IELTS General Training 16, by Cambridge Assessment

As someone who has read a fair amount of books of this kind, it is worth commenting on what makes this particular book different (but only slightly) from similar volumes that are devoted to the IELTS Academic test. There are two versions of the IELTS exam, Academic and General. They are identical with one exception, and that is the first writing task, which is a letter in the General test and a short essay that explains graphs or process drawings or other visualizations in the Academic test as a way of demonstrating that someone can interpret and understand data. By and large, this text is helpful for those who are seeking to study the IELTS, since half of the writing section is shared between the two types of tests and the speaking, listening, and reading sections are all also broadly similar to identical. Whether or not this book would be useful for a candidate would depend on their focus. Those looking on general studies will find much to enjoy here, but those looking specifically to improve their writing score will find this book to be less helpful because the writing tests are different between the General and Academic tests.

This book is a bit less than 150 pages and is organized in a very straightforward and simple matter. The book begins with an introduction shared with the Academic Training version which demonstrates the structure of the test, the various tasks involved in the four sections of listening, reading, writing, and speaking, the scoring bands from 1 to 9 that are shared by the two tests, and how the practice tests should be marked (though not in a library copy) as well as how scores should be interpreted. This is followed by four tests. Each of these tests includes 4 parts of the listening exam with 40 items, 3 sections of reading with 40 questions, 2 writing tasks (a letter and an essay), and a speaking section. These tests will be familiar but possibly a bit simpler–at least in the reading and first writing sections–to those who are studying for the Academic IELTS. After these practice tests, which take up the first two thirds or so of the book, the rest of the book is then taken up with audioscripts for the listening section, listening and reading answer keys, sample writing answers in various bands, and sample answer sheets, followed by acknowledgements.

As someone who has read this companion volume in both the general and academic format, I can say that they are substantially identical in terms of their organization and structure. Indeed, only one component of writing is different between the two, and it is, as may be expected, separate here. It is unclear why exactly at the present time that two exams are needed given the fact that they are nearly identical, though it appears that the burden of seeking to understand and interpret data is something that is viewed as only being essential for those with academic or professional ambitions, while for ordinary people looking to be seen as laborers of some kind, it is viewed as acceptable to write a letter instead, for what it’s worth. There also appear to be slight differences in the reading section to make the General Test easier as well. Still, if the number of people who are taking the IELTS General Test is perhaps lower than that taking the Academic one, this book is certainly worthwhile in providing additional practice tests for people to take, and that is the purpose of this book for its readers.