My IELTS Classroom Podcast

Hopefully, you have already completed our Introduction to IELTS Matching Headings questions and so know the basic techniques for approaching these questions well. If you haven't, I strongly recommend that you click on this link to complete the lesson now. Too many students rely on skimming or scanning to find the answers, or just reading the first and last lines of a paragraph. Neither of tho...

In the world of IELTS we often discuss “types” or essay (Discuss Both Sides, Advantages and Disadvantages, etc) and common topics (environment, work, education, etc) , but we rarely talk about common "themes". Today I want to talk about one theme that often appears but is rarely discussed: essays that focus on social change . These are essay questions which present a current social trend...

In the writing exam you will be given a topic that you need to address in an essay. One important IELTS skill, therefore, is being able to talk about the topic without repeating the sentences from the task. This is called "paraphrasing" and is one area where many students struggle. Why? Well, it is because there is so much false information about IELTS paraphrasing online (and in classro...

Nothing is more rewarding as a teacher than working with an exam class that is motivated to learn and improve. But, when are you ready as a teacher to start teaching exam classes? And, more importantly, once you are ready how do you start planning your classes? There is no one way how to teach IELTS, but in today's podcast, Nick and I go through the basics that can help you start. Then, befor...

You know how some people like to relax by doing a crossword puzzle of a sudoko? Well, my ideal way to unwind would be doing dozens and dozens of IELTS General Training Reading Multiple Matching questions! You may think that I am joking, but I am 100% serious! Of all the IELTS reading questions, they are by far my favourite as they are quick and easy to complete and it is always clear when you have...

One way to significantly improve your IELTS Coherence and Cohesion score is to avoid using "people" unnecessarily in your essay. If you can do this, you will find that your writing will be more concise, and you may even be able to pick up points for topic-specific lexis! Find out how to in today as Nick and I recover from England's football defeat! You can read more about today&apos...

How easy is it to score IELTS Band 8.0? Well, obviously the answer is "not very easy", but we work with dozens of  students who are able achieve this score each year. Today, Nick and I discuss  what you can do to help move up to a Band 8.0.  We will  go through each part of the exam, offering our advice as to what you should be focussing on to move from a 7.0 in each area. A Band 8.0 is...

The latest edition of the Cambridge series has just been published. In celebration of this, Nick and I explain what makes these books such a powerful resource for IELTS test takers. Then, we will go through the 4 essay questions  in Cambridge IELTS 16 (Academic) to give our verdict on the new topics. Trust me - you want to listen to this, as one of them is unbelievably difficult! You can find the...

Hey! This week I published a new Blog Post called " 3 steps to IELTS Cue Card Success ". It is a compilation of all of the advice that I have given over the last 5 years for IELTS Speaking Part 2 and is a basic guide to preparing for IELTS Cue Cards. In today's podcast episode, Nick and I go through that post, adding more depth and detail to the advice. Plus, we invite three of our...

Achieving a IELTS Band 9.0 is very special indeed. I am not sure of the official figures, but my guess is that less than 1% of test-takers receive this score each year. Having a Band 9.0 shows not just that a student has a C1/C2 level of English, but that they have excellent academic skills and are able to perform well under pressure.  Today, we have the pleasure of interviewing Anna Pakhomova who...

In May last year, Nick and I undertook a 31-day IELTS Motivation Challenge. Our aim was to kick-start our students into good study habits, but we found that we made some positive changes in our own lives too. Now, it's a year later and we have a whole new set of listeners who we think can benefit from taking part in a new IELTS motivation challenge (plus, Nick and I have definitely slipped ba...

Have you ever sat at your desk looking at the items on your To-Do list and thought, why? Why is it that I never have time to get everything done? Why is it that it is always the same two or three things left at the end of every week, which I never, no mater how good my intentions, get round to finishing? Well my friend, you are not alone. In fact, this week's episode is as much for me as it i...

Part 4 may initially appear as the most difficult part of the IELTS listening exam, but it can actually be much easier than Part 3 if you can learn to follow the notes and listen for the lecturer's sentence stress. Find out how in today's episode and learn how to avoid the 3 common tricks used in Part 4 at the same time! You can find the full episode notes for this episode and a transcri...

Hey! If you are reading this, Nick and I would like to start by saying a massive THANK YOU. We started the My IELTS Classroom on May 1st 2020 for no other reason than the fact that we were bored in lockdown and wanted something positive to focus on, but since then it has grown into something really special.  To celebrate our one year birthday, I thought that we could go back and visit a short part...

OK, I am going to be honest, punctuation isn't the sexiest topic. But, if you are trying to achieve a 7.0 or higher in your IELTS writing test, then you have to make sure that you are able to use commas, capital letters, and full stops accurately. Sadly, this is not always the case, and nothing makes me sadder than  a student receiving  a 6.0 for GRA because their punctuation was totally unco...

Education is one of the UK's biggest industries, but is it really worth paying for a higher education in the UK? And how can you choose the university and the degree course that is right for you? Well, in today's episode, Nick will look at both of these questions in detail, before discussing what you need to apply for a UK Student visa. This is a great opportunity to hear two native spea...

Every 3 or 4 months Nick and I sit down to review 6 recently reported IELTS essay questions that we think are interesting. Usually, this means choosing questions that focus on topics that we have never seen before, or questions that are in a new format (for example, new types of 2-part questions). However, this week we are doing something different. We are looking at 6 difficult IELTS essay questi...

Hey! Did you know that in Part 3 of the IELTS Listening test, you are often asked to listen for the speakers' attitudes to the topic that they are discussing? In fact, I think that this is what makes this part of the exam so tricky. You are no longer being asked to just match facts. Instead, you will have to identify if the speakers agree or disagree, or if they are surprised by, concerned ab...

If you are a regular listener to the My IELTS Classroom Podcast, then I am sure that you are already convinced about the benefits of using podcasts in your IELTS preparation. But, although listening to a dedicated IELTS podcast like ours is a great way to train, there are thousands of other podcasts on topic like economics, science and social trends that you can utilise podcasts to improve you exa...

Hey! It's time for another interactive lesson! Today, Nick and I look at IELTS reading multiple choice questions to show you the two best ways to approach this type of question, and four "examiner's tricks" that you may not be aware of! Plus, we will explain why this type of question is absolutely unlike any other in the test as it is important that you read the passage before...

Hey! Today is my favourite type of episode - the one where I get to chat to a student whose IELTS  journey  is over. Today, we have Zina, a dentist from Iraq who I worked with one-to-one to help her reach her target scores. Honestly, I feel that Zina is more of a friend than a student, which is why I am was happy so to talk to her today about path to success and what life is like pst-IELTS.   You...

Last week, Nick and I explained why inventing fake research and statistics to provide "examples" in your essays is exactly the opposite of what IELTS expects you to do, This week, we want to show how you can come up with GOOD examples i.e. those that extend, support and justify your arguments. You can read more about today's episode at:   http://blog.myieltsclassroom.com/ good-ielts...

Did you know that recent research at Cambridge University has shown that 100% of My IELTS Classroom students are satisfied with their course? I know - it surprised me too! What surprises me more, however, is that students continue to use fake examples in IELTS essays to "support" their ideas. I cannot express strongly enough how depressed this makes me feel. So, in today's episode,...

Hey! Last week we asked you to email us any questions that you have about the IELTS exam, and boy did you deliver! Today, Nick and I try to answer as many as we can, which was a lot! If you are looking for general IELTS help, then this is the episode for you!  You can find the full episode notes and a list of the questions that we answer on our blog post page:  http://blog.myieltsclassroom.com/ ie...

Welcome to our IELTS letters 2021 episode! Every time one of my students emails me their IELTS results, the fist thing I ask them is "What questions did you have in the writing exam?" There are two reasons for this: First, it helps me understand if our students are performing better in some type of questions than others (so I can support future students better). Second, it allows me to b...