IELTS has become internationally recognized as an indicator of evaluating language proficiency for learners who study English as a foreign language. Currently, over 9,000 organizations and more than 130 countries have employed IELTS in assessing language proficiency as over 2 million candidates took the IELTS test in 2013 (http://www.ielts.org/about_us.aspx). Two versions of the IELTS test commonly used are the Academic Modules and the General Modules. Both versions assess four language components: listening, speaking, reading and writing. The Academic Modules intend to tap a test taker’s English language proficiency for academic studies at the undergraduate or postgraduate level while the General Modules aim to assess candidates who want to study or work in the English-speaking countries.
The total score of each test component is reported on a scale from 1 (non-user) to 9 (expert user) at intervals of 0.5. Test takers have to perform all test components to obtain an IELTS result. The time spent in doing the test is two hours and 45 minutes. A range of band scores determines candidates’ different levels of language ability. The scores obtained from the mean of the sum of four component scores are calculated to find out an IELTS overall band score (UCLES, 2011b).