Some test takers consider reading as a difficult skill in IELTS. Most
of them get it difficult to complete this section well. They feel that
the time given is not enough. Therefore, it is important for them to
read efficiently and effectively the passages in reading section. In
order to achieve that goal, you need to master some skills in reading.
The
first skill is previewing. You get for about two minutes to do it for
every passage. During this time, you should pay attention on the titles,
headings, illustration, diagrams, and any print in bold type or
italics. Plus, you should also study key parts of the passage by
skimming. More than likely, the first paragraph is the main idea of the
passage. Meanwhile, the summary of the passage is in the concluding
paragraph.
The second is interpreting the instructions and questions. When you read the question, you should be able to know:
- What type of question you should answer (gap-filling, multiple choice, matching, etc)
- Whether or not the question require a specific or general answer
- What form the answer should take (number, date, etc)
The
third skill is scanning the text for specific answer. You should spend
not more than one minute for doing it. However, if you are unsure with
your answer during that period of time, you can give mark on it. You
could go back to that question later on.
The fourth skill is
checking your answer. Whenever you have finished the reading section,
don’t forget to check at your work. Spend some time to monitor whether
you have followed the instruction well or not. You can also return to
some unsure answers that you have marked previously.
Knowing will give no effect to your reading score. So, try to apply the above skill for getting a better reading score.
Ref. IELTS to Success Preparation Tips and Practice Test (Melbourne, 1997)
