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MANILA, Philippines--The IELTS listening module is considered to be the most difficult. It is the first of a three-module, three-hour exam that starts from 9 a.m. to 12 a.m. You will be asked to listen to a 30-minute recording of several conversations divided into four sections. The first section is the easiest. The next sections become progressively more difficult until you reach the last one. There is a 30-second preview time for each set of questions and another 30 seconds to review your answer. You will be given a test booklet where you will find questions that you need to answer by listening to the conversation. There are 40 items, from fill in the blanks to multiple choice questions. At the end of the 30 minutes you will be given 10 minutes to transfer your final answers to a separate answer sheet. Many candidates find the listening exam difficult for three reasons. First, the accent. The accent generally used in the IELTS is British or Australian although many other accents can be heard such as Canadian, Singaporean , New Zealand etc. . Second, conversations in the listening test occur at normal speaking speeds so some candidates may find it difficult to follow the flow of the conversation. A third reason has to do with poor grammar and spelling skills. Strategize Given that the four-part exam is designed with increasing difficulty, it is best that you concentrate on getting most of your points from the 1st to the 3rd sections because these are supposed to be the easier sections. If you can perfect the first 3 sections then you only need to get a few points in the 4th section to reach your desired band score. | 
