IELTS podcast Archives - My IELTS Classroom Blog

My IELTS Classroom Podcast Episodes 33 and 34: IELTS Speaking Part 3

03 November 2020

IELTS Speaking Part 3 In IELTS Speaking Part 3, the focus moves away from you to the world around you. This means that you will have to be able to speak about abstract topics, which is not easy even for high-level test takers. In the episode above, Nick and I explain how to approach these questions well by looking at the types of question you will be asked, the common topics covered, and the right and wrong way to answer the questions in this part of the test. Plus, if you scroll to the end of this blog post, you can find the second episode where we analyse 5 students attempts at Part 3 to say what they are doing[…]
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- Speaking
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Why overgeneralising is damaging your IELTS essay score!

27 October 2020

Why overgeneralising is damaging your IELTS essay score! I sometimes think that the world that I live in is very different to the one that IELTS test-takers live in. For example, when I was a child, my sister and I played a lot of computer games. The result? A lot of happy memories and good hand-eye coordination. However, if you ask IELTS test-takers what the result of playing computer games is, the answer is always the same: blindness, lack of social skills, and maybe, a life of crime! Do you see the problem? These results are just TOO BIG! In IELTS overgeneralising is specifically mentioned in the band descriptors as a mistake that stops students getting an 8.0 for Task Response or[…]
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- Writing
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My IELTS Classroom Podcast Interview: Psychologist Beverley A’Court on IELTS stress management and dealing with failure

11 August 2020

Psychologist Beverley A’Court on IELTS stress management One thing I have learned while running My IELTS Classroom is that many students need as much emotional support from me as academic guidance. However, I sometimes feel that I do not have the skills needed to help my students who are dealing with failure and IELTS stress management. That is why today, I am so glad to be able to share this interview with the psychologist and art therapist Beverley A’court.
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My IELTS Classroom Podcast 19: Are you ready for an IELTS Essay Correction Service?

04 August 2020

Are you ready for an IELTS Essay Correction Service? One common aspect of many students’ preparation for writing is signing up for an IELTS essay correction service. However, is this always necessary? At what stage of your preparation should you consider signing up for one? And what makes a marking service good or bad? Guess what – that’s what we’ll be discussing today! Below, you can find a summary of the episode, which includes all of the links to useful materials and the times of each part of the discussion (so you can go directly to the part you want to listen to) 🚀 Subscribe to My IELTS Classroom podcast on Apple podcasts here Subscribe to My IELTS Classroom on Google podcasts here My[…]
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My IELTS Classroom Podcast 11: IELTS Speaking Part 1 – Six Common Mistakes

09 June 2020

IELTS Speaking Part 1 – Six Common Mistakes Although the first part of the IELTS speaking test should be the easiest as you are asked questions all about yourself, you still want to make sure that you get off to a strong start. So, today, Nick and I look at six common errors that students make in IELTS Speaking Part 1 and how you can avoid them. Below, you can find a summary of the episode. This includes all of the links to useful materials and the times of each part of the discussion (so you can go directly to the part you want to listen to). You can also find every episode of the podcast here 🚀 Subscribe to My IELTS Classroom podcast[…]
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- Speaking
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My IELTS Classroom Podcast 10: What makes a good IELTS teacher?

02 June 2020

What makes a good IELTS teacher? Hey! Over the last couple of years, I have noticed that many teachers have taken my ideas and introduced them into their own classes. Usually, I do not mind this. In fact, I encourage it. As far as I am concerned, the more people who are teaching high-quality IELTS classes the better – it will make my job easier when students come to me needing specialist help as I won’t have to “un-teach” them so much bad information. However, this week, I discovered that somebody had taken “borrowing” from me a step too far. This made me realise that I really need to teach my students how to know the difference between a good[…]
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My IELTS Classroom Podcast 9: IELTS Listening Part 3

26 May 2020

IELTS Listening Part 3 Many students find IELTS Listening Part 3 difficult. There are a number of reasons for this, which you hopefully remember from our IELTS Listening 101 episode: there are more than two voices, the questions usually focus on the outcome of a discussion in which many views are offered, and you may also be asked to locate a person’s feelings (and we all know that feelings are much harder to find than facts!).
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- Listening
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My IELTS Classroom Podcast 8: IELTS Indicator – the new online IELTS test

19 May 2020

IELTS Indicator – the new online IELTS test This week the new IELTS Indicator test went live. However, is this new online test from IELTS suitable for every test-taker? Definitely not! Today, Nick and I explain exactly what you should consider before you apply for the test (and there is a lot!). If you haven’t already read my introduction post to IELTS Indicator, I strongly recommend that you do so now. I wrote it before we knew many of the specific details that we discuss in today’s episode, but it will give you a great introduction to the test. Below, you can find a summary of the episode, which includes all of the links to useful materials and the times[…]
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My IELTS Classroom Podcast 7: Why are so many students stuck at a 6.5 for IELTS writing?

12 May 2020

Why are students stuck at a 6.5 for IELTS writing? Welcome to My IELTS Classroom podcast. Today, Nick and I discuss one of the most important IELTS questions – why are so many students stuck at a 6.5 for IELTS writing? Is it because there is a conspiracy to trick test-takers, or are there other less sinister reasons?
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- Writing
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My IELTS Classroom Podcast 3: Introduction to IELTS Listening

01 March 2020

Introduction to IELTS Listening Test Welcome to the third lesson in our IELTS 101 series – an introduction to IELTS listening. I think that listening is usually the easiest of the four tests, but it can still definitely be very tricky if you don’t prepare well. As usual, Nick and I start the episode by giving you some basic facts about the IELTS listening test, such as the types of conversation that you will hear in each part and the types of question you will have to tackle.
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- Listening
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