IELTS Reading Introduction
IELTS is (International English Language Testing System) a test used in English speaking countries where English is the primary language of communication. There are four modules in the test of IELTS, namely:
- Reading
- Listening
- Writing
- Speaking
The reading module of IELTS is also one of them. So, let us take IELTS reading introduction briefly.
IELTS reading test is a test of reading in which examiners evaluate the reading skills of the candidate. The module of IELTS reading consists of 40 questions varying different types. Each question carries one score. There will be no negative marking, therefore answer all the questions of test. There are 60 minutes to solve the IELTS reading test.
The test of IELTS reading consist of 3 different types of passages. Mostly the passages of the reading test are based on general interests. These passages are not tough to understand, but it is essential to do practice for understanding the passages of reading test. These passages are taken from books, newspapers, articles, journals, or magazines etc.
In this article, I will share IELTS reading overview briefly.
IELTS reading types
As you know that there are two types of IELTS- IELTS academic and IELTS general training, as same the reading test of IELTS is also divided into sections. IELTS academic which refers IELTS academic reading test while IELTS general training refers IELTS general reading test.
IELTS academic reading
IELTS academic reading test belongs to IELTS academic test that means this test is used to go abroad for higher education. IELTS academic test contain 3 passages with the general topic related to academics based on environmental science, medical field, or climate change issues etc. taken from books, magazines and newspapers etc.
IELTS general reading
IELTS general reading test is the part of IELTS general training test. The purpose of this test is to go English speaking countries for work, study at school level or for immigration. This test consists of 3 passages and these passages are based on general topics related to daily life routine taken from newspapers, articles, or from magazines etc.
Summary
IELTS reading test is one of the sections of IELTS which is used as an English proficiency test. The test of IELTS reading consists of 3 passages taken from books, newspapers, articles, books, magazines, and journals. The topics in this test are based on general interest that means in IELTS reading academic, topics are related to academic while in IELTS general reading, the passages are related to daily life routine.
You can face different types of questions in the test of IELTS reading such as matching headings, filling gaps, flowchart, summary, table completion etc. These types of questions are included in the test to analyze the abilities of an aspirant of IELTS.
There are 40 questions in the test and each question carries 1 score. These scores are converted into band scores. There are 9 bands for each test. Marking criteria is different for both types of IELTS reading – IELTS academic reading and IELTS general reading.
Recommended books are essential to prepare IELTS because these books are up to date and error free. IELTS reading practice tests are also important for practice. Because, this test is difficult due to time management. These IELTS reading practice tests help you to manage your time perfectly and get to know about IELTS reading format and question types. It is simple IELTS reading description which will be helpful to know the IELTS reading introduction.
Types of questions in IELTS reading
A variety of questions you can face in the test of IELTS reading. The main purpose of these questions is to check the abilities of a candidate that how well he is trained and understands the text of the reading test. Different types of techniques are required to counter all these types of questions.
Here is the list of these question types.
- Matching headings
- Short answer questions
- Locating information
- Matching sentence endings
- Matching features
- Multiple choice questions
- Summary completion
- Diagram labelling
- True false not given
- Sentence completion
- Flow chart Completion
- Note completion
- Yes / no / not given
- Table completion
IELTS reading multiple choice questions contain 3-4 possible answers according to the questions. In this type of question, examiner evaluates that how well you recognize the exact answer with different options. True / false / not given or yes / no / not given questions are there to check your abilities, how well you find correct information from the text and recognize correct statement.
Matching questions such as matching headings, matching information, matching features and matching sentence ending’s main purpose is to match the specific statement such as to match the headings from passage, matching information from passage, and matching different types of items regarding to feature are the types of questions. These items may be list of people, cities, or any other thing.
In the type of matching sentence ending questions, you will have half sentence in the question and you require to find the second half of the sentence from the text. Like this, you need to find the exact second half of the sentence and match with correct one.
In the question types of sentence completion and short question answers, you need to be active and expand your close attention to the text and question. Both types of questions are almost similar. In sentence completion, you will face fill in the blanks and require to choose exact word from the text while in short answer questions you have to find the words and answer the question in short from that word.
In other types of questions such as diagram, table or summary etc., you have to complete the task according to the questions and with full attention.
Most important to note is that instructions are very important for IELTS reading test. You must follow the instructions of the reading test.
IELTS reading score
There are 40 questions in the test of IELTS reading carrying 1 score each. Because the scores of IELTS are in bands form; therefore, these scores are converted into bands. The calculation of IELTS reading test is different for both types- IELTS academic reading and IELTS general training reading.
Therefore, the calculations of IELTS reading academic and IELTS reading general training are given below in the table.
| Academic reading | General reading | ||
| Score | Correct Answers | Score | Correct answers |
| 9 | 39-40 | 9 | 40 |
| 8.5 | 37-38 | 8.5 | 39 |
| 8 | 35-36 | 8 | 37-38 |
| 7.5 | 33-34 | 7.5 | 36 |
| 7 | 30-32 | 7 | 34-35 |
| 6.5 | 27-29 | 6.5 | 32-33 |
| 6 | 23-26 | 6 | 30-31 |
| 5.5 | 19-22 | 5.5 | 27-29 |
| 5 | 15-18 | 5 | 23-26 |
| 4.5 | 13-14 | 4.5 | 19-22 |
| 4 | 10-12 | 4 | 15-18 |
| 3.5 | 8-9 | 3.5 | 12-14 |
| 3 | 6-7 | 3 | 9-11 |
| 2.5 | 4-5 | 2.5 | 6-8 |
| 2 | 3 | 2 | 4-5 |
| 1 | 2-1 | 1 | 1-3 |
IELTS reading practice tests
IELTS reading practice tests are very helpful for the preparation of IELTS reading. IELTS reading test is difficult because there are lengthy passages in the test. You have just an hour to complete the paper. The main issue is the time duration for this test. But it is standard test and the time duration for this test is also standard, so there will be no extra time for this test.
Therefore, remaining point is practice. So, practice a lot to crack the test of IELTS reading. In this matter, IELTS reading practice tests are very fruitful to prepare IELTS reading test. These practice tests help you to know the format of IELTS reading and what is the nature of IELTS reading, all you will know.
Practice tests for IELTS reading are taken from the preparatory books of IELTS. These practice tests make you expert to manage time in IELTS reading. When you practice IELTS reading practice tests, you become expert to solve different types of questions and the techniques required for IELTS reading: all types of questions.
Tips for IELTS reading
- IELTS reading test is the test of reading skills, so you must improve your reading skills.
- Improve your skimming to get the gist of the passages easily and quickly.
- Improve your scanning to find something specific in the passage of IELTS reading test.
- Intensive and extensive reading are also important; you have to have good command on these types of reading.
- Time is precious, use it in a good way to solve the test in a limited time.
- You must improve your vocabulary to perform well in the test of IELTS because vocabulary plays a vital role in the test of IELTS.
- Do not consume much time on a single task; divide your time for each task.
- Practice and be consistent to crack the IELTS reading test.
- If you want to have detailed article, read IELTS reading tips and tricks and frequently asked questions FAQS about IELTS reading.
Recommended books for IELTS reading
The most recommended books for IELTS reading are Cambridge IELTS reading books because these books are official and updated books for preparation. All Cambridge IELTS books 1 to 18 are most recommend books. IELTS common mistakes is also one of the best books for the preparation.
These recommended books provide specific information of the test and all of these books are error free books. Therefore, practice and follow these books to crack IELTS reading.
In a nutshell: IELTS reading introduction
Two types of IELTS reading- IELTS academic reading and IELTS general training reading contain 3 passages in the test and these passages are lengthy. There is one hour to complete the test of IELTS reading. The passages in the test are lengthy, so it becomes difficult to solve such kind of test in one hour. The tips and tricks are necessary for you to prepare IELTS reading.
There are different types of questions in the test. The main purpose of these questions is to check the abilities of a candidate that how much expert he is. There are 40 questions in the test. Each question carries 1 score. These scores are converted into bands because IELTS scores are in the form of bands ranging from 1-9.
Most recommended books are essential to prepare IELTS reading. These books are official and error free. Practice tests for IELTS reading are also important for preparation. Practice a lot and be consistent for the preparation of IELTS.
