BEC and BULATS
-
Upload
nguyenthuy -
Category
Documents
-
view
257 -
download
3
Transcript of BEC and BULATS
BEC & BULATS
by Angel Phu & Zita Yip
Examinations Services Officer
Outline of the seminar• About British Council
• Introduction to Cambridge ESOL and Business English Certificate BEC
• Why take BEC exams?
• Levels and papers
• Grades and Results
Outline of the seminar• Introduction to BUsiness LAnguage Testing
Service BULATS
• Why take BULATS?
• Contents of BULATS
• Levels, grades and papers
• Support materials/questions and answers
About British Council•Founded in 1934
•United Kingdom’s international cultural relations organisation
•Around 7,500 people in 109 countries
•Hong Kong office started in 1948
Work of British Council
•Teaching English
•Providing the latest information about the United Kingdom
•Promoting British education and training
Work of British Council
•Working closely with governments on reform and good governance
•Demonstrating the innovation, creativity and excellence of British science, arts, literature and design
About Examinations Services
•Running examinations since 1989
•Covering academic, entrance, vocational
and professional subjects
•Offers English language examinations
from Cambridge ESOL for children
through to adults
Introduction to Cambridge ESOL
• largest testing agency for British English
• full range of examinations taken worldwide
• recognition of Cambridge ESOL certificates
•department of the university
•exams for learners of English since 1913
Business English Certificate - BEC
• internationally recognised, certificated exams
• three levels
• tests English language in four skills
•no specialist business knowledge
Business English Certificate - BEC
•set in context of international business
•working/preparing to work in international business
•ability to communicate for essential business needs
Why take BEC exams?
international recognition for work and study
certificated exams
wide business context
value for study and business career
Why take BEC exams? Used by hundreds of employers
- as staff development programme
- as a qualification when recruiting staff
Used by many universities
- as a entry requirement to business- related courses in English
LevelsCambridge ESOL Levels Council of Europe
Levels
VantageBEC Vantage B2
Effective ProficiencyBEC Higher C1CAE
FCE
B1 ThresholdBEC Preliminary PET
MasteryC2CPE
A2 WaystageKET
PapersPreliminary Vantage Higher
Reading1 hr
30 mins*
1 hr 1 hr
Writing 45 mins 1 hr 10 mins
Listening 40 mins 40 mins 40 mins
Speaking 12 mins** 14 mins** 16 mins**
* combined Reading and Writing Test ** (2 candidates)
•variety of ‘input’ and ‘output’
• tests different types of reading
Reading
Part 1
• Internal company communication
Part 2
• Piece of business correspondence (Preliminary)
• Piece of business correspondence, report or proposal (Vantage)
• Report or proposal or correspondence (Higher)
Writing
Listening
•all texts heard twice
•30 minutes listening
Speaking
•Part 1 Conversation with interlocutor
•Part 2 Mini-presentation
•Part 3 i) Two-way conversationii) Further prompting from interlocutor
Grades & ResultsBEC Preliminary
Passing Grades
Pass with Merit 80% and above
Pass 65% to 79%
Failing Grades
Narrow Fail 60% to 64%
Fail 59% and below
Grades & ResultsBEC Vantage & HigherPassing Grades Grade A 80% and above
Grade B 75% to 79%
Grade C 60% to 74% Failing Grades Grade D 55% to 59%
Grade E 54% and below
Passing candidates will receive a certificate approximately 3 months after the exam
Reference No
To be quoted on all correspondence
Business English CertificatesENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGEStatement of results
Session March 2002
Candidate Name
Place of entry
QualificationBusiness English Certificate - Vantage PAPER PROFILE Result B Pass
Exceptional
GoodBorderlineWeak
ListeningReading
SpeakingWriting
Statement of Results
Downloadable from our website approx 6 weeks after the exam
Grade Statistics (International)BEC Preliminary
Narrow Fail9%
Fail15%
Pass with Merit24%
Pass52%
Pass with MeritPassNarrow FailFail
Grade Statistics (International)BEC Vantage
Grade E16%
Grade C44%
Grade D9%
Grade A10%
Grade B21%
Grade A
Grade B
Grade C
Grade D
Grade E
Grade Statistics (International)BEC Higher
Grade E18%
Grade C48%
Grade D9%
Grade A8% Grade B
17%
Grade A
Grade B
Grade C
Grade D
Grade E
Exam Dates & Fees2 times a year
- in May & November
Registration
- in March & September
BEC Preliminary HK$850
BEC Vantage HK$1,300
BEC Higher HK$1,350
BUsinessLAnguage
TestingService
Why take BULATS?• a multilingual assessment tool for
companies and organisations
• rapid, reliable and cost effective
• assesses language skills of employees, trainees and job applicants
BULATS provides…• information about language ability of staff
or job applicants
• on-demand and flexible tests
• quick results available in 7 working days after the testinstant result for the computer test
A tool for …• assessing job applicants• reporting staff language skills against
international benchmarks• placing learners on suitable language
courses• evaluating language training
The four BULATS tests and test fees
• Standard test: HK$385
• Computer test: HK$365
• Writing test: HK$385
• Speaking test: HK$495
The Standard test• Two parts (110 minutes)
1) Listening 2) Reading & Language
knowledge
• Test format: Multiple choice & Gap-fill
The Computer test• Two parts (75 minutes)
1) Listening 2) Reading & Language knowledge
• Test format: Multiple choice & Gap-fill
• Adaptive test• Installed at your premises
Computer Adaptive Testing
. .
YesYes
YesNo
NoYes
Candidate’s level
30 40 50 60 70 80
?
The Writing test
• Two parts (45 minutes)- short message / letter (50-60
words)- report / letter (180-200 words)
• Two examiners mark separately
The Speaking test
• Three parts (12-15 minutes)- Interview- Presentation- Information exchange
• Record interview
• Two examiners mark separately
Test sessions at British Council• Open sessions at British Council
- applications open for the public- once a month
• Closed sessions for companies or language schools
- in house- on demand
BULATS levels*ALTELevels CEF ** Ability BEC levels BULATS
Scores (100)
5 C2 Mastery Very Advanced 90-100
4 C1 Effective proficiency Advanced BEC Higher 75-89
3 B2 Vantage Upper Intermediate BEC Vantage 60-74
2 B1 Threshold Lower Intermediate BEC Preliminary 40-59
1 A2 Waystage Elementary 20-390 A1 Breakthrough Beginner 0-19
* ALTE – Association of Language Testers in Europe** CEF – Common European Framework
• ALTE level system of 0 – 5 with finer distinctions of +, - and = • Score 0-100 is only available in standard test and computer test
Any practice materials?
FREE Sample papers available on
British Council website:www.britishcouncil.org.hkwww.bulats.orgwww.CambridgeESOL.org/BEC
Specified examination – BULATS & BEC
• Funding Scheme for Workplace English Training
• Continuing Education Fund
Further InformationBritish CouncilExaminations ServicesTel: 2913 5170Fax: 2913 5172E-mail: [email protected]: 3 Supreme Court Road, Admiralty, Hong Kong
Cambridge ESOLBEC: www.CambridgeESOL.org/BECBULATS: www.bulats.org
Keep up to date with what's new via the British Council websitewww.britishcouncil.org.hk