What is the difference between IELTS and TOEFL?

Candidates who have taken the IELTS test will feel that it is very different from other foreign language tests that we are familiar with.

First of all, we know that CET-4 and CET-6 are TOEFL based on the ETS proposition of American educational institutions, which adds some grammar knowledge emphasized by English teaching in China. Their examination ideas are exactly the same as TOEFL, and they all emphasize the objectivity and effectiveness of the examination. Therefore, their propositions are randomly selected from a huge question bank, with one of four choices or one of five choices as the main choice. IELTS was put forward by the Examination Committee of Cambridge University, England, which reflects some basic ideas of language testing and language learning in Britain, that is, emphasizing the communicative function and practicality of language, and the test questions are also varied. It is often used to test the spelling of words when listening, and it also involves writing when reading. The establishment of one-on-one oral test emphasizes the application of language ability in practical communication. Of course, highlighting this idea is at the expense of the objectivity of the exam to a certain extent. Candidates who have passed the IELTS test may feel that the IELTS test questions are sometimes not very rigorous, and because people (oral examiners) are used as a measuring tool, it is inevitable that some subjective factors will participate.

Secondly, because TOEFL is written by Americans, of course, it is based on American English, so TOEFL listening is a standard American accent, and American idioms and slang also appear from time to time. In TOEFL reading, there are many articles about American history, culture, politics and geography. Therefore, we can say that TOEFL is an American English test. At the beginning of its establishment, IELTS took internationalization as its purpose. Because the examination authorities are mainly Britain and Australia, the cultural and geographical knowledge often involved is also in these two countries, and North America and even other English-speaking countries also mention it from time to time. But in pronunciation, IELTS is as international as possible, which means that accents of all countries will be expressed, of course, English and Australian pronunciation are the main ones.

Of course, IELTS has some similarities with TOEFL and CET-4 and CET-6. Because they are all designed for people whose mother tongue is not English but want to go to English-speaking countries, the knowledge of history, culture, politics, geography and other aspects of English-speaking countries, as well as the scenes and documents often involved in studying abroad are the focus of the topic. From this perspective, knowing the cultural background knowledge of some English-speaking countries will be of great help to everyone in preparing for the exam. If you are not sure, please consult the teacher of Weihai Ivy League International School.