Cambridge IELTS 11 Listening Test 3 answers for all forty questions are set out on this page, with the official key, playable audio for all four sections, an explanation for every question and complete transcripts. The paper opens with Sue phoning Burnham’s tourist office about free family activities, moves to a council officer’s public meeting on the future of Barford, continues with Jeremy and Helen reviewing the drawings for a children’s story, and closes with a business lecture on ethnography.

Every explanation quotes the line from the recording that proves the answer, so you can see why each word or letter scores and why the distractors fail. Before you press play, read the Section 1 strategy for the opening phone call and the Section 4 strategy for the closing lecture.

Sit the whole paper in one sitting, without pausing, and mark it honestly against the key, then continue the series with the Cambridge IELTS 10 Listening Test 3 answers page.

Section Walkthroughs

• Burnham Tourist Information (Questions 1–10) — audio, answers and a full transcript for this section
• The Future of Barford Town Meeting (Questions 11–20) — audio, answers and a full transcript for this section
• Illustrating a Short Story Discussion (Questions 21–30) — audio, answers and a full transcript for this section
• Ethnography (Questions 31–40) — audio, answers and a full transcript for this section

Section 1 — Burnham Tourist Information

Questions 1–6

Choose the correct letter, A , B or C .

• Example The caller wants to find out about events on A 27 June. B 28 June. C 29 June.

• Free activities in the Burnham area

1. The ‘Family Welcome’ event in the art gallery begins at 10 am. 10.30 am. 2 pm.

• A — 10 am.
• B — 10.30 am.
• C — 2 pm.

2. The film that is now shown in the ‘Family Welcome’ event is about sculpture. painting. ceramics.

• A — sculpture.
• B — painting.
• C — ceramics.

3. When do most of the free concerts take place? in the morning at lunchtime in the evening

• A — in the morning
• B — at lunchtime
• C — in the evening

4. Where will the 4 pm concert of Latin American music take place? in a museum in a theatre in a library

• A — in a museum
• B — in a theatre
• C — in a library

5. The boat race begins at Summer Pool. Charlesworth Bridge. Offord Marina.

• A — Summer Pool.
• B — Charlesworth Bridge.
• C — Offord Marina.

6. One of the boat race teams won a regional competition earlier this year. has represented the region in a national competition. has won several regional competitions.

• A — won a regional competition earlier this year.
• B — has represented the region in a national competition.
• C — has won several regional competitions.

Questions 7–10

Complete the sentences below.

Write ONE WORD ONLY for each answer.

• Paxton Nature Reserve
• Paxton is a good place for seeing rare 7 ………… all year round.
• This is a particularly good time for seeing certain unusual 8 …………
• Visitors will be able to learn about 9 ………… and then collect some.
• Part of the 10 ………… has been made suitable for swimming.

Section 1 Answer Explanations

1. B (10.30 am.) — the event’s start time is stated directly: “the ‘Family Welcome’ event runs from 10.30 until 2 o’clock”. A fails because “The gallery opens at 10” describes the building, not the event, and C fails because 2 o’clock is when the event finishes.

2. C (ceramics.) — the current film is announced with “It demonstrates how ceramics are made”, so ceramics is the topic this year. B fails because “Last time they ran the event, there was a film about painting”, and A fails because on sculpture “they’re now working on one”, a film not yet finished.

3. B (at lunchtime) — Martin counts the concerts on each hand: “one or two in the morning, the majority at lunchtime, and a couple in the evening”. The majority means most, so B scores while A and C describe the smallest groups.

4. A (in a museum) — the timetable is explicit: “then at 4 it’s in the City Museum”, so the 4 pm concert is in a museum. C fails because “They’re performing in the central library at 1 o’clock”, and B fails because “in the evening, at 7.30, there’s a longer concert, in the theatre”.

5. C (Offord Marina.) — the route is given in order: “The race starts at Offord Marina”. A fails because Summer Pool is where the race ends, since it “goes as far as Summer Pool”, and B fails because “The best place to watch it from is Charlesworth Bridge” names a viewing spot, not the start.

6. A (won a regional competition earlier this year.) — one local club “came first in the West of England regional championship in May this year”, a win from this year. B fails because the national championship is future, as “they’ll be representing the region in the national championship” only next year, and C fails because “it was the first time a team from Burnham has won”.

7. birds — the sentence needs something visitors can see that is rare, and Sue supplies it: “It’s a good place for spotting unusual birds, isn’t it?”. Martin confirms with “That’s right – throughout the year”, which paraphrases the sentence’s all year round, and seeing paraphrases spotting.

8. flowers — the season matters here: “you can see various flowers that are pretty unusual”. The sentence’s particularly good time paraphrases the words “just at the moment”, and unusual in the sentence matches unusual in the recording, so flowers fills the gap.

9. mushrooms — the learning event is named plainly: “a talk and slide show about mushrooms”. The sentence’s then collect some paraphrases Martin’s promise that “you’ll be able to go out and pick some afterwards”, so the single word is mushrooms.

10. river — Sue asks “is it possible for children to swim in the river?”, and Martin answers yes: “Part of it has been fenced off to make it safe for children to swim in”. The sentence’s made suitable for swimming paraphrases made safe, and the lake fails because “The lake is too deep, so swimming isn’t allowed there”.

Section 2 — The Future of Barford Town Meeting

Questions 11–15

Choose the correct letter, A , B or C .

• Changes in Barford over the last 50 years

11. In Shona’s opinion, why do fewer people use buses in Barford these days? The buses are old and uncomfortable. Fares have gone up too much. There are not so many bus routes.

• A — The buses are old and uncomfortable.
• B — Fares have gone up too much.
• C — There are not so many bus routes.

12. What change in the road network is known to have benefited the town most? the construction of a bypass the development of cycle paths the banning of cars from certain streets

• A — the construction of a bypass
• B — the development of cycle paths
• C — the banning of cars from certain streets

13. What is the problem affecting shopping in the town centre? lack of parking spaces lack of major retailers lack of restaurants and cafés

• A — lack of parking spaces
• B — lack of major retailers
• C — lack of restaurants and cafés

14. What does Shona say about medical facilities in Barford? There is no hospital. New medical practices are planned. The number of dentists is too low.

• A — There is no hospital.
• B — New medical practices are planned.
• C — The number of dentists is too low.

15. The largest number of people are employed in manufacturing. services. education.

• A — manufacturing.
• B — services.
• C — education.

Questions 16–20

What is planned for each of the following facilities?

Choose FIVE answers from the box and write the correct letter, A-G , next to Questions

• A. It will move to a new location.
• B. It will have its opening hours extended.
• C. It will be refurbished.
• D. It will be used for a different purpose.
• E. It will have its opening hours reduced.
• F. It will have new management.
• G. It will be expanded.

• Plans
• Facilities

16. railway station car park

17. cinema

18. indoor market

19. library

20. nature reserve

Section 2 Answer Explanations

11. C (There are not so many bus routes.) — Shona says “the bus companies concentrate on just the routes that attract most passengers”, so “parts of the town are no longer served by buses”. A fails because “Even replacing old uncomfortable buses with smart new ones has had little impact on passenger numbers”, and B fails because “fares are not much higher than they were 50 years ago”.

12. B (the development of cycle paths) — only the cycle paths have a proven benefit: they “are being used far more than was expected reducing traffic and improving air quality”. A fails because “the council’s attempts to have a bypass constructed have failed”, and C fails because the town centre closure is on trial, since “The impact of this is being measured”.

13. B (lack of major retailers) — the root cause is retail mix: “many people prefer to use supermarkets and department stores in nearby large towns”, because “there are so few well-known chain stores here”. A fails because “despite efforts to attract shoppers, for instance by opening new car parks” numbers keep falling, and C fails because “some people combine shopping with visits to the town’s restaurants and cafés”.

14. A (There is no hospital.) — the flat statement is “Our hospital closed 15 years ago”, which leaves no hospital in Barford. B fails because “the town is served by family doctors in several medical practices – fewer than 50 years ago”, with nothing new planned, and C fails because “there are more dentists than there used to be”.

15. C (education.) — the ranking is explicit: “The number of schools and colleges has increased making that the main employment sector”. B fails because “Services, such as website design and accountancy, have grown in importance” without becoming the main sector, and A fails because “manufacturing hasn’t seen the decline” but is never called the largest employer.

16. G (It will be expanded.) — the railway station car park grows: the company bought adjoining land, and “this will be used to increase the number of parking spaces”. Refurbishment and new uses fail because the plan to “replace it with a multi-storey car park, but that was refused” left extension as the only approved scheme.

17. A (It will move to a new location.) — the cinema “will close at the end of the year, and reopen on a different site”, which is a move. C fails because “The plan is to have three screens with fewer seats” describes the new building’s layout, not a refurbishment of the old one.

18. C (It will be refurbished.) — the indoor market will close temporarily “to be made safe and redecorated”, and redecoration is refurbishment. Demolition was only ever a threat, because “it was threatened with demolition”, and the building reopens as a market, so a new purpose fails.

19. B (It will have its opening hours extended.) — the council “has managed to secure funding to keep the library open later into the evening, twice a week”. G fails because “We would like to enlarge the building in the not-too-distant future, but this is by no means definite”, and a wish is not a plan.

20. F (It will have new management.) — access stays the same, but control changes: “the council will no longer be in charge of the area”, and “it will become the responsibility of a national body”. E fails because “There’s no limit on access to the nature reserve on the edge of town”, and this will continue.

Section 3 — Illustrating a Short Story Discussion

Questions 21–26

Complete the table below.

Write ONE WORD ONLY for each answer.

Questions 27–30

Who is going to write each of the following parts of the report?

Write the correct letter, A-D , next to Questions

• A. Helen only
• B. Jeremy only
• C. both Helen and Jeremy
• D. neither Helen nor Jeremy

• Parts of the report

27. how they planned the project

28. how they had ideas for their stories

29. an interpretation of their stories

30. comments on the illustrations

Section 3 Answer Explanations

21. cave — the first row’s subject is named when Jeremy says “the drawing of the cave – it’s got trees all around it”. The table’s surrounded by trees paraphrases trees all around it, and the ONE WORD answer is cave.

22. tiger — the animal to add is proposed as “putting in a tiger – the one that he makes friends with”, and Helen sharpened the idea: “And the tiger stops in the middle of what it’s doing when it sees Malcolm walking past”. The table’s noticing him paraphrases stops and sees, so tiger fills the gap.

23. dancing — the second subject comes straight from Jeremy: “the drawing of the crowd of men and women dancing”. The table’s outside the forest matches his next line, “They’re just outside the forest”, so the missing verb is dancing.

24. crying — Jeremy rejects watching and sets the emotion: “I’d like him to be crying”. He adds that “that’ll contrast nicely with the next picture”, where “he’s laughing at the clowns in the carnival”, so laughing is the planted opposite and crying scores.

25. grass — Helen queries the surface: “they’re supposed to be skating on grass aren’t they?”, and Jeremy confirms, “and it’s frozen over”. The table’s covered with ice paraphrases frozen over, so the surface under the skaters is grass.

26. scarf — the clothing to add is offered by Jeremy: “give each of them a scarf as well”. The hats are already in the picture, because “I like the wool hats they’re wearing”, so hats is the trap and scarf is the one-word answer.

27. A (Helen only) — for how they planned the project, Jeremy defers: “How do you feel about drafting something”, and Helen accepts with “OK, that seems reasonable”. The drafting belongs to her alone, so B and C fail on Jeremy’s own words.

28. C (both Helen and Jeremy) — the ideas section is split: Jeremy says “I’ve started writing something about that, so why don’t you do the same”, and the closing clause confirms “we can include the two things”. Both partners write a version, so C scores and A and B fail.

29. D (neither Helen nor Jeremy) — the interpretation is dropped from the report, because “everyone in the class is going to read each other’s stories” and supply their own readings. Helen checks, “So it isn’t going to be part of the report at all?”, and Jeremy answers no, so neither of them writes it.

30. B (Jeremy only) — Jeremy first offers the illustrations section to Helen, saying “It’s probably easiest for you to write that section”, which is the trap. She turns it down, and her refusal decides it: “I’d be happier if you did it”, so Jeremy writes the section alone.

Section 4 — Ethnography

Questions 31–40

Complete the notes below.

Write ONE WORD ONLY for each answer.

Ethnography: research which explores human cultures

It can be used in business:

Kitchen equipment

Cell phones

Computer companies

Hospitals

Airlines

• ETHNOGRAPHY IN BUSINESS
• to investigate customer needs and 31 …………
• to help companies develop new designs
• Examples of ethnographic research in business
• Researchers found that cooks could not easily see the 32 ………… in measuring cups.
• In Uganda, customers paid to use the cell phones of entrepreneurs.
• These customers wanted to check the 33 ………… used.
• There was a need to develop 34 ………… to improve communication between system administrators and colleagues.
• Nurses needed to access information about 35 ………… in different parts of the hospital.
• Respondents recorded information about their 36 ………… while travelling.
• Principles of ethnographic research in business
• The researcher does not start off with a hypothesis.
• Participants may be selected by criteria such as age, 37 ………… or product used.
• The participants must feel 38 ………… about taking part in the research.
• There is usually direct 39 ………… of the participants.
• The interview is guided by the participant.
• A lot of time is needed for the 40 ………… of the data.
• Researchers look for a meaningful pattern in the data.

Section 4 Answer Explanations

31. attitude — the opening lists what ethnography investigates: “providing valuable information about their attitudes towards existing products”. The note pairs needs and a second noun, and the transcript’s plural attitudes becomes the singular attitude to fit the note’s structure.

32. numbers — the kitchen case study names the design fault: “the measuring cups had numbers inside them”, but the cooks couldn’t see them easily. The note’s could not easily see is a paraphrase of couldn’t see these easily, so numbers fills the gap.

33. time — the Uganda customers “were eager to know how much time they’d spent on the call so far”. The note’s wanted to check paraphrases were eager to know, and the used in the note attaches to the call time, so time is the one word.

34. software — the administrators “didn’t have a standard way of exchanging information”, so the team “came up with an idea for software that would help them to do this”. The note’s need to develop paraphrases the problem and solution pair, and software is the product.

35. patients — the hospital study found that “the nurses needed to access the computer records of their patients”, wherever they were. The note’s access information about paraphrases access the computer records of, so patients completes the gap.

36. emotions — the airline study was “tracking the emotions of passengers during a flight”. Respondents recorded the data themselves on smartphones, and the note’s while travelling paraphrases during a flight, leaving emotions as the answer.

37. income — the three selection criteria are listed in order: “the age bracket they fall into”, then “the researchers may select them according to their income”, then the product used. Age is already printed in the note, so income is the missing criterion.

38. comfortable — the personal quality required is stated plainly: “they have to be comfortable talking about themselves and being watched”. The note’s must feel paraphrases have to be, so the adjective comfortable fits the gap after feel.

39. observation — the method’s core is “first-hand observation of what they are doing at the time”. The note’s direct paraphrases first-hand, and the contrast that it is “not just a matter of sending a questionnaire” rules out any survey-based answer.

40. analysis — the closing figures make the point: “Most researchers estimate that 70 to 80 per cent of their time is spent not on the collecting of data but on its analysis”. The note’s a lot of time paraphrases 70 to 80 per cent, and the of the data in the note takes analysis.

Cambridge IELTS 11 Listening Test 3 Answers

Questions and Answers

Listening Transcripts

Section 1 Transcript

MARTIN: Good morning. This is Burnham tourist, Martin speaking.

SUE: Oh, hello. I saw a poster about free things to do in the area, and it said people should phone you for information. I’m coming to Burnham with my husband and two children for a few days on June the 27th, or possibly the 28th, and I’d like some ideas for things to do on the 29th.

MARTIN: Yes, of course. OK. Then let’s start with a couple of events especially for children. The art gallery is holding an event called ‘Family Welcome’ that day, when there are activities and trails to use throughout the gallery.

SUE: That sounds interesting. What time does it start?

MARTIN: The gallery opens at 10, and the ‘Family Welcome’ event runs from 10.30 until 2 o’clock. The gallery stays open until 5. And several times during the day, they’re going to show a short film that the gallery has produced. It demonstrates how ceramics are made, and there’ll be equipment and materials for children to have a go themselves. Last time they ran the event, there was a film about painting, which went down very well with the children, and they’re now working on one about sculpture.

SUE: I like the sound of that. And what other events happen in Burnham?

MARTIN: Well, do you all enjoy listening to music?

SUE: Oh, yes.

MARTIN: Well there are several free concerts taking place at different times – one or two in the morning, the majority at lunchtime, and a couple in the evening. And they range from pop music to Latin American.

SUE: The Latin American could be fun. What time is that?

MARTIN: It’s being repeated several times, in different places. They’re performing in the central library at 1 o’clock, then at 4 it’s in the City Museum, and in the evening, at 7.30, there’s a longer concert, in the theatre.

SUE: Right. I’ll suggest that to the rest of the family.

MARTIN: Something else you might be interested in is the boat race along the river.

SUE: Oh, yes, do tell me about that.

MARTIN: The race starts at Offord Marina, to the north of Burnham, and goes as far as Summer Pool. The best place to watch it from is Charlesworth Bridge, though that does get rather crowded.

SUE: And who’s taking part?

MARTIN: Well, local boat clubs, but the standard is very high. One of them came first in the West of England regional championship in May this year – it was the first time a team from Burnham has won. It means that next year they’ll be representing the region in the national championship.

——————————

SUE: Now I’ve heard something about Paxton Nature Reserve. It’s a good place for spotting unusual birds, isn’t it?

MARTIN: That’s right – throughout the year. There is a lake there, as well as a river, and they provide a very attractive habitat. So it’s a good idea to bring binoculars if you have them. And just at the moment you can see various flowers that are pretty unusual – the soil at Paxton isn’t very common. They’re looking good right now.

SUE: Right. My husband will be particularly interested in that.

MARTIN: And there’s going to be a talk and slide show about mushrooms – and you’ll be able to go out and pick some afterwards and study the different varieties.

SUE: Uhuh. And is it possible for children to swim in the river?

MARTIN: Yes. Part of it has been fenced off to make it safe for children to swim in. It’s very shallow, and there’s a lifeguard on duty whenever it’s open. The lake is too deep, so swimming isn’t allowed there.

SUE: OK, we must remember to bring their swimming things, in case we go to Paxton. How long does it take to get there by car from Burnham?

MARTIN: About 20 minutes, but parking is very limited, so it’s usually much easier to go by bus – and it takes about the same time.

SUE: Right. Well. I’ll discuss the options with the rest of the family. Thanks very much for all your help.

MARTIN: You’re welcome.

SUE: Goodbye.

MARTIN: Bye.

Section 2 Transcript

MAN: First of all, let me thank you all for coming to this public meeting, to discuss the future of our town. Our first speaker is Shona Ferguson, from Barford town council. Shone.

SHONA: Thank you. First I’ll briefly give you some background information, then I’ll be asking you for your comments on developments in the town.

Well, as you don’t need me to tell you, Barford has changed a great deal in the last 50 years. These are some of the main changes.

Fifty years ago, buses linked virtually every part of the town and the neighbouring towns and villages. Most people used them frequently, but not now because the bus companies concentrate on just the routes that attract most passengers. So parts of the town are no longer served by buses. Even replacing old uncomfortable buses with smart new ones has had little impact on passenger numbers. It’s sometimes said that bus fares are too high, but in relation to average incomes, fares are not much higher than they were 50 years ago.

Changes in the road network are affecting the town. The centre was recently closed to traffic on a trial basis, making it much safer to pedestrians. The impact of this is being measured. The new cycle paths separating bikes from cars in most main roads, are being used far more than was expected reducing traffic and improving air quality. And although the council’s attempts to have a bypass constructed have failed, we haven’t given up hope of persuading the government to change its mind.

Shopping in the town centre has changed over the years. Many of us can remember when the town was crowded with people going shopping. Numbers have been falling for several years, despite efforts to attract shoppers, for instance by opening new car parks. some people combine shopping with visits to the town’s restaurants and cafés. Most shops are small independent stores, which is good, but many people prefer to use supermarkets and department stores in nearby large towns, as there are so few well-known chain stores here.Turning how to medical facilities, the town is served by family doctors in several medical practices – fewer than 50 years ago, but each catering for far more patients. Our hospital closed 15 years ago, which means journeys to other towns are unavoidable. On the other hand, there are more dentists than there used to be. Employment patterns have changed, along with almost everything else. The number of schools and colleges has increased making that the main employment sector. Services, such as website design and accountancy, have grown in importance, and surprisingly, perhaps, manufacturing hasn’t seen the decline that has affected it in other parts of the country.

—————

Now I’ll very quickly outline current plans for some of the town’s facilities, before asking for your comments.

As you’ll know if you regularly use the car park at the railway station, it’s usually full. The railway company applied for permission to replace it with a multi-storey car park, but that was refused. Instead, the company has bought some adjoining land, and this will be used to increase the number of parking spaces.

The Grand, the old cinema in the high street will close at the end of the year, and reopen on a different site. You’ve probably seen the building under construction. The plan is to have three screens with fewer seats, rather than just the one large auditorium in the old cinema.

I expect many of you shop in the indoor market. It’s become more and more shabby-looking, and because of fears about safety, it was threatened with demolition. The good news is that it will close for sex weeks to be made safe and redecorated, and the improved building will open in July.

Lots of people use the library, including school and college students who go there to study. The council has managed to secure funding to keep the library open later into the evening, twice a week. We would like to enlarge the building in the not-too-distant future, but this is by no means definite.

There’s no limit on access to the nature reserve on the edge of town, and this will continue be the case. What will change, though, is that the council will no longer be in charge of the area. Instead it will become the responsibility of a national body that administers most nature reserves in the country.

OK, now let me ask you …

Section 3 Transcript

JEREMY: Hello, Helen. Sorry I’m late.

HELEN: Hi, Jeremy, no problem. Well we’d better work out where we are on our project, I suppose.

JEREMY: Yeah. I’ve looked at the drawings you’ve done for my story, ‘The Forest’, and I think they’re brilliant – they really create the atmosphere I had in mind when I was writing it.

HELEN: I’m glad you like them.

JEREMY: There are just a few suggestions I’d like to make.

HELEN: Go ahead.

JEREMY: Now, I’m not sure about the drawing of the cave – it’s got trees all around it, which is great, but the drawing’s a bit too static, isn’t it? I think it needs some action.

HELEN: Yes, there’s nothing happening. Perhaps I should add the boy – Malcolm, isn’t it? He would be walking up to it.

JEREMY: Yes, let’s have Malcolm in the drawing. And what about putting in a tiger – the one that he makes friends with a bit later? Maybe it could be sitting under a tree washing itself.

HELEN: And the tiger stops in the middle of what it’s doing when it sees Malcolm walking past.

JEREMY: That’s a good idea.

HELEN: OK, I’ll have a go at that.

JEREMY: Then there’s the drawing of the crowd of men and women dancing. They’re just outside the forest, and there’s a lot going on.

HELEN: That’s right, you wanted them to be watching a carnival procession, but I thought it would be too crowded. Do you think it works like this?

JEREMY: Yes, I like what you’ve done. The only thing is, could you add Malcolm to it, without changing what’s already there.

HELEN: What about having him sitting on the tree trunk on the right of the picture?

JEREMY: Yes, that would be fine.

HELEN: And do you want him watching the other people?

JEREMY: No, he’s been left out of all the fun, so I’d like him to be crying – that’ll contrast nicely with the next picture, where he’s laughing at the clowns in the carnival.

HELEN: Right, I’ll do that.

JEREMY: And then the drawing of the people ice skating in the forest.

HELEN: I wasn’t too happy with that one. Because they’re supposed to be skating on grass aren’t they?

JEREMY: That’s right, and it’s frozen over. At the moment it doesn’t look quite right.

HELEN: Mm, I see what you mean. I’ll have another go at that.

JEREMY: And I like the wool hats they’re wearing. Maybe you could give each of them a scarf as well.

HELEN: Yeah, that’s easy enough. They can be streaming out behind the people to suggest they’re skating really fast.

JEREMY: Mm, great. Well that’s all on the drawings.

HELEN: Right. So you’ve finished writing your story and I just need to finish illustrating it, and my story and your drawings are done.

———————

HELEN: So the next thing is to decide what exactly we need to write about in the report that goes with the stories, and how we’re going to divide the work.

JEREMY: Right, Helen.

HELEN: What do you think about including a section on how we planned the project as a whole, Jeremy? That’s probably quite important.

JEREMY: Yeah. Well, you’ve had most of the good ideas so far. How do you feel about drafting something, then we can go through it together and discuss it?

HELEN: OK, that seems reasonable. And I could include something on how we came up with the ideas for our two stories, couldn’t I?

JEREMY: Well, I’ve started writing something about that, so why don’t you do the same and we can include the two things.

HELEN: Right. So what about our interpretation of the stories? Do we need to write about what we think they show, like the value of helping other people, all that sort of thing?

JEREMY: That’s going to come up later isn’t it? I think everyone in the class is going to read each other’s stories and come up with their own interpretations which we’re going to discuss.

HELEN: Oh, I missed that. So it isn’t going to be part of the report at all?

JEREMY: No. But we need to write about the illustrations, because they’re an essential element of children’s experience of reading the stories. It’s probably easiest for you to write that section, as you know more about drawing than I do.

HELEN: Maybe, but I find it quite hard to write about. I’d be happier if you did it.

JEREMY: OK. So when do you think …

Section 4 Transcript

So what I’m going to talk about to you today is something called Ethnography. This is a type of research aimed at exploring the way human cultures work. It was first developed for use in anthropology, and it’s also been used in sociology and communication studies. So what’s it got to do with business, you may ask. Well, businesses are finding that ethnography can offer them deeper insight into the possible needs of customers, either present or future, as well as providing valuable information about their attitudes towards existing products. And ethnography can also help companies to design new products or services that customers really want.

Let’s look at some examples of how ethnographic research works in business. One team of researchers did a project for a company manufacturing kitchen equipment. They watched how cooks used measuring cups to measure out things like sugar and flour. They saw that the cooks had to check and recheck the contents, because although the measuring cups had numbers inside them, the cooks couldn’t see these easily. So a new design of cup was developed to overcome this problem, and it was a top seller.

Another team of ethnographic researchers looked at how cell phones were used in Uganda, in Africa. They found that people who didn’t have their own phones could pay to use the phones of local entrepreneurs. Because these customers paid in advance for their calls, they were eager to know how much time they’d spent on the call so far. So the phone company designed phones for use globally with this added feature.

Ethnographic research has also been carried out in computer companies. In one company, IT systems administrators were observed for several weeks. It was found that a large amount of their work involved communicating with colleagues in order to solve problems, but that they didn’t have a standard way of exchanging information from spreadsheets and so on. So the team came up with an idea for software that would help them to do this.

In another piece of research, a team observed and talked to nurses working in hospitals. This led to the recognition that the nurses needed to access the computer records of their patients, no matter where they were. This led to the development of a portable computer tablet that allowed the nurses to check records in locations throughout the hospital.

Occasionally, research can be done even in environments where the researchers can’t be present. For example, in one project done for an airline, respondents used their smartphones to record information during airline trips, in a study aiming at tracking the emotions of passengers during a flight.

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So what makes studies like these different from ordinary research? Let’s look at some of the general principles behind ethnographic research in business. First of all, the researcher has to be completely open-minded – he or she hasn’t thought up a hypothesis to be tested, as is the case in other types of research. Instead they wait for the participants in the research to inform them. As far as choosing the participants themselves is concerned, that’s not really all that different from ordinary research – the criteria according to which the participants are chosen may be something as simple as the age bracket they fall into, or the researchers may select them according to their income, or they might try to find a set of people who all use a particular product, for example. But it’s absolutely crucial to recruit the right people as participants. As well as the criteria I’ve mentioned, they have to be comfortable talking about themselves and being watched as they go about their activities. Actually, most researchers say that people open up pretty easily, maybe because they’re often in their own home of workplace.

So what makes this type of research special is that it’s not just a matter of sending a questionnaire to the participants, instead the research is usually based on first-hand observation of what they are doing at the time. But that doesn’t mean that the researcher never talks to the participants. However, unlike in traditional research, in this case it’s the participant rather than the researchers who decides what direction the interview will follow. This means that there’s less likelihood of the researcher imposing his or her own ideas on the participant.

But after they’ve said goodbye to their participants and got back to their office, the researchers’ work isn’t finished. Most researchers estimate that 70 to 80 per cent of their time is spent not on the collecting of data but on its analysis – looking at photos listening to recording and transcribing them and so on. The researchers may end up with hundreds of pages of notes. And to determine what’s significant, they don’t focus on the sensational things or the unusual things, instead they try to identify a pattern of some sort in all this data, and to discern the meaning behind it. This can result in some compelling insights that can in turn feed back to the whole design process.

Listening Band Score Conversion

Your raw score out of 40 converts to an IELTS band score using the official listening conversion table below.

Key Vocabulary and Spelling

Study Tips

Word limits change section by section in this paper, so read every instruction as it appears. Sections 1, 3 and 4 all demand ONE WORD ONLY — which is why Question 10 scores river, not the river, and Question 26 scores scarf, not a scarf — while Section 2 asks for letters alone in both its tasks, so an option written out in full gains nothing there. Check each answer against its limit in transfer time, not during listening.

Sections 2 and 4 are monologues with no second speaker to repeat information, so signposts are your anchors. Shona divides Barford’s story with “Now I’ll very quickly outline current plans”, and the ethnography lecturer announces each case study by industry — kitchen equipment, cell phones, computer companies, hospitals, airlines. When you lose your place, the next signpost realigns you with the questions. The Section 2 strategy breaks down this monologue tracking.

Section 3 is decided by attribution. The planning draft belongs to Helen because she finally accepts it, the ideas section belongs to both because Jeremy says “why don’t you do the same”, and the illustrations section belongs to Jeremy because Helen refuses it with “I’d be happier if you did it”. The first suggestion is regularly the trap; the speaker who agrees last owns the answer. The Section 3 strategy covers this who-says-what discipline.

Mark the paper strictly, then use it. Convert your raw score out of 40, reread the transcript line behind every miss, and name the skill that failed — tense tracking in Section 1, refused plans in Section 2, attribution in Section 3, singular and plural control in Section 4 — before you start the next paper. Rerun the two monologue sections a day later with the transcripts beside you to connect each paraphrase you missed with the words that voiced it.

Practice More Listening Tests

Mark the whole paper honestly, then keep the momentum going with the free IELTS listening practice course from Simply IELTS, which drills every task type in this test: multiple choice, sentence and note completion, table completion and matching. When you want another full paper under timed conditions, try this interactive listening test: labyrinths first. Compare your raw score with the key above, review the explanation for every question you missed, and continue the series with the Cambridge IELTS 10 Listening Test 1 answers page when word limits, paraphrase and attribution stop costing you marks.