#1 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: Exam culture
🆕 Afandi English will no longer stand by and watch you struggle. Here are DOs and DON’Ts for you to keep in mind for “the exam”!
▶️ Exams are education, education is culture. IELTS tests your ability to use English internationally but inside of it is a lot of Western culture – critical thinking, original ideas, self-expression, scientific reasoning, etc.
✅ DOs
➕ Be communicative. Don’t just answer questions and then wait for the next.
➕ Have opinions and see both good and bad in everything. Find reasons and arguments.
➕ Follow the news and watch documentaries to be up-to-date with big issues. Don’t rely on IELTS books or classes only.
❌ DON’Ts
➖ Don’t memorize. It shows that you have no brain at all. Prepare notes (see post of 29/6) instead.
➖ Don’t try to show off but be true to your level. You need both fluency and accuracy (see post of 8/9).
➖ Don’t look for tricks. Knowledge and skills make all the difference.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
🆕 Afandi English will no longer stand by and watch you struggle. Here are DOs and DON’Ts for you to keep in mind for “the exam”!
▶️ Exams are education, education is culture. IELTS tests your ability to use English internationally but inside of it is a lot of Western culture – critical thinking, original ideas, self-expression, scientific reasoning, etc.
✅ DOs
➕ Be communicative. Don’t just answer questions and then wait for the next.
➕ Have opinions and see both good and bad in everything. Find reasons and arguments.
➕ Follow the news and watch documentaries to be up-to-date with big issues. Don’t rely on IELTS books or classes only.
❌ DON’Ts
➖ Don’t memorize. It shows that you have no brain at all. Prepare notes (see post of 29/6) instead.
➖ Don’t try to show off but be true to your level. You need both fluency and accuracy (see post of 8/9).
➖ Don’t look for tricks. Knowledge and skills make all the difference.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
#2 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: Speaking: Self-introduction
▶️ It is said that making a good first impression is absolutely crucial. Here’s something to keep in mind:
1) ❌ Don’t start greeting in a local way. ✅ Do use a simple but polite “good morning” or “good afternoon”, perhaps followed by a “Sir” or “Madam”, that’s quite enough.
2) ❌ Don’t stand around frozen waiting for an order or think “Now it’s show time”. ✅ Do be natural. Always think yourself into the examiners who are really tired people. Make it easy and pleasant for them.
3) ❌ Don’t memorise your self-introduction. It’s tempting but don’t do it. ✅ Do give your introduction a natural flow and only prepare some points to speak about.
❗️ Finally, if there’s a big difference between your self-introduction and the rest of the exam it’s probably better to start poorly and finish well (positive surprise) rather than starting well and finishing poorly (disappointment).
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
▶️ It is said that making a good first impression is absolutely crucial. Here’s something to keep in mind:
1) ❌ Don’t start greeting in a local way. ✅ Do use a simple but polite “good morning” or “good afternoon”, perhaps followed by a “Sir” or “Madam”, that’s quite enough.
2) ❌ Don’t stand around frozen waiting for an order or think “Now it’s show time”. ✅ Do be natural. Always think yourself into the examiners who are really tired people. Make it easy and pleasant for them.
3) ❌ Don’t memorise your self-introduction. It’s tempting but don’t do it. ✅ Do give your introduction a natural flow and only prepare some points to speak about.
❗️ Finally, if there’s a big difference between your self-introduction and the rest of the exam it’s probably better to start poorly and finish well (positive surprise) rather than starting well and finishing poorly (disappointment).
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
#3 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: Academic topics
▶️ If you meet a difficult or unfamiliar topic in the Reading or Listening sections you cannot show that you understand the language. What to do?
1) ❌ Don’t just watch movies and don’t try to impress people with your fluency. ✅ Do make sure you know the basics about common topics like environment, psychology, technology, geography, history, natural sciences, etc. Watch documentaries.
2) ❌ Don’t separate language learning from learning about the world. You cannot develop deep understanding if you only want to improve your English. ✅ Do take an interest in the world. Why is it cold in winter and hot in summer? How do viruses spread? What happens inside the car when I drive?
3) ❌ Don’t just believe what people say. Keep your faith but don’t let it stop you from asking questions and demanding logic. ✅ Do become a more academic person.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
▶️ If you meet a difficult or unfamiliar topic in the Reading or Listening sections you cannot show that you understand the language. What to do?
1) ❌ Don’t just watch movies and don’t try to impress people with your fluency. ✅ Do make sure you know the basics about common topics like environment, psychology, technology, geography, history, natural sciences, etc. Watch documentaries.
2) ❌ Don’t separate language learning from learning about the world. You cannot develop deep understanding if you only want to improve your English. ✅ Do take an interest in the world. Why is it cold in winter and hot in summer? How do viruses spread? What happens inside the car when I drive?
3) ❌ Don’t just believe what people say. Keep your faith but don’t let it stop you from asking questions and demanding logic. ✅ Do become a more academic person.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
#4 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: Reading
▶️ Your ability to understand written English can make all the difference, not just in the Reading section.
1) ❌ Don’t only read IELTS reading sections. The texts are too short to give you real knowledge and too short to make you think in English. ✅ Do extra reading and watch documentaries about common topics of IELTS reading sections.
2) ❌ Don’t limit your reading to academic texts if you struggle with them. ✅ Do keep the natural order of reading materials – at first stories, then free voluntary reading about topics of interest, and then only academic reading. (according to Krashen, 2011)
3) ❌ Don’t stick to classroom style intensive reading for as many details as possible. ✅ Do practice skimming (reading for gist) and scanning (flying over the text searching for specific details). You need these subskills because of the time limit.
❗️ For general advice on reading check out #13 Learn to learn of 28 September! 👆
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
▶️ Your ability to understand written English can make all the difference, not just in the Reading section.
1) ❌ Don’t only read IELTS reading sections. The texts are too short to give you real knowledge and too short to make you think in English. ✅ Do extra reading and watch documentaries about common topics of IELTS reading sections.
2) ❌ Don’t limit your reading to academic texts if you struggle with them. ✅ Do keep the natural order of reading materials – at first stories, then free voluntary reading about topics of interest, and then only academic reading. (according to Krashen, 2011)
3) ❌ Don’t stick to classroom style intensive reading for as many details as possible. ✅ Do practice skimming (reading for gist) and scanning (flying over the text searching for specific details). You need these subskills because of the time limit.
❗️ For general advice on reading check out #13 Learn to learn of 28 September! 👆
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
#5 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: Last Minute Preparation
▶️ Your test date is drawing nearer and you’re getting nervous? Here’s some advice:
1) Mental state ❌ Don’t get stupidly nervous, so nervous that you can’t think straight. The test is important but it’s only a test of your English, not your value as a human. ✅ Do keep calm and be closer with the people who support you, not those who judge you. Be realistic about the score you can get.
2) Attitude ❌ Don’t look for a quick fix. Students lose precious learning opportunities by looking for shortcuts to a high score that may or may not work. ✅ Do think about topics deeply and practice self-expression. Start having opinions. That’s an attitude, not a trick.
3) Around you ❌ Don’t let your English stay in your books. It must go into your head! ✅ Do immerse yourself (=get into) fully in English. Listen to English, speak in English, think in English, dream in English. Find a study partner who is equally crazy.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
▶️ Your test date is drawing nearer and you’re getting nervous? Here’s some advice:
1) Mental state ❌ Don’t get stupidly nervous, so nervous that you can’t think straight. The test is important but it’s only a test of your English, not your value as a human. ✅ Do keep calm and be closer with the people who support you, not those who judge you. Be realistic about the score you can get.
2) Attitude ❌ Don’t look for a quick fix. Students lose precious learning opportunities by looking for shortcuts to a high score that may or may not work. ✅ Do think about topics deeply and practice self-expression. Start having opinions. That’s an attitude, not a trick.
3) Around you ❌ Don’t let your English stay in your books. It must go into your head! ✅ Do immerse yourself (=get into) fully in English. Listen to English, speak in English, think in English, dream in English. Find a study partner who is equally crazy.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
#6 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: Preparation for Speaking
▶️ Before you are asked to speak uninterruptedly for up to two minutes (Speaking, Part 2). You are given just one minute to prepare – what to do in that short time?
1) Cue card ❌ Don’t spend the whole minute reading the cue card (=the paper that has your topic on it) again and again until the time is up. ✅ Do find key words and think of examples.
2) Written notes ❌ Don’t start writing sentences. You can neither finish nor can you easily read them during your speech. ✅ Do take very brief notes – just a few key words – to remind you of the points you want to talk about. Some people also do a good job with only mental notes. Find out what works for you.
3) Content ❌ Don’t think about just one aspect of the topic. ✅ Do think of something general, something personal as well as real-life examples. A structure of ‘on the one hand … but on the other hand …’ is easy and interesting to follow.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
▶️ Before you are asked to speak uninterruptedly for up to two minutes (Speaking, Part 2). You are given just one minute to prepare – what to do in that short time?
1) Cue card ❌ Don’t spend the whole minute reading the cue card (=the paper that has your topic on it) again and again until the time is up. ✅ Do find key words and think of examples.
2) Written notes ❌ Don’t start writing sentences. You can neither finish nor can you easily read them during your speech. ✅ Do take very brief notes – just a few key words – to remind you of the points you want to talk about. Some people also do a good job with only mental notes. Find out what works for you.
3) Content ❌ Don’t think about just one aspect of the topic. ✅ Do think of something general, something personal as well as real-life examples. A structure of ‘on the one hand … but on the other hand …’ is easy and interesting to follow.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
#7 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: General English
▶️ Some students look down on General English as if that was something for children. This is very unfortunate because General English is your ticket to IELTS. What else is IELTS if not a test of your General English?
1) Developing vs testing ❌ Don’t think you can develop your skills by testing them again and again. ✅ Do allow enough time to develop your skills with meaningful practice and interesting topics.
2) Practice ❌ Don’t limit yourself to IELTS materials. ✅ Do keep good habits like following the news or reading about your subjects of interest in English.
3) Getting ready ❌ Don’t practice only IELTS when your level is still far away from the score you want. ✅ Do get serious about exam preparation a month or two before you actually take it.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
▶️ Some students look down on General English as if that was something for children. This is very unfortunate because General English is your ticket to IELTS. What else is IELTS if not a test of your General English?
1) Developing vs testing ❌ Don’t think you can develop your skills by testing them again and again. ✅ Do allow enough time to develop your skills with meaningful practice and interesting topics.
2) Practice ❌ Don’t limit yourself to IELTS materials. ✅ Do keep good habits like following the news or reading about your subjects of interest in English.
3) Getting ready ❌ Don’t practice only IELTS when your level is still far away from the score you want. ✅ Do get serious about exam preparation a month or two before you actually take it.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
#8 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: Listening
▶️ Listening can be tricky, especially since you can hear the recording only once. How can we maximise our chances?
1) Get visual ❌ Don’t keep doing listening tasks with zero picture in your head. You will always struggle. ✅ Do try to understand daily life abroad. Get an idea of university life, transport systems, restaurants, gyms, etc. Watch TV serials or YouTube videos showing you daily life.
2) Concentration ❌ Don’t lose your focus or interest easily like a TikTok victim. ✅ Do consume videos, articles, podcasts and of course Afandi English posts that take more than a minute to understand. Learn to keep up your attention – you will need it for IELTS Listening.
3) Accents ❌ Don’t think English is just from abroad and therefore all the same. ✅ Do become familiar with different accents. In the recordings you may hear English from the UK, North America and/or the Southern Hemisphere (Australia, New Zealand and South Africa).
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
▶️ Listening can be tricky, especially since you can hear the recording only once. How can we maximise our chances?
1) Get visual ❌ Don’t keep doing listening tasks with zero picture in your head. You will always struggle. ✅ Do try to understand daily life abroad. Get an idea of university life, transport systems, restaurants, gyms, etc. Watch TV serials or YouTube videos showing you daily life.
2) Concentration ❌ Don’t lose your focus or interest easily like a TikTok victim. ✅ Do consume videos, articles, podcasts and of course Afandi English posts that take more than a minute to understand. Learn to keep up your attention – you will need it for IELTS Listening.
3) Accents ❌ Don’t think English is just from abroad and therefore all the same. ✅ Do become familiar with different accents. In the recordings you may hear English from the UK, North America and/or the Southern Hemisphere (Australia, New Zealand and South Africa).
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
#9 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: Notes for essays
▶️ The big DO here is DO WRITE NOTES before you start writing your essay, OK? Here are some points to keep in mind:
1) Timing ❌ Don’t rush this and don’t get nervous when you see other people starting to write. ✅ Do invest around five minutes in taking notes. Good notes can save you from running out of ideas or going off topic.
2) Style ❌ Don’t waste your time by writing whole sentences and don’t squeeze tiny notes into a corner. ✅ Do be generous with space as you may still add some notes during essay writing when you have more ideas. Use symbols, bullet points, subpoints, arrows, numbers – whatever helps you structure your thoughts.
3) Content ❌ Don’t copy from the task or write obvious things like “firstly” or “in conclusion”. ✅ Do write arguments, counterarguments and topic-related high-level vocab that you want to use – all in the shortest form possible. Just enough to remind yourself.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
▶️ The big DO here is DO WRITE NOTES before you start writing your essay, OK? Here are some points to keep in mind:
1) Timing ❌ Don’t rush this and don’t get nervous when you see other people starting to write. ✅ Do invest around five minutes in taking notes. Good notes can save you from running out of ideas or going off topic.
2) Style ❌ Don’t waste your time by writing whole sentences and don’t squeeze tiny notes into a corner. ✅ Do be generous with space as you may still add some notes during essay writing when you have more ideas. Use symbols, bullet points, subpoints, arrows, numbers – whatever helps you structure your thoughts.
3) Content ❌ Don’t copy from the task or write obvious things like “firstly” or “in conclusion”. ✅ Do write arguments, counterarguments and topic-related high-level vocab that you want to use – all in the shortest form possible. Just enough to remind yourself.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
#10 IELTS DOs & DON’Ts: Career advice
▶️ It’s worth thinking about why you want to take IELTS. What kind of person do you want to be and what role does this exam play?
1) As a future professional ❌ Don’t get crazy about grammar rules. Linguistics is not your field. ✅ Do work with professional materials BUT all in English. Let the linguists get the high scores, with your knowledge you will get the high salary in the future.
2) As a language person ❌ Don’t get stuck with IELTS materials. They are not rich enough for you. ✅ Do explore language more deeply, try different strategies and develop your strengths. No need to worry about a high score.
3) As an academic ❌ Don’t try to show off with a high score. It’s not your business. ✅ Do work quietly. Use imitation and academic reasoning to become fluent enough for the score you need.
You know best which one or what combination you are. Don’t just go with the flow (=do the same as other people) but know what you need.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts
▶️ It’s worth thinking about why you want to take IELTS. What kind of person do you want to be and what role does this exam play?
1) As a future professional ❌ Don’t get crazy about grammar rules. Linguistics is not your field. ✅ Do work with professional materials BUT all in English. Let the linguists get the high scores, with your knowledge you will get the high salary in the future.
2) As a language person ❌ Don’t get stuck with IELTS materials. They are not rich enough for you. ✅ Do explore language more deeply, try different strategies and develop your strengths. No need to worry about a high score.
3) As an academic ❌ Don’t try to show off with a high score. It’s not your business. ✅ Do work quietly. Use imitation and academic reasoning to become fluent enough for the score you need.
You know best which one or what combination you are. Don’t just go with the flow (=do the same as other people) but know what you need.
👉@afandi_english👈 #ielts