Final Preparation - Aptis Writing Exam(1)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

Level: B1 to B2

Aptis Writing Exam – Final Preparation 1 – Refresh your memory You are going to try out a real Aptis exam on the internet which will be very similar to your final exam. Before you do, let’s prepare you for it so that you can get the most out of it. Quick quiz – in pairs 1. How much time do you have for the whole exam? 2. Do you have to spend the recommended time on each task? 3. Can you stop the clock after you’ve pressed ‘Start Component’? 4. Can you go back to a previous part of the test if you want to? 5. Will you lose marks if you go over the word limit? Check your answers on the last page of this booklet.

2 – Do the Aptis Website Practice Exam The exam website will not provide you with a mark, and will not allow you to see your answers after you complete the test. So do the following before you start: a) Open Microsoft Word b) Save the blank document to your computer with the title ‘Mock Aptis Writing (your name)’. c) Keep this document open, but minimise it (press on the ‘-‘ button in the top right of the window). d) Open your web browser and go to the following page:

http://www.britishcouncil.org/aptis-practice-tests/AptisWritingPractice/ Don’t press ‘Start Component’ yet. e) After completing each task on the website, copy your text (Ctrl + C) and paste it (Ctrl + V) into the Microsoft Word document. Your trainer will tell you when to start. Remember that once you press ‘Start Component’, your 50 minutes will start ticking. Before you click finish, remember to copy your answers to Microsoft Word.

3 – Self-evaluate your Performance Now self-evaluate your performance. Answer the following questions: 1. Did you finish all the tasks in the allotted time? 2. Did you answer the question(s) correctly and clearly for each task? 3. Did you write the correct number of words for each task? 4. Did you find time to proofread your answers for errors? 5. Did you format and punctuate your answers correctly?

_________ _________ _________ _________ _________

If your answer to any of the questions is ‘no’, write some ‘self-recommendations’ below: (e.g. I will spend a maximum of 10 minutes on the informal email in task 4)

Tell a colleague how you self-evaluated and what recommendations you made to yourself.

Contributed by: Jason Anderson © The British Council, 2013 The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities. British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

Level: B1 to B2

4 – Error Correction Work in pairs. Look at both your answers together (rather than swapping) and discuss any possible errors. Can you correct them? Ask your trainer for help / confirmation if you are not sure. Add any corrections you find to your Error Correction Log. This will help you to remember the corrections. You can also use an Error Correction Log in your classroom with your learners (see image)!

5 – Model Answers Here are model answers for all the exam tasks you just completed. Underline any expressions, words that you think would be useful to learn. Add them to your vocabulary notebook.

Farhani Mohammad 19

October

Alor Setar

1975 I’m interested in travel because I find it fascinating visiting other countries and learning about the culture. I also enjoy taking photos of the amazing places I visit.

Malay Badminton Cooking Gardening

Hi Sam, I can remember, yes! I was about 21 and I had to travel from my home town to another town by bus. I was quite nervous, but it really enjoyed seeing the beautiful countryside that we passed.

Hi Miguel, I would recommend 2 places; the wonderful capital city, Kuala Lumpur, where the architecture is amazing and the island of Langkawi for its beautiful beaches and delicious Malaysian food. You should try it!

Hi Michelle, The most exciting journey I have ever been on is a boat journey to a small island. The boat was small and the sea was very rough, but I was great to visit such a beautiful holiday destination.

Contributed by: Jason Anderson © The British Council, 2013 The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities. British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

Level: B1 to B2

Hi Asmah, Have you seen the email from the travel club, yet? I’m really sad that Mr. Price won’t be there. I was so looking forward to meeting him. However, I’m definitely going to attend the meeting and buy the book. What about you, are you still coming? Love, Farhani

Dear Sir or Madam, Thank you for your recent email, informing us that Mr. Price will not be attending our next meeting. I must say that I am rather disappointed about this, as I was very much looking forward to receiving a signed copy of his new book. Nonetheless, I understand that such cancellations do happen in the schedule of famous writers, and I would like to confirm that I would still like to attend the meeting. I would also like to reserve a copy of Mr. Price’s book, Around the World in 80 Ways, which I will pay for at the meeting. I appreciate all your hard work for the club and look forward to seeing you at the meeting. Please could you confirm receipt of my email. Yours sincerely, Farhani Mohammad

Work in pairs. Discuss the model answers using the following questions: 1. In Part 2: What language does the writer use to describe her interests? 2. In Part 3: What verb tenses does the writer use in the 3 different answers? Why? 3. In Part 3: What modal verbs does she use to make recommendations? 4. In Part 4: How does the writer express her feelings in both the informal and formal emails? 5. In Part 4: What tense does the writer use to indicate her plans for the future to her friend? 6. In Part 4: How does the writer indicate her future intentions in the formal letter? 7. In Part 4: How does the writer start and finish the formal letter?

6 – Further Self-study Ideas Here are some ideas for how you can keep learning between now and the writing exam. Try some of them out! 1) Do the practice exams on the Pro-ELT Aptis website and get a colleague to evaluate your answers and provide feedback. Here’s the address: http://proelt.byethost7.com/ 2) Do practice exam questions from other writing exams. Here are some websites:

http://www.ieltshelpnow.com/general_training_writing_test_1.html Contributed by: Jason Anderson © The British Council, 2013 The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities. British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

Level: B1 to B2

http://www.ielts-exam.net/index.php? option=com_content&task=category§ionid=7&id=16&Itemid=69 http://www.examenglish.com/PET/PET_writing_part2.htm http://www.examenglish.com/FCE/FCE_writing.htm 3) Search for online websites that help with formal and informal email or letter writing. Here are some links:

http://www.flo-joe.co.uk/fce/students/writing/express/index.htm http://www.alternative.hu/formal_and_informal_letters http://mannysfceblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/writing-part-1-and-2-informal-and.html http://www.speakenglish.co.uk/phrases/writing_letters_and_emails 4) Improve your keyboard typing skills fast for free!

http://play.typeracer.com/ http://www.typingweb.com/

7 – My Learning Plan Between now and the exam, you can really improve your writing skills if you do a little every week. The following table will help you to plan. You can even plan to work together with a friend / colleague! What I would like to practise / study

How often I plan to practise / study it

Where I will find the materials

How I will evaluate my work

Quick Quiz Answers 1. 2.

How much time do you have for the whole exam? Do you have to spend the recommended time on each task?

3. 4.

Can you stop the clock after you’ve pressed ‘Start Component’? Can you go back to a previous part of the test if you want to?

50 mins No. You can choose how you spend your 50 minutes. Here’s our recommendation. We recommend you spend a little less time on Part 2 and a little more on Part 3: Part 1 – 3 mins; Part 2 – 5 mins; Part 3 – 12 mins; Part 4 – 30 mins (10 for the informal email, 20 for the formal email). No. Yes. You can edit answers to Part 1, 2 and 4. But you can’t change your Part 3 answers once you’ve pressed ‘Post’.

Contributed by: Jason Anderson © The British Council, 2013 The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities. British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials 5.

Will you lose marks if you go over the word limit?

Level: B1 to B2 No. But it is not a good exam strategy. It’s better to keep to the word limits and write more accurately.

Contributed by: Jason Anderson © The British Council, 2013 The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities. British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

Level: B1 to B2

Trainer Supplement - Complete Online Writing Exam This is a copy of the exam online at: http://www.britishcouncil.org/aptis-practice-tests/AptisWritingPractice/ It can be used instead of the online exam if teachers cannot access the online exam. Part 1 You want to join a travel club. Fill in the form. You have 3 minutes.

Part 2 You are a new member of the travel club. Fill in the form. Write in sentences. Use 20-30 words. You have 7 minutes in total.

Part 3 You are a member of a travel club. You are talking to some other members in the travel club chat room. Talk to them using sentences. Use 30-40 words per answer. You have 10 minutes in total.

Contributed by: Jason Anderson © The British Council, 2013 The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities. British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)

Creating Opportunity Worldwide Pro-ELT Teacher Training Materials

Level: B1 to B2

Part 4

Contributed by: Jason Anderson © The British Council, 2013 The British Council is the United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and education opportunities. British Council Malaysia is a branch (995232-A) of the British Council, registered as a charity in England and Wales (209131) and Scotland (SC037733)