ENGLISH SPEAKING PROFIENCY LEVEL DESCRIPTIONS FOR POLYTECHNICS
General view
C1-C2
Communication
skills
The student is
The student is able to
familiar with the
build a conversation
speaking situations
eloquently and
and texts of the field. initiatively by
The student
negotiating with the
communicates
conversationalists.
effectively in diverse The student
and complex working understands the
life situations. The
communication
student is able to
expectations of the
communicate using
conversationalists
nuances and an
and is able to adjust
appropriate register
to the cultures and
for the task and
language use of the
situation.
conversationalists as
well as to their
communication style.
Communication
strategies
The student is able to
use communication
strategies:
- gather information,
sum up and adapt
messages
- use different
listening and
conversation
strategies
- interrupt, ask for
clarifications or
compensate
weaknesses
- deduce meanings
from unfamiliar
expressions
- apply the skills in
new situations
The student is able to
Intelligibility
Vocabulary
Pronunciation
The student
expresses him/herself
spontaneously and
without hesitation in
complex situations.
The student is able to
anticipate the course
of the discussion.
The student knows
structures very well.
The student has an
extensive knowledge
of the vocabulary of
the field and working
environment. The
student is able to use
idioms effortlessly.
The student
understands and
takes advantage of
the nuances of the
language.
Pronunciation is easy
and filled with
nuances. The student
is able to use a
diverse intonation
and inflections to
express nuances.
C1
B2.2
develop his/her
language skills
independently.
The student knows
The student is able to As C1-C2
the speaking
build a versatile and
situations and texts
active conversation
of the field. The
with the
student is able to
conversationalists.
communicate well in The student
diverse and complex understands the
professional
communication
situations. The
expectations of the
student is able to
conversationalists
communicate
and is able to adjust
fluently using the
to the cultures and
register suitable for
language use of the
the task and the
conversationalists as
situation.
well as to their
communication style.
The student is
familiar with the
speaking situations
and texts of the field.
The student
communicates well
in diverse working
life situations. The
student is able to
paraphrase and is
able to say things in
his/her own words.
The student is able to
specify his/her
The student is able to
work independently
and purposefully.
The student
understands the
cultural background
of the
conversationalists
and is usually able to
adapt to the language
use situations and the
communication style.
The student is able to
use communication
strategies well:
- gather information,
sum up and adapt
messages
- use listening and
conversation
strategies
- interrupt, ask for
clarifications or
compensate
weaknesses
- sometimes deduce
The student is able to
express his/her
thoughts fluently and
spontaneously. The
expression is
versatile and clear,
also structurally.
The student has an
As C1-C2
extensive knowledge
of the vocabulary
needed in tje field
and is able to use
idioms well.
Substituting
expressions are used
naturally.
The student uses
fluent, clear
language. The
language is
understood
effortlessly even
though there is
hesitation. Structural
mistakes do not
disrupt the
communication.
The student knows
the vocabulary
needed in the field
and working
environment. Rare
expressions and
nuances may cause
difficulties. The
student is able to use
substituting
expressions.
The student has
learned a clear and
natural pronunciation
and intonation.
expression.
B2.1
B1
meanings from
unfamiliar
expressions based on
the context
The student is able to
develop his/her
language skills
independently.
The student is
The student is able to As B2.2
The student speaks
familiar with the
work independently
relatively clearly.
most important
and purposefully, to
The speech contains
speaking situations
state his/her opinion
unnatural expressions
and texts of the field. and to react. The
and structural
The student
student understands
mistakes which do
communicates
the cultural
not make the speech
relatively well in
background
significantly more
every day working
somewhat but is not
difficult to
life situations. The
always able to adapt
understand.
student is capable of to it. The student is
interaction, although able to adapt to the
not always
most common
successfully.
language use
situations and their
style.
The student knows
The student is able to The student knows
The student is able to
many speaking
cope in the most
some communication use simple language
situations and texts
common language
strategies:
avoiding complex
of the field. The
use situations
- gathers information, structures. The
student is able to
understandably and
sums up but does not sparseness and
cope in common
to respond. The
always find the main simplicity of the
working life
student is able to
message
language make it
situations in a
participate in the
- is able to use some difficult to
satisfactory way. The conversation but
listening strategies
understand. The
The student is able to As B2.2.
use the vocabulary of
the field and working
environment
purposefully. Rarer
words and
expressions are used
inaccurately. The
student is able to
substitute the lack of
professional
vocabulary by using
standard language
expressions.
The student is able to
use the basic
vocabulary of the
field in a satisfactory
manner. The student
is able to use the
most common
expressions. There
are inaccuracies in
The pronunciation is
intelligible although
a foreign accent is
obvious and
mistaken
pronunciation occurs.
A2
student is able to
connect expressions
and to maintain a
simple interaction.
The main message is
conveyed despite the
deficiencies.
needs support from
the
conversationalists.
Misunderstandings
occur, but not in the
main message. The
student understands
cultural background
somewhat but is not
able to adapt to it.
but is not always able
to interact in
conversation
- can sometimes ask
for a clarification but
may act based on a
guess
- is able to ask for
help in conversation
The student knows
his/her language
skills are limited but
is willing to develop
them.
influence of native
language / other
languages can be
heard.
the word choices but
they do not prevent
the main message
from being
understood.
The student knows
the speaking
situations of the field
and is able to handle
every day speaking
situations, although
needs help
occasionally. The
student is sometimes
able to maintain a
simple interaction.
Some parts of the
main message may
not get conveyed.
The student is
usually able to act in
clear language
situations of the
working life.
Mistakes occur, even
in the main message.
The student rarely
detects messages
resulting from a
cultural background
and cannot take them
into consideration. Is
usually the passive
participant in
interactions.
Uses the
communication
strategies of the
native language:
- gathers important
information but sums
up things outside the
main message
- does not know the
listening strategies of
a foreign language
- is sometimes able to
ask for a clarification
but guesses and
misunderstandings
occur and the student
is not necessarily
able to ask for help
Is only able to use
short sentences.
Pauses, wrong
beginnings and
rephrasing can
clearly be heard.
Conversationalists
need to ask the
speakers to repeat
themselves from time
to time.
The vocabulary is
extensive enough to
handle common,
predictable situations
but even in those the
speaker has to limit
the contents of the
message and to
search for words.
Pronunciation is
usually clear enough
to be understood,
despite the foreign
accent.