The 202 exercises contained in this practice workbook are designed to complement the information and practice tests contained in the authors' study books and guides to the IELTS examination, especially '101 Helpful Hints for IELTS' (Academic Module and General Training Module versions). However, it is not essential to refer to those books to complete the exercises. All of the 202 exercises involve the various skills required to take the IELTS test, and most, but not all, of the questions asked in these exercises are of the type found in the actual test. For instance, questions that require grammatical knowledge are asked indirectly in the IELTS test itself, but are sometimes put to the student directly in this practice workbook (see the Grammar sections). The book was written with 3 main purposes in mind. Carefully working through the 202 exercises should: . provide varied practice to extend the skills referred to in the authors' study books and guides; . highlight a student's probable weaknesses in 7 important areas of skill in English, - listening, reading, writing, punctuation, spelling, grammar and vocabulary; , . increase a student's general knowledge in 5 areas of current topical interest, namely, 'Communication and the Arts', 'The Environment', 'Technology', 'Politics in Britain', and 'Youth and Education'. Also, speaking practice is included in this workbook to extend the value of certain exercises, but for a complete treatment refer to the authors' forthcoming production '303 The Speaking Room'. May we take this opportunity to wish good luck to all students intending to take the IELTS examination soon.
