IELTS Reading Success Part 1

Both IELTS preparation books and IELTS teachers will tell you that you need to use your reading skills effectively to do well in the Reading Test. But what are these skills? How are they helpful?

To answer these questions, it’s important to know what the purpose of the IELTS Reading Test is. Is it to learn about something new? Is it to memorise the information and be able to write a summary about it? Is it to read for interest? I’m not sure about you, but I’m not that keen on learning about dung beetles or cane toads (both of these have come in the IELTS Reading Test in the past!).

The one and only reason you’re reading the passages in the Reading Test is to find the answers to questions given! Think of it as a treasure hunt. The answers to the questions are ‘buried’ in the text and you have to apply your reading skills to ‘dig’ them out! In other words, there is no reason to read every word in the passage.

The three skills you need to locate the treasure are SURVEYING, SKIMMING and SCANNING.

In Part 1 of this series of blogs on Reading Success, we are going to look at surveying.

Surveying

How?

Look for:                          

• Title

• Headings

• Pictures or diagrams

• Number of paragraphs/sections

• Glossary

This is the very first step of the treasure hunt. Spend about 30 seconds or so surveying the passage in front of you. Look at the title, headings and visuals. It’s a good idea to see how many paragraphs or sections there are, and look to see if there’s a glossary - usually at the end of the text with stars -a list of words and their definitions. Don’t worry, these are technical words that you’re not expected to know. That’s why there is a glossary!

Let’s do some practice.

Survey the passage above and complete the table.

Why is this helpful?

Because now you will have an idea of the topic of the text, how long it, and, if there is a glossary, the meaning of some technical words. As a result, you’ve activated your mind, which brings up any knowledge you have on the topic, and any related vocabulary. After surveying you may start recalling words like caterpillar or habitat etc.

Now you’re ready to move onto the next step, the next reading skill.

Keep an eye on our social media for Part 2 of this series of IELTS Reading for Success!

Why not access our IELTS Reading Webinar Lessons on demand here.

*Suggested answers:eying