Those who want to conquer high-stakes IELTS exam must be familiar with the series of practice questions from Cambridge University Press: Cambridge Practice Test for IELTS. In the article below, 9IELTS will spend a couple of lines reviewing the second book of this famous series: Cambridge Practice Test for IELTS 8.
Cambridge IELTS 8 is in the book series of the same name, published by Cambridge University Press – one of the most prestigious publishers in the world of English language learning in particular and language skills in general.
For those who don’t know, Cambridge IELTS is a series of books about the IELTS exam published annually by Cambridge itself to give you the best orientation for those who are preparing for the IELTS exam. The book is a collection of many different sets of topics, and by exploiting these topics, readers will be able to decipher and grasp the structure of the exam. This will help you be more confident when entering the ‘battle’ with the exam.
Cambridge IELTS 8 Review
Book Content
Cambridge IELTS 8 is divided into 4 main sections:
- The first part provides 4 IELTS Academic mock tests and 2 questions in a General Training format. The Listening section in each test has an accompanying audio file.
- The second part is recording the Listening tests in the practice test (audio scripts).
- The third part includes answers to exercises of the Listening & Reading test sections (answer key).
- The last part is the answer sheet – sample answer sheets of skills in the IELTS test.
Each practice test in Cambridge IELTS 8 is designed in the same order as in an IELTS Academic test: going from Listening to Reading, Writing and finally Speaking. In there:
- The Listening test consists of 4 parts (4 sections) with 40 questions.
- The Reading practice test consists of 3 reading passages (3 passages) with 40 questions in total. The format of each course is different for IELTS Academic & General Training.
- The Writing practice test includes task 1 and task 2. The form of each lesson is other with IELTS Academic & General Training.
- The Speaking test consists of 3 parts with question content closely following the actual test.
Target Readers
Because the Cambridge IELTS 8 book only provides practice questions, this document is suitable for those who have mastered the exam structure and tactics for handling different tests in each skill. Thus, the book is a reliable source of reference and practice for test takers before the official exam.
Pros & Cons
Cambridge IELTS 8 is compiled by the world’s leading IELTS experts, is a published product of the prestigious Cambridge University (one of the three global IELTS test administrators) and is listed in the list of documents. Official IELTS test preparation – OFFICIAL – of this publisher. Therefore, the book’s reliability in terms of content and format is unquestionable.
Near the end of the book Cambridge IELTS 8, there is a section that provides model and sample answers for the writing tasks, for the questions on the Writing Academic and General Training tests, both task 1 and task 2.
Sample articles that can be relatively standard, and rated as “excellent answers” will not have many comments. However, for the reports that the judges consider the average and graded as “band 5.0”, “band 6.0”, etc., there will be thorough comments, indicating why only such scores are obtained.
These are valuable and practical comments, allowing learners to visualize the criteria for evaluating a Writing test in practice, from the examiner’s perspective, and a scale describing the score band. It was obvious but had too many words.
However, Cambridge Practice Test for IELTS 8 only includes sample test questions for the complete set of 4 skills for the two current IELTS formats: Academic and General Training. Instructions are nowhere to be seen throughout the book, and there is no section dedicated to guiding the test-taking process and strategies for dealing with different types of IELTS tests. Therefore, the book is not suitable for beginners.
Cambridge IELTS 8 Study Guide
Cambridge Practice Test for IELTS 8 is an IELTS preparation book that provides IELTS practice tests in both academic and general training formats. Therefore, when looking for practice tests in the book, you need to identify what you are looking at as the Academic and General Training format.
It should be noted that, IELTS Academic and General Training are only different in Reading and Writing tests, and Speaking & Listening are the same, so you can combine Speaking & Listening practice in all the sample test questions in the book, whether Academic or General Training.
In addition, Cambridge IELTS 8 is a practice book, so it will be a good idea if you take advantage of the opportunity to practice. For the test results to accurately reflect the current level, you must prepare some necessary conditions for the exam: space, time, tools and knowledge, and spirit. Avoid preparing poorly so that the process of taking the test is interrupted, which significantly affects the test results.
Download Cambridge IELTS 8 Free
Please visit the link below to download the Cambridge IELTS 8 book and start practising immediately! Download Cambridge IELTS 8, and you can not only practice well but also have great experiences in the process of IELTS test preparation, thereby removing obsession and stress during the actual exam.
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