IELTS course - ESOL centre



left250002514600IELTS course900007300IELTS courserighttopUNIT 3ESOLcentre.ukDistance Learning ProviderUNIT 340000100000UNIT 3ESOLcentre.ukDistance Learning ProviderUNIT 3IELTS Listening TestOverview of the listening test1????The listening test has?four?sections.2There are?40?questions.3Candidates hear each section?once?.4The speakers have?different?accents.5Candidates?have time to transfer their answers after the recording has finished.6Spelling?is?important.Section 1a conversation in an everyday social context between two peoplecorrectSection 2a monologue on a topic relating to general social needscorrectSection 3a conversation in an academic context between two or more peoplecorrectSection 4a lecture or talk on a topic of general academic interestPredictingPredicting involves using the context and your knowledge of the topic to guess what people are speaking about. For instance, if you were watching TV and you saw an advertisement for a car, you could guess that the purpose of the advert would be to sell the car and that there was likely to be vocabulary related to cars.Predicting is an important listening skill because we can make more sense of what we hear if we use what we know already about the topic.??Identifying key wordsWhen listening to a recording, it is sometimes difficult for learners to understand every word. A very important skill is the ability to identify the key words – that is, the most important words which carry the message.Related to this skill is the ability to recognise the way speakers use sentence stress and intonation – in other words, making words louder and higher – to highlight important words.?Listening for specific informationOur reason for listening will affect the way we listen. Often we need to listen for specific information. For instance, if you are listening to a weather forecast for your area, you would be listening out for the name of your area.Identifying key words and listening for specific information depend on the ability to deal with distraction – being able to ignore information or words that are not important. In the example of the weather forecast, you would ignore the names of areas you were not interested in.The ability to recognise synonyms and paraphrasing is also important. In the example of the weather forecast, you might be listening for the word 'rain', but the speaker might actually say, ‘Wet weather is expected.’?Listening intensivelyIntensive listening means listening very carefully when all the content is important. For instance, if you were buying a new mobile phone and the shop assistant was explaining how it worked, you would need to listen to the instructions very carefully.?Identifying attitudes of speakersThis means understanding what the speaker is thinking or feeling, even when they do not express their thoughts directly. For instance, if someone said to you, ‘Are you sure about that?’, they might be expressing doubt about what you have said, or they may be disagreeing politely. Recognising the use of intonation is very important for this.Understanding attitude and opinion is an important listening skill because people will often not state directly what they are thinking or feeling.TaskMatch the listening skills to the examples:listening for specific information, predicting, identifying key wordslistening intensively, identifying attitudes of speakersYou are trying to work out what your friend really thinks about ?your new jacket.---------------------------------------------Correct----------You are at the train station listening to announcements because you want to find out which platform your train leaves from.correct--------------------------------------------You have come into a lecture and are thinking about what you have read about the subject in preparation.correct-------------------------------------------You are listening to your teacher giving you directions to the library.correct-------------------------------------------You are listening to someone who is speaking very fast and trying to pick out the important words.correct------------------------------------------AnswersYou are trying to work out what your friend really thinks about ?your new jacket.identifying attitudes of speakerscorrectYou are at the train station listening to announcements because you want to find out which platform your train leaves from.listening for specific informationcorrectYou have come into a lecture and are thinking about what you have read about the subject in preparation.predictingcorrectYou are listening to your teacher giving you directions to the library.listening intensivelycorrectYou are listening to someone who is speaking very fast and trying to pick out the important words.identifying key wordscorrectTask typesThe particular listening skills that we need in a situation will depend to a large extent on our purpose for listening. In the IELTS Listening test, the purpose for listening is provided by the questions and these will affect the way learners need to listen.There are several different task types used in the Listening test. As with the Reading test, the task types could be used in any section of the Listening test. Very often, each section in the Listening test will have more than one task type.plan/map/diagram labellingCandidates complete the labels on a plan, map or diagram by using between one and three words, or numbers from the recording.correctmultiple choiceCandidates choose the correct answer to a question on the recording from three answers or from a list of possible answers.correctmatchingThis task might involve, for example, matching a list of people to what they said or matching places to the facilities they have.correctshort-answer questionsCandidates answer questions with between one and three words from the listening.correctsentence/table/form/flowchart/summary/note completionCandidates complete a sentence, form, table, flowchart, summary or notes by using one to three words and/or numbers from the recording.What is top-down processing?When we listen to someone talking, we use visual clues, the context and our knowledge of the world to make sense of what we are hearing. We continually make predictions based on this. For instance, if we are in a shop and the shop assistant asks us something, we use the context (the fact that we are in a shop and it is a shop assistant speaking to us) and our knowledge and experience of the world (that is, we know the type of things that shop assistants say to customers) to predict what the shop assistant is saying. We would expect to hear something like?Can I help you?. This is what we refer to as top-down processing. So predicting is a top-down processing skill.What is bottom-up processing?We then use what we actually hear to confirm our predictions or alter them. When we listen to the actual words that are being said, we are using bottom-up processing. So listening intensively is a bottom-up processing skill.A successful listener will use both top-down and bottom-up processing and a range of listening skills. TaskLook at the following extract of an IELTS Listening Section 1 question and try to make predictions about the conversation. Choose the correct answers below.?Harper Holiday Job AgencyApplication for Temporary Work?Personal DetailsFirst Name: LilySurname: (1) …………Date of birth: (2)…………?Temporary Work RequirementsPeriod when work wanted: From June to (3)…………Where work wanted: (4)………… or (5) …………1?The two speakersare friends.are colleagues.probably don’t know each other.2?Lilyis employed by the agency.wants a temporary job.can start work in December.?You were able to answer these questions by looking at the information in the question and using your world knowledge of this type of situation (top-down processing). The order of the information on the form can also give you an indication of the structure of the conversation as the listening follows the same order as the information on the form.Answers:probably don’t know each otherwants a temporary jobThink about questions for the other gaps in the task. Write some possibilities in the box below.?Date of birth: (2) …………Period when work wanted: From June to (3) …………Where work wanted: (4) ………… or (5) …………Suggested answers2??? What’s your date of birth? Can you tell me your date of birth? When were you born?3??? When do you want to work? When would you like to work?4/5?Where would you like to work? Do you have any preferences about where to work??We make a prediction (top-down processing) and then use what we hear (bottom-up processing) to confirm or revise our predictions.When candidates practice Section 1 of the Listening test, they will hear the exact words they need to complete the gaps and do not need to change them in any way.DistractorsThere will often be distractors in the text – that is, extra information that sounds as if it could be right, which candidates need to listen to carefully to rule out as an answer.In Section 1, candidates are often asked to listen to and write down numbers, dates and to spell out words, usually names. This involves very intensive listening.TaskListen to Audio 1 on your course page.Now answer the questions:What is the topic of the talk?How many people are talking?What is the purpose of the recording?TaskLook at the following questions. Which do you think are the key words?1? What type of film does John prefer?2? What sport does he play?Suggested answers are in bold.1? What type of?film?does John?prefer?2? What?sport?does he?play?Look at the audio script for the questions above. The answers to the questions have been?underlined. The words that are acting as distractors are highlighted.Teacher:???What do you like doing?in your free time?John:???I like reading?and?going to the cinema.Teacher:???What kind of films?do you prefer?John:???Well,?if I had a choice?I would go to see?horror movies??but my friends?prefer??action films.Teacher:???And do you play?any sports?John:??Well,?I used to?play?basketball?but??I gave up??a couple of years ago. Now I play?badminton?at the weekend?with my friends.English speakers highlight the important words by making them slightly louder, slower and higher in pitch than the other words in the sentence. The words that are stressed in this way are usually content words – e.g. nouns and verbs – as they are the words which carry the message. The other words in the sentence – function words like articles, prepositions and auxiliaries – are difficult to hear because they are said more quickly. Often, however, these words are not so important.Section 2: Listening to a general monologueIn Section 2 of the Listening test, candidates hear a monologue in an everyday social context. This could be, a guided tour or a talk about a museum or place of interest and so on.?Map/plan/diagram labellingSection 2 sometimes features a map or diagram that candidates have to label. The map or diagram gives the candidates important visual clues to what the listening is about. As we saw earlier, making predictions is an important listening skill, which can help candidates to answer correctly.Candidates are given some time to look at the map, plan or diagram before the listening starts. Matching questionIn map labelling tasks there is often a list of labels to choose from to answer the question, so candidates have to listen for specific information. Look carefully at the list so that you can identify the words if they come up in the listening.Look at the list of labels for the question about the motor show exhibition hall:A??? biofuels exhibitB??? in-car entertainmentC??? sandwich barD??? sat nav developmentsE??? sports car standIn this task, candidates would have to listen and label the map of the Motor Show Exhibition Hall with these labels. However, it is again important for learners to be aware of synonyms and paraphrasing. For instance, instead of?There’s a sandwich bar ...?they might hear?There’s a place where you can get a sandwich ...?or?That’s where to go to get something to eat.Label:sandwich barThat’s somewhere you can get a snack.correctLabel: sports car standThis is the place to go if you like fast cars.correctLabel: in-car entertainmentThey’ve got a display showing the latest technologies for listening to music in the car.correctLabel: biofuels exhibitThere’s an area where you can learn about more ecological ways to power cars.correctLabel: satellite navigation developmentsThis is a good stand to go to if you keep getting lost when you’re driving.correctHighlighted parts of the sentences with the paraphrasing for?in-car entertainment?and?biofuels exhibit.?When you get to the Motor Show you’ll find it’s an enormous hall??and it would be quite easy to miss??some of the most interesting exhibits,??so I’d like to give you??a bit of general information first.??First of all,??there is a small stand to the left of the information desk??as you go into the hall.??That’s got a very interesting display looking at??different modern technologies allowing you to listen to good quality music as you drive.??Next to that,??to the right of the information desk,??is a very interesting area??which is devoted to the development of more ecologically sound forms of petrol and diesel.??I think that you will be impressed by??what you see there.Listening only onceIn the IELTS Listening test the recordings are only played once. This reflects real life, where learners often only have one opportunity to understand something. Common learners’ problems and adviceWhat I find difficult is when they spell their names.Make sure you know how all the letters of the alphabet are pronounced.correctThey speak so fast – how can I recognise the key words?You need to listen for those words which are stressed – they will often be the important words.correctIt’s so difficult when you’re not clear about the topic of the conversation.Before the listening starts, look at the questions and try to think about the topic.correctI look at the words in the options in the question, but they often don’t use the same words in the recording.Think about different ways of expressing the options.correctBecause you only get to hear it once, I often miss the information.In Section 1, you often know when the information you need is going to come because of the question that is asked before.correctI never know what I’m meant to be listening for, so I try to write everything down.Just think about the information you need to complete the questions and focus on that.correct√ Well done! Now move on to Part 2 of this Unit. ................
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