Examinations and rules to prepare IELTS test.pdf

IELTS

1. Examinations
for
IELTS Test
Prof. Carolina Rivas Tellez

2. Contents
●IELTS Structure
●Writing Evaluation
●Speaking Evaluation
●Speaking Pronunciation
●

3. IELTS Structure

6. IELTS writing evaluation criteria
How is IELTS Writing marked? Examiners who evaluate your answers in the Writing section of
the IELTS test use specific assessment criteria. Depending on how many of the descriptors in
the criteria your answer has met, a score is assigned.
Essentially, according to the IELTS Writing evaluation criteria, the band scores are based on four
factors, each of which is judged separately and holds 25 percent of the total score of 9.0:
●Task achievement/ Task response: The actual content of your answer and whether
you went off topic or not
●Coherence and cohesion: The development of ideas and the connection between
those ideas
●Lexical resource: Use of wide range of vocabulary
●Grammatical range and accuracy: Use of correct grammar in a range of sentence
structures
(https://www.pteielts.com/ielts-writing-evaluation/)

7. Let`s see about each and every aspect of IELTS Writing marking scheme in detail.

IELTS Writing Score Calculator: Task 1 and Task 2
As you know, there are two questions in the Writing section of the IELTS test. The first question, which is referred to
as Task 1, is an information transfer question, where you have to convert a visual representation of information into
words. Practically speaking, you get an image (often statistical graphs) and you have to describe that image using
at least 150 words in 20 minutes.

The second question, which is referred to as Task 2, is a discursive composition question. In other words, you are
asked to write an argumentative essay of at least 250 words in 40 minutes.
Out of the total score of 9, Task 1 carries one third of total marks, while Task 2 carries two thirds. You can also say
in simple terms that out of 9, Task 1 is worth 3 marks and Task 2 is worth 6 marks (although that is not how the
actual score is calculated).
Your overall Writing score will be based on the following formula:
(Task 1 score + Task 2 score + Task 2 score) ÷ 3
For example, if you get 6.0 in Task 1 and 7.0 in Task 2, using the formula we get (6.0 + 7.0 + 7.0) ÷ 3, which is
approximately equal to 6.67. This will be rounded off to 6.5.

8. Task achievement/ Task response
The first criterion of IELTS Writing evaluation is called ‘Task achievement’ for Task 1 and ‘Task response’ for Task 2, but
essentially they mean the same thing: did you cover all parts of the question or not?
For Task 1, where you have to describe images, examiners will check the key features you have selected from the
image to highlight. You get a high score if you have presented all the main aspects of the image, including key data,
trends, and main stages, in clear language. A score of 7 or higher in this criterion is reserved for an answer which
fulfills all these.
If all the main aspects are covered but some of the details are inaccurate or irrelevant, then only 6 is given. Moreover,
an answer which has more inaccuracies or which misses some key features will get an even lower score.
A summary paragraph, where you mention the cursory details of the image, is absolutely essential for Task 1
questions.

9. For Task 2, where you write an essay, all parts of the question have to be addressed in a logical manner with
ample evidence and relevant ideas to support your position. Answers which lack absolute focus on the topic
and fail to provide concrete examples will receive a score lower than 7.
A score of 6 is assigned to an answer which responds to the question in a logical manner but fails to address
some vital aspects, does not provide enough supporting evidence, or does not offer clarity in ideas and
conclusion.

10. This IELTS Writing evaluation criterion covers unity and readability.
By unity, I mean a link between sentences, paragraphs and ideas by the help of cohesive
devices. For example, the phrase “on the other hand” is a cohesive device which can be
used in your answer to contradict one point from another, while another phrase “in the
same manner” can be used to connect two similar points.
By readability, I mean whether the examiner can understand the overall meaning of your
answer. The words and sentences you use may not make sense to someone else if you
have written without discourse markers. Discourse markers are phrases like “first of all”
and “in conclusion”, which tell the reader what to expect while reading.
You have to use cohesive devices and discourse markers in appropriate places with proper
logic. Using them haphazardly or at wrong places might decrease your score.

Coherence and cohesion

11. Your logic behind a paragraph should also be proper. A single paragraph should stick to one central theme
with clear of development of the central theme.
Finally, referencing devices like pronouns should also be used suitably throughout your answer so that words
and phrases are not repetitive.
Lexical resource
Examiners are looking for a wide range of technical words in your answer which convey precise meaning. This
means you should select words very carefully to match the exact ideas you are trying to describe. While doing
this, the more sophisticated words you use the better.

12. Here, your grammar not only has to be accurate but it also has to use a wide range of sentence structures.
That means, you should know how to form complex and compound sentence, instead of just simple
sentences. While forming these sentences, grammatical aspects (like subject-verb agreement and
consistency in tense) should be carefully considered.
IELTS Writing Assessment Criteria: Conclusion
You can download the complete IELTS Writing assessment criteria as a marking sheet. But this is only a
tentative guide provided by IELTS and not the actual checklist used by examiners. Neither British Council nor
IDP Education has ever revealed the original checklist that they use.

Grammatical range and accuracy

13. Speaking Evaluation

14. Speaking
Pronunciation
1. Don’t always say ‘r’

In GB English you only pronounce /r/ if it is before a vowel sound, so you do say it
in ROCK, PRETTY & COVERING, but you don’t say it in WORK, HARD or
MOTHER. In American English you say all the written ‘r’s, so WORK, HARD &
MOTHER, so it’s one of the main differences between most British and American
accents.

15. 2. Touch the teeTH
There are two fricative TH sounds in English: voiceless /θ/ in TEETH, THANKS &
BATH, and voiced /ð/ in THE, BROTHER & BATHE. In GB English they are both
made with the tongue touching behind the teeth, but in some accents they’re
replaced with /f/ and /v/, like in London.



(https://www.americanenglishsounds.net/theta-thank-bath.html)

16. 3. 12 vowels = 12 tongue positions
GB English has 12 mouth positions for vowel sounds, here goes: /i ɪ e æ ə ɜ ʌ ɑ u
ʊ ɔ ɒ/. It’s really important to put the tongue in a different place for each of these,
as many sounds are only subtly different – like the vowel sounds in SHIP and
SHEEP. There isn’t actually much difference in the length of these two sounds, but
the tongue is always further forward in SHEEP.

17. 4. Oh No!
On top of the 12 basic vowels, there are a further 7 double vowels (diphthongs):
/eɪ, ɔɪ, aɪ, əʊ, aʊ, ɪə, eə/, perhaps the hardest one is the /əʊ/ sound in OH, NO,
GO & SHOW. Northern accents might say [nɜː] or [nɒʊ], cockney would be more
like [naʊ], and really posh speakers would start toward the front [nɛʊ], but in
standard GB English, it starts in the middle, you [nəʊ].

18. 5. Mind the gap
In normal everyday speech we tend to join everything together in English.
Sometimes consonants change and become silent. When a word begins with a
vowel sound it joins onto the previous word: “move_it_along!” Sometimes if one
word ends with a vowel sound and the next one starts with a vowel sound, we add
/r/, just to make sure we can join, “is that_your_idea(r)_of_a joke?”. No, it really
happens, listen again slowly.

19. 6. Not too much stress
You probably have enough stress in your life, so don’t stress every syllable in English –
half of them are weak (the underlined ones in this sentence). It’s essential, though, to find
the main stress in every sentence or speech unit – and really stress it by making it
longer, louder and normally higher:

A John! How are you?
B David! I’m fine, how are you?

The bold, underlined syllable is the main stress in each part, it’s also where the
↘intonation pattern begins (see next point).

20. 6. Not too much stress
You probably have enough stress in your life, so don’t stress every syllable in English –
half of them are weak (the underlined ones in this sentence). It’s essential, though, to find
the main stress in every sentence or speech unit – and really stress it by making it
longer, louder and normally higher:

A John! How are you?
B David! I’m fine, how are you?

The bold, underlined syllable is the main stress in each part, it’s also where the
↘intonation pattern begins (see next point).

21. 7. Nice and high
GB English intonation is fairly flat until the main stress, then it tends to go high and fall. There are three intonation patterns: falling
↘YES, rising ↗YES, and fall-rising ↘↗YES, these show our attitude to our words, you can hear them in this conversation:

A | ↘John | How ↘are you? |
B | ↘David | I’m ↘fine | How are ↘you? |
A | ↘↗Actually | there’s something I need to ↘tell you |
B | ↘↗OK | shall we go and grab a ↗coffee? |
A | ↘Yes | somewhere ↘private | would be ↗best | where you can sit ↘down |
B | I don’t much like the ↘↗sound of this |

Audio Player

22. Parts of a paragraph
Like other forms of writing, paragraphs follow a standard three-part structure with a
beginning, middle, and end. These parts are the topic sentence, development and support,
and conclusion.
Topic sentences, also known as “paragraph leaders,” introduce the main idea that the
paragraph is about. They shouldn’t reveal too much on their own, but rather prepare the
reader for the rest of the paragraph by stating clearly what topic will be discussed.
The development and support sentences act as the body of the paragraph. Development
sentences elaborate and explain the idea with details too specific for the topic sentence,
while support sentences provide evidence, opinions, or other statements that back up or
confirm the paragraph’s main idea.
Last, the conclusion wraps up the idea, sometimes summarizing what’s been presented or
transitioning to the next paragraph. The content of the conclusion depends on the type of
paragraph, and it’s often acceptable to end a paragraph with a final piece of support that
concludes the thought instead of a summary.

23. Depending on the kind of writing you’re doing, you may need to use different types of
paragraphs. Here’s a brief explanation of the common paragraph types most writing deals
with.
Expository: Common in nonfiction and all types of essays, expository paragraphs revolve
around explaining and discussing a single point or idea.
Persuasive: Just like expository paragraphs, persuasive paragraphs focus on discussing a
single point; however, they support opinions instead of facts.
Narrative: When telling a story, a narrative paragraph explains an action or event. Each new
sentence furthers or expands upon the action by providing new information.
Descriptive: Also common in storytelling, descriptive paragraphs focus on describing a single
topic, such as a person or an environment. Each new sentence adds a new detail about that
topic.
The type of paragraph used usually depends on the type of writing. For example, if you’re
writing a research paper, it would be difficult to justify a narrative paragraph.
Types of paragraphs

24. Vocabulary
Translate the following phrase and create a new one to every word(s) you may do not know yet:

“Winds sight as you are sighing and winter sheds his grief in snow”
(i) (ay) (ay)

And this words too:

Kindred: Les parents
Unspoilt: Intacte
Pours: Vierte
Dew: Roseé
Gilds: Dore
Depair: Désespoir
Weep: Pleurent
Tucked: Cachée
Neatly: Soigneusement
Strikengly: étonnamment
Straight away: Tout de suite
No harm: Il n´y a pas de mal