IELTS Listening - Format, Scoring, Tips, Practice Test

IELTS Listening - The listening section is one of the components of the IELTS exam. The IELTS listening test is the same for both IELTS General and IELTS academic versions. IELTS listening is about 30 minutes of duration. The IELTS listening test assesses the ability of the candidate to understand the main ideas and facts of the information, opinions & attitudes of the speaker and the ability of development of ideas. The candidate will be given 4 recordings of English native speakers with accents of British, Australia, New Zealand, etc., based on the content in the recordings question will be asked. Read the article to know more about the IELTS exam listening syllabus, practice tests, scoring details, tips, etc.

IELTS: Vocabulary Guide | Reading Practice Tests | Listening Practice Tests | Speaking Practice Tests | Writing Practice Tests

IELTS: Sample papers | Preparation tips | Guide

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IELTS Listening Overview

IELTS listening Test format

When considering the IELTS syllabus and IELTS pattern in the IELTS academic listening is similar to the IELTS general listening test. As stated the IELTS listening section contains 4 recordings. Each recording in the IELTS listening test contains 10 questions each.

Recording 1 - Conversation between 2 speakers in social situations

Recording 2 - Speech about local facilities

Recording 3 - Conversation between 2 speakers in university contexts

Recording 4 - Monologue on academic topic

For paper based IELTS exam the candidates are given 10 minutes of time to transfer the answers on paper. For the computer based IELTS academic listening there is no extra time given other than 40 minutes, as the candidates write the answer directly on the computer.

IELTS Listening Question Types

• Multiple choice - For the MCQ’s questions , the candidate has to pick 1 answer among the given A, B, C options.

• Matching information - A simple matching task to the given list of items must be done.

• Plan, Map, Diagram Label Completion - The given labels of a diagram or a plan or a map which are related to the recordings, must be completed as instructed. The answers for completing can be selected from a list on the question paper.

• Summary, note, table, flow chart completion - In this IELTS listening section, the given summary texts or tables and flow charts which are incomplete must be completed.

• Sentence completion - The sentences which summarise information in the recordings must be completed as instructed. The candidate has to fill in the words as instructed. Using words more than the word count can lead to penalties in scores.

• Short-answer questions - The candidates have to answer the given questions related to recording in short length as per the word count instructed.

IELTS listening scoring

The IELTS scores for listening are calculated in the form of bands 0 to 9. Firstly,the section consists of 40 questions each question carries 1 mark. The raw scores of the IELTS listening is converted into IELTS listening band of 0 to 9.

Converted Raw scores to IELTS bands for listening

IELTS listening practice test -

Candidates who would like to prepare the IELTS listening test online can use the IELTS listening sample test published by the official IELTS. These IELTS listening practice test free, provide a real-time exam experience for the candidate and also help in getting used to the IELTS exam pattern and timings, etc. During the early preparation stage, candidates can attempt the IELTS practice tests and sample papers to evaluate the concepts which need more practice and work on improving them. While working on the IELTS listening mock test, all the sample recordings related to the topics used in the actual IELTS listening are given.

How to Download IELTS listening sample tests?

The steps for downloading the IELTS sample papers are -

• Go to the IDP IELTS website at www.ielts.org

• Select the “For Test Taker” option in the header section, followed by selecting “ “Sample Test Questions” option in the test taker option.

• Select the IELTS listening section.

• Now, the sample IELTS listening test with answers are displayed on the screen accordingly.

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IELTS Listening Tips -

To score high in the IELTS general listening, a few IELTS preparation tips for the listening in English can be learnt, which boost the performance and scoring.

• Read the questions related to the recording at first, by doing this the candidate can focus in detail for the required content.

• While answering the questions for the IELTS listening, follow the instruction for that particular and follow the word limit specified.

• Look for the keyword synonyms while answering because the same vocabulary will not be used throughout the recordings, questions and answers

• While listening, the candidate should be aware that there will be silent words in the pronunciation, which may be missed out or wrongly understood.

• Do not waste more time for one question, the candidate can come back after attempting a few other questions and try for it.

• Follow a particular format while answering the dates like example- August 24, 25th August and 25 August, etc.

• While answering the multiple choice questions, it is better to strike off the wrong answers and then select the right one.