IELTS Flexibility in Question Answering Order | Generated by AI
Question: In the IELTS exam, for sections like Reading and Listening, can we finish the later (tail/end) part of the questions in a section first? Does that mean we don’t need to follow a strict order, allowing us to be more flexible and relaxed?
Answer:
Yes, in both IELTS Academic and General Training, you are allowed to answer questions in any order you prefer within each section.
You do not have to follow the strict order of the questions.
Listening (most flexible)
- You hear the recording only once.
- While listening, you can write answers directly on the question paper (or type if computer-based) in any order.
- Most high-scoring students do not answer strictly 1→2→3→… .
- Very common and effective strategies:
- First quickly read & underline keywords for all questions in the entire section (Questions 1–10 or 11–20 or 31–40).
- Then, while listening, mainly focus on and answer the questions whose keywords you hear first — even if they are question 8, 15, 3, or 38.
- Go back to fill in earlier missed questions when you hear them later.
- This “jump around” approach is usually less stressful because you catch the answers you are most likely to get right immediately.
Reading (very flexible)
- You have no audio — the text stays in front of you the whole time.
- You can read and answer questions in completely any order you want.
- Very popular and effective strategies among band 7.0+ candidates:
- Start with easier / faster question types first (usually True/False/Not Given, sentence completion, short-answer questions, matching headings come later).
- Or start with the last passage (Passage 3) because it is usually the hardest — get it done while you are freshest.
- Or do all headings / summary / flow-chart / table questions first across all three passages.
- Or read one passage completely → answer all its questions → move to next passage.
- There is no penalty for jumping between questions or even between passages.
Summary — Why this flexibility helps you stay more relaxed
- You can skip hard questions immediately and come back later → reduces anxiety.
- You can prioritize questions/types you are good at → build confidence and score faster.
- You avoid getting stuck on one difficult question and wasting 3–5 minutes (very common mistake).
- Especially useful when time is tight in Reading Passage 3 or in Listening Section 4.
Best practice tip:
During practice, try several different orders (e.g. easiest questions first vs. last passage first vs. keyword-jumping in Listening) and see which mental approach makes you feel calmest and score highest. Then use that same strategy on test day.
References:
- Official IELTS website guidance on test format and question answering order
https://ielts.org/take-a-test/test-types/ielts-academic-test/ielts-academic-format-listening
https://ielts.org/take-a-test/test-types/ielts-academic-test/ielts-academic-format-reading