1. BEC & BULATS by Angel Phu & Zita Yip Examinations Services Officer

2. 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

3. 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

4. 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

5. Work of British Council Teaching English Providing the latest information about the United Kingdom Promoting British education and training

6. 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

7. 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

8. 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

9. Business English Certificate - BEC internationally recognised, certificated exams three levels tests English language in four skills no specialist business knowledge

10. Business English Certificate - BEC set in context of international business working/preparing to work in international business ability to communicate for essential business needs

11. Why take BEC exams? international recognition for work and study certificated exams wide business context value for study and business career

12. 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

13. Levels Cambridge ESOL LevelsCouncil of Europe Levels Vantage BEC Vantage B2 Effective ProficiencyBEC HigherC1CAE FCE B1Threshold BEC PreliminaryPET MasteryC2CPE A2WaystageKET

14. Papers PreliminaryVantageHigher Reading 1 hr 30 mins* 1 hr Writing45 mins1 hr 10 mins Listening40 mins Speaking12 mins**14 mins**16 mins** * combined Reading and Writing Test ** (2 candidates)

15. variety of ‘input’ and ‘output’ tests different types of reading Reading

16. 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

17. Listening all texts heard twice 30 minutes listening

18. Speaking Part 1Conversation with interlocutor Part 2Mini-presentation Part 3i) Two-way conversation ii) Further prompting from interlocutor

19. Grades & Results BEC Preliminary Passing Grades Pass with Merit 80% and above Pass 65% to 79% Failing Grades Narrow Fail 60% to 64% Fail 59% and below

20. Grades & Results BEC Vantage & Higher Passing 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

21. Reference No To be quoted on all correspondence Business English Certificates ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE Statement of results Session March 2002 Candidate Name Place of entry Qualification Business English Certificate - Vantage PAPER PROFILE Result B Pass Exceptional Good Borderline Weak Listening Reading Speaking Writing Statement of Results Downloadable from our website approx 6 weeks after the exam

22. Grade Statistics (International)

25. Exam Dates & Fees 2 times a year - in May & November Registration - in March & September BEC PreliminaryHK$850 BEC VantageHK$1,300 BEC HigherHK$1,350

26. BU siness LA nguage T esting S ervice

27. 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

28. 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 test instant result for the computer test

29. A tool for … assessing job applicants reporting staff language skills against international benchmarks placing learners on suitable language courses evaluating language training

30. The four BULATS tests and test fees Standard test:HK$385 Computer test:HK$365 Writing test:HK$385 Speaking test:HK$495

31. The Standard test Two parts (110 minutes) 1) Listening 2) Reading & Language knowledge Test format:Multiple choice & Gap-fill

32. 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

33. Computer Adaptive Testing. Yes No Yes Candidate’s level 30 40 50 60 70 80 ?

34. The Writing test Two parts (45 minutes) - short message / letter (50-60 words) - report / letter (180-200 words) Two examiners mark separately

35. The Speaking test Three parts (12-15 minutes) - Interview - Presentation - Information exchange Record interview Two examiners mark separately

36. 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

37. BULATS levels *ALTE Levels CEF **AbilityBEC levels BULATS Scores (100) 5C2 Mastery Very Advanced 90-100 4 C1 Effective proficiency AdvancedBEC Higher75-89 3B2 Vantage Upper Intermediate BEC Vantage60-74 2B1 Threshold Lower Intermediate BEC Preliminary40-59 1A2 WaystageElementary20-39 0A1 BreakthroughBeginner0-19 * 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

38. Any practice materials? FREE Sample papers available on British Council website: www.britishcouncil.org.hk www.bulats.org www.CambridgeESOL.org/BEC

39. Specified examination – BULATS & BEC Funding Scheme for Workplace English Training Continuing Education Fund

40. Further Information British Council Examinations Services Tel:2913 5170 Fax:2913 5172 E-mail: examinations@britishcouncil.org.hk Address:3 Supreme Court Road, Admiralty, Hong Kong Cambridge ESOL BEC: www.CambridgeESOL.org/BEC BULATS: www.bulats.org Keep up to date with what's new via the British Council website www.britishcouncil.org.hk