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IELTS Listening Practice Test 15: Part 1
Joining an evening cookery course. A man phones a college to find out about its evening cookery courses and registers for one of them.
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You hear the recording once, as in the real test.
Questions 1–10
Complete the table below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Westbury College: evening cookery courses
| Course | Evening | What you learn | Other information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kitchen Basics | Monday (example) | knife skills, soups and 1 | maximum of 2 students |
| Flavours of Mexico | 3 | tacos, salsas and slow-cooked dishes | the tutor used to cook in a 4 |
| Vegetarian Kitchen | Thursday | dishes using seasonal vegetables | the course ends with a trip to a 5 farm |
Complete the notes below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Registration details
Course: Vegetarian Kitchen
- Name: Nathan 6
- First class: Thursday 7 September
- Fee for the term: £8 (ingredients included)
- Parking: use the car park next to the 9
- Bring: an apron and a 10
Show the answers and explanations
- breadTrap: the last few weeks used to be on pastry, but beginners found it frustrating, so the tutor has replaced it with bread.
- 12 / twelveTrap: the old leaflet says sixteen, but the new kitchen has fewer cookers, so the maximum is now twelve.
- Wednesday / WednesdaysTrap: it was going to be on Tuesdays, but the kitchen is used by a catering class that night, so it has moved to Wednesday.
- hotelTrap: people assume Lucia ran her own restaurant, but she actually spent ten years cooking in a big hotel.
- mushroom / mushroomsTrap: groups used to visit a dairy farm, but it has closed, so this year they are visiting a mushroom farm.
- CorriganThe surname is spelled letter by letter: C-O-R-R-I-G-A-N (note the double R).
- 21 / 21st / twenty-first / twenty firstTrap: the course was due to start on the fourteenth, but it has been put back a week to the twenty-first.
- 140 / £140 / 140 poundsTrap: the reduced rate of ninety pounds is only for full-time students and people over sixty-five. Nathan is part-time, so he pays one hundred and forty pounds.
- libraryThe main car park is for staff and locked at nine, and the sports hall car park is closed in the evenings. He should use the one next to the library.
- notebook / note book / note-bookKnives and boxes are provided by the college. Students need an apron and a notebook to write down tips.
Show the transcript
Narrator: Part 1. You will hear a man phoning a college to ask about evening cookery courses.
Narrator: First, you have some time to look at questions 1 to 5.
Narrator: You will see that there is an example that has been done for you.
Narrator: Now listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 5.
Course administrator (Gemma): Good evening, Westbury College, adult learning office. Gemma speaking.
Caller (Nathan): Oh, hi. I'm calling about your evening cookery courses. I picked up a leaflet in the library, but I've just noticed it's from last year, so I thought I'd better check what's actually running this term.
Course administrator (Gemma): Good idea, because quite a lot has changed. There are three cookery courses this autumn. The first one is Kitchen Basics. That used to be on Thursdays, but this year it's on a Monday evening.
Caller (Nathan): OK, Monday. And what does that one cover?
Course administrator (Gemma): It's really for people who've never done much cooking. You start with knife skills, so how to chop things safely and quickly, and then you move on to soups. The last few weeks used to be on pastry, but a lot of beginners found that quite frustrating, so the tutor's replaced it with bread. People seem to love that.
Caller (Nathan): Mm, that sounds good. And how big are the groups?
Course administrator (Gemma): Well, your leaflet probably says sixteen, because that's what we used to take. But we've moved into a new kitchen this year, and it has fewer cookers, so the maximum is now twelve.
Caller (Nathan): Twelve. That's nice and small.
Course administrator (Gemma): It is. You get a lot more help from the tutor that way. All three courses run for ten weeks, by the way, from seven until half past nine.
Caller (Nathan): That's fine. And what's the second course?
Course administrator (Gemma): That's Flavours of Mexico. It covers tacos, salsas and some slow-cooked dishes. It was going to be on Tuesdays, but the kitchen's being used by a catering class that night, so we've moved it to Wednesday.
Caller (Nathan): Wednesday. And who teaches that one?
Course administrator (Gemma): A woman called Lucia. She's brilliant. Everyone assumes she must have run her own restaurant, but actually she spent ten years cooking in a big hotel in Mexico City, so she's used to feeding hundreds of people at once. She's got some wonderful stories.
Caller (Nathan): I bet she has. And the third one?
Course administrator (Gemma): That's Vegetarian Kitchen, on Thursdays. It's all about cooking with whatever vegetables are in season. And at the end of the course there's a trip. In previous years the group went to a dairy farm to see how cheese is made, but that farm has closed down, so this year they're visiting a mushroom farm instead. It's only about twenty minutes away.
Caller (Nathan): Oh, that sounds fun. Actually, I think that's the one for me. I've been trying to eat less meat.
Narrator: Before you hear the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 6 to 10.
Narrator: Now listen and answer questions 6 to 10.
Course administrator (Gemma): Lovely. It's one of our most popular courses, so you've rung at just the right time. There are only a couple of places left. Shall I take your details and put you down for Vegetarian Kitchen?
Caller (Nathan): Yes, please.
Course administrator (Gemma): Can I start with your name?
Caller (Nathan): Sure. It's Nathan Corrigan.
Course administrator (Gemma): Could you spell your surname for me?
Caller (Nathan): It's C-O-R-R-I-G-A-N.
Course administrator (Gemma): So that's two Rs. Thank you. Now, the first class. The course was due to start on the fourteenth of September, but the new kitchen won't quite be ready by then, so everything's been put back a week. So your first class will be on Thursday the twenty-first.
Caller (Nathan): The twenty-first. That's fine. I'm not away then.
Course administrator (Gemma): Good. And the fee for the term is one hundred and forty pounds. That includes all the ingredients.
Caller (Nathan): Is there a discount for students? I'm doing a part-time course at the university.
Course administrator (Gemma): I'm afraid the reduced rate, which is ninety pounds, is only for full-time students and people over sixty-five. So it would be the full fee for you.
Caller (Nathan): Oh well. It's still good value, with the ingredients included. Is there anywhere to park? The class finishes quite late, so I'll probably drive.
Course administrator (Gemma): There is, but don't use the main car park at the front. That's for staff only, and it's locked at nine, before your class finishes. There's another one by the sports hall, but that's closed in the evenings too. The one you want is next to the library. It's free after five o'clock.
Caller (Nathan): Next to the library. Got it. And do I need to bring anything with me?
Course administrator (Gemma): We provide all the equipment, so you don't need to bring knives or anything like that. And there are plenty of boxes for taking your food home. But you'll need an apron, and a notebook, because the tutor hands out the recipes, but she likes everyone to write down their own tips as they go along.
Caller (Nathan): An apron and a notebook. That's easy enough.
Course administrator (Gemma): That's everything, then. I'll email you a confirmation this evening, and we'll see you on the twenty-first.
Caller (Nathan): Great. Thanks very much for your help, Gemma.
Narrator: That is the end of Part 1. You now have half a minute to check your answers to Part 1.