Preparation Before the Test
Before you face the exam you need to be well prepared. You need not depend on only one thing for your preparation. You should try to expand your skills through practicing previous year’s question papers, mock tests, and listening to various audios. These audios can be anything, let it be, radio programs, documentaries, speeches, Tv shows, etc.
Go Beyond Preparation
When you are preparing for the IELTS you’ve got to go beyond the basic preparation. Deep analyses, devising strategies, and a thorough study aren’t just reserved for boardrooms. You’ve got to do all of the above to beat the average.
Let’s talk about the challenges you will face in scoring a band score of 8 and how to overcome them.
Challenges You will Face
The IELTS listening test has many challenges that one might face and you might be likely to face one of these problems as well. But the good part about learning a challenge is that we can start preparing for it with a solution in the meantime of the exam.
Also Read: How To Solve Diagram Labelling Questions In IELTS Listening
#1. Accents
The accent can be any of the three types – British, Canadian, or Australian. All of them with their unique twang and pronunciation of different words. There are also some words that one needs to be familiar with. For example, the commonly used ‘naught’ isn’t very common in India. It could mean zero, failure, or nothing depending on the context.
#2. The pace of the Audio
The listening exam is unforgiving in a sense because you can hear everything only once and once you’ve missed the information there’s no way of getting it back.
#3. Distractors
The information in the audio is not straightforward. There are 4 sections out of which 2 are conversations between 2 or more people. In these conversations, you will find distractors or information changing as the audio progresses.
#4. Multi-tasking
You have to listen, read and write all at the same time. Yes, there is no respite until the audio clip is done. Extended periods of concentration are a must for acing this test.
#5. Different Type of Instructions
Deciding whether to choose a letter from the list or write the answer in words? The correct answer is not just the one you find, it’s also the answer that is written according to the instructions.
How words & numbers are calculated. The instructions say ‘Write your answer in 2 words. But the correct answer is nineteen hundred and sixty-two! Converting it into a number like 1962 or not is difficult.
Transferring answers to the answer script.
Besides all these, wrong spellings are still a concern as we are sure that autocorrect will not be a facility that you can use while typing.
#6. YOLO (You only listen once)
You can only hear recordings once. I know you would love to hear it again or sometimes dread it. But IELTS won’t give you another chance. Therefore while practicing only hear the audios once and try to make it a habit.
#7. Synonyms
Synonyms of another important aspect of your IELTS listening test. Synonyms of words or phrases that have similar meanings. Sometimes on the recording you will Real words are we asked to write synonyms of a word. Sometimes its questions may confuse you as there are words that you may have never heard. Therefore try to practice some of the useful synonyms before your exam.
#8. Attention
While you listen to different audios, maintain your focus. Don’t get distracted by your surroundings or other things. As we have stated above, you will only get to hear this recording only once. Therefore, pay attention to each. Also if you missed anyone’s part, don’t fuss about it. Instead, move on to the next part.