New CAE exam format-2015 Listening

How does the old CAE exam compare to the new revised CAE exam format - 2015 ?

What follows is a summary of the differences between Listening tasks in the old and the new exams. Suitable for both teachers of English and future CAE exam takers.

Paper 3 LISTENING


Both the old and the new formats last about 40 min and consist of 4 parts with a total of 30 questions. All the texts are heard twice. Each correct answer receives one mark.


Part 1– Multiple choice


OLD FORMAT

Part 1 consisted of three short texts with two three- option multiple-choice questions on each text.


NEW FORMAT

Part 1 consists of three short extracts from exchanges between speakers.There are two multiple-choice questions on each text. Each text is approximately one minute in length. They are on a wide range of topics.


Part 2 – Sentence completion


OLD FORMAT

Part 2 consisted of a monologue, lasting approximately 3 minutes. Candidates had to complete the missing information from a set of eight sentences.


NEW FORMAT

Part 2 consists of a monologue, approximately 3 minutes long. The style is neutral or semi-formal. Candidates have to fill in one gap in each of eight independent sentences. The missing information is either a single word or a short phrase. Correct spelling is essential.


Part 3 – Multiple choice


OLD FORMAT


Part 3 consisted of an interview or discussion, lasting three or four minutes. There used to be six four-option multiple-choice questions.


NEW FORMAT


Part 3 consists of a conversation between two or more speakers of approximately 4 min. There are six multiple-choice questions, each with 4 options.


Part 4 – Multiple matching


OLD FORMAT


Part 4 consisted of 5 short monologues of around 30 seconds each. The whole set was heard once and then repeated. Candidates had to complete two tasks, each with a set of 8 short prompts.


NEW FORMAT


Part 4 consists again of 5 short monologues of approximately 30 seconds each. The style is informal. Each multiple matching task(there are two of them) requires selection of the correct options from a list of 8.


As you can see,Paper 3 has undergone the fewest chnages in comparison with the rest.


All the current listening tasks are retained.


The Part 3 multiple- choice task is slightly changed to focus more on interaction between speakers.

( Some useful information about the same topic -  http://www.pearson.lv/news/changes-to-cambridge-exams-from-2015.html)