[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-160539-en":3,"doc-seo-160539-105":31,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":92},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":20,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":21,"is_downloadable":21,"audit_status":21,"page_count":22,"language":23,"language_code":24,"site_id":25,"html_lang":24,"table_of_contents":26,"faqs":27,"seo_title":28,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":29,"read_time":30},160539,2336475104362,"Mali","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/22000c4c46a41b752dd?x-image-process=image/resize,m_fixed,w_180,h_180&k=1786595829695023868",8,"Research & Report","Beyond score correlations - A content comparison of IELTS Academic and TOEFL iBT tests in the context of a score concordance study","This study examines the content comparability of the IELTS Academic and TOEFL iBT tests within a recent co-sponsored score concordance study, extending analysis beyond score correlations. It compares test content across reading, listening, writing, and speaking using published research, official test documentation, and publicly available sample materials. The report argues that concordance tables depend on whether the tests measure genuinely comparable constructs, and evaluates task characteristics, linguistic demands, response formats, and scoring criteria. It also notes the comparison reflects the pre-January 2026 TOEFL iBT version.","ISSN 2201-2982 2026/1  \nIELTS Research Reports  \nOnline Series  \nBeyond score correlations: A content comparison of IELTS Academic and TOEFL iBT® tests in the context of a score concordance study  \nSara T. Cushing  \nResearch  \nBeyond score correlations: A content comparison of IELTS Academic and TOEFL iBT® tests  \nin the context of a score concordance study  \nThis study examines the content comparability of the IELTS Academic and TOEFL iBT® tests in the context of a recent co-sponsored score concordance study. Moving beyond score correlations, the analysis compares test content across the four language skills—reading, listening, writing and speaking—using published research, official test documentation and publicly available sample materials.  \nFunding  \nThis research was funded by Cambridge University Press & Assessment.  \nPublishing details  \nPublished by the IELTS Partners: British Council, IDP IELTS, and Cambridge University Press & Assessment © 2026.  \nThis publication is copyright. No commercial re-use. The research and opinions expressed are of individual researchers and do not represent the views of IELTS. The publishers do not accept responsibility for any of the claims made in the research.  \nHow to cite this report  \nCushing, S. T. (2026) . Beyond score correlations: A content comparison of  \nIELTS Academic and TOEFL iBT® tests in the context of a score concordance study, IELTS Research Reports Online Series, No. 1/26 . British Council, IDP IELTS, and Cambridge University Press & Assessment.  \nAvailable at: [https://ielts.org/researchers/our-research/research-reports](https://ielts.org/researchers/our-research/research-reports)  \n‹‹  \n[IELTS.org](IELTS.org) IELTS Research Reports Online Series 2026/1 i  \nIntroduction  \nThis report analyses and compares the content of IELTS and TOEFL across four skills: reading, listening, writing and speaking. The analyses are based on published research, official test documentation, and publicly available sample materials. This research was funded by Cambridge University Press & Assessment.  \nIt should be noted that this analysis was conducted before ETS launched a new version of its TOEFL iBT test in January 2026. Therefore, the comparison presented in this report is based on the previous version of TOEFL iBT.  \nMany higher education institutions use score concordance tables to compare scores from English proficiency tests assuming that both the tests and concordance studies on which these comparisons are based are of high quality. However, as Knoch and Fan (2024) found in their review of language test concordance studies, best practices are not consistently followed in the conduct of such studies. This means that concordance tables alone may not provide sufficient evidence that two tests are interchangeable. Therefore, a more detailed examination could provide sufficient evidence to evaluate the extent to which two tests assess comparable content and constructs.  \nIELTS and TOEFL share several characteristics that support such a comparison: both are well-established English proficiency tests backed by decades of research; they assess the four language skills of reading, listening, writing and speaking; and they are intended for similar populations of prospective higher education students. While these similarities provide initial evidence of comparability in terms of content and underlying construct, a more detailed examination conducted by an independent and respected authority on test comparisons is still needed.  \nTherefore, this report analyses and compares the content of IELTS and TOEFL across four skills: reading, listening, writing and speaking. In addition to test content, this analysis includes tasks characteristics, linguistics demands, response formats, and scoring criteria. The analyses are based on published research, official test documentation, and publicly available sample materials.  \nIt is worth noting that this present study extends the work of Ikeda et al. (202","cbCaihbHtm8OivRe","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaihbHtm8OivRe","pdf",1890701,4,1,34,"English","en",105,"# Introduction\n## Report scope and rationale\n## Comparison basis and previous work\n## Overview of similarities and differences","[{\"question\":\"What is the focus of this study on IELTS and TOEFL?\",\"answer\":\"The study assesses how comparable IELTS Academic and TOEFL iBT test content is, going beyond simple score correlations across reading, listening, writing, and speaking.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the report conduct the content comparison?\",\"answer\":\"It uses published research, official test documentation, and publicly available sample materials, and examines task characteristics, linguistic demands, response formats, and scoring criteria.\"},{\"question\":\"Why does the report challenge reliance on score concordance tables alone?\",\"answer\":\"It argues concordance tables only provide sufficient evidence when the tests measure comparable constructs and when concordance practices follow best standards, which may not always be the case.\"}]","Beyond score correlations - A content comparison of IELTS Academic and TOEFL iBT tests in the context of a score concordance study | PDF",1788068630,86,{"code":4,"msg":32,"data":33},"ok",{"site_id":25,"language":24,"slug":34,"title":13,"keywords":35,"description":14,"schema_data":36,"social_meta":87,"head_meta":89,"extra_data":91,"updated_unix":29},"beyond-score-correlations-a-content-comparison-of-ielts-academic-and-toefl-ibt-tests-in-the-context-of-a-score-concordance-study","",{"@graph":37,"@context":86},[38,54,69],{"@type":39,"itemListElement":40},"BreadcrumbList",[41,45,49,52],{"item":42,"name":43,"@type":44,"position":21},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":46,"name":47,"@type":44,"position":48},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":50,"name":12,"@type":44,"position":51},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":53,"name":13,"@type":44,"position":20},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/beyond-score-correlations-a-content-comparison-of-ielts-academic-and-toefl-ibt-tests-in-the-context-of-a-score-concordance-study/160539/",{"url":53,"name":13,"@type":55,"author":56,"headline":13,"publisher":58,"fileFormat":61,"inLanguage":24,"description":14,"dateModified":62,"datePublished":63,"encodingFormat":61,"isAccessibleForFree":64,"interactionStatistic":65},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":57},"Person",{"url":42,"name":59,"@type":60},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-09-05","2026-08-30",true,{"@type":66,"interactionType":67,"userInteractionCount":20},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":68},"ViewAction",{"@type":70,"mainEntity":71},"FAQPage",[72,78,82],{"name":73,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":75},"What is the focus of this study on IELTS and TOEFL?","Question",{"text":76,"@type":77},"The study assesses how comparable IELTS Academic and TOEFL iBT test content is, going beyond simple score correlations across reading, listening, writing, and speaking.","Answer",{"name":79,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":80},"How does the report conduct the content comparison?",{"text":81,"@type":77},"It uses published research, official test documentation, and publicly available sample materials, and examines task characteristics, linguistic demands, response formats, and scoring criteria.",{"name":83,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":84},"Why does the report challenge reliance on score concordance tables alone?",{"text":85,"@type":77},"It argues concordance tables only provide sufficient evidence when the tests measure comparable constructs and when concordance practices follow best standards, which may not always be the case.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":53,"og:type":88,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":59,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":90,"canonical":53},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":25},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":93},[94,98,102,106,111,116,121,124,129,132,136],{"id":21,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":95,"show_sort_weight":96,"slug":97},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":48,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":99,"show_sort_weight":100,"slug":101},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":20,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":103,"show_sort_weight":104,"slug":105},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":107,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":108,"show_sort_weight":109,"slug":110},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":112,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":113,"show_sort_weight":114,"slug":115},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":117,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":118,"show_sort_weight":119,"slug":120},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":122,"slug":123},30,"research-report",{"id":125,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":126,"show_sort_weight":127,"slug":128},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":130,"show_sort_weight":127,"slug":131},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":133,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":134,"show_sort_weight":133,"slug":135},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":137,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":47,"category_name":138,"show_sort_weight":107,"slug":139},19,"General","general"]