Category: Scoring

IELTS Speaking Scores: What Are FC, LR, GRA & P?

Post author By IELTSAcademic
Post date January 8, 2016

Yesterday we looked at how IELTS Writing scores are calculated. Today it’s the turn of IELTS Speaking scores.

The first thing you may notice is a close resemblance between the codes used for IELTS Writing and IELTS Speaking scores. We’ve met LR and GRA before, haven’t we? FC looks familiar: maybe it’s a cousin of CC. But P? Where did he spring from?

If you’re serious about improving your IELTS Speaking score, you’ll want to match your speaking style to the four assessment criteria. Let’s look at each of them in turn and how they might influence your way of speaking.

FC = Fluency and Coherence

Fluency and Coherence is similar to Cohesion and Coherence, which we encountered before. In IELTS Speaking, however, it’s a measure of how well you can keep talking and be understood, including:

Do you avoid silence or hesitation?
Do you speak at length on each topic?
Do you use words to connect your ideas?

LR = Lexical Resource

Lexical Resource refers to your use of vocabulary, including:

Do you use a wide range of vocabulary?
Do you use idioms and collocation common to spoken English?
Do you paraphrase to avoid repetition?

GRA = Grammatical Range and Accuracy

This refers to your skill with English grammar, including

Do you speak in complex sentences?
Do you use a variety of grammatical forms?
Do you avoid too many grammatical mistakes?

P = Pronunciation

Pronunciation is naturally part of the IELTS Speaking assessment, including:

Do you pronounce words accurately?
Do you join sounds together?
Do you vary intonation?

There’s no quick fix to improve your English vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation: all of these require hard work and practice over months and years. A more immediate way to improve your IELTS Speaking score is to learn fluency techniques, including spoken English phrases, collocations, and emergency language for use when things go wrong. A good teacher can coach you in speaking techniques for better fluency.

How IELTS Speaking scores are calculated

The examiner gives you a score for each of the criteria based on your performance throughout the test, in particular Parts 2 and 3. There are no individual scores for each part of the speaking test.

The criteria are equally weighted so that each is worth 25% of your IELTS Speaking score. The scores for each criteria are added together and divided by four to give an average, which becomes your overall score. Scores of .25 and .75 are rounded up. For example, 7+7+7+6 = 6.75 is rounded up to 7.0 overall.

Tags IELTS

IELTS Writing Scores: What Are TA/TR, CC, LR & GRA?

Post author By IELTSAcademic
Post date January 7, 2016
3 Comments on IELTS Writing Scores: What Are TA/TR, CC, LR & GRA?

If you’ve taken IELTS before, you probably noticed a secret language at the bottom of the IELTS Writing answer sheet. What do those mysterious acronyms TA/TR, CC, LR, & GRA mean?

As you might have guessed, they refer to the assessment criteria which decide your IELTS Writing score. This is where the examiner writes in a number for each of the four assessment criteria, which is then divided by four to give your overall score for that task.

Let’s take a look at the four criteria and how they should influence your writing.

TA/TR = Task Achievement/Task Response

Task Achievement is measured in Task 1, while Task Response is measured in Task 2. In both cases, they refer to how well you answer the question, including:

Do you write enough words?
Do you stick to the topic in the question?
Do you cover all parts of the question?

CC = Coherence and Cohesion

This refers to how well your essay is organised, including:

Do you write in paragraphs?
Do you connect sentences and paragraphs with logical links?
Do you use reference links (‘they’) to connect ideas and avoid repetition?

LR = Lexical Resource

This refers to your use of vocabulary, including:

Do you use appropriate academic words and collocations? (Academic Writing module only)
Do you paraphrase to avoid repetition?
Do you spell words correctly?

GRA = Grammatical Range and Accuracy

This refers to your use of grammar, including:

Do you use a variety of grammatical forms?
Do you write in a mixture of short and complex sentences?
Do you avoid too many grammatical mistakes?

The fastest way to improve your IELTS Writing score is to learn techniques for paragraphing, paraphrasing, and linking, as these skills are less likely to be taught in regular English lessons.

How IELTS Writing scores are calculated

The four individual scores are added together and then divided by four to give an average, which is your overall score for that task. For example: (6+6+7+7) ÷ 4 = 6.5. Numbers are rounded up, which means that (6+7+7+7) ÷ 4 = 6.75, which is rounded up to 7.0.

As there are two tasks of unequal length, your final score in IELTS Writing is not an average of both tasks but is weighted towards Task 2. For example: Task 1: 6.5 + Task 2: 7.0 = Overall 7.0. This is why you should always spend more time writing Task 2.

Tags IELTS

IELTS Listening IELTS Reading Scoring Vocabulary

Do You Know This IELTS Vocabulary?

Post author By IELTSAcademic
Post date September 9, 2015
3 Comments on Do You Know This IELTS Vocabulary?

These ten sentences highlight key IELTS vocabulary by topic. For each word that you know, give yourself one point. Then check the scoring guide at the end to understand how good your IELTS vocabulary really is!

Education

Business Studies is included as a subject in the school (1) curriculum at (2) secondary level in some countries, while in other countries it is only taught at (3) tertiary level.

History

Some (4) historians believe that there are ancient (5) civilisations whose (6) archaeological ruins have yet to be found.

Environment

Environmental pressure groups are opposed to the (7) destruction of forests and (8) campaign for their (9) conservation instead.

Travel

When travelling overseas, it is important to understand local (10) customs and avoid (11) offending your hosts. Follow this rule and you can be a wonderful (12) ambassador for your country.

Science

Animal testing in (13) laboratories is wrong, even when it leads to the development of new (14) treatments for human (15) diseases.

Entertainment

The music industry is in crisis due to the (16) widespread (17) illegal downloading of songs which has led to a (18) collapse in sales of CDs.

Sports

(19) Spectators at sporting events should be (20) banned from stadiums if they are found guilty of making (21) abusive gestures.

Media

When media (22) ownership is (23) consolidated in too few hands, it becomes harder for people to hear a (24) diversity of opinions.

Crime

When victims of crime visit (25) detention centres, this can often (26) deter criminals from (27) committing crimes in future.

Technology

Some people are so (28) addicted to their mobile (29) devices that they feel (30) anxious when separated from their phone for even a short time.

IELTS vocabulary scoring guide

26-30 points: Word wizard! You are ready to show your stuff in IELTS! But how many of these 30 words do you actually use? (IELTS 8-9)

20-25 points: Good enough to go! You know enough IELTS vocabulary to understand most of what you will read or hear in the test. Be sure to learn the words you didn’t know. (IELTS 6-7)

10-19 points: Getting there! You know some useful vocabulary for IELTS but it would help to study more before taking the test. (IELTS 4-5)

0-9 points: Time to learn up! Academic IELTS may be too difficult for people who don’t know most of these words. (IELTS 0-3)

Tags IELTS

Scoring

Five Secrets of an IELTS Examiner

Post author By IELTSAcademic
Post date August 31, 2015
1 Comment on Five Secrets of an IELTS Examiner

IELTS examiners stand between you and your required IELTS score. But what are they really thinking, and how can you improve your chances of a good score?

The IELTS examiner is the man or woman standing (actually sitting) between you and the IELTS score you must get to secure a place at your first-choice school or win that big-money scholarship. He or she is likely to be fiercely intelligent, with an enormous egg-shaped head (see picture for proof), and eyes that burrow deep into your soul, instantly perceiving all your English language weaknesses and turning your entire body to jelly, right?

Well, you may be surprised to learn that IELTS examiners are a pretty nice bunch of people. Most are current or former teachers of English, so they are sympathetic to the difficulties that learners of English face. Also, they could not enjoy successful careers as teachers and examiners without the people skills necessary to communicate effectively with students and help them relax in stressful situations.

In fact, there aren’t many secrets in IELTS as the scoring criteria are publicly available online. But here are five special points that an IELTS examiner would like you to know.

IELTS examiners want you to get a high score

The most important thing you must know is that the examiner wants you to do well. They don’t sit there listening for mistakes and waiting for you to mess up. The examiner is always looking for ways to raise your score, not lower it. This is obvious when you read the IELTS scoring criteria, which are freely available online. These criteria are mostly concerned with what the candidate CAN do, not CAN’T do. So show the examiner what you CAN do and make it easy for him or her to give you a high score.

In IELTS Writing, avoid the long introduction and get to your point

One thing examiners really hate is the long essay introduction with never-ending sentences that just go on and on without really making a point. Sometimes it’s just too obvious that the candidate is trying to write 100 words using memorised language. So quickly paraphrase the question and then get straight to the point, whether that means giving your opinion or saying what you’re going to cover in the body of the essay. Once you tell the examiner your position, he or she has to work less hard to know exactly where you stand and what it is you want to say.

Speaking Part 1 doesn’t really affect your score

In Part 1 of the speaking test the examiner has two objectives: the first is to make you relaxed and the second is to get a quick idea of your ability. The first is important because the examiner wants you to have the best chance of getting a high score. The second is important because the examiner may want to avoid asking you questions that are much too difficult for your ability level. So focus on getting comfortable and try to be as natural as possible. There’s no point getting stressed in Part 1 because the scoring hasn’t even begun yet.

Don’t panic when the speaking topic is unfamiliar

One of the main things the examiner is looking for in Speaking Part 3 is this: can the candidate speak about an unfamiliar topic? If your first reaction to an unfamiliar topic is to sweat, stammer, or sit in stunned silence, then that’s a clear sign that you aren’t ready to speak about it. So practice responding coolly on topics from space exploration to animal rights, even if you never talk about these in real life. Keep your face straight (or smile!) and respond quickly with a well-rehearsed phrase such as “Well, that’s not something I usually think about but…”

Just keep talking!

What really determines your score in IELTS speaking is whether you can speak with fluency, coherence, and good pronunciation, regardless of the topic. It’s NOT about how well you answer the question. The examiner is checking your language skills, not the content of your answer. So stop worrying if you’re answering the question correctly, and just try to keep talking as naturally as you can. If the IELTS examiner has to signal for you to stop talking, that is usually a good sign!

Tags IELTS

IELTS Listening IELTS Reading IELTS Speaking IELTS Writing Scoring

How to Get IELTS Band 8 (8.0 or 8.5)

Post author By IELTSAcademic
Post date June 30, 2012
18 Comments on How to Get IELTS Band 8 (8.0 or 8.5)

Let’s face it, most of us will never need to worry about getting IELTS 8.0 or 8.5! But there are a tiny number of university courses and occupations that DO require IELTS Band 8 as evidence of a person’s ability to handle ‘complex detailed argumentation’, some law degrees for example.

This article explains what is required to achieve IELTS Band 8 in all four modules of the test. Your module score, or ‘sub-score’, can be either 8.0 or 8.5 depending on whether you meet these minimum requirements, or exceed them slightly.

Your overall IELTS score will also be classified as either 8.0 or 8.5 based on the average of each of the four modules, e.g. Listening Band 9 + Reading Band 9 + Writing Band 8 + Speaking Band 8 = IELTS 8.5.

IELTS Listening Band 8

Get 35 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 8.0*
Get 37 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 8.5*
Spell answers correctly
Not write more than the maximum number of words for each question

IELTS Reading Band 8 (Academic Module)

Get 35 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 8.0*
Get 37 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 8.5*
Spell answers correctly
Not write more than the maximum number of words for each question

IELTS Writing Band 8 (Academic Module)

Answer both questions fully
Use paragraphing skillfully to convey several key ideas
Use less-common vocabulary naturally with an awareness of collocation
Provide an overview and explain key points in Task 1
Indicate a clear position and develop it extensively in Task 2
Produce mostly error-free complex sentences

IELTS Speaking Band 8

Speak fluently and at length on any given topic with almost zero hesitation
Use a range of linking words accurately to develop ideas
Use higher-level and idiomatic vocabulary to convey precise meaning
Produce mostly error-free simple and complex sentences
Use pronunciation and intonation patterns similar to those of a native speaker

*The number of correct answers required to get IELTS 8.0 or 8.5 may vary slightly from test to test.

Tags IELTS

IELTS Listening IELTS Reading IELTS Speaking IELTS Writing Scoring

How to Get IELTS Band 7 (7.0 or 7.5)

Post author By IELTSAcademic
Post date June 29, 2012
5 Comments on How to Get IELTS Band 7 (7.0 or 7.5)

IELTS Band 7 is the ultimate goal for most international students. A score of IELTS 7.0 or 7.5 is evidence that your English is good enough to join any university course, even at elite Oxbridge and Ivy League institutions.

Only a very small number of degree programmes require a score higher than IELTS Band 7 and these tend to be language-intensive courses like literature, linguistics, and law.

This article tells you exactly what you need to do in order to get IELTS Band 7 in each of the four modules of the test. Your module score, or ‘sub-score’, can be either 7.0 or 7.5 depending on whether you meet these minimum requirements, or exceed them slightly.

Your overall IELTS score will also be classified as either 7.0 or 7.5 depending on the average band score among each of the four modules. For example, Listening Band 7 + Reading Band 8 + Writing Band 8 + Speaking Band 7 = IELTS 7.5.

IELTS Listening Band 7

Get 30 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 7.0*
Get 32 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 7.5*
Spell answers correctly
Not write more than the maximum number of words for each question

IELTS Reading Band 7 (Academic Module)

Get 30 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 7.0*
Get 33 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 7.5*
Spell answers correctly
Not write more than the maximum number of words for each question

IELTS Writing Band 7 (Academic Module)

Answer both questions fully
Write in clear paragraphs, each with a main idea and supporting sentences
Use higher-level vocabulary with an awareness of collocation
Provide an overview with detailed comparisons in Task 1
Indicate a clear position and stick to it consistently in Task 2
Produce generally error-free sentences

IELTS Speaking Band 7

Speak fluently and at length on any given topic
Use a range of linking words accurately to connect ideas
Use less common and idiomatic vocabulary
Produce generally error-free sentences
Show good control of pronunciation and intonation

*Note that the number of correct answers required to get IELTS 7.0 or 7.5 may vary slightly from test to test.

Tags IELTS

IELTS Listening IELTS Reading IELTS Speaking IELTS Writing Scoring

How to Get IELTS Band 6 (6.0 or 6.5)

Post author By IELTSAcademic
Post date June 28, 2012

If English isn’t your first language, then you’ll need to submit an IELTS score in order to be accepted onto a university programme taught in English. Most universities worldwide require an IELTS Band 6 score, with 6.5 being the most common requirement. So what is required to get IELTS Band 6?

A score of IELTS 6.0 or 6.5 shows that a person is ‘competent’, meaning they can cope in a classroom situation even though there may be some mistakes or misunderstandings with language. For students who need it, many universities provide short English courses of one to three months before the degree programme begins.

This article tells you exactly what you need to do to get a score of 6.0 or 6.5 in each of the four modules of IELTS. In the case of Listening or Reading, you need to get a certain number of answers correct. In Writing and Speaking, you can earn that extra 0.5 by slightly exceeding the minimum requirements here.

Your overall IELTS score is calculated as an average of the four module scores, or ‘sub-scores’.

IELTS Listening Band 6

Get 23 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 6.0*
Get 26 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 6.5*
Spell answers correctly
Not write more than the maximum number of words for each question

IELTS Reading Band 6 (Academic Module)

Get 23 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 6.0*
Get 27 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 6.5*
Spell answers correctly
Not write more than the maximum number of words for each question

IELTS Writing Band 6 (Academic Module)

Answer both questions adequately
Show good ability to organise an answer (e.g. paragraphs, linking words)
Attempt to use some higher-level vocabulary (even if not always accurate)
Provide an overview with supporting details in Task 1
Indicate a position and provide supporting arguments in Task 2
Make yourself understood (even if grammatical mistakes are made)

IELTS Speaking Band 6

Speak at length on certain topics
Use a range of linking words to connect ideas
Show good ability to paraphrase
Use both simple and complex structures
Speak with generally good pronunciation

*The number of correct answers required to get IELTS 6.0 or 6.5 may vary slightly from test to test.

Tags IELTS

IELTS Listening IELTS Reading IELTS Speaking IELTS Writing Scoring

How to Get IELTS Band 5 (5.0 or 5.5)

Post author By IELTSAcademic
Post date June 27, 2012
5 Comments on How to Get IELTS Band 5 (5.0 or 5.5)

Would you like to study at a university overseas? If you’re planning to enter through a foundation or pathway programme, then your course may require IELTS 5.0 or 5.5. So what does this mean exactly and what should you do to get an IELTS Band 5 score?

IELTS is a test of English and a person with IELTS Band 5 is a ‘modest’ user, which doesn’t mean they are shy! Modest here means that the student can communicate in most situations but may struggle in an academic environment. That’s why a student with IELTS Band 5 will usually need to study English for a whole year at university before starting a degree course.

This article tells you exactly what you need to do to get a score of IELTS 5.0 or 5.5 in each of the four modules of the test. For Listening or Reading, your score is based on the number of questions answered correctly. In Writing and Speaking, there are more complex ‘scoring criteria’ required to get IELTS 5.0 (or 5.5 if you exceed the criteria a little).

Finally, your overall IELTS score is calculated as an average of these four module scores, or ‘sub-scores’.

IELTS Listening Band 5

Get 16 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 5.0*
Get 18 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 5.5*
Spell answers correctly
Not write more than the maximum number of words for each question

IELTS Reading Band 5 (Academic Module)

Get 15 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 5.0*
Get 19 out of 40 answers correct for IELTS 5.5*
Spell answers correctly
Not write more than the maximum number of words for each question

IELTS Writing Band 5 (Academic Module)

Use vocabulary that is adequate for both tasks
Show some ability to organise an answer (e.g. paragraphs, linking words)
Attempt some complex sentence types (even if not accurate)
Include some details in Task 1
Indicate a clear opinion in Task 2

IELTS Speaking Band 5

Show ability to talk about both familiar and unfamiliar topics
Produce simple speech accurately and fluently
Avoid long silences
Attempt more complex structures (even if not accurate)
Attempt to paraphrase (even if not accurate)

*Note that exact scores needed to get IELTS 5.0 or 5.5 may vary slightly from test to test.

Tags IELTS