IELTS Practice Test Volume 5

Published on: 05 Jul 2019
Tests taken: 117,888

Answer Keys:

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Part 1: Question 1 - 10

1 £203
2 17
3 no
4 under 26,less than 26
5 locals/local people

6 satisfied/OK
7 (British) students
8 (too) many/big
9 careful
10 the culture/food

Part 2: Question 11 - 20

11 International Student Advisor
12 learning/study groups
13 Student IT Department
14 Housing Officer/Accommodation Officer
15 International Department

16 personal or financial
17 B
18 D
19 E
20 C

Part 3: Question 21 - 30

21 A
22 B
23 24 A,E
25 26 C,D

27 Early Childhood
28 the differences/how they differ
29 not learned/innate
30 D

Part 4: Question 31 - 40

31 higher
32 exam performance/results
33 sleep/sleeping/sleeplessness
34 controlled
35 thought/thinking

36 organised
37 vary/change/be different
38 marks/weighting
39 relaxed
40 (effective) study skills

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One of the most common problems with the IELTS reading test is the time limit. You have 60 minutes to find 40 answers over three sections with...

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01 Mar 2018

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SECTION 1

You will hear two students who have just returned to university after their summer vacation. Listen to Louise and Kerry talking about their vacation.

First, look at Questions 1 to 4.

[SHORT PAUSE]

You will see that there is an example already done for you. For this question only the conversation relating to the example will be played first.

Kerry: Hi Louise - how was your summer vacation?

Louise: Oh fantastic! I only got back from Europe yesterday.

Kerry: Wow! That sounds exciting.

Louise: Yes, it was. How was your holiday?

Kerry: Pretty quiet compared with yours. I just stayed around Cambridge...

Louise said that she had just got back from Europe yesterday, so the correct answer is EUROPE.

Now we shall begin. You should answer the questions as you listen because you will not hear the recording a second time.

Now listen carefully and answer Questions 1 to 4.

Kerry: Hi Louise - how was your summer vacation?

Louise: Oh fantastic! I only got back from Europe yesterday.

Kerry: Wow! That sounds exciting.

Louise: Yes, it was. How was your holiday?

Kerry: Pretty quiet compared with yours. I just stayed around Cambridge - but we’re planning to go to Europe at the end of next term.

Louise: Oh you’ll have a great time! I really recommend it. How are you going to get around?

Kerry: Well, we’ve thought about renting a car. Flying is far too expensive. What did you do?

Louise: We bought Eurail tickets and traveled around Europe by train.

Kerry: Was it expensive?

Louise: No, not really. It cost us £203 for a Eurailpass Youth Ticket.

Kerry: I've heard of Eurail - what did that include?

Louise: Well, you get unlimited train travel in and between seventeen European countries. It lasted for a month.

Kerry: Gee for £203 that sounds reasonable. Did you visit all of the seventeen places?

Louise: Yes, all except for Ireland. We couldn’t really understand why Ireland was included on the pass but England wasn’t.

Kerry: Yes, that seems a bit strange. Did it include the trip from London to Paris in the Channel Tunnel?

Louise: No, unfortunately we had to pay extra for that train but we did get a discounted fare because we're students.

Kerry: Were there any other restrictions on the tickets?

Louise: Well, if you want to pay more or less money you can choose another plan - there are 15 and 21 day plans or 2 and 3 month plans. The only restriction for the Youth Ticket is that you have to be under 26.

Kerry: That suits my friends and me. None of us are 26 yet. We went to school together.

Louise: Oh, you really have to do it. It’s safe and easy and a great way to see the countryside. The weather was fantastic and so were the people!

Kerry: It sounds great.

Louise and Kerry go on to talk about travelling by train in Europe. As you listen to the rest of the

conversation, answer Questions 5 to 10.

Before the conversation continues, read Questions 5 to 10.

[SHORT PAUSE]

Kerry: What was the best part of your trip?

Louise: The trains really gave us the freedom to plan our own holiday. We went to lots of places which were out-of-the-way and met lots of local people - you know, small rural towns where trains are still an important form of transport.

Kerry: We’d like to meet the local people - did you do that easily?

Louise: Yes, the trains in Europe aren't like the commuter trains in London. People like to talk and have a chat on trains in Europe.

Kerry: That’s nice.

Louise: Yes. The train times were OK as well. Sometimes we had to get up early to catch the trains which were crossing into another country but most of the time, we were satisfied with the timetables. Very punctual.

Kerry: Should we take an alarm clock?

Louise: Well, I would. Having an alarm clock made us sleep more comfortably. We knew that we’d wake up on time.

Kerry: And were the trains safe - did you travel at night?

Louise: Lots of students traveled at night because it saved having to pay for accommodation.

Kerry: I hadn’t thought of that.

Louise: Well, lots of others have thought of it. We preferred to stay in local pubs or student hostels because you could mix with the locals. The night trains were filled with British students!

Kerry: It sounds as if you had a very positive experience. Is there anything you’d recommend we take or do?

Louise: Let me see -I can certainly tell you what not to take or do. Don’t take much luggage. There just isn't very much room in the trains for big suitcases. A backpack or two small bags is better than one big bag. That way you can also get on and off the trains easily too.

Kerry: I'll remember that. My mother always says to pack one week before you go on vacation and then take half of it out the night before you leave.

Louise: That’s good advice - especially when you're riding on cramped trains. The other thing is to be careful with your valuables. Lots of students had money and passports stolen - especially at night.

Kerry: Did you have anything stolen?

Louise: No but we met lots of people who did have things stolen. We all had money belts under our jackets.

Kerry: I’ll have to buy one of those.

Louise: Yes, you should - or you can borrow mine if you like.

Kerry: Oh thanks - that'd be good.

Louise: The only other thing I’d advise you to do is to make sure you spend a reasonable amount of time in each country. We found that lots of students traveled too quickly and they didn’t have enough time to meet the locals and enjoy the food and the culture.

Kerry: How long do you think you need in each country?

Louise: I can't say - it'll depend on who you meet and what you like to do and of course, the weather. It was so warm and sunny in some beach-side places that we stayed for four or five days. In other towns, if it was very quiet or boring, we just stayed overnight.

Kerry: I guess that's what’s great about the train. You can come and go as you please.

Louise: Exactly - and it’s cheaper and much more relaxing - not to mention safer - I don’t think I could get used to driving on the right-hand-side of the road!

That is the end of Section 1. You now have 1/2 minute to check your answers.

Now t urn to Section 2 of your Listening Question Booklet.

SECTION 2

You will hear Diane Kelly, the Admissions Officer at Central City University talking to a group of newly arrived international students.

As you listen to the first part of the talk answer Questions 11 to 16.

Before you listen, look at Questions 11 to 16.

[SHORT PAUSE]

DIANE KELLY:

For those of you I haven’t met, my name is Diane Kelly, the International Admissions Officer at Central University.

Today, I’m here to explain some of the student support services which you might like to access during your courses. The first thing I’d like to make clear is that you are all entitled to this help - all you need to do is ask for it. You have full access to all of the regular university facilities here and additional services set up exclusively for international students.

These services are grouped under four main areas of responsibility - academic support, librarian services, administrative services and those provided by the student union.

The staff in Academic Support Services is qualified to assist you in course selection, content description and explanation of assessment criteria for individual subjects. We also have an International Student Advisor who is there to help students from non-English-speaking backgrounds. All of you have achieved the English requirements for entry to your particular courses but it is possible at some stage, that you will need language support. The International Student Advisor is there for that purpose. Be warned though - he is very busy at the end of semesters and he won’t write your assignments for you!

If you need assistance with general study skills, the International Student Advisor will probably direct you to our library services staff. Library Services is made up of three departments - Research and Resource; Study Skills and the Student IT Department. The Study Skills Department is very active in promoting small learning and study groups. They will gladly help you to join one of these groups by matching your needs with other students.

After you get your student cards, the Student IT Department will arrange your email access and passwords for the university computers. You do need to have your student card first, so don't go there without it. Student cards are issued by Administration Officers in the Administration Student Services area.

A lot of you are in homestay at present, but if you want to move into more independent-style accommodation, see the Housing Officer at the Administration Building. Don't be too optimistic though - good, cheap accommodation close to the university is in high demand! It can be found but we advise you to see the Accommodation Officer early!

We also have a Student Employment Officer and of course, the Homestay Officer, whom you would have met already.

The University Bookshop and most importantly, our International Department is in the Administration Building — so make sure that you come and see us if you have any questions about your passports or visas.

The Student Union is also very active and provides some great services. For example, if you have any personal or financial problems while you're here, the student union offers a Student Counselling Service. You will need to make appointments to see a counsellor. If you feel that you are not being treated fairly by another student or lecturer or university staff member, you might like to access the Equal Opportunity Service offered by them. They also run various social and sporting clubs and activity programs which I'd encourage you to sign up for.

Before the final part of the talk, look at Questions 17 to 20.

[SHORT PAUSE]

Now you will hear the rest of the talk. Answer Questions 17 to 20.

Obviously, you’ll need to know where these services are. We’re currently in the Grand Hall. Now if you have a look on your campus map - ah, the Library Services are of course in the library which is over to my right - just between the Outdoor Sporting Facilities and Hawkins Student Car Park. The Student Union Building is also in that same direction - but it's in front of the Car Park. For those of you who’ll be travelling by bus, the university bus-stop is just outside the library.

The Administration Building is over to my left - between the International Centre and the Post Office. Most of you have been to visit us already. Even though the Administration Staff look after the Bookshop, it’s in the same building as the Post Office - just behind the Student Refectory. If you come to the Administration Building, we’ll show you where it is anyway.

All of the academic staff are found in their particular faculty buildings which you'll get to know very well. The Career and International Student Advisors are in a small building behind the International Centre, in between the Engineering and the Arts Block. It's really quite easy to find your way around the campus and most staff and students are more than willing to give you directions.

Now we’re just going to have a short break with some tea and biscuits at the back of the hall. So, if you’d like to stand up and come down ...

That is the end of Section 2. You now have 1/2 minute to check your answers.

Now turn to Section 3 of your Listening Question Booklet.

SECTION 3

In this section you will hear two students discussing the Early Childhood Tutorial they are going to

present.

First, look at Questions 21 to 26.

[SHORT PAUSE]

Now listen to the first part of the discussion and answer Questions 21 to 26.

Marie: I don't suppose you’ve come up with an idea for our tutorial presentation, have you?

Rose: Well, as a matter of fact, I have - I thought we could talk about the obvious differences we see between the sexes as children grow up.

Marie: Do you mean the differences we see between males and females as a result of the way they are brought up?

Rose: No, I mean the differences that exist from birth.

Marie: That sounds like a lot of work, Rose ...

Rose: Not really - do you remember in our first Early Childhood lecture, we were: given a list of differences which were observed in male and female babies and toddlers in the UK?

Marie: I wasn’t here for the first two weeks of the semester remember? I had problems getting my passport.

Rose: Oh, that’s right. Well, it was really fascinating. A group of behavioural scientists in England selected 100 children to observe over a very long period - 20 or 25 years. They were brought up in families who treated girls and boys in the same way - no special treatment for either of the sexes. They observed their play and their reactions to various situations - set up little tests I suppose.

Marie: How old were the children?

Rose: The first; observations were carried out when the babies were only a few hours old - they concluded that girls were more sensitive to touch than boys at that early age!

Marie: How did they end up with that conclusion?

Rose: Well, the lecturer didn’t go into detail -I think he just wanted to get our interest, you know, whet our appetite. There were lots of tests and observations done from soon after birth, right through to their early twenties. I thought we could investigate some of the case studies and then present the results in the tutorial.

Marie: That’s a good idea Rose. It’ll be interesting but it will also give us the chance to collect information for our end-of-term assignment as well.

Rose: It’ll also be a good opportunity to check out the resources available in the library. I haven't had the chance to spend much time there yet, have you?

Marie: The last four weeks have just been so busy - and of course, I had to catch up on the two weeks that I missed -I haven’t had the chance either. I've heard that the library research staff are really willing to help out.

Rose: Well, we can find out if that’s true or not. We’ll need to make an appointment to see them. Apparently they’re in high demand.

Marie: We only have two weeks to prepare for this tutorial, so I think we should definitely start as soon as we can. Let's see the tutor this afternoon and tell him about our plan. If he agrees, we can get started on our research.

Rose: OK - I'll go and see the tutor. You can make a booking at the library.

Rose goes to the tutor's office to discuss the topic for their tutorial.

Before listening to the rest of the conversation, look at Questions 27 to 30.

[SHORTPAUSE]

Rose: Would it be possible to see Jim Clark - one of the Early Childhood tutors?

AA: May I ask what it’s about?

(Admin Assistant)

Rose: We have to get approval for our tutorial topics in EC 101.

AA: Yes, I thought it might be about that. Unfortunately, Jim had to go to Sydney this week but he has given me some specific questions to ask about the tutorials.

Rose: Oh, we were hoping to get started on our research - we’ve only got two weeks.

AA: Don’t worry - Jim’s phoning in twice a day. If you give me the details, I can give you an answer by tomorrow morning.

Rose: That’s great. We are planning to present some case studies that were undertaken by a group of...

AA: Hang on. I just need a few short details - let me see, I have to write down what the subject of the tutorial is.

Rose: OK - I guess the topic is gender and when the sexes start to act differently.

AA: So, is it about how male and female children are different? What can I write here, next to TOPIC?

Rose: Well, what about “How the sexes differ"?

AA: OK - I’ll put that down as your topic. Jim also wants to know the aim of your tutorial.

Rose: Well, there are two aims I suppose. The first is to show how they differ. But the other point we want to make is that the differences are innate - not learned.

AA: To - show - that - differences - between - the - sexes - are -- innate - not learned. Right - that’s the hard part. Now I need to know the date, time and room of your tutorial.

Rose: It’s in two weeks - let’s see, that’ll be Tuesday 26th at 11 a.m. We are in Room B1203,

AA: And do you need any A/V material?

Rose: What does AV mean?

AA: Audio-visual - you know, TV, video, tape-recorder, overhead projector - that kind of thing.

Rose: I hadn’t thought of that - guess we’ll need an overhead, projector. We haven’t really started planning our tutorial yet - we just wanted to get initial approval from Jim.

AA: Never mind - you can always cancel the projector if you don’t need it. Jim will phone in the morning - do you want to come and see me then or I can phone you if you like.

Rose: I have a lecture from 8 to 10 tomorrow morning - so I’ll drop by after it finishes.

AA: Right - I’ll see you then.

That is the end of Section 3, You now have 1/2, minute to check your answers.

Now turn to Section 4 of your Listening Question Booklet.

SECTION 4

You will hear a lecture being given by a university professor to first year students about the examination period.

First, look at Questions 31 to 40.

[SHORT PAUSE]

Now listen to the lecture and answer Questions 31 to 40.

PROFESSOR:

Welcome to our Examinations Workshop - this is an annual event which we’ve found very helpful for first year students like yourselves and I hope that this year will be no exception.

By now you’ll all have realized that studying at university is quite different to studying at school. Some of you might have been shocked at one time or another during the semester, when you received results for your assignments that weren’t as high as you’d expected. I trust that you've spoken to your lecturers and tutors and sorted out those issues. The truth is that the transition from school to university can be a difficult one. The academic standards are higher and of course, there is considerably less supervision at university and it's incumbent on the students to follow their own study regime.

My aim today though is to help you to learn how to cope with the impending exam period by giving you some practical strategies to take with you into the exam.

We've all known students who've had a good understanding of the subject material yet failed exams or performed well-below expectations. Likewise, we've known students that have to all intents and purposes done very little work and passed with flying colours. Often these results can be put down to one thing - stress or a lack of it.

Don't underestimate the importance that stress plays in exam performance. With any exam, you should front up feeling confident, relaxed and organized. Rightly or wrongly, exams in effect, not only test your academic ability, they test your frame of mind and your ability to perform under pressure.

Stress has to be managed on two fronts - the physiological and the psychological. We all recognise that stress affects us physically - I’m sure you’ve all experienced an increased pulse, or sweaty hands or underarms, or shortness of breath when placed in a stressful situation. Sleeplessness can also be a problem around exam time. The most effective way to manage these physiological reactions is through controlled breathing - which we’ll practise later. By controlling or regulating your breathing, you'll find that you can put yourself rather effectively into a relaxed state.

Psychologically, stress affects the way you think. For an exam you need to think rationally and this is why you need to be confident and organized before walking into the exam. Continuing to think rationally after you read an exam paper which you know nothing about is very hard to do. But if you are organized and you’ve put in the time needed to learn the subject material, you will have the self-control you need to think rationally. Stress can make you panic - the worst thing you can do in air exam. Look at the question calmly and rationally dissect the question. And let’s face it, even if you haven't prepared well enough, you'll still need to think rationally in order to do your best under those very trying^- circumstances!

Just while I think of it, this is probably a good time to tell you a piece of advice that I give first year students that come to see me. Don't rely on what other students tell you about the time they allocate to study. The reports we have had over the years have been ridiculously overestimated and underestimated. Follow your own study regime and don't listen to others. We're all different, so it stands to reason that the time we need to allocate to study will be different! Generally speaking, for every hour of lectures you attend, you will need another hour of follow-up or research work if you want to achieve good grades.

Right - so where was I? We have to learn how to control our breathing and we need to have enough confidence in our ability to be able to think rationally.

Time Management is another important factor that can make or break you in an exam situation. After you have gone through the breathing exercises which you'll be familiar with, read over the entire exam noting the different marks and weighting of questions. Only after you have done this can you allocate your own time to each question. If I had a dollar for every time a student has told me that they didn’t do as well in an exam as they’d hoped, because they’d run out of time I’d be rich! If you can manage your time properly in an exam, you will reduce the amount of pressure that you’re under.

Anyway, note the different questions and their marks and allocate your time accordingly - as I said. Then, answer the questions that you know first. This serves to relax you further and gives you the confidence you might need to tackle the more difficult questions. However, don’t spend too much time on the easy questions either - always be mindful of the time restraint and the marks that are assigned to the question.

In summary, to do well in an exam, you not only need the academic ability - you need to be in a relaxed state of mind with the ability to think clearly enough under pressure, to allocate suitable time frames to questions. If you can equip yourself with these skills and train yourself to observe time management, exam success is almost guaranteed.

We'll be holding a study skills workshop next week in the Language & Learning Centre to deal with ways in which you can study effectively for exams. You are all welcome of course.

Right, now are you ready to learn some controlled breathing exercises?

That is the end of Section 4 and the end of the Listening Test. You now have 1/2 minute to check your answers.

[PAUSE]

You now have 10 minutes to transfer your answers to your Answer Booklet.

EXAM STRESS
Signs	Effective Management includes:
Physiological: Increased pulse-rate Perspiration Breathing problems Problems with 33	34 breathing exercises
Psychological: Irrational Panic 35	Be confident and 36 Be calm and analyse the questions.

NEW

NEW

IELTS Practice Test Volume 5

Part 1: Question 1 - 10

Part 2: Question 11 - 20

Part 3: Question 21 - 30

Part 4: Question 31 - 40

Tips for improving your ielts score

Skimming and scanning in IELTS reading

Questions 1-4

Questions 5-10

Questions 11-16

Questions 17-20

Questions 21-22

Questions 23-24

Questions 25-26

Questions 27-30

Questions 31-32

Questions 33-36

Questions 37-40

SECTION 1

SECTION 2

SECTION 3

SECTION 4

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About us

Our mission

NEW

IELTS Practice Test Volume 5

Part 1: Question 1 - 10

Part 2: Question 11 - 20

Part 3: Question 21 - 30

Part 4: Question 31 - 40

Share your score

Tips for improving your ielts score

Skimming and scanning in IELTS reading

Questions 1-4

Questions 5-10

Questions 11-16

Questions 17-20

Questions 21-22

Questions 23-24

Questions 25-26

Questions 27-30

Questions 31-32

Questions 33-36

Questions 37-40

SECTION 1

SECTION 2

SECTION 3

SECTION 4

Comments:

About us

Our mission