It might surprise you to find out, but those brilliant ideas or those crazy things you say during your test? More often than not, they don’t affect your score.
But how controlled you were in your responses, how relevant those things were, and how organized they were in relation to the question?
Those count.
1. What IELTS Actually Evaluates vs What Candidates Think It Evaluates
Common perception about IELTS scoring:
- Big vocabulary
- Perfect grammar
- “Advanced” ideas (eg, “Of course we must protect the planet from climate change.”)
- Native-like accent
- Big, long, extended structures
- Academic knowledge, ie, referring to “science shows” (how can you prove any of this during the test?
These often lead to:
- Overcomplicated ideas
- Memorisation
- Artificial language (do you *actually* know the meaning of the words you’re using?)
- Panic. Cause you forgot what you were trying to say.
What IELTS Actually Evaluates
Look at the official criteria:
For Speaking:
- Fluency and Coherence = Are you able to keep going and stay on track?
- Lexical Resource = Can you use a variety of words and minimize repetition?
- Grammatical Range and Accuracy = Can you talk about the past, present, future, and possibilities?
- Pronunciation = Can you be understood?
For Writing:
- Task Response / Achievement = Did you answer the question?
- Coherence and Cohesion = Are your ideas logically organized?
- Lexical Resource = Are you using a variety of words, including synonyms and antonyms?
- Grammatical Range and Accuracy = Are you discussing different times and potentialities?
Notice something important.
None of these say:
- “Intelligence”
- “Creativity”
- “Originality”
- “Advanced vocabulary”
- “Brilliant ideas”
They measure:
- Relevance
- Organisation
- Clarity
- Control
This is more about behaviour than intellect.
2. Why “Knowing English” Is Not the Same as “Scoring Well”
A person may:
- Live in English
- Work in English
- Speak confidently
- Understand complex ideas
And still score Band 6.
Why?
Because IELTS is structured performance.
As much as it is a “conversation”, it’s a fake conversation at best.
Example: Speaking
A fluent professional might:
- Ramble
- Change direction mid-sentence
- Partially answer the question
- Lose logical sequencing
In daily life, this is acceptable.
In IELTS, it affects:
- Fluency and Coherence
Example: Writing
An intelligent candidate might:
- Discuss many ideas
- Avoid taking a clear position
- Provide interesting but irrelevant examples
The criteria is NOT evaluating brilliance.
They are evaluating whether the response fulfils the task.
That is Task Response.
You can be intelligent and still not fully answer the question.
That is why intelligence ≠ band score.
3. How Examiners Listen and Read
Examiners are trained to listen and read through criteria lenses (ie, the Band Descriptors).
They are not asking:
- “Is this impressive?”
- “Is this clever?”
- “Would I hire this person?”
They are asking:
For Speaking
- Is the candidate able to keep going?
- Are ideas logically sequenced?
- Are errors frequent or occasional?
- Does pronunciation require effort to understand?
For Writing
- Has the question been answered?
- Are the ideas logically organized?
- Are paragraphs functioning properly?
- Is vocabulary used appropriately?
Examiners often refer to the descriptors during the test itself and while reading your written tasks.
For example, Band 7 Speaking says:
- “Able to keep going and readily produce long turns without noticeable effort”
- “A range of structures flexibly used”
- “Error-free sentences are frequent”
Notice the language:
- “Able to”
- “Range”
- “Frequent”
- “Flexible”
These are performance patterns.
The examiner is measuring patterns, not brilliance.
4. Why Smart People Plateau at Band 6
This is important.
Band 6 candidates often:
- Have good vocabulary
- Attempt complex grammar
- Speak confidently
- Have strong opinions
But they also:
- Overextend answers (trying to sound smart)
- Lose structural clarity (get lost in their own ideas)
- Make frequent errors in complex sentences (aim to fit everything in their answer)
- Drift away from the task (meander and digress)
Band 6 Writing typically:
- Addresses the task but not fully
- Shows some cohesion but not controlled organisation
Band 6 Speaking:
- Demonstrates willingness to produce long turns
- But coherence may be lost due to hesitation or repetition
The plateau happens because:
They try to sound advanced.
Instead of sounding controlled.
Band 7 is NOT more intelligent.
Band 7 is:
- More disciplined
- More structured
- More relevant
- More selective
It is behavioural refinement.
Key Takeaways
STOP asking:
- “How can I sound smarter?”
START asking:
- “Is this answer complete?”
- “Is this structured?”
- “Is this controlled?”
- “Is this relevant?”
That shift alone often moves someone from Band 6 toward Band 7.