Seven Mistakes to Avoid During Your IELTS Listening Test
The IELTS Listening test is a crucial component of the IELTS examination, and avoiding common mistakes can greatly impact your overall score. Here are seven mistakes you should steer clear of to maximize your chances of success:
1. Listening to the audio very blindly in IELTS:
One common mistake candidates make during the IELTS Listening test is listening to the audio too passively. They sit back, hoping to catch every word without actively engaging with the content. Instead, it’s essential to listen actively. For example, consider this question from an IELTS Listening test:
Question: What time does the concert start?
If you’re listening blindly, you might miss the specific time mentioned in the audio. Active listening, however, involves focusing on the context, listening for keywords like “concert” and “start,” and making educated guesses if you miss a word or two. This way, you can infer that the answer is related to the concert’s beginning time, even if you don’t catch every word.
2. Avoiding prediction skills in IELTS Listening test Audio:
IELTS Listening questions often require you to anticipate the content based on the question. For instance, if a question asks, “What are the two main benefits of the new library?” before playing the audio about a library’s features, use your prediction skills to guess what the answer might be. By doing this, you’ll listen more attentively to the relevant parts of the audio, increasing your chances of answering correctly.
3. Losing Concentration during IELTS Listening Test:
Maintaining concentration throughout the entire IELTS Listening test is crucial. Even a momentary lapse can cause you to miss essential information. To illustrate, imagine there’s a map-related question, and you briefly lose focus, missing the directions. You might then choose the wrong answer because you didn’t notice the change in location during the audio.
4. Avoiding Distractors:
Distractors are pieces of information in the audio that are deliberately meant to mislead you. For instance, in a question like, “What type of restaurant does the speaker prefer?” the speaker might mention a specific type but then say they like something different later on. Being aware of distractors and not falling into their traps is vital for accurate answers.
5. Ignoring the Given Instruction in Question:
Many IELTS Listening questions have specific instructions, such as “Write no more than two words.” Ignoring these instructions can result in losing valuable marks. For instance, if the question asks for a single word and you write a phrase, you’ll be marked wrong even if the phrase is correct. Always follow the instructions carefully.
6. Making Spelling & Grammatical Errors:
Spelling and grammatical accuracy is a significant factor in IELTS Listening answers. Even if you have the correct answer, spelling it incorrectly can lead to a wrong response. For example, if the answer is “university,” but you write “univercity,” you won’t receive the full points.
7. Leaving Blank Answers:
One of the gravest mistakes is leaving questions unanswered. There’s no penalty for guessing on the IELTS Listening test, so if you’re unsure, make an educated guess. Leaving a question blank guarantees zero points, while guessing offers at least a chance of gaining some points.
Avoiding these seven common mistakes can significantly improve your performance in the IELTS Listening test. Active listening, predictive skills, concentration, distractor awareness, adherence to instructions, spelling and grammar accuracy, and never leaving a question unanswered are all crucial strategies to maximize your chances of obtaining a high score. Remember, practice is key to mastering these skills, so make sure to practice regularly before your IELTS test date to boost your confidence and accuracy. Book your IELTS Coaching Class Now from Novasask Education.
