pte academic tutorial - pte-blog.com · pte academic: reading item overview i tem task skills...
TRANSCRIPT
1
PTE Academ ic
Tutorial
September 2011
Version 7
© Pearson Educat ion Ltd 2011. No part of this publicat ion may be reproduced without the pr ior perm ission of Pearson Educat ion Ltd 2011.
2
I m portant Test Tips
Do
Use correct punctuat ion for writ ing tasks: full stops, capital let ters, com m as, etc
Answ er the quest ion. I f the quest ion asks you to write or speak about sport , write or speak about ‘sport ’
NOT ‘science’
Keep st r ict ly w ithin the w ord lim it given for writ ing tasks
Respond quickly and keep speaking during speaking tasks. The m icrophone will close after 3 seconds of
silence and stop recording
Don’t W rite ENTI RELY in capital let ters. Only use capitals when needed: at the beginning of sentences,
nam es, etc
Click Next before you have com pleted the task and are ready to m ove on
3
Contents
Sect ion Skills I tem Type Page
Overview Test Overview 1
I tem Overview 2-4
Test I nt roduct ion 5-6
Speaking and W rit ing Part 1 Overview 7
Speaking Personal int roduct ion 8
Speaking & Reading Read aloud 9
Speaking & Listening Repeat sentence 10
Speaking Describe im age 11
Speaking & Listening Re- tell lecture 12
Speaking & Listening Answer short quest ion 13
Writ ing Sum m arize writ ten text 14
Writ ing Write essay 15
Reading Part 2 Overview 16
Reading Mult iple-choice, choose single answer 17
Reading Mult iple-choice, choose m ult iple answers 18
Reading Re-order paragraphs 19
Reading Fill in the blanks 20
Reading & Writ ing Fill in the blanks 21
Opt ional Break 22
Listening Part 3 Overview 23
Listening & Writ ing Sum m arize spoken text 24
Listening Mult iple-choice, choose m ult iple answers 25
Listening & Writ ing Fill in the blanks 26
Listening & Reading Highlight correct sum m ary 27
Listening Mult iple-choice, choose single answer 28
Listening Select m issing word 29
Listening & Reading Highlight incorrect words 30
Listening & Writ ing Write from dictat ion 31
PTE Academ ic: Glossary
1
Recording status box Audio status box
Current status
Volume control bar
Progress bar
Response box
Cut, Copy, Paste buttons
Word Count
Timer
Next button
PTE Academ ic: Test
Overview
PTE Academ ic is designed to test your
English reading, writ ing, listening and
speaking skills.
The test takes approxim ately three
hours to com plete. This includes an
un- t im ed int roduct ion to the test and one
opt ional scheduled break of up to 1 0
m inutes.
There are three t im ed parts:
Speaking and writ ing
Reading
Listening
Each part m ay contain a num ber of
sect ions. Each sect ion is individually
t im ed.
1
2
PTE Academ ic: Speaking and Writ ing I tem Overview
I tem Task Skills assessed Prom pt length Tim e to answ er
Read aloud A text appears on screen. Read the text
aloud reading and speaking text up to 60 words
var ies by item ,
depending on the
length of text
Repeat
sentence
After listening to a recording of a
sentence, repeat the sentence
listening and
speaking 3-9 seconds
15 seconds
Describe
im age
An im age appears on screen. Describe
the im age in detail speaking N/ A
40 seconds
Re- tell
lecture
After listening to or watching a lecture,
re- tell the lecture in your own words
listening and
speaking up to 90 seconds
40 seconds
Answ er short
quest ion
After listening to a quest ion, answer with
a single word or a few words
listening and
speaking 3-9 seconds 10 seconds
Sum m arize
w rit ten text
After reading a text , write a one-
sentence sum m ary of the passage reading and writ ing text up to 300 words 10 m inutes
W rite essay Write a 200–300 word essay on a given
topic writ ing 2-3 sentences 20 m inutes
3
PTE Academ ic: Reading I tem Overview
I tem Task Skills assessed Prom pt length
Mult iple- choice,
choose single
answ er
After reading a text , answer a m ult iple-choice quest ion on the
content or tone of the text by select ing one response reading
text up to 110
words
Mult iple- choice,
choose m ult iple
answ ers
After reading a text , answer a m ult iple-choice quest ion on the
content or tone of the text by select ing m ore than one response reading
text up to 300
words
Re- order
paragraphs
Several text boxes appear on screen in a random order. Put the
text boxes in the correct order reading
text up to 150
words
Reading: Fill in the
blanks
A text appears on screen with several gaps. Drag words from the
box below to fill the gaps reading
text up to 80
words
Reading and
W rit ing: Fill in the
blanks
A text appears on screen with several gaps. Fill in each gap from a
drop-down list of response opt ions reading and writ ing
text up to 300
words
4
PTE Academ ic: Listening I tem Overview
I tem Task Skills assessed Prom pt length
Sum m arize
spoken text After listening to a recording, write a 50-70 word sum m ary listening and writ ing 60-90 seconds
Mult iple choice,
choose m ult iple
answ ers
After listening to a recording, answer a m ult iple-choice quest ion on
the content or tone of the recording by select ing m ore than one
response
listening 40-90 seconds
Fill in the blanks A t ranscript of a recording appears on screen with several gaps.
After listening to the recording, type the m issing word in each gap listening and writ ing 30-60 seconds
Highlight correct
sum m ary
After listening to a recording, select the paragraph that best
sum m arizes the recording
listening and
reading 30-90 seconds
Mult iple choice,
choose single
answ er
After listening to a recording, answer a m ult iple-choice quest ion on
the content or tone of the recording by select ing one response listening 30-60 seconds
Select m issing
w ord
After listening to a recording, select the m issing word that
com pletes the recording from a list of opt ions listening 20-70 seconds
Highlight
incorrect w ords
The t ranscript of a recording appears on screen. While listening to
the recording, ident ify the words in the t ranscr ipt that differ from
what is said
listening and
reading 15-50 seconds
W rite from
dictat ion After listening to a recording of a sentence, type the sentence listening and writ ing 3-5 seconds
PTE Academ ic: Test
I nt roduct ion
There is an unt im ed Test I nt roduct ion
at the start of the test .
NDA Rem inder
You are rem inded of the non-disclosure
agreem ent you signed as part of the
term s and condit ions of the test .
5
6
Equipm ent Check
You have an opportunity to check you have the
correct keyboard and that the headset and
m icrophone are working.
Test I nform at ion
You receive further inform at ion about what to
expect during the test in the Test I nt roduct ion.
7
Part 1 : Overview
I n Part 1 you are tested m ainly on your Speaking
and W rit ing skills. You are rem inded of what to and
what not to do in the test . Pay close at tent ion to this or
you w ill lose score points or score zero in som e
cases.
Speaking sect ion 1 contains the Personal int roduct ion.
Speaking sect ion 2 contains a num ber of item types
where you first listen to an audio, then respond into the
m icrophone.
Listening: The Current Status counts down unt il the audio
clip begins to play. When the progress bar reaches the
r ight hand side the audio clip stops playing.
Speaking: The Current Status counts down unt il the
m icrophone opens. Start speaking when the status
changes to Recording. Som e item types have a short tone
to indicate the end of the preparat ion t im e.
You m ust finish before the progress bar reaches the r ight
hand side. I f you rem ain silent for longer than 3
seconds, the recording w ill stop . You will not be able
to re- record.
W rit ing sect ions 3 - 6 contain a num ber of individually-
t im ed item s. You are required to write two sum m aries and
one essay OR three sum m aries and one essay OR two
sum m aries and two essays.
8
Speaking: Personal
int roduct ion
This is an opportunity to give your
selected inst itut ions som e
inform at ion about yourself. This
item is not scored.
The recording status box displays a
countdown unt il the m icrophone opens.
You have 2 5 seconds to prepare .
After the tone, start speaking
im m ediately. Do not start speaking
before the m icrophone opens because
your voice will not be recorded.
You should speak clearly. There is no
need to rush.
You have 3 0 seconds to record your
response . Finish speaking before the
progress bar reaches the end. The word
“Recording” changes to “Com pleted’’.
You are only able to record your
answer once.
Your response will be sent together
with your score report to the
inst itut ions selected by you.
9
For this item type you need to read
a w rit ten text a loud.
The recording status box displays a
countdown unt il the m icrophone opens.
You have 3 0 - 4 0 seconds to prepare ,
depending on the length of the
passage. You hear a short tone. After
the tone, start speaking im m ediately.
Do not start speaking before the
m icrophone opens because your voice
will not be recorded.
You should speak clearly. There is no
need to rush.
Finish speaking before the progress bar
reaches the end. The word “Recording”
changes to “Com pleted” .
You are only able to record your
response once.
Speaking & Reading: Read aloud
10
For this item type you need to
repeat the sentence you hear.
The audio begins to plays autom at ically.
When the audio finishes, the m icrophone
opens and the recording status box
shows “Recording” . Speak into the
m icrophone im m ediately ( there is no
short tone) and repeat exact ly what you
heard.
You should speak clearly. There is no
need to rush.
Finish speaking before the progress bar
reaches the end. The word “Recording”
changes to “Com pleted” .
You are not able to replay the audio. You
are only able to record your response
once.
Speaking & Listening: Repeat sentence
11
For this item type you need to
describe an im age.
The recording status box displays a
countdown unt il the m icrophone opens.
You have 2 5 seconds to study the
im age and prepare your response .
You hear a short tone. After the tone,
start speaking im m ediately. Do not
start speaking before the m icrophone
opens because your voice will not be
recorded.
You should speak clearly. There is no
need to rush.
Finish speaking before the progress bar
reaches the end. The word “Recording”
changes to “Com pleted’’.
You are only able to record your
response once.
Speaking: Describe im age
12
For this item type you need to re- tell
w hat you heard .
The audio begins to play autom at ically.
You m ay also see an im age related to
the audio. After the audio finishes, you
have 1 0 seconds to prepare .
The recording status box displays a
countdown unt il the m icrophone opens.
You hear a short tone. After the tone,
start speaking im m ediately. Do not start
speaking before the m icrophone opens
because your voice will not be recorded.
You should speak clearly. There is no
need to rush.
Finish speaking before the progress bar
reaches the end. The word “Recording”
changes to “Com pleted’’.
You are only able to record your
response once.
Note: While the audio is playing, you can
take notes on the erasable noteboard
provided.
Speaking & Listening: Re- tell lecture
13
For this item type you need to reply
to the quest ion in one or a few
w ords.
The audio begins to play autom at ically.
You m ay also see an im age.
When the audio finishes, the m icrophone
opens and the recording status box
shows “Recording” . Speak into the
m icrophone im m ediately ( there is no
short tone) and answer the quest ion
with one or a few words.
You should speak clearly. There is no
need to rush.
Finish speaking before the progress bar
reaches the end. The word “Recording”
changes to “Com pleted” .
You are not able to replay the audio. You
are only able to record your response
once.
Speaking & Listening: Answer short quest ion
14
W rit ing: Sum m arize writ ten text
For this item type you need to w rite
a sum m ary of the text in one
sentence.
You have 1 0 m inutes to w rite your
sum m ary . Make sure to include the
m ain points of the reading passage in a
full, single sentence of no m ore than
7 5 w ords.
The Word Count at the bot tom of the
screen counts the num ber of words you
write. There are also cut , copy and paste
but tons which you m ay use while
const ruct ing your sum m ary.
Cut: Select text from your answer that
you wish to rem ove and left -click “Cut ” .
Copy: Select text from your answer that
you wish to copy and left -click “Copy” .
Paste : Place the cursor where you wish
to paste the cut / copied text and left -click
“Paste” .
15
For this item type you need to
w rite a 2 0 0 - 3 0 0 w ord
argum entat ive essay in response to
a prom pt .
You have 2 0 m inutes to w rite your
essay.
The Word Count at the bot tom of the
screen counts the num ber of words you
write. Make sure to write a m inim um
of 2 0 0 w ords, but no m ore than 3 0 0
w ords.
There are also cut , copy and paste
but tons which you m ay choose to use
while const ruct ing your response.
Cut: Select text from your answer that
you wish to rem ove and left -click “Cut ” .
Copy: Select text from your answer
that you wish to copy and left -click
“Copy” .
Paste: Place the cursor where you wish
to paste the cut / copied text and left -
click “Paste” .
W rit ing: Write essay
16
Part 2 : Overview
I n Part 2 you are tested m ainly on
your reading skills.
Part 2 contains a single t im ed sect ion.
Read the inst ruct ions to each quest ion
carefully and answer as directed.
17
For this item type you need to read
the passage and answ er the
m ult iple- choice quest ion.
There are several possible response
opt ions but only one is correct .
To select an opt ion click on it using the
left but ton on your m ouse. I f you change
your m ind, left -click on the opt ion again
to deselect it , or left -click on a different
opt ion.
The opt ion you select is highlighted in
yellow.
Reading: Mult iple-choice, choose single answer
Reading: Mult iple-choice, choose m ult iple answers
For this item type you need to read
the passage and answ er the
m ult iple- choice quest ion. There is
m ore than one correct response .
You need to select all the response
opt ions that you think are correct from
the list of possible opt ions.
To select an opt ion click on it using the
left but ton on your m ouse. I f you change
your m ind, left -click on the opt ion again
to deselect it .
The opt ions you select are highlighted in
yellow.
18
19
Reading: Re-order paragraphs
For this item type you need to
restore the original order of the text
by select ing text boxes and dragging
them across the screen.
There are two ways you can m ove the
text :
1. Left -click on a box to select it ( it will
be out lined in blue) , hold the left m ouse
but ton down and drag it to the desired
locat ion.
2. Left -click on a box to select it , and
then left -click on the left and r ight arrow
but tons to m ove it across. On the r ight
panel, you can also use the up and down
arrow but tons to re-order the boxes.
To deselect a box, left -click elsewhere on
the screen.
Reading: Fill in the blanks
For this item type you need to drag
and drop w ords across the screen
to correct ly fill in the gaps in the
text .
There is a passage with som e m issing
words. You have a list of words in the
blue box that you can use to fill the
gaps in the text . There are m ore
w ords than gaps so you will not use
all the words provided.
Left -click on a word to select it ; keep
the left m ouse but ton held down and
drag the word to the gap where you
want to place it . You can also drag
words between gaps. To rem ove a word
from a gap, drag it back to the blue
box.
20
21
Reading & W rit ing: Fill in the blanks
For this item type you need select
the m ost appropriate w ords from a
drop- dow n list to restore the text .
There is a passage with som e m issing
words. Beside each gap, there is a
but ton with a drop-down list . Left -click
on this but ton to reveal the drop-down
list of opt ions for that gap. Select the
opt ion you think best fills the gap.
To change your m ind, left -click on a
different opt ion.
Opt ional Break
After Part 2 you have the opt ion to
take a break. The total t im e
available is 1 0 m inutes, but you
should allow up to 5 m inutes to sign
back in and be seated.
I f you want to take a break, you m ust
leave the
test ing room .
I f you spend m ore than 10 m inutes in
total on the break, that t im e is taken
from the next part of the test .
I f you want to take a break, raise your
hand to signal the Test Adm inist rator.
When you return to your seat ,
rem em ber to put your headset on ready
for Part 3.
22
23
Part 3 : Overview
I n Part 3 you are tested m ainly on
your listening skills.
This part consists of quest ions that are
based on audio or video clips which
begin to play autom at ically. You hear
each audio or video clip only once so
listen carefully. You are allowed to take
notes.
For each quest ion you have the
opportunity to adjust the volum e. While
the audio clip is playing, m ove the
cont rol bar to the r ight to increase the
volum e or to the left to decrease the
volum e.
24
Listening & W rit ing: Sum m arize spoken text
For this item type you hear an audio
recording and need to w rite a 5 0 - 7 0
w ord sum m ary on w hat you heard.
You have 1 0 m inutes to w rite your
sum m ary .
The audio begins to play autom at ically.
You are only able to listen to the audio
recording once.
The Word Count at the bot tom of the
screen counts the num ber of words you
write. Make sure to write a m inim um of
5 0 w ords, but no m ore than 7 0
w ords.
There are also cut , copy and paste
but tons which you m ay choose to use
while const ruct ing your sum m ary.
Cut: Select text from your answer that
you wish to rem ove and left -click “Cut ” .
Copy: Select text from your answer that
you wish to copy and left -click “Copy” .
Paste: Place the cursor where you wish to paste the cut / copied text and left -click
“ Paste” .
Listening: Mult iple-choice, choose m ult iple answers
For this item type you need to listen
to the recording and answ er the
m ult iple- choice quest ion. There is
m ore than one correct response .
The audio begins to play autom at ically.
You are only able to listen to the audio
recording once.
You need to select all the response
opt ions that you think are correct from
the list of possible opt ions.
To select an opt ion click on it using the
left but ton on your m ouse. I f you change
your m ind, left -click on the opt ion again
to deselect it .
The opt ions you select are highlighted in
yellow.
25
26
Listening & W rit ing: Fill in the blanks
For this item type you are presented
w ith a t ranscript of the audio
recording, how ever som e w ords are
m issing. Restore the t ranscript by
typing in the m issing w ords.
The audio plays autom at ically. You are
only able to listen to the audio recording
once.
Left -click on each gap and type in the
m issing word. You can also use the Tab
but ton on the keyboard to m ove between
gaps.
Note: While the audio is playing, you can
take notes on the erasable noteboard
provided and then fill in the gaps.
Listening & Reading: Highlight correct sum m ary
For this item type you need to select
the sum m ary that best m atches the
recording.
The audio begins to play autom at ically.
You are only able to listen to the audio
recording once.
There are several possible response
opt ions but only one is correct .
To select an opt ion click on it using the
left but ton on your m ouse. I f you change
your m ind, left -click on the opt ion again
to deselect it , or left -click on a different
opt ion.
The opt ion you select is highlighted in
yellow.
Note: I t m ay be difficult to read and
listen at the sam e t im e. I t is
recom m ended that you listen first , m ake
notes on the erasable noteboard and
then read the sum m aries.
27
Listening: Mult iple-choice, choose single answer
For this item type you need to
listen to the recording and answ er
the m ult iple- choice quest ion.
The audio begins to play autom at ically.
You are only able to listen to the audio
recording once.
There are several possible response
opt ions but only one is correct .
To select an opt ion click on it using the
left but ton on your m ouse. I f you
change your m ind, left -click on the
opt ion again to deselect it , or left -click
on a different opt ion.
The opt ion you select is highlighted in
yellow.
28
Listening: Select m issing word
For this item type the last w ord or
group of w ords in the recording has
been replaced by a beep. Select the
m ost appropriate opt ion to com plete
the recording.
The audio begins to play autom at ically.
You are only able to listen to the audio
recording once.
There are several possible response
opt ions but only one is correct .
To select an opt ion click on it using the
left but ton on your m ouse. I f you change
your m ind, left -click on the opt ion again
to deselect it , or left -click on a different
opt ion.
The opt ion you select is highlighted in
yellow.
29
30
Listening & Reading: Highlight incorrect words
For this item type you are presented
w ith a t ranscript of the audio
recording, how ever the t ranscript
contains som e errors. W hile
listening and reading, you need to
select the w ords in the text that
differ from w hat the speaker says.
The audio begins to plays autom at ically.
You are only able to listen to the audio
recording once.
To select a word click on it using the left
but ton on your m ouse. I f you change
your m ind, left -click on the word again
to deselect it .
The words you select are highlighted in
yellow.
31
Listening & W rit ing: Write from dictat ion
For this item type you hear a short
sentence. Type the sentence into the
response box at the bot tom of the
screen.
The audio begins to play autom at ically.
You are only able to listen to the audio
recording once.
Note: While the audio is playing, you can
take notes on the erasable noteboard
provided.
Rem em ber to check your spelling.
Acknow ledgem ents
The copyright in this docum ent is ow ned by Edexcel. I n the case of 3 rd party m ateria l, every
effort has been m ade to contact copyright holders to obtain their perm ission for the use of
m ateria l.
"Using SPSS for W indow s and Macintosh Analyzing and Understanding Data",
Samuel Green and Neil Salkind, I nternat ional Edit ion, 5th Edit ion, Sep 2007
"Gorilla Dist r ibut ion" © TigerHomes.Org
"Left on the Shelf: Dealing w ith Product Recall" , AON Risk Bullet ing, I ssue 124 Jan 18th 2007
"The Green Heart of Sum atra" , Michael Sullivan, Morning Edit ion © 2007 NPR , August 8 2006
“Com e rain or shine – W eather r isk” © The Econom ist Newspaper LTD, London 10.02. 2007
“Educat ion for All and Mult igrade Teaching” ed. Angela W. Lit t le. The I ndependent , 2007
“Lean Product ion” , Copyright © 2000 S-Cool Lim ited
32
“Sydney Turns Off Lights for 'Earth Hour'” , Phil Mercer, By perm ission VOA, 01.04. 2007
“The Northw est Passage” , PBS Nova: WGBH Science Unit Podcast © 1996-2007 WGBH Educat ional Foundat ion, January 22
2007
33
34