Understand Basic of Listening Test

Listening checks whether you,

I) Are familiar with the accents & pronunciations of native speakers

II)Grasp the main idea and understand the respective details

III)Have control over where information about certain context has begun and ended.

IV)Understand overall context of where, what, and why they are speaking

V)Eventually follow up further discussion to identify if the purpose of speaking has been explained

Introduction to Listening Exam

The recording plays for 25 minutes and you will get extra 10 minutes for transferring the answer to the answer sheet.

-You will get 40 objectives type question which will be based on informal and academic settings

-Informal setting includes conversation (1-10) or a monologue (11-20) related to general inquiry or queries about the services and facilities available. It may include parks, library, any events, or activities. 

-Academic setting will involve two people’s conversation (21-30) or a monologue (31-40) in different types of academic setting.

-Each right answer will carry 1 mark which after additions will be converted to band score based on following table.

How to Score Band 9 in Listening Test?

 

Improving your IELTS Listening skills requires consistent practice and strategic techniques. Here are some advanced methods to enhance your listening ability:

1. Exposure to Different Accents

Listening to authentic English from different regions will help you become familiar with various accents and speech patterns. Regularly listen to national news broadcasters from the following English-speaking countries:

  • UK – BBC News
  • USA – CNN
  • Canada – CBC News
  • New Zealand – TVNZ
  • Australia – 9News

 

Advanced Strategies:

  • Try shadowing: Listen to a sentence and repeat it simultaneously. This will improve your comprehension and pronunciation.
  • Accent identification drills: Listen to speakers from different regions and try to guess their accent.
  • Transcription practice: Listen to a short clip, write down what you hear, and compare it to the actual transcript.
  • Speed variation: Adjust playback speed on YouTube or podcasts to challenge your listening skills.
  • Listen with subtitles first, then without: This helps you associate words with their sounds before testing pure listening skills.

 

2. Practice with Cambridge IELTS Materials

Cambridge publishes official IELTS practice books annually. You can find past test recordings on YouTube by searching for:

  • “IELTS Cambridge Listening Test 1-19” (Each book contains four tests: Test 1, Test 2, Test 3, and Test 4)

 

Expert Strategies:

  • Use Predictive Listening: Before playing the recording, look at the questions and try to predict the type of words (noun, verb, number) that might fit the blanks.
  • Active Note-taking: Use abbreviations and symbols to jot down important points while listening.
  • Time-stamped analysis: After completing a test, go back and analyze at what exact time the answers were mentioned.

 

3. Mastering Multi-Tasking

Listening in IELTS requires you to listen, comprehend, and write answers simultaneously. Focus on improving the following skills:

  • Processing speed: How quickly can you understand the meaning while listening?
  • Writing efficiency: Can you write answers accurately while listening?
  • Keyword recognition: How well can you identify keywords and their synonyms?

 

Step-by-Step Technique:

Don’t hurry yourself on writing answers initially. Conduct following activities for every attempt of listening,

  1. First Listening: Focus only on understanding the context without writing answer.
  2. Second Time: Listen again and note down key points.
  3. Third Attempt: Take a full test under timed conditions.
  4. Summarization Practice: After each listening test, summarize the main idea of each section in 5 to 7 sentences.
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