6 hours or less to score IELTS band 8
As Canada and other countries’ immigration process requires IELTS (mostly general format), there are tens of thousands of candidates taking these tests every year. Even though there is an ocean of content on the internet with detailed lectures and activities, I have not come across a quick preparation recipe to achieve a decent score. I hope this piece of writing will be useful to the exam-taking mass.
Most people who are planning to immigrate to Canada seek 8777 scores on listening, reading, speaking and writing respectively. I recently took this test with a 5-hour preparation and managed to score an overall band of 8, with sumptuous marks on each section that is required for the Canadian immigration process.
So, what exactly did I do? I solved the two free full tests that you will get on the official IELTS website after you register for the exam. This would take about 6 hours. If you are a good user of the English language, I believe this is all you need. The purpose of this exam is to get well acquainted with the exam format and this helps you to train your brain to expect certain types of questions. If you have extra time, you can also solve the Cambridge 15 IELTS practice exams. I strongly believe, language skills cannot be developed overnight and hence concentrating on the format will be a much better plan.
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Specific techniques:
Listening: Read the passage and anticipate the answer beforehand while listening to the audio. The questions asked are always aligned with the script in the audio. Remember, this is not an IQ exam! Do not think much! In case, you missed an answer, move on. Do not get stuck at that single lost answer. Check spelling mistakes at the end; wrong spellings will cost you the whole mark.
Reading: Do not read the whole passage. I must admit that my academic background has tuned my brain to read certain parts to scavenge some vital parts. But this skill can be learnt quickly, especially on simple passages that appear in IELTS. You simply have to read the title, and the first paragraph, which would mostly be the introduction paragraph. Just read the first sentence of the subsequent paragraphs, which would almost in all simple passage cases be the topic sentences of that particular paragraph. You may use the highlighter to mark some important words. Soon after this, jump to the questions and start looking for the related keywords in the passages. By using this technique, you can finish the reading section quickly with ample time to spare at the end.
Writing and speaking: Honestly, I have not understood the way these sections are evaluated. IELTS band descriptors do give an idea, but by my test experience and my friends’ experience, these sections are almost always mysteriously graded. However, all I can tell here is that, use a variety of sentence structures and a wide range of grammar and vocabulary. For example, use simple, compound and complex sentences; passive, active, and other voices along with different kinds of statements and proper punctuations. Similarly, for the speaking section, try to speak at a length and try to exhibit your wide vocabulary range.
You can only improve on these sections if there is specific instruction from IELTS on what exactly they want the paragraph to look like. Unfortunately, grading on these sections is too murky to decipher, especially if you are pressed for the preparation time. Try to have a natural flow and use connectors and aim to address all the questions asked.
This is all you have to do. Additionally, I think watching more videos on YouTube or reading the same redundant materials which promise you high bands are often simply a junk read; of course in my opinion. I wish all the exam candidates good luck.
