The study methods that helped the teacher achieve an IELTS score of 9.0.

Creating outlines when writing and using chatGPT to find more ideas for the Speaking test is how Minh Duc achieved a 9.0 IELTS score.

Dang Minh Duc, 28 years old, achieved an IELTS score of 9.0, with scores of 9 in Reading and Listening, and 8.5 in Writing and Speaking, in the computer-based test in Hanoi on November 21st.

According to statistics on the IELTS website, in 2022, approximately 1% of IELTS test-takers in Vietnam achieved a score of 8.5 or higher. As for the 9.0 mark, only a little over a dozen people reached it.

Dang Minh Duc. Photo: Provided by the subject.

Minh Duc studied Spanish Language and Economics at Grinnell University in Iowa, USA. After graduating in 2019, he returned to Vietnam and tried his hand at teaching IELTS. Thanks to his knowledge and experience living abroad, Duc easily achieved an 8.5 on all six of his previous attempts.

In this exam, Duc said the biggest change was in his writing skills. He created an outline, focusing on building logic, allocating time according to the rule of thirds: 15 minutes for describing the graph (Part 1) and 45 minutes for writing the essay (Part 2).

In Part 1, the questions cover various formats such as line graphs, bar charts, tables, maps, and process diagrams, each with a large amount of data. To achieve a high score, according to Duc, candidates must learn how to group data into paragraphs, rather than simply describing the data. Additionally, candidates need to remember the specific vocabulary and structures used for each question type to write fluent sentences.

In the essay writing section, Duc discovered a weakness from previous exams: choosing arguments that weren't directly related to the question, resulting in disjointed and unsupported points. Therefore, he improved by spending 10 minutes creating a detailed outline, thinking about and organizing his arguments in a cause-and-effect sequence before writing.

"This method is very effective because we have to think more carefully and logically about the arguments we present," Duc said. He often asks himself many questions when writing, such as: Do I really believe this point? Is what I'm saying here really true in all cases?

To develop high-quality arguments, the key lies in social understanding. Duc usually aims to read three articles a day from Times or Vnexpress International because the writing style and topics of these two publications are quite similar to high-scoring IELTS essays.

"It helped me achieve a dual goal: gaining more knowledge and learning a lot of cool vocabulary and effective writing skills," Duc said.

Furthermore, Germany advises viewing an issue from multiple perspectives, such as economic, educational , and social viewpoints, or from the perspective of an individual, family, community, nation, and international viewpoint. This allows IELTS learners and test-takers to enrich their arguments.

Germans prioritize writing sentences of moderate length, avoiding overly long sentences (more than four clauses) or excessive use of sophisticated vocabulary that makes the sentences cumbersome and unnatural.

According to Duc, writing practice takes a lot of time, which discourages many students from studying. Duc's tip is to "break down" the essay, spending 15-20 minutes practicing writing a paragraph of the body instead of writing the whole essay, then gradually shortening this practice time.

Regarding the Speaking section, Duc observed that the examiners highly valued the candidates' naturalness in answering. Therefore, before worrying about expressing themselves in English, learners can practice answering questions in Vietnamese first, especially the difficult social commentary questions in the third part of this skill.

To avoid getting stuck for ideas, Duc often listens to sample answers or finds answers using chatGPT, then practices rephrasing these sentences in his own words.

"Using this method will save time thinking of ideas and allow me to practice the new vocabulary and expressions I've learned from the sample answers," according to Duc.

In the Listening section, the key to achieving a high score is understanding each sentence in the conversations, rather than just focusing on keywords. Duc explains that test-takers often set traps by mentioning words found in the incorrect answer choices, leading candidates to believe they are the correct answers.

"If you only hear a few words but don't understand the whole sentence, it's very easy to be tricked," Minh said.

To practice this skill, Duc listens to the audio from the Cambridge IELTS series. In addition, candidates can combine listening to other sources according to their preferences, and practice summarizing the information to check if they have truly understood the content.

Finally, regarding Reading skills, Duc believes that analyzing the problem after completing the exercise is more important than simply checking and reviewing the answers. Duc often questions why a particular answer is correct, how he initially thought about choosing the wrong answer, and what was the flaw in that line of thinking.

When reading, candidates must deduce the author's intended message, identify the text's flow, and summarize the main idea of ​​each paragraph.

"This will help test-takers pay attention to the details embedded in the questions and avoid repeatedly making the same mistakes," Duc explained.

Doan Hung

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