D.S.E. LISTENING

Spelling Tip

The listening component of the exam creates problems for students who believe that they will fail because they can't spell. In truth, you need to have some basic competency in spelling, but there are answer words included in other questions or the Data File. For example:

2019 Task 1

Answer Word Location

Q5 - 30 minutes B1DF Page 7

Length of Videos:

Between 2 and 5 minutes

Q7 - calculator apps Task 2 Page 7

Situation

...a new app...

Q8 - online dictionaries Part A Page 3

Situation

...Club's online...

Q14 - it is popular at lunch time Task 1 Page 4

Most popular requests:

Task 1 Page 4

Question 5

... at lunch time.

This is just 1 task on one paper, but it highlights how you can check your spelling within the exam time.

It is not necessary to spell the word correctly the first time you hear it. It is necessary to write it down, how you hear it be reasonably accurate but not perfect, e.g. minuts, poplar, luchtime, etc. You will not have enough time to check your spelling in the normal tidy-up time, but you can borrow some time - maybe ten minutes - when you are tackling the Integrated Skills Part.

In the example Task 1 is worth 14 marks and the answer words account for some 28% of that amount. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Take every opportunity to gain marks. 1 mark could be the difference between Level 2 and Level 3 and so on.