| [图文]IELTS Ideas and Vocabulary |
热 ★★★ |
IELTS Ideas and Vocabulary
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| Author：Carolyn … Source：bebc.co.uk Hits： UpdateTime：2007-1-30 14:50:58 |
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 Catt Publishing, Published: 2003
Author(s): Carolyn Catt
Review received Spring 2004.
Details or Reviewer - Andrew Thomas - EA Journal Volume 21 No 2
Another offering from Carolyn Catt is good news for IELTS preparation teachers. IELTS Ideas and Vocabulary is, well, just that: 13 units on common topics in the IELTS test, with ideas & vocabulary to help students’ comprehension & expression. Each of the 13 units focuses on a separate topic, though there is some recycling of language between the units. In general, there is a progression in difficulty (both in task & lexical content) though I found myself grappling with an exercise on health problems in Unit 1, Food. I hope students won’t be deterred when familiarity with lexical items such as stomach ulcers, strokes, hyperactivity & diabetes seems to be expected of them in the very first unit! I hasten to add there is an answer key, & teacher’s notes with sensible suggestions for making the tasks interactive & collaborative.
The topics, which range from Family & Housing to Education & Work will be familiar to anyone who has skimmed the Cambridge Examinations Publishing series devoted to IELTS practice tests. The units include short texts & tasks whose primary aim is to help students with the Speaking & Writing tests. At the same time, it gives some reading practice &, if the book is used with a teacher, it can also assist with listening. The author, in her Introduction, claims that the topics & ideas will be of use in the Academic Module Reading test, but they appear to me just as relevant for the General Training (GT) Module. In fact, the tone of most of the short readings is closed to that of GT. The back page blurb reinforces the impression that the target market is the candidature for the Academic Module. Why narrow down your prospective readers in this way?
It is certainly fair to say that the book can be used either in self-study mode or by groups in the classroom. The author avoids instructions such as ‘Discuss in pairs’ or ‘Compare your answers’; ways of making the exercised communicative are confined to the teacher’s notes. There is variety in the vocabulary tasks, e.g. matching, classifying, true/false, ranking. A feature of the tasks is the personalisation of the topics to the learner, with a focus on the learner’s own culture. Information & ideas relevant to the topic are presented & the activities encourage learners to formulate their own ideas and opinions.
I particularly like the Homework section at the end of each unit. This provides information on websites that contain information relevant to the topics. Guidance is given on keywords to use when using an Internet search engine to research these topics.
Some teachers may have reservations about the author’s creation of the ‘mythical country of Palatonia’, which she uses as a device to contextualise transport & educational systems. Personally, I like a bit of contrivance – or pedagogic fabrication – as a teaching/learning tool! When you have to prepare students for a test, arguments for the use of authentic materials sound a bit hollow. Occasionally the vocabulary has a Palatonian (or possibly trans-Tasman) ring to it: ‘Sixth-form Certificate’, ‘bank or statutory holidays’ (public holidays?). And what are we to make of ‘continual assessment’ (p 40)? Sounds worse than ‘Dotheboys Hall’!
Overall, then, this is a handy collection of ideas & vocabulary, which teachers & students will find a useful prop for IELTS preparation. Recommended. Reship please add：(Copy from：sinoec.net)
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