In order to improve your IELTS reading skills and boost your score, it’s crucial to dedicate time to reading and to focus on increasing your reading speed.
Start reading in groups of 3 – 5 words
While we were all taught to read each individual word in school, it is rather inefficient and slow, especially in a test environment when you are in a time crisis. Instead, make an effort to take in several words at once and digest them for information and details.
Do not reread the words of Ielts
When we are confused or unsure about something we have read, common wisdom is to go back and reread the sentence or passage. This means that your eyes are constantly bouncing back and forth as you read, causing precious seconds to be lost that can seriously add up.
Skim during your first reading then scan when answering questions
A great way to tackle reading the passages once you are more familiar with word chunking is to skim the main points of your text.
Start improving your vocabulary to speed up comprehension
One of the biggest stumbling blocks in slow reading is not understanding what the word means. Fortunately, this is one of the easiest problems to solve, and you can start by simply improving.
Get familiar and read a variety of text similar to the Ielts tests
A good way to prepare for the reading test is to expand your vocabulary while reading books, magazines, newspapers, and journals.
Take practice tests and start timing yourself
While the first five steps will help you improve your reading speed on Ielts, there is nothing like the actual tests to simulate real exam conditions.
