IELTS Tips: What to Expect on the Listening Test
When it comes to high stakes language testing, preparation is key. Knowing precisely what to expect when the test starts will help you keep calm, stay organized, and perform to the best of your ability.
In the IELTS Listening test, you might hear from a variety of speakers with different English-speaker accents from around the world, but the 4 sections of the test are always the same. So, it’s a good idea to become familiar with the format first. Then, it’s just a matter of practice, practice, practice!
This blog post will go over the 4 sections of the listening test so you can know exactly what to expect:
Listening Section 1: The Transactional Conversation
Number of speakers: 2
In the first section of the listening test, you’ll hear two people speaking, normally over the phone. This conversation will usually be of a customer service nature. It might be someone calling to make an appointment at a doctor’s office, to reserve a hotel room, or purchase an insurance policy for example. You will likely have to listen for the personal information details given, such as a phone number, name, credit card info, or date of birth.
Listening Section 2: The Informational Monologue
Number of speakers: 1
This section features one person speaking to a group. Common examples include a volunteer coordinator giving directions to their team, a tour guide showing people around a natural or historical site, or a boss addressing new employees on their first day of work. This section is the most likely of the four to feature map-labelling questions where you will need to listen for directions. You might also find matching type questions where one person in the audience group will be given a task or role each.
Listening Section 3: The Academic Group Conversation
Number of speakers: 2-4
This section will always have a group of student discussing a project that they are working on for university, usually a presentation or a report. This is often described as the most difficult in the IELTS listening test. However, it is also one of the most realistic conversations you’ll hear. The reason for this is that the speakers often express differing viewpoints, change their views, and argue their points. You often have to answer questions about who had which point of view.
Listening Section 4: The Academic Lecture
Number of speakers: 1
The final section of the listening test features the most formal and complex language so far. You will hear a lecture on an academic subject, but you won’t know what the topic is until the audio starts. It could be anything from marine biology to art history to English literature to architecture. You don’t need to have any knowledge of the subject, but instead focus on following the structure of a lecture, where the professor wil move from one topic to the next while you fill in the blanks on the course notes.
That’s it for today’s IELTS Tips post. If you’re in need of more in-depth preparation for your IELTS test, MOSAIC Engage offers IELTS Prep classes as well. Check out our program webpage for information about all of our English classes and test prep programs.