What should you do immediately after beginning the reading comprehension section of the IELTS examination? First, briefly scan the passage. Look for things that do not change, things that stand out, like dates, numbers, and place names. These specific things—our hotspots—are very easy to see on the page. A number, "$444,000" for example, is very easy to see. First glance at all of these areas and try to retain an idea of where they are located within the text. Do not read the text at this point. Simply scan it. By this we mean, just glance over it, spending a few brief moments to pick out the most visible details and making a note indicating where they lay.
Next, scan over the questions. Are any numbers or dates included in these questions? If there are, the answer should be easy to find. Let us review very briefly. Using the unchanging elements of the questions—things like dates, amounts of money, and proper names—we can locate the answer. Some people like to call this the "nutcracker" method. If we can find unchanging elements of the reading passages, we can use them to crack open the figurative "nut". This nut is our answer. These unchanging elements are our hotspots, easily recognized in the text and effortlessly found.
After you scan the questions, return to the reading passage. Here we actually read the passage. However, we still do not take the time to read the entire passage. This time simply read the first and last sentence of each paragraph. This will give us a very good idea where information is to be located in an article. We will now know which paragraph deals with this particular topic, and all information concerning that topic will be found there. This means that we can now locate answers easily within the text. We will discuss this more in just a bit.
Now, having read the first and last sentence of each paragraph, we return to the questions. This time we do more than scan the questions; we read them. After reading the questions，we know exactly what they relate to. Knowing this, we can begin to find the answers. After all, the answers are all there in front of us. Our hotspots and familiarity with the main topic of each paragraph should help us find these answers with ease.
Even if we still cannot find the answer through our hotspots method, we now have a pretty good idea where it may be. Although we may still have to look for that particular answer, we by now should know which paragraph it is located in. Having read the first and last sentence of each paragraph should allow us to do this easily. If the information is not given in the first or last sentence of a paragraph, then next examine the example given in that paragraph. This is an extremely important step， in most cases, the information will be given here. So if you see a reference to a particular company, country, or even individual, begin by inspecting that section；the answer is likeliest to be found there.
If, after having read the first sentence, the last sentence, and the example of a paragraph, you still have not found the answer, only then should you read the entire paragraph. Importantly, this is the first time we actually read an entire section of the passage. Actually reading the entire text is a last resort step. Since we know our time is limited, and we have no need to actually read the entire test passage, we should only resort to this step if we still haven't found the answer. Even here, we do not read the entire reading passage. We simple read the relevant paragraph, which we will have found through our examinations of the examples.
It should be emphasized that most questions will be of a specific nature and most likely found through the use of our hotspots. If the question is of a broader nature, the question will typically indicate to you the paragraphs it is referring to. Thus first read the opening and concluding sentences of the paragraph, then the example, and, only if still needed, the entire paragraph. On a larger scale, however, the best method is scan the text, scan the questions, read the first and last sentences of each paragraph, and then read the questions. Scan, scan, read, read.
E. Mental Map
Another method of dealing with the extremely large amount of information given in each IELTS reading passage is to make a mental map. By "mental map", we mean that as you scan the text try to remember where certain topics are located. You construct for yourself a mental image of where these topics were raised. Then when you later have to answer a specific question about this topic, you can easily find the area in the text that the topic is mentioned in. Since there is simply no method to memorize all the information given, even for a native English speaker, this principle in use with the other principles already introduced will aid us in finding information. Although we have identified many hotspots that will help us find answers, we should still remind ourselves to get an overall picture of the text.
In order to answer the test questions, one will need to make constant reference to the text. As we know, time is a very real problem. To try and re-read the text and find a specific passage would be silly. If one knows approximately where a topic was mentioned, however, finding specific information becomes very easy. So, as you scan the text and read the two important sentences in every paragraph, try to maintain an idea of where certain topics were mentioned. If you know this, finding specific examples will be much easier.
Remember：as you move on to a new reading passage forget this old mental map. Relax, move on, and do not carry this information on to the next reading passage.As you scan this new passage, remind yourself to locate certain topics as they are mentioned in the text, and retain a vague sense of where they are located.
F. Chronological Order
Another distinguishing feature of the IELTS examination is that the test questions normally follow a certain order. We know that scanning for details and taking note of hotspots are essential. If we also realize that all IELTS test questions follow the order of the text itself, finding certain details becomes very easy.
IELTS test questions are arranged in chronological order. In other words, questions concerning earlier sections of the reading passage will come before questions concerning later sections. If the answer to question #3, for example, is found in the fourth paragraph, then we know that the answer to question #4 will be found in a later paragraph.
Why is this useful to know? Well, as we have just explained, you will need to make constant reference to the text. Knowing the general location of a test answer will help you find it much quicker. This knowledge, combined with our familiarity with the text as a result of our scanning, and our notes of certain hotspots, will greatly increase our speed. As the answers are all right in front of us, finding them quickly is essential.
G. Ignore Your Background Knowledge
As we have repeatedly stated, the answers you need are all in front of you. Not only do you not need to rely on your background knowledge in a particular subject, to do so may actually harm you. How can that be so? Isn't knowledge always a good thing to have?
Not necessarily. There is one section of the IELTS—True/False/Not Given (Yes/No/Not Given)—that seeks to test your ability to gather information from the article. In this section (which we will discuss at more detail in just a bit) you are given a series of statements. If the facts in the article confirm these statements, you choose "True". If the facts in the article contradict the given statement, you will answer "False."
There are some statements that are clearly true. These are things you might know from elementary school. They seem obvious and the answer must certainly be "True". Yet, since these facts are not discussed in the article, the answer must be "Not Given". It does not matter if you know this statement to be absolutely true. You might have read an article about it yesterday, but since this information is not given in the IELTS reading passage, you must answer "Not Given". If you choose "True", you will get the question wrong.
Please note: this principle does not apply only to the choice between "True" and "Not Given". Take the following sentence as an example, "The difference in initiation rates between male and female smokers at the turn of the 19th century was due to selective marketing." Many test takers may know that at the turn of the 19th century, for a woman to smoke was considered impolite. It was considered unladylike. Thus, they may mistakenly believe that the cause for the difference in initiation rates was due to societal pressures and not marketing trends. Using this logic, they might answer "False".
This answer, however, is based only upon background knowledge. The text clearly states two facts. Primarily, at the turn of the 19th century, "Marketing strategies included painted billboards and an extensive distribution of coupons, which a recipient could redeem for free cigarettes...Some brands included soft-porn pictures of women in the packages to sell their products to young males." Secondly, the text says, "it was not until the mid-1920s that social mores permitted cigarette advertising to focus on women." Clearly, selective marketing influenced the difference in initiation rates of male and female smokers at the turn of the 19th century. The answer is "True".
The problem of background knowledge is not limited to the True/False/Not Given (Yes/No/Not Given) section alone. In the multiple choice and sentence completion sections as well, be careful to make your answer based upon the text and not on your own knowledge. Don't forget—ignore your background knowledge.
Ⅴ. Individual Sections of the Test
Now that we have discussed the basic principles that can be used in any section of the IELTS examination. Let us now look at the individual sections of the test. There are eight different types of test questions with some specific examples. Although there are unique methods for dealing with each of the sections individually, don't forget our seven golden rules. These are our tools; these are our methods for raising our test scores.
A. Sentence Completion
Sentence completion test questions are one of the easier types of test questions on the IELTS examination. Questions of this type will provide a sentence based upon the reading passage to the test taker. This sentence will be missing one to three words. The test taker's task is to fill in the blank space with the appropriate word. As we know, all the answers are in front of us. This section of the IELTS examination, like many others, tests our ability to find answers. We already know several principles to help us do so. Therefore, questions of this variety should not be difficult.
A typical example of the completion test question is found in the following passage:
PRACTICE READING PASSAGE ONE
IMPLEMENTING THE CYCLE OF SUCCESS: A CASE STUDY
Within Australia, Australian Hotels Inc operates nine hotels and employees over 2000 permanent full-time staff, 300 permanent part-time employees and 100 casual staff. One of its latest ventures, the Sydney Airport Hotel opened in March 1995. The hotel is the closest to Sydney Airport and is designed to provide the best available accommodation, food and beverage and meeting facilities in Sydney's southern suburbs. Similar to many international hotel chains, however, AHI has experienced difficulties in Australia in providing long-term profits for hotel owners, as a result of the country's high labour-cost structure. In order to develop an economically viable hotel organisation model, AHI decided to implement some new policies and practices at SAH.
The first of the initiatives was an organisational structure with only three levels of management—compared to the traditional seven. Partly as a result of this change, there are 25 per cent fewer management positions, enabling a significant saving. This change also has other implications. Communication, both up and down the organisation, has greatly improved. Decision-making has been forced down in many cases to front-line employees. As a result, guest requests are usually met without reference to a supervisor, improving both customer and employee satisfaction.
The hotel also recognisd that it would need a different approach to selecting employees who would fit in with its new policies. In its advertisements, the hotel stated a preference for people with some "service" experience in order to minimise traditional work practices being introduced into the hotel. Over 7000 applicants filled in application forms for the 120 jobs initially offered at SAH. The balance of the positions at the hotel (30 management and 49 shift leader positions) were predominantly filled by transfers from other AHI properties.
A series of tests and interviews were conducted with potential employees, which eventually left 280 applicants competing for the 120 advertised positions. After the final interview, potential recruits were divided into three categories. Category A was for applicants exhibiting strong leadership qualities, Category C was for applicants perceived to be followers, and Category B was for applicants with both leader and follower qualities. Department heads and shift leaders then composed prospective teams using a combination of people from all three categories. Once suitable teams were formed, offers of employment were made to team members.
Another major initiative by SAH was to adopt a totally multi-skilled workforce. Although there may be some limitations with highly technical jobs such as cooking or maintenance, wherever possible, employees at SAH are able to work in a wide variety of positions. A multi-skilled workforce provides far greater management flexibility during peak and quiet times to transfer employees to needed positions. For example, when office staff are away on holidays during quiet periods of the year, employees in either food or beverage or housekeeping departments can temporarily fill in.
The most crucial way, however, of improving the labour cost structure at SAH was to find better, more productive ways of providing customer service. SAH management concluded this would first require a process of "benchmarking". The prime objective of the benchmarking process was to compare a range of service delivery processes across a range of criteria using teams made up of employees from different departments within the hotel which interacted with each other. This process resulted in performance measures that greatly enhanced SAH's ability to improve productivity and quality.
The front office team discovered through this project that a high proportion of AHI Club member reservations were incomplete. As a result, the service provided to these guests was below the standard promised to them as part of their membership agreement. Reducing the number of incomplete reservations greatly improved guest perceptions of service.
