The IELTS exam consists of four sections namely Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing. Reading section is the second part of the IELTS test, and it follows immediately after the Listening section. As an aspiring candidate, you will be given 60 minutes to read three long passages and answer 40 questions about them. It might sound pretty simple, but it is actually more difficult than it sounds. This is because you need to understand a large amount of text and precisely answer questions about what you read, in a short span of time. So you need to have a strong background in English in order to deal with this test module in an efficient and seamless manner. Here are few important tips that can help you to get your desired score in the Reading section.
1. Interest and inclination towards understanding English language: As an IELTS exam aspirant who wants to achieve the desired band score in Reading, you must have at least an adequate basic knowledge and understanding of English. By basic knowledge, it means that one should be strong in Vocabulary and English grammar, and have a preference and penchant towards reading and comprehending the language.
2. Develop a habit of reading newspapers, magazines and materials in English: Have a habit of reading anything on a daily basis in English. This will not only build your English vocabulary but also make you confident to handle the IELTS Reading test in a much better way. When you look for something special, read in detail. Reading English materials improve your comprehension skills and writing skills as well.
3. Try to read fast and develop a practice of skip and scan to omit unimportant passages: Another golden rule is that inculcate a habit of reading quickly because a slow reader always loses time when the text is long. You should remember that in the test your aim is to find the correct answers and not to study the passage. Skip unimportant words like prepositions and ignore difficult words. Scan the words like when you look for a price in an advertisement. This way you will be fine tuned to sit for the exam
4. Time your practice and gradually increase the speed: As mentioned earlier, the IELTS Reading module requires a lot of practice to tackle all the questions successfully within the stipulated time frame. So before you go for the actual test, schedule the sections and practice accordingly. As a broad outline, try to finish the first section in 12-14 minutes, the second in 15-18 minutes and the last one in less than 25 minutes. In this way, you will get around 10 minutes to go back and check your answers in the end, and eventually also make all the crucial corrections. Also, try to summarize every paragraph you read in just a few words. This will not only increase your capacity to capture the essence of the whole passage easily, but also enhance your capacity to pinpoint the right answer in a short time.
5. Make a habit of learning and using one new word correctly for each paragraph: If you desire to achieve a high score in IELTS Reading, you must improve your vocabulary a lot too. To score above 8.5, you should have more than one new word for every paragraph. Also remember, spelling counts a lot. If your answer is spelled incorrectly, it will be marked wrong. So, read carefully, pronounce correctly, memorise and retain the words for future use.
6. Pay ample attention to detail and direction to tackle each section: Attention to detail is very important for the IELTS Reading test paper. Many candidates pointlessly lose a lot of marks because they do not pay close attention to the directions. The directions for each task will guide you how to mark the answers in your answer sheet. For example, some answers require alphabetical letters like A, B, C etc to reply while others require Roman numerals like i, ii, iii, iv etc. When you attempt short answers, there can be directions like ” Choose no more than four words from the passage “. So it is evident that each set of questions will have its own instructions, telling you how to encircle or mark the answers. As you practice for the Reading test, develop a routine of reading the instructions carefully each time. You should not lose vital points or miss marks because you did not pay attention to a key detail in the direction.
7. Read quickly, efficiently and keep in mind the scoring pattern: Another vital point you should keep in mind is that, in the Reading subtest, you have to read three long texts from books, journals, magazines and newspapers. They may be descriptive or factual, discursive or analytical. The scoring pattern is also simple in the Reading section. Each question is worth 1 point, so roughly you can score up to 40 points for the 40 questions. From here IELTS converts your “raw” score into your Band score. Whether you are struggling with the most difficult question or breezing through the easiest question, you should keep in mind that they contribute equally to your final Reading score. So, you have to make up your mind and make sure that you are not losing out on easier points because you are stuck and spending more time to answer the harder questions. In other words, time management is very important, and the more you practice the easier it will be to tackle the questions.
8. Get a proper guidance: Reading newspapers, books and magazines does not mean just skimming or glancing through them, but you should have a keen eye for picking up new words and use them in other appropriate places later. Grammar plays a very important role, especially in pronunciation and diction. For developing this part, you should study a standard English Grammar book; preferably under the guidance of a good English trainer or mentor. He/she would be of great help in rectifying the pronunciation, using the proper accent and also get a grasp of complex sentences, punctuation, articles prepositions and most importantly tenses. Therefore, having a basic knowledge of English and interest in using correct grammar during conversation is a pre-requisite to score high in the Reading test.
IELTS Reading test module carries out an exam system for genuine proficiency in English reading which is approved worldwide. Therefore, it is highly imperative for the candidates to take coaching in reputed training institutes like Tagore Institute, which can help them to get the most authentic training with the best course.
1. Interest and inclination towards understanding English language: As an IELTS exam aspirant who wants to achieve the desired band score in Reading, you must have at least an adequate basic knowledge and understanding of English. By basic knowledge, it means that one should be strong in Vocabulary and English grammar, and have a preference and penchant towards reading and comprehending the language.
2. Develop a habit of reading newspapers, magazines and materials in English: Have a habit of reading anything on a daily basis in English. This will not only build your English vocabulary but also make you confident to handle the IELTS Reading test in a much better way. When you look for something special, read in detail. Reading English materials improve your comprehension skills and writing skills as well.
3. Try to read fast and develop a practice of skip and scan to omit unimportant passages: Another golden rule is that inculcate a habit of reading quickly because a slow reader always loses time when the text is long. You should remember that in the test your aim is to find the correct answers and not to study the passage. Skip unimportant words like prepositions and ignore difficult words. Scan the words like when you look for a price in an advertisement. This way you will be fine tuned to sit for the exam
4. Time your practice and gradually increase the speed: As mentioned earlier, the IELTS Reading module requires a lot of practice to tackle all the questions successfully within the stipulated time frame. So before you go for the actual test, schedule the sections and practice accordingly. As a broad outline, try to finish the first section in 12-14 minutes, the second in 15-18 minutes and the last one in less than 25 minutes. In this way, you will get around 10 minutes to go back and check your answers in the end, and eventually also make all the crucial corrections. Also, try to summarize every paragraph you read in just a few words. This will not only increase your capacity to capture the essence of the whole passage easily, but also enhance your capacity to pinpoint the right answer in a short time.
5. Make a habit of learning and using one new word correctly for each paragraph: If you desire to achieve a high score in IELTS Reading, you must improve your vocabulary a lot too. To score above 8.5, you should have more than one new word for every paragraph. Also remember, spelling counts a lot. If your answer is spelled incorrectly, it will be marked wrong. So, read carefully, pronounce correctly, memorise and retain the words for future use.
6. Pay ample attention to detail and direction to tackle each section: Attention to detail is very important for the IELTS Reading test paper. Many candidates pointlessly lose a lot of marks because they do not pay close attention to the directions. The directions for each task will guide you how to mark the answers in your answer sheet. For example, some answers require alphabetical letters like A, B, C etc to reply while others require Roman numerals like i, ii, iii, iv etc. When you attempt short answers, there can be directions like ” Choose no more than four words from the passage “. So it is evident that each set of questions will have its own instructions, telling you how to encircle or mark the answers. As you practice for the Reading test, develop a routine of reading the instructions carefully each time. You should not lose vital points or miss marks because you did not pay attention to a key detail in the direction.
7. Read quickly, efficiently and keep in mind the scoring pattern: Another vital point you should keep in mind is that, in the Reading subtest, you have to read three long texts from books, journals, magazines and newspapers. They may be descriptive or factual, discursive or analytical. The scoring pattern is also simple in the Reading section. Each question is worth 1 point, so roughly you can score up to 40 points for the 40 questions. From here IELTS converts your “raw” score into your Band score. Whether you are struggling with the most difficult question or breezing through the easiest question, you should keep in mind that they contribute equally to your final Reading score. So, you have to make up your mind and make sure that you are not losing out on easier points because you are stuck and spending more time to answer the harder questions. In other words, time management is very important, and the more you practice the easier it will be to tackle the questions.
8. Get a proper guidance: Reading newspapers, books and magazines does not mean just skimming or glancing through them, but you should have a keen eye for picking up new words and use them in other appropriate places later. Grammar plays a very important role, especially in pronunciation and diction. For developing this part, you should study a standard English Grammar book; preferably under the guidance of a good English trainer or mentor. He/she would be of great help in rectifying the pronunciation, using the proper accent and also get a grasp of complex sentences, punctuation, articles prepositions and most importantly tenses. Therefore, having a basic knowledge of English and interest in using correct grammar during conversation is a pre-requisite to score high in the Reading test.
IELTS Reading test module carries out an exam system for genuine proficiency in English reading which is approved worldwide. Therefore, it is highly imperative for the candidates to take coaching in reputed training institutes like Tagore Institute, which can help them to get the most authentic training with the best course.
