Level Description

At level B1, the participant can understand clear and relatively simple language and express themselves understandably and coherently about topics related to their personal, educational, and work situations, familiar current events, and topics of personal interest. The participant can participate unprepared in most interactive situations if the interlocutors express themselves clearly.

B1 Listening

The goal of the training is for the participant to understand the main content and some specific details in speech about familiar topics related to their personal situation, education, work, social life, and topics of personal interest when spoken clearly and at a moderate speech pace.

The participant should be able to:

• understand main points and some specific details in conversations and discussions about familiar topics
• follow clear and structured presentations about familiar topics, such as presentations, lectures, or stories
• understand specific details in messages, instructions, and directions
• understand main points and some specific details in auditory and audiovisual material, such as news broadcasts, podcasts, and films
• understand some pronunciation and common dialect words and expressions encountered in daily life
• use listening strategies such as understanding words from context when the topic is familiar, and guessing the meaning of words from the different parts the word is composed of.

B1 Reading

The goal of the training is for the participant to be able to read relatively simple texts with satisfactory understanding about topics related to their personal situation, education, work, social life, and topics of personal interest.

The participant should be able to:

• search for, find, and understand relevant information in various everyday informative texts, such as short public letters and documents, websites, and brochures
• read and understand everyday texts such as letters, emails, and posts on social media
• read and understand clear and straightforward instructions
• read and understand main points in simple news articles and relatively simple texts within their own field of study or interest and assess the relevance of the text
• read and understand main features in composite texts that include simple graphical presentations, such as diagrams
• read and understand simple literary texts
• use reading strategies such as understanding words from context when the topic is familiar, and guessing the meaning of words from the different parts the word is composed of.

B1 Writing

The goal of the training is for the participant to be able to communicate in writing and write simple coherent texts with some detailed descriptions about familiar topics related to their personal, educational, or work situations and topics of personal interest.

The participant should be able to:

• write simple coherent texts about experiences, events, areas of interest, ambitions, and future plans that contain some detailed descriptions
• note down main points from a meeting or a professional presentation about a familiar topic, conveyed in relatively simple language
• write short reports related to their own educational and work situation
• describe people, places, events, and experiences in a detailed manner
• write and comment on personal posts and participate in discussions about familiar topics in digital communication
• write simple, formal emails and letters, for example in connection with a job application
• fill in information in various types of forms in digital services encountered in daily life
• express and briefly justify opinions in simple coherent texts
• convey the content of simple literary texts
• summarize and convey relevant information from clearly formulated texts about familiar topics
• use strategies to compensate for vocabulary gaps, for example by rephrasing
• use various writing strategies, for example to emphasize what they consider most important in a text.

B1 Speaking

The goal of the training is for the participant to be able to express themselves simply and coherently about familiar topics related to their personal, educational, work, and social life.

The participant should be able to:

• participate in most interactive situations in everyday life
• talk about experiences, feelings, dreams, plans, and ambitions
• describe relatively detailed people, objects, events, and experiences
• give a prepared presentation on a familiar topic, both with and without the use of digital tools
• describe a problem, ask for advice, and understand a clearly formulated response
• talk about, explain, and briefly justify their own actions and plans
• retell the plot in a narrative, for example from a film
• initiate or enter, maintain, and end simple conversations and discussions about familiar topics
• present themselves and their own skills and answer questions in an interview situation
• express and briefly justify their own opinions in discussions and meetings about familiar topics
• convey relevant information from, for example, messages and instructions
• cooperate on tasks by inviting others to participate, contributing input, asking why someone thinks something, and confirming a common understanding before continuing
• use strategies to compensate for vocabulary gaps, for example by adapting words from other languages they know
• use various interactive strategies, for example by intervening in a discussion about well-known topics and gaining the floor using an appropriate phrase.