The IELTS reading section of the exam lasts for around 60 minutes and it basically tests your reading skills. Many students fail to score well on their IELTS reading tests as they don’t have the required reading skills needed for the examination. But with the right practice and preparation, students can achieve great marks in the reading section of their IELTS exam.
Here are some of the most common types of reading questions that you might see in your reading test:
- Sentence completion
- Summary, note, table, flow-chart completion
- True false, not given
- Diagram label completion
- Multiple choice
- Matching information
- Short-answer questions
- Matching sentence endings
- Matching headings
To prepare you for your IELTS exam, here we have prepared a list of IELTS reading tips and tricks that you must follow to score well.
Move on if you don’t understand any word
Teachers teach students to look up every word in a dictionary if they don’t understand any word. Generally, this is good as you get to attain a wide vocabulary, helping you gain high scores in your IELTS test. However, worrying and stressing over words you don’t understand in the reading test is something you shouldn’t worry about.
If you don’t understand any word in the reading test then you must look at the phrases and sentences around it to guess the meaning or you can also move on and forget about it is not always necessary that you know the meaning of each and every word in the reading test. Even native speakers and many IELTS teachers would not be able to understand all the words in the reading test.
Students who stress much about the meaning of every word tend to waste their time thinking about words that might not be related to the question. Make sure to focus on words and phrases that are connected to the questions asked in the test and don’t worry about the words that you don’t understand.
Make sure to practice your reading skills
Make sure to familiarize yourself with the IELTS reading test as it will help you catch insights into the reading tips and tricks. To score well on your IELTS reading test, you must first improve your general reading skills.
IELTS reading texts can be monotonous and you might lose interest while reading sentences in the reading test, but if you have practiced reading on a regular basis, even the boring texts will keep you hooked till the end of the text.
Make sure to start reading for pleasure a little every day. It will not only help you improve your English skills but also improve your vocabulary. You can select newspapers, blogs, and magazines to polish your reading skills.
Make sure to be very careful when transferring your answers
In the IELTS reading test, students will be asked to transfer their respective answers to an answer sheet. This process is very lengthy and needs extra attention. Many students fail to transfer their answers to the sheet because they make the common mistake of spending too much time reading and answering questions. Students must practice with an IELTS answer sheet much before their examination to see how much time it takes to transfer all the answers to their sheets. This will not only help you to familiarize yourself with the process but also gain confidence on test day.
Don’t panic
The IELTS reading test consists of easy as well as hard questions. The key is not to panic while answering the hard questions. Candidates must not waste their time on solving one question as this might lead to confusion and disappointment. If you don’t get the answer in a definite time, move on to solve the other but don’t stick to one question.
You need to control your nerves and time to do well in your reading test. You are probably not going to give all the answers correct and you must not forget this fact while you give your IELTS reading test.
Make sure to practice slowly
Many teachers advise their students to prepare and practice for their IELTS reading test under exam conditions. This means that students need to practice the test for an hour without any guidance or interference from any other person, just like in the exam. This is considered to be very poor advice for many reasons. By doing practice under exam conditions, students put too much pressure on themselves and end up answering wrong.
Hence, in the practice sessions, students must focus on the type of questions, exam patterns, and common vocabulary and phrases that might come in the exam. It will help you improve your knowledge about the exam and spot the common mistakes that you must not repeat while giving your test.
Once you practice several tests slowly, you can then practice those tests under exam conditions.
Read the instructions very carefully
Many candidates lose their marks too easily because they fail to read the instructions carefully. Reading instructions is very necessary when you give reading or listening IELTS tests. If you don’t follow the instructions properly, you will get the question wrong.
For instance, instructions might state ‘write two words and/or a number. This could mean:
- One word and a number
- One word
- Two words and a number
- Two words
If you don’t follow the instructions as stated, you will lose a mark.
It can be a vocabulary test
In some or another way, the IELTS reading test is more like a vocabulary test than a reading test. In the given test, they will provide you with a lot of synonyms and paraphrased sentences to test how sharply and smartly you can answer the questions based on your vocabulary. In order to score well and prepare for this test, it is important for students to do three crucial things which include, reading, taking notes, and reviewing.
Understand that your timing is very crucial
Timing is very crucial in the IELTS reading test, and if you spend too much time on one question then you will have very less time left for the other questions that are there in the test. However, if you try to wrap up things in a very fast manner, you will miss core information that is related to the answer. So, it is significant for candidates to give a fair amount of time to each question asked in the examination while taking care of the timing. Make sure that you avoid making assumptions based on your own bias or knowledge.
Everyone reads and answers questions at different paces and tones, so make sure to choose the best for you.
Avoid leaving blanks
This is one of the most important tips that students must follow while giving their IELTS reading test. Even if you don’t know the answer, make sure to attempt every question. But make sure to not stretch any question for a longer period of time if you don’t know the exact answer.
With regular practice and reading sessions, you can easily enhance your reading skills and in turn, achieve high marks in your IELTS exam. All you need to do is stay consistent and follow the above-mentioned IELTS academic reading tips and tricks to score well in your test. For more information, directly contact us at D – Vivid Consultant. We also provide IELTS coaching in Ahmedabad and IELTS classes in Surat.
