What is my English level?

Audio: 5 min. 51 sec.

How do I know my level? (HARD)

IELTS, C1, Upper-intermediate; When you are studying English you might hear all these terms used but have no idea what they mean.

Let's take an in-depth look to clear up confusion and help you identify your English level!

THE THREE SCALES

When it comes to grading your English level, you will usually see one of three descriptors: An IELTS score, a difficulty level, or a number-letter pair (A1, B2, etc.).

This last one is called the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, or CEFR, and it's the main system that is used to describe ability level.

The CEFR starts at A1 (Total Beginner) and proceeds through A2(Elementary), B1(Intermediate), B2(Upper-Intermediate), C1(Advanced) and C2(Completely fluent).

The IELTS score is on a scale of 1-9 and is measured in half-steps (1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, etc.).

This score can be directly compared to the CEFR score but it's a little bit tricky because it isn't exactly equal. 4.0 in IELTS is equal to about B1, with each further step an increase of about 1.5 band scores per level.

So, B2 is about equal to a 5.5, C1 is about equal to a 7.0 and finally C2 is about to equal to an 8.5.

You can use this to effectively find appropriate resources for yourself as most textbooks and other language materials will use one of these scales.

However, as well as the three scales, you will also need to look at what the main language skills are in more detail…

THE CORE SKILLS

Language learning can be divided into 4 primary skills: READING, WRITING, SPEAKING and LISTENING.

Each of these skills can be measured using the previously mentioned scales. So, you might be at a B2 level in reading and listening but a B1 in writing and speaking.

In the IELTS and Cambridge Certificate exams, the tests are separated into these 4 skills and the final score is measured as an average.

As an example, you might receive a 5.5 in Reading, a 5.5 in Speaking, a 5.0 in Listening and a 6.0 in Writing, which would be an overall result of 5.5.

When trying to study a language, it can sometimes feel impossible to improve no matter how much effort you put in, but this might be because you are using resources that are beyond your level.

If you have equally good speaking, writing and reading but your listening is lower by an entire band score or CEFR level, you might need to get materials more specific to your INDIVIDUAL skill levels.

As well as the 4 primary skills, there are two other aspects of language learning to keep in mind…

GRAMMAR AND VOCABULARY

Unlike the other skills, it can be difficult to estimate your knowledge of grammar and vocabulary because none of the three scales clearly correspond to these two skills.

To measure vocabulary, you can try reading materials at a certain level (for example articles from an intermediate textbook) and ask yourself how confident you feel in understanding the topics and terms used.

Your knowledge of word families, dependent prepositions and synonyms/antonyms is also an important aspect for assessing your ability.

Measuring grammar is probably the hardest part of identifying your level and will need a very careful approach.

All grammar has “metalanguage”, or the specific name for each structure (For example, “Present Simple” or “Conditionals”), and a good way to evaluate your level here is to make a list of the structures you know.

Although the number of known structures doesn’t equate to a specific level, the more you know and feel confident with, the better your grammar ability is.

SO HOW DO I KNOW MY LEVEL?

The best way to evaluate your level is to find a practice exam that tests each skill.

Depending on where you live it is possible to organise to do a practice exam for IELTS or a Cambridge test like PET or FCE.

Using one of these tests is the most effective way to identify your ability because your skills are judged by a professional.

If the idea of doing an exam makes you nervous or you are unable to access a service like that, don’t worry!

You can still figure out what is appropriate for you by previewing English textbooks.

I would recommend you start by taking a look at any elementary or intermediate textbooks you can get your hands on and deciding how confident you feel as you read them.

If you are familiar with the content (and that means ALL of the content), then you can try flipping through higher level books.

Establishing what your skill level is before you make a study plan is an essential step, so make sure you do this if you have any doubts about your level!