English Exam Preparation Courses

Preparation courses for Cambridge University English as a Second Language (ESOL) as well as preparation for IELTS are offered at Yethreb Institute. Below is an overview of the exams and some practice tests. For information about enrolling in exam preparation courses please drop by the office or call us 360 4565.

• Cambridge Key English Test (KET)

Difficulty level: 1 elementary
The Key English Test is the easiest of the Cambridge exams.

Who is it for?
Do this test if you want to know your studies have started well and you have a basic knowledge of reading, writing, speaking and listening.

What is the KET test like?
The test has three sections:

1. Reading & Writing - 70 minutes
2. Listening - 25 minutes
3. Speaking - 8-10 minutes

You can do these free practice tests: Grammar Test, Vocabulary Test


Yethreb Institute offers Cambridge University KET preparation courses. For information about enrolling in courses please drop by the office or call us 360 4565.

• Cambridge Preliminary English Test (PET)

Difficulty level: 2 low intermediate
The Preliminary English Test is one of the Cambridge exams.

Who is it for?
Do this test if you want to know that you have an intermediate level of English. With this level of English you will enjoy holidays in English speaking countries. You should probably continue studying once you have passed the PET exam.

What is the PET test like?
The test has three sections:

1. Reading and Writing - 90 minutes
2. Listening - 30 minutes
3. Speaking - an interview, 10 minutes

You can do these free practice tests: Reading Test

Yethreb Institute offers Cambridge University PET preparation courses. For information about enrolling in courses please drop by the office or call us 360 4565.

• Cambridge First Certificate of English (FCE)

Difficulty level: 3 upper intermediate
The First Certificate in English is the most important of the Cambridge exams.

Who is it for?
Pass this test and everybody knows you have an acceptable level of English. You can operate effectively in a business or social context.

What is the FCE test like?
The test has five sections:

1. Reading - 75 minutes
2. Writing - 2 essays, 90 minutes
3. Use of English - 90 minutes
   
4. Listening - 40 minutes
   
5. Speaking - interview, normally with another candidate, 15 minutes

You can do these free practice tests: Use of English Test, Listening Test, Writing Test


Yethreb Institute offers Cambridge University FCE preparation courses. For information about enrolling in courses please drop by the office or call us 360 4565.

• IELTS, the International English Language Testing System

Designed to assess the language ability of candidates who need to study or work where English is used as the language of communication. IELTS is required for entry to university in the UK and other countries.

Who is it for?
IELTS is recognised by universities and employers in many countries, including Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK and the USA. It is also recognised by professional bodies, immigration authorities and other government agencies.
More than 700,000 people a year take the test.

What is the IELTS test like?
You can choose between the Academic or General Training versions of the test. All candidates do the same Listening and Speaking sections.
The test has four sections:

1. Listening - 4 sections, 40 questions, 30 minutes
2. Speaking - interview, 15 minutes
3. Reading - different for Academic or General Training - 3 sections, 40 questions, 60 minutes
4. Writing - different for Academic or General Training - 2 pieces of writing, 60 minutes

You can do these free practice tests: Listening 1, Listening 2, Reading 1, Reading 2, Reading 3, Writing 1, Vocabulary 1, Vocabulary 2

Yethreb Institute offers IELTS preparation courses. For information about enrolling in courses please drop by the office or call us 360 4565.

We watched a video in class!

The FCE and IELTS preparation students watched a video in class this week about the 'Bodies - The Exhibition' .

Watching the video inspired us to speak! What did we discuss? Different kinds of exhibitions, local exhibitions and museums, exhibits, the ways people learn, organ donation, blood donation, the morality of using human bodies for science and for the exhibition, our reactions to the video. We also listed many of the adjectives that we heard on the video.

For more information about the exhibit you can visit the website: Bodies - The Exhibition

More Practice for FCE students

Here are some links to websites that have exercises relating to things you have been working on in class.

Indirect Questions

Wh- Questions

Easier Wh- Question exercise

More Wh- Questions

Yes/No Questions

Intonation Exercise

Dos & Dont's while visiting Libya

Libya is a big country and has nice weather in general. All people are Muslims and speak Arabic. I can say that Libyan people are peaceful, modest and kind, especially with foreigners.

Most people work at government departments. Some people are interested in agriculture, while others have their own businesses.

Libyan people love their country very much and do not like anyone to make fun of them. Visitors to Libya can realize hospitality and charity.

The national anthem is played everyday at school before lessons, and in other public occasions. When the national anthem is played it's not allowed to make any movement.

Some other don'ts for foreign visitors are:

• Men shouldn't talk to women.
• Men shouldn't sit in the back seat of a taxi unless the front one is full.
• It's not a good idea to withdraw money from a bank by yourself, I mean alone.
• People will be upset with you if you point at them with your finger, or even make a sign at them.
  

Najib
FCE preparation

My Holiday

You know, I always thought about a holiday that me and my best friends could go on together. Taking that me and all of my best friends share the same interests, which is playing football, swimming, water sports and other kinds of sports.

So my dream holiday would be to cruise to the islands with my best friends because I heard that the islands are so beautiful and such a peaceful paradise, with miles of white sandy beaches fringed by palm trees and not a high-rise building in sight!

And what matters most is that it's known for it's water sports such as water-skiing, snorkeling and scuba diving. My friends and I could go swimming at the beach, and as you know where there's a beach, there's girls!... oh, I mean football.

So my friends and I would spend most of our money there and have a lovely, fantastic time. I hope that I didn't bore you with my holiday. Good bye!

Ahmed Ahtash
FCE preparation

Holidays

Swimming with dolphins

I love adventures, one of my dreams is to go on a trip around the world. I would like to go to Asia, climbing the Himalaya Mountains, skiing and enjoying the fantastic view of the surroundings and a lot of shopping. I would take with me my best friends; Amandine and Asma. We'll absolutely enjoy the swimming pool and the spa on a luxury cruise.

I'm also mad about history and ancient civilizations, so visiting the famous monuments and ancient sites and seeing how people live in other worlds and cultures will be very interesting.

I think it will be fun to go to Australia where I can enjoy water sports like scuba diving, windsurfing and water skiing. I love dolphins, I hope one day to have the opportunity to swim with them, then I can go for an eco-tour, watching the koalas and kangaroos in the wild world.

Henda Mahmoud
FCE preparation

Visiting Libya: Dos & Don'ts

Libyans are a friendly people, religion is taking an effect in their lives, generally speaking, people wear decent clothes, no shorts or miniskirts in public places.

Positive outlooks are highly valued in Libya, if someone asks, 'How are you?' the correct response is 'Thank God.' and it's also common to say 'Asalam Alikom.', which means 'Peace be upon you.', when you come or leave.

Women don't shake hands with men, it is not a good idea to speak to a woman you don't know if you are a male.

The map of Libya is very important, so bring a map because most of the streets don't have signs or are marked.

When you visit someone in his house or you are invited to a Libyan house, don't forget to bring presents like sweets, chocolates, etc.

Some other dos and don'ts for foreign visitors are:

• Remove your shoes when you enter Libyan's houses.
• Don't smoke unless you ask permission.
• Don't sit behind the taxi driver if you are alone.
• Don't take pictures of people unless you ask first.
• Don't enter mosques unless you are a Muslim.
  

Abdunnabi Mohamed
FCE preparation

If You're Visiting Iraq ...

Iraq is a big country where you will see a lot of palm trees. When you go to Iraq you will see a wonderful country especially in Baghdad. There are rivers; the Dejla and Forat (their Arabic names). But unfortunately the situation there now has gone from bad to worse, after the invasion. Now Iraqi people are living in fear. If you are in Iraq now, you should stay in your home to avoid the worse. You shouldn't walk in the streets at night.

You shouldn't speak with strange people because you can't know about what they want, maybe he is a thief or bad person, maybe he's carrying a bomb. Sometimes they are good people, but you need to be careful. In the current situation you shouldn't speak about the political system.

About the rules of my country:

• In schools there is one style of clothes for the students. If you study in one of Iraq's schools you shouldn't change from the style of the school.
• You shouldn't drink alcohol. If you are not Muslim you shouldn't enter mosques.
• You shouldn't smoke in hospitals or any healthy places.
• You should respect the security men, it's a good idea to stay away from problems.
• You should stand when you hear the national anthem and repect the flag when it is raised. People will be upset if you don't pay respect during the national anthem.

Hadeel Sadoon
FCE preparation

Visiting Korea

Diamond Mountain (Keumgangsahn) in North Korea

First of all I want to say 'Welcome to Korea!' I don't have many ideas about Korea even though I'm Korean. Anyway I'll try to help.

Korea is a very well-ordered society like the USA. When you visit Korea you shouldn't worry about taking a map of the city centre, because our government will serve you a guide and also a translator. You should take care with people because they're not very optimistic with foreigners, but they're very kind. You don't have to dress in any special way, you can just wear decent clothing.

In Korea, people don't shake hands, they bow, moving their heads down to show a greeting, but you don't have to do this, they shake hands with foreigners.

Also the level of patriotism in Korea is very high, like in the USA. You can see the national flag everywhere, in the streets, it flies over every school and on buildings and on the balconies of many houses.

It's a good idea to tip your waiter but it's not necessary. You should discard litter only in a bin. You shouldn't smoke in public places.

... In Korea there are many places to visit and have fun; mountains, falls and caverns, etc. And even in the city centre, there are many museums, old buildings and towers etc.

Have a nice time!

So Un Ha
FCE preparation

Daily Quiz

There is a new quiz every day at GetTOEFL. The quizzes are useful for students who are planning to take the TOEFL test but they are also useful for IELTS, FCE, Upper Intermediate and Advanced level students.

Here's the link: GetTOEFL

Passive Voice

Here's a simple explanation of Passive Voice with lots of exercises for practice and revision. Click on the image above or visit the site with this link: English Grammar Online 4U - Passive Voice

Passive Voice is found in Unit 11A of the FCE students' course book.

PET & FCE - Practice Exercises

The deadline to register for the upcoming Cambridge University English exams is on October 29th. If you are interested in taking any of these exams you will need to make sure to register as soon as the Ramadan break is finished.

To help you prepare for the exams here are some online exercises:

PET Paper 1 - Reading Test

FCE Exam Practice: Word Formation (Paper 3 Part 5)

Punctuation and Capitalization

The FCE students are working hard to improve their punctuation skills. Here's an online quiz - there are 50 questions. Click on the image above or on this link: http://www.grammarbook.com/punctuation/punc_master_test.asp

Listening Activities

In these listening activities, six different speakers answer the same question. In the flash activities, there are two questions that follow each speaker's audio.

These listening exercises are useful for students that are hoping to take PET, FCE and IELTS exams.

Click on the image above to visit the site or on this link: http://www.elllo.org/00MXText/00-MixerIndex.htm

FCE Listening Exercises

FCE Listening exercises - Click on the image above to visit the site or on this link: http://www.britishcouncil.org/professionals-exams-fce-listening-1.htm