TESTING CENTER
International English Language Testing System (IELTS) – это международный экзамен по английскому языку, разработанный в 1989 году. Тест определяет уровень владения языком у людей, которые по тем или иным причинам планируют переехать в англоязычную среду.
Ежегодно экзамен IELTS сдают более 2 900 000 людей по всему миру. Центры, признающие результаты экзамена, находятся в 140 странах мира, большинство которых относится к Британскому Содружеству наций. В целом существует более 1100 IELTS-центров, главным образом в Австралии, Канаде, Новой Зеландии, США и, конечно же, Великобритании. Во многих англоязычных странах прохождение данного теста является обязательным этапом при приеме на работу.
Полный список организаций, принимающих результаты теста IELTS, вы найдете на сайте: www.bandscore.ielts.org.
Официальный сайт теста IELTS: www.ielts.org.
Экзамен IELTS — это тестирование всех языковых навыков:
- аудирование
- чтение
- говорение
- письмо
Экзамен IELTS тестирует все 4 языковых навыка: аудирование, чтение, разговорную речь и, конечно же, письмо. Для эффективной подготовки к сдаче экзамена необходимо ознакомиться с его структурой, особенностями оценивания и требованиями.
Существует два модуля экзамена IELTS:
- Академический (Academic Module)используют для поступления в иностранные вузы.
- Общий (General Training Module)необходим для иммиграции в ряд стран мира.
TOEFL® (Test of English as a Foreign Language) позволяет абитуриентам и соискателям из разных стран продемонстрировать уровень владения английским языком, необходимый для работы или учебы в англоязычной среде.
Аттестация включает в себя четыре типа заданий
- аудирование
- чтение
- говорение
- письмо
Существует несколько версий теста TOEFL:
Интернет-версия
(iBT, internet-based test)самая современная и распространенная версия теста, все части вы сдаете с помощью компьютера, в том числе и устную часть.
Бумажная
(PBT, paper-based test)доступна только в тест-центрах, в которых нет возможности проведения интернет-версии (iBT, internet-based test).
Более подробную информацию вы найдете на официальном сайте ТОЕФЛ — www.ets.org/toefl.
Американской компанией Educational Testing Service, родоначальником и куратором теста, нам присвоена аккредитация, позволяющая проводить подготовку и экзаменацию TOEFL iBT.
Разобравшись с тем, что такое TOEFL, следует понять, как его сдавать. TOEFL имеет специфическую структуру, четкие лимиты по времени, отведенному на конкретные задания и немало других нюансов, о которых мы обязательно расскажем вам на специализированных подготовительных курсах. В нашем центре вы не только узнаете, как успешно сдать TOEFL, но и повысите свой общий уровень владения языком настолько, что будете комфортно себя чувствовать в любой англоязычной стране.
About the GRE
The Graduate Record Examination, or GRE, is an important step in the graduate school or business school application process. The GRE is a multiple-choice, computer-based, standardized exam that is often required for admission to graduate programs and graduate business programs (MBA) globally.
The GRE is developed and administered by testmaker ETS to provide graduate and business schools with common measures for comparing applicants’ qualifications and preparedness for graduate-level academic work. Graduate school and business school admissions committees look at your GRE score, along with your academic record and supporting materials, to assess your readiness for the rigors of graduate academic study.
What’s the takeaway? A high score on the GRE will have a direct, positive impact on your graduate or business school application.
What is on the GRE?
The GRE exam measures your command of basic arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and data analysis as well as college-level vocabulary. More importantly, it measures your ability to analyze and evaluate written material, think critically, and solve problems.
What are the GRE sections?
You will receive three scores on the GRE:
- Analytical Writing
- Verbal Reasoning
- Quantitative Reasoning
These scores are generated by the following sections:
- 1 Analytical Writing Assessment section
- 2 Verbal Reasoning sections
- 2 Quantitative Reasoning sections
In addition, you will see one of the following sections:
- Unscored (may be either Verbal Reasoning or Quantitative Reasoning)
- Research (used for ETS research purposes)
The Quantitative Reasoning and Verbal Reasoning sections are each scored on a scale of 130 to 170. The mean score for Verbal Reasoning is 151, and the mean score for Quantitative Reasoning is 153. The Analytical Writing Assessment is scored from 0 to 6 in half-point increments, and the mean score is 4.0.
If you’re thinking of applying to college, it’s vital that you know what the SAT is and how it will affect your application process.
So what is the SAT? It’s one of two standardized college admissions tests in the US.
It’s run by the College Board, a non-profit that also administers the PSAT and the AP (Advanced Placement) program.
The SAT was originally adapted from and Army IQ test and administered as a college admissions test for the first time in 1926. However, it didn’t really catch on until 1933, when the president of Harvard started using the test to assess scholarship applicants because he believed it was an effective measurement of intellectual potential. This view of the SAT helped propel it’s popularity—by the 1940s, it had become the standard test for all college applicants and was administered to over 300,000 people across the country.
The SAT’s dominance of college admissions testing was challenged with the creation of the ACT in 1959. Though initially much less popular than the SAT, the ACT took hold in the Midwest and the mountain states and, in 2010, actually surpassed the SAT to become the most popular college admissions test.
In part because of the increased competition from the ACT, the SAT is is currently undergoing some big changes, which will go into effect in March 2016. The basic purpose and form of the test will be the same (it’s still a multiple choice test used for college admissions decisions), but certain aspects of the structure and content are changing.
Why Do People Take the SAT?
The SAT is a standardized test meant to show schools how prepared you are for college by measuring key skills like reading comprehension, computational ability, and clarity of expression. Because so many students take the test, it also provides schools with data about how you compare to your peers nationwide.
You’ll almost certainly need to take the SAT or ACT if you’re applying to any colleges or universities in the United States, since most require you to submit test scores with your application. Depending on where you want to apply, your ACT or SAT score can account for as much as 50% of the admission decision, so a strong standardized test score is vital.
Additionally, a few states require all high school juniors to take the SAT, including Delaware, New Hampshire, and Michigan.
If you want to go to University of Illinois, you must submit SAT or ACT scores.
Which Schools Accept the SAT?
All four year colleges in the US accept the SAT, and, as I mentioned above, most schools require either the SAT or the ACT (they don’t differentiate between the two). However, there are an increasing number of colleges and universities with more flexible policies, so make sure to check with the specific schools you’re planning to apply to.
You’ll also need to take the SAT or ACT if you’re a US student looking to apply to schools in the UK or Canada or an international student hoping to attend college in the US.
This information all holds true for the redesigned SAT as well, although if you’re thinking of taking the current SAT and aren’t graduating until 2018 or later, you should check whether the schools you’re interested in will require scores from the new version of the test.
What Does the SAT Cover?
The SAT has ten sections: the first is always the essay, followed by two reading, two math, one writing, and one experimental section of 25 min each (in a random order), and then one 20-min reading, one 20-min math, and one 10-min writing section. The test is mostly multiple choice, with the exception of the essay at the beginning of the test and 10 grid-in questions in one of the 25-minute math sections.
The following chart breaks down the format of the test. Click the links for more depth on what material each section covers.
Topic area | Sections | Total number of questions |
Critical Reading | 2 25-min sections
1 20-min section |
48 Passage-Based
19 Sentence Completions |
Math | 2 25-min sections
1 20-min section |
44 Multiple Choice
10 Grid-Ins |
Writing | 1 25-min essay
1 25-min section 1 10-min section |
25 Improving Sentences
18 Identifying Sentence Errors 6 Improving Paragraphs |
How is the SAT Scored?
When you take the SAT, you’ll be given a total score between 600 and 2400, which is the sum of reading, math, and writing scores between 200 and 800. But where do those numbers come from?
You start with a raw score for each topic area: the number of questions you got right minus ¼ times the number you answered incorrectly. That number is then converted into a scaled score through a process called equating—the College Board is a bit cagey about how exactly this works, but it’s based on years worth of data rather than how people do on a specific test date.
The average SAT score hovers around 1500 with some variation from year to year, but what counts as a good score for you will really depend on where you’re looking to apply. To get into a top-tier school you’ll probably need a score above 2000, but for the local branch of the state university you might be just fine with a 1400.
Note that the redesigned SAT includes some big changes to the scoring: it’s returning to original 400-1600 scale (you’ll receive a Math score and a Reading/Writing score) and getting rid of the wrong answer penalty.
When Should You Take the SAT?
The ideal time to take the SAT for the first time is usually in winter of your junior year, when you’ve covered most of the material in school, but you still have time to take it again. Your testing schedule may be different, however, especially if you need SAT scores for another purpose or are required to take it by your school.
The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification, generally taken in a number of subjects by pupils in secondary educationin England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Each GCSE qualification is in a particular subject, and stands alone, but a suite of such qualifications (or their equivalents) are generally accepted as the record of achievement at the age of 16, in place of a leaving certificate or baccalaureate qualification in other territories.
Studies for GCSE examinations generally take place over a period of two or three academic years (depending upon the subject, school, and exam board), starting in Year 9 or Year 10 for the majority of students, with examinations being sat at the end of Year 11. The GCSE was introduced as a replacement for the former O-Level (GCE Ordinary Level) and CSE (Certificate of Secondary Education) qualifications.
Introduction
Like many A Level subjects, English Language A Level is nothing like its GCSE counterpart. It is challenging at times, and requires a knowledge of terminology. Analysis is a major part of the course and you will encounter countless texts of countless different genres and subjects – and not only written data either. Are you interested in why certain people speak like they do? Have you ever noticed how men and women speak differently? Do you know what makes a good communicator? Are you sure you know your nouns from your verbs? English Language is interesting, stimulating and allows you a chance to actively engage with everyday language and understand how it works.
AS
At AS Level (AQA A syllabus), the course covers 3 modules.
Discovering Language, ENA1: This module is really an introduction to the course so examiners don’t expect amazing feats of academic knowledge. The exam is split into two sections; linguistic analysis, and language issues, which is a recurring theme throughout the exams of the course. Discovering Language introduces students to AS grammar and analysis, so be expected to remember and understand a number of linguistic terms. As for issues, firstly is Language Representation. The main idea here is political correctness, and what part language plays in it all. This area looks at linguistic representation of gender, age, ethnicity, disability, and sexuality. There are some theoretical ideas to back up the module, such as the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis of Linguistic Determinism. Secondly is Child Language where students learn how children acquire their mother tongue, with the aid of differing theories and explanations – for example, the age-old debate of whether language is a result of nature (innate) or nurture (learned). Candidates are required to write essays on either one of these topics.
Like the previous module, Using Language, EA2W, is still fairly introductory but differs in its form and content. Here again is a text to analyse (and this time they expect a little bit more technical terminology, including sentence functions). The second part of the exam is called Language Production. Using a number of provided texts, candidates have to extract main ideas and opinions and formulate their own piece of writing from them. Appropriate ideas need to be selected and adapted to fit the audience and purpose of the production. After this, students must complete a small linguistic commentary on their own production.
There is also a coursework option for this unit available, EA2C. It consists of an analysis of some pieces of language in use (1000 words), two texts derived from the language analysis and produced with a definite audience and purpose (1000-1500 words in total), and finally a commentary discussing the linguistic choices used in the two pieces (500 words).
Interacting Through Language, ENA3, is the last of the AS modules and may be considered the most challenging. Linguistic analysis is different in this module as attention focuses on spoken language data. Students analyse transcripts of spoken conversation and consider:
- Different participants roles and purposes
- The structure of the interaction
- Interactive features of speech
- Turn-taking and interruptions
- Vocabulary and grammar
As well as transcription analysis, the module also looks at gender and language, and interaction of language in different contexts, including the rules of conversation, what makes a good listener, Grice’s Maxims, and so on.
The AS modules of the course act as a prerequisite to A2. Your knowledge of terminology and grammar is constantly being updated and is used as a platform for the next year’s modules.
A2
At A2, for AQA A, there is some old text analysis for ENA5 Language Variation and Change; it’s not too daunting. Just remember all the lingustic frameworks from AS, and add some of the A2 ones (e.g. phrase structure; noun, verb, adjective phrases). The period is limited from ‘Early Modern English’ onwards.
You can study accents for ENA5 too! Here a lot of linguistics is incorporated. You learn how accents vary, regional features such as “h” dropping and the glottal stop, social views on different accents. It helps if you want to imitate different accents! It’s limited to the British Isles though, so be wary of inserting too many references to American or Australasian linguistic features.
Then there is how language has developed:
- Lexical change: words that have come into use, how they are formed;
- Semantic change: the change in meaning, such as how a word can have several meanings e.g. “cool”- cold, “cool”-popular, “cool”-ok;
- Why languages changes;
- Views on language change (prescriptivism, descriptivism) – highly relevant and quite fun!
For the exam, the Texts from Different Times section is compulsory in Section A; but there is a choice between the Section B questions on Contemporary Language Variation and Change in the British Isles – one will be on dialectal variation, the other on language change. Both parts of Section B are restricted to 1950 onwards.
Research project is required incorporating anything learnt in the course for EA4C Investigating Language. You need to gather data, produce a lot of analysis using specified linguistic frameworks, to come to a conclusion. It’s 1500-3500 words long, excluding data, so can be moderately lengthy.
There is a written exam option for in EA4W instead of the research project coursework; 2.5 hours’ worth of analysis of (a selected sample from some) given texts, using hypotheses you develop youself. Highly pressured, but generally grade boundaries are fair. The time allotted looks like a lot, but it really isn’t enough, so you have to be pretty focused.
Then it gets synoptic for ENA6, Language Debates. The synoptic paper follows a pretty constant format every year, but it is really hetereogeneous and feels like every skill is being tested, even though each paper is centred on a single debate based on an article (generally) e.g. language change and representation of women.
- Q1a: an initial 5 marks for some analysis of simple data, e.g. a selection of words;
- Q1b: a methodology question worth 5 marks for an investigation on some linguistic aspect (e.g. people’s attitudes;
- Q1c: 20 marks on the analysis of the main article, but as well as examining how a particular effect is produced, you also have to discuss what the lingustic arguments within the article are about
- Q2a: a 35 mark language production task – editorial, radio script, cover article for a broadsheet, article for a particular magazine have all come up. It ties into a linguistic topic, but you don’t need to remember too much, as a lot of information from linguistic experts is given in extra texts.
- Q2b: 5 marks for a commentary, analysing three features that you have incorporated into you produced text.
AQA B
The course structure is as follows:
UNIT 1
Exam: Categorising texts.
This exam is in two parts.
Part A: Text Varieties
Using the knowledge accumulated in your AS year, you will be given 6-7 texts and asked to group them on their content. The criteria for each group is at your discretion; it is possible to group texts by a grammatical, graphological, contextual or phonological feature, which they all contain. The formal mark scheme is divided into Assessment Objectives. AO1 (out of 16) – Clarity of writing, incorporation of accurate terminology and understanding of the intricacies of the language. AO2 (out of 16) – Insightful and judicious choices of grouping and tentative discussion of your reasons for grouping the texts in this way, exploring the subtleties of each group (do the texts all fit perfectly under one umbrella?) AO3 (out of 16) – Perceptive exploration of contextual factors, analytical interpretation of the effect of said factors on the language and using quotes to back up your ideas.
Part B: ‘Language and Social Contexts’
Using the same knowledge, you will be asked to analyse a piece of writing for its view on Gender, Power, or Technology. This part of the exam is marked with an identical mark scheme, and is also out of 48. You will be encouraged to learn the views of Language Theorists, and use their hypotheses to further back up your answer. This unit is worth 96 marks, and 30% of your A Level total (60% of AS)
UNIT 2
Coursework: Creating Texts
You will be asked to create 2 texts, and accompany them with 2 commentaries, analysing your choice of language. There are no guidelines or limitations for the text you choose to create, but it must follow a very specific style already in existence. For example, should you wish to write a journalistic piece, it must be in the style of an existing newspaper. This unit is worth 80 marks, and 20% of your A Level total. (40% of AS)
UNIT 3
Exam: Developing Language.
This exam is in two parts, and is synoptic.
Part A: Language Acquisition.
You will be provided with one of the following, and are expected to analyse it, using the knowledge accumulated both in your AS and A2 year, and theorist hypotheses: – A transcript of a child talking – A transcript of a child reading, or being read to, and often an extract of the accompanying book. – A copy of a piece of writing a child has produced.
Part B: Language Change This essay is often comparative. You will be provided with 2 texts, written between 1700 and present day, and asked to explore to what extent the texts show evidence of language change. This unit is marked according to a mark scheme identical to that of AS, but with the following weightings: AO1- 24 AO2- 16 AO3- 8 This unit is worth 96 marks, and 30% of your A Level total.
UNIT 4
Coursework: Language Investigation
You will be assessed on a language investigation of your choice, and an article (on the same topic) to accompany it. This unit is worth 80 marks, and 20% of your A Level total.
Edexcel
OCR
WJEC
Extra reading at A-Level
As mentioned above, students of English Language at A level need to become familiar with advanced linguistic terminology to attain the highest grades. You will receive notes on grammar, but you may also feel the desire to expand your own vocabulary of terminology. ‘Grammar: A Student’s Guide’ may be particularly helpful, and is available from websites like Amazon. In addition, many AS and A Level English Language text books are also available. Either way, knowing your grammar is essential, which ever variant of the A level course you take.