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There is no difference in terms of the way you answer the question, or in the way your answer is assessed. The questions are usually a little more difficult, more theoretical and academic in the academic test, and about more common topics in the general test, but they are both essay answers.

It's hard to give a precise answer without specific examples, but in the listening test, if you have to answer with two or more words your answer should be grammatically consistent with the question. This is more critical in the reading test.

It's good to use first person voice when describing your personal experiences. Both the examples you give are good. To get band eight, in terms of task response, it's necessary to answer the question as fully as you can, which includes examples from personal experience, if these are appropriate.

Either introduction is correct, as long as there are only two options. If there are more than two schools of thought, the second rendering only is correct.

The first rendering is correct. The second is awkward and unclear.

Statistically the odds are against you. If you post a sample of your writing on this forum I can at least tell you where you might be losing that half band.

Yes, the cue card or opened question book should be in front of you for the whole length of part two. The examiner will only take it back at the end of your talk.

If the part 2 question asks you to give your opinion, it doesn't matter whether you give it at the beginning or the end. I usually advise giving your opinion at the end of the first paragraph, so the examiner is able to tick off that requirement early. Make it clear that you are expressing your opin...

Sports are organised physical contests that require physical prowess. They can be individual, like tennis, or swimming, or team sports like football and cricket. A game is an activity played primarily for amusement, and usually does not involve physical speed and strength. Chess is a game, monopoly,...

Sports are organised physical contests that require physical prowess. They can be individual, like tennis, or swimming, or team sports like football and cricket. A game is an activity played primarily for amusement, and usually does not involve physical speed and strength. Chess is a game, monopoly,...

If you're not sure of the exact meaning and usage of a word better to leave it out. If it's imprecise it can't help you, and may drag your band down.

Use of first person voice in part 2 is appropriate if the question calls for your opinion. Don't use phrases like "It can reasonably be argued that" because that is not stating your opinion. The examiner might judge that you have failed to address all the essential elements of the question...

This essay addresses the question but is a little weak in places. There are two sides to be discussed: one, that students should only be allowed to study practical subjects, and the other, that they should be able to study what they like. You discuss the benefits of both, but you don't really deal w...

In analyzing your essay I will use the public band descriptors available in the IELTS website at http://www.ielts.org/pdf/Writing%20Band%20descriptors%20Task%202.pdf For task response, the question is adequately done. All parts of the prompt are answered. Some of the arguments are not entirely convi...

In analyzing your essay I will use the public band descriptors available in the IELTS website at http://www.ielts.org/pdf/Writing%20Band%20descriptors%20Task%202.pdf For task response, the question is well done. All parts of the prompt are answered. The drawbacks of nuclear are not covered quite as ...

Would just like to add to that advice that there are formal and informal idioms. The latter are more or less slang, but the formal idioms are part of normal speech, in fact, in both writing and speaking you need to use them to get band 7 or above. Idioms are specifically mentioned in the examiner ba...

If I saw this in an actual IELTS test I would be a little surprised. You write 458 words. To do that in 40 minutes you would be writing very quickly. Did this answer take you only 40 minutes? In terms of task response, (if completed in 40 minutes) the answer is very good, and in effect complete. Not...

You need to achieve higher levels of confidence and fluency. There's no quick way to do this of course, but it's partly a matter of "feeling" the language, of getting more sympathy with the tone and rhythm. Look at the BBC "flatmates" and imitate the actors. Listen to some good s...

That depends on the wording of the question. In this case the question begins with "should", which implies that in addition to discussing both views, you should make some sort of judgement.

This is a very straightforward question and you would be lucky to get one this easy in the IELTS general writing test. You have answered it well. In terms of task response, all parts of the question are addressed, and you extend and support your ideas. One or two of your arguments are not convincing...

What Jill says is correct. I would add only that some errors are permissible, even at band 9, as long they are what is called "native speaker" errors. That means you are not allowed to show systemic errors. If you make the same kind of error repeatedly, like preposition errors, article err...

All IELTS examiners take the same training, are subject to the same checks, and follow the same guidelines. I have spoken to many examiners who have worked overseas and there is no reason to expect a different rating in another country. if an individual writing/speaking examiner does not rate to sta...

it's very important to spend a little time before you start outlining your answer, making sure that you address all relevant aspects of the question, and that you give sufficient supporting arguments. If you're writing less than 250 in part 2, then you haven't planned well enough.

That depends on how much under you are. Between 176-24 loses you one band on task response. 101-175 loses two bands, less than 100 loses 3. To get a high score in task response it pays to do more than 250 words--280-300 is about right, unless you are a very good, efficient writer.

This meets all the criteria for band 7. You start off a little slowly, and there are quite a few hesitations These hesitations keep you out of the 8 band range which requires that your speech be “fluent” At 7, “some hesitation may occur, often mid sentence”. You have a good lexical resource, and som...