Who is IELTS Simon? The "fever" of IELTS Simon and his awesome IELTS materials

IELTS Simon is no longer an unfamiliar name within the IELTS preparation community. He has produced a lot of high-quality materials for IELTS candidates to prepare for the four skills test. So who is Simon? What are Teacher Simon's special learning methods? What books are included in the awesome IELTS Simon collection? Let's find out together below with PREP!

I. Introduction to Mr.Simon

Let's explore some information about the IELTS teacher - IELTS Simon, who is famous for his renowned materials on Writing and Speaking skills!

1. Who is Simon?

IELTS Simon, also known by his real name Simon Corcoran, is recognized as one of the world's leading IELTS test preparation experts. He graduated from the University of Manchester with a degree in Linguistics and holds teaching certificates in TESOL, CELTA, and PGCE (a postgraduate certificate in education from the UK).

From 2005 to 2010, Simon was involved in teaching IELTS and English for Specific Purposes at the University of Manchester. Subsequently, he established a language school in Manchester, which was accredited by the British Council in 2014.

2. Why did the "IELTS Simon" fever emerge?

Simon is a renowned and reputable IELTS teacher in the field of IELTS teaching. He has over 10 years of experience teaching IELTS and has helped thousands of students achieve their goals in this exam.

Simon is famous for his easy-to-understand, dedicated, and flexible teaching style. He always strives to make his lessons lively, using numerous examples and practical exercises so that students can apply their knowledge to everyday life. He also can simply explain complex concepts, making it easy for students to understand and remember.

Simon has also created his website (https://www.ielts-simon.com/) which provides a wealth of materials and useful information for IELTS learners. The website offers articles, instructional videos, exercises, and sample materials for all four sections of the IELTS exam: Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing. Particularly, the materials for the Speaking and Writing skills are specifically and detailedly compiled, helping students master the necessary skills and strategies to achieve high scores in the IELTS exam.

One of Simon's strengths is his ability to analyze, evaluate, and provide detailed and helpful feedback on students' work. He not only points out learners' mistakes and weaknesses but also suggests specific ways to improve effective learning methods.

Thanks to his enthusiasm and expertise, Simon has received high praise from many students and achieved excellent results in the IELTS exam. His teaching method has become a source of inspiration and guidance for numerous IELTS learners worldwide.

II. Teaching Methods of Mr. Simon Corcoran

Mr. IELTS Simon is famous for his exclusive teaching methods that are "straight to the point - clear - effective". What teaching methods has he applied to each skill in IELTS? Let's find out right below with prepedu.com!

1. Listening Method from Mr. IELTS Simon

1.1. Focused Listening

The Focused Listening method by IELTS Simon emphasizes the importance of focusing on specific details and information in listening passages. This is a common method for improving listening skills and understanding specific information in IELTS listening passages.

Advantages:

• Focus on important details: This method helps learners recognize and understand important details in listening passages, such as numbers, proper names, dates, locations, and other important information.
• Develop concentration skills: Focusing on details in the listening passages helps learners develop concentration skills and avoid distractions while listening.

Limitation: Overlook unimportant information: Due to the focus on specific details, learners may overlook or miss unimportant information such as opinions, thoughts, or examples in the listening passages, which can result in not fully understanding the complete context.

1.2. Extensive Listening

Extensive Listening focuses on listening to the entire content and understanding the general idea of the listening passage. This method aims to develop overall listening skills and grasp the main message of the listening material.

Advantages:

• Grasping the main idea: This method helps learners capture the main idea, main message, and overall context of the listening passage.
• Understanding the context: Learners can understand the listening passage within the broader context, which helps in determining the meaning of words and sentences.

Limitations:

• Overlooking important details: Focusing on the main idea can lead learners to overlook important details in the listening passage, such as proper names, figures, or specific information.
• Difficulty with complex listening passages: In complex listening passages, not focusing on each detail can reduce the effectiveness of this method and make it challenging to fully understand the listening material.

2. Speaking Method from Mr. IELTS Simon

In terms of the IELTS Speaking skill, we often make mistakes by not answering the question correctly and not allocating time effectively in Part 2. How can we overcome these weaknesses? Mr. IELTS Simon has come up with 2 methods: Critical Thinking and the "I - E - E" Technique to help IELTS candidates address this issue. Let's delve deeper into these two methods with PREP!

2.1. Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking by IELTS Simon encourages learners to express personal opinions, present arguments, and analyze critically when answering questions in the IELTS Speaking test. Mr. IELTS Simon recommends that learners not only provide general statements but also have their perspective and the ability to think critically.

Advantages:

• Creating a strong impression: Having a personal perspective and the ability to think critically will make learners stand out during the question-answering process and leave a good impression on the examiner.
• Developing reasoning skills: This method helps learners enhance their ability to reason, analyze, and make logical arguments when answering questions.

Limitations:

• Requiring knowledge and critical thinking skills: This method demands learners to possess good knowledge and critical thinking skills, which can be challenging for those who are not accustomed to logical reasoning or lack in-depth knowledge of the discussed topic.
• Preparation time: Engaging in critical thinking and constructing logical arguments may require time for preparation before answering the question, which can reduce the spontaneity and fluency in the response.

2.2. "I - E - E" Technique for Part 1 and Part 3

The "I - E - E" (Introduction - Example - Extension) technique by IELTS Simon is used in Part 1 and Part 3 of the IELTS Speaking test to provide comprehensive, detailed, and rich answers. This technique encourages learners to provide basic information (introduction), then give specific examples, and expand on their opinions by adding relevant information (extension).

Advantages:

• Providing comprehensive answers: This technique helps learners provide answers that are complete in terms of information and details, without omitting important parts.
• Boosting language score: Using specific examples and expanding on opinions helps learners demonstrate their ability to use language flexibly and richly, thereby increasing their language score in the exam.

Limitations:

• Requiring practice: This technique requires learners to practice to grasp how to construct answers following the "I - E - E" pattern, while also organizing and presenting their opinions coherently and naturally.
• Time constraints: Part 1 and Part 3 in the IELTS Speaking test have time limitations, and constructing answers using the "I - E - E" pattern may require additional time and flexibility to adjust within the time frame of the test.

3. Reading methods from Mr.IELTS Simon

For the IELTS Reading skill, IELTS Simon provides learners with two main techniques: Keyword technique and Extensive Reading. Let's delve deeper into these two methods and objectively evaluate their advantages and disadvantages!

3.1. Keyword technique 

The Keyword Technique focuses on searching for and identifying keywords in the passage to find the answers. This is a popular method to enhance reading comprehension and information retrieval in IELTS reading passages.

Advantages:

• Quick information retrieval: This method helps learners quickly search for keywords related to the questions, enabling effective identification and locating of the answers.
• Time-saving: Learners do not need to read the entire passage in detail; they can focus on the keywords to find the necessary information.

Limitations:

• Lack of in-depth understanding of content: Overemphasizing keywords may cause learners to overlook important details and not fully grasp the specific meaning of the passage.
• Difficulty with questions that require broader knowledge: Questions that require a broader understanding of the topic may demand learners to read the entire passage instead of just searching for keywords.

3.2. Extensive Reading

Extensive Reading, introduced by IELTS Simon, focuses on reading the entire passage to understand the meaning and overall context of the reading. This method aims to develop the ability to comprehend the overall message and understand the information in IELTS reading passages.

Advantages:

• Understanding the context: This method helps learners understand the context and main idea of the passage, enabling a better grasp of the meaning of words and sentences.
• Building vocabulary and grammar: Reading the entire passage exposes learners to common grammatical structures and vocabulary, thereby expanding their vocabulary knowledge.

Limitations:

• Time-consuming: Reading the entire passage may take more time, especially when there are multiple reading texts to practice with.
• Difficulty in information retrieval: In texts with high information density, finding specific information can become more challenging.

4. Writing methods from Mr.IELTS Simon

IELTS Simon has brought us four highly effective and detailed writing techniques with the aim of simplifying the process for IELTS Writing, which is a source of fear for many IELTS learners. What are these four techniques by IELTS Simon? Let's explore them right below!

4.1. The “4-paragraph” technique

The "4-paragraph" technique is proposed by IELTS Simon to structure the writing in IELTS Writing Task 2. According to this technique, the essay is divided into four main paragraphs: an introduction, two main body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has its function and content.

• Introduction: This paragraph introduces the topic and presents your opinion on the essay question. Additionally, you should provide a general explanation of the issues that will be discussed in the essay.
• Two main body paragraphs: Each paragraph focuses on a main idea that you want to develop. Each main idea should be supported with examples, evidence, or persuasive arguments. It is important to maintain a clear structure and logical arrangement within each paragraph.
• Conclusion: This paragraph summarizes your opinion and recaps the key points presented in the essay. You can provide advice or further develop your own opinion.

Advantages:

• Provide a clear and easy-to-follow structure for the essay.
• Help the writer focus on each main idea clearly and avoid digressions.
• Create balance and logical organization in the essay.

Limitations:

• Make the essay rigid and lack flexibility in organizing ideas and information.
• Not suitable for complex essays or those that require detailed and complex arguments.

4.2. General to specific

The "General to specific" technique by IELTS Simon emphasizes starting an essay with general opinions and arguments and then developing them into specific ideas and examples. This method ensures coherence and clarity in the writing.

By beginning with general opinions, you help the reader grasp the overall issue before presenting specific details and arguments about them. This creates a natural and easy-to-understand flow in the essay.

Advantages:

• Create a natural and easy-to-understand flow in the essay.
• Help the reader gain an overview of the topic before delving into specific details.
• Support the development of opinions and arguments logically and clearly.

Limitations:

• Lead to an imbalance in the essay if not carefully organized.
• Require time management and avoiding getting too stuck at the general level without delving into specifics.

4.3. The "Friends" Technique (Rapid Idea Generation, Brainstorming Technique)

The "Friends" technique by IELTS Simon enhances your argumentation and imagination skills when writing in IELTS Writing Task 2. This technique involves imagining that you are having a conversation with a friend about the topic of the essay.

You can imagine yourself having a conversation with a friend and try to explain and persuade them about your opinion. This technique helps you generate many ideas quickly and naturally while improving your writing by using everyday language.

Advantages:

• Help the writer quickly generate multiple ideas and information for the essay.
• Stimulate imagination and creativity in developing opinions and examples.
• Create flexibility and naturalness in writing.

Limitations:

• Lead to using ideas that are not directly relevant or lack sufficient evidence to support them.
• Require organization and selection of information after completing the brainstorming phase.

4.4. Critical thinking

The "Critical thinking" technique by IELTS Simon focuses on developing critical thinking skills and providing independent viewpoints in writing. This requires presenting opposing opinions, acknowledging the downside of the issue, and presenting clear arguments to defend your own opinion.

By applying critical thinking, you can consider different perspectives and present an independent viewpoint, providing a comprehensive and insightful understanding of the discussed issue. This can help you score high in the aspects of argumentation and analysis in your writing.

Advantages:

• Generate in-depth and multi-dimensional analysis of the discussed issue.
• Position the writer as an independent thinker and encourage creativity in considering different viewpoints.
• Help build strong and persuasive arguments.

Limitations:

• Require advanced critical thinking and analytical skills.
• Require careful consideration and deliberation to avoid bias or lack of objectivity.

III. The impressive collection of IELTS materials by IELTS Simon

In addition to teaching IELTS, IELTS Simon has also published numerous books on learning various skills in the IELTS exam. These books aim to make it easier for IELTS learners worldwide to access the teaching methods and effective learning resources provided by IELTS Simon. Below are the IELTS Speaking and IELTS Writing materials by IELTS Simon compiled by PREP. Let's explore the structure and content of these IELTS Simon books together!

• Ideas for IELTS Topics 
• IELTS Speaking Part 2
• IELTS Writing Task 1
• IELTS Academic Writing Task 2
• IELTS Speaking Tips and Samples 

IV. Download Free IELTS Simon PDF Materials

To facilitate quick and easy access to the books, PREP has collected and compiled the following PDF files of IELTS Simon books. Download them promptly and start conquering English with the IELTS Simon series!

V. Crack the IELTS Exam With Confidence 

In this article, PREP introduced you to Simon Corcoran, along with his renowned teaching methods as IELTS Simon. Additionally, PREP has provided a detailed review of the 5-book IELTS Simon series. If you’re aiming for IELTS excellence, explore these top-notch resources designed for high achievers!

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