IELTS Articles | IELTS Learning Tips

How Should I Begin Preparing for My IELTS Exam?

Exams are often a major cause of stress for anyone. Taking one that could determine your entire future is grounds for a mental breakdown. The important thing to remember is that with proper preparation, you can significantly reduce anxiety and even boost your confidence level—which can help to improve your score as well. Taking the IELTS […]

4 things to avoid in IELTS speaking

We talk a lot about what to do when taking the IELTS, well here are a few things NOT to do in your speaking exam.Don’t memorize answers. When it comes to the speaking part, it may seem like preparing and memorizing an answer may be the way to go, but don’t do it! Examiners can […]

[IELTS Case Study] – Success through Focus, Dedication and a Systematic Approach

Every so often, I like to share a case study. I like to do this because it shows you firsthand what it looks like to work with me and how I can help you achieve your goals, and it also highlights the success and victories of my extremely hardworking students! This case study illustrates a […]

6 tips for IELTS Speaking Part 2 (cue cards)

Students often tell me that they worry about Part 2 in the IELTS speaking exam because they don’t have enough to say. The key, as with everything in IELTS, is more practice. Make sure that you get good at this part – don’t worry about it. Here are some ideas for practising this part of the […]

10 Ways to be a Terrific Language Student

I have spent decades teaching students English. Over the years, I have learned just as much from them as they have from me. One thing that has always fascinated me is how they approach the process of language learning. Here are ten practices that I have noticed over the years from truly terrific language learners:Do make […]

6 IELTS essay tips for writing Task 2

Here are some things that you MUST do in order to secure a band 7 or above in your Task 2 writing. The problem that most students seem to face with task 2 and the one I get most questions about is the topic and ideas. Actually this is the least important thing about task […]

What you need to do to get Band 7 and 8 in the IELTS

Many students I teach want at least band 7 in their test and although this is not easy, it is possible with the right level of English language and the right preparation. A few weeks ago I received a message from one of my students who had just taken the IELTS exam and got the score […]

Over-Confident and Under Prepared – IELTS Case Study

This IELTS student was a doctor, Karam, who was from Syria. He had been living in the UK for some time and was very fluent in spoken English. He had spent some time at school in the UK so his English skills were quite polished.When I first met Karam he was about to take the […]

Are you paying too much IELTS Tax?

I was speaking to 3 students earlier in the week who had all taken the IELTS more than 3 times and were feeling very frustrated about their situation. Two of them had had to defer their university place twice and the other was looking to relocate to Canada and had been trying to do this […]

The Truth about Skimming and Scanning

Question: Do I need to skim and scan in IELTS reading? Answer: Yes you do. These are important reading skills which will help you to extract information quickly from a large body of text; this is exactly the skill that is being tested in IELTS reading. It’s important to understand the difference between them and use […]