A list of tasks to complete for our immigration to Australia is getting shorter and shorter every day. Taking an IELTS test today took another task off our list.
IELTS (International English Language Test Sytem) is a test which is supposed to provide an objective assessment of person's English skills in the areas of listening, reading, speaking and writing. The test covered each of those areas and took about three hours to complete, not including a twenty minute speaking session later in the day. Each of the four areas (listening, reading, speaking and writing) is graded on a scale of 1 to 9.
Taking tests is always unnerving, no matter how well you are versed in the subject. I spent some time writing sample tests to prepare for the actual examination. The biggest challenge I had was answering the written portion of the test. This component of the test requires you to answer two questions writing a 150 word long letter and a 250 word analysis. To do those two tasks in sixty minutes on topics that you've only read a couple of minutes ago is a real challenge.
I was suprised how well the test went. I cruised through the reading, listening and spoken tests, and was able to complete the written test just in time. I only need to get a score of 7 on each of these tests in order to get the extra marks for immigration purposes. To get a 7, you have to score better than 85% on the test. To get a 9, you have to score 100%. I will know the results in about a couple of weeks.
I can finally use my weeknights to do something fun, as opposed to studying for the IELTS test. Ahhh, what game should I play first? :-)
2 comments:
Congrats on taking this test, Ivan! Did you find it to be 'objective'? (Often ESL/EFL tests aren't.)
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Actually, it was not too bad. I did find that some contextual knowledge helped, especially about whatever topic they were discussing.
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