Q: Band 9

Task achievement Fully satisfies all the requirements of the task Clearly presents a fully developed response Coherence and cohesion Uses cohesion in such a way that it attracts no attention Skilfully manages paragraphing Lexical resource Uses a wide range of vocabulary with very natural and sophisticated control of lexical features; rare minor errors occur only as ‘slips’ Grammatical range and accuracy Uses a wide range of structures with full flexibility and accuracy; rare minor errors occur only as ‘slips’

Q: Band 8

Task achievement Covers all requirements of the task sufficiently Presents, highlights and illustrates key features/ bullet points clearly and appropriately Coherence and cohesion Sequences information and ideas logically Manages all aspects of cohesion well Uses paragraphing sufficiently and appropriately Lexical resource Uses a wide range of vocabulary fluently and flexibly to convey precise meanings Skilfully uses uncommon lexical items but there may be occasional inaccuracies in word choice and collocation Produces rare errors in spelling and/or word formation Grammatical range and accuracy Uses a wide range of structures The majority of sentences are error-freeMakes only very occasional errors or inappropriacies

Q: Band 7

Task achievement Covers the requirements of the task (Academic) presents a clear overview of main trends, differences or stages (General Training) presents a clear purpose, with the tone consistent and appropriate Clearly presents and highlights key features/bullet points but could be more fully extended Coherence and cohesion Logically organises information and ideas; there is clear progression throughout Uses a range of cohesive devices appropriately although there may be some under-/over-use Lexical resource Uses a sufficient range of vocabulary to allow some flexibility and precision Uses less common lexical items with some awareness of style and collocation May produce occasional errors in word choice, spelling and/or word formation Grammatical range and accuracy Uses a variety of complex structures Produces frequent error-free sentences Has good control of grammar and punctuation but may make a few errors

Q: Band 6

Task achievement Addresses the requirements of the task (Academic) presents an overview with information appropriately selected (General Training) presents a purpose that is generally clear; there may be inconsistencies in tone Presents and adequately highlights key features/ bullet points but details may be irrelevant, inappropriate or inaccurate Coherence and cohesion Arranges information and ideas coherently and there is a clear overall progression Uses cohesive devices effectively, but cohesion within and/or between sentences may be faulty or mechanical May not always use referencing clearly or appropriately Lexical resource Uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task Attempts to use less common vocabulary but with some inaccuracy Makes some errors in spelling and/or word formation, but they do not impede communication Grammatical range and accuracy Uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms Makes some errors in grammar and punctuation but they rarely reduce communication

Q: Band 5

Task achievement Generally addresses the task; the format may be inappropriate in places (Academic) recounts detail mechanically with no clear overview; there may be no data to support the description (General Training) may present a purpose for the letter that is unclear at times; the tone may be variable and sometimes inappropriate Presents, but inadequately covers, key features/ bullet points; there may be a tendency to focus on details Coherence and cohesion Presents information with some organisation but there may be a lack of overall progression Makes inadequate, inaccurate or over-use of cohesive devices May be repetitive because of lack of referencing and substitution Lexical resource Uses a limited range of vocabulary, but this is minimally adequate for the task Grammatical range and accuracy Uses only a limited range of structures Attempts complex sentences but these tend to be less accurate than simple sentences May make frequent grammatical errors and punctuation may be faulty; errors can cause some difficulty for the reader

Q: Band 4

Task achievement Attempts to address the task but does not cover all key features/bullet points; the format may be inappropriate (General Training) fails to clearly explain the purpose of the letter; the tone may be inappropriate May confuse key features/bullet points with detail; parts may be unclear, irrelevant, repetitive or inaccurate Coherence and cohesion Presents information and ideas but these are not arranged coherently and there is no clear progression in the response Uses some basic cohesive devices but these may be inaccurate or repetitive Lexical resource Uses only basic vocabulary which may be used repetitively or which may be inappropriate for the task Has limited control of word formation and/or spelling; errors may cause strain for the reader Grammatical range and accuracy Uses only a very limited range of structures with only rare use of subordinate clauses Some structures are accurate but errors predominate, and punctuation is often faulty

Q: Band 3

Task achievement Fails to address the task, which may have been completely misunderstood Presents limited ideas which may be largely irrelevant/repetitive Coherence and cohesion Does not organise ideas logically May use a very limited range of cohesive devices, and those used may not indicate a logical relationship between ideas Lexical resource Uses only a very limited range of words and expressions with very limited control of word formation and/or spelling Errors may severely distort the message Grammatical range and accuracy Attempts sentence forms but errors in grammar and punctuation predominate and distort the meaning

Q: Band 2

Task achievement Answer is barely related to the task Coherence and cohesion Has very little control of organisational features Lexical resource Uses an extremely limited range of vocabulary; essentially no control of word formation and/or spelling Grammatical range and accuracy Cannot use sentence forms except in memorised phrase

Q: Band 1

Task achievement Answer is completely unrelated to the task Coherence and cohesion Fails to communicate any message Lexical resource Can only use a few isolated words Grammatical range and accuracy Cannot use sentence forms at all

Q: Band 0

Task achievement Does not attend Does not attempt the task in any way Writes a totally memorised response Coherence and cohesion Does not attend Does not attempt the task in any way Writes a totally memorised response Lexical resource Does not attend Does not attempt the task in any way Writes a totally memorised response Grammatical range and accuracy Does not attend Does not attempt the task in any way Writes a totally memorised response

Question 1

Band 9

Accepted Answer

Task achievement
Fully satisfies all the requirements of the task
Clearly presents a fully developed response
Coherence and cohesion
Uses cohesion in such a way that it attracts no attention
Skilfully manages paragraphing
Lexical resource
Uses a wide range of vocabulary with very natural and sophisticated control of lexical features; rare minor errors occur only as ‘slips’
Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a wide range of structures with full flexibility and accuracy; rare minor errors occur only as ‘slips’

Question 2

Band 8

Accepted Answer

Task achievementCovers all requirements of the task sufficiently Presents, highlights and illustrates key features/ bullet points clearly and appropriatelyCoherence and cohesionSequences information and ideas logically Manages all aspects of cohesion well Uses paragraphing sufficiently and appropriatelyLexical resourceUses a wide range of vocabulary fluently and flexibly to convey precise meanings Skilfully uses uncommon lexical items but there may be occasional inaccuracies in word choice and collocation Produces rare errors in spelling and/or word formationGrammatical range and accuracyUses a wide range of structures The majority of sentences are error-freeMakes only very occasional errors or inappropriacies

Question 3

Band 7

Accepted Answer

Task achievement
Covers the requirements of the task

(Academic) presents a clear overview of main trends, differences or stages

(General Training) presents a clear purpose, with the tone consistent and appropriate

Clearly presents and highlights key features/bullet points but could be more fully extended
Coherence and cohesion
Logically organises information and ideas; there is clear progression throughout

Uses a range of cohesive devices appropriately although there may be some under-/over-use
Lexical resource
Uses a sufficient range of vocabulary to allow some flexibility and precision

Uses less common lexical items with some awareness of style and collocation

May produce occasional errors in word choice, spelling and/or word formation

Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a variety of complex structures

Produces frequent error-free sentences

Has good control of grammar and punctuation but may make a few errors

Question 4

Band 6

Accepted Answer

Task achievement
Addresses the requirements of the task

(Academic) presents an overview with information appropriately selected

(General Training) presents a purpose that is generally clear; there may be inconsistencies in tone

Presents and adequately highlights key features/ bullet points but details may be irrelevant, inappropriate or inaccurate

Coherence and cohesion
Arranges information and ideas coherently and there is a clear overall progression

Uses cohesive devices effectively, but cohesion within and/or between sentences may be faulty or mechanical

May not always use referencing clearly or appropriately

Lexical resource
Uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task

Attempts to use less common vocabulary but with some inaccuracy

Makes some errors in spelling and/or word formation, but they do not impede communication

Grammatical range and accuracy

Uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms

Makes some errors in grammar and punctuation but they rarely reduce communication

Question 5

Band 5

Accepted Answer

Task achievement
Generally addresses the task; the format may be inappropriate in places

(Academic) recounts detail mechanically with no clear overview; there may be no data to support the description
(General Training) may present a purpose for the letter that is unclear at times; the tone may be variable and sometimes inappropriate
Presents, but inadequately covers, key features/ bullet points; there may be a tendency to focus on details
Coherence and cohesion
Presents information with some organisation but there may be a lack of overall progression
Makes inadequate, inaccurate or over-use of cohesive devices
May be repetitive because of lack of referencing and substitution
Lexical resource
Uses a limited range of vocabulary, but this is minimally adequate for the task
Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses only a limited range of structures
Attempts complex sentences but these tend to be less accurate than simple sentences
May make frequent grammatical errors and punctuation may be faulty; errors can cause some difficulty for the reader

Question 6

Band 4

Accepted Answer

Task achievement
Attempts to address the task but does not cover all key features/bullet points; the format may be inappropriate

(General Training) fails to clearly explain the purpose of the letter; the tone may be inappropriate

May confuse key features/bullet points with detail; parts may be unclear, irrelevant, repetitive or inaccurate

Coherence and cohesion
Presents information and ideas but these are not arranged coherently and there is no clear progression in the response

Uses some basic cohesive devices but these may be inaccurate or repetitive

Lexical resource
Uses only basic vocabulary which may be used repetitively or which may be inappropriate for the task

Has limited control of word formation and/or spelling; errors may cause strain for the reader

Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses only a very limited range of structures with only rare use of subordinate clauses

Some structures are accurate but errors predominate, and punctuation is often faulty

Question 7

Band 3

Accepted Answer

Task achievement
Fails to address the task, which may have been completely misunderstood

Presents limited ideas which may be largely irrelevant/repetitive

Coherence and cohesion
Does not organise ideas logically

May use a very limited range of cohesive devices, and those used may not indicate a logical relationship between ideas

Lexical resource
Uses only a very limited range of words and expressions with very limited control of word formation and/or spelling

Errors may severely distort the message

Grammatical range and accuracy
Attempts sentence forms but errors in grammar and punctuation predominate and distort the meaning

Question 8

Band 2

Accepted Answer

Task achievement
Answer is barely related to the task

Coherence and cohesion
Has very little control of organisational features

Lexical resource
Uses an extremely limited range of vocabulary; essentially no control of word formation and/or spelling

Grammatical range and accuracy
Cannot use sentence forms except in memorised phrase

Question 9

Band 1

Accepted Answer

Task achievement
Answer is completely unrelated to the task

Coherence and cohesion
Fails to communicate any message

Lexical resource
Can only use a few isolated words

Grammatical range and accuracy
Cannot use sentence forms at all

Question 10

Band 0

Accepted Answer

Task achievement
Does not attend

Does not attempt the task in any way

Writes a totally memorised response

Coherence and cohesion
Does not attend

Does not attempt the task in any way

Writes a totally memorised response

Lexical resource
Does not attend

Does not attempt the task in any way

Writes a totally memorised response

Grammatical range and accuracy
Does not attend

Does not attempt the task in any way

Writes a totally memorised response

Question 11

Band 9

Accepted Answer

Task response
Fully addresses all parts of the task

Presents a fully developed position in answer to the question with relevant, fully extended and well supported ideas

Coherence and cohesion
Uses cohesion in such a way that it attracts no attention

Skilfully manages paragraphing

Lexical resource
Uses a wide range of vocabulary with very natural and sophisticated control of lexical features; rare minor errors occur only as ‘slips’

Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a wide range of structures with full flexibility and accuracy; rare minor errors occur only as ‘slips’

Question 12

Band 8

Accepted Answer

Task response
Sufficiently addresses all parts of the task

Presents a well-developed response to the question with relevant, extended and supported ideas
Coherence and cohesion
Sequences information and ideas logically

Manages all aspects of cohesion well

Uses paragraphing sufficiently and appropriately
Lexical resource
Uses a wide range of vocabulary fluently and flexibly to convey precise meanings

Skilfully uses uncommon lexical items but there may be occasional inaccuracies in word choice and collocation
Produces rare errors in spelling and/or word formation
Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a wide range of structures
The majority of sentences are error-free
Makes only very occasional errors or inappropriacy

Question 13

Band 7

Accepted Answer

Task response
Addresses all parts of the task
Presents a clear position throughout the response
Presents, extends and supports main ideas, but there may be a tendency to over-generalise and/or supporting ideas may lack focus

Coherence and cohesion
Logically organises information and ideas; there is clear progression throughout

Uses a range of cohesive devices appropriately although there may be some under-/over-use

Presents a clear central topic within each paragraph

Lexical resource
Uses a sufficient range of vocabulary to allow some flexibility and precision
Uses less common lexical items with some awareness of style and collocation
May produce occasional errors in word choice, spelling and/or word formation

Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a variety of complex structures

Produces frequent error-free sentences

Has good control of grammar and punctuation but may make a few errors

Question 14

Band 6

Accepted Answer

Task response
Addresses all parts of the task although some parts may be more fully covered than others
Presents a relevant position although the conclusions may become unclear or repetitive
Presents relevant main ideas but some may be inadequately developed/unclear

Coherence and cohesion
Arranges information and ideas coherently and there is a clear overall progression
Uses cohesive devices effectively, but cohesion within and/or between sentences may be faulty or mechanical
May not always use referencing clearly or appropriately
Uses paragraphing, but not always logically

Lexical resource
Uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task
Attempts to use less common vocabulary but with some inaccuracy
Makes some errors in spelling and/or word formation, but they do not impede communication

Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms

Makes some errors in grammar and punctuation but they rarely reduce communication

Question 15

Band 5

Accepted Answer

Task response
Addresses the task only partially; the format may be inappropriate in places
Expresses a position but the development is not always clear and there may be no conclusions drawn
Presents some main ideas but these are limited and not sufficiently developed; there may be irrelevant detail

Coherence and cohesion
Presents information with some organisation but there may be a lack of overall progression
Makes inadequate, inaccurate or over-use of cohesive devices
May be repetitive because of lack of referencing and substitution
May not write in paragraphs or paragraphing may be inadequate

Lexical resource
Uses a limited range of vocabulary, but this is minimally adequate for the task
May make noticeable errors in spelling and/or word formation that may cause some difficulty for the reader

Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses only a limited range of structures
Attempts complex sentences but these tend to be less accurate than simple sentences
May make frequent grammatical errors and punctuation may be faulty; errors can cause some difficulty for the reader

Question 16

Band 4

Accepted Answer

Task response
Responds to the task only in a minimal way or the answer is tangential; the format may be inappropriate
Presents a position but this is unclear
Presents some main ideas but these are difficult to identify and may be repetitive, irrelevant or not well supported

Coherence and cohesion
Presents information and ideas but these are not arranged coherently and there is no clear progression in the response
Uses some basic cohesive devices but these may be inaccurate or repetitive
May not write in paragraphs or their use may be confusing

Lexical resource
Uses only basic vocabulary which may be used repetitively or which may be inappropriate for the task
Has limited control of word formation and/or spelling; errors may cause strain for the reader

Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses only a very limited range of structures with only rare use of subordinate clauses
Some structures are accurate but errors predominate, and punctuation is often faulty

Question 17

Band 3

Accepted Answer

Task response
Does not adequately address any part of the task
Does not express a clear position
Presents few ideas, which are largely undeveloped or irrelevant

Coherence and cohesion
Does not organise ideas logically
May use a very limited range of cohesive devices, and those used may not indicate a logical relationship between ideas

Lexical resource
Uses only a very limited range of words and expressions with very limited control of word formation and/or spelling
Errors may severely distort the message

Grammatical range and accuracy
Attempts sentence forms but errors in grammar and punctuation predominate and distort the meaning

Question 18

Band 2

Accepted Answer

Task response
Barely responds to the task
Does not express a position
May attempt to present one or two ideas but there is no development

Coherence and cohesion
Has very little control of organisational features

Lexical resource
Uses an extremely limited range of vocabulary; essentially no control of word formation and/or spelling

Grammatical range and accuracy
Cannot use sentence forms except in memorised phrase

Question 19

Band 1

Accepted Answer

Task response
Answer is completely unrelated to the task

Coherence and cohesion
Fails to communicate any message

Lexical resource
Can only use a few isolated words

Grammatical range and accuracy
Cannot use sentence forms at all

Question 20

Band 0

Accepted Answer

Task response
Does not attend
Does not attempt the task in any way
Writes a totally memorised response

Coherence and cohesion
Does not attend
Does not attempt the task in any way
Writes a totally memorised response

Lexical resource
Does not attend
Does not attempt the task in any way
Writes a totally memorised response

Grammatical range and accuracy
Does not attend
Does not attempt the task in any way
Writes a totally memorised response

Question 21

Band 9

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
Speaks fluently with only rare repetition or self-correction; any hesitation is content-related rather than to find words or grammar

Speaks coherently with fully appropriate cohesive features

Develops topics fully and appropriately

Lexical resource
Uses vocabulary with full flexibility and precision in all topics

Uses idiomatic language naturally and accurately

Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a full range of structures naturally and appropriately

Produces consistently accurate structures apart from ‘slips’

Pronunciation
Uses a full range of pronunciation features with precision and subtlety

Sustains flexible use of features throughout

Is effortless to understand

Question 22

Band 8

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
Speaks fluently with only occasional repetition or self- correction; hesitation is usually content-related and only rarely to search for language

Develops topics coherently and appropriately

Lexical resource
Uses a wide vocabulary resource readily and flexibly to convey precise meaning

Uses less common and idiomatic vocabulary skilfully, with occasional inaccuracies

Uses paraphrase effectively as required

Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a wide range of structures flexibly

Produces a majority of error-free sentences with only very occasional inappropriacies or basic/non-systematic errors

Pronunciation
Uses a wide range of pronunciation features

Sustains flexible use of features, with only occasional lapses

Is easy to understand throughout; L1 accent has minimal effect on intelligibility

Question 23

Band 7

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
Speaks at length without noticeable effort or loss of coherence

May demonstrate language-related hesitation at times, or some repetition and/or self-correction

Uses a range of connectives and discourse markers with some flexibility
Lexical resource
Uses vocabulary resource flexibly to discuss a variety of topics

Uses some less common and idiomatic vocabulary and shows some awareness of style and collocation, with some inappropriate choices

Uses paraphrase effectively
Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a range of complex structures with some flexibility

Frequently produces error-free sentences, though some grammatical mistakes persist
Pronunciation
Shows all the positive features of Band 6 and some, but not all, of the positive features of Band 8

Question 24

Band 6

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
Is willing to speak at length, though may lose coherence at times due to occasional repetition, self-correction or hesitation

Uses a range of connectives and discourse markers but not always appropriately
Lexical resource
Has a wide enough vocabulary to discuss topics at length and make meaning clear in spite of inappropriacies

Generally paraphrases successfully
Grammatical range and accuracy
Uses a mix of simple and complex structures, but with limited flexibility

May make frequent mistakes with complex structures, though these rarely cause comprehension problems
Pronunciation
Uses a range of pronunciation features with mixed control

Shows some effective use of features but this is not sustained

Can generally be understood throughout, though mispronunciation of individual words or sounds reduces clarity at times

Question 25

Band 5

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
Usually maintains flow of speech but uses repetition, self correction and/or slow speech to keep going

May over-use certain connectives and discourse markers

Produces simple speech fluently, but more complex communication causes fluency problems
Lexical resource
Manages to talk about familiar and unfamiliar topics but uses vocabulary with limited flexibility

Attempts to use paraphrase but with mixed success
Grammatical range and accuracy
Produces basic sentence forms with reasonable accuracy

Uses a limited range of more complex structures, but these usually contain errors and may cause some comprehension problems
Pronunciation
Shows all features of band 4 and some, but not all the positive features of band 6

Question 26

Band 4

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
Cannot respond without noticeable pauses and may speak slowly, with frequent repetition and self-correction

Links basic sentences but with repetitious use of simple connectives and some breakdowns in coherence
Lexical resource
Is able to talk about familiar topics but can only convey basic meaning on unfamiliar topics and makes frequent errors in word choice

Rarely attempts paraphrase
Grammatical range and accuracy
Produces basic sentence forms and some correct simple sentences but subordinate structures are rare

Errors are frequent and may lead to misunderstanding
Pronunciation
Uses a limited range of pronunciation features

Attempts to control features but lapses are frequent

Mispronunciations are frequent and cause some difficulty for the listener

Question 27

Band 3

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
Speaks with long pauses

Has limited ability to link simple sentences

Gives only simple responses and is frequently unable to convey basic message

Lexical resource
Uses simple vocabulary to convey personal information

Has insufficient vocabulary for less familiar topics

Grammatical range and accuracy
Attempts basic sentence forms but with limited success, or relies on apparently memorised utterances

Makes numerous errors except in memorised expressions

Pronunciation
Shows some of the features of band 2 and some, but not all, of the positive features of band 4

Question 28

Band 2

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
Pauses lengthily before most words
Little communication possible
Lexical resource
Only produces isolated words or memorised utterances
Grammatical range and accuracy
Cannot produce basic sentence forms
Pronunciation
Speech is often unintelligible

Question 29

Band 1

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
No communication possible
No rateable language
Lexical resource
No communication possible
No rateable language
Grammatical range and accuracy
No communication possible
No rateable language
Pronunciation
No communication possible
No rateable language

Question 30

Band 0

Accepted Answer

Fluency and coherence
Does not attend
Lexical resource
Does not attend
Grammatical range and accuracy
Does not attend
Pronunciation
Does not attend

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