Hello everybody.
Welcome to my third video
in my miniseries of IELTS test tips that I've created
alongside We Love IELTS,
Cambridge’s platform for those preparing for the IELTS test.
And today, I'm giving you my best three tips
for achieving success in the IELTS Reading paper.
Before getting into my tips,
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to the Learn English with Cambridge YouTube channel,
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So, let’s start
by recapping on what the Reading paper consists of.
Both the Academic
and General Training reading papers have three parts
and a total of 40 questions.
However, it’s important to note that the content of the Academic
and General Training papers differ slightly,
so make sure you know which test you're taking
before you start preparing.
Okay, so that’s the structure of the exam.
Now, let’s get on to my tips.
My first tip is to do task-based reading outside of class.
Of course, any type of reading
outside of class will help improve your English ability.
However, I would always advise my students
to do task-based reading outside of class.
This means to read to develop the skills
that you're going to need in the IELTS Reading test.
For example, I’d recommend
that you read a variety of texts and guess
unknown words from context.
Don’t immediately search for a translation
as you won't be able to use a dictionary in the exam.
Highlight the topic sentence in each paragraph.
This will particularly help with Matching heading questions
where you match a paragraph to a heading which summarises
the main point of a text.
Take key sentences and re-write them.
This will help you in the questions
where understanding a synonym
or paraphrase is the key to getting an answer correct.
And, identify the main argument
or the reason for the piece of writing,
and put it into a few sentences.
This is because some questions ask you to identify the writer’s
views or claims.
The phrase, train the way you play,
is a really good motto to stick by.
What this means is that in order to do well in the test,
you should replicate the skills
that you’ll need whilst doing practice.
My second tip would be to practice your skimming
and scanning skills.
In the Reading paper, you only have 60 minutes,
so you won't have time to read every single word
that appears in the text.
Because of this,
being able to skim and scan is really important for you.
First, let me explain
what they mean and then let me show you
how to develop them.
Skimming is reading quickly to get a general idea
of what a text is about.
You can practice this
by an activity such as flash reading.
This is where you read a text very quickly,
for example, in 20 seconds,
and then see what you can remember.
Whereas scanning is reading
quickly to search for specific pieces of information.
To practice this,
you need questions about a text.
So, an activity from a student’s
book or an IELTS practice test is perfect.
So, much like my first tip,
try to practice these skills in any kind of reading
that you do at home.
My last tip is don’t assume anything.
In the Reading paper,
you may see statements that you disagree with or
that you know are not true.
However, you have to base your answers
on what you see in the text,
not what you know or what you think.
Let me give you an example.
We’re going to focus on Question number 40.
It is important
that new housing developments encourage social diversity.
Now, I'm sure you’ll agree,
as would all right-minded people,
that encouraging social diversity in any form
is something positive.
However, the answer isn’t yes.
It is in fact not given.
This is because the writer doesn’t say anything
in the text to confirm this.
There is simply no evidence in the text
for us to be able to put yes.
So, put your real-world knowledge to one side
and base your answers on what you read.
Okay, let’s see a summary.
So, there you go,
three tips that I hope will help improve your performance
in the Reading test.
Don’t forget, for more test tips and resources,
check out the We Love IELTS website.
The link is below the video.
And also, as I mentioned at the beginning of the video,
don’t forget to subscribe to this channel
if you haven’t done so already.
And of course,
if you have any other strategies, tips,
or advice for succeeding in the reading part of the IELTS test,
please comment below.
Thanks for watching,
and I’ll see you next time for more IELTS tips.