Requirements for French as a Second Language

French Proficiency Test


Candidates who are registering in French as a Second Language, Part I should carefully review the information below

The Test Details

The pre-admission test has been designed to evaluate your ability to understand, speak, read and write in French. It is structured in the following way:

• Comprehension: listening to questions and responding to them; 
• Reading an authentic article and responding to questions
• Writing a response to a prompt (usually 3 paragraphs)

NOTE: No sample test is provided. Length of time and format is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor.

The test is approximately two and a half hours in length:

• The listening/speaking part, will take about 40 minutes at a language lab.
• The reading/writing part, will take about 60 minutes.
• Dictionaries are not permitted.
• To pass the test you need to achieve at least 70% on each part.

Candidates need to bring one piece of photo-identification, e.g. driver's license to the test session. 

Note:  the proficiency test for the Spring session is now complete.  There is still time to do the test from afar.  

New Test Date for the Summer Session:  May 31, 2012

Oral Component  :   4:00-4:45  
Centre for Teaching and Learning (Lambton Building) G125 language lab.   

Written Component
:  5:00-7:00
Faculty of Education.  Room:  TBA

Candidates who have not paid for the test or who have not registered for French as a Second Language, Part I will not be permitted to take the test.

TEST TAKEN FROM AFAR

1)   It is the candidate's responsibility to find a Proctor for this test.  Candidates are asked to go to a nearby school and obtain permission from the Principal to take this test at this location.  The Principal may be the Proctor or the Principal may assign a Proctor.  Once this permission is obtained, candidates will submit the following information to the attention of our Administration Assistant at 519-256-3113, Ext. 25 or at aq@uwindsor.ca

• the name of the Principal and Proctor and their email addresses
• the name and address of the school
• the phone number and fax number of the school
• the location, date and time of the test

After we receive the above information, we will mail the test and instructions to the Proctor.  

2) It is also important to be able to access Xpress Lab for the oral portion and so a computer facility must be found at the school. Your computer will need to have sound and a microphone , or you may wish to use a headset and microphone.  Your proctor will receive your log in information with the test package. You will not have access to log in until your test time.  You will be given a chance to do a test recording. 

 NOTE:  Candidates will be financially responsible for the Proctor's fee.  Canadidates will agree with the Proctor on this fee prior to taking the test.  The Faculty of Education is NOT responsible for this fee.

The proficiency test MUST be taken and received by us at least THREE weeks prior to the start of the course.   

HEADSETS:  The purchase of headsets will be required for the oral testing (unless you have your own).  You may wish to purchase them at:   www.tigerdirect.ca

ORAL PROFICIENCY TEST GUIDE

Please read the Oral Proficiency Test Guide  Please note that this Guide is meant as information only.  You will not be able to access Xpress Lab until you have received a user name ID and password from your Instructor. 

Exemptions

Candidates who meet the criteria for an exemption must apply for an exemption at least 5 days before the test date, otherwise they must write the test. Criteria for French test exemption.

• If you have attended a Francophone University, such as Montreal, Laval, Chicoutimi, Quebec, Sudbury, Laurentian and Ottawa, where the language of instruction was French for all university courses completed, you may apply for an exemption from writing the test.
•  Proficiency testing results from other Institutions may be considered for exemptions.Admission offers from other institutions are not considered for exemptions.
• In extenuating circumstances, candidates may have an interview with the Continuing Education Manager concerning the proficiency test.

Requesting an exemption

Candidates who believe that they may be eligible for exemption must contact the AQ Manager  at least 5 business days prior to the stated test date with a copy of their applicable university transcripts (transcripts may be faxed to  Attention:  Additional Qualification)

Fee

The cost of taking the test is $50 which is included in the course fee.  The $50 test fee is non-refundable.  You must register and pay for the course prior to taking the test.  

Preparing for the Test

Candidates are advised to prepare well for the test. To improve oral fluency consider:

• listening to a French radio station
• watching television, movies, films or plays in French
• speaking French with friends or family

To improve written fluency consider:

• reviewing all tenses of verbs, spelling, use of specific tenses such as l'imparfait, le conditionnel, le subjonctif, le passé composé
• reading in French to review vocabulary
• practicing a cloze test by photocopying a paragraph and whiting out about twenty words. Later, fill in the blanks and compare your answers with the original copy.
• purchasing or accessing multimedia programs such as Success in French
• reviewing grammar books that you already have
• searching the Internet for sites on French language

Here are the websites that may help you in preparing for the test:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/french/index.shtml

http://www.leconjugueur.com

http://www.promme.ualberta.ca/devoir

http://www.media-awareness.ca/francais/index.cfm

http://www.radio-canada.ca/radio/francaismicro

http://lepatron.ca

http://www.uni.edu/becker/french31/html