IELTS Experience Sharing Session and Heriot-Watt Student Ambassador
Certificate Awarding Ceremony
Publishing Time：2020.12.31
On the evening of December 30th at 7:30, the 220 new laboratory in the Network Center was crowded with people as our IELTS experience sharing session began on time. Firstly, Mr. Lu Xiang from the Haida-Heriot-Watt Project Department briefly introduced the basic information of the IELTS test. He provided detailed explanations regarding the registration process, availability of exam seats, and examination venues. Next, he analyzed the similarities and differences among several different types of IELTS tests, including their fees, subjects, and target audiences. Lastly, Mr. Lu shared many practical IELTS preparation resources with the students, including books, videos, apps, and WeChat public accounts, which were all very informative.
Following that, the three students who participated in the sharing session took turns to share their IELTS exam experience. The first student was Zhang Fuquan, the only student among the 93 participants of the Haida-Heriot-Watt project who has taken the IELTS exam and achieved remarkable results. He scored a total of 7 points, with a Listening score of 8.5, Speaking score of 5.5, Reading score of 6.5, and Writing score of 6.5. It can be said that achieving this result on the first attempt at the IELTS exam is something to be proud of.
Zhang's presentation was humorous and lighthearted. He started by talking about his own experience of studying for the IELTS exam, which he began during the summer when he was transitioning from junior high school to senior high school. He also attended a prep course. His advice for IELTS exam preparation was to "summarize your progress regularly before the exam, identify your weaknesses,” “do a sufficient amount of practice questions, stay familiar with the test format,” “focus on targeted practice,” and “take several timed simulations before the exam.” Finally, Zhang focused on his experience with the IELTS speaking test and said that "the speaking test is not as difficult or unfamiliar as one might think. Keep a calm and positive mindset, treat it as an exchange with the examiner." As a member of the Haida-Heriot-Watt project, Zhang's presentation had no distance, making the whole process relaxed and enjoyable, and everyone listened attentively.
Next, the second student to share was a senior student majoring in computer science, Peng Qiulei. She took the IELTS exam three times, and although her final score was not high at 6.5, her spirit of perseverance and never giving up is worth learning from. Peng has received an admission offer from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and will soon be pursuing postgraduate studies in Hong Kong.
Peng described herself as having an average English foundation, which may resonate with many students who do not have a strong foundation in English. Her first attempt at the IELTS exam was during the second semester of her sophomore year when her focus was on listening and reading. She mostly did practice questions from Cambridge's IELTS books 4 through 13 but neglected to practice speaking, resulting in a low score of 5. She said, "The examiner was very serious, frequently interrupting and negating what I said, and liked to ask follow-up questions, making me nervous when expressing myself. I found that although I had prepared for each question, my preparation was not sufficient, and I did not think deeply enough.”
In her second attempt, during the first semester of her junior year, she learned from her mistakes and focused most of her energy on practicing speaking. "Most of the time was spent practicing speaking, pairing with another partner and rehearsing about three times a week for about two months. For Part 2, I wrote down every question and deliberately accumulated some good expressions and vocabulary for speaking." However, her speaking score only improved by 0.5 points. She felt that the second exam was generally more difficult than the first one, which affected her performance.
For her last attempt, before starting her senior year, she spent a lot of time memorizing vocabulary, even beginning to study GRE words. This decision had a significant effect, and she felt a sudden clarity when doing reading questions, indicating the importance of vocabulary for reading. Additionally, she spent a lot of time continuing to practice speaking, saying, "From February to March, I practiced speaking with my partner on video almost every day, and we completed all the question sets. At that time, I felt very proficient in practicing." She also took 4-5 online lessons with a foreign teacher in early August, gaining a lot from them and developing her own response templates, improving the logic of each part of her responses. In the end, she got the score she wanted.
The final speaker who shared their IELTS exam experience was Fu Yanjie, a senior student majoring in confidentiality management. Yanjie has been admitted to Tianjin University through the recommendation system for postgraduate studies. Although he only took the IELTS exam once, he achieved an impressive score of 7.5 (Listening 7.5, Speaking 6.0, Reading 9.0, Writing 6.5). Unlike Peng's two-year "long-haul," Yanjie's strategy was to win quickly. So how did he achieve a score of 7.5 with only five weeks of preparation despite his average English foundation? The answer is simple: find a study method that suits you.
Yanjie admitted that he was not only a "lightning striker" in taking the IELTS exam but also in other areas. He said, "From my personal perspective, a blitzkrieg is more effective than a long battle. You can use winter and summer vacations to improve your language skills." Therefore, he strongly recommended that everyone take advantage of their winter and summer vacations to make a concerted effort to pass the IELTS exam. He also recommended, "The earlier you obtain your language proficiency certificate, the better. After obtaining the required IELTS score earlier, you will have ample time to review your courses without having to worry about studying for both the professional examination and IELTS." Of course, he admitted that this approach was just his own clever strategy for taking exams, and improving one's English ability still requires diligence and persistence in learning.
Overall, the experience sharing session provided valuable insights into the IELTS exam and different strategies for preparing for it. The speakers' diverse experiences showed that there is no one-size-fits-all approach, and finding what works best for oneself is crucial.
At the end of the event, we arranged a surprise for everyone - the certificate award ceremony for the current year's Haida-Heriot-Watt student ambassador.
Based on the results of the previous knowledge competition and the comprehensive evaluation by the college leadership, Lu Shi Yu was chosen to be the Haida-Heriot-Watt student ambassador for this academic year with a one-year term. Lu Shi Yu had achieved excellent results in the previous knowledge competition and was very active in his daily studies and life, always willing to help others. His classmates liked him very much, and he also had a special talent – playing the clarinet at a professional level. Lu Shi Yu was very excited to receive the certificate, and he said, "Thank you so much to the college and everyone for awarding me this certificate. I will do my best to serve the project and everyone else! Thank you!"
