http://ieltsonlinetests.com/catalogue
---++++----
the above link gives close to 50 model tests and few actual tests (recent) ...
It is Cambridge series...by Cambridge..
I wrote the below post as a reply to someone who sought some inputs...I thought it might be useful to someone else too...so here it is...
-----
Qn. Are two weeks enough to prepare for my IELTS...with the Cambridge test series...?
-----
two weeks is enough if you put some time into it..
1.listening practice test takes 1 hr but as u practice,u can finish in 45-50 minute,moving form part1 to 2 & 3 as you finish each...however it becomes boring...but persist...do two in the morning and two in the evening every day..take special note of the mistakes u make... some might be because of not hearing properly and some because u thought it was right to answer the way u did but turned out wrong...I wrote £4.50 for an answer (about a ticket price)...but answer was £4.5...when I listened again ,I noticed they told only four point five and not for point five zero.. likewise an answer I wrote "no. 45634" as post code but answer was "45634" another time, years someone worked at a place from "1990 to 1992 " I wrote... but answer was "1990-1992" as in that part,I was supposed to use only 2 numbers or words...so though the answers were technically correct,they weren't,as per the exam evaluation policies... spellings and grammatical errors are also marked as wrong answer...using plural in place of singular etc.listen again and again to one or two twisters they keep in each tests ...as they speak they make you believe some option is correct but would have twisted in the end to make another option the right answer.
2.Reading,also pay attention to details...practice as many as possible...and pay attention to the ones you go wrong....esp true /false/not given, yes / no/ not given and don't write true/false if the instruction is to write yes/no ...and if something is not given explicitly,it is 'not given' though we know that may be 'true' ...
3.speaking ,task 1 I believe is just self intro...just be cool about it...but task 2 helps ur performance as it leads to the next task...
prepare with all the topics available and practice speaking (while u record urself using mobile headset)..u get 1 minute to jot down points about the topic and 2 minutes to talk...practice the same way...practice such that when u get a topic , u are able to write down 5-6 points on the piece of paper in one minute and then talk on those points ...examiner will not prompt u to continue if u stop before two minutes as u are expected to continue for two minutes plus....you can look at the paper,to refer the points noted.note each points in one or two words...my topic was to talk about an advertisement I saw which impacted me..so I made a note 1. UCB 2.tv & utube 2.had a message 3. gender equality 4.social message etc ( the ad was by United Colours of Benetton,United in half talking about gender equality in all walks of life..I had seen it first in YouTube while watching some songs and later on I saw the ad in HBO and Movies now during movie breaks...it struck me as it carries a beautiful message about women empowerment and gender equality in all walks of life...it showed women doing all jobs taking part in activities that are thought to be men's domain...etc...)..if you are asked to talk about a concert you've attended and in real you haven't attended ever,cook up one...they want you to talk about it...not know if you have ever attended one or not
..so immediately think about a 1.favorite singer 2.venue3.date & time4.who all u went with 4.getting excited when he sang the favorite song 5.crowd type youth/old etc 6.the electrifying atmosphere etc...
following this when the examiner asks few questions you'll be in a better frame of mind to answer...it is okay to pause a second or two before answering...so just take a second or two,think about what the examiner asked and give ur opinion than just blurting out an answer...
The third part is almost like an argument...so it is important that you answer ur first question carefully...think about what you've been asked and tell ur honest opinion as the following questions will ask u to justify ur stand...if you have just answered for the sake of answering in style,your skill at handling a complicated argument will be seen as low if in subsequent questions you keep changing ur views ..but I'm being too technical,just tell what you really think...so you'll just need to back it up with ur reasons...u may quote ur real examples why you think so..at times they ask you to do too...
4.Writing, practice writing two or 3 letters and essays in the weekends you are left with..task 1 carries 3 out of total 9 points...you just need to write a line to address the person whom you write to/ then as next paragraph write a sentence why you are writing /and then what you expect the person to do or action you want him to follow with/ and conclude saying thanks elaborate with couple of sentences if possible during the middle..why you are writing&action required ,why it is important/required
In all it need to be only 150 words... that would be 6-8 sentences..
Task two(note 6 of the total 9 points),you need to follow a structure...
an introduction about the topic and how it has been discussed among the interest group / the body,where you lay down all the arguments for & against or, why or why not etc..it'd be nice to write ur points favoring the topic first and then follow ur points against the topic of discussion../then in conclusion write what is ur personal opinion and why you think after considering all the points discussed before...practice writing at least 10 full essays before the test and practice jotting down only the points for other topics...
when you are at coffee break you can carry a piece of paper and pen and write about "what do you think of Canada's immigration policy" so imagine urself three for points as introduction-how today's global political scenarios makes the topic of immigration an important discussion point across the globe,and how the recent developments have impacted policies of various countries and where does Canada stand.
then jot down one by one write few positive points of allowing immigration (including general perception and real scientific ones) and follow it with few negative points of allowing immigration.
then go back to ur conclusion in ur head...
if you are able to develop a confidence to come up with few valid points about even surprising topics ,you'll be able to do well...think of random topic and note down just points global warming/ growing intolerance / deforestation / development of artificial intelligence / advent of social media and behavior of youth / working at home vs office /
they say 250 words,but write those in a structured manner with valid points...it is okay if you take 3 or 4 minutes to think about ur point s and briefly note it at the back of the question paper..just ask before the commencement of exam if it is alright... they'll allow...but u need to notify them in advance...writing 275 words would be great..if you are able to do an intro /5 points each for & against /conclusion and elaborate on the points ,you'll get over 250...check out if what I said suit you before exam...if it doesn't stick to ur method...
All the best....
---++++----
the above link gives close to 50 model tests and few actual tests (recent) ...
It is Cambridge series...by Cambridge..
I wrote the below post as a reply to someone who sought some inputs...I thought it might be useful to someone else too...so here it is...
-----
Qn. Are two weeks enough to prepare for my IELTS...with the Cambridge test series...?
-----
two weeks is enough if you put some time into it..
1.listening practice test takes 1 hr but as u practice,u can finish in 45-50 minute,moving form part1 to 2 & 3 as you finish each...however it becomes boring...but persist...do two in the morning and two in the evening every day..take special note of the mistakes u make... some might be because of not hearing properly and some because u thought it was right to answer the way u did but turned out wrong...I wrote £4.50 for an answer (about a ticket price)...but answer was £4.5...when I listened again ,I noticed they told only four point five and not for point five zero.. likewise an answer I wrote "no. 45634" as post code but answer was "45634" another time, years someone worked at a place from "1990 to 1992 " I wrote... but answer was "1990-1992" as in that part,I was supposed to use only 2 numbers or words...so though the answers were technically correct,they weren't,as per the exam evaluation policies... spellings and grammatical errors are also marked as wrong answer...using plural in place of singular etc.listen again and again to one or two twisters they keep in each tests ...as they speak they make you believe some option is correct but would have twisted in the end to make another option the right answer.
2.Reading,also pay attention to details...practice as many as possible...and pay attention to the ones you go wrong....esp true /false/not given, yes / no/ not given and don't write true/false if the instruction is to write yes/no ...and if something is not given explicitly,it is 'not given' though we know that may be 'true' ...
3.speaking ,task 1 I believe is just self intro...just be cool about it...but task 2 helps ur performance as it leads to the next task...
prepare with all the topics available and practice speaking (while u record urself using mobile headset)..u get 1 minute to jot down points about the topic and 2 minutes to talk...practice the same way...practice such that when u get a topic , u are able to write down 5-6 points on the piece of paper in one minute and then talk on those points ...examiner will not prompt u to continue if u stop before two minutes as u are expected to continue for two minutes plus....you can look at the paper,to refer the points noted.note each points in one or two words...my topic was to talk about an advertisement I saw which impacted me..so I made a note 1. UCB 2.tv & utube 2.had a message 3. gender equality 4.social message etc ( the ad was by United Colours of Benetton,United in half talking about gender equality in all walks of life..I had seen it first in YouTube while watching some songs and later on I saw the ad in HBO and Movies now during movie breaks...it struck me as it carries a beautiful message about women empowerment and gender equality in all walks of life...it showed women doing all jobs taking part in activities that are thought to be men's domain...etc...)..if you are asked to talk about a concert you've attended and in real you haven't attended ever,cook up one...they want you to talk about it...not know if you have ever attended one or not
..so immediately think about a 1.favorite singer 2.venue3.date & time4.who all u went with 4.getting excited when he sang the favorite song 5.crowd type youth/old etc 6.the electrifying atmosphere etc...following this when the examiner asks few questions you'll be in a better frame of mind to answer...it is okay to pause a second or two before answering...so just take a second or two,think about what the examiner asked and give ur opinion than just blurting out an answer...
The third part is almost like an argument...so it is important that you answer ur first question carefully...think about what you've been asked and tell ur honest opinion as the following questions will ask u to justify ur stand...if you have just answered for the sake of answering in style,your skill at handling a complicated argument will be seen as low if in subsequent questions you keep changing ur views ..but I'm being too technical,just tell what you really think...so you'll just need to back it up with ur reasons...u may quote ur real examples why you think so..at times they ask you to do too...
4.Writing, practice writing two or 3 letters and essays in the weekends you are left with..task 1 carries 3 out of total 9 points...you just need to write a line to address the person whom you write to/ then as next paragraph write a sentence why you are writing /and then what you expect the person to do or action you want him to follow with/ and conclude saying thanks elaborate with couple of sentences if possible during the middle..why you are writing&action required ,why it is important/required
In all it need to be only 150 words... that would be 6-8 sentences..
Task two(note 6 of the total 9 points),you need to follow a structure...
an introduction about the topic and how it has been discussed among the interest group / the body,where you lay down all the arguments for & against or, why or why not etc..it'd be nice to write ur points favoring the topic first and then follow ur points against the topic of discussion../then in conclusion write what is ur personal opinion and why you think after considering all the points discussed before...practice writing at least 10 full essays before the test and practice jotting down only the points for other topics...
when you are at coffee break you can carry a piece of paper and pen and write about "what do you think of Canada's immigration policy" so imagine urself three for points as introduction-how today's global political scenarios makes the topic of immigration an important discussion point across the globe,and how the recent developments have impacted policies of various countries and where does Canada stand.
then jot down one by one write few positive points of allowing immigration (including general perception and real scientific ones) and follow it with few negative points of allowing immigration.
then go back to ur conclusion in ur head...
if you are able to develop a confidence to come up with few valid points about even surprising topics ,you'll be able to do well...think of random topic and note down just points global warming/ growing intolerance / deforestation / development of artificial intelligence / advent of social media and behavior of youth / working at home vs office /
they say 250 words,but write those in a structured manner with valid points...it is okay if you take 3 or 4 minutes to think about ur point s and briefly note it at the back of the question paper..just ask before the commencement of exam if it is alright... they'll allow...but u need to notify them in advance...writing 275 words would be great..if you are able to do an intro /5 points each for & against /conclusion and elaborate on the points ,you'll get over 250...check out if what I said suit you before exam...if it doesn't stick to ur method...
All the best....
