BEC 初级

READING Page 9 B E C P R E L IM IN A R Y A D E TA I L E D G U I D E TO B E C P R E L I M I N A RY TEST OF READING AND WRITING Time: 1 hour 30 minutes Number of PART Main Skill Focus Input Response questions 1 Reading – understanding short, Notices, messages, adverts, Multiple choice 5 real world notices, messages, etc. leaflets, etc. 2 Reading – detailed comprehension Notice, list, plan, contents Matching 5 of factual material; skimming and page, etc. scanning skills 3 Reading – interpreting visual Graphs, charts, tables, etc. (The Matching 5 information information may be presented in 8 separate graphics or in a composite graphic comprising up to 3 visuals. 4 Reading for detailed factual Text (approx. 150 – 200 Right/Wrong/ 7 information words): advert, business letter, Doesn’t say product description, report, minutes, etc. 5 Reading for gist and specific Text (approx. 300 – 400 Multiple choice 6 information words): newspaper or magazine article, advert, report, leaflet, etc. 6 Reading – grammatical accuracy Text (approx. 125 – 150 Multiple choice 12 and understanding of text structure words): newspaper or magazine cloze article, advert, leaflet, etc. 7 Reading and information transfer Short memos, letters, notices, Form-filling, 5 adverts, etc. note completion PART Functions/Communicative Task Input Response Register 1 e.g. (re-)arranging appointments, Rubric only (plus layout of output Internal communication Neutral/ asking for permission, giving text type) (medium may be note, formal/ instructions message, memo informal or e-mail) (30 – 40 words) 2 e.g. apologising and offering One piece of input which may be Business corres- Neutral/ compensation, making or altering business correspondence (medium pondence (medium formal reservations, dealing with requests, may be letter, fax or e-mail), internal may be letter, fax or giving information about a product communication (medium may be e-mail) (60 – 80 words) note, memo or e-mail), notice, advert, etc. (plus layout of output text type) WRITING A DETAILED LOOK AT THE TASKS READING Part One In this part there are five short texts, each of which is accompanied by a multiple choice question containing three options. In all cases the information will be brief and clear and the difficulty of the task will not lie in understanding context but in identifying or interpreting meaning. A wide variety of text types, representative of those likely to be encountered in international business, can appear in this part. Each text will be complete and have a recognisable context. Preparation In order to prepare for this part it would be useful to expose students to a wide range of notices and short texts taken from business settings. It is also useful to practise answering sample questions, asking students to explain why an answer is correct (and why the two incorrect options do not apply). Part Two This is a matching task comprising one text and five questions, which are often descriptions of people’s requirements. Candidates are required to match each question to an appropriate part of the text, labelled A – H. (As there are only five questions, some of the labels are redundant.) The testing focus of this part is vocabulary and meaning, using skimming and scanning skills. Preparation For preparation purposes, students need to be familiar with text types that are divided into lists, headings or categories; e.g. the contents page of a directory or book, the departments in a business or shop, the items in a catalogue, etc. Many of the questions in this part require a simple interpretation of what different parts of the text mean, and preparation for this could involve setting students real-world tasks of this kind using authentic (but simple) sources. Part Three This task consists of eight graphs or charts (or one or more graphics with eight distinct elements) and five questions. Each question is a description of a particular graphic (or element of a graphic) and candidates are expected to match the questions to their corresponding graphs which are labelled A – H. Preparation This part focuses on understanding trends and changes. Candidates need to be able to interpret graphic data and understand the language used to describe it. Expressions such as ‘rose steadily’, ‘remained stable’, ‘decreased slowly’, ‘reached a peak’ should be introduced to students, along with relevant topics, such as sales of goods, share price movement and monthly costs. Part Four This task is a text accompanied by seven, three-option multiple choice items. Each question presents a statement and candidates are expected to indicate whether the statement is A ‘Right’ or B ‘Wrong’ according to the text, or whether the information is not given in the text (C ‘Doesn’t say’). Candidates will not be expected to understand every word in the text but they should be able to pick out salient points and infer meaning where words in the text are unfamiliar. The questions will refer to factual information in the text, but candidates will be required to do some processing in order to answer the questions correctly. Preparation This can be a difficult task for candidates who are not familiar with the three choices represented by A, B and C, and who might not understand the difference between a statement that is incorrect and one that depends on information that is not provided in the text. Students need to be trained to identify a false statement, which means that the opposite or a contradictory statement is made in the text, and to recognise that this is not the same as a statement that is not covered in the text. Part Five This part presents a single text accompanied by six multiple choice comprehension items. The text is informative and is often taken from a leaflet, or from a newspaper or magazine article. Candidates are expected to employ more complex reading strategies in this task, in that they should demonstrate their ability to extract relevant information, to read for gist and detail, to scan the text for specific information, and to understand the purpose of the writer and the audience for which the text is intended. Preparation In preparing candidates for this part, it would be a good idea to expose them to a variety of texts of a similar length. As texts become longer, slow readers are at a disadvantage and some practice in improving reading speed would be beneficial for this part. It would also be useful to discuss the following areas: • title • topic • the writer’s purpose • the theme or main idea of each paragraph Page 10 B E C P R E L IM IN A R Y • factual details that can be found in the text • the writer’s opinions (if they are evident) Part Six This is a multiple choice cloze test. Candidates have to select the correct word from three options to complete twelve gaps. This part has a predominantly grammatical focus and tests candidates’ understanding of the general and detailed meaning of a text, and in particular their ability to analyse structural patterns. Preparation Any practice in the grammatical and structural aspects of the language is useful in preparing students for this part. However, it is equally important for students to analyse the structure and coherence of language within longer discourse so that they are encouraged to read for meaning beyond the sentence level. As tasks such as this typically focus on common grammatical difficulties, it is also useful to ask students to analyse errors in their own work. Pairwork activities might be productive as students can often help each other in the areas of error identification and analysis. Part Seven Candidates are given two short texts, for example a memo and an advertisement, and are asked to complete a form based on this material. There are five gaps, which should be completed with a word, a number or a short phrase. In this part, candidates are tested on their ability to extract relevant information and complete a form accurately. For this part, candidates need to transfer their answers in capital letters to an Answer Sheet. WRITING For BEC Preliminary, candidates are required to produce two pieces of writing: • an internal company communication; this means a piece of communication with a colleague or colleagues within the company on a business-related matter; the delivery medium may be a note, message, memo or e-mail • a piece of business correspondence; this means correspondence with somebody outside the company (e.g. a customer or supplier) on a business-related matter; the delivery medium may be letter, fax or e-mail. Part One Candidates are asked to produce a concise piece of internal company communication of between 30 and 40 words, using a written prompt. The text will need to be produced in the form of a note, message, memo or e-mail. Candidates are given the layout of memos and e-mails (e.g. to/from/date/ subject) on the question paper, and need not copy this out as part of their answer. The reason for writing and the target reader are specified in the rubric, and bullet points explain what content points have to be included. Relevant ideas for one or more of these points will have to be ‘invented’ by the candidate. Part Two Candidates are asked to produce an extended piece of business correspondence of between 60 and 80 words. This task involves the processing of a short text, such as a letter or advertisement, in order to respond to it. A number of bulleted content points below the text clearly indicate what should be included in the answer. Some of this information will need to be ‘invented’ by the candidate. Where the delivery medium specified for a Part Two answer is a letter, candidates need not include postal addresses in their answer. Similarly, where the delivery medium specified is a fax, candidates need not include ‘fax header’ details, and where the delivery medium specified is a an e-mail, candidates need not include to/from/subject details. Although the use of some key words is inevitable, candidates should not ‘lift’ phrases from the question paper to use in their answers. They would not receive credit for the language in these phrases. Accuracy and Appropriacy in Faxes and e-mails Nowadays a significant proportion of written business communication is transmitted electronically, both within the company and to people outside the company. In some contexts, this technological change may have changed the nature of what people actually write. It may be argued that a new ‘fax’ genre has emerged, characterised by brevity and informality (and sometimes by the mixing of handwritten and typewritten text in the same fax). It can also be argued that a new ‘e-mail’ genre may be starting to emerge, characterised by even greater informality and a (possibly temporary) lack of conventions and even of regard for linguistic accuracy. However, there is also mounting evidence to suggest that linguistic inaccuracy and inappropriate informality within electronic business communications is considered unacceptable by many individuals and organisations, and can be counterproductive if employed in real life. As well as being used informally, fax and e-mail are also widely used within business cultures in which appropriacy and accuracy are perceived to be important, and this is the context of use on which BEC focuses. Page 11 B E C P R E L IM IN A R Y Candidates at all levels of BEC should be aware that appropriacy, accuracy, range and organisation are important features of their writing, regardless of the delivery medium specified in the task. Please see the ‘Assessment of Writing’ sections for further details of the criteria against which candidates’ writing is assessed at each level of BEC. Preparing for the Writing Questions In preparing students for the Writing tasks it would be beneficial to familiarise them with a variety of business correspondence. Analysing authentic correspondence would help students understand better how to structure their answer and the type of language to use. When doing this, it would be useful to focus on the following areas: • the purpose of the correspondence • references to previous communication • factual details • the feelings and attitude of the writer • the level of formality • the opening sentence • the closing sentence • paragraphing • the desired outcome. If students are in a class, it might be possible to ask them to write and reply to each other’s correspondence so that they can appreciate the importance of accurate content. In a similar fashion, internal company memos and messages might also be written and analysed in terms of the above so that students can recognise the different levels of formality involved. It is a necessary part of preparing for the test that students understand the uses of, and styles inherent in, different types of business communication so that they are aware of how and why different types of correspondence are used. For the BEC Preliminary Writing component, candidates write their answers on the answer sheet provided. Page 12 B E C P R E L IM IN A R Y Page 13 B E C P R E L IM IN A R Y Tu rn O ve r � 3 2 S P O R S P O R T M A S TE R T M A S TE R Pa ki st an -b as ed m an uf ac tu re r of s po rt s ite m s w is hi ng to d o bu si ne ss in E ur op e is lo ok in g fo r im po rt er s TE L: 92 5 55 4 32 1 Sp or tm as te r w a n ts to A se ll its p ro du ct s ab ro ad . B im po rt pr od uc ts in to P a ki st an . C m a nu fa ct ur e in E ur op e. 3 A Yo u c a n p ho to co py n ot ice s at R ec ep tio n fo r di sp la y he re . B Ph ot oc op ie d no tic es c an o nl y be d isp la ye d at R ec ep tio n. C Ta ke yo u r n o tic e to R ec ep tio n if yo u w a n t i t d isp la ye d he re . 4 TH E AI RP OR T EX PR ES S DE PA RT S FR OM P LA TF OR M 3 EV ER Y 20 M IN UT ES DU RI NG T HE D AY ( EV ER Y 30 M IN UT ES A T NI GH T) A Th e tra in s er vi ce to th e ai rp or t r u n s 24 h ou rs a d ay . B Ai rp or t t ra in s le av e Pl at fo rm 3 a t 2 0 m in u te s pa st th e ho ur . C Th e ai rp or t e xp re ss ta ke s ha lf an h ou r a t n ig ht . 5 Go od s no t no rm al ly d is pa tc he d un le ss p ai d fo r at t im e of o rd er in g – pa ym en t on d el iv er y by s pe ci al a rr an ge m en t on ly Cu st om er s sh ou ld n or m a lly p ay fo r go od s A w he n th ei r o rd er is p ro ce ss ed . B w he n th e go od s ar e de liv e re d. C w he n th ey p la ce a n or de r. N O TI CE S FO R DI SP LA Y A BO VE T H IS PH O TO CO PI ER M US T FI RS T BE H A N DE D TO R EC EP TI O N R EA D IN G QU ES TI O NS 1 – 4 5 PA RT O NE Qu es tio ns 1 – 5 • Lo ok a t q ue st io ns 1 – 5 . • In e ac h qu es tio n, w hi ch s en te nc e is co rre ct ? • Fo r e a ch q ue st io n, m ar k on e le tte r ( A , B o r C) on yo u r An sw e r Sh ee t. Ex am pl e: 0 Do n’ t fo rg et – fl ig ht B A 6 92 6 .4 5 p. m . Th e pl an e ar riv e s a t A qu ar te r t o se ve n in th e m or n in g. B qu ar te r p as t s ix in th e ev e n in g. C qu ar te r t o se ve n in th e ev e n in g. Th e co rre ct a ns w e r is C , so m a rk y o u r An sw e r Sh ee t l ike th is : 0 1 O ffi ce S ta ff Re qu ire d Ex pe rie nc e es se nt ia l Fu ll tr ai ni ng g iv en (le ad ing to re co gn is ed q ua lif ic at io ns ) Ap pl ica nt s m u st h av e A re le va n t q ua lifi ca tio ns . B pr ev io us e xp er ie nc e. C re co gn ise d tra in in g.A B C 2 READING AND WRITING SAMPLE PAPER 1 O ffi ce S ta ff Re qu ire d Ex pe rie nc e es se nt ia l Fu ll tr ai ni ng g iv en (le ad ing to re co gn is ed q ua lif ic at io ns ) Ap pl ica nt s m u st h av e A re le va n t q ua lifi ca tio ns . B pr ev io us e xp er ie nc e. C re co gn ise d tra in in g. Ex am pl e Te le ph on e m es sa ge Bi ll Ry an c au gh t 9. 30 f lig ht – d ue h er e 11 .3 0 no w, n ot 1 2. 30 . W he n do es B ill Ry an e xp ec t t o ar riv e? Th e co rre ct a ns w er is B , so m a rk y ou r A ns w er S he et lik e th is: A 9. 30 B 11 .3 0 C 12 .3 0 Page 14 B E C P R E L IM IN A R Y 6 M ar ga re t W illi am s ne ed s he lp in c ho os in g th e bu si ne ss lo an w ith th e m os t c om pe tit ive te rm s. 7 Ib ra hi m S ha h wa n ts to b e su re th at th er e wi ll be e no ug h de m an d fo r hi s pr od uc t. 8 M ar ia F e rn a n de z wo u ld li ke s o m e a dv ice a bo ut w he re to a dv e rti se a n ew li ne o f g oo ds . 9 Ki m S en g wa n ts to re se ar ch n ew la w s o n c o n st ru ct in g bu ild in gs . 10 Pe de r A nd er se n ne ed s to k no w w he th er h is e xi st in g fu nd s ar e en ou gh to s et u p hi s bu si ne ss . 5 Tu rn O ve r � PA RT TW O Qu es tio ns 6 – 1 0 • Lo ok a t t he a dv e rti se m en t b el ow . It sh ow s se rv ic es o ffe re d by a b u si ne ss c on su lta nc y. • Fo r qu es tio ns 6 – 1 0, de cid e wh ich s er vi ce (A – H ) w o u ld b e su ita bl e fo r e a ch p er so n. • Fo r e a ch q ue st io n, m ar k on e le tte r ( A – H ) o n y o u r An sw e r Sh ee t. • D o no t u se a ny le tte r m or e th an o nc e. T H IN K IN G O F S T A R T IN G A B U S IN E S S ? N ee d e xp er t ad vi ce a n d /o r as si st an ce in o n e o r m o re o f th e fo llo w in g a re as ? A M ar ke t R es ea rc h B C on st ru ct in g a sc he du le C C al cu la tin g co st s D M ee tin g le ga l r eq ui re m en ts E O bt ai ni ng fi na nc e F R en tin g or p ur ch as in g pr em is es G R ec ru iti ng a nd tr ai ni ng s ta ff H Pr om ot in g pr od uc ts a nd s er vi ce s 4 Page 15 B E C P R E L IM IN A R Y 11 In th is m on th , t ot al e xp en di tu re , lik e in co m e, sh ow e d a fa ll, w hi le s pe nd in g on a dv e rti si ng de m on st ra te d th e op po sit e tre nd . 12 To ta l e xp en di tu re ro se s lig ht ly in th is m on th , w hi le a dv e rti si ng c os ts re ac he d th ei r p ea k, le ad in g to a h ig he r i nc om e in th e fo llo w in g m on th . 13 D es pi te a d ec lin e in a dv e rti si ng c os ts in th is m on th , e xp en di tu re a s a wh ol e ro se . 14 Th is m on th ’s im pr ov e m e n t i n in co m e wa s pa rti cu la rly w e lc om e, a s it wa s n o t m at ch ed b y a n in cr ea se in e xp en di tu re . 15 W hi le th is m on th s aw a lo w p oi nt in th e re st au ra n t’s in co m e, ex pe nd itu re c on tin u e d to fa ll. 7 Tu rn O ve r � 6PA RT TH R EE Qu es tio ns 1 1 – 15 • Lo ok a t t he c ha rt be lo w . It sh ow s a r e st au ra n t’s in co m e, to ta l e xp en di tu re a nd a dv e rti si ng c os ts du rin g an e ig ht -m on th p er io d. • W h