IELTS AcademicFocusing on Practice Tests Second edition Philip Gould Michael Clutterbuck Contents How to use this book vii Acknowledgments viii Listening 1 Speaking 95 What is in the listening module? 2 What is in the speaking module? 96 Question types 3 Tips for doing the Speaking Test 97 Tips for doing the Listening Test 3 Sample speaking tests 99 Listening Test 1 4 Speaking Test 1 114 Listening Test 2 10 Speaking Test 2 116 Listening Test 3 18 Speaking Test 3 118 Listening Test 4 24 Speaking Test 4 120 Listening answer sheet 31 Speaking Test 5 122 Speaking Test 6 124 Reading 33 What is in the reading module? 34 Transcripts 127 Question types 35 Listening Test 1 128 Tips for doing the Reading Test 36 Listening Test 2 134 Reading Test 1 37 Listening Test 3 141 Reading Test 2 47 Listening Test 4 148 Reading Test 3 58 Reading Test 4 69 Answer key 155 Reading answer sheet 79 Listening 156 Reading 158 Writing 81 Writing 164 What is in the writing module? 82 Speaking 168 Tips for doing the Writing Test 83 Writing Test 1 86 Writing Test 2 88 Writing Test 3 90 Writing Test 4 92 v . which means working in a room where you won’t be disturbed and only spending an hour on each Reading and Writing Test. There are sample answer sheets at the end of the Listening and Reading units for you to photocopy and use each time you do a practice Listening or Reading Test. You should work through these under test conditions. It is useful to train for the kinds of texts and questions you will face in an IELTS exam.How to use this book There are no magic formulas or secret keys that guarantee a good score in the IELTS test. These two books thoroughly examine the skills you need and teach useful strategies to help you perform well in the test. At the back of the book. You may also want to work more intensively on the skills needed in the different sections of the test. This book also contains three recorded Speaking Tests for you to listen to. vii . Writing. There are sample answers for the Writing Tests. there are transcripts for the Listening Tests and an answer key for the Listening and Reading Tests. reading. The best way to prepare for the exam is to gradually improve your overall English listening. Each test in this book is identical in format to the Academic IELTS tests themselves. Jannette Greenwood and Kerry O’Sullivan (Macmillan 2011) and Focusing on IELTS: Listening and Speaking Skills by Steven Thurlow and Kerry O’Sullivan (Macmillan 2011). Focusing on IELTS: Academic Practice Tests contains complete Reading. You can use this book individually as an independent study guide to prepare for the Academic IELTS test or as practice materials for an IELTS preparation course with a teacher. For this reason Focusing on IELTS: Academic Practice Tests has been written to accompany Focusing on IELTS: Reading and Writing Skills by Jeremy Lindeck. Listening and Speaking practice tests for you to try out. You can read the transcripts of these Speaking Tests along with an analysis of each of the three candidates’ performances. writing and speaking abilities. PLUS 10 MINUTES TO CD 1 • Track 1 TRANSFER ANSWERS NUMBER OF QUESTIONS: 40 This test has been written to simulate the IELTS test in its style. check the answer key at the back of the book. IS T E NI N Listening Test 1 G L TIME ALLOWED: APPROXIMATELY 30 MINUTES. Write your answers on the question sheet as you listen. This means playing the recording only once without pausing or stopping. At the end of Section 4 you have 10 minutes to transfer your answers onto the answer sheet. level of difficulty. There will be time for you to read the instructions and questions before the recording is played. 4 Focusing on IELTS Academic Practice Tests . which is on page 31. You will also have the opportunity to check your answers. The recording will be played ONCE only. Instructions You will hear four different recordings and you will have to answer questions on what you hear. question types and length. You should do this test under IELTS test conditions. Now turn to Section 1 on the next page. When you finish. format. The test is in four sections. B or C..……………. C 11 pm to 2 am...…..………………………….….. B Home Plus.…………………………. Listening 5 .. Name: 1 ……………. Billing period: 5 ……………. B 1 am to 6 am.. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.…………………………. Change of address Customer number: 5062 7840 Example: …………….. C Home Plus. 10 Overall. 6 The contract the customer has now is A Economy Saver..……… New telephone number: 4 …………….…………………………. New address: 18 King Street....………………. 3 ……….. Questions 6–10 Choose the correct letter... 7 The contract the customer will have in the future is A Economy Saver... the customer finds that the service of the telephone company is A satisfactory. C for work. IS T E NI N SECTION 1 Questions 1–10 G L Questions 1–5 CD 1 • Track 2 Complete the notes below.....…………….. 9 Most of the phone calls this customer makes are A to friends. C Three-In-One.…………….…………………………. Date of birth: 2 …………….……………. B to relatives... A.. C very good.. B excellent.... B Flexible Bundle. 8 There are no limits on Internet downloads in the period from A 10 pm to 6 am. Reading Test 1 ALL ANSWERS MUST BE WRITTEN ON THE ANSWER SHEET. If you cannot do a particular question leave it and go on to the next one. You can return to it later. TIME ALLOWED: 60 MINUTES NUMBER OF QUESTIONS: 40 Reading 37 . You should answer all the questions. The test is divided as follows: Reading Passage 1 Questions 1 to 13 Reading Passage 2 Questions 14 to 27 Reading Passage 3 Questions 28 to 40 Start at the beginning of the test and work through it. READING PASSAGE 1 You should spend about 20 minutes on questions 1–13. New materials and technologies such as cheaper reflectors. with an increase in the cost of transport and risk of spoilage en route. it couldn’t be sustained on a mass scale.’ He suggests that 150 such buildings could feed the entire city of New York for a year. You can get four crops a year.3 hectares could produce enough food to feed 35. Vines in the sky A The farms of the future may be built right in the centre of your city.4 of a hectare) of land means one crop a year. One unusual feature is the use of a type of shellfish to filter water. ‘Indoors. D ‘Outside.6 billion over the next half century. These can clean urban sewage to a state suitable for irrigation. with over one-third of the world’s surface currently used for agriculture.’ says Despommier. urban agriculture in skyscrapers. Indoor crops require less pesticide and are less subject to the problems in nature.000 people for a year – the same as a 420-hectare farm. some 80 per cent of the world’s population will live in cities. Each floor of the design would be rigged up with hydroponic watering systems and 48 Focusing on IELTS Academic Practice Tests . By then. Suburban sprawl. the days of market gardens on the edges of urban areas supplying fresh food straight to your table may soon be over. such as drought. Despommier figures that in the next five decades an area of new arable land roughly the size of Brazil will be required to feed the world’s growing population – land that simply doesn’t exist. mass city-centre farming may soon replace them. The world population is expected to grow by three billion to 8. you can grow one crop every three months. However. more efficient solar panels for energy and system-wide recycling are integral to the plan. At the same time. indoor. combined with the vast economies of scale in operation in agriculture. have typically driven food production far from populated centres. While that was interesting. He believes this vertical farming method could be a solution to some of the world’s most pressing issues. Looking at greenhouse projects in New York. C Despommier’s concept relies on using green methods of architecture and materials to build skyscrapers that house. grow and produce crops. conventional farm and grazing land takes up an enormous amount of space. one acre (0. and they will need to eat. which reflect sunlight where it’s needed. sees our future cities populated by a new kind of market garden. B Following this. The creator of this radical ‘vertical farming’ idea describes the evolution of the concept from an older project involving rooftop gardening in Manhattan. A visionary microbiologist and environmental lecturer. Some academics say that a single skyscraper farm covering 1. But it planted the seed of another idea. Despommier set up laboratory projects aimed at different design challenges and attracted a wide range of enthusiastic collaborators and contributors. Dickson Despommier from Columbia University in New York. the resulting concept was large-scale. opinions vary on whether the project can succeed.’ F Yet there is strong support elsewhere. vertical farming is not without its challenges. NB You may use any letter more than once. artificial lighting. A–F. particularly in areas with surplus land such as sub-Saharan Africa. and solar panels to provide electricity. says the vertical farm is not only possible. ‘It would collect at one site a diversity of elements already at work in some form or another around the world. Which section contains the following information? Write the correct letter. with some A$93 million per building for construction and A$5. and some think the crop yield would be too low to make economic sense. However. Creating conditions suitable for growth is a serious challenge. except these might come from the 45th floor.5 million a year for operation. 1 doubts about the feasibility of the project 2 the idea of moving market gardens from the outskirts to inner-city areas 3 how the system would avoid current agricultural problems 4 a previous program that was not practical for widespread use 5 sources of financial assistance to the proposal 6 a method of dealing with waste matter Reading 49 . China and the Netherlands. but will happen within this generation. Despommier has the backing of his university as well as venture capitalists from the Middle East.’ says Rob Brook. ‘This is a rich person’s pipe dream. A–F. an advocate of urban agriculture at Canada’s International Development Research Centre. If the vertical farming vision becomes a reality. Another is cost. One is light – artificial lighting uses a great deal of electricity and generates considerable heat.’ he says. we could find ourselves once again enjoying fresh fruit and vegetables sourced from just around the corner. Questions 1–6 Reading Passage 1 has six sections. We already know how to increase food production from existing land resources. Luc Mougeout. in boxes 1–6 on your answer sheet. E Among experts. It’s just that we do it incredibly badly at the moment. ‘My biggest reservation is that the basic premise is flawed. a rural development researcher at the University of Wales in Bangor. Write at least 150 words. Summarise the information in the diagram to explain how the system works. Generating electricity using geothermal energy 4 Power station generates electricity 5 Electricity sent to national grid 3 Heat exchanger extracts heat to run power station 6 Cool water pumped back down 2 Hot water pumped up Layer of hot rock 1 Hot underground water Starting point of cycle Layer of hot rock 90 Focusing on IELTS Academic Practice Tests . The diagram below shows how electricity is generated by using hot water from underground.Writing Test 3 Writing Task 1 You should spend about 20 minutes on this task. CD 3 • Track 7 Part 1 Introduction and interview Hello. you can make some notes. in cash or by card? When you pay cash for something. What made you choose the place where you live now? How long have you lived there? Would you say it’s a good area for families to live in? Would it be a better area to live if there were fewer people than now? Next. 118 Focusing on IELTS Academic Practice Tests . you can have one minute to think about what you are going to say. Could you tell me your full name. I’d like you to describe a website you have used. Before you start. please? And can I see your passport? Thank you. in the first part of the test. Now. let’s talk about how people pay for things they buy. Did you like to get up early in the morning when you were a child? What are some advantages of getting up early? Do you feel different at the beginning of the day than at the end of the day? What do you think is the best time to get up in the morning? Part 2 Individual long turn Now we come to the second part of the Speaking Test. I’m going to give you a card about a topic and I’d like you to talk about it for one to two minutes. If you want to. Speaking Test 3 K PEA IN When you listen to the recording. after you hear each question you should press ‘pause’ and S G answer the question before going on to the next question. Let’s talk about where you live. How do you prefer to pay for things that you buy. do you usually check the change that you are given? What is the most common way of paying for things in your country? When you go to another country. Do you understand? Here’s some paper and a pencil for making notes and here’s your topic. I’m going to ask you some questions about yourself. do you have problems using a different currency? Now I’d like to talk about getting up early in the morning.