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I would like to know the criteria based on which IELTS candidates are evaluated?

Chris - 2010-01-15 05:30:46 - Standards Testing

I am going to start up an institute where I can prepare my students for IELTS. I would like to give my students, on mock tests, the closest mark to their performance on the real test. Would you please help me in this regard?

Best Answer:

It's far too vague, I'm afraid: there are way too many variables involved. I've prepared people for the exam for several years, sat the test twice (hopefully the third one will be this year and I really hope to get 9), read a lot about it (e.g. on ielts-blog) and spoken to loads of people who've taken it and some conclusions are that the basic criteria are: - Being able to convey the main idea in a well-structured form (both writing and speaking), not getting sidetracked or lost in details. Sometimes people ramble too much and that affects their band. - Of course, the basic technical features: orthography, grammar, clarity of speech (some people stammer too much), use of correct words. Common mistakes for the four cases: writing 'proffesional', using regular past or participle for irregular verbs (e.g. 'fighted', 'readed', 'costed'), too many 'er' or 'um' gaps, using 'actually' when meaning 'currently'... - Some people, especially those who've recently been abroad, like to 'show off' their understanding of slang and/or specific jargon, and that doesn't work for this test: an examiner doesn't give sh*te about candidates using Cockney rhyming slang, cursing or trying too hard to be cool and hype. As I told a friend some months ago: 'save your "y'all", your "absobloodylutely" and your "wazzup" for your blog, but be polite during the test'. - Others go to the opposite extreme and become way too boring and predictable, both in accent and vocabulary. That's not good either. - Weasel words harm the candidate's score. You could teach your students how to be more precise and direct. - Good use of time and word-limit is vital too. It's not too detrimental to use 5 or 7 words above the limit, but if you ramble on and get 50 or 60 terms past then there's something wrong. Some topics need to be stretched and some need to be condensed. Student must learn to do both just in case. Same for speaking: some are way too timid, others tell you the story of their life, and neither extreme is good.

Answers:

It's far too vague, I'm afraid: there are way too many variables involved. I've prepared people for the exam for several years, sat the test twice (hopefully the third one will be this year and I really hope to get 9), read a lot about it (e.g. on ielts-blog) and spoken to loads of people who've taken it and some conclusions are that the basic criteria are: - Being able to convey the main idea in a well-structured form (both writing and speaking), not getting sidetracked or lost in details. Sometimes people ramble too much and that affects their band. - Of course, the basic technical features: orthography, grammar, clarity of speech (some people stammer too much), use of correct words. Common mistakes for the four cases: writing 'proffesional', using regular past or participle for irregular verbs (e.g. 'fighted', 'readed', 'costed'), too many 'er' or 'um' gaps, using 'actually' when meaning 'currently'... - Some people, especially those who've recently been abroad, like to 'show off' their understanding of slang and/or specific jargon, and that doesn't work for this test: an examiner doesn't give sh*te about candidates using Cockney rhyming slang, cursing or trying too hard to be cool and hype. As I told a friend some months ago: 'save your "y'all", your "absobloodylutely" and your "wazzup" for your blog, but be polite during the test'. - Others go to the opposite extreme and become way too boring and predictable, both in accent and vocabulary. That's not good either. - Weasel words harm the candidate's score. You could teach your students how to be more precise and direct. - Good use of time and word-limit is vital too. It's not too detrimental to use 5 or 7 words above the limit, but if you ramble on and get 50 or 60 terms past then there's something wrong. Some topics need to be stretched and some need to be condensed. Student must learn to do both just in case. Same for speaking: some are way too timid, others tell you the story of their life, and neither extreme is good.