1. The maths
A CEFR sub-band typically takes 30–50 hours of focused practice to traverse. 4 weeks × 60 minutes daily = 28 hours, which covers 70–90% of the requirement assuming a stable starting level.
The implied conditions matter:
- "Focused" = no phone, no music with lyrics, one task at a time
- "Stable starting level" = you have not been completely idle for the last 6 months
- "Single sub-band" = e.g. 5.5 → 6.0, not 5.5 → 7.0
If those conditions don't hold, extend or restructure.
2. When this plan won't work
- You're at A1 starting from absolute zero — you need 100+ hours, not 28
- You're targeting a full CEFR jump (B1 → B2) — typically 120+ hours
- You've completely paused English in the last 6 months — add a 1-week warm-up first
3. The 4-week schedule
Week 1 — diagnosis + foundation repair
| Day | Task | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Placement test → confirm weakest area | 30 min |
| 1 | Skim the graded vocabulary at your level | 30 min |
| 2–6 | 20 word-dictation items + 6 sentence-dictation items | 60 min |
| 7 | Weekly SRS review + 1 article from BBC 6-min English | 60 min |
Week 2 — listening specialisation
| Day | Task | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 8–13 | 10 sentence-dictation items (L2 or L3) + 10 min BBC / VOA | 60 min |
| 14 | One full listening mock + errors into SRS | 60 min |
Week 3 — writing and vocabulary
| Day | Task | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 15–19 | 1 Task-2 essay daily + writing tool self-check | 40 min |
| 15–19 | 10 each from L2 and L3 vocabulary | 20 min |
| 20–21 | Rewrite 5 essays from the week, with same rubric | 60 min |
Week 4 — speaking + final mock
| Day | Task | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 22–25 | 15 shadowing items + 2 self-recorded Part-2 cards | 60 min |
| 26 | Full mock under exam conditions (~3 hours) | 180 min |
| 27 | Mock analysis + SRS error cleanup | 60 min |
| 28 | Rest completely | 0 min |
4. Four things to get right
1. Don't try to fix everything
Identify your 2–3 worst weaknesses in week 1. Spend 50% of total time on the single biggest one. The other 50% maintains everything else.
2. Never skip SRS
Doing 25 of 30 due reviews well beats blasting through 30 superficially. The algorithm tolerates undone days; it does not tolerate fake repetitions.
3. Do one long task every weekend
Weekday training is fragmented. On the weekend, do one continuous task: a full Task-2 essay, 5 minutes of unbroken Part-2 speaking, 1500 words of reading. This is where stamina is built.
4. Take a full mock by week 4
Many people fail the 4-week plan because they reach week 4 still doing exercises. The mock reveals what only a mock can: time allocation, fatigue, and which question types still cost you most points.
5. Realistic outcomes
- IELTS: expect +0.5 (e.g. 5.5 → 6.0)
- PTE: expect +5–8 points
- LanguageCert: expect stable B1 → borderline B1+
- DET: expect +5–10 points
Outperform these → you had headroom you didn't know about. Underperform → see section 6.
6. When 4 weeks doesn't produce results
Three usual causes:
- Practising without analysis — 60 minutes daily but no review of error patterns
- Chasing new items instead of repetition — dictation items should be re-encountered 2–3 times across 3–5 days
- Sleep deprivation — the most-undervalued cause of stalled language learning
7. After the 4 weeks
Whatever the result:
- Hit your target → book the test, don't drift
- Just below → 2–3 more focused weeks on the single weakest section
- Far below → re-evaluate the starting level honestly, return to a longer plan