IELTS
JOURNAL
76
9. Summary, note, table, flow-chart completion
Task Type & Format
With this task type, candidates are given some type of summary of a section of
the text, and are required to complete it with information drawn from the text.
Note that the summary will usually be of only one part of the passage rather
than the whole. The given information may be in the form of; several connected
sentences of text (referred to as a summary), several notes (referred to as
notes), a table with some of its cells empty or partially empty (referred to as a
table), a series of boxes or steps linked by arrows to show a sequence of events,
with some of the boxes or steps empty or partially empty (referred to as a flow-
chart).
The answers will not necessarily occur in the same order as in the text. However,
they will usually come from one section rather than the entire text.
There are two variations of this task type. Candidates may be asked either to
select words from the text or to select from a list of answers.
Where words have to be selected from the passage, the instructions will make it
clear how many words/numbers candidates should use in their answers, e.g. ‘NO
MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage’, ‘ONE WORD
ONLY’ or ‘NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS’. If candidates write more than the
number of words asked for, they will lose the mark.
Numbers can be written using figures or words. Contracted words are not
tested. Hyphenated words count as single words.
Where a list of answers is provided, they most frequently consist of a single
word.
Because this task type often relates to precise factual information, it is often
used with descriptive texts.
Task Focus
This task type assesses the candidate’s ability to understand details and/or the
main ideas of a section of the text. In the variations involving a summary or
notes, candidates need to be aware of the type of word(s) that will fit into a
given gap (for example, whether a noun is needed, or a verb etc.).
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