To make sure they continue to meet the needs of our schools, we review all of our syllabuses regularly.
We have made some changes to this syllabus to improve the way we assess students and make better use of the language testing tools available at this level. The syllabus now matches the approach and demand of our other second language syllabuses, including English as a Second language. These changes are for assessment in 2021.
How has the syllabus changed?
We have:
- refreshed the aims and assessment objectives (AOs)
- added the AO weightings for each component to the syllabus
- introduced a new topic, the environment, into the general conversation topics for the speaking test.
How has the assessed changed?
We have made the following changes to the 2021 assessment:
Paper 1: Reading and writing:
- Exercise 2 is now a multiple matching task.
- The marking criteria for Exercise 4 has changed - there are now 4 marks for content and 6 marks for language.
- Exercise 4 now uses the text for Exercise 3 as the topic for the summary.
Paper 2: Listening:
- Exercise 3 is now a multiple matching task.
- Exercise 4 is now a multiple choice task.
Component 3: Speaking:
- The speaking assessment criteria has changed to to make it easier for teachers to apply.
When do these changes take place?
The updated syllabus is for examination in June 2021. Please see the syllabus above for full details.
Coming soon
We are developing a wide range of support to help you plan and teach the 2021 syllabus.
Support
Look out for a comprehensive range of materials to help you teach the 2021 syllabus including a scheme of work, Example candidate responses, Learner and Teacher Guides as well as specimen paper answers. These resources will be available from April 2019 onwards (before first teaching) through our School Support Hub.