How to Prepare For PTE Exam
The PTE Academic exam, which stands for Pearson Test of English Academic, is an English language test accepted by educational institutions around the globe. The exams are conducted in online mode.
Those aspirants and students who desire to go abroad to study or immigrate to a significant English-speaking country are needed to take the PTE Academic exam to prove their English language proficiency.
The three-hour-long computer-based test focuses on day-to-day English rather than high-level English language. It tests a student on his/her ability to efficiently understand the language as spoken daily.
The multi-level grading system of this exam ensures a better understanding of the student’s proficiency in the English language. Many factors distinguish PTE Academic from other English proficiency tests. The first and foremost differentiating aspect of the same is the scoring pattern and the results.
As the tests are entirely computerised, the PTE score and results are declared much quicker, typically in 2 business days. This makes it suitable for the students who are in a bit of a rush.
Why Should One Take The PTE Academic Exam?
PTE Academic exam is an English language test conducted online for non-native English speakers who are willing to study abroad. It tests the aspiring candidate’s Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking skills.
The test is designed in such a manner that every question generally tests two skills together, like reading and speaking or listening and reading.
Where Are The PTE Academic Scores Accepted?
The PTE Academic exam is accepted by numerous educational institutions across the globe. Apart from this, PTE Academic is also accepted by Australian and New Zealand governments for visa purposes.
Those aspiring to go abroad to study in a major English-speaking country like the UK, Australia, USA, and Canada take the PTE Academic exam to prove their English language efficiency.
Ways To Prepare For The PTE Academic Exam
When preparing for any test, it is essential to keep in the following points, which will help you formalise your preparation process.
Learn about the test format
Before you appear for the PTE Academic examination. It is highly essential to understand the format and exam’s structure and layout. The best place to learn about the format is on the official website, where you will get a clear idea about the understanding and help you prepare systematically.
Practice listening to English materials
Listening is a well-known form of learning any type of art. Listening to English materials such as English songs, audiobooks, podcasts, movies etc., will help you have a better understanding about the pronunciation of the English words and proper phrasing of English sentences.
Listening is a part of the PTE Academic Examination, and it is essential to practice proper listening and retention of the information that will be given to you. The audio and video clips will start to play automatically.
Each aspirant will be provided with the opportunity to listen to the clip only once, so be careful when listening to it. Candidates will be allowed to take notes, and the time given for this section is 45 to 57 minutes. Candidates can also adjust the volume according to their needs.
When taking notes while listening to an audio, make sure to pen down a 50 to 70 words summary. Make sure to summarise the main points and supporting points in those 50 to 70 words.
When practising at home, try repeating the same process by giving yourself the same amount of time and word count as you write the summary time yourself so that you are well prepared.
Make reading a part of your routine.
Reading is an essential part of any English examination, and when preparing for any English test, it is necessary you make reading a part of your daily routine.
There is no better way of improving spoken English apart from reading different materials. Reading helps you learn about the proper usage of words and the adequate formation of sentences.
When reading, keep vocabulary on your priority list. Learning new words will help you build a stronger vocabulary. Make sure you use these new words in sentences during reading and writing.
The reading section is allotted a time of 32 to 40 minutes. In this single time section, 15 to 20 independent and integrated skills depend on the combination of items in a given test.
Various response formats, including re-order paragraphs, fill in the blanks, multiple-choice questions have been formulated to test the candidate’s ability to read, write and listen to the information provided in English.
Work on improving your spoken English
In the PTE Academic Examination, the aspiring candidates are tested based on their speaking and writing skills together. When you first introduce yourself to anyone, the first thing that the person notices is your spoken English. Spoken English can be improved by listening to English audiobooks to English songs, watching English movies, and watching English documentaries.
To assess your spoken power, your skills will be tested on your ability to produce spoken English in an academic environment.
Practice your writing skills
As mentioned earlier, in the PTE Academic examination, an aspirant’s reading-writing skills are tested together. In this section, you will be given 77 to 93 minutes particularly.
When practicing for the writing section, make sure you check for any grammatical mistakes and spelling errors. These are silly mistakes that can be easily avoided with proper and extensive practice.
Revising your written material is an excellent way for rectifying mistakes. In the PTE Academic paper’s writing segment, aspirants will have to write responses using proper grammar and spelling in academic English.
Prepare a proper study schedule.
Preparing for such examinations can become overwhelming for the students. This is why creating a schedule for studying will help you in feeling organized. In this manner, you will also be able to divide your time covering all the sections equally.
Following a proper schedule will help in minimizing any exam tension and improve focus and productivity.
Extensive practice
The secret to becoming better at English is extensive practice. Solve exercises, take mock tests, read various materials, watch new movies, practice talking to English people. Solving previous year’s questions will help aspirants understand the question types, marks division, and exam difficulty level.