IELTS TEST 10 MAY 2014, WHO'S DOING IT IN PE?

[Kimayne]

Hi Everyone,

The topic line says it all, keen to get in contract with those doing the test then?

[Tazzn]

I'm doing mine - same date but in Durban. Anyone else going to be doing their test in Durban? (sorry for the hijack Kimayne)

[Eonl]

I am Doing mine same date, but in JHB, who is sitting the test in JHB?

[taffychin]

Hi Guys, wish you all the best. I am doing mine in joburg on the 17th of May. If you have any website links or material which I can use for preparation, may please help me.

[Kimmykins]

Good luck to everyone who is writing on the same date. May God be with you and grant you peace and wisdom

[KCT]

Cape Town 17th May 2014............. awaits.

[Chapter2]

Wrote IELTS today in PE...was not too bad, as expected listening test was the most stressful for me. Need min 6 for skills assessment, but aimed for 8 to score max points for visa application. Will have to wait and see.

[salas]

@Rookie

hope you are well. what kind of topics did you have to write on in the writing module?

[DeepFriedMatt]

@salas

I wrote the academic test. In Part A of the writing we were given a diagram showing a desalination process. The task was to explain the process in words (at least 100). Other Part A topics I have seen have been to explain other processes that are given in diagram format, to summarise and explain information presented in graphs. Part B in my test was an essay type question on the topic of the rise in teenagers being involved in criminal activities.

From what I understand the Part A in the general test involves writing a letter and not summarising or explaining a a diagram or graph as in the academic test. But Part B is always an essay type question. The topics can be pretty much everything and anything, but the IELTS guys do say in their information booklet that the topics are of a general interest and are not academic or specialised. So everyone should be able to answer.

I'd recommend checking out this booklet if you haven't already - http://www.ielts.org/pdf/information_for_candidates_booklet.pdf

Best advice I can give is to relax and just write freely as you would have at university / work. They can easily gauge your English ability regardless of the actual content of your writing and how much you know about the topic.

[Jasper]

Nearly a year later, but in case any PE folk do come across it ahead of writing the IELTS - one thing I did notice about the writing portion is that they're quite strict on the content and I suspect they have a black and white marking sheet that scales based on whether or not you meet the objective. Which is fair if you think about the high volumes and very strict rules they have to follow...

BUT - don't be a smart ass like me and be too much of a "writer". See, because I write for a living, I tackled the subject differently and proposed that I disagreed with the question having a right or wrong answer (it was an agree/disagree-discuss kind of question). And I received an 8 for writing. (9 for everything else!)

Now you can imagine as someone who writes for a living, that's a bit odd. So don't be a smart ass - answer the question and write neatly! It's also entirely possible my handwriting left them scratching their heads and crumpling up the paper, thinking that a rat had escape and scamper across the page.