Vietnamese Girl, 10, Scores IELTS 8.5 on First Attempt Without Private Coaching

Two perfect scores and six weeks of preparation

Nguyen Bao An, a 10 year old student at Bui Van Ba Primary School in Ho Chi Minh City's Nha Be District, earned an IELTS score of 8.5 on her first attempt without attending an English center or hiring a private tutor. She scored 9.0 in Listening, 9.0 in Reading, 8.5 in Speaking and 8.0 in Writing.

Bao An spent about six weeks preparing for the exam with her father's guidance, completing three to four practice sets a day. Her English, however, had developed over years of reading, watching television and talking with family members and teachers. The short preparation period helped her become familiar with the test's format and timing.

Her result puts her among a small share of candidates in Vietnam. Most Vietnamese IELTS test takers are between 16 and 22, and only about 1 percent reach 8.5 or above. For a primary school pupil, the challenge includes understanding unfamiliar subjects and organizing longer answers under time limits.

IELTS, the International English Language Testing System, is used around the world for university admissions, work visas and professional licensing. It assesses Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking on a scale from 0 to 9. Scores of 8.0 and above indicate very high proficiency, including the ability to understand detailed arguments and communicate with precision.

Bao An's experience challenges the idea that intensive private coaching is the only route to a top result. Her learning environment combined early exposure, regular English lessons, conversation at school and books at home. Her parents maintained both Vietnamese and English, while the final weeks before IELTS brought concentrated practice with the exam itself.

English began at home, alongside Vietnamese

Bao An was born in the United States, where her family spoke Vietnamese at home to preserve their mother tongue. She encountered English through books, cartoons and television. When she was about two and a half, her parents noticed that she could read short passages aloud.

Her family returned to Vietnam when she was three. Her father then began speaking with her in English at home to keep the language active. Her parents also frequently chose books in English as gifts for special occasions, making reading a continuing part of family life.

Thanh Nhan, Bao An's mother, described her daughter as comfortable using either language:

She reads and speaks English as comfortably as Vietnamese.

The family's aim was to keep curiosity and reading at the center of daily life, rather than raise a prodigy. Vietnamese remained the language of everyday family communication, while conversations with her father and access to English books helped Bao An maintain her second language.

At school, Bao An attends regular English lessons and two extra sessions each week with native teachers. She calls the extra sessions crazy time because they allow free conversation with classmates and the teacher. School gave her a place to use English with others, while reading and listening at home continued without pressure.

What an IELTS score of 8.5 means

IELTS combines results from its four skills to produce an overall band score. Bao An's two scores of 9.0, alongside 8.5 in Speaking and 8.0 in Writing, show high performance across the whole exam, with Listening and Reading her strongest measured skills.

An 8.5 is generally associated with very high proficiency, approaching the fluency of a native speaker in familiar and academic situations. It involves understanding nuanced vocabulary, following complex arguments and expressing ideas precisely. Many universities accept scores of 6.5 or 7.0 for admission to programs taught in English, so 8.5 usually exceeds those requirements.

Listening and Reading answers are machine scored against answer keys. Writing and Speaking are assessed by trained examiners using criteria that include coherence, grammatical accuracy, vocabulary range, pronunciation and task achievement. Coherence means that ideas connect in a way a reader or listener can follow; task achievement concerns how well an answer addresses what was asked.

Reliability studies published by the test provider show high internal consistency for Listening and Reading and strong agreement between examiners for Writing and Speaking. In simple terms, the scoring system is designed to produce stable results across different versions of the test and different testing locations.

Younger candidates often have less experience discussing academic issues or writing longer essays within a time limit. Bao An's result suggests strong comprehension, a wide vocabulary she can understand even when she may not use every word herself, and an ability to express ideas on unfamiliar prompts. Her years of meaningful contact with English helped prepare her for those demands.

How she used the final six weeks

Bao An's parents chose IELTS rather than an exam designed for children. With about six weeks to prepare, she worked through three to four practice sets daily under her father's guidance, learning how the questions were arranged and how to manage the time available.

Listening and Speaking were the sections in which she felt most confident. In Reading, she answered easier questions first, then returned to harder ones and eliminated options to narrow her choices. This left more time for passages containing dense information and helped reduce second guessing, which can cost even a strong reader marks.

Bao An, the primary school student who took the exam, explained that she had no target score and approached it as a chance to check her abilities:

English just feels natural to me. I did not have any strategy or target score. I only wanted to see where my abilities stand.

Her approach combined comfort with the language and familiarity with the exam. The daily practice addressed timing and format, while the English she had used for years supplied the reading, listening and conversational skills behind her answers.

Bao An's route to the exam can be traced through a few stages:

• About age two and a half: her parents noticed that she could read short passages aloud.
• Age three: her family moved from the United States to Vietnam, and her father began speaking English with her at home.
• During primary school: she continued regular English lessons and two extra conversation sessions each week with native teachers.
• About six weeks before IELTS: she began concentrated practice with her father's guidance.
• Age 10: she earned 8.5 on her first IELTS attempt.

From sushi to trade and the value of languages

Bao An's Speaking test moved across subjects ranging from a favorite foreign dish to import and export. She described the decor of a sushi restaurant that made her feel as though she were in Japan, drawing on a familiar experience to give a detailed answer.

Ho Chi Minh City supplied another subject. Bao An described its skyscrapers, modern conveniences and many universities, while also discussing the frustrations of commuting. Her answer included humor about rush hour traffic.

Bao An gave this description of the city's traffic:

The traffic is really good if you enjoy sitting in a car for an hour during rush hour.

In Writing, she argued against the idea of a single global language. Her reasoning was that languages take centuries to form and spread, and replacing them would erase large parts of human culture. She also pointed to the risks facing many minority languages.

Bao An expressed the connection between language and culture in her essay:

Erasing languages would mean losing entire cultures.

Her answers required different kinds of communication: describing a place, discussing trade, evaluating city life and defending an argument. Writing demanded a structured position, while Speaking allowed her to draw on observation and conversational confidence.

Her teacher sees strength beyond English

Nguyen Anh Hong Phuc, Bao An's homeroom teacher, said the result matched the ability she sees in class. Bao An participates actively in lessons with native teachers, helps classmates and stands out across subjects.

Phuc described her pupil's English ability:

The result reflects her ability. Her English is outstanding.

Bao An has also begun learning German and French and has joined online science courses. English is therefore part of a wider interest in learning, alongside other languages and scientific subjects.

Her immediate academic goal is admission to Tran Dai Nghia Secondary and High School for the Gifted. She hopes the selective school will allow her to meet pupils who share her enthusiasm and use English in more classes.

Her mother and teacher describe complementary parts of her development. At home, books and conversation sustained both languages. At school, active participation and opportunities to help others gave her regular reasons to communicate.

Other young Vietnamese learners reach high bands

Bao An joins other Vietnamese teenagers and children who have earned IELTS scores of 8.0 or above, often on their first attempt. Their routines frequently include early exposure, reading and listening about subjects they enjoy, and conversation rather than memorized Speaking answers.

In Hanoi, Le Tuan Minh, 13, earned an overall 8.5, with reported scores of 8.5 in Listening, Reading and Speaking and 7.5 in Writing. He began encountering English at age three and reads extensively about programming and robotics. Months of practice with the test format, along with outlines and knowledge of topics, helped steady his Writing.

Le Huy Gia Long, also 13, achieved 8.5 with perfect 9.0 scores in three skills. Daily English use at an international school and previous Cambridge English exams helped build his confidence. He completed Reading in 45 minutes and described Speaking as straightforward conversation.

In Ho Chi Minh City, Nguyen Nam Long, 12, scored 8.0, including perfect marks in Listening and Speaking. He used English daily through YouTube, music and films. His Writing practice was lighter, helping explain the gap between his strong oral skills and his lower Writing result.

Hoang Van Thai, a university student from a border district in Tay Ninh Province, began with limited resources. He studied independently, sought out foreign visitors for conversation practice and reached 8.5 on his second attempt.

Phung Tien Thanh, 25, offers a comparison with an adult learner. He reached a perfect 9.0 after years of steady vocabulary study, daily listening across many subjects and a long habit of speaking to himself in English to build fluency. His experience shows another route to a high score through deliberate, sustained practice.

Listening and Reading often benefit from early, enjoyable exposure, while regular conversation builds pronunciation and the ability to respond promptly. Writing can lag among younger candidates because it requires argument structure, familiarity with specific tasks and careful use of time. Planning and feedback can help bring it closer to the level of their other skills.

Reading skills and access to English matter

A UNESCO report in 2023 found that Vietnamese children ranked at the top among countries with low or lower middle incomes in reading and mathematics at the end of primary school. Vietnam's school system has developed strong literacy and numeracy compared with its peers.

Reading well in a first language provides a foundation for reading in a second. A child who understands how a passage is organized or how an argument develops can use those skills when reading English, even when some vocabulary is unfamiliar.

Urban families increasingly seek programs with native speaking teachers, bilingual tracks or international curricula. Affordable internet access and smartphones also give children access to English science channels, podcasts and free online courses.

Programming, robotics and global issues are among the interests mentioned by young high scorers. Reading about an enjoyable subject builds vocabulary in context, giving words meaning beyond a memorized definition. Those interests also connect with IELTS topics, which often involve science, technology, society and culture.

Vietnam's strong education culture includes parents supporting reading, encouraging competitions and arranging practice through tourists or language clubs. For these learners, English becomes a way to gain knowledge as well as a school subject. Bao An's books, conversations and online science courses fit that pattern.

Habits learners and parents can take from these experiences

Bao An and the other high scorers followed different routes, but their experiences share a focus on regular use and genuine interest. The practical lessons involve building skills over time, then using exam practice to understand the tasks and timing.

Reading, listening, speaking and writing each need attention. A learner may feel comfortable in conversation yet need more practice arranging an essay, just as a strong reader may need to learn how to divide time between test questions.

• Build a reading habit in any language, then add English books and articles about subjects you enjoy. Interest helps sustain attention and vocabulary learning.
• Vary listening across accents and topics. Short daily sessions develop responses that a few weeks of cramming cannot supply.
• Use speaking for real conversation with teachers or friends, or record yourself. Focus on clear, organized ideas rather than impressive words.
• Make writing a weekly routine. Learn the usual structures for Task 1 and Task 2, plan before starting and seek feedback on recurring errors.
• Use practice tests to learn format and timing. Answer easier Reading questions first, return to harder items and narrow choices by elimination. In Listening, use the question type to anticipate the kind of answer needed.
• Study vocabulary actively. Record words encountered repeatedly, review them in context and use them in speaking and writing.
• Keep a manageable, regular schedule. Short daily sessions maintain skills more consistently than one long session each week.
• Protect enjoyment by connecting English with science videos, novels, games or other interests.
• For children, involve the family through shared reading, time allocated to English shows and new books to celebrate progress.

Bao An's six weeks of concentrated preparation followed years of language use. Her experience brings together two parts of learning: developing English through daily life and becoming familiar with how an examination asks candidates to demonstrate it.

What to Know

• Nguyen Bao An, 10, of Bui Van Ba Primary School in Nha Be District, Ho Chi Minh City, earned IELTS 8.5 on her first attempt.
• She scored 9.0 in Listening and Reading, 8.5 in Speaking and 8.0 in Writing.
• She attended no English center and hired no private tutor, while receiving English lessons and extra conversation sessions at school.
• Her father guided about six weeks of preparation involving three to four practice sets a day.
• Born in the United States, she returned to Vietnam at age three and maintained English through books, media and family conversation.
• Her Speaking topics included sushi, trade and city life; her Writing argued that replacing languages would destroy cultural heritage.
• About 1 percent of Vietnamese IELTS candidates reach 8.5 or above, and most test takers are between 16 and 22.
• Other Vietnamese children, teenagers and adults have reached high scores through early exposure, independent study and steady practice.
• A 2023 UNESCO report placed Vietnamese pupils at the top of their income comparison group in reading and mathematics at the end of primary school.
• Bao An is learning German and French, taking online science courses and aiming for Tran Dai Nghia Secondary and High School for the Gifted.