ESL Exams: A Guide for Teachers
It’s the end of another class and a student has been left behind. No problem, you think, maybe an easy grammar question, or a comment about how they enjoyed the class (or not!)…or maybe it’s a question about an ESL test. “What is the difference between TOEFL and TOEIC?” “Should I take the FCE?” “Who recognizes IELTS?” So if you don’t know your BEC from your KET, or your CAE from your CELS, here is a short guide to the most popular ESL exams.
ESL exams are divided into three main categories: General English, Business English and Academic English.
General English
Probably the most popular in this category are the Cambridge ESOL exams. One and a half million people in 135 countries take the Cambridge exams each year. There are five General English exams, sometimes referred to as the “Cambridge Main Suite”.
The first two levels are ket (Key English Test) and the PET (Preliminary English Exam). The KET and PET have reading and writing, listening, and speaking components and are most often used to assess progress or prepare for the next test in the series. PET is also recognized by some employers and universities. KET and PET have two grades of approval, pass with merit Y spend.
The next step of PET is the CFE (First certificate in English). The FCE has five sections, Reading, Writing, Use of English, Listening and Speaking. It is widely recognized by employers and educational institutions, making it very popular with students who want to study or work abroad.
Many universities and employers, however, prefer the FALLS OFF (Certificate in Advanced English), which is the next level. This exam shows that a student is capable of following a university course or can function in a variety of business contexts.
After the CAE comes the CPE (Certificate of Proficiency in English), the highest level in the series. Students who pass this exam have the ability to function effectively in almost all English-speaking contexts. The CPE is also a typical requirement for non-native speakers who want to train as teachers of English. Students normally need 3 years of study after passing the FCE to reach this level (depending of course on how often they study and other factors).
FCE, CAE and CPE have five degrees, AE, of which AC are approved.
Cambridge also has a series of General English exams for young learners between the ages of 7 and 12 (YLE). There are three exams in the series, starters, removals Y frills. They are taken primarily as a means of measuring progress, and also as preparation for KET and PET. There is no pass or fail: students receive up to five “shields” for each component (reading and writing, listening, speaking).
Other general English exams
Cambridge also offers CELES (Certificates in English language skills). These are individual tests in each of the four skills (reading, writing, listening, speaking). Students can choose which of the exams they want to take, based on their strengths and requirements.
Pitman, part of the British City and Guilds Group, is another testing body with a series of General English exams. Tea International ESOL covers listening comprehension, reading and writing, and International Spoken ESOL It is a structured one-on-one interview. Both have six levels, from basic to advanced.
Business English
Every year four and a half million people take the TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication), run by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). The TOEIC is a multiple-choice test with two sections, listening and reading, each scoring 445, for a total of 990. Many companies and government agencies use the TOEIC as a criterion for hiring or promotion. personnel, or to send personnel abroad. Some universities also use TOEIC, for example by requiring their business school students to achieve a specific score before they graduate.
Cambridge also has a series of business exams called BEC (Certificate of Business English). BEC comes in three levels, Preliminary, Advantage Y Higher. The exam task types are similar to the Cambridge Main Suite, but test language ability in a business context. They are recognized by many employers around the world and are taken by students to demonstrate the language skills required for international business. There are two grades of approval for BEC, pass with merit Y spend.
Other business English exams
cambridge deals BULATOS (The Business Language Testing Service). BULATS is specifically designed for companies and organizations to assess the language ability of employees who need English at work, and for students and employees on language and business courses.
Pitman has a three level test series called English for business communicationsthat tests business writing ability, and English for office skillsa two-level series designed to assess the ability to perform office-related tasks where accuracy in writing and following instructions is important.
Academic English
A common question from students is “What is the difference between TOEIC and TOEFL?” Well, both are run by ETS, but while TOEIC tests language skills for the workplace, TOEFL assesses language skills in an academic context. Therefore, it is mainly used as a prerequisite for admission to universities and colleges. More than 5,000 colleges and universities in 90 countries recognize the exam. During 2005 and 2006, TOEFL will gradually introduce a new Internet-Based Test (iBT), which will replace the current paper-based and computer-based tests. The iBT has 4 sections, Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing, each with a score of 30, giving a total score of 120. This is likely to cause some confusion for a while as most students and universities are used to working with the paper-based total of 677, or the computer-based total of 300!
Cambridge also has an academic exam, the IELTS (International English Language Testing System), which they manage jointly with the British Council and IDP:IELTS Australia. IELTS is recognized by universities and colleges, as well as employers, immigration authorities and professional bodies. The test has listening, reading, writing, and speaking components. For reading and writing, students can choose between an academic and a general option. IELTS is scored on a scale of 1-9.
Comparing levels
One of the most common questions from students is how the tests in the different categories compare to each other. Is the FCE equivalent to one of the BEC exams? If I have the CAE, what TOEFL score can I expect? Fortunately, we have a reference guide to help us here, called the “Common European Framework of Reference for Languages” (CEF). The CEF divides language learners into six levels and allows us to compare all ESL exams based on these levels.
The six levels are A1 (Breakthrough), A2 (Waystage), B1 (Threshold), B2 (Vantage), C1 (Effective Operational Proficiency), and C2 (Mastery).
Here is a quick comparison of the exams at the different levels. Please note that this is only a general guide: student scores on different exams will of course depend on many factors, such as preparation time and motivation.
A1: YLE Movers, Pitman ESOL Basic, IELTS score 1-2.
A2: KET, YLE Flyers, Pitman ESOL Elementary, TOEIC score 246-380, TOEFL iBT score 32-42, IELTS score 3.
B1: PET, TOEIC score 381-540, BEC Preliminary, TOEFL iBT score 43-61, IELTS score 3.5-4.5.
B2: FCE, Pitman ESOL Intermediate, TOEIC Score 541-700, BEC Vantage, TOEFL iBT Score 62-91, IELTS Score 5-6.
C1: CAE, Pitman ESOL High Intermediate, TOEIC score 701-910, BEC Higher, TOEFL iBT score 92-112, IELTS score 6.5-7.
C2: CPE, Pitman ESOL Advanced, TOEIC score 911-990, TOEFL iBT score 113-120, IELTS score 7.5-9.
There is of course much more information about these tests on the Cambridge ESOL, TOEIC, TOEFL and Pitman websites; You will find the links at this ESL exam resource