On 5 May, 78 students from schools across Catalonia were ushered into the University’s Aula Magna to take the written section of the B1 English exam. With this exam, the Institute for Multilingualism at UIC Barcelona, in partnership with Richmond – the Santillana Group division that specialises in English language teaching materials –, encourages B1 certification among secondary and upper-secondary school students.
The tests used to certify this level are based on the following Richmond materials: High Achievers and Fast Track. The written section of the exam, which took approximately three and a half hours, tests reading comprehension, listening comprehension and written expression. This is the part of the exam that was held at UIC Barcelona. The oral part of the exam will be administered by lecturers from the Institute for Multilingualism at the students' respective schools.
This is the second year that the B1 exam has been promoted with this format: a written exam at UIC Barcelona and the oral exam at the students' schools.
This initiative forms part of the Santillana UIC Barcelona Classroom for Innovation in English Language Teaching, which is directed by Dr Helena Roquet, director of the Institute for Multilingualism.
