Study Skills Tutorial: listening answers and explanations
Caroline meets her tutor, Dr Schulmann, because she can't decide on a dissertation title. They go over her strengths and weaknesses, and he runs through possible strategies for improving her study skills before they fix the next tutorial.
One set of notes, in order. Caroline gives the answers about herself (topic, strengths, weaknesses), the tutor gives the benefit and problem of each strategy and his recommendations, and the date at the end is agreed between them after two other days are ruled out.
Answer key and self-check
Type what you wrote and hit mark. Hide the key first if you haven't done the part yet. Every question number jumps to its explanation.
Q
Your answer
Answer
Questions 21-30 · Note completion (NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER)
Note completion (NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER)
Questions 21-30
How to attack this block: The middle of the notes is a pattern: strategy, benefit, problem, three times. The tutor signals each problem with 'the drawback', 'unfortunately' or 'the problem is', so use those as cues. Several answers are the noun after a printed verb ('increases ...', 'limited ...'), so check the grammar fits.
Question 21
Answer: fishing industryWhen the tutor asks if she's chosen her general topic area
What is Caroline's dissertation topic?
First of all, you have chosen your general topic area, haven't you? … Yes, it's the fishing industry.
Question says → You hear
Dissertation topic: theit's the fishing industry
Why: Her general topic area is the fishing industry. 'The' is printed, so write the two words fishing industry.
The trap: Fishing on its own is incomplete: the topic is the industry, and the key has both words.
Question 22
Answer: statisticsWhen the tutor asks which aspects of the course she's good at
What is Caroline's first strength?
Well, I think I'm coping well with statistics, and I'm never bored by it.
Question says → You hear
Strengthswhat aspects of the course are you good at
Why: 'Coping well with' is how she describes something she's good at, so statistics is the first strength. Computer modelling, the second, is printed.
Question 23
Answer: note-takingAfter she says she lacks background information, when the tutor asks if she takes notes
Also accepted: note taking
Which skills does Caroline say she is poor at?
I'm very weak at note-taking. My teachers always used to say that.
Question says → You hear
poor ... skillsI'm very weak at note-taking
Why: 'Very weak at' is 'poor', and the skill is note-taking. With or without the hyphen is fine.
The trap: Background information is the other weakness, and it's printed on the line above.
Question 24
Answer: confidenceThe first strategy the tutor goes through
What does peer-group discussion increase?
It really helps build confidence, you know, having to present something to others.
Why: 'Helps build' is 'increases', and what it builds is confidence.
The trap: Don't write 'present' or 'presenting': that's how it builds confidence, not what increases.
Question 25
Answer: ideasWhen the tutor gives 'the drawback'
What do dissertations end up sharing because of peer-group discussion?
The drawback is that everyone in the group seems to share the same ideas ... they keep being repeated in all the dissertations.
Question says → You hear
Problems: dissertations tend to contain the sameeveryone in the group seems to share the same ideas ... they keep being repeated in all the dissertations
Why: 'The drawback' is the problem, and the same ideas keep being repeated in all the dissertations. Ideas, plural.
The trap: 'Topic' comes up a moment earlier, when each person studies a different topic. The problem is ideas, not topics.
Question 26
Answer: student supportThe second strategy, 'You could also try'
What is the name of the service?
You could also try a service called 'Student Support'.
Question says → You hear
use the ... servicea service called 'Student Support'
Why: The service is called Student Support, two words, and the note prints 'service' after the gap.
The trap: 'Structured programme' comes next, but it's the benefit, printed on the same line.
Question 27
Answer: placesWhen Caroline says it sounds good and the tutor says 'unfortunately'
What is limited for the Student Support service?
Yes, unfortunately there are only a few places. But it's worth looking into.
Question says → You hear
Problems: limitedunfortunately there are only a few places
Why: 'Only a few places' is 'limited places'. 'Unfortunately' signals the problem.
The trap: 'A number of weeks' is mentioned just before, but that's how the programme runs, not the problem.
Question 28
Answer: generalThe third strategy, study skills books
What is wrong with study skills books?
They'll be a good source of reference but the problem is they are sometimes too general.
Question says → You hear
Problems: can be toothe problem is they are sometimes too general
Why: 'Sometimes too general' is 'can be too ...', so the gap is general.
Question 29
Answer: 3 timesAfter the card index, the tutor's second piece of advice
Also accepted: three times
How should Caroline read all her notes?
don't just take your notes and forget about them. Read everything three times - that'll really fix them in your mind.
Question says → You hear
read all notesRead everything three times
Why: 'Read everything' becomes 'read all notes', and the advice is three times. Write 3 times or three times.
The trap: Writing just '3' doesn't fit 'read all notes ...'. You need the word times.
Question 30
Answer: 25The end, when they arrange next month's tutorial
Also accepted: 25th
When is the next tutorial?
I'm free in the afternoon. … Sorry, I'm booked then. What about the following day? … Fine, we'll go for the 25
Question says → You hear
Next tutorial datewe'll go for the 25
Why: Caroline suggests the 24th but the tutor is booked, so they agree on the following day, Thursday the 25th. 'January' is printed, so write 25 or 25th.
The trap: The 22nd is the start of the week he's free, and the 24th is Caroline's first idea. Neither is the date they settle on.
The problem with peer-group discussion is that everyone 'seems to share the same ideas'. The notes say dissertations contain 'the same ...', so the answer is ideas, plural.
The card index is printed, so the second recommendation is the one people miss: read everything three times. The note needs 'read all notes ...', so write 3 times or three times, not just 3.
Three dates in a row: the week starting the 22nd, Caroline's suggestion of the 24th, and the tutor's 'following day', the 25th. Only the last is agreed.
Words from this recording worth keeping
dissertation(Start of the tutorial)
a long piece of writing on a subject, done for a degree
coping well(Strengths)
managing successfully
fascinating(Strengths)
extremely interesting
sufficient(Weaknesses)
enough
drawback(Peer group discussion)
a disadvantage
structured programme(Student Support)
a course organised in clear stages
source of reference(Study skills books)
something you check for information
discipline(Recommendations)
the ability to make yourself work in a controlled way
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The full Cambridge 9 Test 3 listening paper with the real audio: all four parts, played once, marked the moment you finish. Already done it? Take it again and listen for the traps this page showed you.
Cambridge IELTS 9, Test 3, Listening Part 3. The recording, transcript and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts of the transcript only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full material, or sit the test on Langujet.
