There are lots of ‘rules’ ‘tricks’, tips and shortcuts around IELTS which I see online and also hear about from my students and I can tell you that none of them will help you to get your IELTS band as much as good English skills and strong techniques.
In fact, in many cases the opposite can be true – they will actually stop you from getting a high band because they cause you to follow them slavishly with the result that you ignore your own common sense and instinct.
This morning I was working with one of my students on IELTS reading and he had made a mistake in just one question in passage 1. We went through the passage together and he immediately picked the correct answer once we looked at the sentence again. I wondered why he had got this wrong the first time as he found the answer so easily. The reason was, that the wrong answer was number 6 and it actually came after question 7. In his head he had a ‘rule’ that all the questions followed one after another so therefore question 6 had to be before question 7 and he had failed to locate it.
‘Why?’ I asked. ‘Because the questions usually come in order’. ‘Do they? I answered, ‘Why, there is no rule which says that they have to or necessarily do’.
I have seen this before too. Students missing very easy answers because they followed a rule that says everything is in order.
To my mind there is no substitute for great skills and good language ability – with this arbitrary rules are simply not necessary.
Another ‘rule’ is to check the first and last sentence in the paragraphs for headings. Sometimes this might work but quite often you will find a word like ‘but’ or ‘however’ at the beginning of the second or third sentence and this turns the whole argument on its head and presents the opposite point of view. If you follow the first and last sentence rule – then you will miss this completely and probably choose the wrongs headings. By skimming the paragraph you won’t miss anything!
So, here are a couple more ‘IELTS myths’ that can actually stop you from getting the IELTS band you want:
I have to include specific words (usually from a spurious list) in my task two or I won’t get a high band
Sadly I have seen tasks that are ‘word-packed’ and often the communication is lost. The most important thing about the essay is that you answer the questions in a communicative and convincing way. You are at liberty to use any words and phrases you wish and, of course, if you use a range of good vocabulary that will help you with your final score but throwing words at the essay just because you think they will impress the examiner is a dangerous thing to do. Using words appropriately and sensibly to give your essay some sophistication will get you marks but words included in your task willy-nilly because you think they will earn you marks won’t help you at all.
It’s far better to spend your time broadening your overall vocabulary and perfecting your writing style so that you are able to use new words in the right way.
I need good ideas to impress the examiner
The examiner’s job in the writing and speaking is to see if you are able to present ideas and arguments in good English and to test that those ideas are plausible and backed up so that they are convincing. At no time will the examiner judge your ideas (as long as they are sensible and fit in with the question).
You are in control of your speaking and writing not the examiner. You should use this position to demonstrate your excellent use of English. Take the lead and convince the examiner of your opinions using great language and good organisation of your ideas both in writing and in speaking. The examiner will be far more impressed by the way you express the ideas in fabulous English than the ideas themselves. The examiner is not looking for any specific answer – just a good one. When I was an examiner I often found that students’ opinions were opposite to mine but it didn’t matter as long as they expressed them well.
So my advice is to spend your time improving your English and IELTS techniques and not searching the internet for any ‘magic’ shortcuts!