IELTS Test Preparation & EAP Writing: Connecting the dots

Some IELTS statistics Worldwide IELTS test takers in million IELTS Test takers in China Over 260,000

1.2 million enrollments 4 million on-line students

Strategies encouraged… Formulaic & mechanical writing Memorization of sentence and paragraph templates Memorization of entire essays Uncritical use of language

Example of formulaic essay intro TASK: Some people think the main benefit of international cooperation is in protection of the environment, while others think that the main benefit is in the world of business. Discuss both views and give your opinion. With the rapid development of society and technology in the world today, international cooperation has become a hot topic. Some people hold the opinion that international cooperation benefits the world business. Others, however, disagree with it. As far as I am concerned, I agree with the latter opinion to some extent.

Flexibility “The unifying characteristic of good readers and writers seems to be flexibility, the ability to use and reuse different strategies as the moment calls for them.” -- Ilona Leki

According to Cambridge ESOL IELTS is designed to test readiness to enter the world of university level study... It does not assume that test-takers have already mastered (or even partially acquired) the range of university- level writing skills which they are likely to need…The implication of this is that IELTS Academic Writing tasks cannot simulate the sort of university-level tasks which test-takers will encounter in their studies.

An IELTS data task

Skills required for Task 1 Understand the data Identify the salient information Make generalizations (the overview sentence) Classify data? Compare data?

Task 1 Overview sentence: Sub-Saharan Africa has the lowest primary school enrollment rates in the world. 3 Classification groups: 1: 90% and above 2: in the 80% range 3: below 80%

Using Data Data description IELTS Task 1 Two moves 1. locate the results 2. report main findings and compare if appropriate Data commentary Academic tasks

Critical Intelligence “…the EAP writing instructor must go beyond helping students with syntax, morphology, vocabulary and typical genre conventions and attempt to reach out to their critical intelligence.”-- Swales & Feak

Brainstorm Qs factual and analytical What are the countries in Sub-Saharan Africa? What are their socio-political differences? Have some countries been more successful than others in raising enrollment? Why? Is enrollment gender balanced? What are the major obstacles to primary enrollment in Sub-Saharan Africa? Are the obstacles primarily economic or cultural? What is being done? How effective are these efforts? etc etc

From IELTS >> research essay Possible research essay topics that extend the data task: Choose one or two countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, explain the low primary enrollment rate and evaluate the efforts being made to increase it. Choose one country in two different regions and compare the progress each has made in increasing primary enrollment.

IELTS >>> academic skills Develop arguments Integrate sources Analyse causes/results Evaluate information Make predictions based on evidence Explain anomalies

Situate IELTS prep within EAP “The necessary restrictions of the IELTS tasks as a representation of academic writing suggests that learners will need to pass beyond the immediate requirements of the test if they are to be adequately prepared for academic study. If learners are aware of the limitations of IELTS in this regard, they will be able to make better informed choices about how to prepare themselves for university study. IELTS should not be the only element in this preparation.” --Anthony Green