Improve Your Band Score on the IELTS Academic Exam... If you want to get a high score on the IELTS exam, here are some tips to payattention to.. #1: Learn the Test Format Knowing what to
Trang 2Improve Your Band Score on the IELTS Academic Exam
Trang 3www.eslspeaking.org
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Trang 4All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed,
or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording
or other electronic or mechanical means without the prior written permission ofthe publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in critical reviews and certainother non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law For permission requests,write to the publisher/author at the following address: Jackie Bolen:
jb.business.online@gmail.com
Trang 9I taught English in South Korea for 10 years to every level and type of student.I've taught every age from kindergarten kids to adults Most of my time hascentered around teaching at two universities in Cheonan and Busan These days,I'm teaching teenagers and adults in Vancouver, Canada In my spare time, youcan usually find me outside surfing, biking, hiking, or snowshoeing
In case you were wondering what my academic qualifications are, I hold a
Master of Arts in Psychology During my time in Korea I successfully completedboth the Cambridge CELTA and DELTA certification programs With the
combination of almost 15 years teaching ESL/EFL learners of all ages and
levels, and the more formal teaching qualifications I've obtained, I have a solidfoundation on which to offer advice to English learners
I hope that you find this book useful I would love it if you sent me an emailwith any questions or feedback that you might have
YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/jackiebolen
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/eslspeaking
Email: jb.business.online@gmail.com
You may also want to check out these other books by Jackie Bolen It's easy to
Trang 10− English Collocations in Dialogue
− Advanced English Conversation Dialogues
− 1001 English Expressions and Phrases
Trang 11This book is designed to help you build a bigger vocabulary for the academicversion of the IELTS exam If you want to get a high score, it will be necessary
to know the kind of language you'll find in this book
To use this book, I recommend doing one lesson per day, instead of all of them atone time This will help you to remember the material There are about 10 weeks
of lessons Do the exercises, and try not to cheat by looking at the answers!
Use a vocabulary notebook, and be sure to write down any new words that youlearn Review them frequently and consider making some flashcards Push
yourself to use this new vocabulary when speaking and see if you can find themwhen watching English TV or movies, or reading
Make sure you know how to pronounce any new word that you learn Look onYouTube or Google, “How to say _” to find out This will help you get ahigher score on the speaking section
This book is one way to expand your vocabulary range You might also considerextensive reading and listening as well Find things to listen to (podcasts,
movies, TV shows) or read (books, magazine, newspaper articles) that are atyour level, or just slightly below The key is to read or listen just for fun and tonot have to use a dictionary all the time This will not only help you becomemore familiar with English vocabulary but it'll also help you improve your
grammatical accuracy as well
Trang 12If you want to get a high score on the IELTS exam, here are some tips to payattention to
#1: Learn the Test Format
Knowing what to expect on test day is key to getting a high score Familiarizeyourself by looking online for some tests Better yet, consider taking an IELTSprep class with an experienced teacher
#2: Study Academic English
Unlike some other English exams, the academic IELTS is all about academicEnglish! You may not have previously studied this kind of language before.Don't worry—that's what this book is all about!
#3: Practice Focusing for 2-3 Hours at a Time
This test takes a long time (2:45) Put your phone away and practice studying for
a long period of time, without taking breaks Get used to focusing for hours
#4: Eat Breakfast and Get a Good Sleep
Trang 13Bring a small snack to eat during the short breaks Wear a t-shirt and bring asweater along with you This way, you can adapt to a hot or cold room andremain comfortable
#5: Improve your English Typing Skills
You may be proficient at typing on a keyboard in your first language, but whatabout English? If you're doing the computer-based exam, this is a key factor.Make sure to do an online tutorial to improve your speed and accuracy
If you're doing the paper-based exam, be sure to bring sharpened pencils, aneraser, and a selection of nice pens
#6: Practice Taking Notes
Note taking is a key skill for college students It's also allowed on the IELTSexam and can be helpful in getting a high score, so get some practice with it.Whenever you listen to or read something, be sure to take some notes Createyour own shorthand for common words For example, I use a triangle for
“change.” I also make frequent use of an equal sign, or an equal sign with a linethrough it to represent things like equal, similar, same, different, unequal, etc
Trang 14On a multiple choice test with 4 questions, you have a 25% chance of randomlyguessing the right answer However, the good news is that there are usually 1 or
2 answers that are obviously not correct Eliminate 1 of them, and you have a33% chance Eliminate 2, and you have a 50% chance of getting it right
All that to say, never leave blanks on this exam Answer every single question.Try to eliminate some answers, if possible, and then make your best guess Forthe speaking portion, just say something You may get partial points
#8: Practice Writing with a Time Limit
Are you one of those people who carefully choose every word that you write inEnglish? Maybe you ponder over whether or not your sentence is grammaticallyperfect? This is a bad habit that you need to break for the IELTS exam There is
a strict time limit, and you won't finish the tasks if you do this
Look up some writing practice tests for the IELTS online Follow the time limits
I recommend spending a short time thinking about the points you want to coverand making some brief notes about that (1-2 minutes per section) Then, startwriting Allow 3-5 minutes for proofreading at the end to check for any
mistakes Get used to doing this during your practice sessions, and you'll ace theexam
#9: Make a Study Plan
Trang 15to start around 6 months before Make a study plan Include a mix of all fourskills, along with studying academic English vocabulary Learn about the testformat and do practice exams When the test day comes, you'll be able to feelconfident that you've put your best effort in!
#10: Choose a Test Date Wisely
Maybe you're doing the IELTS to apply for a college or university? Don't plan toget your results only a few days before the college application deadline What ifyour score isn't high enough? You won't have time to study more, retake the test,and wait for your results
Instead, I recommend doing the first attempt 6-8 months before the applicationdeadline If you do well, that's great! If you don't, then you still have 3-4 moremonths to study, retake the test, and submit your application This is the stress-free way!
Trang 16a good employee?
Gary: Well, he is meticulous in his work but has no people skills
Trang 19Emily and Kara are managers, talking about changing a policy for their
employees.
Emily: I'm thinking that we need to be more rigid about break times A lot ofpeople are quite brazen about taking way too long of breaks
Kara: I can't deny that it is a significant problem However, wouldn't it triggerwidespread quitting? Morale is already so low here
Emily: Maybe That might be a good thing though We have so many people thatare implacable and aren't happy, no matter what we do
Kara: Yes, I just don't want to lose anyone integral to that new product we'rereleasing
Emily: You're right Let's think some more about this
Vocabulary
rigid: Unable to change or adapt
Trang 21You're being very _ with regard to this decision There are lots of otheroptions we could consider
There is a _ difference in price between the two quotes
Bob is the worst He's totally and completely _ if someone doesn't go hisway
Those birds are so _, stealing the food
What's the _ for her anger?
You can't that global warming is a real thing
She's an _ part of the team I think we should give her a raise so she won'tleave
Trang 22denyintegralmorale
Trang 23Kate and Jerry are doing a group project together at school and are talking about another person on their team.
Kate: I'm thinking about talking to Professor Bolen about Cam
Jerry: Why? I know that you abhor him, but he's actually quite diligent in thework he does on the project He's amiable to me most days
Kate: He's brusque and lacking in social graces
Jerry: Things are tense between the two of you All of us have noticed that But,
I don't think it's bad enough to talk to the professor Cam hasn't done anythingwrong
Kate: Really? I thought everyone hated him
Jerry: You may well have a valid reason to not like him, but my advice is to shiftyour thinking Give him a second chance Pretend that we're all professionalengineers and you're at work You won't have the option to get rid of him then
Vocabulary
Trang 26amiablevalid
Trang 27Keith and Cindy are talking about a product that their company makes.
Keith: What do you think about product ABC? Sales have been terrible
Cindy: I know I think we have to abandon it Or, at least suspend productionuntil we can undertake some research about why it failed so badly
Keith: The vision was good And the marketing plan was impeccable It's strangethat it went so badly I wonder if something went wrong with the execution?
Cindy: It could be related to that There was likely a myriad of problems that wehave no idea about
Keith: Ahhh, well, you can't win them all
Cindy: You're right! I did have high hopes for this one though
Vocabulary
Trang 29Students are required to _ simple experiments during the lab portion of thiscourse.
Trang 30undertake
Trang 31Sam: It's a straightforward fact and not a difficult concept to grasp You have topunch in on the time clock Are you so oblivious? You'll have to adjust yourbehavior It's a bad example for your team
Larry: I can't control how many vehicles are on the road in front of me
Vocabulary
Trang 32flabbergasted: Astonished or surprised
hypocrisy: Claiming to have moral standards to which the person themselvesdoes not follow
Trang 34oblivioushypocrisy
Trang 35Tim: That sounds like a lot of work.
Trang 37You can try to _ Tommy, but I think he's already made up his mind.Don't come if you're only doing it to _ me You'll be in a bad mood
Trang 38cajoleappease
Trang 39Kevin and Sandy are talking about one of Keith's classmates.
Sandy: How are your classes this semester?
Keith: Oh, they're fine, except for my political science class There's one studentthat I despise
Sandy: What does he do?
Keith: Well, he's so, brusque, brash, and aggressive He'll say anything to
anyone, and he brags about how much he knows I'm certainly not accustomed tothat
Sandy: What does the professor do?
Keith: He doesn't conceal his dislike but not much besides that I don't think helikes conflict And this student is so adamant about what he thinks that I don'tthink anything the professor might say could change his mind
Vocabulary
Trang 42aggressivebrash/brusqueaccustomed to
Trang 43Kerry and Tom are discussing Sam's dissertation.
Kerry: Did you see Sam's dissertation? He just published it
Tom: I read the abstract and had a quick look at his literature review What didyou think?
Kerry: He certainly cited some less than reputable sources with no academiccredentials
Tom: I didn't notice that at first glance Who's his advisor? I wonder how thatslipped by him?
Kerry: Professor Brown Sam must have consulted with him about his sources,right?
Tom: Who knows Professor Brown has so much other stuff going on that heprobably didn't read it Isn't he going to retire next year too? He probably doesn'tcare The bottom line is that nobody is going to take it seriously unless Samcleans up this issue
Trang 44dissertation: The final step in a Ph.D Program; a written document with originalresearch
published: In the academic world, it refers to a research paper in a journal
abstract: A summary of the thesis and primary ideas covered in an academicpaper
literature review: A summary of what other people have already written and published about a topic.
reputable sources: People who are experts in their fields and who have good reputations.
Trang 45the bottom line: What it comes down to in the end The lowest or minimum standard.
cleans up: Corrects errors to make something look good.
Trang 46I think my _ will take at least a year to complete
Who are the _ in this field? I don't have enough experience to know thatyet
I don't want to read this until she _ all those spelling and simple grammarmistakes
I only read the _ of most papers if I'm short on time
Has Tim _ anything yet? Hasn't he been at this university for five yearsnow?
You should have _ with your advisor before you started writing your
dissertation She would have caught this mistake
Start with a _ before doing anything else on your thesis You need to knowwhat everyone else has already said
_ is that this isn't good enough for a Ph.D student
Do you that think my _ are good enough to apply for an assistant professorjob?
I'm thinking of asking Professor Bolen to be my _
Answers
dissertation
Trang 47abstract
published
consulted
literature reviewthe bottom linecredentials
advisor
Trang 48Ethan is talking with Kara about her garden.
Ethan: What are you up to this weekend?
Kara: I'm going to work on my garden I want to transform it from a patch ofmud to something beautiful! I'm going to purchase a water fountain and featurethat in the middle I'll have to remove a huge patch of weeds first though
Ethan: That sounds quite ambitious I'm such a novice gardener What's theopposite of a green thumb?
Kara: You can learn! It's not an innate thing Why don't you come over and help me?
Ethan: Oh, that sounds interesting actually As long as I can bring over my
outdoor chairs Will you help me refurbish them?
Kara: Sure, we can work on that too
Vocabulary
Trang 50Do you really think we can _ this room in a weekend? It might be too _
Trang 51noviceremove
Trang 52Ted is trying to buy a used laptop from a shopkeeper.
Shopkeeper: Can I help you with something? We have lots of new arrivals forsale
Ted: I'm interested in this laptop, but why is it so expensive? It's used, right?
Shopkeeper: Well, used laptops are in high demand The ones you see will all besold within a week They're of the highest quality and we've checked them forviruses and wiped them clean
Trang 54I'm hoping to pay _ $500 for that
_ will I become a doctor, even though my parents want me to. _, check our competitors and see what they're charging
Trang 55Tammy is talking to Cindy about a policy at her work.
Cindy: How's that new unlimited sick day policy at your work going? Did yourcompany proceed with it?
Tammy: Oh, it's ridiculous There's widespread abuse Most people are takingevery Friday or Monday off and getting paid for it When they implemented it, itwas obvious that it was never going to work
Cindy: What happens if you get caught abusing it?
Tammy: That's the thing Nothing That's the core issue My company is far toolenient on the lazy people There was no strategy to encourage people to show
up every day Human resources is basically incompetent
Cindy: So what's going to happen?
Tammy: Well, productivity is way down They'll have to suspend it, I think
Vocabulary