Do you know
how many words you will have to read on the IELTS reading test? About 900! When
you think about having to answer 40 questions, in an hour, in a foreign
language, it seems impossible. Don’t worry, there are lots of ways you can
improve both your exam technique and reading skills, so that you will not only
finish the exam, but also do really well.
Many students
fail to finish the IELTS reading test because they read at a very slow pace.
The two main reasons for this are poor exam technique and slow reading speed.
This article
will discuss:
1. the problems reading slowly can cause
2. why some people read more slowly than others
3. advantages of speed reading
4. when to read fast and when to read slow
5. how to read more quickly
6. exam tips
1. Why is reading slowly a problem?
Reading slowly is sometimes required and very important, but at other times it can cause problems, such as:
- not finishing
the text and/or exam
- making
yourself more nervous because you are running out of time
- wasting time
on parts of the text that do not give you the correct answers
- taking too
long to read a text when you are practicing reading before the exam
A. Why do I read slowly?
Most people
read slowly for one or more of the following reasons:
1. reading every word individually
2. stopping every time they read a word they don’t know
3. reading and saying the words quietly at the same time
4. wanting to completely understand every word and sentence
5. reading
sentences two or three times
6. thinking about
the ideas too deeply or in too much detail
B. Advantage of Speed Reading
B. Advantage of Speed Reading
Just like any
other skill, speed reading can be learned and perfected with practice. When you
learn how to read faster you will enjoy the following advantages:
1. You will be
able to understand the general meaning of the whole text and each paragraph
much more easily and quickly. This will help you find the correct answers more
effectively.
2. You will enter the exam with more confidence than you did before. Confident candidates don’t feel as nervous as those who don’t believe in themselves and tend to perform better.
3. You will have
more time to think about your answers and make sure they are the correct ones.
You will also have time to check your answers at the end.
4. You will be able to quickly read a wide variety of articles before you do the test. This will not only improve your reading skills, but your overall level of English.
2. Should I always read quickly?
Being able to read quickly is very important on the IELTS test but exam technique is equally important. Sometimes it helps us to read very quickly, but sometimes it actually stops us getting the correct answer. We therefore need to know when to read slowly and when to read more quickly.
In general, we
read at a faster pace when we are getting the general meaning of the text
(skimming) or looking for specific words or phrases (scanning). Using these
skills is very important, but if we just use these all the time, we will miss
important details and get the answers wrong.
Often when we
are establishing the correct answer, we need to take our time and read every
word carefully.
There are
several different kinds of IELTS reading questions and each requires a
different technique and a different mix of skimming, scanning and reading
carefully. I would highly recommend reading each of my
lessons on each question type to help you improve.
Don’t just
read for the sake of it. Make sure you have a purpose every time you read in
the exam. For example, if you are just trying to find the general meaning of a
paragraph, just quickly read the first and last sentences of that paragraph. If
you are looking for a particular word or phrase, just scan the text quickly
instead of reading the whole thing carefully. When you get to finding out the
correct answer, your purpose becomes reading the text more slowly and in
greater detail.
3. Speed Reading
Did you know that your brain does not process words individually? Instead it processes them in groups of 3-5 words together. These are sometimes called ‘chunks’. Unfortunately, many of us are taught at school to read each word individually. Also, when reading in another language we often read and think about the meaning of every word. The answer to this is to practice reading words in groups.
Let’s look at one of the previous paragraph as an example:
Did you know
that /your brain does not process/ words individually? Instead it processes
them /in groups of 3-5 words together. /These are sometimes called ‘chunks’./
Unfortunately, many of us are /taught at school to read /each word
individually/. Also, when reading in/ another language we often/ read and think
about /the meaning of words individually.
Try reading
the paragraph above, not as individual words but as groups of words. I’ve added
slashes in between groups to help you. This might
seem unnatural at first, but with practice you will be able to do it very
naturally and increase your reading speed dramatically. Don’t worry if you don’t
understand every word, just keep going.
The other big
advantage of this is that you will really improve your grammar and vocabulary
because you will notice how words and phrases group together. You will begin to
see patterns and collocations and this will help you improve, not just reading,
but your overall level of English.
I should say
again that this takes lots of practice, but well worth the time and effort.
4. Exam Tips
1. You don’t have to read the whole text for every question. Only read what you need and then move on.
2. Don’t worry if
there is a word you don’t understand. If you do see one you can either guess
what it means from the other words and sentences around it or ignore it. There
will always be a number of words that even native speakers won’t understand.
3. You have 90 seconds for each question but some questions are easier than others and some take more time. Don’t stick to the 90 seconds per question rule; spend less time on the easier ones and more on the most difficult.
4. I did just say spend more time on the more difficult questions, but not too much time. Some questions are there to separate the band 8 and 9 students and if you can’t find the answer to these questions after a minute or two, then move on.
5. In general, the easier questions are at the start of the paper and the more difficult are toward the end.
6. If you say
words silently or say them very quietly when reading, stop this. It increases
the time it takes for you to process a word.
7. If you keep going back and reading sentences more than once, try reading with a sheet of paper and move the paper over the words you have just read. After time, you will stop going back and forth and read in a more efficient way.
8. Read the questions before you read the text. This will help focus your mind on what you are looking for.
9. Use the title and look at any pictures to help you predict what the text will be about.
I would
recommend reading my lessons on all the different
reading questions next.
I hope you found this useful. If you have any questions please let me know in the comments below or on the Facebook page.
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