BLOGS​

Touchstone narratives Focus on what matters the most Latest interesting stories Relevant news Learning beyond the books

  • All
  • All about IELTS
  • All about PTE
  • All about TOEFL
  • Career in the US
  • Choose your country wisely
  • English excellence
  • Expense calculator
  • Home away from home
  • IELTS listening
  • IELTS reading
  • IELTS speaking
  • IELTS writing
  • International student life
  • Opportunities in Australia
  • Opportunities in New Zealand
  • Scholarships
  • Study & career in Canada
  • Study abroad
  • Test Preparation
  • Uncategorized
  • Visa filing for a smooth transition
All
  • All
  • All about IELTS
  • All about PTE
  • All about TOEFL
  • Career in the US
  • Choose your country wisely
  • English excellence
  • Expense calculator
  • Home away from home
  • IELTS listening
  • IELTS reading
  • IELTS speaking
  • IELTS writing
  • International student life
  • Opportunities in Australia
  • Opportunities in New Zealand
  • Scholarships
  • Study & career in Canada
  • Study abroad
  • Test Preparation
  • Uncategorized
  • Visa filing for a smooth transition
study aboard

The Ultimate Guide to Study Abroad | Touchstone

Starting a journey to study abroad is not only about attending classes in a foreign country. It’s a transformative experience that broadens your personality, enriches your cultural understanding, and shapes ...
Read More →
Mastering PTE Vocabulary: Techniques for Success

Mastering PTE Vocabulary: Techniques for Success

As a leading PTE education provider, Touchstone understands the important role of vocabulary mastery in achieving success in English proficiency exams such as the Pearson Test of English (PTE). A ...
Read More →
Time management in the IELTS exam

The Ultimate Guide to Master Time Management in the IELTS Exam

Excelling at the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) goes beyond language proficiency; it’s about strategy, preparation, and managing one of your most precious resources: time. Whether your academic or ...
Read More →

Top IELTS Writing Tips and Tricks to Score 8 Bands

The IELTS Writing section is often perceived as a daunting challenge due to its requirements for language proficiency, time management, and effective communication. Scoring an 8 band in this section ...
Read More →
TOEFL IBT Exam Format Revised: A Better Experience For Test Takers

TOEFL iBT Exam Format Revised: A better experience for test takers

In the continuous effort to improve the TOEFL iBT experience for candidates, the Educational Testing Service (ETS) has announced some key updates including shorter exam time, simplified registration, more payment ...
Read More →
English Pronunciation Made Easy: Tips and Tricks for Clear Speech

English Pronunciation Made Easy: Tips and Tricks for Clear Speech

English Pronunciation Made Easy: Tips and Tricks for Clear Speech Mastering English pronunciation is a key aspect of effective communication. Pronouncing words accurately can enhance your confidence, improve comprehension and ...
Read More →
IDP Identifies Touchstone as the No. 1 Business Partner for IELTS in India for the 10th Time

IDP Identifies Touchstone as the No. 1 Business Partner for IELTS in India for the 10th Time

In a moment of immense pride and accomplishment, Touchstone Educationals is thrilled to announce that we have been awarded the prestigious No. 1 Business Partner Award in India by IDP ...
Read More →
English Idioms: A Fun and Fascinating Dive into Expression

English Idioms: A Fun and Fascinating Dive into Expression

Have you ever been caught off guard when someone says, “It’s raining cats and dogs”? Or perhaps you’ve wondered why people say, “Break a leg” to wish someone good luck? ...
Read More →

Breaking News: Starting July, Australia to increase the limit on work hours for foreign students; allow post-study work right extension

The Australian government has recently increased the permissible cap of work hours from 40 hours to 48 hours per fortnight for international students, along with the post-study ‘stay and work’ ...
Read More →
Shopping Cart

Listening

The IELTS Listening test consists of four recordings (four parts) from native English speakers with ten (10) questions in each recording (part).

Recording 1: an everyday social conversation between two people

Recording 2: a monologue set in an everyday social context

Recording 3: an educational conversation with upto four people

Recording 4: a monologue on an academic subject

Listening test scores will be based on your ability to understand the main ideas,
factual information, opinions, attitude and purpose of the speaker and your ability
to follow the development of ideas.

No. of questions: 40 Marks:

each question is worth one (1) mark

Total time: 30 minutes (+ 2 minutes review time )

Speaking

The IELTS Speaking test assesses your pronunciation, grammar, accuracy, fluency and lexical resources while speaking English. There are three (3) parts to this test, with each part fulfilling a specific function in terms of task input, interaction pattern and the test taker’s output.

Part 1: Introduction & Interview This part includes general questions about the test taker like residence, work,family, interests, etc.

Part 2: Long Run Cue cards are shared on a particular topic and one (1) minute will be given to prepare to speak for upto two (2) minutes on the topic.

Part 3: Discussion This part gives you the opportunity to discuss the topic from the cue card in further detail, in a more general and abstract way

Total time: 11-14 minutes

Reading

The IELTS Reading test is designed to test a wide range of reading skills including reading for skimming, details, gist, understanding arguments and writer’s opinions,attitude and purpose

IELTS Academic Reading – It includes three (3) reading passages (with a variety of questions) ranging from descriptive and factual to discursive and analytical. These passages are of general interest dealing with interesting and recognizably appropriate issues, with at least one passage containing a detailed logical argument

Note: The reading texts may contain non-verbal materials as well like graphs, diagrams or illustrations.

IELTS General Reading – It includes three (3) daily passages (with 2-3 short texts in the first passage, 2 texts in the second passage and 1 long text in the third passage), based on an English-speaking environment, from notices, newspapers, magazines or advertisements.

Reading passage 1: texts based on social survival, like advertisements, notices and timetables

Reading passage 2: texts based on workplace survival, like contracts, job descriptions, staff development & training material

Reading passage 3: texts based on general reading, involving more extended prose and a complex structure.

No. of questions: 40

Marks: each question is worth one (1) mark

Total time: 60 minutes (no additional transfer time)

Note: Please note that the question types in the Listening & Reading sections can include multiple choice answers, true or false answers, matching information/headings or sentence, table & flow-chart completion.

Listening

The IELTS Listening test consists of four recordings (four parts) from native English speakers with ten (10) questions in each recording (part).

Recording 1: an everyday social conversation between two people

Recording 2: a monologue set in an everyday social context

Recording 3: an educational conversation with upto four people

Recording 4: a monologue on an academic subject

Listening test scores will be based on your ability to understand the main ideas,
factual information, opinions, attitude and purpose of the speaker and your ability
to follow the development of ideas.

No. of questions: 40 Marks:

each question is worth one (1) mark

Total time: 30 minutes (+10 minutes transfer time)