English Proficiency Test
Early Childhood and Primary MTL
Sample Paper for the ORAL Test
Exercise A (10 marks): Reading Aloud
By listening to good models of fluent reading, students learn how a reader's voice can help
written text make sense. It is extremely important to read aloud daily to your students. By
reading effortlessly and with expression, you are modeling for your students how a fluent
reader sounds during reading.
(From www.reading-skills-pyramid.org/reading-fluency)
Exercise B (20 marks): Interview: 4 questions about a general topic
1. Tell us something about your hometown/village. What do you like/dislike about it?
2. Talk about a country you have visited (or would like to visit in the future).
3. What was the last book you read? Tell us about it.
4. Why do you want to become a primary school teacher?
Exercise C (50 marks): Interview: 4 questions about an educational topic
1. In your opinion what is the best way to promote good behaviour in a primary school
classroom?
2. Do you think Mathematics should be taught through the medium of English or
Maltese?
3. What characteristics are desirable in a primary school teacher?
4. What are the benefits and challenges of mixed-ability classrooms?
Exercise D (20 marks): Presentational speaking or monologue
1. School uniforms should be abolished: What is your stand?
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English Proficiency Test
Early Childhood and Primary MTL
Sample Paper for the Written Paper I
Section A: Choose the correct option from the two provided. (100 marks, 4 marks
each)
1. Did I do / make any mistakes Miss?
2. The pupils/pupil’s mother has come to give her son his lunch box.
3. I feel my son isn‟t getting enough homeworks/homework, especially over the
weekend.
4. It’s/Its a pity you that you think play is not a form of learning.
5. One of the first things you must learn is where is the Head’s office/where the
Head’s office is.
6. I was so embarrassing/embarassed when I realized I had left my teaching practice
file at home.
7. Learning a language is a slow process which it is /which is difficult for some people
to appreciate.
8. It‟s their/there on the second shelf of the book stand.
9. I keep telling you, that book is of him/is his, you should not take it.
10. Mr Borg’s/Borgs’ son has presented a fantastic project for the exhibition.
11. The children’s/childrens writing tasks should be age appropriate.
12. We take safety precautions so that we can / could avoid injuries.
13. We did so many checks so /because we were sure there were no mistakes.
14. We need to order fourty / forty computer desks.
15. It‟s always useful / usefull to have a spare activity.
16. It‟s natural to feel anxious at the beginning / begining of any course of studies.
17. Even native speakers misspell / mispell words.
18. Have you spoken to the faculty secretary yet/yesterday?
19. We need to assure/ensure that all the lights are switched off before leaving the
building.
20. I haven‟t returned the library book because / due to the fact that I haven‟t finished
it.
21. The child‟s young age in comparison to her classmates affected / effected her
performance.
Insert the necessary punctuation
22. Pupils will need to bring with them coloured paper crayons scissors and sticky
tape.
23. She turned to me and said I dont want to play outside today
24. Ms Borg brought the laptop I brought the reading packs that way we were both
doing something useful
25. The around the world tour pleased a lot of the fans
Section B: Identify, explain and correct errors in the sentences. (100 marks, 10
marks each)
Example: We look forward to see you at our school meetings in the future.
‘See’ should be ‘seeing’ because after the verb ‘look forward to’ should be followed by a
verb in the ‘ing’ form.
1. The teacher taught the pupils’ an interesting lesson about sustainability.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
2. We went shopping to buy a trousers from Valletta.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
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3. If it was me I would rather die than ask for her forgiveness.
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4. The sunset it was beautiful on Sunday.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
5. It was there right to ask for a replacement of the faulty kettle since it was still under
guarantee.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
6. My sister said she would joined us but then decided to not come.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
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7. I love that designer sunglasses but they are too expensive for me.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
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8. The waiter asked Luigi, “You want a drink?’
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
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9. I am scared as I doesn’t know whether I passed the test or not.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
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10. The teacher said that the pupils where to leave school early today.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
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English Proficiency Test
Early Childhood and Primary MTL
Sample Paper for the Written Paper II
Section A: Comprehension text (100 marks)
Read the following article that has been adapted from The Guardian newspaper and
answer the questions that follow.
Five useful ways teachers can help pupils transition to
secondary school
Assistant head teacher Vicky Horne shares her tips on how to make the move from primary
to secondary education seamless for nervous young students
‘Year 6 students are always worried about
the same things: bullying, getting lost,
where the toilets are and how to buy
lunch.’
There it sits in pride of place on every mantelpiece: the perennial snapshot of a nervous 11year-old in an oversized uniform, smiling for the camera but not quite ready for their first
day at secondary school.
5
It‟s a huge responsibility for primary and secondary teachers, who must make sure the
transition is as smooth as possible. As an assistant head in a secondary school and lead on
transition, I‟ve seen a lot of students go through it. So, as the new school year approaches
and with many primary teachers getting their young charges ready for the next step, here
are a few reflections on what works well:
10
Make contact with secondary schools
At my school, all our new year 6 children join us for the last week of term for lessons,
activities, assemblies and trips. The time we spend with them is invaluable, and any little
niggles, such as being placed in a tutor group away from their friends, can be dealt with
immediately.
15
20
There are other, less intensive, ways of giving primary students a flavour of what
secondary school will be like. For example, year 6 primary teachers could invite ex-pupils
back to give a talk or offer a Q&A session to current classes. Younger students could write
letters or postcards to children in year 7, asking questions about what comes next for them.
This makes a good literacy activity and can also give teachers an insight into the fears and
worries of new starters.
Share information
25
30
35
From the perspective of the secondary school teacher, we want to know as much as
possible about the new children – warts and all. The teachers doing liaison work – the head
of year 7, for example – wouldn‟t share this information with subject teachers but it would
be known among the pastoral team. For example, we want to know about the child with a
tendency to throw chairs and the ones who only eat Ready Brek or chocolate-spread
sandwiches.er k
We host year 6 students at our sports day, where they have their own events and win points
for what will be their house. Seeing children at sports day shows us a bit more about their
characters – are they sitting back rather than getting involved? It‟s a different kind of
environment to that of the classroom, and how they react says a lot about their confidence
levels.
Pupil passports, in which the year 6 students record their thoughts, feelings and ambitions,
are another less work-intensive technique. These can be sent to the new secondary school,
making it a handy literacy exercise and useful preparation for secondary teachers to see the
kinds of issues they‟re likely to face.
Alleviate fears
40
Year 6 students are always worried about the same things: bullying, getting lost, where the
toilets are and how to buy lunch. The much wider variety of staff is a real change from
primary. Talking to the children about the different roles of secondary teachers will help
them feel confident about knowing who to approach with questions. Nearly always there
will be one particular person, such as the head of year 7 or another pastoral leader, to whom
they can bring their initial worries. It‟s also helpful for staff: sometimes the principal is a
bit surprised to be asked about how to work the library system.
45
50
Of course, every year there are children whose fears are not allayed. Tell-tale signs might
be frequent tears, increased introversion, clinging behaviour to members of primary school
staff, frequent absenteeism or an increase in challenging behaviour. If children start
showing these signs, it‟s essential the two transitional teachers share this. It might be that
it‟s not too late to start more activities – such as lunches in the canteen hosted by the
school, additional tours of the school and mini-lessons.
Teach resilience
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60
65
70
Building the confidence of primary school children before they leave is of utmost
importance: children with high self-esteem are better able to make difficult decisions under
peer pressure, approach adults for support, and be self-sufficient in their learning. Primary
schools develop this resilience through many activities that are traditional for year 6
students: showing visitors around their school, being part of the student council or
parliament, and performing or having some other responsible role in a school production.
Activities in class and homework projects that need to be completed independently can
help prepare children for the new world of homework timetables and detentions for not
meeting deadlines. Many primary schools organise a residential trip for year 6 pupils where
they develop their sense of adventure and increase their self-sufficiency by being away
from home and taking part in new and unfamiliar activities. These transferable skills will
stand them in good stead as they move off into the unfamiliar world of secondary
education.
Don’t panic
On the first morning of the first day at secondary school, we can guarantee someone will
cry. Someone will not be able to tie their tie. Someone will have lost their money. Someone
will do something silly, like calling the principal “mate”. Lots will refer to the male
teachers as “Miss” because they have never known a “Sir” before. But throughout that day
and that week, gradually, they will find their feet, drawing on the resilience they have
developed through their primary school years. One of the most powerful things a year 6
teacher can do is to pop in and say “hi” to their former pupils after a couple of weeks. I
guarantee they will all look so much older and wiser.
Vicky Horne is assistant head of school intervention and inclusion at Castle Manor
Academy.
1. Why has the author used the word „but‟ and not „and‟ in this sentence in line 2? (3
marks)
……………………………………………...……………………………………………..
2. What do these words refer to? (10 marks)
a) Line 1
it
………………………..
b) Line 6
it …………………………
c) Line 11
us …………………………
d) Line 12
them ……………………….
e) Line 18
them ………………….……
3. Why does the author use „their‟ and not another pronoun in line 2? (4 marks)
………………………………………………………………………………………..
4. In the section, Make contact with secondary schools, in what way are those contacts
„less intensive‟? (5 marks)
………………………………………………………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………………………..
5. What do we call these bits of language? (12 marks)
Example: huge (line 4)
a) as smooth as possible (line 5)
b) dealt with (line 13)
c) a flavour (line 14)
d) warts and all (line 23)
It is an adjective.
6. Why is the verb „spend‟ in line 12 in the present tense? (4 marks)
………………………………………………………………………...…………………..
………………………………………………………………………...…………………..
7. In line 23, does „warts and all‟ mean something positive or negative? From the rest of
the text, how do you know this? (6 marks)
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8. Give a synonym for „such as‟ in line 42. (3 marks) ………………………….………
9. In the section Alleviate Fears, from line 36 to line 42, say what part of speech each of
the following is:
a) Line 38
bullying
………………………………………….
b) Line 39
the
………………………………………….
c) Line 39
a
………………………………………….
d) Line 39
wider
………………………………………….
e) Line 41
who
………………………………………….
f) Line 41
with
………………………………………….
g) Line 41
nearly
………………………………………….
h) Line 42
particular
………………………………………….
i) Line 42
whom
………………………………………….
j) Line 43
they
………………………………………….
k) Line 43
helpful
………………………………………….
l) Line 43
principal
………………………………………….
m) Line 44
to work
………………………………………….
(13 marks)
10. In the section Alleviate Fears, which word or phrase show that:
a) the pupils‟ anxieties generally do not last?
………………………………..
b) some pupils‟ anxieties last
………………………………..
c) revealing
………………………………..
d) dependent
………………………………..
e) imperative
………………………………..
(10 marks)
11. Primary schools take several measures to prepare children to better face life in a
secondary school with more self-assurance. From reading the measures the schools
take, what sort of skills and attitudes do you deduce are necessary in secondary school?
(6 marks)
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
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12. What „kinds of issues‟ (line 34) will the pupil passports reveal? (4 marks)
…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………
13. What is the function of these tenses, that is, what meaning do they express according
to the context they are used in? What meaning do the tenses express? (12 marks)
Example: Line 63
future.
a) Line 66
will stand: The tense expresses something that will happen in the
we can
…………………………………………………………………………………….
b) Line 67
will have lost their money
…………………………………………………………………………………….
c) Line 68
will do
…………………………………………………………………………………….
d) Line 70/71 they have developed
…………………………………………………………………………………….
14. From the section Teach Resilience, find an example of:
a) a compound word
…………………………………..
b) an adverb
…………………………………..
c) an adjective containing a prefix …………………………………..
d) an adjective containing a suffix …………………………………..
(8 marks)
Section B (100 marks): Write an expository essay of 300 words
Dealing with bullying in Primary schools: Where do we start?
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