Exciting News: IELTS Success Story - Part 1

Thanh's impressive scores:

• Listening: 9.0
• Reading: 9.0
• Speaking: 9.0
• Writing: 8.0
• Overall Band Score: 9.0

Phung Tien Thanh, 25 years old, from Vinh Phuc, received his IELTS Listening score on December 25th after a "nervous day of waiting." This was a retake for Thanh, even though he had already scored 8.0 a few days earlier.

Thanh was overjoyed to receive a perfect score of 9.0 in Listening. With this result, along with his 9.0 in Reading and Speaking, and 8.0 in Writing, his overall score increased from 8.5 to 9.0. According to IELTS statistics, in 2023, only about 1% of test-takers in Vietnam achieved scores of 8.5 or higher.

"I am very happy and satisfied with my results," Thanh said.

As a former student specializing in Information Technology at Vinh Phuc High School for the Gifted, Thanh focused mainly on Mathematics throughout his school years. It wasn't until his final year when he decided to apply to Foreign Trade University (FTU) that the young man, born in 1999, started focusing on learning English for his application.

After being accepted into the International Business program at FTU, Thanh became more engaged with English as he found the language useful for both studies and entertainment. In his final year of university, Thanh began teaching English to high school students, which he continues to do today.

Thanh mentioned that he had been thinking about taking the IELTS test since last year but only managed to find time to start serious preparation at the beginning of this year.

According to Thanh, vocabulary learning is the key to improving all skills, especially Reading. Since university, he has developed a habit of learning any word he encounters for the second time.

"I know learning one new word might seem insignificant, but once you've acquired 100-200 words, you'll notice yourself becoming slightly better, and reading becomes a bit easier. That's what motivates me to keep learning," Thanh explained. "Thanks to my diligent vocabulary study, no Reading test has ever overwhelmed me with new words."

For the Listening skill, Thanh believes that improving reaction time is crucial - specifically, how quickly one can process and understand English sentences. He acknowledges that this skill requires extensive practice to master. Therefore, for many years, Thanh has consistently listened to English content in areas he enjoys, including science, history, law, practical knowledge, and daily life topics.

Thanh mentioned that due to his previous foundation, he didn't need to learn much new content for these two skills but mainly focused on exam techniques. He often struggled with True/False/Not given questions. To overcome this challenge, Thanh created an Excel spreadsheet to record situations where he commonly lost points and developed strategies to select the correct answers.

For the Speaking skill, starting in grade 12, Thanh practiced by talking to himself during his walks to school. In his first year of university, he made friends with a foreign student to practice together, increasing his use of English in daily life.

When preparing for IELTS, Thanh mainly focused on improving his final sound pronunciation, verb conjugation, and speaking reflexes. He noted that during the test, examiners often ask additional questions beyond the main topic to evaluate candidates' reflexes and fluency.

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Source: vnexpress - 29/12/2024 - https://vnexpress.net/chang-trai-dat-9-0-ielts-sau-7-nam-hoc-tieng-anh-4832872.html