IELTS LISTENING

IELTS LISTENING
Trương Văn Ánh
Trường Đại học Sài Gòn


The IELTS Listening Test is the same for the
Academic and General Training modules. You
listen to language spoken in a social or academic
context and answer a series of questions. The
tape is played only once so you have to practice
sufficiently beforehand to pick up what’s being
said the first time around.
The listening test is divided into four sections with
10 questions in each part (a total of 40
questions). This module lasts about 30 minutes.
You get an extra 10 minutes at the end to
transfer your answers to the answer sheet.


•
•
•
•
•
•

IELTS LISTENING - QUESTION TYPES
The listening test measures how well you can
listen for main ideas, specific information,
supporting information, facts and opinions. You
will find a variety of question types:

multiple choice
short answer
sentence completion
notes/diagram/flow chart completion
matching
classification


The variety of question types means that you
sometimes need to write in the answer in your
own writing, versus simply choosing the right
answer. This is important because in such cases,
you also need to spell correctly or the answer
will be marked wrong. Even a small error can
cause you to lose marks. For example, if the
answer is "hat"; and you write "hats", it may be
marked wrong.
You also have to make sure you include the
correct information. If the answer is "Green
hats" and you write only "hats", you may also
lose points.


You will get a better sense of how precise you
need to be by doing as many practice listening
exams as possible before your actual test.
Believe it or not, you will improve with practice,
though it might seem impossible at first. Your
ear and your concentration can be trained. Over
time, you will improve – but only if you remain

patient and move steadily towards your goal of
the highest score possible.


IELTS Tips - Listening
The accents of the speakers on the tape are
primarily British. This means you must become
accustomed to understanding the nuances of such
accents. If you have been watching a lot of
American television, (shows such as Friends, for
example) it will not really help you. British accents
are quite different and it is better to spend time in
the months before the test listening to British radio
stations and podcasts or watching the BBC, British
shows, and movies. This is one of the major
difference between the IELTS exam and the TOEFL,
which features more American accents.


Get used to the way letters and numbers are
pronounced in British (and American)English.
Sometimes, in the listening section, you are asked
to write down the spelling of a name, place, or
address. If you make a mistake in the spelling while
writing it down, you will get the answer wrong.
The expressions used also tend to be taken from
British rather than American English. This means
you may hear unfamiliar idioms, which can confuse
you. Speakers may also use British words for
common items such as "flat" for "apartment",

"lorry" for "truck", or "advert" for advertisement.
Make sure you study the most common differences
in British and American vocabulary and listen to as
many IELTS exercises as possible before your exam
to prepare you for the actual test experience.


Learn to distinguish opinion from fact. In the third
and fourth listening passages, you will probably be
tested on what one of the speakers thinks or what
his / her view is. This may or may not be stated
outright, but as an underlying theme in the whole
conversation or in the tone of the speakers voice,
rather than the words themselves.
Don't worry if your classmates or friends get
higher listening scores than you. Each one has his
or her strengths and weaknesses, just like you. Each
one also has his or her own language goals. Just
focus on your own needs and don't compare
yourself to others.


Follow instructions very carefully. If the
instructions state, "Write no more than three
words",then you must not write more or you will
receive no marks for your answer, even if some
of the words you wrote were part of the correct
answer. Similarly, read each instruction carefully.
Sometimes, you are asked to circle two answers,
sometimes three, and so on. You must read the

instruction each time as it may differ from the
previous ones. Remember, the ability to follow
instructions in English is a test in itself.


The questions follow the oral text. Remember
this - it will make it easier for you to focus on the
current question, or to know when you've been
left behind, in case the speakers have gone on to
providing the answer to the following questions.
Familiarize yourself with charts, graphs, flowcharts, bar charts and pie charts, etc. These
often appear as part of the answer choices in the
fourth section. The more comfortable you are
with interpreting the data represented in them,
the easier your exam will be.


IELTS Listening Question Types
IELTS listening lasts for 30 minutes with another
10 minutes for writing down answers on
the answer sheet.
Your
will
hear
two
monologues and two conversations in both
social and academic settings from the tape
recorder. You need to answer a number of
questions assessing your ability to understand
main ideas and details, opinions, attitudes and

purpose. Here is a summary of IELTS listening
question types that you will meet in the test, but
find even more in our IELTS prep.


Form Completion Questions
This is a common question type in IELTS listening
test section 1. You will be asked to fill in the
blanks based on a recording and the information
on the form. It is better to read the form before
the recording starts so that you can predict the
missing information.
For example, you should pay attention to the
address and postcode while listening to
complete the following form.



Multiple Choice Questions
The multiple choice questions in IELTS listening
require you to select the correct answer from
three or four words, phrases or sentences. If the
choices are long sentences, I also recommend
reading those choices before the recording
starts. Otherwise, they may distract you while
listening to the text.


Short Answer Questions
Just like the reading test, short answer questions

in listening test also begin with ‘wh’ or how
question words and there will be a word limit for
your answers such as NO MORE THAN THREE
WORDS. You have to understand what is the
required information based on the key words in
questions. For example, you need to find the two
factors while listening to the text for the
following question.



Sentence Completion Questions
This question type usually appears in section 3
and section 4 in IELTS listening test. You need to
understand detailed information and pay
attention to the grammar based on the
sentence. For the following example questions,
you need a noun or noun phrase for questions
29 and 30. Besides, the answer to question 30
should be a name of a place.


Plan/Diagram/Map Questions
This question type requires you to complete a
plan/diagram/map based on the listening.
Before answering the questions, you need to
understand these graphic representations. For
example, the picture in this sample task is a floor
plan which requires you to label each room with
its function.

Matching Questions
This question type asks you to match two parts
based on the logical relationship of the listening
text.
It is not hard to get high scores on IELTS listening
if you have known each question type and done
extensive listening practice. In the real IELTS test,
you have to concentrate on the test for about 2
hours and 45 minutes. Therefore, it is better
to do full length practice tests than focus on
each task separately.


Good luck!