300 60
y
50
200 40
30
100 20
x
10
A
B
Make sure you can match each expression in bold to features on the graphs.
17
I.. TH ' " ' C·GOOD "CTO'
2 a Read through the language in the Usef ul language box and ch eck any
expressions you don't know.
Useful language
Adjectives Nouns
slight / m argin al increase / rise (in )
steady / gradual decrease / declin e / fall / downward trend (in )
a
sharp / steep / rapid
m arked / significant
Time exp ressions
Verbs in (abo ut) 2000
rise / in crease since 1999
fall / decline /decrease for (n early / just over / m ore th an ) ten years
be at / reach a peak between 1994 and 2004
to
level out during the period 1994 to 2004
rem ain steady
exceed Adverbs
slightly / steadily / gradually
sharply / steeply / rapidly
3 Complete the descr iption of Graph C using terms from the list above. When
you've finished, compare your answers with an oth er student.
18
Haves and have-nots 4
I I Healthcare
2 Adult Literacy Rates
3 City vs Country
4 Life Expectancy
"&'?Jo ~:II ",,~
,t:: .§
~ 3 Study the diagrams more carefully to answer these questions.
A 1 What do the figures at the top of the chart (41, 42, etc.) represent?
2 Who lives the longest of all, men or women, and where?
B
The chart shows how many people B 3 How many 'slices' of the pie chart are there? What do they represent?
there are per doctor in each country.
4 What do the figures (20,000, etc.) represent?
Laos
~cl:~
5 In which country is a doctor responsible for the fewest patients?
C 6 What does the bar chart compare?
7 What do the letters F and M represent?
~u 8 What do the figures at the top of the chart (38.5, 61.7, etc.) represent?
D 9 What proportion of the world is described as 'developing' in 1990?
Rwanda
72,990 10 What proportion of the world is predicted to be 'developing' in 2025?
4 Now use the information in the diagrams to check your answers to Exercise 1.
C D
The chart shows the per centage of each region s male and These diagrams show the proportion of the world's population fiving in urban and rural areas
female population aged over fifteen who can read and write. in 1990 and the forecast for 2025.
100 96.2- 97.7
91 .1 92.5
90 ,.
89.2 90.6
~ ~.-----
Urban
(developing
world): 25%
~--
Urban
(developing
world): 46%
80 -76.6-
70 -66
I: .
Rural Urban
61 .7
r" - + ---+- (developing (developed
r--
(%)
80
50 r--
40 f-36 .5
,
I' :,
il I:
I
world): 52%
Urban
(developed
world): 13%
Rural
(developed
world): 17% \--f- world): 4%
30 i
Rural Rural
20 I::i •
T-T-- (developed --\,1-- (developing
"
world): 6% world): 37%
10
1990 World population 2025 World population
o
F M F M F M F M F M
Africa America Asia Europe Oceania
33
Shanghai Mexico City
Population (mi ll ions) 13.6 16.9
% Homes with water/electricity 94 100 95 94 100
Murders per 100,000 people 12.4 2.5 2.5 27.6 1.4
% Children in second ary school 90 58 94 62 97
Levels of ambient noise (1- 10) 6 8 5 6 4
Traffic/km per hour in rush hour 30.4 16.6 24.5 12.8 44 .8
Clean air (score out of ten) 3 7 7 2 7
Shanghai
1 IELTS listening tasks may include graphs, charts and tables. Read the general
advice below before attempting the exam tasks.
TASK APPROACH • Study the diagram so that you understand how the information is organised.
Look carefully at - the heading(s) and layout.
- the main features, e.g. the unit of measurement, the
scale, any Key.
• Try to describe the diagram in your mind - this will help you listen more
effectively.
• Many tasks with tables and diagrams involve note completion, so follow the
advice in the Exam briefing box on page 20 (Unit 2).
THE CU LTURAL SC ENE
ORGANISING AND 4 Use information from the table to complete the text below.
PRESENTING DATA
Attendance at cultural events in Great Britain
Percentages of adults asked
1987-88 1991-92 1997-98
Cinema 34 44 54
Plays 24 23 23
Art galleries/exhibilions 21 21 22
Classical music 12 12 12
Ballel 6 6 6
KEY LANGUAGE
Cohesion: avoiding repetition Opera 5 6 6
.. ex 12, p. 195 Conlemporary Dance 4 3 4
e.g. did so, the (ormer ... the
latter. .. respectively, etc. Source: Social Trends 30 The Stationery Office
WRITING PRACTICE When asked in 1997- 98 whether Ihey attended parlicular types of cullUral events
Describing information from 'these days', 1. .. ......... adults said Ihat Ihey attended ballet or opera, while
a table (guided practice) 2 ................ said that they attended plays. The proportion of adults who attend
.. ex. 2, p. 208
most types of cultural events has 3 ............... over the last decade or so. The
Describing information from a
table (exam task) exception to this is cinema attendance. Whereas in 1987~88, 4 . .. ... of adults
.. ex. 3, p. 209 said they went to the cinema, 5 ............... said that they did so in 1997- 98 .
5 For a detailed Task approach to this kind of task, turn to Writing practice
Exercise 3, page 209 .
EXPRESSING DISAGREEMENT 1 As part of your answer to a Task 2 question, you may wish to challenge a fact
or claim.
e.g. Insurance fraud is a crime without a victim.
68
Haza rd w a rn i ng 10
c louds
condensation
evaporation
evaporation
sea
83
NATURAL FORC ES
b Write the correct intro ductory sentence from page 83 o n the dotted lin e
in the description of th e water cycle below.
MARKI NG THE STAGES 3 Study the diagram of th e global water cycle on page 83 a nd co mplete the
IN A PROCESS gapped description below. Use the verbs below in acti ve o r pass ive fo rms, as
appropriate.
The heat ofthe sun 1 ... ............... ....... .. .... water to evap orate
F om seas, rivers alld lakes. In addition, water vapour
2 ............................... Fom the sod and F om p lm d s. As tilt; water
vap our then 3 .... .. .. .... .. .. .. .......... .. . into the atlllosphere, it cools and
condenses into clouds. The clouds 4 .......... .. .... ... .. .. ...... .. b!f winds
u nM thC!f 5 ........ ...... .. .. .... .. .. ..... h(gh !Jr0und. At this sta3e, the
water droplets 6 ............................... back to earth as rain, had or
snow. After rain has (allen on land, it either evap orates into the
at;- or it 7 .. .. ........ .. .... .. .. .... .. .. . b!f sods and plants. Som e ofit also
8 ............................... into rivers and lakes and eventual!!:! reaches
the sea.
First, Nex t, Th en, Mea nwhile, Later, Duri ng this process, Afterwards,
At this stage, Subsequ ell tly, Eventually, Finn lly,
R4
You II". and I.arn 12
7 Complete the following sentences and link the ideas using suitable expressions
from the Useful language box on page 100.
Football hooligans receive a lot of publicity. There are millions of spectators
who cause no trouble at all.
2 Many people feel that censorship is unacceptable in a free society. It's
undeniable that children need some form of protection from .. .
3 Medical advances are extending the human lifespan. Not everyone wants ...
4 Smoking is known to cause ... People have the right to ...
5 City life undoubtedly has many advantages such as ... City dwellers face
many problems, including .. .
IDENTIFYING KEY 2 Study the chart in the exam task on page 102 and answer the following
INFORMATION questions. In which subject(s) did:
pupils of both sexes have most success?
2 pupils of both sexes have least success?
3 boys and girls have very similar results?
4 girls have most success? (Percentage?)
5 girls have a much better pass rate than boys? Compare the two pass rates in
the subject where the difference between the girls and the boys was the
greatest.
6 boys have a much better pass rate than girls? Compare the two pass rates in
the subject where the difference between the boys and the girls was the
greatest.
101
~ BRAINPOWER
AVOIDING REPETITION 3 Think of another way of saying the each of the following. If you need help,
look at the expressions in the box below.
do badly (in an exam ) 5 percentage
2 nearly twice as many 6 significantly (more, etc. )
3 achieve a good grade 7 comparable
4 exam pass rate 8 approximately
EXAM PRACTICE
70%
61 .5 Girls
60%
50%
44 .4 41.9 42 .2
40% - -
32.7
30% - -
23.0 20.7 23.4
20.2 17.9 18.9
20% - - r-- -
10.3
b r--
Ie
10% - -
r-- iii
-
0%
~\s'0 1-<;<;>'0'l y\\S\ol'l Qes\Q(\N
\':.(\Q
(:;eoQ 0-<;\\' (\0\0'0
'&,\ec'0
WRITING PRACTICE
Interpreting statistics (guided
practice)
~ ex. 6 p. 211
1 )
~ INSIDE INFORMATION
Questions 8-/0
Choose THREE leffers A-G.
What THREE reasons did children give for not reading books?
INTERPRETING AND You will sometimes have to present information from more than one diagram.
PRESENTING DATA Read the following advice before you begin the task below.
~ Task I
TASK APPROACH • Study each diagram individually to get the overall picture.
• Be clea r about what informatio n each diag ram contributes to the subject.
• Look for oppor tu nities to compare data between diagrams as well as within
diagram s.
• When there is a lot of da ta, be very selective in deciding what to repo rt.
The proper channel, 14
NB Try not to use the exact words of the question. (See page 102.) How else
could you say between 1987 and 1997 or where people got news, for example?
70
60 Television
50
40
Newspaper
30 25
20
9 9
10
o Radio
1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997
60 56 ------------------------________________________
50 ~----~~~--~~~~~~~~_______________________ News~per
40
40
30
20
r------~
19,,&
'_,J
~~
12
10 C <: 0 <r:"'--sO- I .,gl
Radio
0
1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997
Figures do not include other sources or people who responded 'Don 't know',
117
~ fUTURE PROSPECTS
Questions 1-10
Complete the notes below. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER
for each answer.
TASK APPROACH • Study the diagram (s) carefully and make sure you understand the process.
• Start with a brief description of the structure and function of the equipment.
• Continue by describing the process step-by-step.
GUIDED PRACTICE 2 Study the diagram of a canal lock on page 131. Read the first section of the
model answer and fill in gaps 1-4, using words or phrases from the Useful
language box.
130
Fallin. forward 16
Lower water
level
U~~
level
Lower water A canal lock is a s.!fstem which 1 ........................... hoals to
~
II~
level
move from one water level to another.. It 2 ........................... a
' - - I--
~
H
section ofcanal, 1t11!Je enou,gh to take one or more hoals, with
- r-- '='} -
,gates at each end. The,gates have valves 3 ......................... ..
Cl ' addles', which 4 ........................... lowenn,g
P I. the water level
I
in the lock.
Useful language
Function
a tool which allows / enables .. . to + info
a device (which is used) for + -ing
a system which prevents / stops ... from + -ing
Structure
It consists of .. . (is) called ... (is) shaped like ... (is) made of ...
(is) divided into ... sections
The .... (is / are) connected to ... by ...
4 Complete the explanation of how a canal lock works. Write about 100 words.
When a boat needs to move to a lower water level, the upper gates . ..
131
TRANSPORT
15,000 t--
Travel per person by car 3000 -~ '
-
kilometres per year
-
:;
--
"i'
::--
50,00
"
- ,'<
':
-
,
f- ,- - f-
I'i
f--
1000
- -;--
:1
~ - - - ~
o ~ ~
- L..-
o '--
50 Commuting time
- -
- - -
minutes per day (all modes, both ways)
I--- -
-
40
20 - f- - f- f--- - I--- -
::: -
10 f-- - l, f-- I- - I---
o ~
REMINDERS DON'T
• try to describe every detail. Concentrate on key features and significant
trends.
• speculate about reasons. Co ncentrate on the fact s.
• spe nd longer than 20 minutes on Task 1 in the exam. Task 2 carries twice as
many marks.
DO
• begin with an introductory statement.
• think about the clea rest way to express informat ion, e.g. vile in tizrec, twice ti S
l1lallY, etc.
• look for opportunities to co mpare information, be/ween graphs and charts
as well as within them.
• think about how to group the informatio n and link points together logically.
• finish with a concluding com ment on general trend s.
1C:fI
Through the lens 20
~ Part 3: Discussion The two-way discussion should take four to five minutes.
Examiner: Begin by asking the following questions. Listen to the candidate's
answers carefully. Be prepared to react and ask appropriate follow-up questions.
Candidate: Listen carefully to the examiner. Answer the questions as fully as
possible.
General strategies
• You are not expected to have technical knowledge or to use specialist vocabulary.
• Your task is description - don't try to give reasons for developments.
• Don't try to describe every detail - concentrate on significant features.
VARYING YOUR LANGUAGE 2 In a task like this, which concerns a number of similar developments, you need
to avoid overusing the verbs you use to introduce each stage. Think of at least
three other ways to say was invented.
3 Before attempting the task on page 166, look at the Useful language box on the
same page.
165
APPEARANCES
structure
consists of ...
... is divided into ... sections I parts
{
is made of ...
size
. { long I wide I high
••• 151 metre . I
In engt
hi WI'dhlh'
t elgh t
(slightly I considerably) bigger I heavier I more complex than .. .
... is (approximately I less than) half the size of ...
{
(only) a fraction of the size of ...
EXAM PRACTICE
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
WRITING PRACTICE The diagrams below show stages in the development of the camera
Describing objects since its invention in 1839.
~ ex. Band 9, p. 213-214
Presenting and justifying an Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information
opinion shown below.
~ ex. 10, p. 215
Write at least 150 words.
1839 Daguerrotype
wood
1888 Kodak No.1
metal
brass
1925 Leica 1
36cm
"'--Internet
connection
8cm
166