6 Things to Remember when writing IELTS Tasks
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Berni Wall |
In this edition of IELTS News:
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Did you know?
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It’s official! Writing is the hardest skill |
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So what does this tell us?
It tells us what most of us know that writing is the most difficult skill. It therefore makes sense to spend a lot of time on it to get it up to the band required – yet many people leave it until the end when they are due to take the exam.
It also tells us that writing is becoming more and more an important daily activity. I realise that text messages are not the same as IELTS writing BUT we are writing more and more now that in the recent past and so we really need to shape up and knuckle down and practise!
Ryan (from English Ryan) believes that it takes 3 months to see any real improvement in writing and he works with students on their writing every day. I also see how writing of all the skills take the longest time to improve. I also speak to many IELTS candidates who never get their writing checked. I am a native speaker and a teacher and I write a lot and I ALWAYS ask someone to check my writing before I send or publish!!
So in this newsletter we are focusing on a writing theme.
If you want to get more information about writing then check out the writing webinar in IELTS corner:
Take time to work on this important skill – even if you think you can manage to get your score without a good writing band – you will need it in your studies – so do think beyond your IELTS.
What are your main challenges with IELTS?
A few weeks ago I set up a page for you to write down your main challenges so far nobody has shared these with us. I am so pleased if you have no problems ot challenges whatsoever with IELTS but I really find it hard to believe this!
If you share your challenges the I can see how we can do things on Gapfillers to help with these.
So, help me to help you and write down what you are struggling with.
Follow the link and make your comments about IELTS challenges
Are you trying to get Band 7 or 8 in your IELTS exam?
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Is it a struggle?
Are you uncertain how to get this?
Worried you might never get close to your band?
Thinking of giving up? |
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"How to get IELTS Band 7 or Higher" is just the thing to get you there!
On this programme you will:
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get crystal clear on what it is you personally need to do to get band 7 or 8
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get the support of YOUR own fantastic, personal IELTS trained teacher – who will support you throughout the programme
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Have your speaking and your writing corrected and developed by your tutor
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Get new strategies to help with your reading and listening
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Have the confidence that you have an expert guiding you step by step with your preparation
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Really get focus on what it is that YOU need to practice and change to get the high band score that you want
This programme will be the difference that you’ve been searching for
http://www.gapfillers.co.uk/default.aspx?atk=7476&vrk=7455
6 Things to Remember when writing IELTS Tasks
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IELTS writing takes time and patience |
1. The purpose of the IELTS writing is to demonstrate YOUR ability to write coherently in ENGLISH on a given topicIt is very important to bear this in mind when preparing for the exam. This is one of your chances in the IELTS exam to take control (the other being in the speaking) and demonstrate your great ability in English and to write good English so don’t waste it! Make sure that you give a lot of preparation time to this and, if possible, get a teacher to help you especially if you are looking at bands 7 and 8. The teacher will not only mark your essays but will also help you to improve it by showing you how to develop your writing to ensure that you get the band you want. |
2. The key to IELTS writing is effective preparation and practice.
I know that many IELTS students work VERY hard on their IELTS but I have also met many who, despite this hard work have not been able to achieve their goal. Your practice has to be effective to work for YOU.
If you need to get band 7 you HAVE to understand what a band 7 essay looks like, what it contains and how it feels to write one. You need to know this in your muscle! To do this you need to produce one and this may take 2 or 3 hours but it doesn’t matter, once you have it then you will not go back to your old way of writing again.
Less is more with writing – quantity does NOT necessarily produce quality. It is better to work for a long time on ONE essay than produce 4 at once. If you have an IELTS teacher or coach then they will tell you when you have managed to get your band 7 essay down. If not then you will have to rely on models. Model essays are YOUR key to great writing and don’t rely simply on the good essays of your friends, they will have mistakes. Look at what you are reading for the IELTS reading – here are great models! You can find model essays for IELTS everywhere; study them and really go deep and find out what a band 7 truly is!
Your job in the writing is to say "Look at my great writing ability at band 7. See how I have managed to express this topic really well and given you lots of good language to assess" it isn’t to think "I wonder what the examiner would like to see in this paragraph".
The exam is not about the examiner, it’s about you. I can tell you that all examiners want you to do well. I know this because I have been an examiner myself and I really wanted every essay to be good and to get whatever band the candidate required. It’s sad when you see essays that have lots of silly mistakes, or weren’t planned properly or are too short or aren’t finished. Sometimes you can see that the person really has ability but they haven’t demonstrated it.
See the exam as an opportunity to demonstrate your great English rather than a ‘test’ and you’ll be much more confident.
3. Please Plan, don’t just dive in!
"There isn’t enough time to plan" I hear this all the time, yet planning well actually ‘saves’ you time! With a good plan the essay almost writes itself leaving you to concentrate on the language you are using. Without a plan you are trying not only to make sure you use good English, the right vocabulary, great structure and not too many mistakes, but also the ideas you want to express as well, all as you go along and all in about 20 or 30 minutes – that’s a lot to ask!!
A good plan will give direction to your essay and state the points you want to make leaving you to concentrate on the language you are using to express these ideas on paper.
4. Think in English
When I was learning French at school a teacher told me "If you don’t know it don’t use it!" This is very good advice – translating from your own language most often fails and you will end up with English which can at best sound ‘odd’ and at worst be gibberish thus losing you many marks in the process.
If the idea in your head is only in your own language and you don’t know the word or expression in English then either come up with another idea or think of words you DO know that you can use to express this. I understand that you can express things in a very erudite and confident way in your own language and that you want to come across in your writing as an educated and knowledgeable person BUT look at point 1 here – it’s your ability in English that is the most important thing in this exam NOT your knowledge!
In fact, if you can train yourself to think in English then your chances of producing great writing are better.
The way to do this is to immerse yourself as much as possible in English as you prepare for the exam. Read newspapers, journals, books. Listen to radio programmes, watch films and documentaries. Develop a deep and meaningful relationship with English and great things will start to happen. Firstly you will learn a lot of things using English as a vehicle and secondly you will begin to absorb the language naturally as your exposure to it increases and soon you will be thinking about ideas and topics straight into English and NOT via your own language.
Wow, this sounds like a lot of work and IELTS preparation on top too! Well, yes it is a lot of work but isn’t it worth it to get what you want? Why are you taking the IELTS anyway? Isn’t it to get you somewhere where you will be working or studying in ENGLISH every day? IELTS is simply your gateway, once you arrive at your destination you are going to need FAR MORE English than the IELTS needs so get started in this way and ‘kill two birds with one stone’.
5. Try things out during your preparation period
In order to produce a wonderful piece of writing you need to experiment a little. All writers create several drafts of their work before they publish. This blog post has taken me quite a long time to produce as I have been revising and adding things. Obviously in the exam you have only one chance but if your preparation has really prepared you for that one chance then you’ll have no problem. On the day of your test you should know how you are going to tackle the questions, whatever they are – there shouldn’t be any nasty surprises!
The time for experimenting is in your preparation time and to get a good band you really should, try and do this. From your reading and studying of model essays and other texts you will find a host of new vocabulary and sentence types. You should choose the ones that you like or the ones that impress you and use them in your own writing. Be creative, test things see how they fit, see what the result is and then ask someone to check and see if they have worked.
Questions I always ask my students when they give me writing to check is ‘Are you writing in the same way as you did before?’ and ‘Has the way you approach your writing changed?’ I always expect the answer ‘yes’. There wouldn’t be any point in working with me and then doing the same old things. I am always pleased with the ‘yes’ answer because it shows me that their work is growing and developing and getting better and that’s what should happen. I also love it when students try things new, even if they don’t work – you have to fail to grow and when better to do this than with a supportive and experienced person to help you to use these words and phrases in the correct way.
6. Timing comes towards the exam date
Many IELTS students I meet are worried about getting their writing tasks done in the time allowed (1 hour) and spend much of their preparation time racing against the clock, doing essay after essay as fast as possible. This is putting the cart before the horse! My daughter learns the piano and her teacher keeps telling her to get it right first and then speed up. This is my advice for you also. Once you know exactly what you are doing you can easily get this done in the time and even faster leaving you extra time to check. This is what you are aiming for. So make sure you start with the content and quality of your writing and don’t worry about the time – that will come when you are ready with your perfect band 7 essay every time!
Writing is the part of the exam that most people struggle with but with some disciplined and effective practice it will soon become a joy to you to write these tasks and when you are looking forward to it then you have achieved what you need.
Getting your writing checked
Don’t forget that you can have your writing marked to check that you are on the right track!A Task 1 and Task 2 cost just £15 and you will get detailed corrections, a band score and also advice on how to improve.
Find out more in IELTS Corner or go to Member Home/Account/Credits
(You should send you essays as Word documents to get the very best feedback).
IELTS Corner
http://www.gapfillers.co.uk/?atk=7233
Latest results
I have two great results to share.
One of my own Gapfillers IELTS students on the 4-week programme just got 7 in reading, speaking and writing with 7.5 in listening! Fantastic!!
A second Gapfillers member got 7.5 overall with a band 9 in reading – awesome!!
Well done to both of you!
We love to hear your successes so please let us know so we can all celebrate with you!!
(if you have a great result let us know we won’t reveal your name unless you want us to!)
IELTS Speaking practice via Gapfillers
Finding speaking buddies on Gapfillers is great way to improve your fluency and give you extra opportunities to practice your speaking.
I see that some of you are doing this – well done!
This is a great way to get regular practice so don’t be shy!! You can also use the calls to help with other parts of the exam. I know people who have discussed and helped each other with reading and listening too! If you have questions then you can post them on the site or send them to me and I will answer them.
To find speaking ‘buddies’ here for your own practice. Simply send a message from Member Home to the IELTS group network (a network message) asking for people to share Skype names with you and then you can meet on Skype and practise your English!
If you want to practice your speaking then contact those members who have already left messages or post your own message and connect with others.
You don’t have to struggle along alone with your IELTS?
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We are here to help and advise you – just contact us or post your questions
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Keep an eye out for workshops and webinars offered via Gapfillers
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Give me YOUR suggestions for how I can help YOU
If you want individual help that will show you exactly what YOU need to do to make sure you get the band you want – join our "How to get IELTS Band 7 our Higher" programme and MAKE SURE that you are ON TRACK.
http://www.gapfillers.co.uk/default.aspx?atk=7476&vrk=7455
Don’t forget to check The World of IELTS for any new updates!
That’s all for this week. I hope you will find this little digest of information useful.
If you need any help with anything just send a message via Contact Us in the Gapfillers site or directly in Member Home or the IELTS Network – I check all the messages every day!
Happy practice 🙂
Until next time!
Berni