HISTORY OF IELTS

Cambridge English Language Assessment (formerly known as UCLES) and the British Council created the English Language Testing Service (IELTS) in 1980. It featured a unique framework that mirrored developments in language learning and teaching, such as the rise of 'communicative' language acquisition and 'English for specific purposes.' The purpose of the test tasks was to simulate the use of English in the "real world."

IELTS first appeared in 1989.

Participants in the test took two non-specialized modules, Listening and Speaking, as well as two specialized modules, Reading and Writing.

Test takers increased at a rate of about 15% each year, and by 1995, there were 43,000 test-takers in 210 test centers throughout the world.

 

In 1995, IELTS was redesigned again, with three major changes:

There was a single Academic Reading Module and a single Academic Writing Module (previously there had been a choice of three field-specific Reading and Writing modules)

To prevent conflating the assessment of reading and writing skills, the thematic relationship between the Reading and Writing tasks was deleted.

The Academic Reading and Writing modules were aligned with the General Training Reading and Writing modules (same timing, length of responses, reporting of scores).

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