B2 Cambridge Exam Pdf
Kahlil Algya
Cambridge English Qualifications are in-depth exams that make learning English enjoyable, effective and rewarding. Our unique approach encourages continuous progression with a clear path to improve language skills. We have qualifications for schools, general and higher education, and business.
Linguaskill is a quick and convenient online test to help higher education institutions and employers check the English levels of individuals and groups of candidates. It combines the latest technology with the reliability and quality you expect from Cambridge.
Cambridge Assessment English or Cambridge English develops and produces Cambridge English Qualifications and the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). The organisation contributed to the development of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), the standard used around the world to benchmark language skills,[2] and its qualifications and tests are aligned with CEFR levels.[3]
Cambridge Assessment English is part of Cambridge Assessment, a non-teaching department of the University of Cambridge[4] which merged with Cambridge University Press to form Cambridge University Press & Assessment in August 2021.[5]
These qualifications are designed for adult learners.[10] A2 Key, B1 Preliminary and B2 First have the same exam format (e.g. number of papers, number of questions, time allowance) as the schools' versions of these qualifications, but use different topics and content suited to adult learners.[citation needed]
In 2010 Cambridge Assessment English and the English Language Institute Testing and Certificate Division of the University of Michigan agreed to form a not-for-profit collaboration known as CaMLA (Cambridge Michigan Language Assessments). Cambridge Assessment English owns 65% of the venture.[36]
Since 2011 Cambridge Exams Publishing, a partnership between Cambridge Assessment English and the English Language Teaching (ELT) business of Cambridge University Press, develops official Cambridge preparation materials for Cambridge English and IELTS exams.[37]
In 2019 Cambridge Assessment English acquired English Language iTutoring (ELiT), an artificial intelligence developed off technology from the University of Cambridge, to support new English language assessment products.[39]
Cambridge Assessment English was involved in the early development of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and all Cambridge English qualifications and tests are aligned with the levels described by the CEFR.[40][41] Each Cambridge English Qualification targets specific CEFR levels but the exam also contains test material at the adjacent levels. For example, B2 First is aimed at B2, but there are also test items that cover B1 and C1. This allows for inferences to be drawn about candidates' abilities if they are a level below or above the one targeted. Candidates are encouraged to take the exam most suitable to their needs and level of ability.[42]
The Cambridge English EFL Evaluation Unit was established in 1989 and was the first dedicated research unit of its kind.[43] This unit is now called the Research and Validation Group and is the largest dedicated research team of any English language assessment body.[44] Research is published in the Studies in Language Testing (SiLT) series.
The first Cambridge English exam was produced in 1913 by UCLES (University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate).[43] UCLES had been set up in 1858 to provide exams to students who were not members of a university.
There was a growing concern in Britain with standards of school education and the transition from secondary to tertiary-level education. A number of schools "petitioned the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge [to provide] means of comparing achievements of pupils across schools."[47] The secondary education sector was still voluntary in nature. Without support from the state, it was logical to seek help from universities that were long established and widely admired. The University of Oxford and University of Cambridge, in particular, were "regarded as viable sources of supervision."[48]
UCLES was invited to set exams and inspect schools with the aim of raising educational standards. The University of Oxford also created its own examination board: the University of Oxford Delegacy of Local Examinations (UODLE). UODLE and its partner, the Association of Recognised English Language Schools, merged with UCLES in 1995.[49]
The first UCLES examinations took place on 14 December 1858. The exams were designed to test for university selection and were taken by 370 candidates in British schools, churches and village halls. Candidates were required to "satisfy the examiners" in the analysis and parsing of a Shakespeare text; reading aloud; dictation; and composition (on either the recently deceased Duke of Wellington; a well-known book or a letter of application).[50]
Female candidates were accepted by UCLES on a trial basis in 1864 and on a permanent basis from 1867. Cambridge University itself did not examine female students until 1882 and it was not until 1948 that women were allowed to graduate as full members of the university.[51]
CPE was originally a qualification for teachers: "the Certificate of Proficiency in English is designed for Foreign Students who desire satisfactory proof of their knowledge of the language with a view to teaching it in foreign schools." The exam was only available for candidates aged 20 or over.[54]
The main influence behind the design of the exam was the grammar-translation teaching approach, which aims to establish reading knowledge (rather than the ability to communicate in the language). In 1913, the first requirement for CPE candidates was to translate texts. Translation remained prominent in foreign language teaching up until the 1960s. It was a core part of CPE until 1975 and an optional part until 1989.[57]
However, CPE was also influenced by Henry Sweet and his book published in 1900: A Practical Study of Languages: A Guide for Teachers and Learners, which argued that "the most natural method of teaching languages was through conversation." Due to this influence, speaking was part of Cambridge English exams from the very beginning.[58]
Candidates were required to translate from English into French/German and translate from French/German into English. Here is a short segment from one of the passages candidates were asked to translate from English into German:
The sentiments which animated Schiller's poetry were converted into principles of conduct; his actions were as blameless as his writings were pure. With his simple and high predilections, with his strong devotedness to a noble cause, he contrived to steer through life, unsullied by its meanness, unsubdued by any of its difficulties or allurements ...
In the English Essay paper, candidates were asked to write an essay for two hours, on one of the following subjects: the effect of political movements upon nineteenth-century literature in England; English Pre-Raphaelitism; Elizabethan travel and discovery; the Indian Mutiny; the development of local self-government; or Matthew Arnold. The exam board provided little or no formal structure. Concepts such as audience and purpose, and the length of the essay, were left for the candidate to decide.
The questions in the English Literature section were borrowed from the university's Language and Literature matriculation exams for native speakers and included questions on Shakespeare's Coriolanus and Milton's Paradise Lost. Here is an example question: explain fully and comment on the following passages, stating the connexions in which they occur and any difficulties of reading, phraseology or allusion: "Wert thou the Hector, That was the whip of your bragg'd progency, Thou should'st not 'scrape me here." It was not until 1930 that a Literature paper was designed specifically for CPE candidates.
The grammar section contained questions about grammar and lexis, e.g. give the past tense and past participle of each of the following verbs, dividing them into strong and weak ..., and questions about grammar and lexis usage, e.g. embody each of the following words into a sentence in such a way as to show that you clearly apprehend its meaning: commence, comment, commend ... At the time, this mirrored the approach to learning grammar in Latin and Greek (as well as modern languages).
Finally, a Phonetics paper was included as it was thought to be useful in the teaching of pronunciation. The paper required candidates to make phonetic transcriptions of long pieces of continuous text; describe the articulation of particular sounds; explain phonetic terms, and suggest ways of teaching certain sounds. Here are two example questions: explain the terms: "glide", "narrow vowel", "semi-vowel" and give two examples of each in both phonetic and ordinary spelling and how would you teach a pupil the correct pronunciation of the vowel sounds in: fare, fate, fat, fall, far?
The 1913 CPE exam was taken by just three candidates. The candidates "were able to converse fluently, expressing themselves on the whole, with remarkable ease and accuracy." However, all three candidates failed the exam and none of them was awarded a CPE certificate.[59]
In its second year (1914), CPE gained in popularity, with 18 candidates and four passing. However, for the next 15 years candidature remained static.[52] Italian and Spanish were added as languages for the translation paper in 1926.
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