Welcome to My IELTS Classroom, the podcast where two English experts talk all things IELTS.
I'm Shelley Cornick.
And I'm Nick Long.
And today we are looking at listening matching questions.
What are the basics of listening matching questions?
What technique do we recommend for more difficult types of questions?
And how will Nick and I tackle what I think is an extremely difficult question in Cambridge 17?
Good evening Nick, how are you doing?
Good evening, I'm doing alright, thank you.
How are you this fine weekend?
I am good actually, yes, I feel like spring has come.
Yeah, spring has sprung.
Spring has definitely sprung.
I'm looking out the window and it is what now?
Almost 7pm.
And there is still bright sunshine.
The horses are glistening in the sunshine out there.
So it's nice, isn't it?
It is, yeah.
I do think the weather makes a big difference.
Huge difference.
It's getting dark at 8.30, 9 o'clock here now, so.
Right.
Mm-hmm.
Do you get white nights in Latvia?
Almost.
Not quite.
Really?
Yeah, it's like.
Yeah.
You get like, in the middle of summer, the sun goes down at about 12.
Wow.
Okay.
So pretty much midnight.
And comes up at about three.
So it's not quite the same as in St.
Petersburg, but it's close.
Uh-huh.
I've decided that I am going to open my swimming season next weekend.
Ooh, in the lake?
In the lake.
So that will be middle of April.
So I haven't swum since my birthday, which is the middle of September.
Mm-hmm.
So I think it will still be pretty chilly, but I might just do like two quick mini laps, the little 200 meter laps and then out.
And then it started, I'm back in, but I feel like I'm ready for my spring exercise.
Definitely.
Great.
It'll be good.
So today Nick, I thought what we would do.
I was having a look through the Cambridge books just for a bit of inspiration really,
I was sort of looking at the newest book, Cambridge 17, just to see.
Have they changed any of the questions?
Is there anything new that's happening there?
Most of the stuff seems the same, as it always has to be honest.
But while I was looking at the questions I realised that on the podcast we have never really spoken about alternative methods or alternative approaches to box matching questions.
We've got...
An episode?
God, when, how long ago was it we did that one, Nick?
A couple of years, maybe?
Must have been, yeah, must have been a couple of years ago, at least.
Yeah, so we've got one episode where we look at box matching questions in general.
And actually, I had a look at that today.
It's a fantastic episode.
We do loads of practice listenings.
We go through the two different types of box matching questions.
And then we look at them in part two and part three.
So if you are new to us, welcome.
We are very glad to see you here.
But if you've never done any listening with us before, you may want to go back And you know.
Listen through that episode first, because I think that is a fantastic introduction to the general principles of box matching.
I will put a link in the show notes to this.
So that will be on today's blog.
I'm a little bit behind with blogs.
I apologize if people have been looking for them.
They should appear this week.
It'll be in this blog, but it will also be, you know, if you scroll down on your wherever you're listening, if you're listening on Apple or Google, if you scroll down and just look at the episode notes, I'll put a link in there.
So you can go and do that one.
But just I thought, as a warm up Nick, I thought we could actually start by just doing a basic let's start with a part two box matching activity, just to remind everybody of you know what they look like and the best way or the sort of yeah, the best practice in terms of how to tackle them.
So I will share my screen now with you.
Nick, if you are listening at home, this is the time when you should definitely go to our blog blogmyartsclassroomcom, so you can actually see this question in front of you.
So, like all box matching activities nick, we've got a list of questions.
We know what the questions are because they have the numbers next to them, right?
So we have got questions 15 16 17 18, 19 and 20.
And what are those items, nick?
Yeah, the items are locations on the farm.
Yes,
So I've never done this.
So this is from Cambridge 17 Test 2 Part 2.
I've chosen all new questions for us.
I didn't do them in the practice, so I thought we could both be students today.
Yeah.
Okay.
So whenever you've got a box matching activity, the words next to the numbers so here we've got locations on the farm are kind of the least important things, aren't they?
They are, yes.
So in the 30 seconds before you start listening, I would not focus on those particular parts.
You might want to quickly look at them individually.
So you understand the main topic.
So here it's definitely locations on the farm.
But why don't we need to worry too much about those words, Nick?
Because those words will be clearly used by the speaker.
And when we're going to move from one question to the next, it's going to be very, very obvious.
Yeah, they're going to signpost it.
They're going to appear in order.
So the first one we've got there is the dairy.
You're going to hear the dairy first, then the large barn, then the small barn, then the stables, then the shed and then the parkland.
And as you said, IELTS don't hide, do they, when they move between these items, right?
So obviously always have a quick look at those things.
But the most important things for any box matching is what's actually inside the box.
So this box has got this little heading.
It says activities and we have got A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H.
So my maths is not great, but I think A to H in the alphabet is more than six letters, isn't it?
It's eight letters.
There are always one or two extra items out there.
Right.
So they are just there.
They are the distractors.
They are there just to try to confuse you.
The other thing to remember is that when you've got six seven, eight items in the box, you must only use each item or each answer once.
There is a second type of box matching where you only have three options in the box.
It's always A, B, C. Mm-hmm.
For those ones, you are able to use each answer more than once, which is obvious, because if there are six questions and only three choices, you absolutely have to use them more than once.
But for this type of question, once you've chosen, for example, D...
That answer should not be chosen again.
You can.
I mean, if you don't understand anything, you know you could put D for all the answers and hope that one of them is correct.
But it might be the distractor.
So for this type, you can only use each letter once.
That's the main thing, isn't it?
And I guess really for this type of question Nick, where we've got, you know, the eight possible answers.
Mm-hmm.
As we're listening, what would be the main piece of advice we would give to our students for this type of activity?
It would be to try and think of synonyms that might be used for these activities, because you're probably not going to hear those words in the box used when the person is speaking.
Exactly.
So and I think that is it.
In fact, what you'll probably find is is that, as Nick just said, the actual answer most likely will be given to you in a paraphrase form.
But what IELTS is going to do for each of the answers.
So just take, for example, the first location is the dairy.
Okay.
So option A, the first activity is shopping.
All right.
Let's imagine shopping is not the answer.
Yeah.
They might actually use the word shopping.
Yes, they might.
Yeah. while they describe the dairy.
So they might say something like the dairy used to be a shopping centre, but we have converted it into a place to milk the cows.
So be really careful when you're listening.
You might hear lots of the words in the answers, but usually when you hear the exact same words as the answers, that is an indication that it is not the answer.
If that makes sense, right?
Because what we're listening for are phrases that have the same meaning as the items in the box.
We're not just listening for the words in the box.
We're listening for phrases that have got the same meaning.
And what IELTS does to trick lower level students.
So, for example, I can see that D, the answer is eating and drinking.
I bet we will hear the words eating and drinking a lot... Yes.
...throughout this description.
However...
Eating and drinking is not going to happen maybe in any of the locations on the farm.
They'll just keep using some of these words to trick you.
So the best bit of advice we can offer is really don't focus so much on the actual words in the box.
Focus on the meaning of the sentences matching them.
So, as a little practice then, why don't we go through Nick, just quickly, all of the different activities which are the possible answers?
And then you and I will try to guess what words we might hear as the paraphrases.
So the first activity is shopping.
So what could we hear?
Maybe buy stuff yeah, i think you might heard.
I think you might hear the word gift maybe, or purchase or buy yeah, so there's always a gift shop on a farm in england now, okay.
So option b, then watching cows being milked.
I would say for watching, they might use the word view Yes or C yeah,
You can see milk being taken from our cows.
Yeah, I think this is quite tricky, right?
Because it's a passive, isn't it?
Cows being milked.
So somebody is basically, as you said, taking the milk.
Mm-hmm.
From the cow.
So if you're going to see them, I don't know, put that equipment on the poor cow and get the milk.
Yeah.
Okay.
Seeing old farming equipment.
They might say something like combine harvester or something like that.
Mechanical rather than electric.
Equipment.
Yeah.
So what I think, I think you're absolutely right.
I think often what they do in these boxes is they have some sort of summary.
So when it says here, see old farming equipment, as you said I expect it will probably be They're not going to say farming equipment.
They're probably going to give examples of farming equipment.
So you said combine harvester.
Collection of tractors.
I was going to say tractors, plow.
I mean, it's quite high-level vocabulary, but I'd probably be listing for examples of farming equipment.
Okay.
Eating and drinking...
Mm-hmm.
Food and drink.
Food and drink.
Maybe there's a canteen.
Get something to eat.
Yes.
Right.
Exactly.
So I like that, Nick, because synonyms aren't always word for word, are they?
Yeah.
They can be... Yeah.
Okay.
Starting a trip.
It's a bit weird on this one, isn't it?
Yeah.
So I'm guessing at one of these places...
You might be able to have maybe like a tour or an excursion.
Yeah.
So that would be the words I'd be listening for.
Seeing.
Now, this is quite difficult vocabulary, I think, for some students.
Seeing rare breeds of animals.
What is a rare breed?
I guess it's going to be a type of cow, horse, sheep or something like that, isn't it?
Yes.
And what makes something rare?
Usually, like, the colour patterns, maybe.
Yeah.
So it could be a black sheep, for example.
It could be a black... Yeah, it could be a black sheep.
I mean, I'm not sure what it is, but I reckon it'll be something...
Yeah, maybe they might use a word like different or unique.
Unique, unusual.
Yeah, different or unique.
Helping to look after the animals.
Mm-hmm.
Again, I'm guessing this will be a description maybe of different ways that you can look after animals.
So if you're on a farm, what do you think that might involve?
Grooming.
Shearing the sheep, for example.
Right.
So grooming, maybe like say brushing the animals.
Maybe it would be like they might use a word like blacksmith, if it's you know, if they're looking after a horse, sort of doing its hooves and stuff like that.
That's interesting, because I understood it that maybe the children or the family might be able to help look after the animals.
So it might be maybe they get to brush a horse or maybe you get to feed the goats or something.
But it could be something more complicated like a blacksmith.
So maybe you can like help make the shoes or something.
Mm-hmm.
And then using farming tools.
So this one, which one is this one similar to, using farming tools?
Seeing old farming equipment.
Yeah.
So what is the key difference between those two answers?
Seeing and using.
Right.
So now we might have the same tools like the tractor or a spade or something, but now you are actually going to be using them rather than just looking at them.
Understanding the different options.
If there are options which are similar, like seeing old farming equipment and using farming tools, or maybe are there any other things which are similar here.
Well, there's a lot about animals, isn't there?
Like seeing rare breeds, helping to look after, watching cows being milked.
Yes, I think that one.
I think watching cows being milked and helping to look after animals is quite similar.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So the more you can look at these, understand the difference between them.
Hopefully you're going to be able to recognize them as they start speaking.
So once they press play and once the recording starts...
You're going to first hear the dairy.
Listen carefully.
Don't just listen for the words to match.
You know, don't just match words that you hear in the box.
Listen to what they're saying to you.
What can you actually do on these locations?
And how well can it match?
My only other tip would be when we finish, we're going to have two answers that we have not used.
Have a look at those and just check.
They are definitely not answers that they weren't anything you know.
Nothing was really said about them, or they were just
The distractors.
If you're a really good student, what you can do as you listen is you can actually listen for these distractors.
They are going to try to trick us, right?
So as well as listening for the answers, you could also...
Listen for the ways that you think IELTS is trying to trick you into choosing the wrong answer.
Did they use the word shopping, for example, when describing the dairy, when that's not actually the answer?
Yeah.
Okay.
So I think we're ready to go.
Should we just do this one as a warm up then, Nick?
Let's do it as a warm up.
Okay.
Mm-hmm.
We'll also be going into the farm that's part of the estate, where there's plenty to do.
Most of the buildings date from the 18th century, so you can really step back into an agricultural past.
Until recently, the dairy was where milk from the cows was turned into cheese.
It's now the place to go for lunch or afternoon tea, or just a cup of coffee and a slice of homemade cake.
The big stone building that dominates the farm is the large barn, and in here is our collection of agricultural tools.
These were used in the past to plough the earth, sow seeds, make gates, and much more.
There's a small barn, also made of stone, where you can groom the donkeys and horses to keep their coats clean.
They really seem to enjoy having it done, and children love grooming them.
The horses no longer live in the stables, which instead is the place to go to buy gifts books, our own jams and pickles, and clothes and blankets made of wool from our sheep.
Outside the shed, which is the only brick building, you can climb into a horse-drawn carriage for a lovely, relaxing tour of the park and farm.
The carriages are well over a hundred years old.
And finally, the parkland, which was laid out in the 18th century, with a lake and trees that are now well established.
You'll see types of cattle and sheep that are hardly ever found on farms these days.
We're helping to preserve them to stop their numbers falling further.
Okay.
Well, if you'd like to come with me, we will start... Okay, Nick.
So, just very quickly, first impressions.
Um...
Not too difficult, but there were definitely one or two very sneaky tricks in there that were used.
I agree.
I mean, I think really, you know, if you think about just the speed of the text that we listen to compared to how quickly we speak,
Yeah.
I would hope that most of the listeners to our podcast would be able to get most, if not all, of these questions.
Correct.
I think.
Okay.
So the dairy.
The dairy is where you can get some food, eating and drinking.
It is now eating and drinking, isn't it?
So was our prediction correct?
They didn't say eating and drinking.
What did they say instead?
They listed different types of food, didn't they?
Yeah, just like lunch, meal.
I can't remember.
Yeah, you can have lunch, afternoon tea, cup of coffee or something like that.
Very, very, very clearly, that is the place you go now for food.
Yeah.
But he did say, by the way, he did say that that's where the cows used to, or they used to, turn the cow's milk into cheese.
Yes.
Yes.
So cow, milk, that was used, but that wasn't the answer.
Ah, watch the cows being milked.
Well done, Nick.
I didn't actually pick up on that, but you're absolutely right.
Yeah, if you were just matching the word cows, you'd probably be quite happy that you heard cows, wouldn't you?
Yeah, right.
That was well done.
I couldn't understand the distractor for that one, but that was it.
Okay, good.
The large barn.
This one had a very big distractor.
Yeah, it was.
So what is the answer?
The answer is C, seeing old farming equipment.
It is.
But he called it farming tools.
Yeah.
I think he said agricultural.
Agricultural tools.
But I think that's worse.
Why?
Well, no, because I think if a student hears farming tools, it seems too obvious.
Ah, okay.
I see what you mean.
But if they hear agricultural tools, they'd probably be quite proud.
Oh, I understood the synonym for farming.
Yeah.
Oh, it's not farming.
It's agricultural.
But actually, and this is where it becomes tricky.
Do they get to use?
There was nothing about using them.
So you can just see them.
You can just see them.
So the synonym there for agricultural tools was farming.
Farming equipment.
Yeah.
So that is, I think, quite for a lower level student.
You know understanding yeah, using and seeing, they are the key words there, really.
They are.
All right.
And then for the small barn, question 17.
Small barn is helping to look after animals.
Yeah.
And it was that word groom, which I think is quite difficult, right?
What did they say?
Was it a donkey that they had?
The donkeys.
You can groom the donkeys and the horses.
Yeah.
So if you don't know the word groom, that could be difficult.
But, like always in Isles, they do actually then give a bit of definition, because it does say to keep their coats clean.
Yeah, but again, if you're a lower level student, you might not know that a horse has a coat, so that could be quite confusing.
Um so yeah, i mean, i think that's just a sort of intermediate level vocabulary check, really isn't it?
Yeah okay, now these stables.
Is that a shop?
They are the shop.
I knew they'd use the word gift.
Yes, you can buy gifts, books, jams and pickles.
I mean, English people love a gift shop.
Funnily enough, I went to a house, like a sort of stately country home a couple of weeks ago.
And one of my best friends, who's now living in New York, he sometimes writes these books.
And he's a bit embarrassed about them because it's things like 50 cats that saved the world, or something.
And I was in the gift shop and I was like what's this book?
50 dogs?
I was like it's got to be what my friend dan and it was.
It was his book.
Yeah, in this gift shop oh, 25 pounds or something like really expensive.
Um, it's just funny.
So i took a picture of me with it selfie and sent it to him.
Found your book Okay.
So we need to go to the stables for shopping.
What's in the shed?
In the shed, we can see rare breeds of animals.
That's the last one.
That's the Parkland.
There's the... Oh, sorry.
Yeah.
In the shed, that's where you start the trip.
It is where you start the trip.
So they did use that word tour, didn't they?
I'm just trying to think what the distractor is here.
So I think they said you can climb into a horse-drawn carriage.
Quite difficult vocabulary.
Yeah, so maybe some people might think that's old farming equipment.
Maybe yeah yeah, and that the carriages are over 100 years old or something.
So you might think yeah, maybe that's about farm.
Somebody might think that's about farming equipment, but it's not.
It's about where you can start a trip.
And finally, what are you going to see in the parkland?
Rare breeds of animals?
Yes,
Now, I thought they might say, use the word unique, because that is IELTS' favourite word for rare.
They didn't.
Do you remember what they said?
Well, I was thinking they might use exotic.
Oh, yeah, that would be good.
They said, if I remember correctly, some horses and sheep that you can't really find anymore or can't really see anymore.
Yes.
Exactly.
Hardly ever found or hardly ever seen.
And we're helping to preserve them to stop their numbers falling.
So all of that yeah, was about the rare breeds of animals, which means the two which were not used would be.
Watching cows being milked and using farming tools.
And using the farming tools which, let's be honest, would be pretty dangerous if you were allowed to drive a tractor.
Yeah.
But anyway, there we go.
So I think that's a really good example of a of well of any box matching really, but particularly a part two box matching where, as long as you keep focus, I would hope that most of us will be able to come away from that with full marks.
I do think though, that when we get matching in part three and I have to say, you know, the two places where you're most likely to get matching activities are part two and part three
Once we go to part three, I do think that the level definitely gets more difficult.
Oh yeah.
So why would that be, Nick?
I mean, let's just have a quick chat about what's going to make doing the same thing more difficult in part three than part two.
Well, the first thing is you're going to have more than one person speaking.
Yes.
Probably two, but possibly three.
Yes.
And also we're going to have to listen carefully for emotion and for attitudes.
Yes, exactly.
So some of the questions, even the box matching questions, may ask us to focus on agreement or surprise.
You know it might be.
You know you've got to listen.
For what surprised the students?
Or something like that.
I think that's absolutely right, Nick.
The synonyms and the paraphrases that they use are quite usually quite easy.
Um, it's quite easy to connect to that paraphrasing, to the option.
So when you hear you know gift shop blah blah blah, you understand shopping.
Yeah, right.
When you hear lunch and dinner, you understand eating, because the things they're talking about are a little bit more complicated in part three, i think one of the more difficult things can be, You know, while you're listening, trying to remember what you've heard and find the synonym at the same time,
So this is really the reason that we're doing today's lesson.
Okay.
So I think that.
One really good thing to practice, I think, for these box matching is you know, it doesn't matter if you're in the computer-based or the paper-based test.
You will have access to a pencil and a piece of paper.
Yep. we are going to be able to match what we hear to something in the box, right?
So when you hear the answer for example, gift shop you're going to be able to connect that to cooking.
However, I find this quite often actually in part three is that I've understood everything the students have said.
But I'm struggling while the tape is going to actually find the answer from the box.
So I thought what we do today is a little practice.
So in that situation, what we want to do in the exam is, if we can't actually find the answer, we probably just want to write down the words which we think will lead us to the answer, if that makes sense.
So, you know, for that last one, you might want to write down breakfast, lunch and dinner.
And then later when you go back, you can say, oh, okay, that's eating and drinking.
Now, obviously that's much easier in part two than it is in part three.
So what I thought we'd do then is we're going to listen to...
Holly.
So is Holly going to be the man or the woman speaking there?
The female.
Yes, be the lady.
And her tutor.
Yeah.
Right.
So the question says what do Holly and her tutor agree is an important aspect of each of the following event management skills?
So let me share my screen with you, Nick.
So we have got a list of skills which are needed by an events manager.
So what have we got here?
Communication, organization, time management, creativity, leadership and networking.
Oh, that all sounds like an exhausting job.
So these are the skills that an event manager will need.
What we need to identify is what Holly and her tutor agree is. is an important aspect of each one.
So every time I say agree, Nick, I'm stressing it like I'm giving the lecture, right?
Why is it really important, that word agree?
Because they both have to agree that this is the thing that they are discussing.
So what usually happens in this type of question is One of the people will suggest something and the other person will either confirm or suggest something else.
Exactly.
Usually.
Yes.
So they might say I don't know, for example, for listening.
The tutor might say, or probably more likely, the student might say I think the most important part of listening is being able to give clear instructions.
So you might think that's the answer, but what do we need to wait?
We need to wait until the other person confirms.
Yeah.
So if the teacher agreed then, what might they say?
You're right.
Yep.
Totally.
Definitely.
Yeah.
Yeah.
More likely though, if she says I think that I think the most important part of communication is is being able to give precise instructions.
What would the tutor most likely say?
Something very neutral, not necessarily negative, so maybe something like perhaps, or maybe yeah, or maybe something like that's not quite what I had in mind, or something like that exactly.
So what they'll probably do is exactly as nick said.
They go yes, listening is important but right, there'll be some kind of but or however, and then he's probably going to give something which he thinks is more important and she was, i suppose.
You're right.
Yes, you're right there.
I didn't consider that.
Yes.
So that's essentially what we need to be careful of.
Right.
So what I, what I like about this practice that we're going to do is, you know, I think when students are practicing, it's easy just to grab answers, isn't it?
We're all looking for the answer.
But let's for this listening, forget the box.
We're not going to even look at it.
OK, your job is just going to be to write down the words that you think Holly and the tutor say.
And is essentially what do you think or what are they telling us is the most important aspect of each of those things.
What words are the paraphrases that will lead us to the answer?
Because this is part three, you might actually find it's not just one or two words.
It might be, you know, a couple of phrases, right?
So Holly might give a phrase and the tutor might agree and give another phrase.
Anything you basically think is what they finally agree is the important aspect.
Write it down.
I would expect for each of the items, so...
Again, look on our website, but if you can't do that, write them down quickly.
Communication first, then organization, then time management, then creativity, then leadership, their networking.
What do they say is the most important aspect of each of these things?
And just before we begin, i want to add one more thing.
If you hear one of them say i agree, that's not the answer, because usually it would be something like i don't think this is very important um, when we're talking about communication, i agree, i think this is much more important.
Yes, you're right, that's how it usually works.
I've noticed actually doing these part threes with agreement.
That, i agree, is often used, but it's never for the answer.
That's really clever.
So they often use literally the words I agree, when they are agreeing that something is not important.
Or talking about something else.
Yeah.
So for that communication, it might be something like I think people put too much emphasis on speaking when they think about communication.
I agree.
I agree.
When in fact...
It's listening that is more important.
Yeah, exactly.
Yeah.
Okay, Nick, that's really useful.
Well done.
Snaps for Nick.
So just be careful with the phrase, I agree in that.
Yeah, that is really true because it's obviously...
Yeah, so it's really going to depend what comes before I agree as to whether or not that is the answer or not.
Yeah, very good.
All right, so this is a new activity.
I've never done it before.
Let's just see how we get on.
I haven't listened to it either, Nick.
Okay.
So it's going to be interesting to see what words we both write down.
Yeah.
And then if we're able to use those words to then find the answer afterwards.
Okay.
Now, just to say, I don't recommend you do this in the exam.
In the exam.
I would like you ideally we're going to be able to identify the paraphrases immediately.
Yeah.
What we're doing here is, if you can't find the paraphrase immediately and you've got to keep listening you might want to make a note of those words so that then at the end you can go and find it.
But we're not doing this for every answer, okay?
We're just doing it for the ones where you can't find the paraphrase.
Okay, good luck.
Now, the aim of your work placement is to give you the opportunity to develop the skills that an events manager needs.
So, let's talk about those a bit.
Well, I think my communication skills are pretty good.
I can talk on the phone to people and book venues and that kind of thing.
Good.
Just remember, it isn't only about what you say.
If you meet someone face to face and want to persuade them to be a sponsor, for example.
Oh, I'll dress up for that sure.
Good.
Let's go on to think about your organisational skills.
You're working in a very people-based industry, and that means things won't always go to plan.
I guess it's being prepared to make changes that matters.
That's right.
You may have to make an on-the-spot change to a timetable because of a problem you hadn't anticipated.
Just do it.
OK.
How's your time management these days?
I'm working on it.
I'm certainly better when I have a deadline, which is why this work suits me.
Yes, but it's how you respond as that deadline approaches.
I know I've got to look calm, even if I'm in a panic.
Just think to yourself, no one must know I'm under pressure.
Yeah, even though I'm multitasking like crazy.
Another skill that events managers need is creativity.
Often your client has what we call the big picture idea, but it's up to the events manager to think of all the fine points that go to making it work.
Right.
So I need to listen carefully to that idea and then fill in all the gaps.
That's right.
And you'll have a team working under you, so another key skill is leadership.
Your team may have lots of ideas too, but you've got to make the ultimate choices.
Do we have refreshments inside or out, for example?
Isn't it better to be democratic?
It's a nice idea, but you have the ultimate responsibility.
So believe in what you think best.
Be prepared to say, yes, that's a good idea, but it won't work here.
I see what you mean.
What about the networking side of things?
I know it's an area that a lot of students worry about, because we don't have much experience to offer others.
But even without it you can still be an interesting person with useful ideas, and the more people you impress, the better.
I guess that will help me when I apply for a real job.
Exactly.
Think ahead, remember what your ambitions are and keep them in mind.
Definitely.
All right then, Nick.
I don't know.
I've made a lot more notes than I thought I would.
Yeah, me too.
Okay.
So maybe what we can do then is we could play.
So the game is let's paraphrase like an examiner.
All right.
So for example, for the first one, communication.
Yeah.
What have you written down?
What do you think is going to be the most important aspects?
Well, she said, I need to dress up.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And I think we're going to see smart appearance or something like that.
Looking smart, smart appearance.
Exactly.
Right.
So that's exactly what I think we should do.
So I've got that.
So she said, you know, I can talk on the phone, blah, blah, blah.
But then he said, yeah, but you know, sometimes you're going to have to meet people face to face.
Yeah.
So I agree.
I think that answer is going to be something like smart appearance.
Okay.
Organization.
Organization, she said something about making changes quickly and on the spot.
So I think flexible, being flexible.
Right, this is what I think.
So I don't know.
So being prepared to make changes on the spot.
So maybe quick decision making.
Yeah, mm-hmm.
Decision.
Something about decisions.
I think that answer is going to be.
Okay.
What about time management?
Not looking under pressure.
I've got.
Yes.
That's what I've got.
So look calm.
Yeah.
No one must know I'm under pressure.
So yeah, keeping a, what do we call it?
Keeping a level head.
Yeah, keeping a level head.
Keeping calm.
Being level headed maybe, yeah.
Yeah, something like that.
Question 28, creativity.
Listen carefully and fill in the gaps.
Yeah.
I've written it down.
So I've got think of all the fine points, fill in the gaps.
I'm thinking details.
Details, yeah.
Like small details or detail orientated or... I don't know.
I think the word details has got to be in there somewhere.
What about leadership?
Be prepared.
Well...
He said you've got to be prepared to say yes, but.
So be prepared to say no.
Ability to say no.
Ability to reject ideas.
Yeah, because there was something about, like she said, there was something else about you've got to make, I've got down.
You've got to make the ultimate choices or you have the responsibility.
So it could be something like either because sometimes it could be more than I think it could be be prepared to say no, like be prepared to contradict or to go against, or it might be just something go with your gut yes, take being able to take responsibility, or something like that.
And then networking, Yeah.
He said you should be interesting, have useful ideas and impress people.
Yeah.
So confidence maybe?
Confidence.
The only thing I think was interesting was at the end, he then said, think ahead.
Think of your ambitions.
So that might also be something about your career or something.
Like future career.
Yeah.
I don't know.
All right, so shall we reveal the box?
Ladies and gentlemen, reveal the box.
I mean, I hope you're playing along at home as well.
Nick and I are just playing the game.
I forgot to say that.
All right, so let's have a look at the box.
Oh, look, being flexible, focusing on details.
Okay, right, I think everything's here.
Yeah, we've done pretty good here, haven't we?
Yeah, we really have.
So communication is definitely, you said this, word for word.
Smart appearance, having a smart appearance.
C, having a smart appearance.
Organization.
Flexible.
Being flexible, yeah.
Being prepared to make changes.
Time management.
Time management.
I'm going to say hiding your emotions.
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
What did we say though?
I said not looking under, well, he said not looking under pressure.
Yeah.
Hiding your emotions, having a poker face.
Good.
Creativity.
Details.
Details.
Yeah.
Focusing on details.
B. B. Leadership.
What's this?
You've got to make the choices.
Trusting your own views.
Yes.
Okay.
That's a good one, actually.
Trusting your own views.
That does summarize what we heard, doesn't it?
Yep.
And then networking.
Is going to be, all right, what do we have left?
So we've got left.
We've got relying on experts doing one thing at a time thinking of the future, thinking of the future.
It's thinking of the future, isn't it?
Yeah.
Okay.
So, as you can see...
Yeah.
Now, there are two reasons I think this is useful.
Number one is, if you actually listen to what they're saying, the meaning.
I think finding these answers is not as difficult as it may seem.
Because what we're really doing is we're not just matching the words.
We're just.
You know, if you listen to the information process it, you should be able to summarize it.
So this is a really good practice to actually... get you actually listening.
But the second thing is, as I said before, you know, as you're listening, you may be able to.
You know, as they're talking about number 25 communication, you might be able to match, have a smart appearance really easily.
Mm-hmm.
As they're talking about organization, you may be able to match what was it?
Small changes, being flexible really easily.
However, for 27, when they're talking about deadlines and no one must know that you're under pressure, you might not be able to match hiding your emotions.
Yeah. you might struggle to find that paraphrase.
So just quickly, on a bit of paper, write down 27...
No one must know you're under pressure.
Or look calm.
Write down the words you think are important.
And then, at the end, look at the ones you haven't used which is what you just did then Nick, which is really important and choose the one that best matches.
I think this is just a really good practice to get students listening.
Nick, do you think we've got time to do this last final...
Let's go for it.
Okay, let's do it.
Because I saw this one.
So, as I was looking through to pick which listening activities to do, I saw this one and my initial reaction was oh, no way.
But the more I thought about it, the more I thought it would be quite interesting for us to look at this.
So you haven't seen this before.
Nope.
It is... So I'll read the instruction.
It says which opinion do the speakers give about each of the following aspects of the Emporium's production of Romeo and Juliet?
So we have obviously been to the theatre and seen Romeo and Juliet and we're going to discuss the set, which is what's on the stage the lighting, the costume design, the music and the actor's delivery.
So far, so normal.
However, why do you think I panicked when I looked in the box, Nick?
Because in the box, we've got a mishmash of confusing things.
We've got a mishmash of people using things.
So in the previous listening, what we were listening for only was agreement, wasn't it?
What did the speakers agree?
Yeah.
This time we have got a mix of all of the wonderful emotions and agreements and stuff which we teach on our course.
So the first option, A, is they both expected this to be more traditional.
There's surprise.
So they are surprised that it was not more traditional.
So we'd have to recognize that one of these things was not traditional.
They both thought that this was original.
So this is agreement, and this is agreement, I think, on a difficult vocabulary word.
If you say something is original, what does that mean in this context?
It's like kind of novel, isn't it?
New, different, basically different, unusual, something they have never seen before.
Yeah.
And they both have to agree on that.
So the first two start with they both.
So the first one is they were both surprised or they both expected something to be more traditional, which means that it was not traditional.
Yep.
And they both thought something was original.
Then we've got two agrees.
They agree this created the right atmosphere.
Yes.
Right.
So I don't know, like that's difficult to identify.
That's unlikely to be the actor's delivery, to be honest.
That is true.
Maybe even the costume design.
It's probably going to be the set, the lighting or the music.
If it's one of the answers.
That's a brilliant point, Nick.
So something that creates atmosphere is not usually the words, is it?
But it's something, you know, in the set.
So now, D, they agree this was a major strength.
Yeah.
That's very general.
So something they both agree was good.
Yeah.
It was one of the best things about it.
Yes.
E, they were both disappointed by this.
So we've got, for A, we've got to recognize that they were both surprised.
For E, we've got to recognize that they were both disappointed.
I mean, what language might we hear for disappointed?
Wasn't as good as I thought it would be.
Yes.
Something like that.
I thought it would be better.
Mm-hmm.
Yes.
And then F and G are two things that they disagree about.
And I think this makes it really tricky.
So F is they disagree about why this was an issue.
So in that one, I guess what we'll hear is they're not going to be happy with one aspect and one person will say I think it's because of this and the other person will say no, I think it's because of this exactly.
So you've got.
There's a lot of inferred meaning in that sentence, isn't there?
So basically, they both agree it's a problem, But they disagree about what, as you've just said, what the cause of the problem was.
So it might be like something like I mean, let's imagine you know we both agree, we've watched a film and we both found it difficult to hear the dialogue.
Right.
So we both say, oh, it was difficult to hear it.
But I might say, I think that's because the actors were speaking very softly.
And I might say the music was too loud or something like that.
Yes, exactly.
Right.
So that would be an example of that.
And then G is kind of similar.
Looking at this last question.
It's actually really hard because we had E, they were both disappointed by this.
Yeah.
And then G says they disagree about how this could be improved, which means they were disappointed by it initially and they have different suggestions for how it could be better.
Right.
So I think you have to be really careful with E and G.
Yeah.
So I guess E the difference is, I guess is that we've got to actively have disappointment for E Yeah.
So we could both say, oh my God, the, I don't know, the acting was terrible.
Mm-hmm.
But we might say, but, you know, I knew that would happen.
Yeah.
So we're not disappointed because we expected it would be bad.
We expected it, yeah.
Mm-hmm.
There are so many layers, I feel, here of understanding, just for understanding the actual meaning of the sentences.
Yeah.
30 seconds is not going to be enough time.
30 seconds is not a lot.
Okay.
Which again, I haven't listened to this yet.
Neither of you.
It's going to be interesting to see because the box is so complex.
Yeah, maybe the discussion will actually be a little bit easier.
Maybe yes, but who knows, this is ours.
So everybody, let's all do our best okay if, if you get all of these correct, then when you finish listening you can, you know, do something really, get some snaps, special to reward yourself.
You give yourself some snaps.
Go for a coffee, eat a cream cake.
That's what i'd say.
All right, now there's no guarantee nick, and i will actually get that's correct.
I got a question wrong this morning in class, so let's do our best.
My ielts glass.
So what about the Emporium Theatre's production of the play?
I thought some things worked really well, but there were some problems too.
Yeah.
What about the set, for example?
I'd say that was probably the most memorable thing about this production.
You're right.
The set design was really amazing.
But actually, I have seen similar ideas used in other productions.
Hmm.
What about the lighting?
Some of the scenes were so dimly lit it was quite hard to see.
I didn't dislike it.
It helped to change the mood of the quieter scenes.
That's a good point.
What did you think of the costumes?
I was a bit surprised by the contemporary dress, I must say Yeah, I think it worked well, but I'd assumed it would be more conventional.
Me too.
I liked the music at the beginning and I thought the musicians were brilliant, but I thought they were wasted because the music didn't have much impact in Acts 2 and 3.
Yes, that was a shame.
One problem with this production was that the actors didn't deliver the lines that well.
They were speaking too fast.
It was a problem, I agree.
But I thought it was because they weren't speaking loudly enough, especially at key points in the play.
I actually didn't have a problem with that.
It's been an interesting experience watching different versions of Romeo and Juliet hasn't it?
Definitely.
It's made me realise how relevant the play still is.
Right.
I mean, a lot's changed since Shakespeare's time, but in many ways nothing's changed.
There are always disagreements and tension between teenagers and their parents.
Yes, that's something all young people can relate to, more than the violence and the extreme emotions in the play.
How did you find watching it in translation?
Really interesting.
I expected to find it more challenging, but I could follow the story pretty well.
I stopped worrying about not being able to understand all the words and focused on the actors' expressions.
The ending was pretty powerful.
Yes, that somehow intensified the emotion for me.
Did you know Shakespeare's been translated into more languages than any other writer?
What's the reason for his international appeal, do you think?
I was reading that it's because his plays are about basic themes that people everywhere are familiar with.
Yeah, and they can also be understood on different levels.
The characters have such depth.
Right, which allows directors to experiment and find new angles.
That's really important.
So Nick, this question was in the same test as our first listening locations on the farm cows being milked.
In terms of difficulty, how much easier or more difficult was this question?
Is a million percent a number?
I think a trillion gazillion bazillion percent.
I mean, I was right.
I knew when I saw this box, it would be tricky.
Because I think the thing is is that there are very, very little or very few keywords for us to hold on to.
Because we're not really focusing here on the themes, right?
We're not.
We're focusing almost completely on the speaker's opinion or their feelings.
And I just think that makes it so much harder to grasp the answer than just because you can't really match a paraphrase here.
I guess that's the thing.
Let's start with the set.
Mm-hmm.
I thought this one, it started off okay.
I felt quite confident after question 23.
I'm going to say that the answer is D. That's right.
They agree it was a major strength.
I think that one was fairly obvious, to be honest.
Yes.
Because he said it was visually stunning.
It was most memorable.
You could hear that they were loving the set.
Yeah.
Then we had the lighting.
I'm not going to lie, Nick.
I felt a little bit sick in the pit of my stomach.
I had to listen to this twice before I was even a little bit sure what the answer was.
Yeah.
I mean, this is extremely hard.
Mostly because...
I think when they start speaking it was quite Again.
This is not because I don't understand the words, okay.
She said it was really dimly lit.
So she was saying something negative.
That's what I was thinking.
Okay, so she doesn't like this.
And then he said...
What did he say?
It was something like, he said, I didn't dislike it.
So, I mean, that's a double negative.
Double negative.
I didn't dislike it means he thought it was okay.
So there's some disagreement there.
And then he said it helped to change the mood of the quieter scenes.
Mood, atmosphere.
Yeah, and that mood is the only thing that saved me there, because that was a direct synonym for atmosphere, and then she said that's a good point, so in a way she kind of agrees with him.
Yeah, she sort of changes her mind a little bit, doesn't she?
She's sort of saying, oh, it was really dimly lit.
It's not great.
And then he said, yeah, but that sets the mood.
And she then agrees.
So the answer for that was C. Yeah, very tricky.
Create the right atmosphere.
Honestly, I don't think I would have.
This was a great example where I would not have done that on the first listen.
But if I had written the word mood.
Yeah yeah, you would have gone back and looked and thought okay, i could have gone back.
I'd have looked to the answers i hadn't used and said it must have been this.
But i am using all of my listening skills at this point right, i mean, this is not just listening, but my sort of logic as well.
Um, what about the costume design?
This one wasn't too bad.
Um, he said that it And he assumed it would be more conventional.
Yes.
And she said, I was surprised by the contemporary dress.
So you've got traditional, contemporary, conventional.
They're all synonyms, aren't they?
Yeah.
So I think that one was, again, that one gave me a bit more confidence back.
Mm-hmm a uh, then the music.
What did they say about the music?
Um, that it was.
It was really good.
It was another one like this.
It was really good in act one yes, but it wasn't used enough.
In act two and three Yes,
And then I think, the key word here because remember, they do actually always use a direct.
If they're asking you to identify an emotion, they usually give you a word that really signifies that emotion.
Ed said, yes, that was a shame.
So a shame is disappointing.
But again, you've got to understand, right?
It was used in part one.
They liked it.
That's something positive, right?
However, it wasn't used because they liked it and it wasn't used.
They were disappointed.
I hope everybody's had...
Yeah, like a good strong breakfast this morning because this is not easy stuff.
Okay.
And then finally, the actor's delivery.
Yeah, this is exactly what you said before we started listening.
Yeah, it's a lucky guess.
Yeah.
I mean, not exactly what you said, but it was very, very close to what you said.
Yeah.
They disagreed.
Suggestion about one thing, suggestion about a different thing was the problem.
It was F. Yeah.
I think she said they spoke too fast.
He said they didn't speak loudly enough.
So it was about the volume.
So they both thought that the delivery was a problem, but they disagreed about why.
Therefore, the question is F. Now, I have to say that is about as difficult as a box matching gets.
I don't think I've ever seen anything that difficult in IELTS before.
No.
It's interesting that there are only five questions here.
And actually, if you have a look, the first question is a multiple, multiple choice.
Then you've got this.
And then there are still three questions left.
I think this was probably originally seven or eight, but it was so difficult.
Mm-hmm. they had to cut the questions down to five because it was just too confusing.
Yeah, possibly.
If you got three or more for that, I think you've done a brilliant job.
Yeah, because that is extremely difficult.
But again...
Just writing down mood will have saved me my nine.
And shame as well, possibly as well.
And shame, yeah.
Mood and shame.
Writing those two words could, honest to God, be the difference between a 7.5 and an 8, I would say.
But that is as tricky as it gets.
So Nick, I think we both deserve to finish there and go and have.
Well, you've got to still edit this.
It's very late where you are.
Yeah.
So you can have a nice hot chocolate maybe as a reward.
I'm going to make myself some tea.
The sun has gone from my window.
The horses are already lying down.
I would say, well done if you've reached the end.
That was a great episode.
I have definitely used my brain.
So I'm sure that you have.
And come back next week, where I'll try and find us something a little bit more relaxing for next week, okay?
Take care until then.
Bye-bye.
My IELTS Classroom podcast is a production of My IELTS Classroom Limited.
Nick and I do not represent IELTS, and everything you heard in this episode is our own personal opinion.
You can find the show notes and transcript for this episode on our blog.
That's blog.myiosclassroom.com.
And if you're looking for our video courses, speaking lessons and marking service, You can find that at wwwmyieltsclassroomcom.
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Study hard.
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