Nivel B2

I can with some effort catch much of what is said around me, but may find it difficult to participate effectively in discussion with several native speakers who do not modify their language in any way.

I can understand recordings in standard dialect likely to be encountered in social, professional or academic life and identify speaker viewpoints and attitudes as well as the information content.

I can follow detailed directions.

I can scan longer texts in order to locate desired information, and gather information from different parts of a text, or from different texts in order to fulfil a specific task. I can find and understand relevant information in everyday material, such as letters, brochures and short official documents.

I can identify the main conclusions in clearly signalled argumentative texts. I can recognise the line of argument in the treatment of the issue presented, though not necessarily in detail. I can understand articles and reports concerned with contemporary problems in which the writers adopt particular stances or viewpoints.

I can read with a large degree of independence, adapting style and speed of reading to different texts and purposes, and using appropriate reference sources selectively. I have a broad active reading vocabulary, but may experience some difficulty with low frequency idioms.

I can give a clear, prepared presentation, giving reasons in support of or against a particular point of view and giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options. I can take follow up questions, but may have to ask for repetition if the speech was rapid.

I can give or seek personal views and opinions in discussing topics of interest. I can express thoughts on more abstract, cultural topics such as films, books, music etc. I can compare and contrast alternatives, discussing what to do, where to go, who or which to choose, etc. I can account for and sustain my opinions in discussion by providing relevant explanations, arguments and comments.

I can cope with less routine situations in shops, post offices, banks, e.g. returning an unsatisfactory purchase.

I can exchange, check and confirm accumulated factual information on familiar routine and non-routine matters within my field with some confidence.

I can take part in routine formal discussion of familiar subjects which is conducted in clearly articulated speech in the standard dialect and which involves the exchange of factual information, receiving instructions or the discussion of solutions to practical problems.

I can help along the progress of the work by inviting others to join in, say what I think, etc. I can outline an issue or a problem clearly, speculating about causes or consequences, and weighing advantages and disadvantages of different approaches.

I can reasonably fluently relate a straightforward narrative or description as a linear sequence of points. I can use a limited number of cohesive devices to link my utterances into clear, coherent discourse, though there may be some ‘jumpiness’ in a long contribution.

I can write personal letters giving news and expressing thoughts about abstract or cultural topics such as music, films.

I can write straightforward connected texts on a range of familiar subjects within my field of interest.

Spelling and punctuation are reasonably accurate but may show signs of mother tongue influence.

I can narrate a story.

I can collate short pieces of information from several sources and summarise them for somebody else.

Also, you will have studied and practiced the following language structures: (See Grammar)

Polite requests

will for offers and instant decisions

Making generalizations

Defining relative clauses

Quantifiers

Making predictions

Hypothetical possibilities with if

Past perfect

Reported speech

Obligation and permission in the present

Obligation and permission in the past

could have, should have, would have

Imaginary situations in the past with if

Social behaviour

Wordspot: go

How machines work

Describing everyday objects

Society and change

Wordspot: make

Types of story

Wordspot: say and tell

Adverbs for telling stories

Wordspot: do

Problems and solutions

Wordspot: think

Sounding polite

‘ll (will)

Stress in compound words

’ll (will) or ’d (would)

Past simple or past perfect

Sentence stress

Modal verbs

Past modal forms

Shifting stress

Vowel sounds

I can follow extended speech and complex lines of argument provided the topic is reasonably familiar, and the direction of the talk is sign-posted by explicit markers.

I can understand recordings in standard language likely to be encountered in social, professional or academic life and identify speaker viewpoints and attitudes as well as the information content.

I can generally catch much of what is said around me, but may find it difficult to participate effectively in discussion with several native speakers who do not modify their language in any way.

I can use a variety of strategies to achieve comprehension, including listening for main points; checking comprehension by using contextual clues.

I can understand announcements and messages on concrete and abstract topics spoken in standard dialect at normal speed.

I can follow the essentials of lectures, talks and reports and other forms of academic/professional presentation which are propositionally and linguistically complex.

I can understand articles and reports concerned with contemporary problems in which the writers adopt particular stances or viewpoints.

I can read with a large degree of independence, adapting style and speed of reading to different texts and purposes, and using appropriate reference sources selectively.

I can summarise a wide range of factual and imaginative texts, commenting on and discussing contrasting points of view and the main themes.

I have a broad active reading vocabulary, but may experience some difficulty with low frequency idioms.

I can give clear, detailed descriptions and presentations on a wide range of subjects related to my field of interest, expanding and supporting ideas with subsidiary points and relevant examples. I can highlight the personal significance of events and experiences, account for and sustain views clearly by providing relevant explanations and arguments.

I can with some effort catch much of what is said around me in discussion, but may find it difficult to participate effectively in discussion with several native speakers who do not modify their language in any way. I can account for and sustain my opinions in discussion by providing relevant explanations, arguments and comments.

I can initiate speech, take my turn when appropriate and end conversation when I need to, though I may not always do this elegantly. I can intervene appropriately in discussion, exploiting appropriate language to do so.

I can ask follow-up questions to check that I have understood what a speaker intended to say, and get clarification of ambiguous points.

I can use a limited number of cohesive devices to link my utterances into clear, coherent speech, though there may be some ‘jumpiness’ in a long contribution.

I can produce stretches of language with a fairly even tempo; although I can be hesitant as I search for patterns and expressions, there are few noticeably long pauses.

I can express myself confidently, clearly and politely in a formal or informal register, appropriate to the situation and person/people concerned.

I can summarise and give my opinion about a short story, article, talk, discussion, interview, or documentary and answer further questions of detail. I can synthesise and report information and arguments from a number of sources.

I can explain a problem which has arisen and make it clear that the provider of a service must make a concession.

I can write clear, detailed texts on a variety of subjects related to my field of interest, synthesising and evaluating information and arguments from a number of sources.

I can write clear, detailed descriptions of real or imaginary events and experiences, marking the relationship between ideas in clear connected text, and following established conventions of the genre concerned.

I can write letters conveying degrees of emotion and highlighting the personal significance of events and experiences and commenting on the correspondent’s news and views.

I can produce clearly intelligible continuous writing which follows standard layout and paragraphing conventions.

I can write notes conveying simple information of immediate relevance to friends, service people, teachers and others who feature in my everyday life, getting across comprehensibly the points I feel are important.

Also, you will have studied and practiced the following language structures: (See Grammar)

Revision of verb forms

Use of auxiliaries

Forming nouns and gerunds

Forming adjectives

Verb forms in the narrative

Continuous aspect in other tenses

The passive

have/get something done

Perfect tenses in the past, present and future

More about the Present perfect simple and continuous

Use and non-use of articles

Different ways of giving emphasis

Past and present time phrases

Wordspot: get

Wordspot: life

Mishaps

Qualities of mind

Wordspot: mind

Verb-noun combinations

Wordspot: first

Strong and weak auxiliaries

Sounding polite

Word stress in nouns

Sounding sympathetic

Sentence stress

Stress and intonation

Question tags

Stress for emphasis

Intonation for giving advice