The decision to stop IELTS paper-based testing will officially apply after March 29.
Reasons for stopping IELTS paper-based test
On their official websites and Facebook pages, both the British Council and IDP Vietnam announced that from March 29, all IELTS exams in Vietnam will be held in the form of computer-based exams. This means that the two units will stop taking IELTS on paper. "The two forms of IELTS on paper and on computer are similar in terms of test format, questions and scoring methods," the British Council and IDP emphasized.
Informing Thanh Nien , representatives of the British Council and IDP in Vietnam said that for those who register for the paper test after March 29, the test center will contact candidates to inform them of alternative options, including free conversion to the computer-based IELTS test; free conversion to a paper-based IELTS test date before or on March 29; or receiving a full refund of the test fee.
According to the announcement from the British Council and IDP in Vietnam, the suspension of the paper-based IELTS test aims to provide a faster, more efficient and convenient test experience for candidates while still maintaining the quality and global reliability of the IELTS test. These two units added that when taking the IELTS test on a computer, candidates can receive results within about 2 days along with many other benefits.
On their websites, the British Council and IDP added that after March 29, there are only two cases where candidates can continue to take the IELTS paper-based test. The first is for candidates who need special support. And the second is that the IELTS paper-based test can be held in a limited number of cases at educational institutions, universities, schools including inter-level schools, academies and English training centers affiliated with these units.
Many Southeast Asian countries join the move
Previously, as Thanh Nien reported, the IELTS co-organizers in Malaysia and Thailand also stopped offering paper-based IELTS nationwide or only for certain subjects from March 2024. Responding to Thanh Nien at that time, a spokesperson for IDP IELTS said the above changes were made to improve and ensure the efficiency of operations and test management "in accordance with the circumstances in these countries".
Previously, from early August 2023, the IELTS test co-organizers in another Asian country, Iran, also suspended paper-based testing, allowing only computer-based registration. Some candidates were informed that the decision to suspend the test stemmed from concerns about cheating at test centers. International media also recently reported on suspicions that many IELTS test papers were leaked before the test, including answers, in Pakistan.
Students use AI to study IELTS
"The cancellation of the paper-based IELTS test is an inevitable move and will bring many benefits to candidates. The only disadvantage is that it will take more time to get used to the computer-based test format. And in my opinion, Vietnam will soon follow this trend, maybe around the end of 2024 or in 2025," Mr. Dinh Quang Tung, Academic Director of YSchool, predicted.
According to Mr. Tung, the benefit of taking the test on a computer is to eliminate the problem of buying "real" IELTS test papers before the test date, because each candidate will be randomly "rolled the dice" for a test, no two candidates are the same and cannot memorize it. Taking the test on a computer also reduces the use of paper and gives results sooner, and the test time is also more flexible than taking the test on paper, Mr. Tung added.
IELTS (International English Language Testing System) is an international English language testing system widely recognized by thousands of universities, governments and businesses worldwide. The exam was launched in 1989 and is currently jointly owned by IDP, the British Council and Cambridge University Examinations and Press (UK). According to statistics from the exam organizers, every year there are over 2 million candidates taking the IELTS exam worldwide.
Currently, IELTS is accepted by more than 100 higher education institutions in Vietnam to convert test results into English scores for admission purposes. The Ministry of Education and Training also allows candidates with IELTS 4.0 or higher to be exempted from the high school graduation exam in foreign languages. In 2022, both IDP and the British Council in Vietnam have issued 124,567 IELTS certificates.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hoi-dong-anh-va-idp-se-dung-thi-ielts-tren-giay-tai-viet-nam-vi-sao-185250107095403443.htm
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