A Final Note

Everything in this book comes down to three habits.

1. 1.Know the rule for the question type in front of you. There are about fifteen question types in this test, and every one of them has a rule. Guessing is what you do when you have not learned the rule.
2. 2.Write a reason for every answer. This is slow at first and then it becomes instant, and by the time it is instant your accuracy has already improved.
3. 3.Work against a clock from the first week. The test is not a test of what you can do. It is a test of what you can do in sixty minutes.

Students often assume that a higher band requires better English. Usually it requires the same English used more carefully. The seven answers between band 5 and band 6 in Reading are almost never seven pieces of vocabulary you did not know. They are one blank you left, two words over the limit, a plural you dropped, and four questions you answered without reading the sentence to the end.

Fix those, and the band follows.

Where to practise with official material

1. 1.British Council free practice tests: full length Listening, Reading and Writing on the real computer interface, General Training included, with no test booking needed.
2. 2.IDP free General Training samples: PDFs with answer keys for all four skills, including Speaking prompts with recordings and transcripts.
3. 3.IELTS Ready and Road to IELTS, the free versions, which include full mock tests.
4. 4.Cambridge IELTS 21, General Training edition, published in July 2026, for official past papers.

Use those for the questions. Use this book for the method.