阿斯顿英语·ASTONIAN

SAT exam training

The SAT is the most widely taken standardized college admissions test in the USA, with over 1.5 million test takers.  While the goal of the student is to score as high as possible, the goal of the creators of the SAT is to create a test that gets similar results every year.  In order to achieve this, they must determine how American high school students think.  In order for students to improve their SAT score, Aston’s training program combines English language skills training with an introduction to American youth culture and education methodology.

The Aston training program provides comprehensive training around the three key language skills covered in the exam and realistic practice opportunities for both test formats based on training delivered by experienced trainers in the three skills:

 

Writing

 

The SAT Writing section tests a student’s writing skills and grammar in the form of multiple-choice questions and an essay.  Aston’s SAT writing training teaches students how to efficiently layout and structure their essays for maximum effect using well supported and linguistically accurate argument that provides facts and supported opinion designed to get the best results from their writing test score.  Students will gain valuable proofreading skills in order to identify sentence errors and improve sentence construction and word choice.  In addition, teachers will prepare students for ever-present “trap” questions that can cost valuable points.

 

Critical Reading

 

Aston’s Critical Reading (CR) training allows students to understand exactly what to expect from the CR section and how to identify correct answers quickly and accurately.  Students learn to answer questions about attitude and tone, implied information, themes and arguments, as well rhetorical devices such as foreshadowing, allusion, and personification.  A speed-reading workshop increases the test taker’s ability to scan a long or short passage for both detail and inference, while Aston’s SAT vocabulary sheets expand students’ lexicon.

 

Math

 

Most students enter Aston’s Math section training with a solid foundation in algebra, geometry, probability, and statistics.  However, the SAT Math section not only tests a student’s knowledge of math but also their ability to comprehend imbedded questions, word problems, as well as terms in English.  Aston’s Math training equips students with speed-reading skills, strategies for avoiding “trap” answers, and hints for simplifications.

 

 

 

Aston IELTS Programs

Aston has a variety of course options available to other learning institutions wishing to provide IELTS Training. Aside from vocabulary and grammar classes designed around the IELTS exams, we have courses focusing on the key skills areas:

Writing

The IELTS Writing Course covers the writing tasks in the test and. The course focuses on

§   the tasks students have to perform and

§   the marking criteria they will be judged on for each of the tasks.

In the course we teach

§   what to expect in each of the tasks

§   how to go about performing them

§   what the ielts examiner is looking for in answers and

§   how to fulfil the test criteria for each task

 

The course aims to show students how to make the best use of the language skills they already have, and to revise some of those areas of written expression where it’s common for Chinese students to have problems.

Speaking

An advanced speaking training course that covers the three speaking tasks in the test—the task-one interview, the task-two long turn and the task-three two-way discussion. In the course you will learn:

·         what to expect on the test

·         how to go about performing each of the tasks

·         what the IELTS examiner is looking for in answers

·         strategies to deal with difficult questions and

·         how to fulfil the test criteria for each task .

The course aims to help students best make use of the language skills they already have by eradicating “bad speaking habits”, teaching good interviewing strategies, and most importantly building confidence in one-on-one speaking engagements through practice in a controlled environment.

 

Writing

This book is designed to help students learn reading strategies that will not only help them during the IELTS test, but will also benefit them in their daily life.

 

The book will introduce the 9 most common types of tasks students might encounter on the actual IELTS test. The book will walk students through each type of task and explain what they are looking for and any hints that are helpful when dealing with them. Each description will be followed by a reading passage and activities to help your students build proficiency in dealing with those tasks.

 

Listening

There are four sections in the listening test presented in order of increasing difficulty. The first two sections are on topics of general interest such as a report of a lost bag or an introduction to a public facility. Section one will be in the form of a dialogue, section two will be a monologue. The listening is the same whether you are taking the academic or general versions of the IELTS test.

 

Sections three and four will have an education or training focus. There will be a lecture and a discussion between two and four people.

 

Students should write their answers on the question booklet as they listen. At the end of the recorded material they will be given ten minutes to copy their answers onto the answer sheet.

 

Most candidates come out of the listening test not feeling very confident of their answers after listening to the recording only once. For this reason it is very important that students take a number of timed practice listening tests before the actual exam day to become familiar with the style of questions asked, the speed of the speech and to develop the skill of recording their answers as they listen.

 

This course will not only introduce students to the 7 most common task types in the IELTS Listening test, it will also improve their listening skills through practicing prediction, paraphrasing, referencing words, and identifying opinions.

 

This course is designed to improve certain skills students will need in order to pass the IELTS exam. Unlike some other tests, there are no answers to memorize or strategies to taking the test. The IELTS is designed to test the student's actual listening ability. The last section of the course deals with task types and strategies when dealing with these types of questions. During that part of the course, students only hear the recordings once.

 

 

 

TOEFL exam training

Aston provides training services for educational institutions wishing to offer TOEFL Internet based test (iBT) and paper based TOEFL exam preparation courses.

The Aston training program provides comprehensive training around the four key language skills covered in the exam and realistic practice opportunities for both test formats based on training delivered by experienced trainers in the fours skills:

 

Reading

 

Training for the reading exam covers dealing with passages on academic topics; such as the kind of material that might be found in an undergraduate university textbook. Training improves students’ understanding of rhetorical functions such as cause-effect, compare-contrast and argumentation. Students learn to answer questions about main ideas, details, inferences, essential information, sentence insertion, vocabulary, rhetorical purpose and overall ideas. We also have training relating to the new iBT style questions requiring the filling out of tables and completion of summaries.

 

Listening

 

The Listening training component of the course is designed to train students in the key skills necessary for success in either the iBT TOEFL or paper based exam and these include:

-The ability to understand main ideas, important details, implications, relationships between ideas, organization of information, speaker purpose and speaker attitude.

Students achieve these skills and become accustomed to the types of listening passage they are likely to hear in the exams as they get used to listening to passages only the one time before responding.

 

Speaking

 

Students are given ample opportunity to develop speaking and discourse skills through multiple practices and feedback sessions as well as in-depth theory and pronunciation sessions in class.  They are evaluated on their ability to speak spontaneously and convey their ideas clearly and coherently as well as their ability to appropriately synthesize and effectively convey information from the reading and listening material. Students also learn how to make the most of the short preparation time they will get in the exam.

 

Writing

 

Aston’s TOEFL writing training teaches students to summarize effectively and to layout and structure essays for maximum effect using well supported and linguistically accurate argument that provides facts and supported opinion designed to get the best results from their writing test score.

 

 

 

iTEP Exam Overview

 

Purpose: The primary function of the iTEP (International Test of English Proficiency) is to assess the English language proficiency of learners of English as a second language.

 

There are two versions of the test: Academic iTEP, and Business iTEP. While each

addresses different audiences, both share the same general structure.

 

The test will determine an overall proficiency level from 0 (Beginner) to 6 (Advanced), as well as individual proficiency levels from 0 to 6 for each of the five skills tested (Reading, Listening, Grammar, Writing, and Speaking).

 

Test Length: Total actual test time per test-taker will be approximately 80 minutes. In addition to this, the test administrator should allocate an additional 10 minutes for pre-test instructions and questions from the test-takers.

 

Test Structure: The test consists of a short "preliminary" section, and the test itself.

 

Preparation for the test – The following preparation work should be completed before taking the test:

 

l  Candidate Log-In: test-taker filling in his/her Test User ID Number and Password.

l  Registration: completion of a brief registration form; the first letter of the name and country should be capitalized; write “N/A” for items not relevant.

l  Headphones: putting their headphones on whenever they see a picture of a man wearing headphones.

l  Audio Check: adjust the volume level while listening to an audio sample.

l  Voice Recorder Installation: Installing a small software application for test-taker to record responses to questions in the Speaking section.

l  Recording Check: test-taker recording a short speaking sample to confirm that the recorded speech is clearly audible.

l  Timing Tools: Explaining to test-taker the timing mechanisms used throughout the test.

l  Sample registration form for test-taker to fill in:

 

Test Content– The test has five sections presented in the order listed below. Please note that, in each section, test-takers will encounter content and questions targeted at varying levels of proficiency.

 

A. Reading – 20 minutes

1) One intermediate-level passage about 250 words in length followed by 4 written multiple-choice questions; and

2) One college-level monograph approximately 450 words long followed by 6 written

Multiple-choice questions.

 

B. Listening – 20 minutes

1) Four high-beginning to low-intermediate-level short conversational exchanges of 2-3 sentences, each followed by 1 multiple-choice question;

2) One 2- to 3-minute intermediate-level conversational exchange followed by 4 multiple-choice questions; and

3) One 4-minute college-level lecture followed by 6 multiple-choice questions.

 

C. Grammar (Structure) – 10 minutes

Twenty-five written multiple-choice questions, each of which tests the test-taker’s familiarity with a key feature of English structure. The section includes a range of structures from simple to more complex, as well as a range of vocabulary from beginning to advanced. There are two question format types, each illustrated with on-screen examples.

 

D. Writing – 25 minutes

1) In response to instructions phrased at the low-intermediate level, test-taker is asked to write a short note on a supplied topic (5 minutes: 50-75 words); and

2) Test-taker is presented with a brief, college-level written topic and is asked to express and support his/her opinion on the topic (20 minutes: 175-225 words).

 

E. Speaking – 5 minutes

1) Test-taker hears and reads a short question phrased at the low intermediate level; test-taker has 30 seconds to prepare his/her spoken response, and 45 seconds to speak; and

2) Test-taker hears a brief college-level statement presenting two sides of an issue; test-taker is then asked to give his/her thoughts on the topic (45 seconds to prepare,

60 seconds to speak).

 

Delivery Method: The entire test is delivered via the Internet, and must be administered in a secure environment at an approved test center. For the Reading, Listening, and Grammar sections, the test-taker clicks on one of four answer choices for each question. (There are a few exceptions in the Reading section which require the test-taker to use the mouse to drag and drop items or click to insert a new item.) The Writing samples are keyboarded directly into a text entry field. The Speaking samples are recorded with a headset/microphone at the test-taker's computer.

 

Timing Mechanism: Each section has a fixed time allocated to it. If a test-taker completes a section with time left, he/she may advance to the next section. In the Reading and Grammar sections, test-taker are free to use any extra time to review and, if they wish, revise their answers. In the Listening section, review is not possible since the listening selections play only one time. The Writing sections have fixed time limits, but test-takers may advance to the next section before time expires if they wish. The Speaking section has structured time limits, which all test-takers must follow. The directions for each section are displayed for a set amount of time. This amount varies according to the amount of text to be read, and should be adequate for most test-takers. If a test-taker needs more time to read a particular section's directions, he/she can always access them by clicking the "Help" button. This displays a complete menu of directions for all test sections.

 

Transition Screens: Following the Reading, Listening, Grammar, and Writing sections, test-takers see a screen titled, "Beginning Next Section . . . ." These "transition screens" give the test-takers a 15-second break between sections, and display which test sections have been completed and which sections remain. After the last test section (Speaking) is completed, test-takers see an "End of Test" screen – this tells them to wait for further directions from the iTEP administrator.

 

Scoring/Grading: The Reading, Listening, and Grammar sections are scored automatically by the computer, which generates both an index score and a corresponding level (0-6). The Writing and Speaking samples are evaluated by native speakers according to a standardized scoring rubric.

 

Each test section is weighted equally. There is no penalty in the multiple-choice sections for guessing/incorrect answers.

 

The Official Score Report presents an individual's scoring information in both tabular and graphical formats. The graphical format, referred to as the Skill Profile, is particularly useful for displaying a test-taker's strengths and weaknesses in each of the five areas evaluated by the test.

 

The Seven Levels: The seven proficiency levels identified by the test may be expressed briefly as follows:

 

A. Level 0: Beginning

B. Level 1: Elementary

C. Level 2: Low Intermediate

D. Level 3: Intermediate

E. Level 4: High Intermediate

F. Level 5: Low Advanced

G. Level 6: Advanced