Ace the listening section: Tips for English test prep

ɫèAV Languages
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Reading time: 5 minutes

Passing an English proficiency test is a milestone for many non-fluent speakers. Among the different sections in such tests, the listening part can often present unique challenges. In most standardized English tests, your ability to comprehend and respond to spoken English will be put under scrutiny.

This blog post is dedicated to helping you, the ambitious test-taker, sharpen your listening skills and equip you with strategies to excel in the listening section of your English test.

Tips to master the listening section of your English exam
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Understanding the listening section

Before we plunge into the how-to's, it's key to understand what the listening section typically involves. You will be asked to listen to recordings of conversations and talks on a variety of topics. Following each audio segment, you'll answer questions based on what you've heard. This can assess a range of abilities from grasping and understanding the main ideas to recalling specific details.

Tips to master the listening section

Become an active listener

Active listening involves fully concentrating, understanding and responding thoughtfully to what is being said. During your prep, don't just passively hear the content—engage with it. Take notes, summarize points and predict conclusions to enhance your retention skills and understanding.

Practice with difficult words

When you come across words that are difficult to understand, it's essential to practice them repeatedly. Listening to these words in different contexts can help attune your ear to their nuances. Incorporate them into your study sessions by finding audio resources that use these words and listen to them multiple times. It also helps to make a note of any words you struggle with so you can practice them.

Familiarise yourself with homophones

Homophones are words that sound alike but have different meanings and spellings, and they can be a common source of confusion in the listening section. For instance, consider the words "pair" (two items of a kind) and "pear" (the fruit); "flower" (the plant) and "flour" (the baking ingredient); or "right" (correct or a direction) and "write" (to form letters or words).

These words highlight the importance of context in understanding spoken English, and recognizing homophones is crucial for excelling in the listening section. Make sure to include such pairs in your study routine to sharpen your listening skills.

Practice with purpose

Locate practice tests and materials that mimic the conditions of your upcoming exam. Regularly taking mock tests helps you familiarise yourself with the format and timing. This practice can also reduce anxiety on the day of the actual test, as you'll know exactly what to expect.

Hone your note-taking skills

You won't remember every detail you hear, and that's okay. Develop a system of shorthand or symbols that enables you to jot down key information swiftly. With practice, you'll learn to discern what's likely to be the focus of questions.

Understand the question types

The listening test may include multiple-choice questions, fill-in-the-blank, matching and sentence completion, among others. By understanding each type, you can develop targeted strategies, like reading the questions beforehand where time is allowed, to anticipate answers.

Approaches for tackling specific question types

Multiple-choice questions

For multiple-choice questions, listen for keywords and ideas that match the options provided, but also be wary of distractors—information that is true but doesn't answer the question. It helps to quickly read the questions before the recording starts, if allowed, to know what information to listen for.

Fill-in-the-blank

When approaching fill-in-the-blank questions, your attention to detail is crucial. These questions often test your knowledge of vocabulary and understanding of key points. Pay attention to the grammatical structure of the sentence to predict what type of word is missing—be it a noun, verb, adjective, or adverb.

Matching

With matching questions, it's beneficial to understand the relationships between parts of the content. They might require you to match speakers to opinions or items to categories. Note any expressions that indicate agreement, contrast, or reason, which can provide hints for correct answers.

Sentence completion

Sentence completion questions examine your ability to understand the main idea and specific details. Practice focusing on the context around blanks and predicting possible answers based on content already heard. This requires a good grasp of grammar and broad vocabulary.

Watch out for the traps

Distractors might be used in listening tests. These are options in multiple-choice questions that seem correct but aren't. Improve your critical listening skills to spot these traps, often engineered to test if you're listening to the specifics or just the surface details.

Recognizing common traps in listening tests

One such trap involves the use of paraphrasing; the spoken content often rephrases what the questions or answers require, testing your understanding beyond mere word recognition. Another trap is the presentation of almost correct options, where minute details are altered to mislead unwary candidates.

A strategic listener will also be on guard for 'red herring' statements where extraneous information is provided to divert attention from the relevant answer. Lastly, watch for speakers correcting themselves in the audio; the initial information might be a trap, with the correct answer being provided only later in the dialogue.

Recognizing and navigating these traps requires a sharp focus and an active engagement with the material—skills that can be improved with deliberate practice over time.

Stay calm and collected

During the test, you might miss an answer or find a section particularly challenging. It's important to stay calm and move on. Agonizing over one question can cost you the concentration needed for subsequent questions.

Frequently asked questions

Q: How can I improve my ability to understand different accents?

A: Regularly listen to media from various English-speaking countries. Platforms like YouTube, podcasts, or even accent training resources can provide exposure to a wide range of English accents.

Q: Should I take notes by hand or on the computer?

A: Practice the method you'll use in the actual test. If you're taking a paper-based test, get comfortable with writing notes quickly by hand. For a computer-based test, practice typing your notes efficiently.

Q: How important is spelling in the listening section?

A: It can be very important, especially in sections where you have to write down what you hear. Incorrect spelling can sometimes result in a wrong answer, so it's crucial to sharpen up your spelling skills.

Conclusion

Conquering the listening section of your English test requires practice, strategy and patience. By becoming an active listener, immersing yourself in English, practicing purposefully and learning to stay calm and collected under pressure, you'll be positioning yourself for success.

Remember, every moment you spend preparing—from listening to English music, to tackling practice exams—is a step towards acing that listening section and moving one step closer to achieving your goals. Good luck.

Still looking for the perfect English test or certification for you? Make sure to check out our range of tests to help you really showcase your skills.

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    Separating fact from opinion

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    Understanding the purpose of a text

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    Identifying key information in a text

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    Strategies to promote literacy

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    These questions set the foundations for literacy.

    Working with a reading text

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    A tale of two dragons

    "Once upon a time, there was an island in the sea. One day, people were working in the fields. The sun was shining and there was one cloud in the sky. The cloud was a strange shape and moving towards the island. Soon the cloud was very big. Then a small boy looked up."

    Taken from English Code, Unit 4, p. 62

    Typical comprehension questions based on the text would be:

    • Where were the people working?
    • How many clouds were in the sky?

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    • Find words that show the story is a fairy tale.
    • Underline a sentence about the weather.

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    • Finding words in the text from a definition
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    • Finding verbs of speech
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    2. Between the lines

    Comprehension “between the lines” means speculating and making guesses with the information we already have from the text. This type of literacy activity often involves lots of questions and discussions with the students. You should encourage students to give good reasons for their opinions. An example for the text above could be:

    • What do you think the cloud really is?

    Other “Between the lines” activities include:

    • Discussing how characters in a story feel and why
    • Discussing characters’ motivation
    • Identifying the most important moments in a story
    • Speculating about what is going to happen next
    • Identifying possible events from fantasy events

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    What skills do you need for ice hockey?

    "Ice hockey players should be very good skaters. They always have good balance. They change direction very quickly and they shouldn't fall over. Players should also have fast reactions because the puck moves very quickly."

    Taken from English Code, Level 4, p. 96

    “Between the lines” activities for this text could be:

    • What equipment do you need to play ice hockey?
    • What is the purpose of this piece of text?

    3. Behind the lines

    Comprehension “behind the lines” is about the information we, the readers, already have. Our previous knowledge, our age, our social background and many other aspects change the way we understand and interpret a text.

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    • What countries do you think are famous for ice hockey?

    Sometimes a lack of socio-cultural knowledge can lead to misunderstanding. Look at the text below.

    Is the relationship between Ms Turner and Jack Roberts formal or informal?

    73 Highlands Road Oxbo, Wisconsin 54552
    April 11th

    Dear Ms. Tamer,
    Some people want to destroy the forest and build an airport. This forest is a habitat for many wolves. If they destroy the forest, the wolves will leave the forest. If the wolves leave the forest, there will be more rabbits. This won't be good for our forest.
    Please build the airport in a different place. Please don't destroy the forest.

    Kind regards, Jack Robers

    Taken from English code, Level 4, unit 5, Writing Lab

    If your students are unaware of the convention of using Dear to start a letter in English, they may not answer this question correctly.

    Other “Behind the lines” literacy activities include:

    • Identifying the type of text
    • Imagining extra information based on the readers’ experiences
    • Using existing knowledge to check a factual account
    • Identifying false information

    Examples:

    • What job do you think Ms Turner has?
    • Do you think Jack lives in a village or a city?
    • Do wolves live in forests?

    Literacy is more than reading

    From the activities above, it’s clear that a literacy scheme develops more than reading skills. As students speculate and give their opinions, they talk and listen to each other.

    A literacy scheme can also develop writing skills. The text analysis gives students a model to follow in their writing. In addition, a literacy scheme works on higher-order thinking skills such as analysis, deduction and summary.

    Developing literacy skills so that students become active, critical readers should be a key part of educational programs at all ages. Literacy activities based on a reading text can be especially useful for the foreign language class.

    With literacy activities, we can encourage students:

    • To use the text as a springboard for communicating ideas and opinions
    • To analyze the text as a model for writing activities
    • To see how language is used in context
    • To explore the meanings of words

    More crucially, we are developing critical readers for the future.