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ESL forum >
Ask for help > Which exams?
Which exams?
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cunliffe
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Which exams?
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I really need to start putting my students in for exams, other than English GCSE, which they can �t access. I �m doing ESOL for Schools, but is there anything else? Does anyone know anything about JetSet? What are IELTS? I teach EAL students, mainly from eastern Europe, in England. What exams would suit? I need something to motivate them. |
3 Jun 2013
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EstherLee76
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Lynne, The suggestion for Cambridge exams is a good one. I prepare students for Cambridge exams in my home, all levels. If you have any questions, you can PM me. Esther |
3 Jun 2013
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lalla99
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Hello I �d also recommend the Cambridge exams: FCE,B2 or CAE, C1 for schools if that is the age group you are with. e.g. in Romania, many of the high school leavers do CAE (if they are doing English) to give them access to university courses. FCE isn �t high enough, to give you some kind of guide. Perhaps the Skills for Life (also Cambridge) would be worth considering - from what I understand, a kind of NVQ equivalent of an English test.
Caroline |
3 Jun 2013
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kimiom
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Hello! I think we are doing the same job? I teach EAL pupils in a high school, mainly teaching ESOL and English. Some pupils do Entry Level English (AQA). Some EAL learners are doing ESOL (Edexcel Skills for Life) as well but we came across problems with learners who are beyond Entry 3 as we have to have clearance to do Level 1 and we dont have it. This year we have also entered pupils for igcse (Cambridge) to bridge the gap. It �s not easy to find the right qualification for them as, if they want to go onto college, ESOL is not enough of an English qualification.
I used to teach JET but I thought it was quite baby-ish for 16 year olds (the beginners ones were colouring in clowns as the exam!) IELTs is a possibility and we are looking into that as, at least, they would have a qualification which means something to academic institutions - but if they are that level, then they can probably do GCSE English. |
3 Jun 2013
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Zora
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Hi there,
I can tell you what an IELTS exam is composed of and its level. First of all, it does not have any �grammar-ish � parts. i.e. transformations, rewriting, etc. However, it does have 2 reading levels readings - an academic and a general. a writing parts- one based on a graph of some kind and another more general. Listening (4 parts) and a speaking part that has 3 parts, each one progessively more difficult.
I �d say the level is at least FCE or higher.
There is the Trinity exam. It is speaking-based. Easy actually until about level 7 or 8. There are 12 levels.
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4 Jun 2013
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joy2bill
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You need IELTS in Australia and New Zealand. There are two choices, Academic (designed more for those going on to university) and General (for everyday English and for those wanting citizenship). As it is graded on a 1-9 basis with 5- 5.5 being the standard expected for those who wish to live in an Australasian environment, there is no pass-fail element. The listening is quite high..as a native speaker I find it quite difficult. Success often depends on exam techniques rather than how good your English survival skills are. I like the fact that there are no grammar components because transformations, etc are not really a good test for real life English. The General choice does feature useful things such as letter writing to people such as teachers, doctors, landlords, etc. Anyway this is my tuppence �s worth. Cheers Joy |
4 Jun 2013
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Jayho
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You�re spot on about the listening Joy - We run IELTS courses and the NS teachers often don�t score full marks for the listening section (but neither do the NNs teachers) and we are all tertiary qualified. Section 4 is quite difficult and I often wonder how the type of questions for section 4 realistically test someone�s listening skills when tertiary trained NSs don�t get full marks.
Our Uni�s often also accept TOEIC and TOEFL.
My penny�s worth.
Cheers
Jayho |
4 Jun 2013
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cunliffe
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Thank you, guys! I �ll have a think about this.
Lynne |
4 Jun 2013
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esl-teacher
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Have you tried the University of Cambridge Examinations such as KET, PET, FCE, CAE or CPE? There are many sample papers online that you can use as they include all the skills
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4 Jun 2013
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PhilipR
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You should actually start by asking the question why they are studying English and what their future objectives are, and what qualifications will be needed to do so.
If they intend to enrol at university in an English programme, IELTS or TOEFL will be needed. Most undergraduate programmes require either a 6 on the IELTS or a 79-80 on the TOEFL iBT. Look on university websites for more information.
If it is to prove their skills in order to get a job, TOEIC might be needed (e.g. Many airlines require flight attendants to have a score of 650).
Just don �t put the horse before the cart and let them take one of the many exams that might be useless. Btw, TOEFL and IELTS tests are expensive at about USD 160 a pop! As someone said before, these tests are really hard and not suitable for younger students.
Maybe you should have a look at the other available Cambridge tests, or other internationally recognised tests.
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4 Jun 2013
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