IELTS – How to prepare and practise for the exam

If you need to take the IELTS test in order to study or live in an English speaking country you will need to do several things first:

1.      Register for the test.  For information and advice about this see the article, ‘IELTS – What is it and how can you take it?’

2.      Find out what the test involves.  How many papers are there?  What are you expected to do in each paper? What are the examiners looking for?  For help with this, I suggest you get the Super Fast Guide to the test ‘IELTS: How to succeed in the test’.  You can also visit the Super Fast Guides website for some extra tips.

3.      Practise doing the test using example exam papers. There are several ways you can do this: 

a)      You can get sample papers and exercises on the internet, for example at the British Council website, Learn English. 

b)      You can buy IELTS practice materials directly from the IELTS website. 

c)      You can buy an IELTS text book with example tests and exercises, such as Barron’s IELTS.

d)     You can attend an IELTS preparation course, for example at your local British Council.

Whichever method you choose, you should practise as much as you can before you take the test. If you have good self discipline, you may find it is better to study alone at home with practice materials using methods a), b) or c).  However, if you have the time and money, you may find that method d) is better for you, because taking a preparation course provides you with a teacher who can give you guidance and feedback on your work, as well as answering any questions you may have. You will also have the support of working with other students who are planning to take the test. 

Use whichever method works best for you, or a combination of methods, to practise for the test and good luck!  I hope you get the score you need.

Stress-free studying



A mountain of studying

Students often get very stressed, due to the pressure of exams, assignments and the general workload that is required in order to succeed.  However, stress can have a very negative effect studying as it reduces a person’s ability to acquire, retain and recall information.

This afternoon I came across an article about stress-free marketing written on the website, http://www.stressfreemarketing.us/ which I thought had several points that would be useful for students. 

The article gave this advice:

1. Realize and honor that you can only accomplish certain things during the day. Go to sleep each night saying “I have accomplished everything I could for the day. “
2. Write down a list of your marketing and distribution strategies. Update and prioritize them often.
3. Tackle small projects and complete them thoroughly. There is nothing that adds to stress more than a bunch of incomplete projects.
4. Be comfortable with working no more than three initiatives at a time. You can’t be good at everything, so be really good at a couple of things first.
5. Network with others in the industry but follow your instincts and heart. The world is filled with amazing people some of who had really bad advice.
6. Know that you are a successful person the minute you started moving in the direction of your dreams.
7. Smile throughout the day, even if you don’t see other humans. Laughter is a great stress reliever.

I’ve copied out the points in full, but I think points 1, 3, 4, 6 and 7 are good, general pieces of advice that everyone could use, especially students.  These points can help you to reduce some of the stress, which is vital for success.  Next time your studies feel overwhelming, try to smile, think positively and focus on how well you are already doing and not on how much still needs to be done.

You are what you eat

In my last post I mentioned how important sleep was for effective learning. Food is another key factor in a person's ability to work, study and learn. In order for the brain to work efficiently, it needs to be properly fuelled. Unfortunately, many people fuel up on fast food and processed meals. This particularly happens when people are on a busy schedule, such as at exam time. However, this is exactly the time when you need healthy, nutritious food to keep you going!

Grabbing a heavily processed snack, packed with fat, sugar and salt may save time, but it will make you feel tired and sluggish afterwards as your body tries to cope with the junk that you've thrown in. Instead, try fuelling up on easy to get, healthy snacks, such as:

• Fish (tinned fish can be used to make a very quick, easy meal)

• Nuts and seeds, such as almonds and sunflower seeds (try to buy them unsalted)

• Fruit and vegetables (eat them raw to save time and get extra nutrients)
• Natural yoghurt

• Brown bread

• Pulses, such as beans and lentils

Personally, I like beans on toast (a classic, but healthy student meal) and bananas (but not together!)

What do you like to have that's healthy, but quick and easy to prepare?

We all make mistakes

Everyone makes mistakes and they are often a positive part of learning. As James Joyce once said, Mistakes are the portals of discovery.

However, in this year's A level papers in the UK, an increasing number of mistakes have been found in the exam papers. As reported in The Telegraph:

the OCR exam board was forced to apologise after a rogue question was inserted into an AS-level maths exam sat by almost 6,800 students.

The question – worth 11 per cent of the total mark – asked students to find the shortest route along a network of tracks in a forest. The route was supposed to be equal to an equation set out in the test paper – but the exam board failed to calculate the length properly.

An AS-level business studies exam set by the AQA and taken by 41,400 students asked about a fictitious chocolate company’s profits. But the company’s adjoining profile information failed to show what its profits actually were – making it impossible for students to answer.

The Telegraph also says, It is feared that the blunders may affect sixth-formers’ chances of gaining university places.

What exactly is a rogue question? A disobedient one? Also, if mistakes are 'the portals of discovery', what can we 'discover' from these mistakes?

Good luck to all the students that sat exams this year as they wait for their results to be announced in August.