Dear friends,
I am sorry for not writing on this forum for a long time. I have been and still very busy in my work here in Yemen.
The work hours which are 9 hours per day, leave no space for any leisure time even with the family.
But a kind message from Ali Adil made me find the time to write this post.
IELTS test, like many other tests, have many myths around it. I remember before I attempt this test in 2005, many friends advised me not to do it, because, as they said, "no one we know passes it, at least from the first attempt."
Where I did the IELTS and why:
I did my first and successful attempt in the British Council in Syria in 2005.
I didn’t choose the location because it is easier to do it there as some may think, but because I had relatives there who helped me sort out the accommodation issue.
One thing very important, there is no such a thing as easier and harder test centers, all the centers of examinations are standardized and you can appeal against any results, especially in speaking. I am here in Yemen for three years and I know many doctors, Iraqis included, who failed terribly all there attempts to pass this test. One might think that the test center in Yemen may be the easiest due to the poor abilities of the Yemenis in general in English language.
So don’t hear these myths and let them affect you.
What resources I read before the exam?
I did a good deal of preparation for the test, approximately three months, but of course not on daily basis.
I read the following books:
1. 101 for IELTS.
2. Reading for IELTS.
And a very famous series which are Cambridge preparation course with their tapes.
That is all what I read.
How about Speaking?
I did not practice speaking very much which I regret, but there were no native speakers I know to practice with. I didn’t have the chance to speak with any foreigner before the IELTS except during my one month volunteering service in the Red Cross hospital in Baghdad in July 2003.
So I was very afraid of that module in the exam.
The day of the Exam:
I went early to the test centre in Damascus as advised. I was feeling very calm and comfortable. I saw other candidates' very anxious reading in their notes and sweating with great fear. Some of them were repeating the test for the third time and were also very depressed.
The first module was Reading. I scored 9 of 9 in that module due to my practice in the reference books I mentioned earlier.
The articles were very clear and I had plenty of time to solve all the questions and to review my answers.
Immediately after that we did the next module, which was the Listening part. I believe it is little harder because the speaker will began to speak very slowly during which your brain will slow down in comfort listening to each word, then the speed will increase incredibly and you will strain your ears to hear the phrases and your brain kind of get lost. But I stayed focused and tried to understand the general meaning of the conversation and not following each word. I scored 7.5 of 9 in that module.
Then there was a 5 minutes rest which I used wisely to go to the bathroom where I met a candidate who was cursing the British Council for giving us such hard questions!
In the third module, the Writing, I did face some difficulty as every body else. But I kept my writing simple and clear. They don’t want us to show extraordinary talent in writing, they only want to make sure that we can understand the assignment and write in clear English.
The first task was to describe the results of a study; the results were given in a table. It is important that you write what you see and not conclude anything else. And it wise to use statements like," as the table shows", "in comparison to ", "the number of ... increased while the number of … decreased", etc.
The second task was to write about a situation you will never forget, and I did write that in clear English without using complex sentences or losing the point in mentioning non relevant details. I scored 7 of 9 in that module.
Finally, I was relieved to know that the Speaking part for me will be delayed to the afternoon. This has left me time to re arrange my thoughts and have a snack before I sit for the test again.
While I was waiting outside to enter the exam room, I met someone who said that I am fortunate because the examiner is a new Irish Lady and she is very nice, so I thought that luck can and have a certain part in everything we do in our life.
So, I confess that I was slightly nervous before the interview because I know that this is the part were many fail, but the moment I entered the room and greeted this lady who was in her 50s with a grey hair and a nice smile, all my anxiety vanished.
She spent few moments in introducing herself and calming me, and then she began the test.
She asked me to introduce myself, and all the books say that you should go into all the details of your life when you answer this question and not just give short answers. For example I should have answered, "my name is …, I am from …, I work as …., etc". But due to my anxiety I only answered my name and my country, because these seem to be the only information that I could recall at that moments of anxiety.
Then I began gradually to give more detailed answers, but the nervous tone never left me.
She asked me about my work, and about my social life, and she asked me a traditional question which I prepared myself for it, which is "describe a wedding that you have attended" and I chose to describe my wedding, which was not very interesting but it was what I thought of at that moment.
Generally, I believe I would have failed this part of the test but before I leave, and in a moment of sudden courage, I shake her hand and said in perfect English which I don’t know how I managed to say it:
"Thank you for your time and I just wanted to say that I had to go through a lot of troubles and even risked my life to attend this test. The road from Baghdad to Damascus by car was full of threats. And I wish that someday, my country will return to stability again and people like myself will be able to do this test in Baghdad,, and may be I will meet you there again" and she smiled and said "and I wish that too".
I returned to Iraq next day feeling very satisfied and few days later I received the results, I scored 7 in the speaking module and it was a great joy for my family and me.
That was my IELTS experience and if anybody wants further details, I will be more than happy to answer each query.
Thank you for this wonderful forum.
Dr. Yasir Hameed
I am sorry for not writing on this forum for a long time. I have been and still very busy in my work here in Yemen.
The work hours which are 9 hours per day, leave no space for any leisure time even with the family.
But a kind message from Ali Adil made me find the time to write this post.
IELTS test, like many other tests, have many myths around it. I remember before I attempt this test in 2005, many friends advised me not to do it, because, as they said, "no one we know passes it, at least from the first attempt."
Where I did the IELTS and why:
I did my first and successful attempt in the British Council in Syria in 2005.
I didn’t choose the location because it is easier to do it there as some may think, but because I had relatives there who helped me sort out the accommodation issue.
One thing very important, there is no such a thing as easier and harder test centers, all the centers of examinations are standardized and you can appeal against any results, especially in speaking. I am here in Yemen for three years and I know many doctors, Iraqis included, who failed terribly all there attempts to pass this test. One might think that the test center in Yemen may be the easiest due to the poor abilities of the Yemenis in general in English language.
So don’t hear these myths and let them affect you.
What resources I read before the exam?
I did a good deal of preparation for the test, approximately three months, but of course not on daily basis.
I read the following books:
1. 101 for IELTS.
2. Reading for IELTS.
And a very famous series which are Cambridge preparation course with their tapes.
That is all what I read.
How about Speaking?
I did not practice speaking very much which I regret, but there were no native speakers I know to practice with. I didn’t have the chance to speak with any foreigner before the IELTS except during my one month volunteering service in the Red Cross hospital in Baghdad in July 2003.
So I was very afraid of that module in the exam.
The day of the Exam:
I went early to the test centre in Damascus as advised. I was feeling very calm and comfortable. I saw other candidates' very anxious reading in their notes and sweating with great fear. Some of them were repeating the test for the third time and were also very depressed.
The first module was Reading. I scored 9 of 9 in that module due to my practice in the reference books I mentioned earlier.
The articles were very clear and I had plenty of time to solve all the questions and to review my answers.
Immediately after that we did the next module, which was the Listening part. I believe it is little harder because the speaker will began to speak very slowly during which your brain will slow down in comfort listening to each word, then the speed will increase incredibly and you will strain your ears to hear the phrases and your brain kind of get lost. But I stayed focused and tried to understand the general meaning of the conversation and not following each word. I scored 7.5 of 9 in that module.
Then there was a 5 minutes rest which I used wisely to go to the bathroom where I met a candidate who was cursing the British Council for giving us such hard questions!
In the third module, the Writing, I did face some difficulty as every body else. But I kept my writing simple and clear. They don’t want us to show extraordinary talent in writing, they only want to make sure that we can understand the assignment and write in clear English.
The first task was to describe the results of a study; the results were given in a table. It is important that you write what you see and not conclude anything else. And it wise to use statements like," as the table shows", "in comparison to ", "the number of ... increased while the number of … decreased", etc.
The second task was to write about a situation you will never forget, and I did write that in clear English without using complex sentences or losing the point in mentioning non relevant details. I scored 7 of 9 in that module.
Finally, I was relieved to know that the Speaking part for me will be delayed to the afternoon. This has left me time to re arrange my thoughts and have a snack before I sit for the test again.
While I was waiting outside to enter the exam room, I met someone who said that I am fortunate because the examiner is a new Irish Lady and she is very nice, so I thought that luck can and have a certain part in everything we do in our life.
So, I confess that I was slightly nervous before the interview because I know that this is the part were many fail, but the moment I entered the room and greeted this lady who was in her 50s with a grey hair and a nice smile, all my anxiety vanished.
She spent few moments in introducing herself and calming me, and then she began the test.
She asked me to introduce myself, and all the books say that you should go into all the details of your life when you answer this question and not just give short answers. For example I should have answered, "my name is …, I am from …, I work as …., etc". But due to my anxiety I only answered my name and my country, because these seem to be the only information that I could recall at that moments of anxiety.
Then I began gradually to give more detailed answers, but the nervous tone never left me.
She asked me about my work, and about my social life, and she asked me a traditional question which I prepared myself for it, which is "describe a wedding that you have attended" and I chose to describe my wedding, which was not very interesting but it was what I thought of at that moment.
Generally, I believe I would have failed this part of the test but before I leave, and in a moment of sudden courage, I shake her hand and said in perfect English which I don’t know how I managed to say it:
"Thank you for your time and I just wanted to say that I had to go through a lot of troubles and even risked my life to attend this test. The road from Baghdad to Damascus by car was full of threats. And I wish that someday, my country will return to stability again and people like myself will be able to do this test in Baghdad,, and may be I will meet you there again" and she smiled and said "and I wish that too".
I returned to Iraq next day feeling very satisfied and few days later I received the results, I scored 7 in the speaking module and it was a great joy for my family and me.
That was my IELTS experience and if anybody wants further details, I will be more than happy to answer each query.
Thank you for this wonderful forum.
Dr. Yasir Hameed