IELTS Annual Review 2006 v6

Annual Review 2006
IELTS Annual Review 2006
Contents
Overview
Highlights for 2006
Band score information
IELTS research
14
IELTS 2007
IELTS
Annual Review 2006
Introduction
2006 was another hugely successful year for IELTS, with entries growing to unprecedented
levels and excellent prospects for further growth over the coming years. At the same time,
recognition of IELTS especially in the USA has increased substantially, and IELTS is fast
becoming the test of choice for immigration and higher education in English speaking
countries.
Many factors contribute to the success of IELTS, including the quality of the test and the
outstanding support provided by the network of IELTS centres around the world, but there
are four key characteristics that make IELTS especially appealing to test takers and
recognising organisations alike:
IELTS is SECURE
IELTS is GLOBAL
IELTS is AUTHENTIC
IELTS CARES
The three IELTS partners British Council, IDP: IELTS Australia and University of Cambridge
ESOL Examinations strive to maintain these characteristics, while continually enhancing the
usability of the tests, the service to candidates and recognising organisations, and the
information and support available to stakeholders.
This Review looks at some of the most important developments that took place during 2006.
It also presents some detailed statistics on how candidates performed, and the research
programme that backs up every aspect of the IELTS tests. Together, this information points
to a fifth key characteristic that underpins all of the others:
IELTS is FAIR
Highlights for 2006

Entries
During 2006, more than 700,000 people took IELTS tests, in around 120 countries throughout
the world. This represents a significant increase in entries from previous years and looks set
to continue over the coming years.
The growing candidature for IELTS means that it is fast becoming the test of choice for
immigration, professional and higher education purposes worldwide.
Massive growth in recognition

2006 has seen continuing growth in the number of universities, colleges, professional bodies
and employers that accept IELTS scores as reliable evidence of relevant English language
skills. By the end of the year, the list of institutions that accept IELTS scores had grown to
close to 4000, with more confirmations every week.
Key employers such as Coca Cola Amatil (Vietnam), Shell Corporation (Netherlands) and
nursing and medical associations use IELTS for English proficiency testing.
Associations such as the ACCA (Association of Certified Charted Accountants) and CPA
(Certified Practicing Accountants) recognised IELTS for their international members, reflecting
a greater awareness of the need for proficient English language skills in modern business
communication.
In the United Kingdom, the Nursing and Midwifery Council now requires all nurses who
qualified outside the European Union to achieve specified IELTS scores before they can apply
for registration. Following extensive consultation, carried out with the support of the IELTS
partners, the NMC has announced that this requirement will be extended to include midwives
in 2007.
Potential candidates and their tutors can get an immediate
picture of where an IELTS score can take them by logging
onto the Global Recognition System on the IELTS website
a database of score requirements worldwide.
Significantly, the United States Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) also posted IELTS as one of the accepted
tests for health care workers applying for green cards in
the USA.
IELTS
Annual Review 2006
USA says yes to IELTS

The United States of America is one of the key destinations for students wishing to study
outside their countries and regions of origin, and IELTS is increasingly recognised by
universities and schools throughout the country.
IELTS International, the IELTS partners representative in the USA, has been working closely
with educators and professional bodies to encourage institutions to accept IELTS. Around
1000 US universities, schools and faculties now accept IELTS scores, including almost all Ivy
League schools and a majority of other top institutions.
Simplifying access to IELTS tests

From May 2006, the rule that prevented candidates from re-taking IELTS within 90 days was
removed, and candidates can now repeat the test as often as they wish.
IELTS is now used by a very wide range of organisations across the world and many of them
require candidates to demonstrate adequate performance overall, as well as by individual
skill. It is possible for candidates to attain their required overall band score but fail to achieve
a specific module score in a particular skill area. It is in the nature of tests that scores on
individual components may vary to some extent from occasion to occasion and a candidate
may be able to make limited improvements in their performance when repeating the test
within a short timeframe. In consideration of this, the decision was made to remove the retake restrictions.
This change of policy makes booking and sitting a test easier for some candidates, but it is
important to remember that IELTS scores are not substantially improved merely by taking the
test on multiple occasions. Studies carried out under the IELTS funded research programme
demonstrate that scores are unlikely to improve dramatically without extensive English
language tuition in the interim.
Enhanced service for institutions accepting IELTS scores

Over the last three years, many of the organisations that recognise IELTS have come to rely
on the online TRF verification service, which enables them to confirm the authenticity of
scores presented to them by applicants. In 2006, this service was enhanced by a new
electronic bulk download facility which allows them to download IELTS results for all IELTS
candidates who want the organisation to recognise their result.
Candidates registering for IELTS can specify up to five organisations to whom their IELTS test
scores should be sent. This information is recorded by the centre in their local administration
systems and subsequently uploaded to the central IELTS processing systems and websites.
Users from organisations which have registered for the electronic download facility can log
onto the existing IELTS TRF verification service and navigate to a new section from which the
scores can be downloaded in a variety of formats. This service is provided free of charge.
New look and feel

In June 2006, the IELTS partners introduced a new look and feel for IELTS, designed to make
our communications fresher and more appealing, and to make the benefits of the IELTS tests
clearer to candidates, tutors and the many institutions that use IELTS scores.
The new identity is built around a new logo and a motif based on overlapping coloured circles
carrying key messages about what makes IELTS special. It has been applied to all IELTS
publications and to the new-look website www.IELTS.org, and has attracted very positive
feedback from stakeholders, candidates and staff.
In order to support centres in communicating more effectively with their customers, a new
online service provides IELTS administrators with templates, draft texts and other resources
for use in their own publications.
Customer support
The IELTS partners are committed to providing the best possible level of support for
candidates, tutors, administrators, recognising organisations and other stakeholders.
As part of this commitment, we provide a wide range of information in print, on the IELTS
website and in the online IELTS Teaching Resources. During 2006, the IELTS partners
introduced a new range of information leaflets, FAQ sheets and other documents which are
available through IELTS centres worldwide.
Two other key publications were also issued in 2006:
Ensuring quality and fairness in international language testing

a booklet designed for staff in educational institutions, government
and commercial organisations and for language teachers, describing
some of the main features of IELTS and how these contribute to
language assessment that is reliable, fair and relevant.
IELTS Scores Explained a DVD aimed at organisations that wish to set

appropriate standards of language proficiency for entry to academic
courses, employment and migration, and for course designers, teachers,
candidates and anyone else who needs to understand what IELTS scores
actually mean in terms of English language ability.
Research and publishing

IELTS is backed by an extensive programme of academic and practical research covering all
aspects of the test and its delivery, and this research is regularly reported in publications
produced by the IELTS partners and in independent journals. A summary of the research
carried out in 2006 and key publications produced during the year is given on page 16.
IELTS
Annual Review 2006
Band Score information

how the candidates performed
IELTS is assessed on a nine-band scale and reports scores both overall and by individual
skill. Overall band scores for Academic and General Training candidates in 2006 are shown
here together with scores for the individual skills, according to a variety of classifications.
These figures are in line with statistics for previous years, and support claims that IELTS is fair
to all candidates regardless of their gender, place of origin and first language.
NB: for Place of Origin and First Language the tables show the top twenty places and
languages, listed alphabetically, not in order of the size of the candidature.
Academic and General Training

General Training candidates achieved higher scores in Listening and Speaking relative to
their performance in Reading and Writing. On average, mean scores for Academic
candidates showed less variation across the skills, but the Writing module was the most
challenging.
Almost four-fifths of candidates took the Academic Reading and Writing modules with just
over a fifth taking the General Training Reading and Writing modules. Both Academic and
General Training candidates take the same Listening and Speaking modules. This is in line
with previous years.
The following table shows the percentage split between the Academic and General Training
candidature in 2006.
2006
Academic
74.4%
General Training
23.6%
Gender
The following table shows the percentage of male and female candidates taking IELTS
in 2006.
2006
Female
Male
Overall
Female 48.3%
Male 51.7%
Academic
Female 51.3%
Male 48.7%
General Training
Female 38.5%
Male 61.5%
Mean band scores for female candidates

Listening
Reading
Writing
Speaking
OVERALL
Academic
6.11
6.04
5.73
6.11
6.06
General Training
6.02
5.70
5.83
6.15
5.99
Mean band scores for male candidates

Listening
Reading
Writing
Speaking
OVERALL
Academic
5.98
5.90
5.55
5.89
5.89
General Training
5.96
5.66
5.70
6.13
5.93
Reason for taking IELTS

The following table shows how candidates performed according to the reason for taking
the test, according to the information which they gave on their registration forms.
Below 4
4.5
5.5
6.5
7.5
8.5
For higher education

extended course
15
21
21
15
For other education

purposes
14
21
22
15
10
For registration as
a nurse
17
28
24
13
For employment
18
29
24
13
For immigration
14
25
2 3
15
Below 4
4.5
5.5
6.5
7.5
8.5
For higher education

extended course
15
20
18
15
10
For other education

purposes
14
19
19
16
11
For personal reasons
16
20
20
16
For employment
13
18
18
12
For immigration
12
17
20
17
12
Place of origin
These figures show the mean overall and individual Band Scores achieved by Academic and
General Training candidates according to their place of origin.
Mean band score by places of origin (Academic)
Listening
Reading
Writing
Speaking
Overall
Bangladesh
5.58
5.38
5.38
5.62
5.55
China
5.47
5.80
5.23
5.39
5.53
Germany
7.44
7.23
6.75
7.26
7.23
Hong Kong
6.70
6.75
5.91
6.06
6.42
India
6.30
5.82
5.79
6.10
6.07
Indonesia
6.10
6.27
5.43
5.83
5.97
Iran
6.04
5.96
5.81
6.31
6.09
Japan
5.87
5.86
5.33
5.80
5.78
Korea
5.87
5.87
5.36
5.72
5.77
Malaysia
6.93
6.85
6.13
6.41
6.64
Nepal
6.34
5.79
5.71
5.88
5.99
Nigeria
5.65
5.84
6.22
6.93
6.22
Pakistan
5.83
5.58
5.49
5.86
5.75
Philippines
6.68
6.27
6.18
6.74
6.53
Russia
6.49
6.48
5.98
6.68
6.47
Sri Lanka
6.27
5.97
5.93
6.39
6.21
Taiwan
5.52
5.81
5.23
5.66
5.62
Thailand
5.82
5.89
5.28
5.70
5.74
United Arab
Emirates
4.99
5.10
4.86
5.43
5.16
Vietnam
5.59
6.01
5.56
5.70
5.78
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IELTS
Annual Review 2006
Mean band score by places of origin (General Training)
11
Listening
Reading
Writing
Speaking
Overall
Bangladesh
5.78
5.30
5.63
6.14
5.77
China
5.82
5.85
5.61
5.77
5.83
Egypt
5.90
5.67
5.73
6.23
5.95
Germany
6.65
6.41
6.33
6.88
6.63
Hong Kong
6.23
6.14
5.76
6.05
6.11
India
6.17
5.54
5.83
6.20
6.00
Indonesia
6.61
6.34
5.95
6.38
6.38
Iran
5.42
5.19
5.54
5.82
5.56
Japan
5.66
5.48
5.24
5.76
5.59
Korea
5.39
5.29
5.03
5.31
5.31
Malaysia
7.08
6.74
6.54
6.98
6.90
Pakistan
5.83
5.38
5.79
6.26
5.88
Philippines
6.27
5.69
6.08
6.43
6.18
Russia
5.80
5.93
5.76
6.13
5.96
Singapore
7.22
6.74
6.58
7.24
7.01
South Africa
7.20
6.71
7.19
8.16
7.38
Sri Lanka
5.77
5.39
5.69
6.14
5.81
Taiwan
5.61
5.60
5.47
5.93
5.72
Thailand
5.42
5.30
5.14
5.59
5.42
United Arab
Emirates
4.64
4.07
4.58
5.39
4.73
First language
These figures show the mean overall and individual Band Scores achieved by Academic and
General Training candidates from the top 20 first language backgrounds.
Mean band score by first language (Academic)

FIRST LANGUAGE
Listening
Reading
Writing
Speaking
Overall
Arabic
5.53
5.52
5.23
5.93
5.62
Bengali
5.68
5.46
5.45
5.70
5.63
Chinese
5.66
5.95
5.33
5.51
5.67
Farsi
6.04
5.96
5.81
6.31
6.09
German
7.45
7.25
6.75
7.27
7.24
Gujarati
5.99
5.56
5.52
5.73
5.76
Hindi
6.64
6.08
6.00
6.39
6.34
Indonesian
6.09
6.27
5.43
5.83
5.97
Japanese
5.87
5.86
5.33
5.80
5.78
Korean
5.87
5.87
5.36
5.72
5.77
Malayalam
6.23
5.82
5.85
6.14
6.07
Nepali
6.35
5.79
5.72
5.89
5.99
Punjabi
5.93
5.52
5.47
5.71
5.72
Spanish
6.44
6.68
5.96
6.65
6.49
Tagalog
6.68
6.27
6.18
6.74
6.53
Tamil
6.44
5.97
5.89
6.32
6.22
Telugu
6.33
5.75
5.75
6.05
6.03
Thai
5.82
5.89
5.27
5.69
5.73
Urdu
5.93
5.61
5.52
5.90
5.81
Vietnamese
5.59
6.01
5.56
5.70
5.78
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IELTS
Annual Review 2006
Mean band score by first language (General Training)

FIRST LANGUAGE
13
Listening
Reading
Writing
Speaking
Overall
Arabic
5.44
5.10
5.30
6.00
5.52
Bengali
5.86
5.38
5.69
6.21
5.85
Chinese
5.89
5.89
5.65
5.84
5.88
Farsi
5.42
5.20
5.55
5.82
5.56
German
6.56
6.24
6.16
6.77
6.49
Gujarati
5.88
5.23
5.55
5.84
5.69
Hindi
6.49
5.87
6.09
6.61
6.33
Indonesian
6.60
6.34
5.94
6.37
6.38
Japanese
5.66
5.48
5.24
5.76
5.59
Korean
5.39
5.28
5.03
5.30
5.31
Malayalam
6.18
5.69
5.97
6.23
6.08
Punjabi
5.86
5.20
5.60
5.86
5.70
Russian
5.80
5.88
5.77
6.13
5.96
Singhalese
5.74
5.36
5.68
6.12
5.79
Spanish
5.89
6.14
5.85
6.39
6.13
Tagalog
6.26
5.68
6.07
6.41
6.17
Tamil
5.91
5.46
5.56
5.99
5.79
Telugu
6.42
5.71
5.89
6.40
6.17
Thai
5.42
5.30
5.14
5.59
5.42
Urdu
5.95
5.45
5.83
6.32
5.95
IELTS research
IELTS is backed by a long-term research programme, as well as extensive ongoing monitoring
to ensure the fairness of the tests.
All IELTS research activities are co-ordinated as part of a comprehensive and coherent
framework for research and validation of the test. A major component of this framework is the
IELTS Joint-funded Research Program which is sponsored jointly by British Council and IELTS
Australia with support from University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations.
The following projects were awarded grant funding in 2006.
Round 12 2006
John Read, Rosemary Wette, The University of
Assessing the English proficiency of medical
Auckland, New Zealand
professionals using IELTS and other means
Peter Mickan, The University of Adelaide, Australia
Learners experiences preparing for the IELTS

examinations
Roger Hawkey, Cyril Weir; The University of
The cognitive processes underlying the academic
Bedfordshire, UK
reading construct as measured by IELTS
Richard Badger, Oscar Yan; The University of Leeds,
The use of tactics and strategies by Chinese
UK
students in the listening component of IELTS
David Hyatt, Greg Brooks, The University of
Investigating stakeholders perceptions of IELTS as
Sheffield, UK
an entry requirement for higher education in the UK
Katherine Golder, Kenneth Reeder and Sarah
Determination of the appropriate IELTS band score
Fleming, The British Columbia Institute of
for the admission into a program at a post-
Technology, Canada
secondary polytechnic institution
Cambridge ESOL conducted research activities in the following areas during 2006:
Work towards mapping IELTS to the Common European Framework of Reference
for Languages for the UK Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
Ongoing entry of IELTS scripts into Cambridge Learner Corpus
Work on marking policy proposals including options for Digital Audio
14
IELTS
Annual Review 2006
Published research
Two major publications in 2006 cover academic research in relation to IELTS:
IELTS Research Reports Volume 6

Volume 6 of the series IELTS Research Reports includes reports of research
conducted under the IELTS joint-funded research program, sponsored by IDP:
IELTS Australia and the British Council.
Papers 1, 2, 3 and 7 were funded by IDP: IELTS Australia and Papers 4, 5, and 6
were funded by the British Council.
Paper 1: An investigation of the effectiveness and validity of planning time in
Part 2 of the IELTS Speaking Test
Paper 2: An examination of the rating process in the revised IELTS Speaking Test
Paper 3: Candidate discourse in the revised IELTS Speaking Test
Paper 4: The impact on candidate language of examiner deviation from a set
interlocutor frame in the IELTS Speaking Test
Paper 5: Exploring difficulty in Speaking tasks: an intra-task perspective
Paper 6: The interactional organisation of the IELTS Speaking Test
Paper 7: An investigation of the lexical dimension of the IELTS Speaking Test
Information on how to order IELTS Research Reports is available from www.IELTS.org
Impact Theory and Practice: Studies of the IELTS test and

Progetto Lingue 2000
by Roger Hawkey (2006)
Volume 22 in the series Studies in Language Testing describes two recent case
studies to investigate test impact in specific educational contexts: one analyses the
impact of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), while the
second focuses on a major national language teaching reform programme introduced
by the Ministry of Education in Italy. With its combination of theoretical overview and
practical advice, this volume is a useful manual on how to conduct impact studies and
will be of particular interest to language test researchers and students of language
testing. It will also be relevant to those who are concerned with the process of
curriculum and examination reform.
Studies in Language Testing is published jointly by University of Cambridge ESOL
Examinations and Cambridge University Press.
15
IELTS Masters Award winner

Each year the IELTS partners sponsor an award of 1000 for the Masters
level dissertation which makes the most significant contribution to the field
of language testing.
The winner of the IELTS Masters Award 2006 is Youn-Hee Kim from McGill
University, Montreal Canada, for a thesis entitled: An investigation into
variability of tasks and teacher-judges in second language oral
performance assessment
The winner of the 2005 Award was Fumiyo Nakatsuhara

(University of Essex, UK). Fumiyo received her award at the
28th Annual Language Testing Research Colloquium (LTRC) in
July 2006 at the University of Melbourne, Australia.
16
University of Cambridge
ESOL Examinations
1 Hills Road
Cambridge, CB1 2EU
United Kingdom
Tel 44 1223 553355
Fax 44 1223 460278
email ielts@CambridgeESOL.org
British Council
Bridgewater House
58 Whitworth Street
Manchester, M1 6BB
United Kingdom
Tel 44 161 957 7755
Fax 44 161 957 7762
email ielts@britishcouncil.org
IDP: IELTS Australia
GPO Box 2006
Canberra
ACT 2601
Australia
Tel 61 2 6285 8222
Fax 61 2 6285 3233
email ielts@idp.com
IELTS International
100 East Corson Street
Suite 200
Pasadena
CA 91103
USA
Tel 1 626 564 2954
Fax 1 626 564 2981
email ielts@ieltsintl.org
www.ielts.org
EMC/4426/7Y09
UCLES 2007
IELTS 2007

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