Listening
Format: Timed - 50 minutes. Delivered on computer. Audio clips with pictures. Multiple choice questions.
Student should be able to control personal background and needs; social conversations; tasks that include arranging lodging, transportation, shopping, directions; comprehending explanations of cause/reason and purpose; comprehending public service announcements; and anecdotes and stories. Listening tasks include not only spontaneous face-to-face conversation but also routine telephone conversation.
Reading
Format: Timed - 50 minutes. Delivered on computer. Diverse reading material. Multiple choice questions.
Student should be able to understand the main ideas and some detail from multi-paragraph texts dealing with personal and social needs, as well as some topics of general/communal relevance. Examples include public service announcements; advertisements; letters; biographic material; and articles from news websites, lifestyle magazines and blogs.
Writing
Format: Timed - 50 minutes. Written responses on paper.
Student should be able to write multiple paragraph-length texts that involve describing oneself and others; describing routines in some detail; asking and answering questions; narrating in the past, present and future tense; and making relatively detailed comparisons.
Student should demonstrate good accuracy in Urdu in terms of spelling, sentence structure, and grammar. Grammar items that are assessed include agreement, construct phrases, verb conjugation and negation, use of different verb moods, use of connectors, quantifiers, and correct use of prepositions.
Speaking
Format: 20-minute Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) with role-play. In-person interview.
Student should be able to discuss, with good accuracy and without significant hesitation, mispronunciations or misunderstandings: personal background; routines, studies, pastimes; memories and plans (i.e. narration in past and future tense); comparisons; opinions about a limited number of topics; and some topics of general/ communal relevance. Students should also be able to accurately ask questions.