Part 1 - Letter: Sample Script

Dear Sir

I am writing to you in order to thank you for being invited to the opening of your Arts Centre, which I attended
on behalf of the Principal of my college, where I am currently the secretary of, the Student Committee.

I was really impressed by the outstanding array of interesting books displayed in the Arts Library, which
seemed to me to be very well-laid-out. I have appreciated the Art Gallery as well, finding the present
exhibition absolutely stunning. I would be most grateful if you could give my compliments to the chef who is
responsible for the delicious food served in the cafe, a place which has also got a very pleasant atmosphere.

On the other hand, I was most surprised to discover that a recording studio is not included among the facilities
provided: actually, we expected it to be built, as the majority of our students expressed their wish to have one.
However, it was not clear to me whether students will be charged for having access to the music and rehersal
rooms.

No sooner had I admired the comfort of your 300-seat cinema, than I realised that the programme, which
mainly includes famous recent productions, is not very useful for academic purposes. We would have
preferred you to offer a choice of less well-known movies to suit the needs of our cinema courses.

Finally, I would like to point out that the 5% student discount advertised on your leaflets does not fulfill our
expectations, as we were assured that our students would benefit from a 10% discount on all tickets.

I am sure you understand how all of these features are important to our college, which strongly contributed to
the building of your Arts Centre. Consequently, I trust that we will be able to arrange a meeting to discuss
some of the issues further. I should mention that I am available at any time which may be convenient both for
your and for our Principal, who, albeit busy, is extremely keen to attend.

Yours faithfully

Part 1 – Letter: Examiner's Comments

Content - Task fully completed.

Organisation and Cohesion - Very well organised with good use of cohesive devices.

Accuracy - Controlled and natural use of language. Not flawless (e.g. 'I have appreciated', 'strongly
contributed').

Range - Wide range of vocabulary (e.g. 'outstanding array') and structure (e.g. 'No sooner had I
admired', 'we were assured that').

Register - Consistently appropriate.

Target Reader - Very positive effect.

Band 5

Part 1 - Letter: Task-specific Mark Scheme

Content (points covered) - For Band 3 or above, the candidate's letter must:
thank the manager for the invitation to the Arts Centre
comment on the positive points of the Arts Centre
explain why the writer was disappointed
suggest a meeting

Organisation and Cohesion - Clear paragraphs. Letter layout with opening and closing formulae.

Range - Language of evaluation, explanation and suggestion.

Register - Formal to unmarked. Not aggressive.

Target Reader - Would be informed and would consider meeting to discuss issues.

Article: Task

You see the following announcement in an international magazine.

Have you enjoyed taking part in an exciting or dangerous outdoor leisure activity - for example, surfing, rock-
climbing, hang-gliding? If so, write and tell us about the activity, explaining its attraction. We are looking for
articles which will allow our readers to share your thrilling experience!

Write your article.

Article: Sample Script

Falling Down

Have you ever been in such a stressful situation, that you wish you would vanish into thin air? Well, that's
what occured to me on a sunny and warm summer's day.

I was out with my friends and we were heading to the beach as a member of my company had suggested the
previous day. We really had the time of our lives there. We went swimming for over an hour and after that we
played beach soccer and chatted pleasantly. All of a sudden, a friend of mine noticed a man tied to a string
jumping from over a fifty meters hight. 'Hey! That's bunjee jumping!' he yelled with excitement. 'It's an extreme
sport' someone else added. Everyone accepted trying it out exept from me as I was scared to death. Being
shy of expressing my fear, I agreed.

As we were waiting for our turn, I was praying that time would stop and I would escape from it all. Fortunately,
this didn't happen. I got tied with an elastic string, moved to the edge of the stage and jumped down. I was
able to do nothing but scream with fear anticipating the worst, while watching the earth coming towards me.
After some gentle shocks I was disappointed to get my feet back to earth.

This was by far the most exciting activity of my whole life. Despite the negative feelings that I was filled with in
the beggining, I had radical change of mood and attitude. Bunjee jumping is a perfect extreme sport that I
believe everyone should practice it and feel the adrenaline bump.

Article: Examiner's Comments

Content - Good realisation of task with all points covered.

Organisation and Cohesion - Well organised with attempt to engage reader and with attention paid to
cohesion.
Accuracy - Generally accurate with isolated lapses, sometimes where more complicated language is
attempted.

Range - Evidence of a range of vocabulary and structure.

Register - Consistently appropriate to genre.

Target Reader - Positive effect on target reader.

Band 4

Article: Task-specific Mark Scheme

Content (points covered) - For Band 3 or above, the candidate's article must:

name an outdoor activity

describe the activity
explain why it is/was exciting/dangerous.

Organisation and Cohesion - Clearly paragraphed.

Range - Vocabulary related to the activity chosen.

Register - May mix registers if appropriate to approach taken by candidate.

Target Reader - Would be informed.

Reference: Task

A friend of your family is applying for a job with a travel company as a tourist guide for English-
speaking tourists visiting your country. The company has asked you to provide a character reference
for your friend.

The reference should indicate how long you have known the person. It must also include a detailed
description of the person's character and the reasons why he or she would be suitable for the job.

Write the reference.

Reference: Sample Script

Reference for Miss Mary Smith

Dear Sir/Madam

Miss Mary Smith is an old friend of my sister and later became a friend to all the members of my family. We
have known her over ten years.

I believe Miss Smith has the necessary experience and personal qualities for the job. She used to work in the
same position for two years before teaching in secondary school. She enjoyed meeting people and
introducing our country to visitors. We heard a lot of interesting things and how she solved problems
effectively during the time she worked as a tour guide.
She knows very well about western culture and how to communicate with foreigners as she gained her
Master degree in England and has travelled to many English-speaking countries. She is a good team player
but can also work independently. She is open-minded and work well under pressure, these character were
shown while she while she worked as a tour guide and teacher as well as helping our family difficulties.

I am confident that Miss Smith is well-qualified for the post and I would like to give my full support to her
application. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you require any further information.

Yours faithfully

Reference: Examiner's Comments

Content - All points covered. Good realisation of task.

Organisation and Cohesion - Clearly and effectively organised.

Accuracy - Some non-impeding errors ('she...work well', 'these character').

Range - Good range of language appropriate to the task.

Register - Consistent. Achieves appropriate tone of a reference.

Target Reader - Would be informed. Positive effect.

Band 4

Reference: Task-specific Mark Scheme

Content (points covered) - For Band 3 or above the candidate's reference must:

indicate how long they have known the person

describe the person's character
explain why the person would be suitable for the job.

Organisation and Cohesion - Clear organisation with appropriate paragraphing.

Range - Language of description, explanation and reasoning. Vocabulary of personal characteristics and of
work.

Register - Consistently formal or unmarked.

Target Reader - Would be informed.

Report: Task

You recently visited a trade fair in an English-speaking country and you feel it would be good for your
company to have a stand at this fair next year. The head of the marketing department has asked you to write
a report, describing what you saw and experienced at the trade fair this year and explaining why your
company would benefit from having a stand there next year.

Write your report.

Report: Sample Script

To: Christopher Owen, the head of the marketing department
From: The sale manager
Subject: Food Trade Fair Birmingham 2003
Date: 11 June 2003

The aim of this report is to inform the marketing department about the character of Food Trade Fair
Birmingham, which takes place every year in May. Additionally it says about possible advantages of having a
stall there.

Every year, Food Trade Fair Birmingham is getting bigger. The event is widely known not only in the UK, but
also in the whole Western Europe. This is a big meeting of both producers and co-operators with their clients.
Usually, after finishing the fair many agreements and contracts are signed.

This year, extremely popular were booths with organic food, which is becoming more and more popular. I
think that this is a big opportunity for our company for finding customers in England, France and other western
countries. Although our company is a household name in Poland, we are not known abroad. We produce food
of high quality which is comparable with products from western countries. But we have one big advantage, we
are much cheaper than they are. So we should have a stall there next year. They are not very expensive but
even if we dip into our savings, this may be worth it, because we can sign a very nice contract.

Report: Examiner's Comments

Content - Task reasonably achieved - all points addressed but with limited expansion.

Organisation and Cohesion - Clearly organised into paragraphs with an appropriate introduction.

Accuracy - Satisfactory.

Range - Adequate.

Register - Mostly consistent.

Target Reader - Would achieve required effect on target reader.

Band 3

Report: Task-specific Mark Scheme

Content (points covered) - For Band 3 or above, candidate's report must:

describe experience at trade fair

recommend company's attendance next year

Organisation and Cohesion - Clearly organised in paragraphs. Headings may be an advantage.

Range - Language of description and persuasion. Business vocabulary.

Register - Any, as long as consistent.

Target Reader - Would be informed.