Trinity’s GESE qualifications equip people with the English speaking and listening skills they need for life in the 21st century. Candidates typically range from schoolchildren and college students to mature learners wanting to improve their English for study, travel, employment or immigration purposes. Trinity’s GESE exams assess a range of speaking and listening skills and test what a candidate can actually do, rather than just what they know. Preparation for GESE exams focuses on the development of authentic communicative skills and on building the confidence to use English in real life.
| Communicative skills | * Exchange greetings with the examiner * Show understanding of simple instructions through appropriate actions * Give very short answers to simple questions and requests for information |
| Lexis | The candidate is expected to demonstrate the ability to understand and use vocabulary related to: * Personal information * Immediate surroundings including classroom objects * Basic parts of the face and body * Common animals (domestic, farm and wild) * Cardinal numbers up to 20 * Colours * Everyday items of clothing * Words relating to the language functions listed above |
| Total Exam Time | 5 mins |
| Communicative skills | * Understand short, simple questions, requests and statements * Respond with appropriate actions and positive and negative short form answers * Contribute to the conversation using memorised phrases and short statements * Use a basic range of words and simple phrases related to personal details and situations * Ask for very basic personal information, eg about possessions |
| Lexis | The candidate is expected to demonstrate the ability to understand and use vocabulary related to: * Rooms in the home * Household objects * Family and friends * Pets * Possessions * Days of the week and months of the year * Cardinal numbers up to 50 * Words and phrases relating to the language functions listed above |
| Total Exam Time | 6 mins |
| Communicative skills | * Show understanding by responding appropriately to simple questions and requests * Use basic sentence patterns and phrases to communicate limited information related to simple everyday situations * Exchange basic information about everyday life and activities by asking and answering simple questions * Link groups of words in a very simple way using and, and then |
| Lexis | The candidate is expected to demonstrate the ability to understand and use vocabulary related to: * Jobs * Places in the local area * Place of study * Home life * Weather * Free time * Times and dates * Ordinal numbers up to 31st for dates * Words and phrases relating to the language functions listed above |
| Total Exam Time | 7 mins |
| Exam Format | The exam consists of two assessed phases 1) Discussion of a topic prepared by the candidate (up to 5 minutes) 2) Conversation on two subject areas selected by the examiner (up to 5 minutes). |
| Communicative skills | In the Topic phase * Give information about the prepared topic in a series of limited long turns about the four discussion points on the topic form * Answer questions on the prepared topic and participate in informal discussion, during which the examiner might request more information, facts or details * Ask the examiner at least one question about the topic area * Take the opportunity provided to include samples of the language functions and language items listed opposite, where appropriate In the Conversation phase * Show understanding of the examiner by responding appropriately to questions * Make appropriate contributions with short statements * Communicate limited information in simple and direct exchanges |
| Lexis | Vocabulary specific to the topic area * Vocabulary specific to the subject areas * Adverbs of frequency, eg sometimes, often, never * Adverbial phrases of frequency, eg every day, once a week * Expressions of past time, eg yesterday, last night * Phrases and expressions relating to the language functions listed above Subject areas for the Conversation phase Two subject areas will be selected by the examiner from the list below. * Holidays * Shopping * School and work * Hobbies and sports * Food * Weekend and seasonal activities |
| Total Exam Time | 10 mins |
| Exam Format | The exam consists of two assessed phases 1) Discussion of a topic prepared by the candidate (up to 5 minutes) 2) Conversation on two subject areas selected by the examiner (up to 5 minutes). |
| Communicative skills | In the Topic phase * Show understanding of the examiner by responding appropriately to questions * Give information about the prepared topic in a series of linked long turns about the five discussion points on the topic form * Answer questions on the prepared topic, and participate in an informal discussion of the topic, during which the examiner will request more information, facts or details * Respond to requests for clarification and give reasons for making articular statements * Ask the examiner at least one question about the topic area * Take the opportunity provided to use the language functions and language items listed opposite, where appropriate In the Conversation phase * Show understanding of the examiner by responding appropriately to questions * Respond to requests for clarification and give reasons for making particular statements * Ask the examiner at least one question about a subject area |
| Lexis | Vocabulary specific to the topic area * Vocabulary specific to the subject areas * Expressions relating to past and future time, eg two days ago, in the future * Phrases and expressions relating to the language functions listed above Two subject areas will be selected by the examiner from the list below. * Festivals * Means of transport * Special occasions, eg birthday celebrations * Entertainment, eg cinema, television, clubs * Music * Recent personal experiences |
| Total Exam Time | 10 mins |