The qualification has a focus on applying language skills in everyday UK situations, emphasising practical application of skills needed to succeed in everyday life and study in the UK

The target users for this qualifications are as follows:

1. Settled communities, including communities from the Asian sub-continent and Hong Kong. Some would-be learners work long and irregular hours and therefore cannot attend classes regularly.
2. Refugees in the categories of:

   • asylum seekers, most of whom are very keen to learn despite the challenges of resettlement and the trauma from their recent experiences
   • settled refugees, many of whom have had professional jobs in the past, though some may have suffered a disrupted education due to war and unrest
3. Migrant workers who work or settle in the UK for most of their lives
4. Partners and spouses of learners from all parts of the world who may have been settled for a number of years and need to participate in the local community but are prevented by family responsibilities or low income from attending EFL courses
5. Full or part-time post-16 learners who have had part of their school education in Britain, but who want to continue studying English language to support their employment or higher education aims.

These varied groups have different language needs arising from their diverse language, educational and professional/employment backgrounds. Some learners may have no previous education or employment, or they might be highly educated professionals or have the ability to speak several languages

The qualification consists of three mandatory units:

At this level, adults can:

• Listen and respond to spoken language, including straightforward information, short narratives, explanations and instructions
• speak to communicate information, feelings and opinions on familiar topics
• engage in discussion with one or more people in a familiar situation, to establish shared understanding about familiar topics

An adult will be expected to:

At this level, adults can:

• write to communicate Information with some awareness of the intended audience

An adult will be expected to

• use written words & phrases to record or present info
• construct simple and compound sentences, using common conjunctions to connect two clauses
• use adjectives
• use punctuation correctly
• use a capital letter for proper nouns
• spell correctly the majority of personal details and familiar common words
• produce legible text

At this level, adults can:  

An adult will be expected to:

• trace & understand the main events of chronological and instructional texts
• recognise the different purposes of texts at this level
• identify common sources of information
• use illustrations and captions to locate information
• read and understand linking words and adverbials in instructions and directions
• read and understand words on forms related to personal information
• recognise high frequency words and words with common spelling patterns
• use phonic & graphic knowledge to decode words
• use a simplified dictionary to find the meaning of unfamiliar words
• use initial letters to find and sequence words in alphabetical order

To achieve a certificate at each level a candidate must complete all three mandatory units. Candidates can achieve at different levels but the certificate will be at the lowest level of achievement.

The principles for awarding and reporting on achievement in unitized ESOL qualifications are as follows:

Achievement of individual units will be communicated to candidates by a Certificate of Unit Credit, which will clearly indicate that it is for a unit contributing to a qualification, not for a whole qualification. A qualification certificate will only be used for achievement of a whole qualification.

When candidates take the activities in one mode at a higher level than the others and are successful, they will obtain the qualification at the level of the lowest mode. They can then carry forward the unit/s achieved at the higher level until such point as they are ready to be assessed in that level’s remaining unit/s. They can then receive the full qualification at the higher level. This caters for the different levels, amongst individual learners, of performance in the three modes.

Candidates must be registered for the level of the award at which they will be seeking certification.

Details of how candidates can build up achievement in different modes at different times to achieve the overall qualification is listed below.

All of the ESOL standards are assessed through a single assignment at each level. The assessment is primarily through integrated assignments which combine modes of language as they are in real life. All assessments also allow for separate assessment and certification by individual mode.

Assignments are built around themes. Each assignment is set in a real or realistic situation, and takes candidates through a series of related and usually sequential activities which together assess the standards at that level, drawing context from the Curriculum. Each assignment is also capable of leading to individual unit certification.

Where a candidate has not correctly completed one of the assignments on the first presentation, the tutor is able to give feedback and further tutoring if required, then offer one of the remaining assignments. (A candidate may not submit the same assignment more than once). On satisfactory completion of one assignment, the candidate will have covered 100% of the ESOL standards and all of the evidence necessary for certification

You will have an initial interview and assessment to establish your level of English in reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Candidates should not be registered with another Awarding Body for a qualification at the same level with the same title.

The City and Guilds 3692 scheme at Entry Level provides a base for progression onto Levels 1 and 2 of ESOL or of adult literacy, and the key skill in communication.