*0247747851*
University of Cambridge
ESOL Examinations
1 Hills Road
Cambridge
CB1 2EU
United Kingdom
9 781906 438838
Preface
This handbook is intended for course providers who are, or intend to become, involved in preparing
candidates for TKT: KAL (Knowledge about Language).
For further information on any of the Cambridge ESOL examinations and teaching awards,
please contact:
Cambridge ESOL Information, 1 Hills Road, Cambridge, CB1 2EU, United Kingdom
Tel: +44 1223 553355, Fax: +44 1223 460278, email: ESOL@ucles.org.uk
www.CambridgeESOL.org
Contents
2 Introduction
7 Preparation
9 Sample test
17 Test administration
17 Special Circumstances
18 Test production
KAL offers candidates a step in their professional development include two specifically designed for the further education
as teachers and enables them to move on to higher-level and skills sector within the UK.
teaching (ELT) and journals about ELT. Cambridge ESOL’s Teaching Awards and tests for teachers can
be found on the following page.
KAL candidates are encouraged to keep a portfolio, a record of
their professional development and reflections on their
teaching. Through their portfolio candidates can become
reflective practitioners, analysing their teaching and how this
impacts on their students’ learning. However, the portfolio
does not form part of the assessment for KAL. The Teacher
Portfolio is Cambridge ESOL’s free online system that any
teacher can use to record and document their career progress.
Teachers can visit www.teacherportfolio.CambridgeESOL.org
for more information.
TKT Module 1 TKT: CLIL TKT: KAL TKT: Practical CELTA ICELT Delta Delta Delta
TKT Module 2 CELTYL Module Module Module
TKT Module 3 One Two Three
Teaching not essential not essential not essential required not required required recommended required recommended
experience
Previous not essential not essential not essential not essential qualifications local an initial an initial an initial
qualifications which allow requirements teaching teaching teaching
/ training access to apply qualification qualification qualification
higher
education
Suggested minimum of minimum of minimum of minimum of minimum of minimum of minimum of minimum of minimum of
language Council of Council of Council of Council of Council of Council of Council of Council of Council of
level Europe B1 Europe B1 Europe B2 Europe B1 Europe C2/C1 Europe B2 Europe C2/C1 Europe C2/C1 Europe C2/C1
Teaching age primary, primary, primary, primary, CELTA: primary, primary, primary, primary,
group secondary or secondary or secondary or secondary or adults (16+) secondary or secondary or secondary or secondary or
adults adults adults adults CELTYL: adults adults adults adults
primary or
secondary
Course not required not required not required not required yes yes not required yes not required
attendance
Note: Cambridge ESOL also offers IDLTM and the Young Learner Extension to CELTA. IDLTM is an educational management qualification.
The Young Learner Extension to CELTA shares similarities with CELTYL, except that entry is conditional on candidates having completed
CELTA.
• to test candidates’ knowledge of concepts related to KAL tests knowledge of the lexical, phonological, grammatical
language and language use and discoursal features of the English language. It focuses on
those areas of language that are relevant to teachers of English
• to provide an easily accessible test of English language
when preparing lessons, delivering lessons, responding to
knowledge to teachers of English, which is prepared and
learners’ queries or language use, or evaluating or giving
delivered to international standards, and could be used
feedback on homework.
by candidates to access further training, and enhance
career opportunities KAL consists of 80 questions in four parts. Candidates are
• to encourage teachers in their professional development required to answer the questions by selecting a letter for the
by providing a step in a developmental framework of correct answer. As KAL tests candidates’ knowledge of
awards for teachers of English language systems rather than their proficiency in the English
language or their performance in classroom situations,
■ TKT: Knowledge about Language candidature candidates are not required to listen, speak or produce
extended writing when taking KAL.
KAL is suitable for teachers of English in primary, secondary or
adult teaching contexts and is intended for an international ■ Teaching contexts
audience of non-first language or first language teachers of KAL tests the knowledge about language that underpins a
English. teacher’s preparation and delivery of lessons regardless of the
Candidates taking KAL will normally have some experience of approach to teaching and learning that they adopt. It is
teaching English to speakers of other languages. KAL may also relevant to teachers from a wide range of teaching contexts
be taken by: and methodological backgrounds. It does not test approaches
to teaching and learning English.
• pre-service teachers
■ Sources and text types used in TKT: Knowledge
• teachers who wish to refresh their teaching knowledge
about Language
• teachers who are moving to teaching English after
Extracts, original or adapted, from the following sources may
teaching another subject
feature in KAL:
PART 1 PART 4
Title Discourse
Title Lexis
Number of items 15
Number of items 20
Areas of • coherence
Areas of • different types of meaning
language • cohesion
language • sense relations
knowledge • register
knowledge • word formation
tested • distinctive features of common
tested • lexical units (e.g. fixed phrases,
written and spoken genres
collocations)
• pragmatic and semantic meaning
• lexico-grammatical features
• functions
• register
Task types 2 tasks
Task types 3 tasks
3-option multiple-choice; 4-option
3-option multiple-choice; 4-option
multiple-choice; matching; ‘odd
multiple-choice; matching; ‘odd
one out’
one out’
This part of KAL tests candidates’ knowledge of different types of This part of KAL tests candidates’ knowledge of the form, meaning
meaning; sense relations; word formation; lexical units; lexico- and use of grammatical structures in English.
grammar and register.
■ Syllabus area Grammar
■ Syllabus area Lexis
■ Possible testing focus
■ Possible testing focus
• the role of context in determining meaning and use of
• types of meaning: denotation, connotation, figurative, grammatical forms
contextual e.g. situational, collocational
• word classes and the functional role of words in a
• sense relationships: synonyms, antonyms, hyponyms, sentence
whole/part, lexical sets, false friends
• grammatical roles performed by words in a sentence
• word formation: morphemes, affixation, compounds,
• the form, meaning and use of structural patterns
types of abbreviations, acronyms, spelling rules, word
families
The noun phrase:
• lexical units: collocations, idioms, fixed phrases,
• different types of nouns e.g. countable, collective,
formulaic phrases
pronouns
• lexico-grammatical features: grammatical function of
• determiners e.g. articles, possessives, quantifiers
words and morphemes
• adjectives
• register: domain-specific vocabulary; degrees of
formality in vocabulary and their contexts of occurrence • noun phrase structures
• nominalisation
■ Part 2
The verb phrase:
This part of KAL tests candidates’ knowledge of segmental and
suprasegmental phonological features. • verb types e.g. transitive and intransitive, reflexive,
phrasal, stative and dynamic
■ Syllabus area Phonology
• verb patterns
■ Possible testing focus • mood e.g. declarative, negative, interrogative and
imperative
Segmental features:
• modality
• phonemes: the different phonemes of English and their
• time and tense
places and manner of articulation e.g. bilabial plosive;
voiced or unvoiced consonant; front or back vowels etc. • aspect: perfect and progressive aspects in present, past
and future forms
• word stress: primary, secondary stresses and weak
syllables; contrastive word stress and changing word • hypotheticality e.g. conditional and wish structures
stress • adverbials e.g. time, manner, place, degree,
• standard word patterns in word stress e.g. words ending comparatives, position of adverbials
in sion/tion • the passive
• the role of segmentals in conveying meaning e.g. full vs. • reported speech and reporting verbs
weak forms, contrastive word stress
The sentence:
Suprasegmental features:
• simple sentences e.g. elements and word order
• sentence stress: primary and secondary stresses in a
• complex sentences e.g. main, subordinate and
sentence; emphatic and contrastive stress
co-ordinate clauses; non-finite and finite clauses; types
• connected speech: linking, assimilation, elision, of clauses (e.g. time, condition, relative, purpose, reason,
intrusion (liaison), weak forms, contraction result, concessive); sentence linking
• intonation: pitch direction and range; common
intonational patterns such as for ‘yes/no’ questions; the
grammatical, attitudinal and interactive functions of
intonation
■ Candidates should become fully familiar with the exam prepare for this section of the test. They are advised to
format and task types for KAL. See page 5 for details of the consult reference books on the use, meaning and form of
number of sections the test contains, the number of tasks in key language that is the focus of texts or coursebook
each section and the task types that could be used in each units. The teachers’ books accompanying coursebooks
section. Look too at the sample paper on pages 9–16 of this can also give useful information about these aspects of
■ Entry procedure
■ Notification of results
Candidates must enter through an authorised Cambridge
Certificates are despatched to Centres approximately two
ESOL Centre. A list of Cambridge ESOL Examination Centres is
weeks after receipt of answer sheets by Cambridge ESOL.
available from Cambridge ESOL from the address on page 1.
Please note that despatch of candidates’ results will be
Institutions wishing to become Cambridge ESOL Examination
delayed if they need special consideration or are suspected of
Centres should contact the Centre Registration Unit at
malpractice (see below).
Cambridge ESOL.
Enquiries on results may be made through Cambridge ESOL
KAL is available throughout the year and Centres contact
Local Secretaries within a month of the issue of certificates.
Cambridge ESOL to arrange a test date. Candidate details must
be submitted to Cambridge ESOL at least six weeks prior to
■ Appeals procedure
running the session. Please note that more notice may be
necessary if candidates have special requirements and Cambridge ESOL provides a service to enable Centres to
therefore need special arrangements (see below). appeal, on behalf of candidates, against assessment decisions
Copies of the Regulations and more details on entry that affect grades awarded to candidates, e.g. decisions
procedure, current fees and further information about this and relating to results and decisions relating to irregular conduct.
other Cambridge ESOL examinations can be obtained from the
Candidates should first contact their Cambridge ESOL Local
Cambridge ESOL Local Secretary in your area, or from the
Secretary for advice. Further information about the appeals
address on page 1.
procedure can be found at www.CambridgeESOL.org/support
■ Malpractice
1 limited knowledge of KAL content areas
The Malpractice Committee will consider cases where
candidates are suspected of copying, collusion or breaking the
2 basic, but systematic knowledge of KAL content areas
examination regulations in some other way. Results may be
withheld because further investigation is needed or because of
infringement of regulations. Centres are notified if a
3 breadth and depth of knowledge of KAL content areas
candidate’s results are being investigated.
• pretesting
Commissioning of material
for question papers
Pretest construction
Revision Rejection
Pretesting
Item analysis
Question paper
construction
University of Cambridge
ESOL Examinations
1 Hills Road
Cambridge
CB1 2EU
United Kingdom
9 781906 438838