The IELTS examiner will assess your ability to understand the ideas and detailed factual information that could also mean how one could infer opinions. Many IELTS test taker find it difficult to tackle this section. The best strategy to ace the IELTS listening test is to become familiar with the test format, prepare accordingly and also follow simple tips and tricks.

What is IELTS listening test?

IELTS test assess your abilities in listening, reading, writing and speaking. In the IELTS listening test you are evaluated based on how well you can understand ideas and factual information, recognize the opinions, attitudes and purpose of a speaker and follow the development of an argument. During the test you will listen to a pre-recorded CD-ROM, and the recordings that you hear will increase in difficulty as you go through the test. Variety of voices are used in the IELTS listening test, such as Australian, British, New Zealand and North American accents. The content of the IELTS listening test is the same for both IELTS academic and IELTS general training. The listening test is completed along with reading and writing test on the same day, with no breaks.

IELTS Listening test format

You will have to listen to four recordings and answer to a series of questions - Recording 1 -- A conversation between two people set in an everyday social context. Recording 2 -- A monologue set in an everyday social context. Recording 3 -- A conversation between two to four people set in an educational or training context. Recording 4 -- A monologue on an academic subject. The listening test lasts for 30 minutes. You will be given 10 minutes in the end to transfer your answers to the answer sheet provided.

IELTS listening test marking criteria

The computer marks IELTS listening test and it is later checked by the human examiner for quality. The test contains 40 questions. Each correct answer is awarded one mark. The total score out of 40 is then converted to whole or half band score. There is no negative marking for wrong answers.

Raw score and Band score example

RAW SCORE	BAND SCORE
39-40	9
37-38	8.5
35-36	8
32-34	7.5

IELTS listening Tips

• Concentrate on the recordings as you only hear it once.
• Write down all your answers on your question paper while the recording is playing.
• Make use of the pencil to write down your answers.
• Make use of shorthand and abbreviations to make it quicker and make sure that you can read your handwriting as you are given only 10 minutes at the end of the test to transfer your answers to your answer paper.
• Make sure your writing on your answer sheet is neat and precise.
• The synonyms of the words used in the question should be kept in memory while attempting the answer.
• You are allowed to write the answers in capital letters or lower case. You must choose, and if you decide to write in capital letters, you must write all the answers in capital letters.
• Read the instructions carefully below every question to know the number of words for each answer.
• Avoid spelling mistakes.
• Use the prepositions where ever necessary.
• Question types asked are -- multiple choice, map completion, form completion, note completion, diagram labeling, flow chart completion, sentence completion, summary completion, table completion and short answer questions.
• Even if you have missed out an answer, try remembering any data that you can, since there is no negative marking of any sort. There is no point in leaving any question unanswered.
• Keep yourself free from stress. If you fiddle too much, you may miss out on crucial data related to your question.
• Keep your eyes closed, so that you can focus your senses towards listening.

How to prepare for IELTS listening?

Listening needs concentration, perseverance, purpose and understanding. Take a lot of IELTS practice tests which are readily available online and work on six essential skills which are required for the listening test. Prediction -- When you look at the questions you should try to predict the answer before you hear it because this makes it easier to get the correct answer. You can practice this skill by reading the title and any other information related to the talk or conversation you are going to listen and predict some of the things you might hear. Write them down to check if your answers are correct. Synonyms and Paraphrasing -- Listening test is also a vocabulary test. Many a time the answer will not be a direct match to the keywords in the question, but a synonym or a paraphrase of those words. Practice synonyms and paraphrasing by listening to a short video and think about how each sentence could be paraphrased. Practice this regularly! Over a period, you will get used to common synonyms which will help you in all parts of the IELTS test. Connected Speech -- Connected Speech means linking of words and sounds together in a sentence. It is difficult to understand the sentence when it is not clear. Practice this by pausing a phrase you don’t understand and replay it until you have followed all the words. Recognizing Signposting Language -- The two recordings of the IELTS listening test will be monologues, one in a social context and one in a lecture style. When someone is talking in this way they often use what is referred to as ‘signposting’ such as - this lecture is divided into three parts- "first of all", "secondly", "after that" and "finally". These phrases tell you what stage of the talk you are listening to and what they are going to say next. Listening to Two People Talking -- Two of the four recordings of the listening test will be a discussion between two people. These people will have different accents, different ways of speaking and they might agree or disagree with each other. Listening to two people talking at the same time is a very difficult task, hence practice this by listening to the recordings of two people having a conversation. Try to note down the necessary details. Note Taking -- Taking notes is essential in our day to day life. Practice taking down notes by listening to a recording or a lecture. Take short notes and then try to transcribe it to general notes.

How to score band 8 in IELTS listening test ?

The following tips are are going to help you score band 8

• You have 10 minutes to transfer your answers to your answer sheets. So make sure your spellings and the answers are grammatically correct.
• If your writing is messy, try to write all your answers in capital letters.
• Be careful with capital letters. If your word is someone’s place or name, then start with the capital letter to be correct.
• Make sure you follow the instructions when it comes to the word limit. If the question states no more than three words, do not write more than that.
• Practice IELTS past papers to familiarize with different types of questions.
• Make sure you won’t get tricked. The test will often try to fool you by giving you something that seems like the correct answer first and then changing it to something else later in the recording.
• IELTS uses paraphrases rather than similar words, So be well aware of these common traps.