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The Proficiency Levels are descriptions of what individuals can do with language in terms of speaking, writing, listening, and reading in real-world situations in a spontaneous and non-rehearsed context.
Students in Level 1 are expected to reach a Novice Mid-Novice High Proficiency Level at completion of that level of study.
Novice Mid students express meaning in highly predictable contexts through the use of memorized and recalled words and phrases. They are best able to understand aural cognates, borrowed words, and high-frequency, highly contextualized words and phrases with repetition. Novice Mid students may be difficult to understand by the most sympathetic listeners and readers accustomed to dealing with language learners. Novice Mid students are inconsistently successful when performing Novice-level tasks.
Novice High students express meaning in simple, predictable contexts through the use of learned and recombined phrases and short sentences. They are best able to understand sentence-length information within highly contextualized situations and sources. Novice High students may generally be understood by sympathetic listeners and readers accustomed to dealing with language learners. Novice High students are consistently successful when performing Novice-level tasks. Novice High students show evidence of Intermediate Low proficiency but lack consistency.
Students in Level 2 are expected to reach a Novice High – Intermediate Low Proficiency Level at completion of that level of study.
Intermediate Low students express meaning in straightforward and personal contexts, by combining and recombining what they know, what they read, and what they hear in short statements and sentences. They are able to understand some information from simple connected statements in oral or written sources. Intermediate Low students are generally understood by sympathetic listeners and readers accustomed to dealing with language learners. Intermediate Low students are inconsistently successful when performing Intermediate-level tasks.
Students in Level 3 are expected to reach Intermediate Low – Intermediate Mid Proficiency Level at completion of that level of study.
Intermediate Mid students express meaning in straightforward and personal contexts, by easily combining and recombining what they know, what they read, and what they hear in short statements and a mixture of sentences and strings of sentences. They are able to understand some information from connected statements in oral or written sources. Intermediate Mid students are generally understood by sympathetic listeners and readers accustomed to dealing with language learners. Intermediate Mid students are consistently successful when performing Intermediate-level tasks.
Language Learners in Level 4 are expected to reach Intermediate Mid – Intermediate High Proficiency Level at completion of that level of study.
Intermediate High students express meaning in a variety of contexts, by creating with the language, easily combining and recombining what they know, what they read, and what they hear in a mixture of sentences and connected discourse. They are able to understand information from connected statements in oral or written sources. Intermediate High students are generally understood by listeners and readers unaccustomed to dealing with language learners. Intermediate High students are consistently successful when performing Intermediate-level tasks. Intermediate High students show evidence of Advanced Low proficiency but lack consistency.