How an IELTS Journal Can Help Your IELTS Test Preparation and Progress
Another strategy towards IELTS Writing Success
If you already hate doing any writing practice in preparation for the IELTS Writing Section of the exam, then you probably don’t want to know what an IELTS Journal is all about given that journals are about writing. But I suggest you read on…. I think I might change your mind about writing for fun and how this approach can reduce test stress and anxiety.
What’s an IELTS Journal:
When I mention an IELTS Journal, I don’t mean a notebook for recording your test practice for you to check and reflect on your vocabulary and grammar errors. Not that it wouldn’t be great, but I’ll save that wonderful strategy for another day. Today, I’m talking about a proper, intimate, meaningful journal where it’s as if you are writing to an old friend – one who wants to see you achieve your goals.
How an IELTS Journal can be the path to success:
Journaling your IELTS journey can lead you to success if you know how to do it properly. The right way involves setting clear goals, and by this, I don’t just mean “I want a Band 7.0 overall with a minimum of 6.5 in each skill.” Achieving a goal like that requires more specific and achievable goal-setting, which includes a proper action plan.
Once your specific goals are set, you can then use your IELTS journal to track your progress. Again, this isn’t about recording your writing samples or any practice test results (though it’s good for that too!). Instead, it’s about reflecting on the good and bad aspects of your IELTS studies to keep you on the path to your IELTS success. Basically, you can use it to stop yourself from giving up.
The biggest benefit to keeping an IELTS Journal:
Unlike me, most people dislike writing. I’ve had many students tell me, “Even in my own language, I don’t write,” or “I can’t write, even in my own language.” Well, to have a chance in IELTS writing, these beliefs need to go, and journaling is a great way to do that. We often forget that writing is a skill just like speaking, and the more you do it, the easier it gets. Or, more commonly, the less you do it, the less able you are to do it. Unfortunately, unlike speaking, we can go through life quite easily without writing much, if anything at all. If this describes you, then it means any sort of writing you do is limited to IELTS Writing practice papers. The problem with that is that you are developing your writing skills under stress and pressure. Honestly, that would make me hate writing too! But I’m here to help you love writing because if you love it, you will do well in it. That’s why journaling is fantastic. It’s the opposite of writing under stress. Actually, it’s a tool to relieve stress. The best part is that you get to practice writing without realizing it, without it feeling like work. Journaling is like talking to your friend. When you chat to a friend, you are practicing your English Speaking Skills without realizing it. Journaling is practicing your English Writing Skills without realizing it.
So let’s do it!
Buy yourself a physical notebook or create a digital document, which ever you prefer. Then get started journaling by downloading my freebie ‘Organising My IELTS Journal‘.
