IELTS WIN: Maria 👱♀️🏆

So much of what I know about how to pass the IELTS exam (and teaching English in general) comes from the successes and, err, non-successes, of my previous students.
I have learnt a great deal from these students and by reading their stories, so can you.
As such, in this series of articles, I'm going to share some stories with you about the most memorable WINS and FAILS of my former students*.
*All of these stories are real, but all students' names have been changed to maintain anonymity.
Maria and uh, her, er, Speaking Fluency
Today, I'm going to tell you about Maria, how she improved her speaking fluency, and how she got a band 7 in the IELTS test.
I first taught Maria as part of a group class. She had a decent level of English and she seemed very confident and chatty. She quickly made new friends with the other students and was already ready to participate and speak in front of the class.
However, at the end of the course, when we did a full mock speaking test, something happened ...