Proficiency practice tests plus

+ introduction to the exa m + your questions answe red + exam strategies and tips + sample answer sheets teaching not just testin g Certificate of Proficiency in English: Top 20 Questions How many marks are needed to pass the exam? To pass the exam w ith a grade C you need around 60% of the total marks Do I have to pass each paper in order to pass the exam1 ~ No Each paper doesn't have a pass or fall mark The final grade A B, C, D Or E is arrived at by adding the weighted marks from all the papers together Are marks deducted for wrong answers? No If you're not sure, make a guess you may be right Am I allowed to use a dictionary? , No No The four parts clre equally weighted In Parts 2, and 4, each qUE''ition has marks, whereas in Part 1, each question has mark In Paper (Reading) how long should I take on each question? , This IS up to you You Ciln the tasks in any order and knOWing how to use your time well is a part of the test In paper (Writing), w hat happens if I don't use all the given information in Part 1? ~ You will lose marks The examiners are lookmg for both the correct Information and good languaqe So read the question and the Inpu1 text(s) very (arefully In Paper (Writing), what happens if I write too many or too few words? , The word count is given a~ a gUide only Don't waste time counting the examiners don't they are more interes.ted in your En9lish! 11 IS unlikely that very short answers Will contain enough information or ideas 10 fulfil the task Over-long anSWers are more hkely to be rushed and to contain mIstakes Plan your time so that you wri te about the nght amOunt and have time to check what you have written In Paper (Use of English) Part if I'm not sure can I give two alternative answers? No If there are two answers, and one of them IS wrong, no marks are given SO, It'S better to deCide which of your answers is better I 10 In Paper (Use of English) Parts and contractions count as one word or two? Two, e.g don't 12 What happens if I misspell a word in Paper CListening) Part 27 You w ill not get the mark Check your spelling carefully and don 't write more than is necessary The more you write the more likely you are to misspell something The answers will be familiar words that you should be able to spell correctly 13 How many times will I hear each recording in Paper (Listening)? Each text IS played twice 14 In Paper (Listening), the questions always tollow the order of the text? Yes, they However, some questIOns WlII test your understanding of the whole text 15 In Paper (listening), Part I have t o use S In Paper (Reading), Part has more questions, so is it more important? ~ = two words, not 11 What happens if I misspell a word in Paper (Use of English,? , You Will not get the mark All spelling must be correct in Paper the words in the recording or other words? The word{s) you need 10 write are the ones you hear on the tape However you have to make sure that they fit Into the gap both grammatically and for the meamng 16 In Paper (Listening), Part 2, what happens if my answer is too long to fit on the Answer Sheet? Most answers are Single words, groups of -3 words or numbers If you think the answer I::' longer then it IS probably the wrong anSWer Don t wntp more than IS needed to complete the gap 17 In Paper (listening), I have t o co mplete the Answer Sheet as I listen? No You can write the answers on the question paper You have fjve minutes at the end to copy them on to t he separate Answer Sheet Copy carefully; follow the numbering of the question' write clearly and check your spelling 18 In Paper (Speaking), I have t o go with anothe r student? Can I choose my partner? You cannot be examined alone as the ability to discuss with another s1udent IS being tested In Part and also Part In some centres you can ('hoo' your partner, in others not You should ask the, organiser 19 Is it a good idea to prepare what you a re going to say in Paper (Speaking), Part 11 It's a good Idea to practise, but don 't forget thct examiners give marks for natural commUnlCatl0n English If you give a prepared sp~ch which dl answer the exammpr's qlJf>SlIon May: Wily Nevada I wonder ? Peter: Well, it's famous for precIOUS metals, mining I guess look It says, 'They have some Iloles and a rip and they're faded ' May: You' ve got a pair that look a lot worse thiln that Peter Well tIlanks a lot I bought mine like that O1ere's ' re doing If's only afterwards yOu think about it We usually Sit around afterwards and have wllat's called a debneflng sesSion TIlat's our way of getting th ings oH Our che~ts It's, sort or self-counsellIng really, for want of a better way of explaining If T AP ESC R I P T S Now the fire sefVlCe IS very keen to recrUit more women me, and people often ask me how' cope I struqqte sometimes with the heavier pieces of eqUipment I'm not frightened to adml( that Bul there )galn, In an emergency, everyone has thelf uses I would probably be one of the last people thal they'd ask to kICk doors in but I may be One of the f,rst they approach if there was a confined space that somebody Ilad to crawl through Ille events take place On rl regular basis, wllether It'S annually; every ten years or whatever, they're not reaily sc.heduled In the western sense They happen when the time is rtCJht , when the peopl~ feet ready, w hen vanous lAPESCRIPT S Presenter But Hilary, how you approach a community as cOfTIplete outsiders to get pprmic;'iion to phOloqraph these ceremonies? Hi lary: Ifs true thal It'S odd for them haVing outSiders coming in and they often ask uS where our families a(e you know, who'~ lookIng after our children To explain that We are doing a proJect, that this work IS Our life very alien concepts usually - takes patience, and often we' re never fully understood But the approacll tllat Bob and I take IS to adopt tile pace Afnca So Instead ot entenng a community and trYing to take photographs stralqhtaway, we invest time in making friend~h ips With ordinary people and only gradually we start working With them Presenter: But what about tl llngs like l(;1nguage, food and dOllllng? Bob: III several cases, where we've spent montlls With people, we' ve actually triPfl to learn their lpokespeople for Africa In the outSide world, I don't th ink that's how we' re perceIVed by our friends there Presen ter: 00 you ever worry tli(lt, whilst you go Into this, I know, w ith the very best of Intentions, that you' re actually making tile people Into CUriosities, almosl Into museum exhibits? Bob: We don' t see ou( work In that IIgl'lt We don' t go In Uunklng 'Now, what will they make of th is back home)' o r 'How does rillS tie In with wha"~ been seen plsewhl?re 7' 0' Our Prolect IS all about explaining, In a very sympatlletll and comprehensive way, extremely important traditions thar have real meamng for the people involved And because we know that 20% of what's In our book no longer eXists, we're also aware that, at the same time, we're making a record for future generations of young Africans Althougll I should stress that we've no w ish to influence tllelr view of tllese events But the fact remains that the twenty-fim centu ry IS encroaching with such speed and aggressiveness that many peop e feel these tr tongue Paul: Well, don't yours? Cathy: I'lI llave to try tllat There might be a whole new world of songs out therE' wa iting to be written Pau l: Well that's fhe th inQ about song wrifinQ No matter Ilow many songs people come up With, there , always another one Test Part You wllf hear four drfferent extracts For questIOns J choose the anSwer (A, B or C) which fits best accordmg to what you hear There are two questIons for each extract Extract One AchieVing moderate renown IS hardly tile stuH fOCI< and roll dreams are made of so It wasn't surpnslng when tile Americilfl b.:md Fluxx came stuttering ro an end just over a year ago_ They were One of those groups to whlCll tile prefix 'iniluen ti€>vpn yeil rs, gaining an enthusiastIC nIChe audiE'ncp n the TAPESCR I I'TS process _They started out as standard bearers of underground rock in the USA, their songs a sly blend of fuzzy gUitar expenmentalism elliptical rhythms esoteric lYrics and melodies that qrew progressively sweeter as the band evolved Their farewell concert took place In a sUitably mlddlingSiZed venue at the end of last year_ A pair of handcuffs dangled from the microphone stand symbol, cla imed StJ1ger MM, of what it was Ill, a stnqlp plPJ)hant could, in just one night, wreck an entire crop on any of the adjacent smallholdings Now, thiS danger has been removed a great step forward in public goodWIll towards our project Encouraging peopl€' to VISIt the area and the rhinOS are a qreal attraction 15 also prOViding a potential market 10r locally produced handlcra fts And part of our proJ€Ct has always been helping to bUild primary schools and health care centres In commumtles on our boundary Local children already come la see our Wi ldlife, and their VISits could he extended, If we could provide overnight la(lht.es Children cannot appreciate the beauty of their hentage if they nf'ver see It Our 'IIrn IS to become finanCIally independenf Wit hin ftve years and no longer have to depend on donations for ttle huge expenditure needed to keep our rhinOS safe We want to prove that dOll1e'>tlC stock can share land With wildlife without suffering and that W1ldllfe can b€neflt local people, that (hese lands can prosper if properly tnilnaged To achIeve this, we have to raise the capital to bUild a small IOllfl t 10dQP The 'ianctuary came ahout because or the devellopment of a very Important Idea _ that this gener In thi'i context were new to 11[...]... OOUC T ION, PAPER 3 WOIOC; correctly Part 3 Part 4 This part of the paper tests your k n owledge of voca bulary especially t hose words whICh have different meanings when used in different conte)(ts Areas o f language such as the use o f collocation and phrasal verbs are tested direct ly in this section Th is part o f the paper tests your know ledge of vocabulary and grammar There are eight questIons... error" may receive one mark IN T RO Du CTION PAPER 3 Part 5 This part of the paper has a two-fold purpose It tests your comprehension of a text through your awareness of the language (recognising and understanding the force of lexical items, rhetorical and 5lyhstic devices and referencing) It also tests your ability to select appropriate information and to organise this into a coherent paragraph The texts...How to approach the tasks Part 1 This part of the paper tests your knowledge of grammar_You will read a text w ith fifteen gaps_ Only one word fits Into each gap_ The words are mostly structure words rather than vocabulary Items, e g preposloons, pronouns,... IInkers elc Some words may form part of phrasal verbs or fixed expresslons_ • • Read the text for general understanding before you do the task The word you Writ e must fit the Part 2 This part of t he paper tests your knowledge of all ki nds of affixation particularly the formation of nouns, and the uSe of prefixes or suffixes 10 modify the meaning of words You Will read a lext With ten gaps, each of which... the ability to re express Ideas In achieVing the task Accuracy of spelling, grammar and punctuation is 3150 important INTROOUCT I ON PAPER 3 GUI e to Pa er 4 Listenln ' I General information • Paper 4 tests candidates' ability to understand spoken English in different contexts • The texts in Paper 4 may include interviews discussions conversations radio plays talks, speeches le ctures commentaries,... will then have five minutes at the end of the examination to copy your answers trom the question paper on to the separate Anr Sheet I N TR O DU C T I O N , PAPE R 4 General information • Paper 5 tests candidates' ability to use spontaneous spoken language in order to (ommunicate naturally • The usual format IS two candidates and two examiners (Occasionally there may be three candidates.) 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