Habenero and the Scotch
Bonnet rate between 100,000 and 300,000, the world famous Tabasco sauce Ò rates at
15,000 to 30,000, about the same as the Thai prik khee nu, while the popular Jalapeno is
between 5,000 and 15,000. Powdered chili is 500 to 1,000 and the mild capsicins and paprikas
can range between 100 and 0.

42
Read the following questions and decide whether the statements are true, false or not given.

Question 1: Chilies became popular as soon as they were brought into Europe
Question 2: Capsaisin causes significant damage to the mouth.
Question 3: Chilies can be part of a birds diet.
Question 4: All large chilies grow high off the ground.
Question 5: People breed chilies for their heat.

Exercise 2
It is almost impossible to write of the Arts in Australia without mentioning the building that
fist put the country firmly on the world cultural map – the Sydney Opera House. Completed
in 1973 after 14 years of much heated discussion and at a cost of almost £60 million, it is not
only the most well-known Australian building in the world but perhaps the most famous
design of any modern building anywhere. Its distinctive and highly original shape has been
likened to everything from the sails of a sailing ship to broken eggshells, but few would argue
with the claim that the Opera House is a major contribution to world architecture. Set amidst
the graceful splendour of Sydney Harbour, presiding like a queen over the bustle and
brashness of a modern city striving to forge a financial reputation in a tough commercial
world, it is a reminder to all Australians of their deep and abiding love of all things cultural.
The Opera House was designed not by an Australian but by a celebrated Danish architect. Jorn
Utzon, whose design won an international competition in the late 1950s. However, it was not,
in fact, completed to his original specifications. Plans for much of the intended interior design
of the building have only recently been discovered. Sadly, the State Government of the day
interfered with Utzon’s plants because of concerns about the escalating cost, thought this
was hardly surprising – the building was originally expected to cost only £5.5 million. Utzon
left the country before completing the project and in a fit or anger vowed never to return.
The project was eventually paid for by a State-run lottery.

The size of the interior of the building was scaled down appreciably by a team of architects
whose job it was to finish construction within a restricted budget. Rehearsal rooms and other
facilities for the various theatres within the complex were either made considerably smaller
or cut out altogether, and some artists have complained bitterly about them ever since. But
despite the controversy that surrounded its birth, the Opera House has risen above the petty
squabbling and is now rightfully hailed as a modern architectural masterpiece. The Queen
officially opened the building in 1975 and since then, within its curved and twisted walls,
audiences of all nationalities have been quick to acclaim the many world-class performances
of stars from the Australian opera, ballet and theatre.

TRUE / FALSE / NOT GIVEN: Refer to the text above and decide whether the statements are
true, false or not given.
a. The building is possibly the most famous of its type in the world.
b. The Opera House drew world attention to the Arts in Australia.
c. Utzon designed the roof to look like the sails of a sailing ship.
d. A few people claim that it is a major architectural work.
e. According to the author, Sydney is a quiet and graceful city.
f. The cost of construction went more than £50 million over budget.
g. Utzon never returned to Australia to see the completed building.

43
h. There is only one theatre within the complex.
i. The Government was concerned about some artists’ complaints.
j. Australian artists give better performances in the Opera House.

Exercise 3
When was the last time you saw a frog? Chances are, if you live in a city, you have not seen
one for some time. Even in wet areas since teeming with frogs and toads, it is becoming less
and less easy to find those slimy, hopping and sometimes poisonous members of the animal
kingdom. All over the word, even in remote jungles on the far side of the globe, frogs are
losing the ecological battle for survival, and biologists are at a loss to explain their demise.
Are amphibians simply over-sensitive to changes in the ecosystem? Could their rapid decline
in numbers be signalling some coming environmental disaster for us all?

This frightening scenario is in part the consequence of a dramatic increase over the last
quarter century in the development of once natural areas of we marshland; home not only to
frogs but to all manner of wildlife. Yet, there are no obvious reasons why certain frog species
are disappearing from rainforests in the Southern Hemisphere which are barely touched by
human hand. The mystery is unsettling to say the least, for it is known that amphibian species
are extremely sensitive to environmental variation in temperature and moisture levels. The
dangers is that planet Earth might not only lose a vital link in the ecological food chain (frogs
keep population of otherwise pestilent insects at manageable levels), but we might be
increasing our output of air pollutants to levels that may have already become irreversible.
Frogs could be inadvertently warning us of a catastrophe.

An example of a bizarre occurrence regarding a species of frog dates from the summer of
1995, when 'an explosion' of multi-coloured frogs of the species Rana klepton esculenta
occurred in the Netherlands. Normally these frogs are brown and greenish-brown, but some
unknown contributory factor is turning these frogs yellow and/or orange. Nonetheless, so far,
the unusual bi- and even tri-coloured frogs are functioning similarly to their normal-skinned
contemporaries. It is thought that frogs with lighter coloured skins might be more likely to
survive in an increasingly warm climate due to global warming.

One theory put forward to explain extinct amphibian species that seems to fit the facts
concern the depletion of ozone layer, a well-documented phenomenon which has led to a
sharp increase in ultraviolet radiation levels. The ozone layer is meant to shield the Earth from
UV rays, but increased radiation may be having a greater effect upon frog populations than
previously believed. Another theory is that worldwide temperature increases are upsetting
the breeding cycle of frogs.

TRUE / FALSE / NOT GIVEN: Refer to the text above and decide whether the statements are
true, false or not given.
a. Frogs are disappearing only from city areas.
b. Frogs and toads are usually poisonous.
c. Biologists are unable to explain why frogs are dying.
d. The frogs’ natural habitat is becoming more and more developed.
e. Attempts are being made to halt the development of wet marshland.
f. Frogs are important in the ecosystem because they control pests.

44
g. It is not known why the Netherlands frogs are changing colour.
h. Highly-coloured frogs are an unusual phenomenon in nature.

45
 UNDERSTANDING YES, NO, NOT GIVEN

WRITER’S OPINIONS AND ATTITUDE
In this task type you will be given a number of statements. You will have to decide if these
statements agree with the writer’s views.
YES = if the statement agrees with the writer
NO = if the statement contradicts the writer
NOT GIVEN = if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

To complete this task well you will often need to be able to recognise the writer’s views not
only from what is said directly, but also from what is implied. For example, we do not need
the writer to state directly that he/she disapproves of zoos. We can infer this disapproval if
the writer states his/her disapproval of the following: animals being taken from the wild,
animals being caged, people paying money to see animals, animals not having any privacy.
However, if the writer simply describes the problems with zoos this does not necessarily imply
disapproval.

WHAT IS BEING TESTED IS YOUR ABIL ITY TO :
• identify opinion and attitude
• skim for detailed information
• make inferences

Exercise 1

46


47

UNDERSTANDING MULTIPLE CHOICE
In this lesson we'll learn how to answer multiple choice questions on IELTS Reading. Multiple
choice question asks you to choose the correct answer from 3 or 4 proposed answers. This
type of question looks like this on the question paper:

Answering strategy:
v Read the first question and underline the key words.
v Read the text from the beginning, simultaneously scanning it for the information that
relates to the question.
v Once you found the key words or their synonyms in the text - look for the answer (it
should be somewhere close).
v One you've found the answer, read the next few lines of the text to make sure that it
is correct. Also, reread the question.
v Repeat this strategy with other questions, but now read the text from the place where
you stopped the last time.
v If you prefer another strategy, you can use it too. Remember: there is no 'right'
strategy for answering IELTS Reading questions. In fact, you can try different
answering strategies and figure out which one works the best for you.

Tips:
Ø Scan text for the key words and their synonyms.
Ø Cross out the answers which are obviously wrong. This will help you to identify the
correct answers more quickly.
Ø The order of questions can help you. Answer for question 4 will be between answers
for questions 3 and 5 in the text.
Ø Don't rely on your own knowledge, the correct answer contains ONLY information
stated in the text.

Exercise 1
Is violence innate?
In 1983, archaeologists in southern Germany discovered a mass grave containing 34
skeletons. They included 9 adult males, 7 adult females and 16 children.

All of the skeletons showed signs of fatal trauma, including head wounds. None of them
showed any signs of defensive wounds, suggesting they were killed whilst running away.

The "Talheim Death Pit" dates from the Stone Age, around 7,000 years ago. It offers some
of the oldest evidence of organised group violence between two communities: that is, of war.

Clearly, humans have been fighting wars for thousands of years, and we may not be the
only ones. There is growing evidence that several other species also engage in warfare,
including our closest relatives the chimpanzees.

That suggests we have inherited our predilection for warfare from our ape-like ancestors.
But not everyone agrees that warfare is inbuilt.

48
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
1. What did archaeologists in southern Germany discover?
A. Remains of 34 dead animals
B. Graveyard containing 34 skeletons
C. Relics of early civilization
D. 9 adult males, 7 adult females and 16 children

2. Why did scientists suggested that those people were killed whilst running away?
A. Their skeletons showed signs of fatal trauma
B. There were 16 children
C. During that period organised group violence was very frequent
D. Their skeletons didn't show any signs of defensive wounds

3. Why do human beings fight, according to the article?
A. Because they have been fighting wars for thousands of years
B. Because chimpanzees, who are humans' closest relatives, engage in warfare
C. Because humans inherited predilection for warfare from their ape-like ancestors
D. Because fighting is their inbuilt instinct

4. Which of the following phrases best describes the main aim of the Reading Passage?
A. To describe fighting among different species
B. To intoduce principles of contemporary archaeology and its application
C. To introduce some relics of humans' warfare for further discussion whether violence
is innate or not
D. To suggest ways of interperting humans' violence

Exercise 2
August 1985: The worst month for air disasters
There are many grim landmarks in the history of aviation. One in particular stands out. Three
decades ago, 720 travellers and crew lost their lives on board commercial aircraft in a single
month - more than in any other before or since.

The deaths occurred in four separate accidents in August 1985. Each disaster had quite
different causes. The aircraft involved ranged from a 747 with hundreds on board to a tiny
twin engine turboprop carrying just eight people.

There was Japan Air Lines flight 123, the worst single-aircraft accident in history, in which 520
of 524 on board were killed. A further 137 died when Delta flight 191 flew into heavy winds
as it approached Dallas-Fort Worth International. A fire on board British Airtours flight 28M
at Manchester Airport led to 55 deaths. And all those on board the smallest aircraft, Bar
Harbor Airlines flight 1808, lost their lives as it flew into a small airport in Maine, USA.

Each, in their own way, had a lasting legacy, whether in the memories of those left bereaved
or in changes in technology and procedure introduced as a direct result. The worst death toll
was on Japan Air Lines Flight 123, a Boeing 747, which was en route from Tokyo to Osaka on
12 August 1985 when the airtight bulkhead between its cabin and tail tore open. The change

49
in pressure blew off the vertical stabiliser, or tail fin. It also destroyed the hydraulic systems.
The plane lurched up and down.

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
1. When did the 720 travellers die?
A. Thirteen decades ago.
B. A few decades ago.
C. 30 years ago.
D. There is no information about it.

2. Twin engine turboprop could carry:
A. Eight people.
B. Four people.
C. Two people.
D. Only a pilot.

3. The worst accident in history, according to the paragraph, was:
A. Flight 123.
B. Delta flight 191.
C. British Airtours flight 28M.
D. Bar Harbor Airlines flight 1808.

4. Why did the Japan Air Lines Flight 123 crashed?
A. The change in pressure blew off the vertical stabiliser.
B. Destruction of the hydraulic systems.
C. The airtight bulkhead between its cabin and tail tore open.
D. It is unknown.

Exercise 3
Why does coffee shoot out of the lid of your cup?
You're running late for work and you've purchased your coffee in a hurry. Just as you arrive
at the office, a jet of hot liquid escapes from the tiny hole in the lid, leaving you with hot
beverage residue on your clothes before the day has really started.

TThis is exactly what happened to Rob Kaczmarek after buying a cup of his favourite
caffeinated drink. The marketing director at Convergent Science was intrigued by why the
coffee shoots out so far and therefore set about modelling this, initially as a joke for those
who enjoy a bit of computational fluid dynamics. It's the design of the lid that's the problem,
he explains.

"It happens because of the sloshing of the coffee against the lid, which is kind of unique. At
the end of the lid, the hole is right up above that. As the coffee sloshes against the end of the
lid, that velocity is amplified and it splashes up through the actual hole."

Not all coffee cups are designed with a hole, of course. Some have lids with a tiny hole and
others peel back to reveal a much larger gap, which offsets the shooting jets of hot liquid.

50

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
1. What accident might occur at work in the morning, after you bought coffee?
A. You spill it all over the place accidently.
B. You get burns from the hot coffee.
C. You contaminate your clothes with it.
D. Nothing out of ordinary.

2. Rob Kaczmarek explains to us that:
A. The coffee shoots out very far.
B. He sat his experiment as a joke.
C. He was really intrigued by spilling the coffee.
D. Coffee spils because of the design of the lid.

3. The main reason coffee spils is:
A. Velocity.
B. Sloshing.
C. Design of the cup.
D. It is not stated.

4. This text might be classified as:
A. Scientific.
B. Humorous.
C. Fictional.
D. Romantic.

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 UNDERSTANDING LABELLING DIAGRAM
In this lesson we'll learn how to tackle diagram completion questions on IELTS Reading. In this
type of questions, you’re given a descriptive text and a diagram or plan, which you have to
label according to the text. Your diagram may be a technical drawing, a description of
something from the natural world, a process or a plan of something.

Answering strategy:
ü Read the text, underlining the new terms and important names.
ü Look at the diagram and think which parts of it you can label.
ü Check your assumptions by looking back at underlined terms and label the parts you’re
sure of.
ü If there are some unlabeled parts left, check the diagram for key words. Then, scan
the text for the right answer.

Tips:
Always underline new terms in the text - 99% that they will be used in the questions.
The key words in the diagram may help you to complete it.

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Exercise 1

53


54
 UNDERSTANDING SHORT ANSWER QUESTION
In this lesson we’re going to learn reading strategies and tips for short-answer questions on
IELTS Reading. Short-answer questions on IELTS Reading are very similar to sentence
completion questions. Again, you should answer questions with words taken directly from
the text. And you’re given a word limit (for example: write no more than two words).

The only difference is that in sentence completion you obviously have to complete sentences.
And in short-answer questions you may have either to complete sentences or answer
questions.

Useful information about short-answer questions on IELTS Reading:
• You should complete statements or answer questions with words taken from the text.
• You're given a word limit.
• Questions follow the order of the text.
• Questions or statements are not simply copied from the text. But they keep the initial
meaning and contain some key words, so you could find the answers in the text.

Note that if you are asked to complete sentence with no more than two words, you can write
one or two words, a three-word answer will be automatically wrong.

Answering strategy:
• Skim over the text.
• Read the question and find the paragraph, which is likely to contain the answer. Use
key words to navigate.
• Read attentively the paragraph you’ve found, searching for the answer.
• Once you've found the answer, check if it doesn't exceed the word limit.
• Repeat this strategy with other questions.
• If you prefer, you can read the text by passages.

Tips:
• Make sure that your answer doesn't exceed the word limit. It’s super-important.
• The order of questions can help you. Answer for question 4 will be between answers
for questions 3 and 5 in the text.
• If text introduces new terms, some answers are likely to be among them.

Exercise 1
Peanut allergy theory backed up by new research
The effects of eating peanut products as a baby to avoid the risk of allergy have been backed
up by new research. In 2015, a study claimed early exposure to peanut products could cut the
risk of allergy by 80%. Now researchers say "long-lasting" allergy protection can be sustained
- even when the snacks are later avoided for a year. The New England Journal of Medicine
study looked at 550 children deemed prone to developing a peanut allergy. The latest paper
builds on the results of the 2015 research, which was also carried out by King's College London
and marked the first time scientists were able to suggest that exposing children to small
amounts of peanut snacks could stave off an allergy.

55
The new study suggests that if a child has consumed peanut snacks within the first 11 months
of life, then at the age of five they can afford to stop eating the food entirely for a year, and
maintain no allergy. Lead author Prof Gideon Lack said: "[The research] clearly demonstrates
that the majority of infants did in fact remain protected and that the protection was long-
lasting." He said that part of the problem was that people lived in a "culture of food fear". "I
believe that this fear of food allergy has become a self-fulfilling prophecy, because the food
is excluded from the diet and, as a result, the child fails to develop tolerance," he told the BBC
News website. The researchers used the same children who took part in the 2015 study - half
of whom had been given peanut snacks as a baby while the remainder had been fed on a diet
of breast milk alone.

"The study found that at six years of age, there was no statistically significant increase in
allergy after 12 months of avoidance, in those who had consumed peanut during the [2015]
trial," the authors said. The children taking part in the study were considered prone to peanut
allergy, because they had already developed eczema as a baby - an early warning sign of
allergies. Prof Lack said that further studies were needed to see if the resistance lasts for
considerably longer than the 12-month abstinence period. He said that in the UK and US
combined, 20,000 babies a year are being diagnosed with peanut allergies. He also said that
between 1995 and 2005, the number of people being diagnosed had trebled, and this was
not because detection methods had become any more advanced as they had remained the
same. Prof Barry Kay, from Imperial College London, said the study's results "point the way to
completely fresh thinking on the mechanisms of tolerance to allergenic foods in 'at risk'
infants". Speaking about both pieces of research, Michael Walker, a consultant analyst and
medical adviser to the government, said: "Taken together these are reassuring findings that
pave the way to stem the epidemic of peanut allergy."

Answer the questions below.
Write EXACTLY TWO WORDS OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.
1. What is the number of children that the New England Journal of Medicine studied?
2. At what age can the child stop eating peanuts for a year if it has consumed peanut
snacks within the first 11 months of life?
3. What part of the infants remained protected for a long-lasting period?
4. What's the illness that 20,000 babies in the UK and US combined are diagnosed with
each year?

Exercise 2
Museum of Lost Objects: Mar Elian Monastery
For centuries, Christians and Muslims have visited the small Syrian town of al-Qaryatain to
venerate a saint known as Mar Elian. But in August 2015, the shrine was bulldozed by the
group that calls itself Islamic State and the multifaith community was torn apart. About 1,500
years ago, an elderly and pious man called Julian, from the far east of Mesopotamia, went on
a pilgrimage to Jerusalem with his disciples. As he travelled home, Julian had an inkling that
he was going to die before he made it. "If such a fate befalls me," he told his companions,
"put my body on an ox cart and set it loose. Where the oxen stop is where I should be buried."

Julian did indeed die, his body was loaded on to the cart, and the oxen plodded on until they
came to a stop near a small town. Julian's disciples built a tomb for him and in time a

56
monastery grew up around the shrine. That at least is the legend of St Julian the Old Man, or,
as he is known in Arabic, Mar Elian. What's certainly true is that Mar Elian's shrine has existed
since at least the 6th Century, near the remote town of al-Qaryatain, located in the desert
between Damascus and Palmyra. Mar Elian is not only venerated as a saint by Christians,
however. The local Sunni population regard him as a Sufi leader and call him Sheikh Ahmed
Ghouri ("ghouri" means "priest"). Until its destruction last year, Mar Elian's sarcophagus was
draped in green satin, a traditional mark of homage to a Sufi holy man.

When the British archaeologist, Emma Loosley, travelled to al-Qaryatain 15 years ago to
excavate and redevelop the monastery she found the tumbledown ruins of the original
complex, a run-down church from the 1930s and a friendly priest - Father Jacques Murad -
who immediately decamped to a house in a nearby village. "We couldn't cause any scandal
by sleeping in the same place," she says. "That meant I was the only permanent resident of
the monastery at that point, and I had to live in this half-ruined mud-brick tower in the corner
of the cloister. "Our shower was tainted because the well had sulphur, so I used to smell like
rotten eggs every time I washed." But the Qurwani, the people of al-Qaryatain, made up for
the grotty living conditions. Loosley found the remote desert community to be remarkably
open-hearted and tolerant. They even had a myth to explain why Sunni Muslims and
Christians - who accounted for about a fifth of the population in 2001 - lived together so
harmoniously. "Their belief is that there were two tribes living in this place," says Loosley.
"With the coming of Islam, the tribes got together and they decided that one tribe would stay
Christian and that the other one would try the new religion. "Then they had a pact that
whichever religion became dominant, they would look after their brothers who stayed in the
minority religion."

Answer the questions below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
1. Christians and Muslims were visiting al-Qaryatain to appreciate what saint?
2. What local population regard Mar Elian as a Sufi leader?
3. Who found the tumbledown ruins of the original complex?
4. What did the community have to explain why Sunni Muslims and Christians lived
together in harmony?

57
 UNDERSTANDING OF SPEAKING
Marking Criteria
There are four parts to the IELTS Speaking marking criteria:
1. Coherence and Fluency : how clear and structured is your speech.
To increase score for FC:
v connect your sentences by linking words and signpoints
v extend your answers, add all the relevant details
v speak smoothly and continuously
v use pausing correctly
2. Lexical Resource (LR) : how good is your vocabulary.
To increase score for LR:
v use a wide range of vocabulary
v discuss different topics freely, using appropriate words
v speak formally or semi-formally
v choose words accurately
v use idiomatic language
3. Pronunciation (P) : how naturally you sound.
v To increase score for P:
v pronounce words as clearly as possible
v record your speech and work on the words that you spell incorrectly
v stress words and sentences correctly
v use correct intonations
v try to be easily understood by the examiner
4. Grammatical Range and Accuracy (GRA) : how good is your grammar.
To increase score for GRA:
v avoid grammatical mistakes
v try to use more advanced grammatical structures (passive voice, direct speech,
different tenses and conditional sentences etc)

PART 1 – SPEAKING
Speaking Part 1 lasts between 4-5 minutes and you will be asked questions about familiar topics, such
as:
Your job/studies
Your family
Your home
Your hometown
Your hobbies
Notice that these questions are all about you. It is considered easier than the other two parts because
it is much easier to talk about yourself than more abstract topics, but that doesn’t mean it is not
important. Below are 5 Dos and Don’ts to make sure that you start your Speaking test in the best
possible way.

Do # 1- Know What to Expect
You will probably be a little nervous and you don’t want any surprises that will make you even more
anxious, so you must be aware of exactly what will happen when you walk into the room.

Before Part 1 begins four things will happen.
The examiner will introduce themselves and ask you what your name is. You can simply reply ‘My
name’s _______’. Make sure that you use the contraction ‘name’s’ rather than ‘name is’. This will
remind you to use contractions (e.g. I’m, We’d, they’ll) in the rest of the test.

58
The examiner will then ask you ‘What can I call you?’. You can simply say ‘You can call me_______’. If
you have an English name, it is fine to use it, but make sure that you pronounce it correctly. If you
can’t say your own name properly, it does not create the best first impression. If unsure, just use your
normal name.
They will then ask you where you are from. Simply state “I’m from_____”. There is no need for you to
give any extra information about your answers at this stage.
The examiner will finally ask to see your identification. Show it to them and then the test can begin.
By knowing these four things will happen you will be more confident and start the exam well.

Do # 2- Create a Good First Impression
My students often ask me, if they smile, are friendly and give the examiner good eye contact, will they
get a higher mark. The answer is no and yes. There is nothing in the marking criteria which says that
being nice, or looking the examiner in the eye will improve your grade. However, being confident helps
you because it will have an effect on your answers.

If you look at the floor and give the impression that you would rather be anywhere in the world apart
from in the room with the examiner, you will normally give very short monotone answers and this will
lower your score. However, if you are open and friendly with the examiner, you are more likely to give
natural sounding answers.

Don’t overdo the eye contact thing. It feels really strange when someone looks you straight in the eye
for 15 minutes. Pretend that you are having a normal conversation with a friend. If you were looking
at the floor the entire time, a friend would ask you if you were OK. If you were staring them dead in
the eye, they would get a bit freaked out. Pretend it is just a normal conversation and you will be fine.

Do # 3- Pretend You’re Interested in the Questions
Let’s face it, most IELTS questions are really boring. If you listen to someone answer a boring question
you will notice one thing- their voice is monotone i.e. it does not go up or down in pitch at all, it sounds
very flat. If you speak like this you will get a lower mark for pronunciation because one of the crucial
factors you will be tested on is intonation.

When native English speakers talk, their voice naturally falls and rises depending on how they feel
about what they are saying. Imagine you are late for class, you walk into the room and the teacher
says to you in a falling tone ‘Sit down, please.’ They are probably telling you, through their intonation,
that they are not very happy with your lack of punctuality. However, if they said it with a rising tone
at the start, they would probably be telling you they don’t mind that you are late and are happy to see
you.

Similarly, if you pretend that you are interested in what the examiner is saying your intonation should
become more varied. However, be careful not to overdo it and make your voice really high, or really
low because you will sound like a crazy person. Listening to native speakers talk and copying their
intonation will give you a good idea of what natural intonation sounds like.

Do # 4- Extend Your Answers
There is no set amount of words or sentences that you should use in Part 1.
They shouldn’t be too short because you want to show the examiner that you can actually use English,
so ‘I’m a student.’ is not really long enough.

However, they should not be too long either, because Part 1 is on familiar topics (family, work, hobbies
etc.) and you don’t normally talk for 2 minutes when someone asks you where you are from. Also, you
will have lots of opportunities to give longer answers in Parts 2 and 3. As a general rule, if you only

59
give a single sentence answer, with a single clause like ‘I’m from Ireland.’, then your answer is too
short.

Do # 5- Practice
It is a very bad idea to prepare memorised answers before your speaking test, but because Part 1 is
very predictable, you should practice the familiar topics mentioned above in number one.

Try recording yourself and then listen back and think about the following:
Could you improve the vocabulary?
Did you make any grammar mistakes that could be fixed?
Did you speak fluently or did you speak at an unnatural speed?
How was your intonation?
Did you extend your answer enough?
Did you speak clearly?
Try again and keep practicing until you are really confident about talking about the common topics.


Don’t #1- Give Yes/No Answers
This might sound very obvious, but you would be surprised how many people simply answer with ‘Yes’
or ‘No.’ This is probably because many of the questions would naturally lead to a yes or no answer,
but you must remember that you are in a test and you have to show the examiner how good your
English is. Giving yes or no answers does not allow the examiner to judge your ability and you will get
a low mark no matter how good your English is.

Some people give yes or no answers because they are very nervous and they want the test to be over
as soon as possible. The examiner is not there to trick you and most of them are nice people who want
you to do your best, so don’t be afraid to tell them you are a little nervous and this will normally relieve
the tension.

Don’t # 2- Go Off Topic
Some students try to tell you their life story or the entire history of their hometown when you ask
their name and where they are from. Remember that these are very simple questions and if you have
given more than 3-4 sentences you are probably giving irrelevant details.

Don’t # 3- Give No Answer
You don’t get to choose the question and if you don’t know the answer to a question, or you simply
don’t like the question, you don’t have a choice- you must answer it.

Remember that Part 1 is about YOU. There will be no question you don’t understand because they will
all be about you. If you don’t understand one word in a question, it is acceptable to ask the examiner
to explain what that one word means. It is also acceptable to ask the examiner to repeat the question
if you didn’t quite understand what they said. However, do not abuse this privilege and use it for every
question; only use it when absolutely necessary.

If you really have no idea, be honest with the examiner and tell them you don’t really know and then
have a guess. It is not an examination of your knowledge, it is a test of your English, so it is perfectly
acceptable to make something up if you are really stuck.

60
Don’t # 4- Speak Very Quietly
This is one of the most annoying things for the examiner because no matter how good your English is,
if we can’t hear you, we can’t give you a high score.

This has a lot to do with confidence and shyness. Make sure that you are not talking to the floor and
speak a little louder than normally. The examiner will also be recording the test, so it has to be loud
enough for the recording device to pick up your voice. Try recording yourself and play it back. If you
can’t hear yourself clearly then you need to increase the volume of your voice a little more.

Don’t # 5- Be a Perfectionist
The examiner knows that you are speaking in a non-native language and does not expect perfection.
Even people who get a 9 make small mistakes, and people who get Band 7 and 8 make quite a few
mistakes. If you are constantly thinking about the perfect grammar and vocabulary, it will reduce your
fluency and pronunciation. Fluency and pronunciation make up 50% of your marks, so there is no point
in trying to use perfect grammar and vocabulary, if you are losing half your marks in the process.

61
Question : (Record by yourself)
Hometown :
1. What’s the name of your hometown?
2. Is it a big city or a small place?
Running :
1. How often do you go for a run?
2. Where do you usually go running?
Music :
1. What kinds of music do you like to listen ?
2. How much time do you spend listening to music every day?

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PART 2 —SPEAKING
Part 2 is sometimes called the ‘long turn’. You will be given a cue card and you will have 1 minute to
prepare your answer. You will then be asked to speak for 1 to 2 minutes.

Many consider Speaking Part 2 to be the most difficult part of the IELTS Speaking test because it is a
monologue. A monologue is different from the rest of the test because you will be speaking alone,
without any questions or help from the examiner.

The examiner will give you a cue card similar to the one below:

Speaking test part 2 : candidate task card

Describe something you own which is very important to you
You should say :
• Where you got It from
• How long you have had it
• What you use it for, and
• Explain why it is important to you

You will have to talk about the topic for 1 to 2 minutes
You have one minute to think about what you are going to say
You can make some notes to help you if you wish.


As stated above, you will have 1 minute to prepare before you speak and you are expected to talk for
between 1-2 minutes.

Below are 6 tips to help you with this section of the test:
1. Have a Strategy
IELTS is much easier if you have a strategy for each part of the test. You can use this strategy when
you are practicing and then you will be much more confident in the real test.
2. Preparation
They say practice makes perfect and this is very true for IELTS Speaking. Don’t memorise answers.
There are too many topics for you to memorise and it is highly unlikely that you will get the same topic
in the real test. It is a complete waste of time and leads to some very strange answers. If the examiner
spots this, they are allowed to give you a Band 0!

Focus on fluency and pronunciation. Record yourself and listen to yourself. How could you improve
your fluency and pronunciation? Learn functional language used to describe common grammar
functions, such as talking about the past, present or future, giving your opinion, evaluating someone’s
opinion and talking hypothetically.
Time yourself so you know how much you have to speak in 1-2 minutes.
3. Use 1 Minute Wisely
You will have one minute to prepare before you start talking. You will not have enough time to write
full sentences. You will, however, be able to write keywords. These keywords should guide you
through your talk and help if you can’t think of ideas. Having a strategy will also help you because you
will know exactly what to talk about and you will be able to make a clear plan using short notes and
keywords.
4. Personal Experiences Are Best (but telling a lie is OK too.)
The best answers are always about things you have actually experienced in your life. You will be able
to describe these things in much more detail and you will also be able to talk more coherently about

63
them. Students tend to be more confident talking about real experiences and this helps them with
their fluency and pronunciation. However, some of the cue cards will ask you to talk about things you
might not have experienced at all in your entire life. It is fine to lie. The examiner will never check your
answers or worry about whether they are the truth or not. However, they might ask you some follow-
up questions, so be prepared for these.
5. Expand Your Ideas
It is much better to fully expand each main idea, than to simply state lots of main ideas and not develop
them at all.This will help you give more impressive answers and it is also a better use of your time. It
is much easier to think of a few relevant ideas and develop them, than it is to think of lots of different
ideas.

When you are practicing, a good way to expand your main ideas is to use ‘Who, what, why, where,
how‘. This will help you quickly and easily develop your main ideas and you will also get used to the
grammar structures needed to do this.

You can also use your senses to help you use a wide range of vocabulary. Think about how things
looked, sounded, smelled and tasted. You obviously won’t be able to talk about all of these things for
every topic (you would sound a little strange describing how a book tasted) but you will normally be
able to use two or three of them.While practicing you can use a dictionary to help you describe these
sensations and expand your vocabulary.

6. Mistakes are OK
Everyone makes grammar and vocabulary mistakes. Every time I make a new video it takes me longer
to edit out the mistakes than it does to record the video. Even students who get a Band 8, or even 9,
make small mistakes. This is totally understandable and you should therefore not panic when you
make a mistake.

I have listened to students who were half way through their Part 2 question and then they made a
small grammatical error and they completely lost their way and their score went from a very high one
to a very average one.

Being nervous and stressed affects your ideas, pronunciation, fluency and normally leads to further
grammar mistakes. When you make a mistake simply forget about it. There is nothing you can do.
Don’t panic and continue.

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Exercise 2 : (Record by yourself)

65
PART 3 — SPEAKING
Part 3 is more abstract ( Discussion )
This is your opportunity to really develop your answers and discuss the issues brought up by the
examiner. The topic will be linked to the topic you discussed in Part 2, and this will last 4-5 minutes.

What do I do if I don’t understand the question?
First of all, this is not a very academic test. The questions are designed so that anyone can answer
them. If you look at some example questions, it will surprise you how easy they are. They require no
specialist knowledge and the examiner does not even have to agree with your opinion, they just want
to hear how well you convey your ideas and express your opinion.

However, sometimes you may not quite understand what the examiner just said. In this case, simply
ask him or her to repeat the question. If there is a word or term you don’t understand, it is also
acceptable to ask them to explain it to you. Don’t overdo this, as it will seem as if you are abusing this
rule.

It is a speaking test, not a listening test and the examiner wants you to give your best possible answer
so don’t be afraid to let them know. They won’t repeat the question or explain a word to you unless
you ask.

Do I have to give an answer for every question in part 3?
Yes, if you don’t attempt an answer for all questions you will lose marks. However, if you get a question
you are really struggling with you can admit this to the examiner and give the best answer you can.
You could say something like: ‘I don’t know a lot about this topic, but if I had to guess I would say…..’
It is unlikely you will have to use this phrase and it should only be used when you really have no ideas.

What if I need time to think?
The IELTS examiner does not expect you to give instant answers, you are not a robot! However, they
do expect you to respond in a natural way. It is completely normal for native speakers to use certain
words and phrases in order to give themselves time to think. You probably also do it a lot in your own
language.

Phrases that can be used include:
o That’s a difficult question, let me think for a second.
o That’s a very interesting question, let me think.
o It’s very difficult to know exactly, but I think/but I believe/perhaps….
o It’s difficult to say, I think….
o I don’t really know for sure, but I would say….

The most important thing is not to overuse these phrases. Some students put them in front of every
answer and it sounds really unnatural. Remember, they are only to be used when you get an
unexpected or particularly difficult question.

How do I extend my answer?
Many students are worried that they will not have enough to say in part 3. In part 3 the examiner will
mostly ask for your general thoughts on an issue; advantages and disadvantages; problems and
solutions; how the issue has changed from the past until now; and how the issue will change in the
future. You should therefore practice thinking and talking about your opinion on common everyday
issues like health, the economy, education and the environment.

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There is no set word limit for what a good part 3 answer, but it should not be too short and not too
long. Too short and you will have failed to develop your answer properly; too long and you may go off
topic and/or make mistakes.

The seven common question types that appear in IELTS speaking part 3 are:
1. Opinion
One thing you should not do is start every sentence with ‘I think…’ or ‘In my opinion…’ The IELTS
examiner will be looking for how you vary your language. Below are a number of ways you could do
that:
As I see it,
Personally,
For me,
If you feel very strongly about something you could use:

I’m convinced that….
I’m certain that….
I’m sure that….
If you are less sure about your opinion you could give a weaker opinion by using:

I guess that…
I suppose that….
I’d say that…..
Please have a look at my IELTS speaking part 3 guide for more information on how to extend your
answers.

Example Question
What are some of the ways people can help others in the community?
As I see it, there are many ways one can help the needy, but the best way is by making charitable
donations. People can choose a charity and simply donate a sum of money and leave it to them to
help others in need. For instance, I recently gave money to an orphanage. I don’t have time to help
them personally, so I’ll leave it up to them to use the money as they see fit.

2. Evaluate
In these kinds of questions you will be asked what you think about someone else’s opinion. We will
therefore need to use expressions that allow us to agree or disagree.

For agreement we can use:
I couldn’t agree with you more.
That’s so true.
That’s for sure.
That’s exactly how I feel.
No doubt about it.
I suppose so./I guess so.
You/they have a point there.
For disagreement we can use:

I don’t think so.
I’m afraid I disagree.
I totally disagree.
I beg to differ.
I’d say the exact opposite.

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Not necessarily.
That’s not always true.
That’s not always the case.
Remember that you will have to extend your answers with explanations and examples.

Example Question
Some people say that people helped others more in the past than they do now. Do you agree or
disagree?
I don’t think so. When it comes to my parents’ generation I think they are quite sceptical about helping
other people in the community, but my generation are regularly doing things to improve it, such as
volunteering for various environmental and charitable organisations. Young people are actively
encouraged to help out in the community and I don’t think this happened in the past, so I’m afraid I’d
disagree.

3. Future
You are often asked to predict how a certain topic will change in the future.
For making future predictions we normally use ‘will + verb’, however this is quite simple and the
examiner will be looking for your ability to use more complex structures to predict the future. More
complex structures could include:

X plans to…..
It is predicted that….
X intends to….
I foresee…..
It is foreseeable….
Conditionals- If X + verb…..
It is likely that…
It is probable that….
It is unforeseeable that….
I envisage….
As always you will have to explain why you think this will occur in the future. You may also want to
use future conditionals to extend your answer.

Example Question
Some people say that working from home will be quite common in the future. Do you agree?
It is foreseeable that more people will work from home in the future. If the internet becomes faster
and there are more programs, such as Skype, that allow people to work from home more easily, I’d
predict that more people will stay at home. If you think about it, most people don’t need to be
physically present to do their jobs and I envisage that face to face meetings will be a thing of the past.

4. Cause and Effect
You may also be asked to discuss what has caused a certain situation and what effects this has. This
language will also help you in IELTS writing task 2.

To talk about cause and effect you can use:
…because…
…as a result….
…resulted in…
…as a consequence…
…due to….
…caused…

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…led to….
…means that….

Example Question
How does advertising influence what people choose to buy?
I think advertising has a big influence on what people purchase and often leads to them always sticking
with the same brand. For example, I always drink Coca Cola and I believe this is because I grew up
watching all those ads on TV and I instinctively buy it as a result. I mean, why would companies spend
so much money on adverts, unless it led to more sales?

5. Hypothetical
The second conditional is used to talk about ‘unreal’, ‘unlikely’ or ‘impossible’ situations. You might
get asked a question about an ‘unreal’ situation, for example ‘If you were mayor of your city, what
would you do to improve it?’

The grammar we use for this is:
If + (subject 1) + past participle, then (subject 2) + would + verb

Example Question
If you could choose any country to live in, where would you choose?
If I could live in any country, I would probably choose Australia. The weather is great; the people are
super friendly and just imagine living beside all those beaches. If I could choose another country, it
would have to be Italy, for the architecture, the culture and its fascinating history.

6. Compare and Contrast
To compare two things, use a comparative adjective + than e.g. He’s taller than his sister.

Some comparative adjectives are irregular:
Good- better
Bad- worse
Far- further
For short adjectives, add –(e)r. If they end in –y change to –ier. For example:
Hard- harder
Cheap- cheaper
Easy- easier
Lazy- lazier

For longer adjectives, use more. For example:
More interesting
More difficult

Example Question
Do you think primary school children should learn a second language or should they wait until
secondary school?
It’s obvious that the earlier children start a language the easier it becomes in later life. However, some
parents might think that subjects like maths are more important than languages at primary level. They
may also think that a foreign language is less important than their first language and this should be
prioritised.

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 7. Past
We may use the present perfect continuous to talk about something that started in the past and
continues up until the present. Example: They have been developing the city centre for the past five
years. For this tense we use the structure has/have + been + present participle (verb-ing).
Used to + infinitive to talk about past habits or states that are now finished.
Would + infinitive to describe past habits.

Past simple to talk about things you did in the past that you no longer do or are no longer true.
Past continuous to talk about the background of a story or how you felt at a particular time.
Past perfect to say something happened before something else in the past.

Example Question
How has teaching changed in your country over the past few decades?
In the past, teachers simply lectured students and the students just listened to what they said. We
were given lots of facts to learn and there was no room for creativity or freedom of expression. I
remember learning lots of things without thinking about the theory behind it. Now, there’s been a
movement towards students thinking for themselves.

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Exercise 3 : (Record by yourself)
Eating habits
1. How are the eating habits now in your country different from eating habits in the past?
2. How healthy is your country’s food?

Education
1. What is your opinion on the way languages are taught in schools?
2. What changes do you think will happen in the classroom in the near future?

Influence of television
1. Why do people like watching television?
2. Do you think state or private television is better?

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 Holiday Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: What kind of holiday do you like?
Miguel: I try to avoid tourist traps … I like to get away from it all and prefer going somewhere off the
beaten track … last year I had the holiday of a lifetime … a two week wildlife safari in Kenya.

Examiner: What do you like to do when you’re on holiday?
Anna: I enjoy visiting the local places of interest … I like to go sightseeing and always sign up for guided
tours as it’s a chance to be shown around and take photographs … one of my hobbies.

Examiner: Do you have many tourists in your country?
Amy: Yes … we have a lot of holiday resorts along the coast that are popular with tourists … most
people come on package holidays and stay in one of the many hotels and self-catering apartments.

Part 2-style task

Describe a beautiful place you once visited. You should say:

when you went to this place
where it was
who you went with
and say why you liked it so much.

Sally: A few years ago I went on a long weekend to the Lake District in the UK … it’s a very popular
holiday destination in the north of England … I went on my own and had a wonderful time … I stayed
in a youth hostel and met some really nice people … but the most memorable thing about the holiday
were the breathtaking views … and lovely picturesque villages … it can get very busy with hordes of
tourists so I decided to go out of season in the autumn … the weather was fantastic and the shops
were full of local crafts … a really great holiday … it’s certainly not the kind of short break for someone
looking for a busy nightlife but if you want to relax in the middle of stunning landscape I would
certainly recommend a holiday to the Lake District.

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: What do you think has led to the growth in the tourism industry?
Miguel: It’s much easier and affordable to travel now … nowadays you can get cheap charter-flights
or all-in packages … to somewhere near or to a far-off destination.

Examiner: How do people tend to choose a destination?
Anna: The Internet is a great source of information and high street travel agents are still very popular
… that’s where I like to go to get holiday brochures for the place I’m interested in.

Examiner: People sometimes say flying is the most glamorous form of travel. Do you agree?
Amy: I’m not so sure really … flying can be quite boring … queuing up at the check-in desk … going
through passport control … sitting for ages in the departure lounge … then the flight itself can be quite
uncomfortable … no … I’m not sure I agree.

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Definitions

• all-in package/package holiday: a holiday where you purchase the travel and accommodation
together
• breathtaking view: an extremely beautiful view
• charter-flight: a cheaper form of flying than a scheduled flight
• check-in desk: the place at the airport where you register for your flight and deposit your
luggage
• departure lounge: where you wait for your flight to be called
• far-off destination: somewhere a long way away
• to get away from it all: to take a holiday to escape a busy or stressful lifestyle
• guided tour: an organised group shown around a place of interest by an expert
• holiday brochure: a glossy publication with details of holiday packages
• holiday destination: where you go for a holiday
• holiday of a lifetime: a special holiday that you are unlikely to repeat
• holiday resort: a place where lots of people go for a holiday
• hordes of tourists: crowds of tourists
• local crafts: objects produced locally
• long weekend: an extended weekend holiday including Friday or Monday
• out of season: outside of the main holiday period
• picturesque village: very pretty village
• passport control: the place where your passport is checked
• places of interest: sites of interest to tourists
• wildlife safari: a holiday, often in Africa, to observe wild animals
• self-catering: a holiday where you supply your own food
• short break: a short holiday
• to go sightseeing: to look around the tourist sites
• stunning landscape: extremely beautiful countryside
• travel agent: a shop that specialises in booking holidays
• tourist trap: somewhere where too many tourists go
• youth hostel: a cheap form of accommodation

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Relationship Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you see your friends very often?
Louisa: Yes … we meet up most weekends … we all get on really well and have a lot in common so
we’re always happy doing the same things and going to the same places.

Examiner: What do you like about your close friends?
Anna: I think we enjoy each other’s company … we see eye-to-eye on most things so we rarely fall
out with each other.

Examiner: Have you known each other long?
Amy: Most of them yes … although my closest friend Carrie … we struck up a relationship at college
and got on like a house on fire … but yes … my other friendships go back years to when we were at
school.



Part 2-style task

Describe a person you are very close to. You should say:

who this person is
when you met them
where you met them
and say what it is about them you like so much.

Reiko: I’d like to talk about my boyfriend … Jose … we got to know each other at University almost 4
years ago … we were in the same department … initially we were just good friends and used to go
out in a group with our other friends … when Jose went back to Spain for the holidays we would
keep in touch with each other … then one year he invited me to come to Spain with him … and
that’s when we fell for each other I think … so you couldn’t really say it was love at first sight as it
had been over a year since we’d met … but we really hit it off and by the time we got back to
university in September we were able to tell all our friends that we were in a relationship … what do
I like about Jose … well he’s very kind … very funny … and very supportive … and we’re really well
matched in our interests … he hasn’t popped the question yet though … we’ve talked about getting
married and I think we’re both ready to settle down and have children … we’ll just have to wait and
see …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Do you think marriage is still as important as ever?
Cristine: Yes … it certainly is in my country … I think the problem for some people is a lack of
commitment … all relationships have their ups and downs …. but some people prefer to break up
rather than working at the relationship.

Examiner: What do you think is the ideal time to get married?
Terry: Personally … I think you should wait until you’ve found yourself first … decided if you want a
career … perhaps do some travelling … you should do this before tying the knot … although if you fall
head over heels in love plans like these can easily be forgotten.

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Examiner: Is it important to keep in contact with our friends when we’re in a relationship?
Maria: Absolutely … it’s so easy to drift apart from your friends when you fall in love … but I think
both partners should try not to lose touch with their friends … that’s the best way to have a healthy
relationship with your partner.

Definitions

• to break up: to end a romantic relationship
• to drift apart: to become less close to someone
• to enjoy someone’s company: to like spending time with someone
• to fall for: to fall in love
• to fall head over heels in love: to start to love someone a lot
• to fall out with: to have a disagreement and stop being friends
• to get on like a house on fire: to like someone’s company very much indeed
• to get on well with: to understand someone and enjoy similar interests
• to get to know: to begin to know someone
• to go back years: to have known someone for a long time
• to have a lot in common: to share similar interests
• to have ups and downs: to have good and bad times
• a healthy relationship: a good, positive relationship
• to hit it off: to quickly become good friends with
• to be in a relationship: to be romantically involved with someone
• to be just good friends: to not be romantically involved
• to keep in touch with: to keep in contact with
• to lose touch with: to not see or hear from someone any longer
• love at first sight: to fall in love immediately you meet someone
• to pop the question: to ask someone to marry you
• to see eye to eye: to agree on a subject
• to settle down: to give up the single life and start a family
• to strike up a relationship: to begin a friendship
• to tie the knot: to get married
• to be well matched: to be similar to
• to work at a relationship: to try to maintain a positive relationship with someone

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 Technology Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you enjoy using technology?
Stephan: Well … I wouldn’t call myself a techie or a computer buff but I enjoy using computers … I’d
like to find out more about how they work … when my computer crashes I never know what to do.

Examiner: Do you use the Internet for your studies?
Sophie: Yes … I’d be lost without it … I do lots of video conferencing to practise speaking and social
media like Facebook is a good way to meet up with other students … and I download podcasts that
teach English vocabulary and grammar.

Examiner: Do you have your own computer?
Tania: Yes … I have a Macbook Pro … I use it all the time … for word processing … browsing websites
and catching up with TV programmes I’ve missed.

Part 2-style task

Describe an item of technology you have that is very important. You should say:

what the technology is
when you got it
how often you use it
and say how different your daily life would be without it.

Mattie: I don’t have many gadgets … just a computer … a laptop and my mobile phone … but I’ll talk
about my computer as it’s so useful … it’s funny really … 2 years ago I was still learning to use
computers … how to use email … send attachments how to access websites … then I decided to do a
digital editing course for video and photography … and so I bought the laptop when I started the
course … my husband had a desktop PC but it was very slow so I decided to upgrade to a powerful
one because we do a lot of video editing on the course … it’s a high-spec laptop … very fast … the
latest operating system … it boots up really quickly and it’s fun to use so it makes working a pleasure
… I’ve become a competent computer user now … if I didn’t have it I daresay I’d have to spend more
time at college using their computers … but on the positive side I suppose I’d read a lot more if I
didn’t have it … I probably waste a lot of time surfing the web … but hopefully I won’t have to be
without it …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: What do you think are the important things people need to learn when they start using
computers?
Alejandro: Well … there are things like how to use the Internet … how to enter a web address … how
to navigate websites … that kind of thing but it’s also important to know how to back up your files in
case your computer crashes … and all about Internet security.

Examiner: What kind of technological developments have made the biggest impact on our lives?
Faydene: In my lifetime it has to be the Internet of course but I also think wifi has made a huge
difference to how we interact with the Internet … wireless networks at home and public wifi
hotspots mean we can go online easily … access our mail … log into our work intranet and basically
be connected wherever we are.

76
Examiner: Do computers make it much easier to study?
Jane: Definitely yes … researching information is much easier with the Internet .. you can bookmark
webpages for future reference and writing essays is much easier … being able to cut and paste
sections of text means you can experiment with organisation … so yes … compared to years ago
when you had a pile of books on your desk and a pen and paper … it’s now much easier.

Definitions

• to access websites/email: to locate
• to back up files: to make a copy of files in case of a computer problem
• to boot up: to start a computer
• to bookmark a webpage: to mark a webpage for future reference
• to browse websites: to look at websites
• a computer buff: an expert computer user
• to crash: to suddenly stop working
• to cut and paste: to move text or images from one place in a document to another place
• a desktop PC: a computer that isn’t portable and remains in situ on a desk
• digital editing: to edit digital materials like audio or video files
• download (podcasts): to save a copy of a file from the internet to your own device
• to enter a web address: to type the address of a website into the address bar of your
browser
• a gadget: a technological tool like a mobile phone or camera
• to go online: to start using the Internet
• high-spec (laptop): powerful computer with top quality components
• Internet security: Internet safety
• intranet: a network of connected computers within an organisation that is not accessible by
unauthorised visitors
• to navigate a website: to find your way around a website
• operating system: the software that tells the computer how to work
• send an attachment: send an email with an accompanying file
• social media: media used to interact with other people such as Facebook or Twitter
• to surf the web: to look at a series of websites one after the other
• a techie: somebody who has an interest in technology
• to upgrade: to obtain a more powerful or feature-rich computer or piece of software
• video conferencing: to see and hear people from different locations using the Internet
• wireless hotspot: a public place where you can access the Internet
• wireless network: a network where users can access the Internet without the use of fixed
cables
• word processing; producing written texts on a computer

77


78
 Sports Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you do any sports?
Loiuse: Not really … no … I always say I’m going to take up exercise and try to get into shape but I
never seem to get started … I sometimes wonder whether I should get a personal trainer …
someone who will sort out a fitness programme for me and make me train hard ….


Examiner: How do you spend a typical weekend?
Stella: I’m a big football fan and weekends always centre around a football match … I support FC
Utrecht and have a season ticket so I go to most of the home games and quite a few of the away
games too … I’m really looking forward to the new football season starting soon …

Examiner: Have you got any hobbies or interests?

Theo: Yes … I’m really keen on sports … I do judo once a week and play tennis in the summer … I
think it’s really important to keep fit … it makes you feel good and energised for work and your
studies ….

Part 2-style task

Describe a place you like going to in your leisure time. You should say:

what this place is
when you go there
what you do there
and say why you enjoy it there so much.

Maurice: I’d like to talk about my local sports centre … it’s a place I spend a lot of time in … it’s a
new building with all the latest sports facilities … I probably go there at least twice a week …
sometimes more often … it’s a huge place … there’s an outdoor athletics track and some football
pitches … I play football so I’m often out there … there are several indoor squash and tennis courts
that I use occasionally … a big swimming pool … although I don’t use that very often … I’m not a very
strong swimmer … there’s a gym … lots of things really … why do I enjoy going there … it’s just a
really fun place to be … there’s a good social side to it all … you can enter competitions … meet up
with other people who want to do the same sports … and because there are so many activities on
offer it gets you interested in different things … for example I was listening to some people talking
about training to run the marathon and I’ve decided I might even think about that … I go jogging a
couple of times a week so it would give me something to aim for … so yes … the sports centre …
that’s the place I really like to visit …


Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Should people be encouraged more to take up sport?
Alejandro: I think young people should be given the chance to discover which sport they might like …
watching sport is sometimes a good way to get people started … not on TV but actually getting out …
take athletics for example … they could go to an athletics meeting … there are so many different
sports on show one might interest them …

79
Examiner: Why do some people enjoy participating in sport more than others?
Florrie: That’s a good question … I suppose some people are more concerned about their health …
they can’t stand the thought of being out of condition … other people might be driven to excel …
they want to set records or get personal bests …

Examiner: Which sports do you think are best for people who aren’t used to physical activity?
Julie: Well … I think people like this should avoid strenuous exercise so things like circuit training are
definitely out of the question … maybe just doing a brisk walk every day … or swimming is always a
good way to get started …

Definitions

• an athletics meeting: an event where various athletics sports are held
• an athletics track: a running track
• an away game: a football match played in the opposing teams stadium
• a brisk walk: a fast walk
• to do judo: (not go or play)
• a football fan: someone who likes football
• a fitness programme: a schedule of activities to keep fit
• a football match: a game of football
• a football pitch: the surface on which you play football (as opposed to a stadium, which is
the building)
• a football season: a period in the year when football is played
• to get into shape: to become fit
• to go jogging: to run around the streets
• a home game: a football match played in the teams own stadium
• to keep fit: to stay in good physically condition
• to be out of condition: to not be physically fit
• a personal best: to achieve the best personal result so far in a sport
• a personal trainer: a sports coach that helps you on a one-to-one basis
• to play tennis/football: (not do or go)
• to run the marathon: to run a distance of 42.195 Kilometres
• a season ticket: a ticket that gives you entry to most of a team’s home games during the
sporting year.
• to set a record: to achieve the best result in a sport
• a sports centre: a public building where people can do various sports
• sports facilities: the equipment and services needed to do a sport
• a squash/tennis/badminton court: the surface where you play these sports
• strenuous exercise: exercise that needs a lot of physical effort
• a strong swimmer: a good swimmer
• a swimming pool: the place where you swim
• to take up exercise: to start doing exercise
• to train hard: to train with a lot of effort

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 Food Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you like to cook?
Mandy: Not really no … most of the time I eat ready meals and take-aways … that’s one of the
reasons I love visiting my mum … you can always guarantee lovely home-cooked food …

Examiner: What time do you usually eat dinner?
Michelle: We have our main meal at around 7.00 … I’m usually starving hungry by then … in fact I
often grab a bite to eat as soon as I get home from college … a sandwich perhaps … but not too
much to spoil my appetite …

Examiner: Are there any types of food you don’t like?
Lionel: No not really … I’m not a fussy eater at all … actually I eat like a horse … I do a lot of sport and
work up quite an appetite …

Part 2-style task

Describe a restaurant that you like to use. You should say

where this restaurant is
what kind of food it serves
how often you go there
and say why you like eating there so much.

Howard: OK … this is a nice topic to talk about … there’s a restaurant just around the corner from
where I live … it’s an Italian restaurant so as you’d expect you can eat various pasta dishes and pizzas
and I usually go there with my family for a slap-up meal if we have anything to celebrate … it’s quite
a posh restaurant … the kind of place you would take someone if you wanted to wine and dine them
… we usually order a 3-course meal … a light starter then a main dish … and I have quite a sweet
tooth so I always look forward to the dessert … I usually order Tiramisu … it makes my mouth water
just to think about it … I’m always totally full up by the end … why do I enjoy it there … well … it’s not
cheap … my parents always foot the bill and we couldn’t afford to go there regularly so it’s always a
nice treat …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: How can we encourage people to eat more healthily?
Anna: I think the best approach is to have everything in moderation … processed food won’t kill you
if you only eat it occasionally … but people should also be encouraged to eat a balanced diet … try to
cook fresh ingredients at home a few times a week …

Examiner: Do you think people enjoy their food as much as they should?
Florrie: I don’t know really … I suppose it’s true that people will often eat a quick snack because
they’re bored not because they’re dying of hunger … and often they just bolt it down and don’t
savour it … so yes … perhaps we could take more time over our food …

Examiner: Do you think cooking is a pleasure or a chore for people who have busy lives?
Julie: Well … whether you follow a recipe or make something up as you go along … I think cooking is
a very creative process … and cooking for other people is a particular pleasure … there’s nothing
more satisfying than seeing people you love tucking into something you’ve cooked yourself …

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Definitions

• to be full up: to eat to the point that you can no longer eat any more
• to be starving hungry: an exaggerated way of saying you are very hungry
• to bolt something down: to eat something very quickly
• to be dying of hunger: an exaggerated way of saying you are hungry
• to eat a balanced diet: to eat the correct types and amounts of food
• to eat like a horse: to eat a lot
• to follow a recipe: to cook a meal using instructions
• to foot the bill: to pay the bill
• a fussy eater: somebody who has their own very high standards about what to eat
• to grab a bite to eat: to eat something quickly (when you’re in a rush)
• to have a sweet tooth: to enjoy sugary food
• home-cooked food: food cooked at home from individual ingredients
• the main meal: the most important meal of the day, usually eaten in the evening
• to make your mouth water: to make you feel very hungry for something
• to play with your food: to push food around the plate to avoid eating it
• processed food: commercially prepared food bought for convenience
• a quick snack: to eat a small amount of food between meals
• a ready meal: see ‘processed food’
• a slap up meal: a large meal
• to spoil your appetite: to eat something that will stop you feeling hungry when it’s meal-
time.
• a take away: a cooked meal prepared in a restaurant and eaten at home
• to tuck into: to eat something with pleasure
• to wine and dine: to entertain someone by treating them to food and drink
• to work up an appetite: to do physical work that leads to you becoming hungry

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 Education Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Are you studying English at a school?
Michel: Yes … I’m taking an intensive course at a local private language school … I attend classes
three times a week …

Examiner: Would you say you are a good student?
Susan: I’m OK I think … I’m pretty good at meeting deadlines and I’m keeping up with my studies …
plus I find it quite easy to learn things by heart which is useful when learning a language …

Examiner: When you were younger did you enjoy your time at school?

Theo: Yes … I liked school … it was an ordinary state school … nothing special … a single-sex school …
which I’m not sure I liked … but the teachers were great … I had lots of friends and I never played
truant like some pupils there …

Part 2-style task

Describe a time during your education that you really enjoyed. You should say:

when this period was
where you were
what you were studying at the time
and say why you were so happy.

Caroline: I’d like to tell you about my time at university … I was a mature student … I didn’t go to
university until I was 25 … and it was my first time away from my parents so it was very exciting … I
was doing a Bachelors Degree and it was a bit of a challenge … some people take a year out but I’d
been away from education for 8 years … plus I had to work my way through uni so I was very busy …
and sitting exams at the end of each year was a new experience for me as well but I really enjoyed
higher education learning about a subject I loved … history … and the social life was great as well … I
don’t think I’ve ever had so many friends … I had my graduation ceremony last year in the local
cathedral and I know my parents were really proud … so yes … that was a really happy time … I’m
thinking of doing a Masters Degree soon … though that might be through distance learning as I have
a full-time job now …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: What qualities do you think a good teacher has?
Anna: They should be patient … they should be subject specialists and be able to explain the subject
clearly … they should give feedback quickly … for example not hang on to essay for ages like some of
my teachers …

Examiner: What are the advantages of studying on a distance learning course?
Florrie: It’s a more flexible way of studying especially if you have a job … tuition fees are usually
cheaper … but you have to be very motivated … and I would imagine more people fall behind with
their studies compared to face-to-face classes …

Examiner: Do all children get equal opportunities in education?

83
Julie: In my country I think it is quite equal but in the UK I’ve heard that most people who go to the
top universities have studied at public schools … you have to be very rich to study in a school like
that … they’re usually boarding schools as well so the fees are enormous …

Definitions

• to attend classes: to go to classes
• bachelors degree: an undergraduate course which usually lasts 3-4 years
• boarding school: a school where pupils live during term time
• distance learning: a way of studying where tuition is carried out over the Internet or by post
• face-to-face classes: as opposed to distance learning the traditional way of studying in a
classroom with colleagues and a teacher
• to fall behind with your studies: to progress less quickly than others
• to give feedback: to offer guidance on a student’s work
• a graduation ceremony: an event where a successful student receives his or her academic
degree
• higher education: education, usually in a college or university, that is followed after high
school or secondary school
• an intensive course: a course that offers lots of training in order to reach a goal in as short a
time as possible
• to keep up with your studies: to not fall behind
• to learn something by heart: to memorize it
• a mature student: a student who is older than average and who has usually returned to
education after a period at work
• masters degree: a period of study which often follows the completion of a bachelors degree
or is undertaken by someone regarded as capable of a higher-level academic course
• to meet a deadline: to finish a job or task in the time allowed or agreed
• to play truant: to stay away from classes without permission
• private language school: an independent school run as a business concern
• public schools: exclusive independent schools in the UK
• a single-sex school: a school where only boys or girls attend (as opposed to a mixed-sex
school)
• to sit an exam: to take an exam
• state school: a school paid for by public funds and available to the general public
• subject specialist: a teacher who has a great deal of knowledge about the subject they teach.
• to take a year out: to spend a year working or travelling before starting university
• tuition fees: the money paid for a course of study
• to work your way through university: to have a paid job whilst studying to support yourself
financially

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Job Vocabulary

Part 1-style questions

Examiner: What do you do?
Sasha: I do a job-share with a friend in a boutique … I enjoy it … I like working with customers …
unfortunately it’s only temporary work but one of the perks of the job is I get a discount on the
clothes …

Examiner: Do you have any career plans yet?
Carly: Yes … I’d like to be my own boss one day … I’m interested in programming and I’d like to
create apps for myself or for other companies … I know being self employed would be a challenge
but the idea of doing a nine-to-five job doesn’t appeal to me at all …

Examiner: What do you see yourself doing in 10 years time?
Marie: I’d hope to be working … not a high-powered job … but I’m quite a creative person so
something where I can work with my hands would be nice … as long as I’m not stuck behind a desk
doing something boring in a dead-end job I’ll be happy …

Part 2-style task

Describe your ideal job. You should say:

what this job is
whether you would need any qualifications
whether it would be easy to find work
and say why you would enjoy this job in particular.

Max: I’ve always loved watching wildlife programmes on TV and often thought how much I’d enjoy
working with animals … perhaps in a safari park … something like that … you’d probably need a
degree to have any chance of being called for an interview and whether there are many full-time
jobs I don’t know … I’m sure a lot of parks rely on voluntary work so it might not be easy … and it
probably wouldn’t be well-paid either but money isn’t everything … I’d get so much job satisfaction
… I can’t imagine it being the kind of job where you get stuck in a rut … and I think I’d be good at it as
well … I’d love to work with animals I enjoy manual work and I’m a good team player … so even
though the working conditions might not be the best I think that would be my ideal job …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: If there are a limited number of jobs available who should be given priority, young people
or older people with more experience?
Anna: Things are so different these days … a few years ago older employees would often take early
retirement or go onto part-time contracts and there were always opportunities for younger people
but now jobs are so scarce … I think younger people need to be given the chance whenever possible
…


Examiner: What are some of the important things a candidate should find out before accepting a
job?

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Ali: Well … you’d need to know about your area of responsibility … and your salary of course and
then there are things like holiday entitlement … maternity or paternity leave … if you’re thinking of
having children … and what the situation is regarding sick leave … that kind of thing …

Examiner: What are the advantages of having your own business rather than working for someone
else?
Julie: Well … unfortunately being an employee at the moment is very stressful … people have very
heavy workloads … they’re always under pressure to meet deadlines … running your own business
isn’t easy … but I do think it would be far more satisfying …

Definitions

• to be called for an interview: to be invited to attend an interview
• to be your own boss: to have your own business
• a dead-end job: a job with no promotional opportunities
• to do a job-share: to share the weekly hours of work with another person
• a good team player: somebody who can work well with other people
• full-time: the number of hours that people usually work in a complete week
• a heavy workload: to have a lot of work to do
• a high-powered job: an important or powerful job
• holiday entitlement: the number of days holiday allowed
• job satisfaction: the feeling of enjoying a job
• manual work: work that requires physical activity
• maternity leave: time off work given to a woman about to have a baby
• to meet a deadline: to finish a job by an agreed time
• a nine-to-five job: a normal job that consists of an 8 hour day (approximately)
• one of the perks of the job: an extra benefit you get from a job
• part-time: working less than full-time
• to run your own business: see ‘to be your own boss’
• to be self-employed: see ‘to be your own boss’
• sick leave: time allowed off work when sick
• to be stuck behind a desk: to be unhappy in an office job
• to be/get stuck in a rut: to be in a boring job that is hard to leave
• to take early retirement: to retire early (retire: to reach an age when you are allowed to stop
working for a living)
• temporary work: work done for a limited time only
• voluntary work: to work without pay
• to be well paid: to earn a good salary
• working conditions: the hours, salary and other entitlements that comes with the job
• to work with your hands: to do manual work

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Health Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Have you got a relation you’re particularly fond of?
Sinita: Yes … my granddad … he’s 94 years old but generally he’s as fit as a fiddle … we’re very close
and see each other a lot … whenever he goes down with a cold or is under the weather I make a
point of visiting him …

Examiner: Do you do any sport?
Jon: Yes … I’m keen on skateboarding … but I haven’t done it for a while … I had a bad fall recently
and pulled a muscle and had a few cuts and bruises … but I’m on the mend and hope to be doing it
again soon …

Examiner: Is there anything you’re particularly afraid of?
Davide: The dentist … I hate going to the dentist … I only ever go if I have a toothache so it usually
means I have to have a filling or even have a tooth out … I really don’t like it …

Part 2-style task

Describe a time when you were ill. You should say:

when this was
what your symptoms were
how long the illness lasted
and say how it affected your life at the time.

Pierre: This is a tricky one really as I’m usually quite healthy … I’ve never been seriously ill … like
everyone else I sometimes get a few aches and pains or catch a cold … I can remember a few months
ago I had to have time off work with a heavy cold … I had the usual symptoms … a blocked nose …
sore throat … it lasted quite a while … about 2 weeks I think though I didn’t have that much time off
work … for a few days I remember feeling poorly but I was over the worst of it after a few days and
went back to work … I always find it’s better to be active when you feel ill as it keeps your mind off
your symptoms … I think my family get a little fed up with me when I’m ill though … I tend to feel
sorry for myself and lie on the sofa all day as if I’m at death’s door … but as I said earlier … on this
occasion it was nothing serious and didn’t really cause me any problems …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: What costs are involved when you are ill in your country?
Anya: Well … people have to pay prescription charges which can be quite expensive … but
fortunately general healthcare is free … unless you want to go private of course and then you can
pay a fortune for your treatment …

Examiner: In your experience are people too quick to take time off work when they’re ill?
Alicia: Yes .. I’ve got friends who have a day off work if they wake up with a runny nose … and in
most cases they seem to make a speedy recovery after they’ve phoned in sick …

Examiner: Do women pay more attention to their health than men?

87
Julie: I think so yes … women are more likely to see their GP for a check-up if they’re concerned
about something … men tend to avoid facing up to any health problems they have … my dad always
seems to have a very chesty cough but refuses to go to make an appointment to see the doctor …

Definitions

• aches and pains: minor pains that continue over a period of time
• to be a bit off colour: to feel a little ill
• to be at death’s door: (informal) to be very ill indeed
• to be on the mend: to be recovering after an illness
• to be over the worst: to have got through the most serious or uncomfortable stage of an illness
• to be under the weather: (informal) to not feel well
• a blocked nose: when the nose has excess fluid due to a cold
• to catch a cold: to get a cold
• a check-up: a physical examination by a doctor
• a chesty cough: a cough caused by congestion around the lungs
• cuts and bruises: minor injuries
• to feel poorly: to feel ill
• as fit as a fiddle: to be very healthy
• to go down with a cold: to become ill
• to go private: to choose to be treated by commercial healthcare rather than by services
offered by the state
• GP: General Practitioner (family doctor)
• to have a filling: to have a tooth repaired
• to have a tooth out: to have a tooth removed
• a heavy cold: a bad cold
• to make an appointment: to arrange a time to see the doctor
• to make a speedy recovery: to recover quickly from an illness
• to phone in sick: to call work to explain you won’t be attending work due to illness
• prescription charges: money the patient pays for medicine authorised by a doctor
• to pull a muscle: to strain a muscle
• a runny nose: a nose that has liquid coming out of it
• a sore throat: inflammation that causes pain when swallowing

88
 Books and Films Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you like to read books?
Marie: Yes … I love reading … I like nothing more than to be engrossed in a good book … I regularly
take out books from the library and usually read them from cover to cover in no time … and I can’t
go to sleep at night without some good bedtime reading …

Examiner: How often do you go to the cinema?
Jemma: Unfortunately we don’t have a cinema near us so we have to go into the nearest town to
catch the latest movie … I usually avoid seeing popular box-office hits which I’m not always keen on
seeing … I prefer low-budget films … sci-fi especially … and there’s a great cinema I go to that has
frequent showings of films like these …

Examiner: Do you prefer reading books or watching films?
Louisa: I’m not really a big reader … I find books quite heavy-going … so I much prefer to see a film …
perhaps it’s the special effects or the soundtrack … I don’t know … I just prefer a film …


Part 2-style task

Describe a book you have read or a film you have seen. You should say:

what this book or film was
when you read or saw it
why you decided to see the film or read the book
and say if you enjoyed it and why.

Pauline I like reading … especially English novels … it’s a great way to improve your vocabulary and
there are so many fantastic authors to choose from … one book that came highly recommended by
my teacher was The Mayor of Casterbridge … I was studying at a school in The UK at the time and
she said it would give me a picture of what life was like years ago in the area I was living … well I
have to say I absolutely loved it … it was a real page-turner … it’s a historical novel and the setting
was a fictional town called Casterbridge … but actually it was based on a town near where I was
studying called Dorchester … it had such a great plot … to cut a long story short it tells the story of
the downfall of a man called Henchard the central character who lives during a period of great social
change around the time of the industrial revolution … the reason I enjoyed it so much … apart from
the great story … it gave me a picture of what life had been like in the place I was studying at the
time … I really couldn’t put it down … a fantastic story …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Is reading as pleasurable in digital format?
Alise: Personally I prefer reading a paperback or hardback … especially if I’m reading a classic which I
don’t think feels right as an e-book … but I can see it can be good for others … my grandmother has
an e-reader and she loves the way you can enlarge the text …

Examiner: Do you think bookshops will survive the digital revolution?
Thomas: I think so … at least I hope so … I love flicking through books in a bookshop … online
shopping is useful … finding out on Amazon if a book you want has got a good review … maybe
getting one that is difficult to find … but I still love the experience of being in a bookshop …

89
Examiner: Statistics show that visits to the cinema are up despite the availability of DVDs and online
downloads. Why do you think this might be?
Jamie: I think it’s the whole experience that the cinema offers … going out to see a film when it goes
on general release … and seeing it on the big screen is more exciting than watching the film at home
on TV … especially if it’s an action movie … and watching it with others makes it even more special …

Definitions

• an action movie: a film with fast moving scenes, often containing violence
• to be engrossed in: to be completely focused on one thing
• bedtime reading: something to read in bed before you go to sleep
• to be a big reader: someone who reads a lot
• to be based on: to use as a modal
• a box office hit: a financially successful film
• to be heavy-going: difficult to read
• a blockbuster: a film that is a big commercial success
• to catch the latest movie: to see a film that has just come out
• the central character: the main person in a film or book
• a classic: of the highest quality
• to come highly recommended: to be praised by another person
• couldn’t put it down: wasn’t able to stop reading a book
• an e-book: a digital book
• an e-reader: a device for reading e-books
• to flick through: to look quickly through a book
• to get a good/bad review: to receive positive or negative feedback
• to go on general release: when a film can be seen by the general public
• hardback: a book with a rigid cover (see ‘paperback’ below)
• a historical novel: a story set in the past
• a low budget film: a film made with a small amount of money
• on the big screen: at the cinema
• a page turner: a book that you want to keep reading
• paperback: a book with a flexible cover (see ‘hardback’ above)
• plot: the main events in a film or book
• to read something from cover to cover: to read a book from the first page to the last
• sci-fi: science fiction
• to see a film: to see a film at the cinema (see ‘watch a film’ below)
• the setting: where the action takes place
• showings: performances of a film
• soundtrack: the music that accompanies a film
• special effects: the visuals or sounds that are added to a film which are difficult to produce
naturally
• to take out (a book from the library): to borrow a book from the library
• to tell the story of: to outline the details of someone’s life or an event
• to watch a film: to watch a film on TV (see ‘to see a film’ above)

90
 Accommodation Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you live in a house or an apartment?
Callum: Actually I live on campus … in a single room in halls of residence … all first year students are
encouraged to do that as they’re close to the university … next year I plan to move into student digs
in town …

Examiner: Tell me about where you live.
Julia: I live with my parents in the suburbs of Madrid … we only moved in recently … in fact we had a
house-warming party just a few weeks ago …

Examiner: What kind of accommodation do most people live in in your city?
Maria: In the city itself the majority of people live in apartment blocks … that’s what surprised me
about England … most people seem to live in terraced houses with lovely back gardens …

Part 2-style task

Describe a house or an apartment you would like to live in. You should say

what kind of accommodation it would be
where it would be
who would live there with you
and say why you would enjoy living in this place.

Paolo: I think most people when answering this question would say they’d like to live in a big
detached house with spacious rooms … views of the countryside and so on … but actually my ideal
home would be a lot different … I’ve always loved the idea of having a mobile home … a really
expensive one with all the mod cons … so I could live wherever I wanted or at least have lots of
holidays and be able to take all my home comforts with me whenever I travelled … I realise this
would have to be a second home as I’d need a base … a permanent address … but the mobile home
would be the accommodation I’d find it exciting to live in … I suppose once I settle down and have
children I’ll want to get on the property ladder … I’ll be like everyone else … saving up to put down a
deposit on a house or an apartment … I don’t think my family would want to live in a mobile home …
but I like to think I’ll still keep that dream home in mind ….

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Is it better to own your own home or to rent?
Ana: I think both have their advantages … living in rented accommodation isn’t necessarily a bad
thing … you don’t have a huge debt like you do when you take out a mortgage but I suppose the
property market offers you an investment for the future … I’m sure that’s why most people prefer to
own their own home …

Examiner: What options are available to young couples looking for accommodation in your country?
Toni: If they want to buy their own home it isn’t easy for first-time buyers … mortgages are hard to
get so most people live with their parents or in rented accommodation … but that can also be very
expensive … you often have to pay rent in advance … and if the accommodation isn’t fully furnished
you have the expense of buying furniture …

91
Examiner: What are some of the pleasures involved in making a home for ourselves?
Suki: I suppose it starts with house-hunting … finding your ideal home … some people enjoy doing up
an old property … giving a property that’s old and tired a new lease of life … others like making
wherever they live feel like home with some home comforts …

Definitions

• (all the) mod cons: technology at home that makes jobs easier such as a washing machine,
dishwasher etc.
• apartment block: a large building made up of smaller units of apartments
• back garden: a garden at the rear of the house
• detached house: a house that is not physically connected to another property
• to do up a property: to repair an old building
• dream home: a home you regard as perfect
• first-time buyer: someone buying a property for the first time, especially when taking out a
loan (mortgage)
• fully-furnished: a rented property with all furniture included
• to get on the property ladder: to buy a property with the aim of buying another bigger or
more expensive one later in life
• hall of residence: a college or university building where students live
• home comforts: things that make a home feel comfortable to live in
• house-hunting: looking for a property to live in
• house-warming party: a party to celebrate moving into a new home
• ideal home: a perfect home
• to live on campus: to live on the university or college grounds
• mobile home: a home that can be moved by a vehicle or one that has its own engine
• to move into: to begin to live in a property
• to own your own home: to have bought the property you live in
• to pay rent in advance: weekly or monthly rent paid at the beginning of the week or month
• permanent address: a fixed address
• property market: the buying and selling of land or buildings
• to put down a deposit: to pay an amount of money as the first in a series of future payments
• rented accommodation: property owned by someone else and for which a person pays a
fixed amount to live in
• single room: a room for one person
• spacious room: a large room
• student digs: student accommodation
• the suburbs: a residential area on the edge of towns or cities
• to take out a mortgage: to borrow a large amount of money, paid back over several years, in
order to buy a house
• terraced house: a house connected on both sides by other properties

92
 Fashion Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you enjoy buying clothes?
Pedro: I used to … yes … like most young people I was a bit of a slave to fashion and I’d always have
to buy that must-have shirt or pair of shoes … I’m not so bothered now though … I wouldn’t feel
comfortable wearing something old fashioned but I’m not as bothered as I used to be about what I
wear …

Examiner: What kind of clothes do you like to wear?
Marco: I prefer casual clothes actually … I hate getting dressed up for special occasions … personally I
think it’s possible to look good in a pair of jeans … but that’s my opinion … I don’t think my wife
would call me a fashion icon that’s for sure …

Examiner: Are there many clothes shops where you live?
Sylvia: Yes … there are lots in my town … apart from the big chain stores we’ve got a couple of really
nice shops that sell vintage clothes … old clothes but in a classic style that never really go out of
fashion … I love going there …

Part 2-style task

Describe someone you know who dresses well. You should say

who they are
how you know them
what kind of clothes they wear
and say why you like the way they dress.

Tomoko: I’d like to talk about one of my teachers … Miss Evans … she teaches us English in the
school I go to … we always look forward to seeing what she’s going to wear when our lessons start …
she’s always very well dressed and takes a lot of pride in her appearance … it’s not that she dresses
in very smart clothes … she doesn’t come to school dressed to kill or anything like that … but what
she wears really suits her … and she has a great sense of style as well … we often ask her where she
gets some of her clothes and most of the time they’re just off the peg … and she says she’s not
interested in designer labels or anything like that … she doesn’t seem too concerned about keeping
up with the latest fashion … she just wears clothes that are timeless … yes … Miss Evans is the
person I think looks great in the clothes she wears …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: What factors do you think affect the clothes we choose to wear?
Maki: It depends … where we are or where we’re going is a big factor … if you are going out to a club
or party you’re going to dress for the occasion … and then there are those who think it’s important
to look like they’re on trend … they’ll want to wear the latest fashions … there are lots of factors
really …

Examiner: What kind of things determine what is in fashion and what we should be wearing?
Martin: I suppose the big fashion houses and fashion shows must have an effect but the clothes you
see on the catwalk don’t always reflect what normal people wear … so I suppose it will be things like
what singers are wearing in videos or models are wearing in magazines … that kind of thing …

93
Examiner: Is it possible to look good without spending lots of money on clothes?
Corinna: I’m sure it is … yes … I suppose it’s about having an eye for what looks good … knowing how
to mix and match different items of clothing that go well together … I think you can pick up great
bargains in charity shops … sometimes for youngsters even hand-me-downs can look good …

Definitions

• to be on trend: to be very fashionable
• casual clothes: not formal
• classic style: a simple, traditional style that is always fashionable
• designer label: a well-known company that makes (often expensive) clothing
• dressed to kill: wearing clothes that attract admirers
• to dress for the occasion: to wear clothes suitable for a particular event
• fashionable: in fashion
• fashion house: a company that sells (usually expensive) new styles in clothes
• fashion icon: a person who is famous for their sense of fashion
• fashion show: an event where modals show off the latest in fashion designs
• to get dressed up: to put on nice clothes, often to go out somewhere special
• to go out of fashion: to not be in fashion any more
• hand-me-downs: clothes that are passed down from older brothers or sisters to their
younger siblings
• to have an eye for (fashion): to be a good judge of
• to have a sense of style: the ability to wear clothes that look stylish
• the height of fashion: very fashionable
• to keep up with the latest fashion: to wear the latest fashions
• to look good in: to wear something that suits you
• to mix and match: to wear different styles or items of clothing that aren’t part of a set outfit
• must-have: something that is highly fashionable and therefore in demand
• off the peg: clothing that is ready made
• old fashioned: not in fashion any more
• on the catwalk: the stage that modals walk along to show off the latest fashions
• a slave to fashion: someone who always feel the need to wear the latest fashions
• smart clothes: the kind of clothes worn for a formal event
• to suit someone: to look good on someone
• to take pride in one’s appearance: to pay attention to how one looks
• timeless: something that doesn’t go out of fashion
• vintage clothes: clothes from an earlier period
• well-dressed: to be dressed attractively

94
 Personality Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: How would you describe yourself?
Paula: Everyone tells me I take after my mum as I’m quite laid-back … I think I’m good company but
you should ask my friends if they agree …

Examiner: In which ways are you similar to your friends?
Manuel: I seem to be attracted to introverts … not people who are painfully shy but most of my
friends are a little reserved … and I think that’s what I’m like …

Examiner: Are you similar or different to your brother(s)/sister(s)?
Mira: I think my brother and I are very similar … I’d say we’re fun-loving and tend to be a bit
extroverted … my brother is certainly the life and soul of the party … I’m not sure that applies to me
…

Part 2-style task

Describe a teacher you once had who you enjoyed being taught by. You should say

who this person was
when they were your teacher
which subject they taught you
and describe what it was about their character that you liked.

Carolina: I’d like to describe my English teacher from school … Miss Thomas … this was a few years
ago now and she was my teacher at a time when I was getting a little bored with being at school …
unlike some of the other teachers Miss Thomas never lost her temper … she was very calm and easy-
going … she was also very broad-minded … we were able to ask her questions about lots of subjects
that some other teachers would refuse to discuss which made us respect her even more … she had a
great sense of humour too … she’d laugh at our jokes as well as making us laugh … and she would
also bend over backwards to help us with our work … she always put us first and often stayed
around at the end of class to talk with anyone who needed help … apparently she was highly
respected within her field but you would never know as she was the type that hid her light under a
bushel … she was very modest and self-effacing … so yes … Miss Thomas was a teacher I have fond
memories of …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Which personal qualities do you think we most want to pass on to our children?
Martin: I certainly would want my children to be self-confident and self-assured … I really believe
that people who feel good about themselves are in a good position to face what life has to offer
them … and I’d hope they wouldn’t be self-centred … but remembered to think about others …

Examiner: Which characteristics do you think are the least appealing in a person?
Marianne: Well … people who are very narrow-minded are difficult to get on with … it’s nice when
someone is open to other people’s opinion and willing to think about their own views … and people
who are two-faced can be a little irritating … relationships are built on trust and without honesty
there’s not much left …

Examiner: Which personality types do you think are less likely to suffer from stress or anxiety?

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Sol: Probably people who are thick-skinned … who don’t let people or problems affect them too
much … and if you are fair-minded you’ ll be less likely to overreact to situations or be quick-
tempered …

Definitions

• to be the life and soul of the party: a fun person, someone who is the centre of activity
• to bend over backwards: to try very hard to help someone
• broad-minded: prepared to accept other views or behaviours
• easy-going: relaxed and not easily worried about anything
• extrovert: an energetic person who likes the company of others
• fair-minded: to treat people equally
• fun-loving: to enjoy having fun
• to hide one’s light under a bushel: to hide one’s talents and skills
• good company: enjoyable to socialise with
• good sense of humour: the ability to understand what is funny
• introvert: someone who is shy
• laid-back: see ‘easy-going’
• to lose one’s temper: to suddenly become angry
• narrow minded: opposite of ‘broad-minded’ (see above)
• painfully shy: very shy
• to put others first: to think of others before yourself
• quick-tempered: to become angry quickly
• reserved: shy
• self-assured: confident
• self-centred: thinks only of oneself
• self-confident: believes in one’s own ability or knowledge
• self-effacing: to not try to get the attention of others (especially in terms of hiding one’s
skills or abilities)
• to take after: to be like (often another member of the family)
• thick-skinned: not easily affected by criticism
• trustworthy: can be trusted
• two-faced: not honest or sincere. Will say one thing to someone to their face and another
when they are not present.

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 Business Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you work or are you a student?
Hati: I run my own business actually … I have an online business selling cosmetics … I set up the
business 5 years ago and I’m really enjoying working for myself …

Examiner: What is your ideal job?
Kaori: I don’t think I’d enjoy working for a big company … I think I’d like to go it alone and be self-
employed … I’m not sure what area of business it would be but I think I’d enjoy the process of
drawing up a business plan and seeing if I could be successful …

Examiner: Is your town a nice place to live?
Monique: It’s OK … the main problem we have is our local high street … it used to be a busy centre
but lots of shops have gone bust … it must be very difficult to make a profit when you have huge
supermarkets in the area and a lot haven’t been able to survive with such cut-throat competition …

Part 2-style task

Describe a business you know that you admire. You should say

what this business is
what the business sells
how long you have known about the business
and say why you like it so much.

Magda: Actually I discovered a business very recently that I like so much I’d like to do something
similar in the future … it’s a small niche business that runs courses in how to cook … especially bread
… the owner uses his kitchen for the courses and went into business with a local community shop
and sells a lot of the bread and cakes they make in the shop … I first got to hear about the business
last year … my wife paid for me to do one of the baking courses and I got to know the owner during
the training … it’s a lifestyle business really … he doesn’t have plans to take on employees or expand
into new areas … he’s happy earning a living doing the thing he loves … I really admire what he does
and I’m sure a lot of people would love to do something similar … he has a web presence … in fact
that’s how we got to find out about his company … and he uses social media to raise the company
profile … but he’s the only person involved in running the business so he’s in complete control of
where the business goes … that’s something that must make it really satisfying … as long as he’s
managing to balance the books and the cash flow is healthy I’m sure he must be very pleased with
what he has achieved …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Why do some people decide to set up their own business?
Marion: I suppose it’s the idea of being in control of your own destiny … or of believing in a product
or service idea you may have … plus it must be very exciting … launching products … winning
contracts … and seeing your sales figures improving must be wonderful …

Examiner: What are some of the dangers involved in starting a business?
Hiro: Well … obviously you need to have a good idea … some people say you need to do market
research beforehand so you know what the market wants … if you don’t do this you could go under

97
… and if it is a good idea the chances are someone else is doing the same thing so you could end up
facing stiff competition …

Examiner: What are some of things you have to do when running your own business that might not
appeal to everyone?
Katy: Personally i don’t like being in debt so taking out a business loan wouldn’t suit me at all … and
I know a lot of companies do cold calling to try and drum up business … that’s something I’d hate to
do … and laying people off if the business gets into trouble … that would be horrible …

Definitions

• to balance the books: to not spend more money than you are earning
• to be self-employed: to work for yourself/to not work for an employer
• to cold call: to make a sales call to someone without asking them for permission first
• cut throat competition: when one company lowers its prices, forcing other companies to do
the same, sometimes to a point where business becomes unprofitable
• to do market research: to do research into what potential customers would or wouldn’t buy
• to draw up a business plan: to write a plan for a new business
• to drum up business: to try to get customers
• to earn a living: to earn money
• to go bust: when a business is forced to close because it is unsuccessful
• cash flow: the money coming in and going out of a business
• to go into business with: to join another person to start or expand a business
• to go it alone: to start your own business
• to go under: (see ‘to go bust’)
• to have a web presence: to have a website or social media profile that showcases your
business
• to launch a product: to start selling and promoting a new product
• to lay someone off: when a company ends an employee’s contract of employment
• lifestyle business: a business that is set up to bring in a sufficient income and no more
• to make a profit: to earn more money than it costs to run the business
• niche business: a business that serves a small, particular market
• to raise a company profile: to make more people aware of a business
• to run your own business: to have a business of your own
• sales figures: a report of the income a company generates through sales of products or
services
• to set up a business: to start a business
• stiff competition: strong competition from other companies in the same area of work
• to take on employees: to employ people
• to take out a loan: to borrow money
• to win a contract: when a business gets legally-binding work with an individual or company
• to work for yourself: (see ‘to be self-employed’)

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 Physical Appearance Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you look like any other people in your family?
Carlo: No … not at all … take my brother for example … he has short cropped hair and has quite a
pointed face … he’s also quite fair-skinned compared to me …

Examiner: Tell me about your family.
Andrea: My father’s getting on a bit … he’s in his 60s … but he looks very young for his age … he still
does lots of exercise and is quite well-built …

Examiner: What does your best friend look like?
Mandy: She’s the same age as me … she has shoulder-length hair … fair hair … she has a slim figure
and is medium height …

Part 2-style task

Describe a person whose appearance you like. You should say

who this person is
what their relationship is to you
what they look like
and say what it is about their appearance you like.

Monique: OK … I’d like to talk about my aunt … her name’s Marta and she’s quite a character …
she’s middle-aged but has a very youthful appearance … she’s a little overweight I suppose but not
too much … she has a friendly round face framed by thick blonde hair … she has a lovely complexion
and she’s always well-turned out … she actually always looks like she’s going out for the evening to
somewhere special … there’s never a hair out of place … I’ve always thought she bears a striking
resemblance to someone on TV … I can’t remember the name now … she wears glasses and always
seems to have a different pair on every time I see her … I like the way she looks because she wears
clothes that are right for her age and manages to look glamorous without it looking like she’s too
done up … yes … I’ll be happy if I look like her when I’m her age …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Is it important to dress well whenever we go out?
Mark: It depends where you’re going … I know some people get done up just to go to the shops …
but I don’t see the point … you shouldn’t go out looking scruffy with disheveled hair but I really don’t
see the point in getting dressed up to the nines unless you’re going somewhere special …

Examiner: Do people worry too much about their appearance as they get older?
Mira: I’m sure they do … yes … but it happens to all of us doesn’t it … we all go grey eventually and
get hard of hearing … we start to lose our figure … that’s why plastic surgery is so popular …
personally I think we just need to grow old gracefully and not worry too much about how we look …

Examiner: Is attractiveness a quality worthwhile aiming for?
Phoebe: I’d like to say no … it shouldn’t matter what we look like in terms of our physical appearance
… but unfortunately it seems women especially are taken more seriously if they are good looking
with a slender figure with perfect make up and so on …

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Definitions

• to bear a striking resemblance: to look very similar to
• cropped hair: very short hair
• disheveled hair: untidy hair
• to dress up to the nines: to dress very smartly or glamorously
• fair hair: light-coloured hair
• to be fair-skinned: light skinned
• to get done up: to dress smartly
• to be getting on a bit: to be getting old
• to go grey: to have hair that is turning grey
• to be good looking: to be attractive
• to grow old gracefully: to act in a way that embraces the fact you are getting older
• to be hard of hearing: to find it difficult to hear
• in his/her 30s/40s: to be 20/30 something
• scruffy: dressed untidily
• to look young for your age: to look younger than you are
• to lose one’s figure: to have a figure that has lost its toned shape
• complexion: natural skin colour and texture
• make up: cosmetics
• medium height: average height
• middle-aged: approximately between 45-65
• to never have a hair out of place: perfectly styled hair
• to be overweight: to weigh more than is regarded as healthy
• pointed face: the opposite of a round face
• shoulder-length hair: hair that comes down to the shoulders and no further
• slender figure: a figue that is tall and slim
• slim figure: attractively thin
• thick hair: a lot of hair
• to wear glasses: to use spectacles
• to be well-built: to be muscular
• to be well-turned out: to look smart
• youthful appearance: to look young

100
 Town and City Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: What is it like where you live?
Christiane: I live in a residential area of a busy town in the south of Spain … we have all the facilities
you need … good public transport … a good shopping centre … it’s nice …

Examiner: Do you like living in the city?
Andrea: Yes I do … I like going out with my friends and there are lots of lively bars and restaurants
within walking distance of my apartment … I’m a bit of a culture vulture as well so it’s great to have
access to art exhibitions and that kind of thing …

Examiner: Do you get many tourists visiting your area?
Mandy: Not really no … I live in the inner-city and the area is a little run down … it’s basically a lot of
high-rise flats and many of the shops are boarded up … so nothing to interest tourists really …

Part 2-style task

Describe an interesting town or city in your country that visitors might enjoy. You should say

what the place is called
where the place is
what the facilities are like
and say why visitors might enjoy going there.

Monique: Anyone who comes to my country really should spend some time in Barcelona … it’s a
beautiful place … it’s not what you would call a sprawling city … it’s quite compact really and you
could walk across the city in a couple of hours … but there’s no need to do that as we have a
fantastic public transport system so it’s easy to get around … there are various districts all with their
own character … you have the upmarket shops in the centre … you’ll find lots of chain stores you’ll
recognise from your own country but also local brands as well … we have the narrow streets in the
Gothic district with lots of fashionable boutiques and tourist attractions … there’s the Olympic area
and the beaches along the coast … and dotted around the city are some lovely public spaces … parks
and squares in the city centre and on the outskirts of Barcelona where people relax with their friends
and family … and of course pavement cafes everywhere … all that and some great historical places of
interest … so a great destination for tourists …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: What are the advantages of living in a city or big town?
Carrie: I think it’s having access to local facilities really … local shops as well as access to larger
shopping malls in the city centre … and if you’re well-off you can afford to live in the suburbs away
from the busy traffic …

Examiner: In your experience are city centres usually attractive places?
Mary: Some can be yes … especially those with a historical interest … but sometimes they’re full of
ugly office blocks … multi-story car parks … and residents living in poor housing … it depends on the
city doesn’t it?

Examiner: What are some of the challenges facing towns and cities?

101
Penny: I suppose traffic congestion is a major problem … and the growth in out-of-town
supermarkets and retail parks mean lots of town centre shops are closing down … plus a shortage of
good quality housing … I think these are the major challenges …

Definitions

• boarded up shops: shops that are no longer doing business
• chain stores: well-known brands with shops in multiple cities
• to close down: to stop doing business
• fashionable boutiques: fashionable clothes shops
• to get around: to travel around
• high-rise flats: multi-story apartments
• inner-city: the central part of a city where people live and where conditions are often poor
• in the suburbs: the outer area of large towns and cities where people live
• lively bars/restaurants: bars or restaurants with a good atmosphere
• local facilities: local buildings or services serving the public
• multi-story car parks: car parks on several floors
• office block: a large building that contains offices
• out of town shopping centre/retail park: large shopping centres outside of the town or city
• pavement cafe: cafes with tables outside on the pavement
• places of interest: buildings that have a particular interest for visitors
• poor housing: housing that is not in good condition
• public spaces: areas in a town or city that are open to the public
• public transport system: public vehicles such as buses and trains that operate at regular times
on fixed routes
• residential area: an area where people live
• run down: old and of a poor standard
• shopping centre: an area consisting of multiple shops
• shopping malls: large indoor shopping centres
• sprawling city: a city that has grown over time and which covers a wide area
• tourist attraction: a place of interest to tourists
• traffic congestion: heavy traffic making it difficult to move around a town or city
• upmarket shops: expensive fashionable shops

102
 Music Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: What kind of music do you listen to?
Katherine: I’m a big fan of classical music … it doesn’t make me very popular with my children …
their taste in music is completely different … they always want to listen to their favourite rock bands
…

Examiner: Do you play any instruments?
Jamie: No I don’t … I’ve always wished I’d taken up a musical instrument … I’d love to be able to play
the guitar … but I think I’m a bit tone deaf so perhaps I’d find it hard …

Examiner: Have you got any hobbies or interests?
Marco: I’m really into live music … I go to a lot of music festivals … I think a live performance always
sounds more exciting than a recorded version … as long as the performers can sing and play well of
course …

Part 2-style task

Describe a song you like to listen to. You should say

what the piece of music is called
how long you have liked it
when you like to listen to it
and say why you like it so much.

Millie: Well … I’m a little older than most students and when I was young Abba the Swedish pop
group were very famous … I don’t think it was cool to like them even though they had a huge
following but I think now people have realised what wonderful songs they wrote … one piece of
music in particular is called ‘Slipping through my fingers’ … it wasn’t a massive hit but I love it … it’s
a song for parents and it’s all about how quickly our children grow up … it’s a slow number and like a
lot of their songs it’s a very catchy tune … the two women in Abba had great voices and it’s the kind
of music you can also sing along to easily … even if you don’t have a great voice … I listen to Abba
when I feel like a sing-song … and I especially like to listen when I’m doing the housework … it stops
me thinking about the hard work …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Is the Internet a good or bad thing for the music industry?
Thomas: On the one hand it’s good for marketing new musical talent or particular bands but it’s so
easy to share and download tracks for free I think it is costing the industry a lot of money …

Examiner: Should music be treated as seriously as subjects like maths or sciences at school?
Carla: I think it should … I don’t think it should be taught in a boring way … I mean making children
read music … but I do think they should be encouraged to play instruments and to play things by ear
perhaps … to keep the lessons fun …

Examiner: Where do people usually enjoy listening to music?
Sally: In lots of ways or places … as background music when they are doing something else … at
concerts when a band goes on tour … or in clubs or discos …

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Definitions

• adoring fans: people who love a particular band or singer
• background music: music that is played while something else is happening
• a catchy tune: a song that is easy to remember and makes you want to sing it
• classical music: music that is regarded as part of a long, formal tradition
• to download tracks: to obtain music from the Internet
• to have a great voice: to sing well
• to go on tour: to go on a planned series of performances around a region or country
• a huge following: a large number of fans
• live music: music that is listened to while it is performed (not recorded)
• live performance: (see live music)
• a massive hit: a record that sells lots of copies
• a music festival: music performances at a venue often over several days
• musical talent: skilled at music
• to be/sing out of tune: to not be in harmony/to sing the wrong notes
• a piece of music: an item of music
• to play by ear: to play without reading the musical notes
• a pop group: a small group of people who play or sing pop music together
• to read music: to understand and follow written musical notes
• a rock band: a group of musicians that play rock music
• to sing along to: to join in singing
• a sing-song: to sing informally, often with other people
• a slow number: a song with a slow tempo
• to take up a musical instrument: to begin learning a musical instrument
• taste in music: the music someone likes
• to be tone deaf: to be unable to distinguish the different notes in music

104
 Weather Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: What’s the weather like in your country?
Katie: It’s quite changeable really … we have periods of time with clear blue skies then all of a
sudden we’ll have torrential rain.

Examiner: Which months have the best weather in your country?
Ernst: Well … I suppose it’s a matter of personal taste really … I like it around the end of October and
November … I’m not fond of the heatwaves we often get during the summer … it’s not freezing cold
during these months and we still get lots of sunny spells.

Examiner: Does it bother you much when it rains?
Junko: It depends … if I get caught in the rain and I get drenched I don’t like it … but I’m a gardener
so a drop of rain is good for my plants.

Part 2-style task

Describe a time when you experienced extreme weather conditions. You should say

when this was
where you were
what the weather was like
and say how you felt about the experience.

I was studying English in a language school a few years ago … we were in Cornwall in the UK … we’d
been enjoying lovely sunny days … not a cloud in the sky … when all of a sudden there was a change
in the weather … we were in town walking around the shops when it started to pour down … I’d
never seen such heavy rain before … within about 10 minutes the roads were full of water … I think
they call it a flash flood … it was like being in the middle of a tropical storm … the water was almost
up to my knees … the weather forecast hadn’t predicted it so everyone was taken by surprise … I’m
not sure you could call it ‘extreme’ weather as a few hours later it started to clear up … the sun came
out and slowly the water level went down … but a lot of people’s houses were flooded so it would
have been extreme for them … I found it all quite exciting … in my country we generally have a very
mild climate and don’t often get floods like this so it was quite an experience for me.

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Do you think the weather affects how people feel?
Tierre: Absolutely … yes … I don’t mind the occasional cold spell but I think the winter months can
make you feel down. I hate having to leave the house in the winter … there’s often a thick fog every
morning and we sometimes get bitterly cold winds … the winter certainly makes me feel a little
depressed … though having said that … it’s always nice to see the town covered in a blanket of snow.

Examiner: Do you think the weather is changing due to global warming?
Ceri: I don’t know if it’s due to global warming or not but the weather in my country is certainly
changing … we’ve been getting quite mild winters lately … the temperatures are sometimes below
freezing but only occasionally … and then during the summer it can get boiling hot with a lot of older
people even suffering from heatstroke.

Examiner: In which ways are weather forecasts useful?

105
Sinita: Well … if you’re planning a trip or going on holiday it’s important to know whether you’ll need
to dress up warm or take an umbrella … farmers need to know what the long-range forecast is so
they can plan their work … I suppose people who organise outside events need to know as well in
case things get rained off.

Definitions

• to be below freezing: below zero degrees Celsius
• bitterly cold: very cold and unpleasant
• a blanket of snow: a complete covering of snow
• boiling hot: very hot (informal)
• changeable: weather that often changes
• a change in the weather: when weather conditions change
• clear blue skies: a sky without clouds
• to clear up: when clouds or rain disappear
• to come out (the sun): when the sun appears out of a cloudy sky
• a cold spell: a short period of cold weather
• to dress up warm: to wear warm clothes to protect yourself against wintry conditions
• a drop of rain: a little bit of rain
• a flash flood: a sudden and severe flood
• freezing cold: very cold (informal)
• to get caught in the rain: to be outside when it rains unexpectedly
• to get drenched: to get very wet
• heatstroke: a serious condition caused by being too long in hot weather
• a heatwave: a period of very hot weather
• heavy rain: intense rainfall
• long-range forecast: the weather forecast for several days or weeks ahead
• mild climate: a climate without extreme weather conditions
• mild winter: a winter that isn’t particularly cold
• not a cloud in the sky: see ‘clear blue skies’ above
• to pour down: to rain heavily
• to be rained off: to be cancelled or postponed due to poor weather
• sunny spells: short periods of sunny weather
• thick fog: a dense fog that makes visibility very poor
• torrential rain: see ‘heavy rain’ above
• tropical storm: a storm typical of ones that you find in tropical climates
• weather forecast: a TV/radio programme or section in a newspaper/magazine which predicts
weather conditions

106
 Shopping Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Do you often go shopping for personal items?
Maxine: When I can afford it yes … my college is in the city centre and I do a lot of window shopping
… but being a student I’m on a tight budget so I have to be careful with money …

Examiner: Are there many shops where you live?
Jenny: We’ve got a few local shops nearby and a few independent stores but none of the big high
street names … I have to go into town for them …

Examiner: Do you enjoy shopping?
Marco: It depends … I hate it when the sales are on … crowds of people all trying to snap up a
bargain … I find it all a bit stressful … I also get annoyed when shop assistants try to give me the hard
sell when all I want to do is look around …

Part 2-style task

Describe a time when you bought something for someone. You should say

when this was
what is was you bought
who you bought it for
and say how you felt about buying it for them.

Coleen: I’d like to tell you about the time … about four years ago … my husband and I bought a
computer for our daughter … she was about to go to university and we’d promised her we would
treat her to one … at the time there had been a big advertising campaign for the latest Apple
Macbook and our daughter was very keen to have one … she kept telling us they were value for
money … even though they seemed very expensive to us … anyway we tried to shop around to see if
we could pick up a bargain … this was in the middle of the summer sales and wherever you went
prices were being slashed on big brand names … but unfortunately not Apple products … we ended
up having to pay the full price … I remember my daughter justifying the cost by pointing out how
nice the Apple carrier bag was … but it was lovely to see her so excited and the customer service
she’s received during the four years she’s had it has been excellent … so it was value for money after
all …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: Do you think we will stop using paper money in the future?
Louisa: I think it’s almost certain … at the moment it’s still possible to pay in cash but I’m sure this
will change … the problem is people are more likely to get into debt and run up a credit card bill
when this happens.

Examiner: How do companies encourage the consumer to spend their money?
Peter: Well … a recent development in my country is something called ‘Black Friday’ where people
are encouraged to shop until they drop and buy the latest must-have products … then there are
things like loyalty cards to get the customer back in the store …

Examiner: What do you think shops need to do to create a positive shopping experience?

107
Tania: The main thing for me is not being pressurised to buy … I appreciate that shop assistants are
probably on commission but if I’m looking for clothes for example I like to take my time … to try
something on … and to ask for help if I need it …

Definitions

• advertising campaign: a series of advertisements to persuade people to buy something
• big brand names: large well-known companies or product names
• to be careful with money: to not over-spend
• carrier bag: bags (usually plastic) supplied by shops
• customer service: the degree to which customers are treated well
• to get into debt: to owe money
• to give someone the hard sell: to put pressure on someone to buy something
• high street names: well-known shops
• independent stores: small shops independent of large companies
• local shops: community shops
• loyalty card: a card issued by a shop to allow customers to save money on the basis of what
they spend
• must-have product: a product that is very popular that a lot of people want to have
• to be on a tight budget: to have a limited amount of money to spend
• to be on commission: to pay someone in relation to the amount they sell
• a pay in cash: to pay for something using coins or paper money
• to pay the full price: to pay the full amount for something
• to pick up a bargain: to buy something much cheaper than the normal price
• to run up a credit card bill: to owe money on a credit card
• to shop around: to try different shops to find the best deal
• shop assistant: the person who serves customers
• to shop until you drop: to do a lot of shopping
• to slash prices: to reduce prices a great deal
• to snap up a bargain: to buy something quickly that is being sold cheaply
• summer sales: a period in the year when things are sold cheaply
• to try something on: to see if an item of clothing fits or is suitable
• to be value for money: to be worth the cost
• window shopping: to visit a store to look at items without the intention of buying anything

108
 Environment Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Are there any environmental problems in your country?
Kelly: Yes … we have a serious issue with pollution levels in some of our big cities … exhaust fumes
from cars and lorries are definitely one reason for the problem but we also have a lot of heavy
industry in some areas and this also results in poor air quality …

Examiner: Do you take an interest in nature?
Jenny: Well … I’m a city person through and through and don’t get back to nature very often I’m
afraid … but like everyone else I’m fascinated by the natural world and I like watching documentaries
showing wild animals in their natural habitat …

Examiner: Do you or your family take steps to help the environment?
Mira: My parents have always tried to make us aware of our impact on the environment … they’re
really into energy conservation … and always try to buy environmentally friendly products if they
have the chance …

Part 2-style task

Describe an environmental problem that has been in the news. You should say

when this was
where the event happened
what actually took place
and say how you felt about this problem.

Martin: Well … this is an interesting question … there are so many issues I could think of … natural
disasters like earthquakes and floods seem to be in the news almost every year … but there was one
story recently about some animals that were under threat … it wasn’t focused on one place in
particular … it was looking at various animals that could actually become extinct in different African
countries … if we don’t take steps to protect them … these were really iconic animals like gorillas …
leopards … rhinos … and apparently they’re now listed as endangered species … what made it really
depressing was they were in danger thanks to us … in some cases it was due to a loss of habitat
either because people need more agricultural production … or even worse I think … because of
hunting and poaching … I hate to think of future generations being robbed of the chance to see
creatures like these in their natural environment … it’s lucky we have lots of organisations that focus
on wildlife conservation … hopefully with their help we can put pressure on those in power to do
something to stop creatures like these dying out …

Part 3-style questions

Examiner: What do you think is the main danger the world faces in terms of the environment?
Spencer: Well … climate change is a real issue … in my country we have flash floods and heatwaves
on a yearly basis … so yes … I think global warming is the biggest issue.

Examiner: What examples are there of how we damage the natural world?
Stella: There are so many examples … there are factories that empty toxic waste into rivers and
oceans … oil spills that damage the coastline … the way we destroy vast areas of land and rain
forests in search of fossil fuels or to increase agricultural production …

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Examiner: In which ways do we respond well to environmental problems?
Mathius: Well … on the one hand there are various worldwide agencies that are always the first on
the scene with humanitarian aid after natural and man-made disasters … and on the other hand
we have environmental pressure groups that are constantly raising awareness of issues and trying to
stop disasters happening …

Definitions

• air quality: the cleanliness of the air we breathe
• to become extinct: to no longer exist
• to be under threat: to be in danger of becoming extinct
• climate change: the change in worldwide weather patterns
• to die out: see ‘to become extinct’
• endangered species: categories of animals or plants that are in danger of becoming extinct
• energy conservation: the careful management of energy resources to ensure they last as long
as possible
• environmentally friendly: behaviour and products that do not harm the environment
• exhaust fumes: the toxic gases given off by vehicles powered by petrol
• flash floods: floods that happen quickly
• fossil fuels: energy resources like gas and oil that are produced deep below the ground over
millions of years
• future generations: the people who live after us
• to get back to nature: to live a life that is closer to nature
• global warming: the increasing temperature of the world brought about by gases such as
carbon dioxide
• heavy industry: the manufacture of heavy articles and materials in large numbers
• humanitarian aid: the act of showing support to people struggling to survive
• impact on: the effect on
• loss of habitat: the decline in areas of land where animals and plants would normally exist
• man-made disaster: widespread damage or loss of life brought about by the action of humans
• natural disaster: an event such as an earthquake, flood or hurricane which causes widespread
damage or loss of life
• natural environment: the place where animals and plants would normally be found in nature
• the natural world: the world of nature
• oil spill: waste usually deposited in the seas and oceans after an accident at sea
• poaching: to hunt and kill wild animals illegally
• pollution levels: the amount of toxic waste
• pressure group: a group of people who try to raise awareness of issues and try to affect the
views and actions of people and organisations
• toxic waste: poisonous, unwanted rubbish often produced by industrial processes
• wildlife conservation: to protect animals and plants and their habitats

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 Advertising Vocabulary
Part 1-style questions

Examiner: Are there any TV channels in your country that don’t have adverts?
Loraine: No … they’re all commercial channels and show adverts all day long … too many really …
and there’s also a lot of product placement going on … especially in soap operas where they place an
item just behind the actors.

Examiner: Do you enjoy watching adverts on TV?
Karin: No … not really … I hate commercial breaks during a film … it really spoils the flow … and
during prime time viewing they seem to squeeze even more ads in than usual … celebrity
endorsements also get on my nerves … everyone knows they’re only doing it because they’re getting
paid.

Examiner: What are the best ways for ordinary people to advertise something they want to sell in
your country?
Marianne: The simplest way is to place an advert in something like the classified ads section of a
local paper … or there’s the Internet of course … there are lots of sites like eBay where you can buy
and sell things online.

Part 2-style task

Describe an advert you once saw that was very effective. You should say

where this advert appeared
when you saw it
what it was advertising
and say why you thought it was so effective.

Max: OK … well this was about 4 years ago … I was looking for some software to create videos … one
day I got an email from a mailing list I’d signed up to … there was a link in it to a press release … a
company had written something about a new product that was similar to what I was looking for … at
the end of the press release there was a link to the sales page … I hadn’t heard of the company but I
was interested and clicked the link to the ad …. what caught my attention immediately were the
number of testimonials from people who had bought the software … I think testimonials are like the
online equivalent of word of mouth advertising and are really persuasive … anyway … when I got to
the bottom of the page there was a great big call to action button inviting me to buy … I was totally
persuaded and ended up making a purchase … what made it so effective I think was the power of
those testimonials … they’d been written by people very much like me … they’d had a need and the
software had obviously turned out to be just what they were looking for … when you think that this
was a newish company they wouldn’t have had any brand awareness at all … they probably
wouldn’t have had much of a budget for advertising … obviously you wouldn’t advertise a product
like this through the mass media on TV … they probably didn’t even have an advertising agency to
support them …and yet they’d managed to create a great deal of brand loyalty from previous
customers … I think that was really effective.

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Part 3-style questions

Examiner: What is it that makes an advert effective?
Spencer: Well … when a company launches a product they have to consider the Internet … especially
how it can be used to spread the word on social media … so in this context a video that goes viral is
probably the most effective type of advert you could make.

Examiner: What are the advantages to companies of advertising on the Internet rather than TV?
Stelios: I’d imagine the main advantage is you can reach your target audience much more effectively
… if you bring out a niche product for example … or you have a tight advertising budget … you can
advertise on particular sites that the people you want to reach visit … that’s not something you can
do on TV.

Examiner: What things do advertising companies do that might give it a bad name?
Raol: For me the most irritating is cold calling … we must get two or three of these every day at work
… then there’s junk mail that gets posted through the letterbox … and of course the online
equivalent of this … spam emails … I think it’s this kind of advertising that tends to annoy people.

Definitions

• advertising agency: a company that creates adverts for other companies
• advertising budget: the amount of money a company decides to spend on advertising
• brand awareness: how well people know a particular brand
• brand loyalty: the degree to which people continue to buy from the same brand or company
• buy and sell: often used to refer to the buying and selling of items between individuals
• call to action: something that encourages someone to take a particular action, such as making
a purchase or clicking a link on a website
• celebrity endorsement: to have a well-known person promote a product
• classified ads: small advertisements often put in a newspaper or magazine by individuals
• to cold call: to call someone with the aim of selling something without them asking you to do
so
• commercial break: the short period during TV programmes when advertisements are shown
• commercial channel: TV channels that make money from showing advertisements
• to go viral: to quickly become extremely popular on the Internet through social media
• junk mail: unwanted promotional leaflets and letters
• to launch a product: to introduce a new product
• mailing list: a list of names and contact details used by a company to send information and
advertisements
• mass media: large media outlets like TV, newspapers and magazines
• niche product: a product that is aimed at a distinct group of people
• to place an advert: to put an advert somewhere
• press release: something written by a company for newspapers and magazines and websites
to share and publish
• prime time: the time during the viewing schedule when most people watch TV or listen to a
broadcast
• product placement: to advertise a product by using it as a prop in a TV show or film
• sales page: a page specifically used to promote a product or service
• to show adverts: to display adverts on TV
• social media: websites that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social
networking.

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 • spam email: unwanted, promotional email
• target audience: the people a company want to sell their product or service to
• word of mouth: recommendations made by individuals to other individuals about a product
of service

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 WRITING TASK 1
UNIT 1: ABOUT ACADEMIC TASK 1
There are four marking criteria for Task 1:
a. Task Achievement
Task Achievement refers to your ability to answer the question properly. In order to do this you have
to do all the things the question asks you to do and write a clear, well developed answer.
You will get a higher score if you:
Ø Select the main/key features of the graph, chart, map or process.
Ø Write a clear overview that includes the main/key features (main trends, differences, stages
etc.) of the graph, chart, map or process.
Ø Support them with accurate detail.
Ø Write at least 150 words.

b. Coherence and Cohesion
Coherence refers to your ability to connect your main ideas together so that they make sense and
are easy to understand. This is mostly done at paragraph level. Are your paragraphs in a logical
order? Is there one clear main idea in every paragraph? Is it easy to understand the main idea of
each paragraph?
You will get a higher score for coherence if you:
Ø Introduce your essay by paraphrasing the question in the first paragraph.
Ø Separate your ideas into paragraphs.
Ø Making it clear which paragraph is your overview.
Ø Having very clear ideas in your overview.
Ø Supporting the main points in your overview in separate paragraphs.
Ø Making it clear what each paragraph is about.

Cohesion refers to the connection of ideas at sentence and paragraph level. Are your sentences and
ideas linked together?
You will get a higher score for cohesion if you:
Use a range of linking words when appropriate.
Ø Use linking words accurately.
Ø Do not over-use linking words.

c. Lexical Resource
Lexical resource refers to your ability to use vocabulary both accurately and appropriately.
You will get a higher score for vocabulary if you:
Ø Paraphrase the question correctly.
Ø Vary your vocabulary using synonyms.
Ø Avoid vocabulary mistakes.
Ø Spell words correctly.
Ø Use appropriate vocabulary to describe trends, comparisons, stages, changes etc.

d. Grammatical Range and Accuracy
This refers to your ability to write sentences with no mistakes and also use a range of grammatical
structures.
You will get a higher score if you:
Ø Do not make errors.
Ø Use a range of appropriate tenses.
Ø Use a range of appropriate structures.
Ø Use both simple and complex sentences.
Ø Use correct punctuation.

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2. Paraphrase Question
Now that we know how the exam is marked we can give the examiners exactly what they want and
prevent common mistakes that stop people getting a high score.
Our very first sentence in Task 1 should always be a paraphrase of the question. Paraphrasing is when
we rewrite phrase or sentence so that it has different words but keeps the same meaning. We can do
this in a number of different ways, but the simplest way is to use synonyms.

For example:
Question: ‘The chart below shows the changes in three different areas of crime in Manchester city
centre from 2003-2012.’
Paraphrased: ‘The line graph displays alterations for burglary, car theft and robbery in the centre of
Manchester between 2003 and 2012.’

chart line graph
shows displays
changes alterations
different areas of crime burglary, car theft and robbery
Manchester city centre the centre of Manchester
from between

So with a few simple synonyms we have paraphrased the sentence and shown the examiner that we
can use this skill effectively and that we have a wide ranging vocabulary, thus two big ticks towards a
high score.

3. Overview
The overview is the most important paragraph in the whole essay and it is impossible to get a high
score if you don’t write a good one.The question for Academic Task 1 is always the same. It states:
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons
where relevant

We therefore need to provide a short summary of the main features. You do this in the overview
paragraph by picking out 3-4 of the most significant things you can see and writing them in general
terms. By general, I mean you do not support anything you see with data from the graph or chart, just
write about what you can see at first glance.

A problem students often have is limiting themselves to just three or four things. There is so much
information and it can all seem relevant.

When things are complicated in the IELTS exam, think of a way to simplify them. To make this task
easier, think about this way: if someone asked you to tell them three things and three things only
about the graph what would they be? Thinking this way stops you looking at all the data and focuses
your mind on picking out the most important points.

With line graphs we should look out for what happens generally between the start date and the end
date.

Let’s look at our example again and pick out the ‘main features.’

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If I had to say just three general things about the graph above, they would be:
Burglary decreases dramatically.
Car theft increases steadily.
Robbery remains steady throughout the period.
That’s it. You don’t need to over-complicate it. Just find the three or four most obvious things and pick
them out.

We are now ready to take our three main features and add them to our overview paragraph. An
overview paragraph should normally be 2 sentences and state the main features in general terms.
Never support the main features with data in the overview. Dates are fine, but don’t use any other
numbers.

Overview paragraph will look like this:
The most noticeable trend is that burglary fell dramatically over the period. Car theft fluctuated until
2008, upon which it rose steadily; whereas the number of robberies remained relatively stable
between 2003 and 2012

UNIT 2: HOW TO DESCRIBE A GRAPH
On the following pages there are lessons to teach you how to write an academic IELTS writing task 1.
There are examples of all the different types of task which include line graphs, pie charts, tables,
processes, diagrams and maps. Answers will always vary depending on the type of graph or diagram,
and the type of language will vary, but there is a certain structure that they all follow.

How do I answer an IELTS writing task 1?
To analyse this, we’ll look at a line graph. Look at the following question and the graph.

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The line graph below shows changes in the amount and type of fast food consumed by Australian
teenagers from 1975 to 2000.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons
where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

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There are three basic things you need to structure an IELTS writing task 1.
v Introduce the graph
v Give an overview
v Give the detail

We’ll look at each of these in turn.
1) Introduce the Graph
You need to begin with one or two sentences that state what the IELTS writing task 1 shows. To do
this, paraphrase the title of the graph, making sure you put in a time frame if there is one.
Here is an example for the above line graph:arThere are three basic things you need to structure an
IELTS writing task 1.
The line graph compares the fast food consumption of teenagers in Australia between 1975 and 2000,
a period of 25 years.
You can see this says the same thing as the title, but in a different way.

2) Give an Overview
You also need to state what the main trend or trends in the graph are. Don’t give detail such as data
here – you are just looking for something that describes what is happening overall. One thing that
stands out in this graph is that one type of fast food fell over the period, whilst the other two increased,
so this would be a good overview. Here is an example:
Overall, the consumption of fish and chips declined over the period, whereas the amount of pizza and
hamburgers that were eaten increased. This covers the main changes that took place over the whole
period.

3) Give the Detail
You can now give more specific detail in the body paragraphs. When you give the detail in your body
paragraphs in your IELTS writing task 1, you must make reference to the data. The key to organizing
your body paragraphs for an IELTS writing task 1 is to group data together where there are patterns.
To do this you need to identify any similarities and differences.
Look at the graph – what things are similar and what things are different?

As we have already identified in the overview, the consumption of fish and chips declined over the
period, whereas the amount of pizza and hamburgers that were eaten increased. So it is clear that
pizza and hamburgers were following a similar pattern, but fish and chips were different. On this basis,
you can use these as your ‘groups’, and focus one paragraph on fish and chip and the other one on
pizza and hamburgers.

117
Here is an example of the first paragraph:
In 1975, the most popular fast food with Australian teenagers was fish and chips, being eaten 100
times a year. This was far higher than Pizza and hamburgers, which were consumed approximately 5
times a year. However, apart from a brief rise again from 1980 to 1985, the consumption of fish and
chips gradually declined over the 25 year timescale to finish at just under 40.

The second body then focuses on the other foods:
In sharp contrast to this, teenagers ate the other two fast foods at much higher levels. Pizza
consumption increased gradually until it overtook the consumption of fish and chips in 1990. It then
levelled off from 1995 to 2000. The biggest rise was seen in hamburgers as the occasions they were
eaten increased sharply throughout the 1970’s and 1980’s, exceeding that of fish and chips in 1985. It
finished at the same level that fish and chips began, with consumption at 100 times a year.

UNIT 3: DESCRIBING GRAPH OVERTIME
This lesson explains how to describe a line graph or bar chart for IELTS task 1 that is over time. This
uses an example of a bar chart, but it will be the same for a line graph. When you get a chart or graph
to describe, it is always important to check whether there is a time frame or not.

If there is, you will need to use the language of change. However, it is not enough just to describe the
changes of each element (ActiveX, Java and Net in this case) on their own and ignore how they relate
to each other. Look at the question – you are asked to compare the data as well. So you must also
compare the elements where relevant in your IELTS task 1. You must also group data together to make
sure you have a well organized and coherent answer. To do this, you need to look for similarities and
differences when you first analyze the graph for IELTS task 1, and decide what can be logically put
together or not.

Now look at the bar chart below and read the IELTS task 1 model answer.

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The bar chart shows the number of times per week (in 1000s), over five weeks, that three computer
packages were downloaded from the internet.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons
where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

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Model Answer

The bar chart illustrates the download rate per week of ActiveX, Java and Net computer packages over
a period of five weeks. It can clearly be seen that ActiveX was the most popular computer package to
download, whilst Net was the least popular of the three.

To begin, downloads of ActiveX and Java showed similar patterns, with both gradually increasing from
week 1 to week 5. However, the purchases of Active X remained significantly higher than that of the
other product over this time frame. In week 1, purchases of ActiveX stood at around 75,000, while
those of Java were about 30,000 lower. With the exception of a slight fall in week 4, downloading of
ActiveX kept increasing until it reached a peak in the final week of just over 120,000. Java downloads
also increased at a steady rate, finishing the period at 80,000.

The product that was downloaded the least was Net. This began at slightly under 40,000, and, in
contrast to the other two products, fell over the next two weeks to reach a low of approximately
25,000. It then increased sharply over the following two weeks to finish at about 50,000, which was
well below that of ActiveX.

Language of Change
As you can see, there are several examples of this in the graph, so it is important to learn how to use
these correctly in order to successfully write an IELTS task 1 chart over time. Here are some examples:
v gradually increasing
v a slight fall
v kept rising
v reached a peak
v increased at a steady rate
v fell
v increased sharply
v a low of
v finish at
v stood at
v finishing the period at
You will need to practice this type of language, and also make sure you know a variety of structures
to get a better score – if you keep repeating the same kind of phrases this will show you have a more
limited range of lexis and grammar.

119
Exercise 1
Write the Introduction and Overview from this questions below!

120


121
UNIT 4: IELTS PIE CHART
This lesson will provide you with tips and advice on how to write an IELTS pie chart for task 1.
To begin, take a look at the pie chart below!

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The pie charts show the main reasons for migration to and from the UK in 2007.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons
where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

The pie charts illustrate the primary reasons that people came to and left the UK in 2007. At first
glance it is clear that the main factor influencing this decision was employment.

Having a definite job accounted for 30 per cent of immigration to the UK, and this figure was very
similar for emigration, at 29%. A large number of people, 22%, also emigrated because they were
looking for a job, though the proportion of people entering the UK for this purpose was noticeably
lower at less than a fifth.

Another major factor influencing a move to the UK was for formal study, with over a quarter of people
immigrating for this reason. However, interestingly, only a small minority, 4%, left for this.

The proportions of those moving to join a family member were quite similar for immigration and
emigration, at 15% and 13% respectively. Although a significant number of people (32%) gave ‘other’
reasons or did not give a reason why they emigrated, this accounted for only 17% with regards to
immigration.

As you can see, the pie chart description is easy to follow. Here are some key points in organizing your
answer.
v Choose the most important points to write about first,
These will be the largest ones. As you can see in the model answer, definite job, looking for
work, and formal study were all written about first, in order of importance, as these are the
main reasons that were chosen for moving.Items such as ‘other’ are usually less important
and account for small amounts, so can be left till the end.

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 v Make it easy to read
When you write a task 1, you should always group information in a logical way to make it easy
to follow and read. With an IELTS pie chart, the most logical thing to do is usually to compare
categories together across the charts, focusing on similarities and differences, rather than
writing about each chart separately.If you write about each one separately, the person
reading it will have to keep looking between the paragraphs in order to see how each category
differs.
v Vary your language
As with any task 1, this is important. You should not keep repeating the same structures. The
key language when you write about pie charts is proportions and percentages. Common
phrases to see are "the proportion of…" or "the percentage of…"However, you can also use
other words and fractions. These are some examples from the model answer:
• A large number of people
• over a quarter of people
• a small minority
• A significant number of people
• less than a fifth

This table presents some examples of how you can change percentages to fractions or ratios:
Percentage Fraction
80% four-fifths
75% three-quarters
70% seven in ten
65% two-thirds
60% three-fifths
55% more than half
50% half
45% more than two fifths
40% two-fifths
35% more than a third
30% less than a third
25% a quarter
20% a fifth
15% less than a fifth
10% one in ten
5% one in twenty

UNIT 5: IELTS PROCESS DIAGRAM
It is less common in the writing test, but sometimes you will get an IELTS process diagram to describe.
This should follow the same format as any task 1:
ü Introduce the diagram
ü Give an overview of the main point/s
ü Give the detail
However, there are different types of task 1 (line graphs, pie charts, maps etc) and each requires
knowledge of a certain type of language.

123
 You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The diagram illustrates the process that is used to manufacture bricks for the building industry.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons
where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

A process will have a number of stages that are in time order. So you should start at the beginning,
and describe each stage through to the last one. Introduce the example above, this is fairly clear. It
begins with the digging of the clay, and ends with delivery.Processes are not always this clear, and you
may have to look more carefully to spot the beginning, and there may also be two things happening
at the same time. So it is important that you look at other sample processes to get a good
understanding of how they can vary.

Ø Introduce the Diagram
As with any task 1, you can begin by paraphrasing the rubric:
The diagram explains the way in which bricks are made for the building industry.
As you can see, this has been taken from the question, but it has not been copied. You need to write
it in your own words.
Ø Highlight the Main Points
An IELTS process diagram is different to a line, bar, pie chart or table in that there are not usually key
changes or trends to identify. However, you should still give an overview of what is taking place.
The ‘public band descriptors’ state that to achieve a band 6 or more for ‘task response’ the student
must provide an overview in a task 1. As there are no trends to comment on, you can make a comment
on, for example, the number of stages in the process and how it begins and ends:
Overall, there are eight stages in the process, beginning with the digging up of clay and culminating in
delivery.
Ø Give the Detail
Now you need to explain the IELTS process diagram, and there are two key aspects of language
associated with this:

124
1) Time Connectors
A process is a series of events, one taking place after the other. Therefore, to connect your stages,
you should use ‘time connectors’.
Here is the rest of the answer with the time connectors highlighted (notice that you simply go from
the beginning to the end of the process):
To begin, the clay used to make the bricks is dug up from the ground by a large digger. This clay is then
placed onto a metal grid, which is used to break up the clay into smaller pieces. A roller assists in this
process.
Following this, sand and water are added to the clay, and this mixture is turned into two differing types
of brick by either placing it into a mould or using a wire cutter. Next, these bricks are placed in an oven
to dry for 24 – 48 hours.
In the subsequent stage, the bricks go through a heating and cooling process. They are heated in a kiln
at a moderate and then a high temperature (ranging from 200c to 1300c), followed by a cooling
process in a chamber for 2 – 3 days. Finally, the bricks are packed and delivered to their destinations.
These connectors are the same you would use to write a graph over time when you explain a series of
changes. These are some common IELTS process diagram connectors:
To begin
Following this
Next
Then
After
After that
Before**
Subsequently
Finally
** If you use before, this means that you will be mentioning a later stage before an earlier stage, so
you need to use it carefully. If you can use it properly though, it will get noticed.
Here is an example using stages four and five:
Before being dried in the oven, the mixture is turned into bricks by either placing it into a mould or
using a wire cutter.

2) The Passive
When we describe an IELTS process that involves humans (a man-made process as opposed to a
natural one), the focus is on the activities, NOT the person doing them. When this is the case, we use
the passive voice, not the active. For a natural process, such as the life-cycle of a frog, we use active
as there is not a person doing the activity in the diagram. This is a brief explanation of how to use the
passive voice, but if you are new or unsure about using it, you should do some further study and
practice.

Most sentences use this structure:
Subject + Verb + Object
A large digger digs up the clay in the ground.
In the active voice (as above), the digger is doing the verb i.e. the digger is doing the digging.
When we use the passive voice, we make the object (the clay) the subject, and make the subject (the
digger) the object. We also add in the verb ‘to be’ and the past participle (or Verb 3).

(S) The clay in the ground (V) is dug up (O) by the digger.
So throughout most of your description for your IELTS process diagram, you should be using the
passive voice.

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This is difficult as some verbs cannot take the passive. For example, 'to go' cannot be passive, so it is
kept in the active voice:

...the bricks go through a heating and cooling process.
This is why you need to make sure you practice the passive so you know exactly how to use it.

Also, as you will see from the description, it is more usual to to comment on who or what is doing the
action so the 'by...." phrase is excluded.

Here is the same example description with uses of the passive highlighted:

To begin, the clay (which) is used to make the bricks is dug up from the ground by a large digger. This
clay is then placed onto a metal grid, onto a metal grid, which is used to break up the clay into smaller
pieces. A roller assists in this process.

Following this, sand and water are added to the clay, and this mixture is turned into bricks by either
placing it into a mould or using a wire cutter. Next, these bricks are placed in an oven to dry for 24 –
48 hours.

In the subsequent stage, the bricks go through a heating and cooling process. They are heated in a kiln
at a moderate and then a high temperature (ranging from 200c to 1300c), followed by a cooling
process in a chamber for 2 – 3 days. Finally, the bricks are packed and delivered to their destinations.

Ø Varying your Language
Sometimes it may be appropriate just to use the same language that you are given in the IELTS process
diagram to describe it, but you should try to vary it. You may be able to use nouns from the diagram
as your verbs. For example, the noun packaging in stage seven becomes: Finally, the bricks are
packed…

126
Exercise 2
Try to make a sentence from the pictures below with using the time connector!

127




Using a fraction to build your sentences based on the figures below!

128
UNIT 6 : TWO DATA
This is an example of an IELTS bar and line graph together. It is not uncommon to get two graphs to
describe at the same time in the IELTS test. It can look a bit scary at first. However, when you look
more closely, you'll see it is probably no more difficult than having one graph.

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The line graph shows visits to and from the UK from 1979 to 1999, and the bar graph shows the
most popular countries visited by UK residents in 1999.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons
where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

These are the steps you need to take to describe a bar and line graph together (or any two graphs)
that may differ slightly from when you describe one graph.

• Introduction
When you state what the graph shows, mention both of them. Here is a sample first sentence of the
introduction:
The line graph illustrates the number of visitors in millions from the UK who went abroad and those
that came to the UK between 1979 and 1999, while the bar chart shows which countries were the
most popular for UK residents to visit in 1999.
Remember to write this in your own words and not to copy from the question.
Next you need to mention the key points from the graph. When you do this, mention the most
interesting things from each:
Overall, it can be seen that visits to and from the UK increased, and that France was the most popular
country to go to.

• Body Paragraphs
If there are two graphs and a lot of information, you will have to be careful not to describe everything
as you may then have too much information. Also, the examiner is looking to see that you can select
the important things and not describe every single detail. So the key skill when you have two graphs
is being able to pick out the important information or summarize things in a concise way, otherwise

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you will end up writing too much and probably run out of time. Here is an example description for the
bar and line graph:
To begin, the number of visits abroad by UK residents was higher than for those that came to the UK,
and this remained so throughout the period. The figures started at a similar amount, around 10
million, but visits abroad increased significantly to over 50 million, whereas the number of overseas
residents rose steadily to reach just under 30 million.

By far the most popular countries to visit in 1999 were France at approximately 11 million visitors,
followed by Spain at 9 million. The USA, Greece, and Turkey were far less popular at around 4, 3 and
2 million visitors respectively.

As you can see, the first paragraph discusses the line graph, and the second the bar chart.
You will not usually need to mix up the descriptions. This will only make things complicated and
difficult to follow. Writing about the first one and then the second one is ok for a bar and line graph
or any others that appear together. As with any task 1, you will need to make sure you use the right
language, make comparisons, and group data appropriately.

UNIT 7: IELTS TABLE
Describing an IELTS table is similar to describing charts or graphs. The same structures of comparison
and contrast are used or language of change if the table is over time. A table is just another way to
present information.

§ Analysing the IELTS Table
As with all graphs and charts, when describing tables:
Do not describe all the data presented - present the main points of each feature (you should make
sure you mention each feature though)
Look for significant data; e.g. the highest, the lowest etc
Try and group the data. This may require you to use some general knowledge about the world, such
as recognising developed and developing countries
§ Practice
Look at the IELTS table that you looked at above and answer the questions that follow:

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The following table gives statistics showing the aspects of quality of life in five countries.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons
where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

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ü What is the table measuring?
ü What type of language do you need to use (Change? Comparing and contrasing?)
ü What tense would you use?
ü Which country has the best quality of life and which has the worst?
ü What information could you use for an overview / conclusion?
ü How could you group the information?
ü How many paragraphs would you have and what you would write about in each one?

§ Making a Plan
You should always ask yourself these kind of questions before you write your task one. You can then
use the answer to these questions to make yourself a quick plan.
Here are some notes made by a student during the planning stage:

PLAN
Topic – standard of living, 5 countries
Language – comparison
Time / tense – 1982 = past
Overview – USA far higher
Groups – USA = highest
Egypt, Indo, Bol = similar
Bangladesh = very low

Now, take a look at this IELTS table model answer and notice how the organization matches the plan.
The groups chosen that are similar are grouped together into paragraphs. The language is focused on
the language of comparison and contrast as the table is not over time. The compare and contrast
structures have been highlighted so you can see how they are used.Is it similar to the way you would
have organized the information?

The table uses four economic indicators to show the standard of living in five selected countries in
1982. Overall, it can be seen that the quality of life in the USA was far higher than the other four
countries.

To begin, the USA, which is a developed country, had the highest GNP at 13,160 dollars per head. It
also had a much higher daily calorie intake and life expectancy, and the lowest rate of infant mortality.

The other developing countries had quality of life ratings that were significantly lower. The range of
indicators for Egypt, Indonesia and Bolivia were similar, with Egypt having the highest quality of life

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amongst the three. However, the infant mortality rate in Egypt’s was slightly higher than Indonesia’s
at 97 deaths per 1000 compared to 87 in Indonesia.

Bangladesh had by far the lowest quality of life in all the indicators. Its GNP was one hundred times
smaller than the USA’s. Its calorie intake and life expectancy were about half those of the USA, and
its infant mortality rate was 10 times greater.

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Exercise 3:

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 WRITING TASK 2

UNIT 1: ABOUT ACADEMIC IELTS TASK 2
What is in Academic Task 2?
In the writing part of the IELTS exam you will have to write an essay that is a minimum of 250 words
long. There are many kinds of topic. Below are some common examples though there are others:

Environment
• Global warming
• Deforestation
• Pollution
Science & Technology
• Computers
• Internet
• Space exploration
Media
• Advertising
• TV
• Fame
Education
• Assessment
• IT in the classroom
• School leaving age
Employment
• Retirement
• Telecommuting
• Automation
Globalisation
• Transport of food
• Loss of identity/culture
• Poverty & wealth
Health
• Obesity
• Stress
• Diet
Animals
• Blood sports
• Animal experiments
• Pets
City & Countryside
• Urbanisation
• Migration
• Quality of life
Family
• Size
• Parenting
• Child discipline
Law & Order
• Rising crime
• Teenage crime

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 • Capital punishment
Sport & Recreation
• International sporting events
• Dangerous sports
• Competitive sport at school

How will it get graded?
You get graded on four criteria. You will be given a band score (1-9) for each of these and then these
will be averaged to give your final task 2 writing score.
The criteria are shown below with a brief explanation of the meaning of each. These are very brief
general explanations.
1. Task Response
Your ability to answer the question, support and develop your ideas and present a clear
position.
2. Coherence and Cohession
Your ability to logically organize your essay and the ideas within the essay, and to use
appropriate cohesive devices to do this.
3. Lexical Resource
Your ability to use a range of vocabulary and your ability to use it accurately.
4. Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Your ability to use a range and variety of sentence structures and the accuracy you have with
your grammar.

Here are some general tips before we begin:
v Spend 40 minutes on task 2. You have one hour for the writing but you are also required to
do task 1. Task 2 is weighted more heavily so you should spend more time on this, but do
not spend more than 40 minutes.
v Make sure you spend time at the beginning checking you understand the question,
brainstorming and planning.
v Make sure you write at least 250 words. Your score may be reduced if you write less. Aim for
about 265 word, but of course the amount you can write will depend on your writing ability.
Someone with better skills may be able to write more in a shorter space of time as they will
have to spend less time thinking about their grammar.
v Don’t write too many words. It does not follow that you get more marks for writing more.
Quality is more important than quantity.
v Don’t try to get carried away and throw as many ideas into your essay as possible. Fewer
ideas that are fully explained are better than lots of ideas that are not explained properly.
v Make sure you do lots of practice under timed conditions – brainstorming, planning, and
writing a 250 word essay in 40 minutes is not easy.
v Make sure you can write a finished essay in the time – a coherent essay has an introduction,
body paragraphs and conclusion.
v Don’t worry about whether the examiner would agree with your ideas or not. They are your
ideas that are asked for – they will be okay as long as they answer the question directly and
you can justify and explain them.

UNIT 2: UNDERSTANDING IELTS ESSAY QUESTION
If you incorrectly identify the topic of the IELTS essay question, you are in danger of getting a very
low score. You could come down to a band 5 for Task Response. So identifying the topic is one of
the first things you need to do.

Here we will learn and practice doing this.

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The crime rate among teenagers has increased dramatically in many countries.
Discuss some possible reasons for this increase and suggest solutions.

What if I identified ‘crime’ as the topic?
Your essay would be wrong if you wrote about crime generally. When you have a topic, it may
require you to talk about a particular area, group of people or place.
In this case, the question specifically wants you to address the issue of TEENAGE crime.


UNIT 3 : BRAINSTORMING AND PLANNING
Brainstorming
That is a common statement from students preparing for the test and this is where brainstorming
and planning come in.Once you have analysed the question in the IELTS test you need to brainstorm
some ideas to include in your answer.

Lets look for the example:
The crime rate among teenagers has increased dramatically in many countries.
Discuss some possible reasons for this increase and suggest solutions.

Brainstorming is an important part of the planning process.
In order to get a good score it will not be enough just to put a list of ideas - you need to extend and
explain those ideas.
If you look at the IELTS prompt, it says this:
"Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own experience or
knowledge".
So you need to support your ideas using reasons and examples.
Developing Focus Questions

For this question, you need to write about reasons for the increase in teenage crime and solutions.

In order to make sure you fully answer the question it is a good ideas to develop some focus
questions i.e. questions that will help you focus on what you need to write.

These are possible focus questions for this essay question:
Focus question 1: Why has teenage crime increased?
Focus question 2: What can be done about it?

You then need to brainstorm answers to these questions:
Why has teenage crime increased?
Ø Breakdown in the nuclear family
Ø Lack of things to do
What can be done about it?
Ø Government - Provide better support for families & stricter punishments
Ø Individuals – take responsibility
[Nuclear family is a term used to define a family group consisting of a pair of adults and their
children, as opposed to single-parent families].

Extending and Supporting your Ideas
However, you now need to think about how your are going to extend and support those ideas you
have brainstormed. In other words, you need to ask yourself further questions about each of your
ideas. For example:

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Why has there been a breakdown in the nuclear family?
What is the effect of this?
What is a good example of it?
Answering questions like these will make sure you have fully supported and explained all your points
For example:
Why has there been a breakdown in the nuclear family?
- high divorce rates
What is the effect of this?
- no male role model; boys go astray & may commit crime

Planning
When you have extended your main ideas, this then provides the basis for your plan.
Here is an example of the brainstormed ideas with further support, which has now become the plan
for the essay:

Essay Plan

Why has teenage crime increased?

1) Breakdown in the nuclear family
- high divorce rates = no father as ‘role model’
– boys go astray, drugs & crime

2) Lack of things to do
- e.g. TV has shown nothing to do
– children see crime as entertainment

What can be done about it?
1) Govt - Provide better support for families
- e.g. more youth centres
– guidance and activities, sport

2) Parents – take responsibility
- provide loving environment, relative as role model


Sample Answer :
Over the last decade there has been a massive rise in the level of crime committed by teenagers in a
number of countries. It is important to establish why this has happened and to look at ways to solve
the problem.

One reason is the breakdown in the nuclear family. The high divorce rates have meant many children
have been brought up in one-parent families with no father to act as a role model which is detrimental
to their development. This is particularly important for boys, who without this guidance are easily led
astray by bad influences such as drugs and crime. Another factor is the lack of things to do for the
young. For example, in the UK, many television programs about this issue have shown that teenagers
hang around in the evenings with little to do. When this happens, the boredom means they will find
their own entertainment, which is often crime.

There are, however, ways to tackle these problems. Firstly, the government should provide more
support for families. They could, for instance, invest more into building and staffing youth centers

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which would provide guidance through the youth workers and also enable teenagers to focus their
attention on sport and other activities. Parents should also be encouraged to take more responsibility
for their children. Ultimately, the onus is on them to ensure their children are brought up in a loving
environment which would make them less likely to turn to crime. They could, for example, find a male
relative to act as a role model.

Therefore, it is clear that there are various reasons for this rise in crime, but solutions are available. If
we begin to tackle the issue now, we may be able to prevent the situation from declining further.

Exercise 1 :
Identifying topic, brainstorming and planning from question below!
1. Doing an enjoyable activity with a child can develop better skills and imagination than reading.
To what extent do you agree?
Topic :
Brainstorming :
Planning :
2. Some developed countries now have unemployment problems. Why do people still want to
emigrate to these countries?
Topic :
Brainstorming :
Planning :
3. Many efforts have been made by countries to address challenges concerning the environment
but the situation has not improved. What are the possible reasons for environmental
degradation? Are there any solutions to combat this problem?
Topic :
Brainstorming :
Planning :
4. Internet and technology, like mobile phones and laptops, are connecting us to each other
every hour of the day via networking sites and applications. Do you think it’s an advantage or
disadvantage?
Topic :
Brainstorming :
Planning :
5. People are more mobile nowadays. They seldom live in one city all of their lives. Why do you
think this is happening? What are the consequences of this trend?
Topic :
Brainstorming :
Planning :

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UNIT 4: INTRODUCTION AND CONCLUSION
Introduction
Some students spend a lot of time writing an introduction to their essay, and then don’t finish the
essay because they run out of time.You need to write a good introduction in order to have a coherent
essay, but most of the marks on the IELTS grading sheet do not come from the introduction. Most of
them focus on the paragraph e.g. their coherency and whether ideas are extended and supported.
So you need to write your introduction quickly, and here are some tips on doing that.
Have a look at this question:

Fresh water has always been a limited resource in some parts of the world. Today, however, growing
worldwide demand has made this a global problem.
What are the causes of the increased demand, and what measures can governments and individuals
take to respond to this problem

You just need to do two things:
1. Give some background to the topic and refer to the topic of the essay using some facts (taken from
the question if they are included). Reverse some of the information, paraphrase, and use some
synonyms.
2. Tell the reader what will be in your essay ( Thesis Statement )

Introduction: (Answer)
In some areas around the world, there has always been a lack of fresh water, but this is now a global
problem due to the growth in worldwide demand. Several factors have led to this increase, but
there are measures that governments and individuals can take to solve this problem.

Note : The first sentences introduces the topic and the information is taken from the question (but
you must paraphrase – don’t copy from the question!!!)
The Second sentences tell the reader exactly what will be in the essay.

Conclusion
Like your introductions, your conclusion should be quick and easy to write. There are three things you
need to do:
1. Use a transition to show it is the conclusion
2. Repeat your thesis statement (the final sentence of your introduction) in different words
3. Give some personal opinions, or your hopes, fears, recommendations about the issue
Look at the same question as we looked at in the introductions:
Answer: ( conclusion)
By way of conclusion, it is evident that although a number of factors are resulting in an increased
demand for water, solutions to tackle the problem are available to governments and individuals. It
is imperative that the issue be resolved as soon as possible to avoid the potential dangers to
mankind that the lack of fresh water would bring.

Exercise 2 :
Write the Introduction and conclusion from questions below!
1. Recent surveys show increased interest in relocation and travel to other countries. What may
be the reasons for this trend, and what will be the possible outcome from this behaviour?
Introduction :
Conclusion :
2. Some people say that it is better to promote healthy lifestyles than spend so much money to
treat obese people. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Introduction :

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 Conclusion :
3. More people are now behaving more violently in society than before. Can this behaviour be
prevented? Discuss the causes and reasons for this trend.
Introduction :
Conclusion :
4. In some countries police officers do not carry guns. How does this affect the manner they
implement law and order? Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of having a gun.
Introduction :
Conclusion :
5. Some parents do not allow their children to watch TV during school days. Others allow their
children to watch TV as long as their school work is finished. Which approach do you agree
with and why?
Introduction :
Conclusion :
6. Young people prefer listening to music rather than listening to the news on the radio. Is this a
positive or a negative trend?
Introduction :
Conclusion :
7. Countries should restrict foreign companies from opening offices and factories in order to
protect local businesses. Do you agree or disagree?
Introduction :
Conclusion :
8. A film can portray the culture and traditions of a country. What films have you watched that
tell a specific story of a country?
Introduction :
Conclusion :
9. Nowadays shopping has replaced many other activities that people choose as their hobby in
their free time. What are the reasons for this? Is this a positive or negative development?
Introduction :
Conclusion :
10. Some people believe that governments should ban dangerous sports even though others
claim they should have the freedom to choose a sport to their liking. To what extent do you
agree or disagree?
Introduction :
Conclusion :

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UNIT 5: ESSAY STRUCTURE
Knowing how to structure your IELTS Writing Task 2 essay is an essential skill that can make the
difference between the getting and not getting the band score you deserve. With that in mind, we
have outlined the most common IELTS Writing Task 2 structures below.

Nearly all of my Task 2 essays follow this basic structure:
Paragraph 1 : Introduction
Paragraph 2 : Body 1
Paragraph 3 : Body 2
Paragraph 4 : Conclusion

The sentences you put in each paragraph will depend on what type of question you get.

The five most common IELTS Writing Task 2 questions are:
1. Opinion Questions (Agree or Disagree)
Typical Question Words–
What is your opinion?
Do you agree or disagree?
To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Direct question.
Example Question : Some people believe that unpaid community service should be a compulsory
part of high school programmes (for example working for a charity, improving the neighborhood or
teaching sports to younger children).
To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Essay Structure
Introduction
1- Paraphrase Question
2- Give your opinion and outline main ideas.

Main Body Paragraph 1
1- Topic Sentence
2- Supporting Sentence
3- Supporting Detail

Main Body Paragraph 2
1- Topic Sentence
2- Supporting Sentence
3- Supporting Detail

Conclusion
1- Summary of main points and opinion

Student Sample Answer
It is argued that volunteering should be made part of the school curriculum. This essay agrees with
that suggestion completely because it help pupils develop soft skills and helps them gain much
needed work experience.

Education should not be limited to strictly academic pursuits and those in education should also
develop life skills, such as teamwork, empathy and self-discipline, and one of the best ways to hone
these aptitudes is through community service. Serving those less fortunate than ourselves teaches

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us many lessons including how to work with people from other backgrounds and the value of hard
work, thus enabling us to hone these skills before becoming an adult. For example, many young
people from wealthier countries take a gap year and help those less fortunate than themselves to
increase their gratitude for what they have and improve their work ethic.

Many colleges and companies are also increasingly looking for this type of experience. Most school
leavers have the same grades and charitable works can help set you apart from other students when
making college applications. For instance, Cambridge and Oxford receive thousands of applications
from straight-A students every year and can only accept a small percentage of applicants. What you
have done outside the classroom is often the thing that differentiates you from everyone else and
gets you that coveted spot.

In conclusion, teenagers should be made to partake in unpaid work as part of their schooling
because it will help them learn things they wouldn’t ordinarily learn from their teachers and it will
also boost their chances of getting into third level education.

2. Advantages and Disadvantages Questions
Typical Question Words:
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages.
What are the advantages and disadvantages?
Example Question: Computers are being used more and more in education.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages

Essay Structure
Introduction
1- Paraphrase Question
2- Outline Main Points

Main Body Paragraph 1
1- State One Advantage
2- Expand/Explain Advantage (TS and SS)
3- Example (SD)
4- Result

Main Body Paragraph 2
1- State One Disadvantage
2- Expand/Explain Disadvantage( TS and SS)
3- Example (SD)
4- Result

Conclusion
1- Summary of Main Points

Student Sample Answer
It is argued that technology is playing an ever increasing role in schools and universities. Student
freedom is one of the main advantages of this and decreasing levels of face to face contact is one of
the main disadvantages.

One of the principle advantages of an increase in the use of electronic devices in education is the
autonomy it provides students. Students have the freedom to focus on whatever topic or subject
they want and study it in depth through the internet. A prime example of this is the number of

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online university courses available to students, covering a myriad of subjects, that up until recently
were unavailable to most learners. This has resulted in more people studying third level degrees
than ever before, at a pace and schedule that suits them.

The main disadvantage associated with the increasing use of technology in education is the decrease
in face to face interaction between students. Students spend more time looking at computer screens
by themselves than interacting with each other and this is thought to lead to lower levels of
emotional intelligence. For instance, the recent explosion in smartphone use has been at the
expense of genuine human interaction. This results in soft skills, such as verbal communication and
empathy, being affected.

In conclusion, the benefits technology brings to education, such as student autonomy, must be
weighed against the drawbacks, such as negative effects on human interaction. Overall, the
educational benefits outweigh the disadvantages because human beings will always want human
contact and most people will not solely use IT for education.

3. Problem and Solution
Typical Question Words:
Problem and solution
Cause and solution.
Example Question : Students are becoming more and more reliant on computers.
What are some of the problems associated with reliance on computers, and what are some of the
possible solutions?

Essay Structure
Introduction
1- Paraphrase Question
2- Outline Sentence

Main Body Paragraph 1
1- State Problem
2- Explain Problem
3- Result
4- Example

Main Body Paragraph 2
1- State Solution
2- Explain Solution
3- Example

Conclusion
1- Summary

Student Sample Answer
Learners are becoming ever more dependent on technology, such as the Internet and mobile
devices. This essay believes one of the main problems associated with dependence on computers is
copying original work from others and suggest writing analysis software as the most viable solution.

The principal problem with over-reliance on technology, such as tablets and computers, is
plagiarism. Students often use search engines to answer a question and simply copy the text from
a website, rather than thinking about the question. This practice is not only prohibited in schools

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and universities but also stunts a student’s intellectual development because they will never truly
think for themselves, which is what university is supposed to really be for. For example, many
teachers complain that students copy web pages straight from Wikipedia word for word rather than
giving a reasoned answer to their questions.

A solution to this worrying problem is asking students to email their answers to teachers and
teachers using anti-plagiarism software to detect copying. Students would be made aware of this
practice and this would inspire them to answer questions using their own words, rather than
someone else’s. If someone was caught cheating, they could be asked to leave the university and
this would set a good example. For instance, many universities already use this kind of software to
scan course work for plagiarism and it could be extended to include all homework, by learners in
both secondary and tertiary education.

In conclusion, one of the main problems with over-use of technology in education is plagiarism and
this can be solved through the use of plagiarism detection software.

4. Discuss Both Views Question (Discussion Essay)
Typical Question Words:
Discuss both points of view and give your opinion
Example Question: Computers are being used more and more in education. Some people say that
this is a positive trend, while others argue that it is leading to negative consequences.
Discuss both sides of this argument and then give your own opinion.

Essay Structure
Introduction
1- Paraphrase Question and/or state both viewpoints.
2- Thesis Statement
3- Outline Sentence

Main Body Paragraph 1
1- State first viewpoint
2- Discuss first viewpoint
3- Reason why you agree or disagree with viewpoint
4- Example to support your view

Main Body Paragraph 2
1- State second viewpoint
2- Discuss second viewpoint
3- Reason why you agree or disagree with viewpoint
4- Example to support your view

Conclusion
Sentence 1- Summary
Sentence 2- State which one is better or more important

Student Sample Answer
There is an ever-increasing use of technology, such as tablets and laptops, in the classroom. It is
often argued that this is a positive development, whilst others disagree and think it will lead to
adverse ramifications. This essay agrees that an increase in technology is beneficial to students and
teachers.

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It is clear that the Internet has provided students with access to more information than ever before.
This has given learners the ability to research and learn about any subject at the touch of a button.
It is therefore agreed that technology is a very worthwhile tool for education. Wikipedia is a prime
example, where students can simply type in any keyword and gain access to in-depth knowledge
quickly and easily.

However, many disagree and feel that technology deprives people of real human interaction.
Human interaction teaches people valuable skills such as discourse, debate and empathy. Without
these soft skills, many people find it difficult to become successful in work and their personal lives.
Despite this, human interaction is still possible through the internet and this essay disagrees
technology should be dismissed for this reason. For instance, Skype and Facebook make it possible
for people to interact in ways that were never before possible.

While the benefits of technology, particularly the internet, allow students to tap into limitless
sources of information, some still feel that people should be wary of this new phenomena and not
allow it to curb face to face interaction. However, as long as we are careful to keep in mind the
importance of human interaction in education, the educational benefits are clearly positive.

5. Two-Part Questions
Typical Question Words:
There will normally be a statement and they will then ask you to answer to separate questions.
Example Question: As most people spend a major part of their adult life at work, job satisfaction is
an important element of individual wellbeing.
What factors contribute to job satisfaction?
How realistic is the expectation of job satisfaction for all workers?

Essay Structure
Introduction
1- Paraphrase Question
2- Outline Sentence (mention both questions)

Main Body Paragraph 1
1- Answer first question directly
2- Explain why
3- Further explain
4- Example

Main Body Paragraph 2
1- Answer second question directly
2- Explain why
3- Further explain
4- Example

Conclusion
1- Summary

Student Sample Answer
As the majority of adults spend most of their time at work, being content with your career is a crucial
part of a person’s health and happiness. This essay will first suggest fair pay as a key element leading
to job satisfaction and it will then state that it is not very likely that everyone can be happy with
their job.

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The most important thing that leads to someone being satisfied at work is being compensated fairly.
If those more senior than you respect you as a person and the job you are doing then you feel like
you are valued. A fair salary and benefits are important marks of respect and if you feel you are
being underpaid you will either resent your bosses or look for another job. These two factors came
top of a recent job satisfaction survey conducted by Monster.com, that found that 72% of people
were pleased with their current role if their superiors regularly told them they were appreciated.

With regards to the question of happiness for all workers, I think this is and always will be highly
unlikely. The vast majority of people fail to reach their goals and end up working in a post they don’t
really care about in return for a salary. This money is just enough to pay their living expenses which
often means they are trapped in a cycle of disenchantment. For example, The Times recently
reported that 89% of office workers would leave their jobs if they did not need the money.

In conclusion, being satisfied with your trade or profession is an important part of one’s well-being
and respect from one’s colleagues and fair pay can improve your level of happiness, however, job
satisfaction of all workers is an unrealistic prospect.

Exercise 3 :
Write full of writing task 2 based on question below!
1. In some countries the government promotes public transport as the primary means of
transportation, and discourages private vehicle ownership.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of this situation.

2. Men and women can never share the same responsibilities at home and in everyday life. Do
you agree or disagree?

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