Level one (TORFL-1)

At this level users must show skills needed to survive in social and working Russian-speaking environments.

A Level one certificate is a prerequisite for entering Russian institutions of higher learning with obligatory further studies of the Russian language. In that case candidates take additional test in accordance with their individual professional purposes. Test includes five components (subtests).

Reading Candidates are expected to be able to read small authentic texts (newspapers, magazines, books, etc.) both informative (factual) and descriptive with the elements of discussion and to show understanding of the main points as well as specific details. There are three tasks in the test. The total number of items is 20. Task type: multiple choice.

Writing Candidates are expected to reproduce the gist of the heard or read text (reproduction) and write their own guided composition, such as a letter, a card, etc. (a productive type task). The written text should contain no less than 20 sentences (110 words).

Listening Candidates are expected to be able to understand short oral dialogues and extract factual information (topic, time, relations, characteristics, purposes, causes, etc.) from them. They are also expected to make sense of longer dialogues and to show appreciation of the attitudes of speakers. Listening texts (announcements, news items, etc.) are also included in the test. There are two tasks in the test (three monologues and three dialogues). There is a total of 30 multiple choice items.

Speaking Candidates are tested by two Examiners (an Interlocutor and an Assessor). Candidates are expected to be able to participate in a dialogue, respond appropriately to questions of a conversational nature, start and finish a conversation. Candidates are also expected to be able to converse on various topics (to speak about themselves, their work, profession, interests, about their country, their city, etc.). There are 4 parts in the test, The total number of items is 14.

Structural competence Candidates must be able to demonstrate their knowledge of grammar and lexical systems, making simple statements in standard situations. They should be able to operate with a vocabulary of 2300 words. There are four parts in this test. The total number items is 165. Task types: multiple choice and matching.

Weighing of components All components are equally evaluated - 20% each.

Results There are three pass grades: A, B and C and certificates are awarded to all successful candidates. Candidates who achieve grade D are judged not to have achieved the required standard for TORFL-1.