The listening test is the same for all the health-care professionals. The total duration of the test is approximately 40 minutes. Listening comprehension comprises of Part A, B and C. Part A is a gap fill task. It includes two extracts with two speakers in each of them. The format is a health-care consultation between a patient and one of the health care professionals. Part B is a multiple choice task. It includes six short extracts with one question per extract. There can be either one or two speakers in each of the extracts. The format is work place communication between colleagues or health-care professionals and patients. Part C is also a multiple choice task with either one or two speakers in each of them. The format is either a presentation or interview with one speaker being a health care professional talking about a general topic.
Each part of the test has a different testing focus. Part A tests the ability to listen for details on two sets of recordings on a health-care consultation – means it could be full information about something or an explanation on specific particulars. Part B tests a few more listening skills such as listening for gist – means trying to get the general meaning, essence or substance of the recorded extracts, purpose – which is particularly the reason for an action, details – means focusing on the recording for full particulars and function – means concentrating on an activity that is natural to a person or a thing and all these different skills to be adopted are based on work place communication between health-care professionals and patients or even colleagues. Part C also tests a variety of listening skills including listening for gist – means working on the recordings to get the overall meaning or the sum and substance of the oral communication, attitude – means understanding a view point or frame of mind while concentrating on the set recordings and opinion – means a stance or judgment formed about something while grasping the presentation or an interview with a speaker being a health-care professional interacting on a general topic.
Each listening test will have the same number of questions. Part A has 24 gaps to complete and 12 for extracts. Part B has 6 MCQ’s to answer and one for extract. Part C has 12 MCQ’S to answer and six for extracts. Each question is equally weighted so the overall score in the listening test is calculated out of 42 marks.
How to prepare for OET Listening Comprehension Part A?
The extracts that test takers listen for Part A are work place consultations. You might hear the consultation with a specialist as a result of the referral of a patient to the specialist from the patient’s GP or it could also be an initial consultation for the patient with a health-care professional. You will not necessarily hear the beginning of the consultation nor will the consultation extracts necessarily follow the same formats. The information provided by the patients will make up each of the extracts and what you need to focus on is hear the answers you need to complete each gap. To prepare for Listening Part A, you need to practice listening for details in health-care consultations in English. You may be able to do this at work by listening in to consultations happening around you. Alternatively, there are a number of TV documentaries which focus on patient experiences in hospitals. 24 hours A and E Series 7 is a TV show in the UK which documents some of the patients who present at a major London hospital in one 24 hour period. When listening to one of these programs, you must focus on patients’ description of their health and how the health-care professional manages the conversation asking for more details moving the conversation forward etc.
Description of OET Listening Part A. Complete the gaps with words from the audio.
Patient:- Andrew Taylor
Has had _1____ over a long period
Reports a frequent __2______ sensation in the last year
Most recently ______3__________ has become a problem
Word used to describe symptoms __4________
Pre-existing skin condition aggravated
Frequent _____5_________ patient didn’t initially link these to bowel condition
Go through the case notes with gaps and complete the gap with word/words or short phrases from the audio.
Method to be applied on test day:-
The important rule is that the patient will say the answers for the stated questions. A Gastroenterologist talks to the patient Andrew Taylor. Listening very carefully to the medical professional is very important because the medical professional guides the test taker through different case notes.
- Anticipate what the answers might be:-
The answers predicted in the 30 seconds allocated time for reading could be as follows:-
Recap questions 1-5
Patient:- Andrew Taylor
- Has had medical issue hernia/cough over a long period
- Reports a frequent burning itching? sensation in the last year
- Most recently another medical issue has become a problem
- Word used to describe symptoms – adjective terrible? Awful?
Pre-existing skin condition aggravated
- Frequent Noun+s headaches patient didn’t initially link these to bowel condition
Recap questions 6-8
- Works as an job starting with a vowel – airline host?
- Situation at work means patient is verb+ing sleepy
- Complains of lack of sleep
Recap questions 9-12
- Claims to be consuming sufficient mineral? Food type?
- Claims to keep hydrated
- Has experimented with excluding specific food from the diet
Very slight reduction in caffeine intake
Has undergone MRI? no indications of anything problematic
Medication
Has taken anti-spasmodic – not very effective
- Now trying type of medication?
Synonymous Language
We could say the same content in different ways.
Has had ________ over a long period.
Well erm, this has been going on for many years. After meals I’ve always tended to get xxxx (answer) The same words in the notes are not used while listening to the recording.
Situation at work means patient is _____________
There’s a chance I might lose my job in a reorganization of my department, so that’s obviously something that’s making me xxxx (answer). I don’t know what’s going to happen is a clue that tells what the answer would be to fill the gap.
Claims to be consuming sufficient _____________
Claims to keep hydrated
I was told by a nutritionist I saw that people with irritable bowel syndrome don’t eat enough xxxx (answer). In my case I don’t feel that’s an issue. I’ve followed the nutritionist’s advice about taking more fluids during the day, especially water, and accept that, in the past, maybe I didn’t do that enough.
All these show the difference between what the speakers say and what’s on the page, they are different ways of expressing the same content. They are synonymous. This must be understood clearly by the test taker.
- Use the guided posts:-
Use titles and key words to guide you if you get lost and then there is going to be one sentence that does not have a gap. This gives time for the test taker to catch up as there would be a brief talk on the pre-existing skin condition aggravated. This talk leads on to the answer for question number 5.
Recap questions 1-5
Patient:- Andrew Taylor
Background
Has had _1____ over a long period
Reports a frequent __2______ sensation in the last year
Most recently ______3__________ has become a problem
Word used to describe symptoms __4________
Pre-existing skin condition aggravated
Frequent _____5_________ patient didn’t initially link these to bowel condition
After the gaps for questions 1-4, there is a brief talk on pre-existing skin condition after which the answer for question 5 is stated.
Recap question 9
Diet
Claims to be consuming sufficient _______9________
Claims to keep hydrated
Example of a SIGNPOST.
Gastroenterologist:-
Mmm, right, and I understand that you’ve investigated the possibility that your diet’s responsible for your condition. Can you tell me about this?
The key word diet tells the listener where he/she is on the page while listening to the recording.
- PRACTICE:-
Listen to the recording and see the questions on the screen and answer them one after the other by putting numbers 1 to 12 on a sheet of paper.
Extract 1 questions 1-12
You hear a Gastroenterologist talking to a patient called Andrew Taylor.
For questions 1-12, complete the notes with a word or a short phrase.
You now have 30 seconds to look at the notes.
Questions 1-12
Patient:- Andrew Taylor
Has had _1____ over a long period
Reports a frequent __2______ sensation in the last year
Most recently ______3__________ has become a problem
Word used to describe symptoms __4________
Pre-existing skin condition aggravated
Frequent _____5_________ patient didn’t initially link these to bowel condition
Effects of condition on everyday life.
Works as an/a _____6________
Situation at work means patient is ________7________
Complains of lack of _____8________
Diet
Claims to be consuming sufficient _______9________
Claims to keep hydrated
Has experimented with excluding ______10______ from the diet
Very slight reduction in caffeine intake
Has undergone _____11_______ no indications of anything problematic
Medication
Has taken anti-spasmodic – not very effective
Now trying ___12_______
Once you have listened, read the questions and answered the same concurrently after which the answers can be revealed along with extracts from the tape script.
Patient:- Andrew Taylor
Tape script:-
Gastroenterologist:- Good Morning Mr. Taylor, now you’ve been referred to me because it is possible that you have been suffering from irritable bowel syndrome or related condition.
Taylor:- Yes, that’s right.
Gastroenterologist:- Okay, you could start by giving me some background.
Taylor:- mmm Well, this has been going on for many years. After meals, I’ve tended to get heart burn but I found that pretty easy to deal with taking anti-acids from the pharmacy but a year ago things were worse and there were other problems I started to notice. The symptoms vary a lot. It can be quite hard to describe actually but the main problem is bloating. I had to tell you some other things related to my stomach, although this isn’t something that happens every day, I’ve been suffering from constipation in the last month. in the past I’ve had the opposite problem, I would rush to the toilet several times a day. I just never know how I’m going to feel from one day to the next. It’s the way symptoms are, so unpredictable that I hate. It’s hard to plan my life.
Gastroenterologist:- Were there any other symptoms unrelated to your stomach or bowel?
Taylor:- I’ve had a skin condition that can flare up. I know this could be related to irritable bowel syndrome and another thing is, I often have migraines. It’s more or less at the same time as my stomach discomfort and these can go on for days. It’s strange that I didn’t first think it has anything to do with my stomach problem.
Gastroenterologist:- Have you ever noticed anything that can intensify the symptoms in any way?
Taylor:- I’ve a very demanding job as an accountant. I don’t know whether this has a bearing on anything but there’s a chance I might lose my job in the reorganization of my department. That’s obviously something that is making me anxious. I don’t know what’s going to happen
Gastroenterologist:- What is the worst effect the condition has on you?
Taylor:- The problem isn’t just that, it is always on my mind and that there is some pretty big distraction but also that it is so draining. What I mean is, I often have got no energy at all. I just wanted to sit around and do nothing when I get home from work to be honest. I go to bed tired but I’m a bit frustrated because I haven’t seen me much than I’ve ever done before. I wouldn’t say I’ve been suffering from depression but a condition like this can rather make you feel down.
Gastroenterologist:- All right. And I understand, you’ve investigated the possibility that your diet is responsible for this condition. Can you tell me something about this?
Taylor:- I was told by a nutritionist, ‘I saw that people with irritable bowel syndrome often don’t eat enough fibre’. In my case I don’t feel that’s not an issue. I follow the nutritionist’s advice about taking more fluids during the day especially water and except that in the past maybe I didn’t do that enough. It’s hard to say whether that made a difference. Possibly it caused slight improvement. I’ve read that dairy products can make things worse so I tried cutting them down. I wasn’t convinced that it made any difference. I’ve cut back on caffeine though not much actually. I also extensively paid for food allergy tests but it didn’t show anything major so that’s not an area my doctors thought investigating further.
Gastroenterologist:- What medication is to be tried?
Taylor:- I took something called the anti-spasmodic which my GP says hopes to relax the muscular contractions, move food through the gut, but to be honest, I don’t think it made much difference in my case.
Gastroenterologist:- Have you taken anything else?
Taylor:- well I’ve been given anti-depressants and I’m giving them a go. I wasn’t sure I completely understood the reasons. Well a drug like that targets signals sent to and from nerves in the digestive system.
Gastroenterologist:- Do you find that this drug was effective?
Taylor:- Yes I’d say it was on the whole.
Has had heart burn (after meals) over a long period
Well this has been going on for many years after meals I tended to get heart burns
Reports a frequent bloating sensation in the last year
A year ago things were worse and there were other problems I started to notice. The symptoms vary a lot. It can be quite hard to describe exactly but the main problem is bloating
Most recently constipation has become a problem
I’ve been suffering from constipation in the last month.
Word used to describe symptoms so unpredictable
I just never know how I’m going to feel from one day to the next, it is the way the symptoms are, so unpredictable that I hate.
Pre-existing skin condition aggravated
Frequent migraines – patient didn’t initially link these to bowel condition
I’ve a skin condition that can flare up. I know this would be related to irritable bowel syndrome and another thing is I often have migraines. It is more or less at the same time as stomach discomfort and these can go on for days. It is strange and I didn’t first think it has anything to do with my stomach problem.
Effects of condition on everyday life.
Works as an accountant
I have a very demanding job as an accountant.
Situation at work means patient is anxious
There is a chance that I might lose my job in the reorganization of my department. That’s obviously something that is making me anxious.
Complains of lack of energy
What I mean is I often feel I’ve got no energy at all.
Diet
Claims to be consuming sufficient fibre/fiber
I was told by a nutritionist, I saw that people with irritable bowel syndrome don’t eat enough fibre. In my case I don’t feel that’s an issue
Claims to keep hydrated
I follow the nutritionist’s advice about taking more fluids during the day, especially water and except that in the past maybe I didn’t do that enough.
Has experimented with excluding dairy products from the diet
I’ve read that dairy products can make things worse so I tried cutting them down.
Very slight reduction in caffeine intake
I’ve cut back on caffeine though not much actually.
Has undergone (extensive) food allergy tests no indications of anything problematic
I also extensively paid for food allergy tests but it didn’t show anything major so that’s not an area my doctors thought investigating further.
Medication
Has taken anti-spasmodic – not very effective
I took something called an anti-spasmodic which my general physician says hopes to relax muscular contractions, move food through the gut, but to be honest, I don’t think it made much difference in my case.
Now trying anti-depressants/or an anti-depressant
Well I’ve been given anti-depressants and I’m giving them a go.
The extracts you hear in Listening Comprehension Part B are examples of work place communication. You might hear part of a hand over, a training session or briefing or part of a discussion between colleagues or patient and health care professionals. Each extract is only around one minute long so it may be a snip age from a longer communication but it will contain all the information needed to answer the multiple choice questions. To prepare for Listening Part B, you need to practice listening for the gist in short health care communications in English. You may be able to do this by listening to intercommunication happening around your work. Alternatively, you can find many examples of health-car training videos in English on the internet. The majority of answer options in listening Part B will include a verb or verb phrase. You may be more familiar with some of these verbs and others. They are fairly formal. They are all typical to the health care work place so it is good to spend some time familiarizing with them and then their meaning. For example:- you may know more informal expressions or words with meaning, find or locate and install etc. Some of the words are:- correct, describe, wish, buy, locate get approval, Explain, install, accept, value, write, prioritize, clarify, deal with confirm, develop, treat, identify a problem, use, suggest, etc.
In this part of the test you will hear six extracts. In each extract you will hear people talking about a different health care setting. For questions 25-30, choose the answer A,B, or C which fits best according to what you hear. You will have to read each of the questions before you listen. Complete your answers as you listen. Let me show you how the MCQ’s will look like?
- You hear an optometrist taking to a patient who has been trying contact lenses for the first time?
What is the patient concerned about?
- Has blurred vision
- Soreness in his eyes
- How to remove the lenses
- You hear two radiologists talking about the type of scan given to the patient.
They agree to choose the method which will
- Allow them to see the whole of the appendix
- Probably give the most accurate
- Have the finest risks for the patient
The length of the options can vary. Most importantly – the audio tells you who will speak. For Question 25, there will be two people speaking, the optometrist and the patient. It is important that you know who will be speaking because it will help you to guide you through the talking. Sometimes it will be two people and at other times it can be one person. The question prompt is absolutely critical because it is asking you to listen for something. For example:- What is the patient concerned about? Yet another thing to be understood is that question 25 is a direct question. The situation in question 25 is the Optometrist talking to a patient to know his or her concerns. Question 28 is all about two radiologists talking about the type of scan given to a patient. However, question 28 is an incomplete sentence, they agree to choose the method which will ……
The other questions are as follows:-
- You will hear a nurse asking a colleague for help with a patient. Why does the nurse need help?
- a) The patient’s condition has deteriorated
- b) The patient is worried about the procedure
- c) The patient is reporting increased pain levels.
A nurse is asking a colleague for help. It is important to particularly listen particularly to why the nurse needs help. That’s critical. You’ll have enough time to read this question and the answer options twice before it starts playing, you go back to the question prompt. It is a direct question. You are asking yourself, why does the nurse need help? Then when it finishes, you quickly scan A, B or C and you circle the correct answer.
- You hear a senior nurse talking about a new initiative that has been introduced on her ward
What problem was it intended to solve?
- Patient’s confusion over information given by the doctor
- Relatives not being able to discuss issues with the doctor
- Patients not discussing all their concerns when meeting the doctor.
This is a monologue wherein a senior nurse is talking about a new initiative that has been started in her ward. Listen to the recording on the kind of issue that could be overcome as a result of this new initiative. When that’s the question prompt and a direct one, listening carefully to the stumbling block that had to be solved after beginning a new initiative in the ward.
- You hear a part of the surgical team’s briefing:
The male surgeon suggests that the patient could:-
- Require specialist equipment during surgery
- Benefit from a specific anesthetic procedure
- Be at risk of complications from another issue
The team of surgeons brief on the condition of the diseased after surgery and the kind of treatment and medication administered. This question is an incomplete sentence where the male surgeon suggests things many not be good for the bedridden person who has a surgery and is most likely to undergo another serious operation. You will hear a senior research associate talking about a proposal to introduce inter-professional primary health-care teams.
- The senior research associate talks about a proposal to start inter-professional primary health care centre
What hasn’t been established about the teams yet?
- The best way for collaboration to take place
- The financial impact that they are likely to have
- The aspect of medical care they are best suited to
The senior research associate talks about a proposal to start inter-professional primary health care. The direct question is, what has not been established about the teams. The listening skill must be confined to the question prompt which is a direct question after understanding the monologue to be presented in the given statement which is just before the direct question followed by the given options.
The test takers must listen to the tape script and choose the correct option. The correct answers and the wrong options are discussed at length to help test takers understand why one option is correct and other options are distracters.
- You hear an optometrist taking to a patient who has been trying contact lenses for the first time?
What is the patient concerned about?
- His blurred vision
- Soreness in his eyes
- How to remove the lenses
Tape script:-
Optometrist:- Now you’ve had the lenses in for a few minutes. How are they feeling?
Patient:- Not bad. I’d feel them actually touching my eyes: that they’d be sore and prickly, but I can’t feel much at all. My eyes do feel a bit watery though.
Optometrist:- It’s OK – you’ve just used too much solution. Now, in a few minutes, I’II get you try taking them out and inserting them again by yourself.
Patient:- I had no trouble of taking them out earlier, but I’m not confident about putting them in. I worry I’II press too hard.
Optometrist:- That’s unlikely to happen.
Patient:- Things look rather distorted though, I mean, I can’t make out the letters on that chart
Optometrist:- Any of them
Patient:- Those lower down.
Optometrist:- Let’s give things another minute to settle down.
Each of the answer options given in the question were mentioned in the recording. Option B soreness in his eyes. Patient says I feel them actually touching my eyes that they’d been sore or prickly but I can’t feel much at all. Is the patient concerned about the soreness? Not at all. Option C is how to remove the lenses. The patient says I had no trouble taking them out earlier, but I’m not confident about putting them back in. I worry I’II press too hard. Is the patient concerned about how to remove the lenses? No. as per Option A is the patient concerned about his blurred vision? Yes. The patient says things look rather distorted though. I mean, I can’t make out the letters on that chart. That’s what he is concerned about. The words blurred and distorted are synonyms and I can’t make out the letters in that chart are related to the word vision.
- You will hear a nurse asking a colleague for help with a patient.
Why does the nurse need help?
- a) The patient’s condition has deteriorated
- b) The patient is worried about the procedure
- c) The patient is reporting increased pain levels.
Option A, B and C are mentioned but only Option B is the correct answer. Patient is worried about procedure so she needs her chest drains removing, though, and she’s got herself in a bit of a state …. I think some reassurance might be needed first.
Tape Script:-
Male:- Cathy could you help me with the patient in Bed 103? The woman who had surgery two days ago?
Female:- Oh, Yes – she’s due for discharge today. Isn’t she? Does her pain relief need topping up again? I thought she wasn’t very comfortable this morning.
Male:- Oh, she’s on a reasonably low doze – but she’s coping. She needs her chest drains removing, though, she’s got herself into a bit of a state.
Female:- Well, that’s a two person job anyway. So I’II come with you. Has the consultant seen her? I know there was some concern yesterday about her condition, and the level of the fluids draining into the bags.
Male:- Oh he’s cleared her for removal of them today – but I think some reassurance must be needed first.
Female:- Right, I might just check her analgesia and give her more before we go ahead.
- You hear a senior nurse talking about a new initiative that has been introduced on her ward
What problem was it intended to solve?
- Patient’s confusion over information given by the doctor
- Relatives not being able to discuss issues with the doctor
- Patients not discussing all their concerns when meeting the doctor.
For this question the three Options A, B and C are given but Option C is the correct answer. A scheme called ‘Dear Doctor’ which involves giving each patient a card where they can make a note of any questions or concerns that they, themselves, have …. Patients used to say they only thought of the things they felt they needed to discuss when it was too late, so the cards give them a better chance to bring up whatever is in on their minds. In fact it’s been so successful that we’re going to roll it on all wards in the hospital.
Tape script:-
Female:- One of our key priorities is improving communications between staff, patients and patients’ families. We recently introduced a scheme called ‘Dear Doctor’, which involves giving each patient a card where they can make a note of any questions or concerns that they, themselves have. They can also talk to their families during visiting time and even on the phone and see if there’s anything else they would like to add. The cards are then collected and given to the doctor before the ward round. We’re really pleased with the response – patients used to say they only thought of the things they felt they needed to discuss when it was too late, so the cards give them a better chance to bring up whatever is there on their minds. In fact it’s been so successful that we’re going to roll it on all wards in the hospital.
- You hear two radiologists talking about the type of scan given to the patient.
They agree to choose the method which will
- Allow them to see the whole of the appendix
- Probably give the most accurate
- Have the finest risks for the patient
Here Option C is the correct answer. Have the fewest risks for the patient. Option A and B are mentioned but not in this context.
Female:- We can spare him the radiation
Male:- It means we can avoid the child being subject to contrast exposure as well.
Tape script:-
Female:- I’ve just had a phone call from emergency. They have an 11-year-old boy with right lower quadrant abdominal pain. They are concerned about appendicitis and they would like to order an abdominal CT for him.
Male:- mmm do you think that is a good idea?
Female:- I was thinking maybe we should recommend an abdominal ultrasound, because then we can spare him the radiation.
Male:- Is there any concern in this case around using ultrasound instead of CT, accuracy, for example?
Female:- The sensitivity is slightly less than the CT, but the specificity’s almost the same, so I think we can rely on the results.
Male:- OK it means we can avoid the child being subject to contrast exposure as well. But what would we do if the ultrasound doesn’t answer the question?
Female:- it can’t visualize the complete appendix, then we can recommend an abdominal CT
Male:- OK we’ve a plan. Call them back and let them know.
- You hear a part of the surgical team’s briefing:
The male surgeon suggests that the patient could:-
- Require specialist equipment during surgery
- Benefit from a specific anesthetic procedure
- Be at risk of complications from another issue
Option B is the correct answer. Benefit from a specific anesthetic procedure.
Male:- I know he was in a lot of discomfort after his last surgery and this time he is going to need a larger mid-line incision. It may be worth thinking about an epidural. He is certainly in the extremely low edge in terms of pain threshold. The male surgeon suggests that the patient could benefit from a specific anesthetic procedure. The other options were mentioned but they were incorrect or contradictory.
Tape script:-
Male:- OK. Next is Mr. Molloy’s laparotomy. Any anesthesia issues?
Female:- we don’t expect any particular problems: he’s relatively fit and well, except for his epilepsy, which is under good control. His BMI is 35 but,
Male:- Will he need the obesity bed?
Female:- It shouldn’t be an issue.
Male:- and what about the epilepsy post-operative management?
Female:- He’s taking his oral medications and we can use a 4 if necessary.
Male:- I know he was in a lot of discomfort after his last surgery and this time he’s going to need a larger mid line incision. It may be worth thinking about an epidural. He’s certainly at an extremely low edge in terms of pain threshold.
- The senior research associate talks about a proposal to start inter-professional primary health care centre
What hasn’t been established about the teams yet?
- The best way for collaboration to take place
- The financial impact that they are likely to have
- The aspect of medical care they are best suited to
The given question prompt is what hasn’t been established about the teams yet? The transcript states that Now, the extent to which these teams could affect the cost of health care in such areas isn’t quite clear within the evidence, but the work we are doing aims to address such issues. The answer is Option B the financial impact that they are likely to have.
Tape script:-
Female:- we’re looking at opportunities to improve the effectiveness of health and health-care systems here in Canada. One of the interventions we are looking at is inter-professional primary care teams. Groups of professionals working together collaboratively to provide services including health-care, social services and advice to patients within the primary – care setting. There’s evidence that teams like these can improve chronic disease outcomes. Including diabetes, hypertension and heart disease, as well as mental health problems. There’s also evidence that improvements can be made in terms of both access to and coordination of care. Now, the extent to which these teams could affect the cost of health care in such areas isn’t quite clear within the evidence, but the work we are doing aims to address such issues, while looking at the challenges of implementation and evaluation.
The two longer extracts in Listening Part C focus on general health-care topics. The extracts will either be the interview of a health-care professional or a presentation given by a health-care professional. It need not necessarily be the whole of the interview or presentation by the health-care professional but will contain sufficient details to answer the questions. To prepare for Listening Part C, listening to the speaker’s perspective which means their opinion and attitude to the topic as well as the gist of what they are saying. Some good listening sources in English are Podcasts, TED talks as well as attending in-service training events at your work place. When listening or watching a presentation, such as the one produced by the World Health Organization (WHO), train the psyche to listen and concentrate for longer. By listening to unfamiliar content, try to train the psyche to listen unfamiliar vocabulary. This is important and it is easy to be distracted by an unfamiliar word. Do not pause the audio to check the meaning of some unfamiliar vocabulary. Make a note of such words to check the meaning later but while listening, allow the recording to continue so that the conversation is not broken at any point of time. Train the psyche to remain focused. It is easy to get switched off if the recording were to be a bit more complex than usual. The questions will help the test takers to clearly understand on what is to be listened to while the recording is played. The reading time must be used wisely at the commencement of the recording itself so that it is possible to focus on each question as per the listening texts and apply properly on the kind of particulars required after which choose the correct answer option itself.
For Example:- Like Listening Part B, each question will be clearly introduced so it will not be difficult to know when the recording has moved on to the next question. Also like Part B it is important to read each answer option carefully and thereby understand the information it provides.
The sample question for Listening Part C is as follows:-
- Anne feels that, in the long term, her therapy helped Ted because
- It led him to become less emotional
- It made him appreciate the need for patience
- It showed him there was something to work towards
In this example, each option stars with a phrase of similar meaning so these can be ignored because they will not help in finding the correct option which is the answer to the given question. Similarly, the different phrases in the question find the differences in each option gives valuable clues on what is heard and need be focused on. It is quite likely that the meaning of the answer option that is correct maybe inferred or implied rather than directly provided. This means listening to the individual words alone may not help but understand the meaning provided by them in combination as in the example.
Tape script
So how did my therapy help? Well, I worked with Ted on his hands, putting playing cards on a table and then getting him to pick one up – which he couldn’t do. But then he resorted to sliding the cards off the table and then picking them up that way – finding a way of compensating what he couldn’t do. He had become upset about what he felt was his lack of progress – relearning to do things you used to do with ease can be frustrating. But, in time, I got him to see that if he didn’t work with me, then he would stay as he was for the rest of his life. That was a big motivating factor.
The implication here is that, working with Anne meant Ted didn’t have to stay the way he was and this is backed up by the final sentence I got him to see that if he didn’t work with me, then he would stay as he was for the rest of his life. That was a big motivating factor. The meaning is implied. It doesn’t sound like the answer as it doesn’t use the words in the answer option. The last sentence confirms that this is the reason therapy helped but the listener needs to understand that the therapy would help Ted improve from the situation he was in at the time of speaking. Like Part B, it is also good to check on why the other options are incorrect.
Option A It led him to become less emotional
Option B It made him appreciate the need for patience.
In this example, Anne uses the past perfect tense to describe Ted’s situation before she met him makes Options A and B incorrect. They are mentioned but do not tell how Anne’s therapy helps Ted.
To Summarize, the best ways to prepare for listening is:- listen to a variety of recordings on a variety of health-care topics by a variety of speakers with a variety of accents. Practice listening for the length of the individual parts of the listening test but also for 40 minutes in one go which is the length to be concentrated on for the test day. Do complete official practice tests so that you are familiar with the format of the listening test but also spend time to improve your listening skills using the ideas already presented. This will make the most noticeable difference to the score on test day. Don’t be tempted to listen with a dictionary. Train yourself to deal with unfamiliar vocabulary in recordings so pausing the recordings to check the meanings of words won’t be helpful. Save the dictionary for after the completion of the recording.
To get the best result on test day for Listening Comprehension Part A, write the answers as the recording is played as the recording is only played once so the answers must be written down by the end of the audio. The answers to be written are short, say about 1-3 words and the length of the gap is sufficient for the same. Minor spelling and grammar mistakes are acceptable provided the assessors can understand the meaning of the answers. These mistakes won’t be penalized. The words must be used around the gaps to help keep up with the recording and to give clues for the information to be listened for.
To score high in Listening Part B, Use the context situation to help start imagining the communication heard and the vocabulary included. Read the answer options carefully and underline the key words which helps the test taker identify the correct answer. If the extract includes two speakers, make sure both the speakers conversation must be listened to carefully as the combination of their responses need to be understood clearly to select the correct option. Last of all but not the least, it is mandatory to listen to the whole audio. Try to check all of the options by listening to information that proves each option to be correct or even incorrect for that matter.
In do exceptionally well in Listening Part C, keep listening and concentrating the whole of each audio extracts in a rather focused manner. In the reading time, read he questions carefully and understand the information provided in each answer option. Listen for the audio to introduce each question to help know where the listener is as the recording progresses. The previous question need not necessarily be correct to get the next question also correct. If one question is probably a hard nut to crack, it is better to forget it and move to the next question. Use the two minutes at the end to check the answers are clearly marked and to guess any that was left blank.
