Test Preparation Lesson Advice from English Teacher Florian K.

The moment I open my eyes in the morning, I check my italki schedule, Skype and Wechat messages and I do that even before drinking a good cup of brewed coffee. I’ve been doing this job for 7 years, teaching IELTS online. I never seem to grow tired of it because I know that this simple English examination can change someone else’s life. It is an English exam necessary for students or workers to take to study or work overseas. So, I put extra effort in the training that I give my IELTS students. Although I have been here on Italki for a year, IELTS has always been my specialization, and it allowed me to work with thousands of IELTS clients on a global scale.

​One of the most heartwarming news that I got from my student is the one from “Kyle.” He is a programmer who works for a big Chinese tech company. Prior to taking my classes, he took the IELTS examination twice, and he is hoping that his third take will be the last one. He needed to acquire at least a 7 overall band score. In addition, he also needs a 7 in each section of the test. He is a very busy man, and he works for 12 hours a day,6 days a week or more popularly known as the “996” schedule in China. Every day, he booked my class and studied with me for an hour after his work, so he usually goes home at 10:30 pm. The amount of dedication he gave is the same as the effort that I give to my students, so that they can achieve great results. Perhaps, even more. The method that I used for Kyle to improve is the same formula that I used in order for my students to get the band score” that they need. The lesson structure is similar to the test structure wherein I will ask different questions, time it and give my feedback after. However, there was one method that I used and I know that a lot of IELTS teachers have difficulty in using it. Ï paraphrase every sentence of my student while they are answering, I am typing fast and thinking of ways to improve their sentence structure.” By doing this, my students can review the sentence structure of a 7 and above. As time goes by, they also improve their ability to think in English and use more complicated sentence structures.

​I made the IELTS course difficult for my students, sometimes a bit strict and I gave extremely honest feedback on their performance in class. I do not “sugarcoat” the feedback because the test is not as easy as it seems to be, especially in China. I give my students enough confidence but I also critique their performance so that they will not be complacent in studying for the test. I make sure that they know how important self study is and that they are able to apply a variety of methods that I taught them in my class. Each lesson for the IELTS is well-prepared with PDF files ready to be sent after each course and paraphrased sentences typed in Skype or Italki classroom. I am extremely proud of my students to get a 7 and above that I placed their IELTS scores in my profile. The lucky 7 club as I call it is a roaster of my students who got a 7 because of the training that I provided. My students, like Gus and Amelia from Austria got even a higher score than what I expected and when they sent me a message of their results, I am reminded of the purpose and mission of my job. As a teacher, I help students achieve their goals and as a ​result; I also help myself. They recommended their family and friends to take my classes and for that I am extremely grateful.

As an IELTS, TOEFL and exam specialist, I am driven my passion and fuelled by the goals of my students to achieve great results. Like what I always tell them, ​"it takes two to Tango.” The story of my student Kyle is just one of the hundreds and perhaps thousands of IELTS students that I trained over the course of my career and I will continue helping more people achieve their goals.

From Florian K. (https://www.italki.com/teacher/4393336)