Two quick tips about how to listen and read at the same time in the IELTS Listening test
If you find it difficult to read and follow the questions on the question paper while listening to the recording in the IELTS Listening test, then here are two IELTS Listening tips just for you.
Tip 1: Underline or circle words on the question paper that indicate what information you’re listening for
Before you listen, if you circle or underline words in the questions that tell you what you’re listening for, you won’t need to read the whole of each question again when you listen to the recording. (Remember that you’ll be given some time to read the questions before each of the sections in the IELTS Listening test).
To see what I mean, have a look at the following page from an official IELTS Listening question paper, and think about why I circled or underlined the words ‘grade’, ‘cancelled’ and ‘advise against’.
I underlined ‘grade’ so that I remembered I had to listen for a grade such as ‘A’ or ‘B’ without having to read the whole question again.
I underlined ‘cancelled’ and wrote ‘what?’ so that I remembered to listen for something that has been cancelled.
I circled ‘advise against’ to remind myself to listen for a book that Dina doesn’t recommend.
Tip 2: Cross out questions that you know you’ve missed
While listening, if you know you’ve missed a question, put a line through the question as this will help you keep track of where the recording is up to without having to read the questions again.
To show you what I mean, here’s what I would have done on the question paper above if I knew I had missed question 21.
Next time you practise an IELTS Listening test, try these two IELTS Listening tips and let us know if they helped you listen and read at the same time.
Pete
See our IELTS tutor profiles to find out more about our qualified and experienced English language teachers.
Rate this post
Excellent tips – Thanks!!
Hello
I would to ask about the listening. I always find difficulty when I listen and retry the test of listening but I always get about between 7 to 13 grade in listening.
And all advise me to listen everything in English language in order to improve my ears to the listening.
Thank you very much.
Hi Noor,
I think the advice that people have given you is important; it will help you improve your listening for IELTS if you practice your listening in general.
For some recommended listening practice, have a look at the posts in the blog category called ‘IELTS listening practice‘.
For some more tips for the listening test, have a look at the posts in the blog category called ‘IELTS listening tips‘.
Pete
Hi this is a great idea and I hope you send more comment about ielts thank you.
I always find difficulty in MCQs. Can I please have some tips how to solve & what to keep in mind always.
Hi Khushwant,
A lot of candidates find multiple choice questions in the IELTS Listening test difficult. Check out our blog post ‘Don’t get distracted in the IELTS Listening test‘ for some advice about how to avoid a common mistake with this type of question.
Best wishes,
Pete
How to improve the reading speed? Could you please advice me?
Hi
One way to speed up your reading for IELTS is to practice skimming a text to see if you can understand the main idea of the text in a couple of minutes. To skim an IELTS Academic Reading text, you should generally look at the title of the text and any pictures there are, and then read the first paragraph and the first line or two of each of the following paragraphs.
By skimming a text, you can get an idea of the main points in the text and how the text is organised very quickly.
Pete
Always I can make correct 20 to 24 answer at the time of listening test. But I want to improve at best 30 answer. But I can’t. Could you please give some tips or advice me to meet the expectation. Thank You.
I’m sorry to hear you haven’t got the IELTS Listening band score you need, Faial.
There’s lots of advice about improving your listening for IELTS in the ‘IELTS listening tips‘ and ‘IELTS listening practice‘ categories of our blog.
Pete