I’m sure you're curious to find out as much as possible about the IELTS Reading Test,
but why don’t we begin by looking at some important facts.
Let’s start with facts about the timing of the test.
When you take the IELTS Reading Test, it will take one hour, or 60 minutes. During this
time you will read and answer the questions. You’ll also need to write your answers on
the answer sheet while you are doing the test, because unlike the Listening Test, there is
no extra transfer time given.
By the way, when you do this, your answers must be spelled correctly and you must use
correct grammar.
The Reading Test is organised into three sections and each section has a reading text and 13
or 14 questions. You can start with any section that you like. In total, you have to answer
40 questions for the whole Reading Test.
You are probably also wondering what the reading texts are about. Well, the text features a
variety of different reading passages. The topics are different, for example one text
may be about astronomy, but another would be about something completely different. The
topics are generally about academic subjects, such as the environment, education, technology,
and work. The texts would be of interest to an educated audience, but you don’t need
to be an expert to understand them. The texts are taken from real publications like books,
newspapers, and magazines. The style of the passage may vary too; it might be descriptive,
or argumentative, for example. The text may have an illustration or a graph.
And as for length, each text can be up to about 900 words long.
You might also be wondering about the test questions, or tasks. Well, the IELTS Reading
Test features a real variety of different question types. These include tasks like multiple
choice, completing a table, or choosing headings for paragraphs. In one test, you might encounter
between four and ten different question types, so it’s a good idea to have practised all
of them before you take the test.
To prepare well for the IELTS Reading Test, you need to practise all of the ten possible
question types. The question types are used randomly and are
called: multiple choice; short-answer questions; sentence
completion; notes, summary, table, or flow chart completion; labelling a diagram; choosing
headings for paragraphs or sections of a text; locating information; identification of writer’s
views or of information in a text; classification; and finally, matching.
When you answer these questions, you might be required to write a word or a phrase from
the reading text, or perhaps a number or a letter. You will be able to practise these question
types in this course.
As a teacher, I often get asked how difficult the Reading Test is. Well, that varies from
person to person. How easy or difficult you find the test overall really depends on you,
your reading experience and your ability. But I can say that one of the most challenging
aspects of the Reading Test is managing your time. You won’t be told when to start and
finish each section, so you’ll need to keep an eye on the time. You don’t want to spend
too long on any one section because you’ll want to allow enough time to attempt all the
questions. And another thing that I remind my students
about is to read the instructions carefully. For example, pay attention to how many words
you're supposed to write; one, two or three?
So, what happens to your test when you've finished?
Well, it is marked and one point is given for each correct answer.
Remember, you will lose points for incorrect spelling or grammar, so be careful when you're
copying words from the reading text onto your answer sheet, it’s easy to make a careless
mistake. The total number of points is then converted
into an IELTS band score for Reading, for example, 6.0 or 7.0.
It's also possible to be given a half band score, such as 5.5, or 6.5.
So, now you have some basic information. But remember, although these facts are important
background knowledge, there's a lot more to learn which will help you to do well in
the IELTS Reading Test.