David：Hi IELTS lovers all over China! I have finally returned to Beijing! It is great to be back - despite the temperature and now a heavy rain storm!

Awaiting all IELTS questions - so fire away!

David Larbalestier

INSEARCH UTS

网友：写作考生得6分还是6.5分或者得7分还是7.5分，考官是如何判定的？多0.5分或者少0.5分，主要是区别在哪里？

David：From July, IELTS will enable candidates to get .5 scores in Speaking and Writing.

There are 4 criteria which the examiner uses when determining the band score for Speaking and Writing. The examiner gives a band score for each of the criteria. The IELTS computer system determines from these 4 band scores the final band for that test.

无忧雅思：写作和口语考试的分数引入半分制，对整个雅思考试有什么影响？

David：Beking able now to get .5 band scores in Speaking and Writing means that candidates can get a higher score than before! Before it was only possible to get a whole score. Now if a canddate is a little better then it is possible to get a slightly higher score!

无忧雅思：写作和口语考试的分数引入半分制。这样的调整，会带来广大考生带来怎样的影响呢？

David：This development whill mean that examiners will have to be more precise. There is on-going monitioring of all IELTS examiners, and this will be more stringent from now on! This makes our job more onerous! Being able now to get .5 band scores in Speaking and Writing means that candidates can get a higher score than before! Before it was only possible to get a whole score. Now if a canddate is a little better then it is possible to get a slightly higher score!

无忧雅思：写作成绩引入半分制，那考生应该怎样学习才能抓住这半分呢？

David：The examienrs and the IELTS system will give you an extra .5. Candidates do not have to do anything more than before - just sit back, do your best (as before) and expect to get .5 more! Everyone continues to do the same as before - but from now on the IELTS computer system will enable candidates to get .5 more - ONLY if they deserve it!

无忧雅思：同样口语成绩引入半分后，考生又该如何学习抓住这半分呢？

David：As stated already - in several emails, just do your best. If you deserve to get .5 extra then you will be given it! You don't "catch" it - IELTS will give it to you - but only if you should get it!

网友：暑假马上到了,我要如何计划我的雅思复习?计划明年九月出国.

David：I have developed a brilliant FREE on-line IELTS support program - which anyone can view and use FREE, if you have the appropriate software - Windows Media. Just go to www.australianetwork.com/studyenglish

Thjere are 52 episodes all supportd with a 10 minute video program on tyopics and subjects relevant to IELTS. You can click on the Transcript to be able to read the transcript while watching the program. There are study notes which you can read and study later. There are activities and quizzes which give you practice!!!!!!! This is fantastic!!! And it is FREE!!!!!!! The episodes in the second Series - episodes 24, 25 and 26 - are explicitly on IELTS Writing Task 1. Go for it Enjoy! You can access and study this program wherever you have a computer with broadband facilities and the appropriate software - Windows Media!

网友：考官，能不能给我们一些可以提高雅思成绩的建议？

David：To advance from IELTS Band 5.0 to IELTS Band 6.0, or from Band 6.0 to Band 7.0 you will need to put in over 400 hours of intensive and serious study - in all skills for the test. You will need to do as much reading and listening (receptive skills) as possible and then get as much speaking and writing (productive skills) practice as possible. You need to do as many practice tests (real IELTS type tests - and there are many books of practice test available in good bookshops) as possible. When you have completed a listening or reading practice test, then go back and check the answers. Then find out where you made your mistakes. Then go back and do the test again. Then go back and listen again and again, and read the reading passages as many times as possible so that they are compeltely familiar. Learn new words - to extend your vocabulary. Focus on developing vocabulary for as many different topics as possible. Always make vocabulary lists and always write down all word forms - the noun, verb, adjective and adverb forms. Learn how to spell these words correctly. Try to learn at least 10 new words and word forms every day. Practice how to pronounce these words correctly - mark where the syllable stress is. Also go to my FREE and brilliant on-line program - www.australianetwork.com/studyenglish

and do every single one of the 52 episodes! Do all the activities and quizzes. Watch as many films in English as possible - and television programs - CCTV 9. Read all the Englsih newspapers - especially those articles on topics which are IELTS relevant. [CKQ]

网友：有了半分制之后，这对大多数考生来说是好事还是坏事？

David：This development is good for candidates - you can get an extra .5 - which you could not get before!

网友：问您能不能谈一下雅思写作的篇文章改成图片题之后，有什么变化？还有评分标准？

David：Writing Task has NOT changed. It can be a graph, table, chart, process, procedure or a thing - which you have to descibe.

The criteria have not and will not change - they are the same - 

1. Task Response - did you answer the question as fully as possible

2. Cohesion and Coherence - did you organise you answer - at the essay level and at the sentence level

3. Lexical resource - is your vocabulary sufficient to be able to answer the question well and accurately

4. Grammatical Resource - do you have a range of sentences (Simple, Compound and Complex) and a range of grammatical structures (Active/Passive, Cause/Result, Conditional, Modals etc)

网友：去澳大利亚留学，应该看专业排名还是看综合排名？

David：You should try to find out as much information as possible about the universities which have the degree you are interested in and then make a list of facilities, adcvantages and disadvantages - and work out which is the best university for you and your study needs.

网友：希望您能帮我们推荐一些备战雅思考试的书籍和资料？（剑１－５以外的书）

David：INSEARCH UTS has just published the MOST comprehensive set of IELTS preparation course books IN THE WORLD - with QingHua University Press. The two books of Practice Tests have been available for some time. The new books - one on Listening and Speaking Skills and Strategies, and the other on Reading and Writing Skills and Strategies will be available shortly.You can also access our brilliant on-line program for FREE - at:

www.australianetwork.com/studyenglish

All the materials and activities in the two Skills and Strategies book are cross-referenced with this on-line program.

You might also like to enrol in a good IELTS preparation program - with for example EIC - which has 6 offices and schools in China - Beijing, Changsha, Jinan, Shenzhen, Guangzhou.

网友：In writing part,should you try our best to write long stentence ,including kind of clausees? in preparation period,how often do we need to write a composition? for example, during 5 days ,i should finish one ,or 3 days? i have applied for the test in july 22,2007.

David：You need to write a variety of sentence types - Simple, Compound and complex - and a range of complex sentences, using Subordinating Conjunctions, Relative Pronouns and maybe if you are clever enough (!!!!) Participles.

You shouild always write your answer as if you were doing the test - and take 20 minutes for Task and 40 minutes for task 2 - to get used to the time constraint which you have to write under in the test. You need to write answers for a variety of Task 1 questions - graphs, tables, charts, processes, procedures etc. you should be able to do an essay a day. It should only take you 20 minutes for Task 1 remember!

You have one month till your test! Good luck!

无忧雅思：谢谢David的精彩回答！各位网友下次见！

David：Thank you! Bye bye!