Students' questions

Sorry if I haven't been able to answer your question. Here are some of the questions that people asked me this week:

1. Can I use slang (e.g. 'rank' meaning 'disgusting') in the speaking test?

No, it's not really appropriate to use slang.

2. Can I give personal examples like the name of the company I work for?

Yes, it's a good idea to use that kind of example when relevant.

3. What is the difference between 'programme' and 'program'?

The first is British English spelling, and the second is American spelling. Both are equally acceptable.

4. How many ideas should I include in each main paragraph (for task 2)?

I include between one and three ideas. If you only have one main idea, just explain it in more detail.

5. Is there a difference between 'put more emphasis on' and 'put more of an emphasis on'?

No, not really. You can use either phrase.

6. Is there a difference between 'of the five countries' and 'out of the five countries'?

No, not really. You can use either phrase.

Comments

[Bori]

1. Which one is correct? The data shows ... or the data show ...
2. Can I use the phrase 'as can be clearly seen' or do I have to include 'it' (as it can be clearly seen)?

[prashant]

hi simon
i made a big mistake today.i wrote yes/no instead of true/false .will i get marks? and the test was very difficult.i m worried.please reply.

[k.d]

Hello Simon,

Today i got my score R-7.5, L-7.5, W-7.0, S-8.0 Total-7.5.
I have been following your classes especially your writing tips,that was very helpful for me.

Thank you very much.

[Ram]

Hi Prashant
If you dont mind can you share your questions here...
Thanks

[George Luke]

Sorry Prasanth you may probably loss marks for that.

[Prashant]

Well ,reading was very difficult one.all three passages.can u tell me Simon what's the band range in terms of score for difficult tests.however I was able to answer all questions,many of others even failed to do that.what say?

[Prashant]

@ ram
Listening:
1. travel agency to book a trip in australia
2. a man talking about a walking trip
3. design a brochur for an english course
4. lecture on natural and manmade materials

Reading: (really hard!)
1. captain cook exploring australia
2. learning mother language in host country
3. business and social involvment (something like that).

Writing:
Task1:
bar chart of imported coffee and tea in four countries in 2007

Task2:
In some countries, schools teach foreign language in primary school.
Do the advantages outweigh disadvantages?

[Ram]

@ Prashant,
Thanks.
What about your speaking topic?

[Ayshe]

Dear Simon,
I want to thank you for this web site and helpful informations. I had an İELTS academic exam yesterday, here in US. The exam was challenging little bit. Listening was from a tape in the middle of the class. I wonder if it is the way in everywhere?
Writing task 1, was about a line graph, marriages rate in UK,
Writing 2: Travelling or working before starting university. Do adventages are more than disadvantages?
And speaking questions were soo long so I had to ask her to repeat few times. I wonder if that was a bad point for me? And I spoke A LOT! :/
I just want to thank for informations you gave and for this web site.
Ayshe

[anandi]

thank u so much simon for being a great teacher and ur e book was a great help....i got 7 in reading and speaking, 7.5 in writing and 9 in listeining......overall 7.5...thank u alotttt.....i passsed it in 4 attempts ...never give up no matter what stay positive,....continue working hard

[ömürcan]

hi everybody,

i am not sure whether i have to use titles for my writig task1 and task2 or not.Could somebody answer my question please?

thanks alot:)

[Prashu_tab]

On 15. Sept in Melbourne writing question for tast 2 was as follows

Some believe that government fund for research purposes should be used wisely on useful things and not on useless.
To what extent do you agree or disagree.

Reading, I don't know the heading, though, writing the idea of content
1. About Pesticides used in a village of India (Andhra Pradesh)
2. Scientist are playful or not.
3. Multiplex in London and movies

Did anyone get the similar things on 15.Sep.2012, if yes then don't forget to mention ur exam location please.

Please share a

[Nisha]

hi anandi and k.d

can u help me to get 7 in writing ,l mean any method to get the score in two months.

[k.d]

like simon says, give short intro and a brief summary, concentrate on body paragraphs,what ever idea you are detailing give examples,even if you have more than one idea for a para give example for each idea, use some good language, for help in language read news articles from guardian and the economist......
wish you good luck nisha

[Nisha]

thanks kd