IELTS blog

‘I have no idea how people cope with nerves on the test day. The previous night I could not sleep and it was hard for my brain to function at 7AM in the morning. And of course the result is worse than I anticipated. How did you do it?’ — from a troubled IELTS blog reader. Exam anxiety is annoying but there are ways to help you feel prepared instead of nervous. Let’s look at how we can get into our best possible form on the test day.

You need to spend a lot of time preparing for IELTS on your own. But studies show that even when independent learners know which of their language skills are strong and which are weak, they still tend to spend more time on their strong areas. In a 2015 study at the University of Hong Kong, Professor David Gardner found that students ‘ultimately preferred to remain in their comfort zone.’

You perform well in class. You understand the IELTS question types. You’ve worked through the IELTS prep books. But studies show that this doesn’t mean you will do well in the IELTS test itself. Why is this?

In this post we will look at IELTS Reading practice, IELTS Listening practice, and IELTS vocabulary — how to develop your vocabulary so that you can get the IELTS score you need. The focus of the post is on using your mobile phone to prepare for the IELTS test.

Can’t find a good place to study for IELTS? Struggling to fit IELTS prep into your schedule? Dr Ammar Hadi Kadhim, a neurosurgeon living in Iraq, offers a solution. He achieved the band score he needed with just one month’s practice using Road to IELTS. Here’s his story…