Eesti keele algtaseme test

This is an examination based on the Council of Europe's Threshold specification, which tests the language skills needed to survive in social and unskilled work situations in a Estonian-speaking environment.

There are four components:

Writing

Candidates are expected to be able to write non-specialized texts describing situations, reporting events, expressing opinions and giving information related to personal details and experiences. Guidelines may be provided.

There are two tasks. The first involves filling in a form containing ten items. The second requires the candidate to complete a short, relatively free writing task (letter, postcard, report etc.) conveying information, usually to an Estonian-speaking friend. The response should be about 100 words in length.

Listening

Candidates must be able to understand short oral texts to detect the gist, or relevant specific information. Listening texts include specially recorded announcements, news items and conversations.

There are twenty items of the following task types: matching (text and pictures), multiple-choice, gap-filling and true/false.

Reading

Candidates are expected to identify the main points of short factual texts and to scan for information in order to perform relevant tasks. Texts can be public notices, advertisements, short news articles, etc.

There are thirty items of the following task types: multiple-choice (3 and 4 options), gap-filling and matching.

Speaking

Candidates are tested in pairs. They are expected to operate in everyday situations such as asking for information, making arrangements, thanking someone, etc.
Candidates must be able to carry on a general conversation about themselves, participate in a role-play, talk about a situation and express opinions on the basis of visual stimuli. The tasks are guided and include a clear description of the context.

Weighting of components

Each component is equally weighted at 25% of the total marks.

Results

There are two grades: pass and fail. Candidates are considered to have passed if they obtain at least 60% in all components of the entire examination