THE BASIC RULES
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There are two separate writing tests, one for Academic candidates and one for General Training candidates. For all candidates, the writing paper consists of two tasks and lasts one hour. Writing Task 2 carries more marks than Writing Task 1.
There are two separate writing tests, one for Academic candidates and one for General Training candidates. Before enrolling, you need to decide which test is best for you. See the official IELTS website for advice.
Task | Timing | What do I have to do? | |
---|---|---|---|
Academic Writing |
1 | 20 minutes |
Accurately describe and summarise visual information (e.g. a diagram, chart, graph or table). |
2 |
40 minutes |
Write a discursive essay. You may be asked to:
|
|
General Training Writing | 1 | 20 minutes |
Respond to a given situation (e.g. by writing a letter). You may be asked to request information or explain a situation. |
2 | 40 minutes |
Write a discursive essay. You may be asked to:
|
A mark will be awarded based on the following criteria.
Task | Criteria | What do these criteria mean? | |
---|---|---|---|
Writing Task 1
|
Task Achievement |
Did you answer the question fully and write 150 words? |
|
Writing Task 2 | Task Response |
Did your answer address all of the points in the question? Did you provide a balanced argument ad support your ideas with evidences and examples? Were all of your ideas relevant to the question? Did you write 250 words? |
|
Both tasks | Coherence and Cohesion |
Is your writing easy to understand? Are you ideas well organised and clearly linked? |
|
Lexical Resource | Did you use a wide range of vocabulary accurately and effectively? | ||
Grammatical Range | Did you use a wide range of grammatical structures accurately and effectively? |
[The above information is taken from The Official Cambridge Guide to IELTS Student's Books by Jakeman, V., Cullen, P. and French, A.]
Videos outlining what you must do to achieve your maximum score on the written portion of the IELTS exam. You can access all of Ryan's videos on his YouTube channel HERE.
More sample IELTS Task 1 and Task 2 responses can be found on Ryan's IELTS Blog.
How to succeed in Task 1 of the IELTS Academic writing section.
Watch this video for simple tips to help improve your score in task 2.
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