Welcome to IELTSx!

An online preparation course for the Academic IELTS Test. My name is Iain Mathieson, and I am Director of Studies for
English Language Programs here at The University of Queensland.
We are an IELTS preparation and testing cen tre and one of the world's leading centres oflearning.
IELTSx has been designed and written by our English language teaching experts here at the University.
The course is divided into 4 modules: Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing.
You will be guided through each module by our team of course writers: Martin, Philippa, Megan, and Stephen. Each
module includes engaging video and audio presentations that cover key test-taking skills,strategies and techniques. You
will also have the opportunity to complete a wide variety of IELTS-style exercises and activities.
These will provide you with the focused practice that you need to perform at your best. As the course is self-paced, you
can complete all of the course units in sequence, or just select the areas you want to focus on. In completing the IELTSx
course, you will feel prepared to take the IELTS Academic test with confidence. We hope that IELTSx will help you to
unlock the door to university study, so let's begin by choosing any module as your starting point.
In this course, you will:
Learn about the IELTS test procedure and format
⌂ Learn useful test-taking strategies and skills for the IELTS Academic test
⌂ Practise and develop skills and strategies by completing IELTS-style practice activities in reading, listening,
speaking and writing
⌂ Develop your reading, writing, listening and speaking English skills
Please note: This course is also useful for General Training candidates as the Speaking and Listening tests are the same
and the skills and strategies in Writing and Reading are also the same.
Computer-delivered IELTS test
A new computer-delivered version of the IELTS test is currently being introduced around the world. The paper-based test
will still be available for candidates to take also. Check with your local test centre whether the choice to take the test on
computer is available to you.
The IELTSx course will prepare you for either version of the test.
Here is a summary of the format for each version of the test:
IELTS on Paper: The Listening, Reading and Writing sections are done on paper. The Speaking test is carried out face-
to-face with a trained IELTS Examiner.
IELTS on Computer: The Listening, Reading and Writing sections are done on a computer. The Speaking test is still
done face-to-face with a trained IELTS Examiner.

LISTENING
UNIT#1
Welcome to the IELTS Academic Test Preparation: Listening module. I’m Iain Mathieson, TESOL Director of Studies at
ICTE-UQ. And my name is Martin Dutton, one of the IELTSx writers and a teacher at ICTE-UQ.
I’ll be guiding you through the listening section of this course. In this unit, Martin will start by giving you an overview of
the IELTS Listening Test and what it includes. This will give you important facts about the IELTS Listening Test and
what it is designed to assess.
Then, in the following units, I’ll be showing you the differences between each section of the IELTS Listening Test. We
will look at the types of questions you will need to answer. After each of my presentations, there will be opportunities to
practise the skills that you need. If you wish to practise listening offline, you can.
All the video and audio tracks, and the scripts, are available for you to download and use in your own time.
And if you have any questions about the Listening Test, you can post them on our discussion forum and we will do our
best to answer them as quickly as possible. There are already lots of useful questions and answers on the forum. It’s also a
good way to connect with other IELTSx students. Now, let’s start by finding out what you already know about the
Listening Test.
Facts about the Listening Test
I’m sure you are curious to find out as much as possible about the IELTS Listening Test, but why don’t we begin by
looking at some important facts.
Let’s start with facts about the timing of the test. When you take the IELTS Listening Test, it will take 30 minutes, during
which time you will actually listen and answer questions, plus there is an additional 10 minutes of what is called transfer
time. Transfer time is your opportunity to copy your answers from the question paper to the answer sheet. And by the
way, when you do this, you should not use any abbreviations and your answers must be spelled correctly.
The Listening Test is organized into 4 sections and each section has an audio recording, which you listen to, and 10
questions on your question paper, which you should answer while listening. So, in total, you have to answer 40 questions
for the whole test.
You are probably also wondering what the recordings are about. Well, each section uses a different type of recording; for
a start, the topics are different, for example, one listening may be about sport, but another would be about something
completely different, but also some are monologues, that is with one person speaking, while others are dialogues, with
two or even more people having a conversation.
Why don’t I give you some more detailed information about this.
⌂ For Section 1, you will normally listen to a conversation between two people on a general, everyday topic.
⌂ But when you get to Section 2, although it is still about something general and non-academic, you will notice that
there is only one speaker.
⌂ In Section 3, there is a discussion involving up to four people in an academic situation.
⌂ Section 4, you will need to answer questions while listening to an academic lecture.

As a teacher, I often get asked how difficult the Listening Test is. Well, that varies from person to person. How easy or
difficult you find the test overall really depends on you, your listening experience and your ability. But, I can say that the
Listening Test is designed to increase in difficulty as the test goes on. So, Section 1 is usually the easiest to complete, but
Section 4 is the most difficult. You should also remember that you can only listen to the test once – you can’t listen again
if you missed something.
To prepare well for the IELTS Listening, you need to get practice in all of the 7 possible question types. The question
types are used randomly and are called: form or notes or flowchart completion, multiple-choice questions, short answer
questions, sentence completion, labelling a diagram or map, classification, and finally, matching.
You will be able to practise answering these types of questions in this course. So, what happens to your test when you
have finished? Well, it is marked and 1 point is given for each correct answer. Remember, you will lose points for
incorrect spelling.
The total number of points is then converted into an IELTS band score for Listening, for example, 6.0 or 7.0. It is also
possible to be given a half band score, such as 5.5.
So, now you have some basic information. But remember, although these facts are important background knowledge,
there is a lot more to learn which will help you do well in the IELTS Listening Test.
Let’s find out what you are assessed on in the IELTS Listening Test. As we have already discovered, in Sections 1 and 2,
this test assesses skills required while listening to everyday situations. In Sections 3 and 4, the test assesses skills while
listening to academic situations.
We’ll now look at these situations in more detail.

 First of all, in Sections 1 and 2, there is an everyday context such as an accommodation office or a travel agent or
a public meeting, so, you are mainly listening for, main ideas and factual information.
 In Sections 3 and 4, you will need to listen for main ideas and facts as well, but these audio recordings are in
academic situations, such as study meetings between students and lectures, so, you will also need to show that you
can understand how much speakers agree with each other, show that you can follow academic explanations and
demonstrate understanding of speakers’ attitudes and opinions.

Listening for the Main Idea

In a talk or lecture, the main idea is the overall message given by the speaker about the topic. In a conversation, the main
idea is often the same as the purpose of the conversation.
The following exercise will give you practise in answering a question about the main idea in a conversation. This exercise
will be useful for completing Sections 1 and 3 of the IELTS Listening Test.
Listen to the recording and then answer the following question.
Why is the woman phoning?

to buy a new washing machine

to buy a second-hand washing machine asset-v1_UQx+IELTS

x+3T2015+type@asset+block@1.1.6.2_-_Listening_for_the_main_idea_V2.mp3
 to have her washing machine repaired

Listening for Factual Information

In the IELTS Listening Test, you will need to recognise factual details in a recording and write them down correctly. This
ability may be tested in any of the four sections. In this next activity, you need to identify specific information.
Understanding Speakers' Agreement
An example of understanding speakers' agreement is when two speakers start a conversation with different opinions or
ideas, but the conversation finishes with both having a shared idea or meaning. This exercise will be useful for completing
Sections 1 and 3 of the IELTS Listening Test.
Listen to the recording and try the following exercise.
Drag and Drop: Problems and Solutions
Drag the appropriate boxes to their respective areas. Understanding Speakers' Agreement.mp3

Anne: Right. Let’s assign the different parts of the project

Between ourselves.…
Bob: Hang on! Sorry to break your flow but I need some time to
read over the notes before we do anything else.
Anne: Oh…I’m sorry…I forgot you were sick for that lecture.
You know the problem is we really need to decide on our roles
now. It’s only… what…three days until the deadline.
Bob: That’s right! Well, did you see the lecture?
Anne: Yes, it was so interesting.
Bob: Do you think you can tell me what it was about? Will it
take you long if you do it now?
Anne: That’s a good idea. Then we’ll draw up a plan.

Following Academic Explanation

In Section 4 of the IELTS Listening Test, you will need to understand the parts of an academic lecture which explains
main ideas.
Understanding Speakers' Responses and Attitudes
In the IELTS Listening Test, you will be required to understand what a speaker is feeling or thinking about an issue. This
activity tests your understanding of a speaker’s opinion and attitude.
Listen to the recording and then answer the following question.
Mark thought Dr. Smith's lecture material was...
Mark: Hi, Joan. How’s your assignment
Understanding Speakers'going?
Responses and Attitudes.mp3
A: valuable Joan: Well. I think it’s good. Thanks to that lecture material from Dr.
B: too detailed Smith.
C: unimportant Mark: Oh, I couldn’t see any relevance to it, actually, so I left it out.
Joan: Well …I thought the part about Max Planck’s theory was really
useful. I included a lot of detail about his experiments.
UNIT 2
In this unit, you will learn the following strategies which will help you to improve your IELTS Listening Test score:
Before Listening:
 using audio instructions
 predicting
 While Listening:
 being ready to hear
 listening while reading
After Listening:
 checking answers
 transferring the answers
Do you remember how many times you are allowed to listen in the IELTS Listening Test? Only
one time. Understandably, many candidates find this very challenging, but there are ways that you can manage this feature
of the test.
In this unit, Listening Strategies, we are going to find out about some of these techniques,
and also get some practice in using them. The strategies can be divided into those you need before listening, while
listening and after listening.
For before listening, we will look at how you can use the audio instructions and predict
what you will hear. The while listening strategies include, being ready to hear and being able to listen while reading.
Finally, when you have finished listening, there are still some important techniques you should use. These are, being able
to check your answers and transferring your answers effectively. So, with the strategies you will learn in this unit, you
should become more effective and efficient when you take the IELTS Listening Test.
Before Listening: Using Audio Instructions
On test day, the IELTS Listening Test is on one digital audio track, which is started by a supervisor and plays non-stop
until it finishes approximately 30 minutes later. This audio track contains the 4 listening sections, but it also contains the
instructions you will hear before, during and after each listening section, given by the same speaker throughout the test.
The sample script below shows you these instructions. Remember that this is a script, you will not see the script in the
test, but you will hear these instructions. Read through the script and move your mouse over the highlighted text to get
important advice.

You’re going to listen to a number of different recordings. You’ll have to answer questions on what you hear. You will
have time to read the instructions and questions, and to check your work. All the recordings will be played ONCE only.
The test is in four sections. At the end of the test, you will be given 10 minutes to transfer your answers on to an answer
sheet.
Section 1

You're going to listen to a telephone conversation about parking permits. First, you
have some time to look at questions 1 to 5.

(30 second pause)

You’ll see that there is an example that has been done for you. The conversation
relating to this example will be played first.

(the first part of Section 1)

Red is the correct answer. Now let’s begin. You should answer the questions on the
question sheet while you listen, because you will only hear the recording once. Now
listen, and answer questions 1-5.

(Recording of Section 1)

Before you hear the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at
questions 6 to 10.

(30 second pause)

Now listen and answer questions 6 to 10.

(Recording of Section 1)
 That is the end of Section 1. You now have 30 seconds to check your answers.

(30 second pause)

Now turn to Section 2.

Section 2
You’re going to listen to somebody talking about a tennis centre. First, you have
some time to look at questions 11 to 14.
(30 second pause)
Now listen and answer questions 11 to 14.
(Recording of Section 2)
Before you hear the rest of the talk, you have some time to look at questions 15 to
20.
(30 second pause)
(Recording of Section 2)
That is the end of Section 2. You now have 30 seconds to check your answers.
(30 second pause)
Now turn to Section 3.
(Section 3)
(Section 4)
That is the end of Section 4.
You now have 30 seconds to check your answers.
That is the end of the listening test. You now have 10 minutes to transfer your
answers to the listening answer sheet.

Before Listening: Predicting

Right, let’s look at how you can use predicting to help you in the test. Before each listening section, the speaker on the
audio file will always give you a short introduction to the next section.
For example, "You’re going to listen to a telephone conversation about libraries". and tell you that you have some time to
read the next group of questions on the question paper. For example,
"First, you have some time to look at questions 1 to 5".
After this, there is a pause, for about 30 seconds, when you will hear nothing. But, what do you think you should do
during this pause?
Well, we tell our students that this is a golden opportunity to prepare yourself for listening by thinking about the situation
and the vocabulary in the following listening section.
In fact, you should ask yourself questions like these during the pause: Who will be speaking? Where are the speakers?
Why are they talking? What are they talking about?
You should use all the information that you have for this: the introduction you have heard; the instructions on the question
paper; and the questions on the question paper.
When you predict like this, your mind should also be able to identify the topic of the listening and the words which are
most likely to be heard in the listening. If you can use your time to predict as I’ve described, you will give yourself an
advantage when you have to answer the questions.
o Predicting Practice: Situations
This exercise will help you to use the introduction to predict the situation used in a listening section.
Listen to the four audio introductions and then predict the TWO most likely situations that you might hear for each audio.

Audio 1. Audio 2. Audio 3 Audio 4

1. You will hear a telephone

Predicting_Practice 2.mp3 Predicting_Practice 3.mp3 Predicting_Practice 4.mp3 conversation between a car
 Predicting_Practice.mp3 Predicting Practice: Words
This exercise will help you to
use the introduction to predict
the words used in a listening
section. Listen to the four audio
introductions and then predict
the FOUR most likely words
that you might hear for each
audio.

While Listening: Being Ready to Hear

Let’s talk about some important strategies you should use while the listening sections are playing. Each listening extract
starts after a pause and then you will concentrate on looking at the question paper while listening for the answers to the
questions.
You should be aware of some important facts about the listening questions. The answers are heard in the same order as the
questions on the question paper. So, if you have just heard the answer to question 11, the answer to question 12 will be
next, and so on.
Because of this, and the fact that you cannot listen again, you need to be ready to hear each answer by listening for words
and expressions which mean the same as keywords in the questions. Have a look at this extract from a question paper.
This is a section with question numbers 11 to 20, as shown here and the question paper also gives instructions here. Now,
in this section, you need to listen about a company called ‘BCD International’ and complete the notes. Let’s focus on
question 11 here. The keywords are ‘number of employees'.
In the IELTS Listening, you will not hear the exact same words as the question words; it would be too easy if that was the
case. So, you need to be ready to hear different words and expressions which tell you the answer is here. Can you think of
possible words and expressions which you might hear for question 11? What about ‘how many’ and 'staff’? instead of
‘number of employees’. There would be other possibilities as well. Let’s look at question 12. Instead of ‘produces’, what
other words could be heard? What about ‘makes’ or ‘BCD is a manufacturer of…’. Being ready in this way will really
help you to answer questions.

Being Ready: Practice

Looking at the question paper below, you will need to listen
IELTS\CLASSES\While
for words or expressions ListeninG
which tell you that the answer willBeing Ready to Hear UNIT 2.mp4
soon be given.

MC: Ok, ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to introduce Ron Downing to you. Ron is here to talk to you
about BCD International. Ron..? RON: Thank you, it’s a pleasure to be here again. I have to say
that last year’s presentation was very successful indeed. It resulted in 14 people being placed in
our offices. So, in total BCD now employs exactly 527 people worldwide, (highlight areas 2 and 3)
and all with a variety of skills, which I shall talk about later. OK. You probably want to know
what business BCD is in and what it actually does. BCD International is the second-largest computer
software manufacturer in the world. (highlight areas 3 and 4) And although it is widely considered
to make the best quality product, other software companies always provide strong competition, and
Being_Ready_Practice_2.mp3
11. Number of employees: 527
12. BCD produces: Computer Software.