ECL language tests

The professional responsibility of the "ECL" language tests - ECL stands for "European Consortium for the Certificate of Attainment in Modern Languages" - was taken up by a prestigious university in the home country of each language that constructs the tests and evaluates the papers. On the basis of the uniform criteria established in the first phase of standardisation, ECL exams can be taken in English, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Rumanian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Slovak, Russian, Spanish, Croatian, Czech and Hebrew.

The content and overall validity of the tests have been established after extensive research by specialists and pilot tests on specific target groups. The ECL exams test oral and written ability to use the language of everyday discourse on practical, professional and personal topics at varying degrees of complexity.

Level A2
After successfully achieving level A2 you are a good tourist: you can ask questions, you understand the simpler answers, you can go shopping, you can ask for food and drink in the target language, you understand the signs, that is: you can manage.

Level B1
After achieving level B1 you can look for a job and work among colleagues speaking the target language; you start understanding newspaper and radio news, TV programmes, you can even try going to the cinema or theatre.

Level B2
After achieving level B2 you can start studies in the secondary schools and at the colleges and universities of the target language country. You have learned the structure of the target language and understood its logic - and by now you have surely got to like it. You start appreciating literature; you understand announcements at the railway station and what people are shouting in the street. That is you are starting to feel comfortable in the target language and in the target language country.

Level C1
When you achieve level C1 you become an equal partner of the native speakers of the target language. You write, read and speak like they do, you can study, work and do research among them, you can continue expanding your knowledge of the culture, literature and history - that is the past and present of - the target language culture without difficulty.

Each skill is allocated 25 points each, that is the total score to be achieved at the ECL exam is 100. The exam is successful if the candidate reaches at least 40% of the total score in each skill, and a minimum of 60% in each partial exam ( Oral exam: Speaking+Listening Written exam: Reading + Writing )

Listening comprehension	25 points
Reading comprehension	25 points
Written communication	25 points
Oral communication	25 points

Maximum total	100 points
Minimum pass level for a complex exam	60 points
Pass level per skill for a partial exam	10 points

A2 – Beginner	B1 – Elementary	B2 – Intermediate	C1 – Advanced
personal particulars appearance/clothing daily routine	personal particulars appearance inner characteristics	age-related characteristics behavioural patterns fashion/clothing/cosmetics	ambition/career building the individual and the society problems of social integration
relatives,acquaintances,friends classmates/schoolmates/colleagues	relatives,acquaintances,friends classmates/schoolmates/colleagues	roles in the family men and women relationships and contacts at work	forms of partnership nationalities/minorities churches/non-governmental organizations

Comparability is one of the important characteristics of the ECL tests. To ensure this, examinations, as well as test materials and certificates, are built on uniform principles. According to these uniform principles, the parameters and criteria of evaluation and the types of tasks are the same in each language.

ORAL COMMUNICATION
Candidates will be interviewed in pairs. Odd numbers of candidates will be interviewed in threes.

Introduction (3-5 minutes approximately) - is not to be assessed.
The main purpose of this part of the test is, firstly, to put the candidates at their ease and to enable the interviewer to gather information about the candidates for the remainder of the exam.

Guided conversation (5-8 minutes)
The interviewer initiates a conversation based on a topic of his/her choice and by asking questions encourages a conversation between the two candidates.

Picture description based on visual stimuli (5-8 minutes)
The pictures are selected and provided by the interviewer. If necessary the interviewer can help the candidates with questions.

Evaluation criteria

Formal accuracy (morphology and syntax)	0-5 points
Oral accuracy (pronunciation, prosody and fluency)	0-5 points
Vocabulary (range and activation)	0-5 points
Style (pragmatic and sociolinguistic aspects)	0-5 points
Communicative effectiveness (adequate task completion)	0-5 points

WRITING (sample tests: here)

Evaluation criteria

Formal accuracy (morphology and syntax)	0-5 points
Accuracy (test construction and spelling)	0-5 points
Vocabulary (range and activation)	0-5 points
Style (pragmatic and sociolinguistic aspects)	0-5 points
Communicative effectiveness (adequate task completion)	0-5 points

READING COMPREHENSION (sample tests: here)

A2: The candidate must demonstrate the ability to understand the general sense of short, simple items on familiar topics (e.g. public notices, short travel brochures, simple forms, short news items, timetables etc).

B1: The candidate must demonstrate the ability to understand the general sense of items on a variety of topics and essential details of simple items on familiar topics (job advertisements, instructions for use, personal letters, domestic bills).

B2: The candidate must demonstrate the ability to understand specific information and to recognise the tone and purpose of passages taken from sources such as newspapers, magazines, regulations, formal letters and reports.

C1: The candidate must demonstrate the ability to understand information and ideas and to recognise the tone and to identify the purpose of different types of texts written for the general reader.

LISTENING COMPREHENSION (sample tests: here)

A2: The candidate must demonstrate the ability to understand the general sense of a conversation between two native speakers on a topic related to the candidate's experience and of simple public utterances (e.g. announcements, advertisements).

B1: The candidate must demonstrate the ability to understand both the general sense and some essential details of a conversation between two native speakers on a variety of topics, and of public messages, news reports and commentaries.

B2: The candidate must demonstrate the ability to understand explicit information and ideas conveyed in oral material on a wide range of topics which may involve up to four native speakers.

C1: The candidate must demonstrate the ability to extract information and implications from discussions that may include unfamiliar topics and may involve several speakers communicating at a normal rate of speech.

Reading

Levels	A2	B1	B2	C1
Time (minutes)	35	35	45	45
Number of Tasks	2	2	2	There may be more than one text in each part.
Number of Words (only of the texts and tasks)	Total 400-500	Total 500-700	Total 800-1000	Total 1000-1300
Correct Answers	Total: 20 (10 each part)	Total: 20 (10 each part)	Total: 20 (10 each part)	Total: 20 (10 each part)

Writing

Levels	A2	B1	B2	C1
Time (minutes)	45	50	75	90
Number of Tasks	2	2	2	2
Number of Words	Total 150 (70-80)	Total 250 (120-130)	Total 400 (200-200)	Total 600 (300-300)

Listening

Levels	A2	B1	B2	C1
Time (minutes)	ca 25	ca 25 - 30	ca 30 - 35	ca 35 - 40
Number of Tasks	2	2	2	2
Number of Words (only of the recorded texts)	Total 400-500	Total 500-700	Total 800-1000	Total 1200-1500
Correct Answers	Total: 20 (10 each part)	Total: 20 (10 each part)	Total: 20 (10 each part)	Total: 20 (10 each part)

Each specialist member of the Consortium is responsible for test construction and marking in their own language. To ensure maximum reliability for the ECL tests, all items are pre-tested, test constructors and markers are trained before each session, and a system of double marking is used. A committee of specialists from each of the languages being examined monitors the standards of question-setting, marking and awarding to ensure equivalence between levels of achievement across the languages.

Under the auspices of SSSL (Faculty of Arts, Palacký University) there was formed a National Testing Centre of European Consortium for the Certificate of Attainment in Modern Languages (ECL) which was found by European Union. The National Testing Centre ECL also creates the network of regional centres within the area of the Czech Republic (university language departments, language schools, etc.).

For successful preparation for ECL exams, we can recommend all language materials of the target language focusing on communication skills. The candidates can also practice by taking mock tests.

The process of creating the tests, organizing the exams and issuing the international language certificates is coordinated by the ECL Consortium Secretariat at the Foreign Language Centre of the University of Pécz in Hungaria.

Exam Essentials
Filled in and submitted form, proof of payment.

Changing the exam term
After the fee has been paid, for a compelling reason the exam can be postponed to another term only once, on the day of the written test at the latest (the oral test can only be postponnd together with the written one).

The exam result and ECL certificate
The candidates are notified about the exam results by the Regional centre. The candidate can also find information about the result on ECL web page after entering ID. The ECL certificate is issued by the ECL Consortium in Pécs within 2 months after the candidate passes the exam.

If the candidate fails, he has the right to appeal within 15 days after taking the exam to the Consortium in Pécs. The Consortium Secretariat will forward the appeal to the member of the Consortium who is responsible for the corresponding language, and the Consortium, consisting of an independent council of professionals, will evaluate the results again. The candidate will be either informed that s/he did not pass, and s/he may apply for the exam in the next terms, or, if the result is positive, the certificate will be sent to him/her free of charge. The appeal must be sent together with proof of payment of 25 EURO fee. The forms can be obtained in the test centres or on the ECL web page.

Application form
The ECL exam application form can be downloaded here, or the candidates may also apply via the Internet. In the case of the electronic application form, the candidate sends by post proof or payment by bank transfer or receipt. Each registered candidate is allotted an ID (identification number) by the computer.

Entry form - Czech [Excel, 791 kB]

The fee for the ECL exam is A2: 2 900, B1: 3 200, B2: 3 500, C1: 3 800Kč. The fee is non-refundable, only in a justified case, and upon receipt of a written request, it can be refunded up to a maximum of 40%. The payment of the fee entitles the applicant to take the exam or to ask for postponing the exam to the next possible date. Candidates who do not use this opportunity will have to pay again if they wish to take the test.

The fee can only be paid in Czech crowns (CZK). The bank charges associated with the financial transaction are paid in full by the payer, i.e. the candidate.

When transferring to the account, use the following data

Account number	100954151 / 0300  kept with ČSOB Ostrava
Variable symbol	712 1111
Specific symbol	date of birth in the format (ddmmyyyy)
Purpose of the payment	ECL Exam