One of the most important parts of preparing for the listening sub-test is exposing yourself to as much spoken English as possible. Ideally, this should be health-related. To increase your confidence and proficiency, I recommend the using the podcasts found on the websites below:

 

• www.cdc.gov/podcasts
• www.abc.net.au/radionational

Health-related programs on Radio National:

All in the Mind

Health Report

Life Matters

 

However, you need to do more than just listen to the podcasts. The following steps will help you to make the most of these resources:

1. Listen to the podcast while reading the transcript.NOTEDOWN any unfamiliar words and add them to your vocabulary list, along with their definition.

• For the CDC website, click “Listen to this podcast”, then click the “Transcript” button.
• For the ABC Radio National, click on the title of the podcast on the program home page, then click the “Show Transcript” button.

1. Listen to the podcast again, without the transcript, and write down the MAIN points you heard. You can pause the podcast as often as you want to, but make sure you are still being challenged to keep up.
2. Use the transcript, or replay the podcast, to check if you took notes accurately.

 

Going through steps 1-3 with at least one podcast per day will help you to improve your vocabulary, writing speed and, of course, listening skills.

 

The key, however, is to do it consistently! 😉

 

Good luck,

 

Anna Brzeska

OET Teacher

The listening test of the OET exam is one of the sections of the exam that can be more easily improved upon if you dedicate time to improving your listening skills. I have compiled a number of tips that have significantly helped my students improve their score in this section of the exam.

1. Familiarise yourself with different areas of medicine/health. Many students struggle in the listening section when they come across topics which they are not familiar with for example maternal/neonatal health, dentistry, occupational medicine etc. To help improve your listening mark it is important that you:

Learn about the name for each of the different specialties in medicine and read a little bit about what each involves eg

• ENT – Ear/nose and throat surgeons

• Endocrinologist – Physicians involved in treating/diagnosing hormonal problems

• Obstetrics/Gynecology – Surgeons/physicians involved in the pre/peri/post-natal care of mothers and their babies. Learn the terminology around menstruation and pregnancy

• Cardiologist – treats heart disease

• Anaestheologist – treats chronic pain syndromes; administers anesthesia and monitors the patient during surgery

• Nephrologist – treats kidney disease

• Oncologist – treats cancer

• Ophthalmologist – treats eye injuries, defects and diseases

• Gastroenterologist – treats stomach disorders and disease

• Podiatrist – treats and manages disorders of the foot*

• Paediatrician – treats infants, toddlers, children and teenagers*

 

*People often mix up these two specialties but they are very different so watch out for this

The list goes on. The most important point is to learn some of the common terminology used in each profession such that if you were given a conversation to listen to between an Opthalmologist and a patient you would be familiar with the most basic terms.

2. Once you have familiarized yourself with these areas of tramadolhealth.com medical specialty start listening to health blogs and summarising what you hear as you listen. The best way to improve listening is to practice listening to similar health material either on youtube, or look for TED talks or interviews. Whilst you listen, pause the recording and summarise/re-write everything you heard.

If you improve your knowledge base in regards to the topics that the listening section may use and then improve your listening skills by doing the above exercise you will undoubtedly improve your score.

Hope you find this helpful and good luck!

Nadishi Athulathmudali, OET Tutor.

In Part 1 we went through the importance of context when introducing yourself to the role player/patient giving some examples. In Part 2 we will cover two more tips that will help you to achieve the best results you can in the speaking section.

1. Refer to the role play notes as often as you like! The actor opposite you is not your assessor.
Your role play will be recorded, it will not be videotaped – therefore you are only being assessed on what you say and not your body language. You do NOT have to memorise and act out the role play. Instead, refer to the notes as much as you like to make sure you are covering everything.

2. Mentally tick off each dot point as you go – if it’s easier for you, try to follow the dot points in sequential order
In the role player card you are given they will outline the context and what you are required to discuss/explain in dot points. Try to follow these in order to make sure you cover everything and since you are only being assessed on what you say, make sure you speak clearly and empathetically.

3. Acknowledge the feelings of the role player/patient when required to show you are empathetic and caring in your work as a nurse

a. If the patient in the role play is agitated/angry for example:

“Mrs Barnes I understand that you are frustrated with what has happened but I can assure you that myself and Dr X are doing the best we can to ensure that your care is optimal” etc

b. If a patient is scared for example:

“Johnny I know you’re afraid of needles as are a lot of other people and I understand that completely. However, you have nothing to be worried about as the pain is very minimal and with practice you will feel a lot more comfortable with using your insulin injections

Good luck! I hope this two part series has helped you feel more confident in your abilities to conquer the speaking section of the OET exam.

Nadishi Athulathmudali, OET Teacher