IELTS Energy 1444: How to Ace the Computer-delivered Reading Exam
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This is an IELTS Energy podcast, episode 1444, How to Ace the Computer-Delivered Reading Exam.

Welcome to the IELTS Energy Podcast from All Ears English, downloaded more than 22 million times with former IELTS examiner Jessica Beck and Aubrey Carter, the IELTS whiz. If you are stuck with a low score, our insider method will help you get the score you need to unlock your dreams.

Get your estimated band score now with our two-minute quiz. Go to allearsenglish.com forward slash my score. Do you have time to highlight keywords on the computer-based IELTS exam? Today, we answer this listener question and provide tips you need for the IELTS reading exam.

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when you visit buyatoyota.com. That's B-U-Y-A-T-O-Y-O-T-A.com. Toyota, let's go places. Hello, Aubrey. How's it going today? I'm great, Jessica. How are you? I wonder.

I am excited to be here to talk about the computer IELTS test. We haven't addressed this specific exam in a while. Right. We got a really good question about it. And I know this relates to a lot of you because the computer-based IELTS exam is offered more and more now. It's likely available where you are. There's a chance you still have to take paper, but I feel like it's getting much more common that students are taking the computer-delivered exam. For sure. And there isn't...

there's still, even though the computer delivered IELTS has been around for years at this point, um, there still isn't as much computer practice out there as there is paper practice. So I, I,

I still think a lot of students out there are probably practicing with paper exams, getting like those Cambridge practice test books, for example, and then perhaps going to the computer exam, not being ready for the slight differences that can impact your score.

Exactly. Right. When we created our computer based, you know, IELTS course, we intentionally created the exercises to look very much like they are on the exam because a lot of these things, if you, the first time you like highlight, like you are on computer exam, I can imagine that taking you a few minutes to figure out the functionality. You don't have that time, right? You need to be familiar with it before. Exactly. Exactly. So, um,

We got a question from a listener, Everson. Thank you for sending us this question. Guys, remember, you can also send us your IELTS questions. Support at allearsenglish.com is that address. All right. So Everson asked, do we have enough time to highlight on the computer-based test? What do you think about that?

Do you have any other strategies when it comes to the computer-based test? I really appreciate your podcast. It has been so useful on my journey through this jungle that is preparing for IELTS. I know. There's so much.

information out there. It is a jungle ever since. It is a jungle, which I have to tell you guys, this is funny because when I first logged in to record with Jessica, she had a plant like up close in her screen, covering the screen. So it looked like she was literally in a jungle. So this is very appropriate ever since. That is very funny. That's a very funny coincidence that we got this

question. Alright, so we're going to give you guys three prime tips today three things you need to know about the computer based IELTS exam before you rock up there. Definitely guys subscribe

or follow if you're not doing that already. And you could scroll up and find an older episode we did, IELTS Energy 1359, Everything You Need for Computer IELTS Listening. Okay, so go find that one because today we're going to focus on the reading.

Yes. So first, we're going to answer Emerson's question. Yes, you have time to highlight on the computer-based exam, and you're going to need to because you can't underline keywords. So as you're skimming and scanning and identifying the keywords to look for, you are going to need to highlight those. It's too difficult to just keep track of them in the text. So you'll want to use that highlight function.

100%. You have to use that function for the reading and the listening, right? So it's the general strategies are the same for paper and computer. It's just how you carry them out a slightly different, right? So it's the same motivation as like, we have to find the keywords, just like we talked about in the last episode about listening.

You have to identify the key words so you know what you're looking for in the reading passage. Because remember, you don't have time to read every word. You don't have time to read the whole passage multiple times, you know, and just be sure about all of your answers. No, you need these strategies. So yes,

highlight keywords, and then that is the keyword that you scan for in the passage. I like using the mouse to help me sort of scan to help track my eyes. Yes. And this is a pretty quick function. You're going to have that mouse, that cursor, and you're going to highlight text. And then maybe in regular word processing, you'd go up and change the color. Instead, a box will pop up that gives you the option highlight. You click that.

And then it's immediately highlighted in yellow. And so you'll be able to see it later. It's very quick and definitely worth doing, like Jessica said, so that you can keep track of this information in the text.

And also remember guys that you have a lot of computer functions there that you can use. So not only can you highlight words in most of the questions, you can also highlight stuff in the passage as well while you're reading if you think you've found an answer, right? You can also cut and paste or copy and paste, right? You can highlight a word in the passage if you think that's the answer, right? And you can just copy it and then paste it into the answer box.

Right. So for completion questions, this is especially useful because then it ensures that the spelling is correct. If you can just copy it, paste it in the space. Right. You can also mark things for review at the bottom of the screen. So this is another function you're definitely going to want to use. There are a lot of advantages really to the computer based IELTS reading exam. Instead of having to flip through pages between the passage and the question, you'll be able to see it all on the same screen. Agreed. Agreed.

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All right. What's tip two today? Oh, there's a lot of T's in that sentence. Tip two, some fun alliteration. You need to be prepared for the questions to look different. If you have only studied with those Cambridge practice books for the paper exam, it will look different. The question types are the same. They're just laid out differently in order to work for the computer screen. Exactly. So like, for example, finding headings or finding information in paragraphs. Okay.

okay finding information in paragraphs um is gonna this is a really hard question type right but on the computer exam it looks totally different than on the paper exam on the paper exam um it's just like a list of

statements or phrases and then you have to write the number of the paragraph next to it, right? And that's your answer. Now on the computer-based test, it's not a list, it's a table and then you have to choose the box corresponding to the paragraph that statement is in. Okay, so it is presented differently and I could see that being confusing to students who have not prepared for this.

Exactly, right? And another really important tip is that the entire passage usually doesn't fit on the screen. So you have to scroll down to see the rest of the text. So if you're like trying to match paragraphs and you're not finding, there's a good chance that you haven't seen the entire passage. Be sure to scroll down to see everything at the bottom. Can you imagine going to the IELTS exam and

Being so nervous and just not being fully like you're so in your head because you're nervous that you're not thinking about everything you're seeing on the screen. And like logically, we're like everyone's a digital native, like everyone knows how to scroll. But if you don't know that that can happen on the reading exam and then you're so nervous and you don't realize that you're missing half of the passage because you didn't scroll down, like, oh, my gosh, that would be so difficult.

I know. And if all you've done is paper-based practice, I could see this happening, right? Everything I need to see is on the page in front of me. It's just a little bit different with computer-based. You have to be prepared for it to be a little different.

All right, exactly. Okay, guys, here's our final tip today. Do not take notes. Now, when you highlight a word, when you click on the word, it will give you the option. You can highlight. You can also take notes. Guys, don't use that function, okay, on the listening or the reading. It's a waste of time. And luckily, I think...

A lot of IELTS teachers out there have realized this and are not teaching students to do this anymore. I know in the past, there were still people, still IELTS teachers and trainers out there who were counseling students to take notes next to the reading passage and stuff like that. Guys, that's such a waste of time. And time is of the essence. Time is everything on IELTS. So don't waste time taking notes.

Exactly. I'm surprised this function is even an option, right? When you go to highlight text, you're going to see take notes. It's so unnecessary. Yeah, exactly. Like Jessica said, it's unnecessary. It's a waste of time. If you had hours and hours to do the test at your leisure, maybe you don't, right? You have a very specific amount of time. You need to take like one minute per question. You don't have time for that function. Exactly. Exactly. All right, guys. Thank you, Everson, for sending us that question. And guys, we would love...

to hear from you. Write us a note [email protected]. And yeah, this is a great start guys for learning about computer based IELTS. Remember, you can always search our YouTube channel to get more computer tips.

Yes, and don't forget that we have a computer-based course. So when you go to allersenglish.com/keys, you are getting our IELTS course that is for both paper and computer-based, which it is really useful to be able to practice using these functions before test day. Yes, and for having all of these specific strategies that you need that aren't true for paper, right? Right, exactly. Exactly. All right, guys. Well, we hope to see you in the course, allersenglish.com/keys.

that's it for us this week. We'll be back again next Tuesday. Awesome. See you next week. Bye. Bye. Thanks for listening to IELTS Energy. Hit subscribe now and don't forget to find your estimated band score at allearsenglish.com slash my score.

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