Thanks to everyone who sponsored me in my personal Linguathon.  As promised, I wrote the B2 level of the DELF French examination last week.  I imagine that it will take some time before I receive my actual score, but I thought I could post a simple summary of the structure of the test and how I thought it went.

At the outset, I should note that the pass/fail line, or  « Seuil de réussite pour obtenir le diplôme », is 50%.  Having said that, one must obtain a score of at least 20% in each of the areas listed below to receive the diploma.    This is quite similar to most standard language tests that I’ve seen, including English ones.  One notable exception is the highest level of the Japanese proficiency exam, which requires that you obtain a mark of 70% in order to pass(!)

With that cleared up, here is…

Flickr: PaintedWorksByKB

Before I head off to Australia in two months’ time, I’ve decided to sign up for the Diplôme Approfondi de la Langue Francaise – Niveau C2. When I tell people about it, they almost almost respond with, « Why? You already speak French! ». I’m not sure if it’s because of my love for standardised testing, being a TOEFL and TOEIC teacher myself, or if it could be my frustration at my French not being perfect yet, after so many years studying. I would just love to have a certificate that said I was at C2 level! I honestly doubt that it will get any better once I’m back down under.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the test, the DALF C2 is an exam that is made up of two parts: a listening and speaking part, and a reading and writing part. For the first part…

As promised IRL to a few people, I wanted to write a debrief on the DALF C1 which I took last month.  My advice can be summed up in one phrase: Just showing up is 80% of the battle. One you have hit a certain level in French, the only thing you need for the DALF is to learn the strategies on how to take the test and PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE.  I was in class two hours a week and probably worked two to four hours a week on homework on top of it.

The test is in four parts:

1. Oral comprehension: If you don’t have this on lock, this is the hardest part of the test. You either have it or you don’t, and the only way to get better at it is to listen to the radio and tv or podcasts.  Some of the review books…