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IELTS Writing Strategies

3.00 (13 votes)

27th Aug 2019

The writing component of the IELTS exam is designed to assess how you “write a response appropriately, organize ideas and use a range of vocabulary and grammar accurately.”

It comprises two tasks and candidates have 60 minutes to answer them.

For Task 1, candidates must provide at least a 150 word written response to describe, summarise or explain some visual information such as graphs, tables, charts or diagrams, using their own words.

On the other hand, Task 2 requires candidates to “respond to a point of view or argument or problem” through a “discursive consideration of the relevant issues”. Answers should be relevant and not in general, eg. computer sales vs. computers in general.

Like the other three components, you will get a band score for the writing test as well, together with an overview band score.

Candidates usually dread the writing test, an understandable feeling because writing isn’t something you can self-study and any progress can only be marked by a teacher.

For those who aren’t confident with their English abilities, it can cause anxiety as this test demands precision in terms of grammar, the vocabulary used and cohesiveness between sentences. Even those who call English their native language and are trained in it have failed the test!

But with enough preparation and practice, anyone can pass this test. Below are some tips on what you can do to prepare:

 

1.Be mindful of your word count

Task 1 requires candidates to provide at least a 150 word written a response, while Task 2 requires at least a 250 word written response. You must write above the word count or you will lose marks. There’s a risk of losing marks even if you are just a few words below the word count. There is no upper limit on how many words you can write.

 You should aim to write between 160 to 180 for Task 1, and 260 to 280 for Task 2. This will ensure that you do not lose marks for writing too little while also ensuring you aren’t adding too much additional information. Pro tip: Aim for quality and not quantity.

Learn to count the words by lines instead of individual words so you save time during the real test.

2.Manage your time wisely

Write your answer to Task 1 within 20 minutes and no more. Task 2 contributes double the marks so it’s crucial to ensure you have at least 40 minutes left for this.

Both tasks require planning and checking, so it would be wise to factor in four minutes or less before and after answering each task. Do not enter the exam hall without having practiced time management beforehand. Remember, practice is the key to good time management.

3.Understand the requirements of both tasks

The IELTS examiners use detailed performance descriptors when assessing your answers for both tasks:

·        Task achievement (25 percent);

·        Coherent and cohesion (25 percent);

·        Vocabulary (25 percent); and

·        Grammatical range and accuracy (25 percent)

Your final score will be the average of the four criteria above.

4.Practice, practice, practice

Practice makes perfect. There are tonnes of resources online for both tasks that candidates should make good use of. Although model answers are aplenty, your practice should not include memorizing them as examiners can spot such answers and you will risk having your entire test rendered invalid.

Getting your spelling, grammar and punctuation right cannot be stressed enough. These aren’t things you can cram the night before so you best sharpen your skills for each as much as possible before taking the test. The more mistakes you make, the lower your score will be so best to ensure you make as little as possible.

Knowing the proper answer structures for each task is important, too. This is particularly true for Task 1 as these sentence structures can, to some extent, be easily learned and adapted to suit the several types of Task 1.

Some main IELTS Writing Tips noted

·        Read your questions carefully and also read your questions twice.

·        Don't jump into writing instantly. It is better to pause, analyze, think and write.

·        As time is essential to plan your paragraphs. And your writing has to be legible.

·        Do not repeat your words while writing. Instead, use synonyms if you want to convey similar meaning repeatedly.

·        Focus on your spelling, punctuation, and grammar.

·        Use topic sentences for each paragraph so that the examiner would understand what the person wants to discuss in that paragraph through their writing.

·        Please avoid contractions in your writing like don't, won't, can't, instead use formal words like do not, will not, cannot, etc. Avoid informal way of writing.

·        Learn the structure of your essay beforehand whether it's general or academic which becomes easy for you to write.

·        Manage your time and practice speed writing.

·        Pay attention to the number of words as both Task 1 and Task 2 demands a specific number of words to be written in your writing.

·        Do not copy every sentence from your task.

·        Do not try to memorize any model answers for any topic.

·        Plan your answers with an appropriate approach towards writing. You must write full proper sentences. And you can also form complex sentences by combining simple sentences without deviating from the main point.

·        At the end of your writing, at least make sure that you have some time to recheck or go through what you have written, which will avoid silly mistakes, which could have happened otherwise.

 

If you are looking for an overall preparation for your IELTS exam and you lack the time to be able to commit in regular courses in exam preparatory centers, then an online preparatory process will be the best fit for you. Among the various online services if you want one which will be standout, then the best choice for you will be IELTS.LIVE. IELTS.LIVE is such a website which will help you prepare for the main IELTS exam online. One of the best features of this website is that it provides services free of cost. The most lucrative thing of IELTS.LIVE is its completeness, all the modules of IELTS exam are arranged here, the reading and the listening test are arranged according to the standards and you will be able to evaluate your level easily. There are paid writing and speaking services as well, which will let you know how to improve on the modules as you will be given detailed feedback.

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