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TEF Test Is Easy or Difficult ????

A

ayboye

Member
Jul 6, 2011
12
2
toppiri said:
Speaking had two parts:
(1) They gave us a made-up ad from a newspaper, asked us to "call them" and ask for more information; pretend we would need their services (I believe it was a financial organization) so you have to imagine the situation, the context and ask your questions.
(2) This part may be a little more difficult for some as it involves more of a daily type of conversation. I, as their friend, had to convince them to buy a product. They don't go easy on you. They had a response for every possible argument I had, but we ended the conversation on a good note. If you have any French speaking friends, I guess you can practice with them.

Writing had two parts as well:
(1) Write a short article for a newspaper. They gave us the second header of a minor news item (type "fait divers") and asked to use newspaper language + imagine the rest of the story. In general my only advice would be not to dwell too much on this first part (I lost way too much time & only noticed the second part later.) I would even consider starting with the second part, as it has more points.
(2) Ugh. Essay on a social subject. They don't judge your ideas, just the way you convey them. They asked us to discuss both sides of the subject (it was something about tangible / intangible cultural heritage.) I wrote down my ideas in bullet points in a rough first draft, then had to pretty much stitch them together as I wrote the final essay - I would have ran out of time if I tried to write it down properly. (Again, the first question's fault, not mine!) Anyway, make sure you have your Introduction - Développement - Conclusion, et voilà. Easy peasy.

Hope this helps. Good luck!
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OMG, thanks so much for sharing. I'm writing mine soon in Lagos, Nigeria.
 
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A

ayboye

Member
Jul 6, 2011
12
2
defintelyguru said:
As a native French speaker, I too went for the TEF Canada.
All that has been said so far is true, the test is more difficult than the IELTS/CELPIP.

For example, you loose points if you answer incorrectly to a question (-1pt). You can't simply guess or try your luck if you're not sure, that will cost you.
French people also have a tendency to be very academic, formal, abusing the literary form.
So sometimes you're like "What the hell are they talking about ?!"
I personally went over a question several times wondering what they meant... No matter how I looked at it I just couldn't get it. (I would have had an option 'None of the above' !!!)

The writing and speaking tests are exigeant.
Writing has more of an academic level. The subjects are extremely serious, and you'd better brush off your essay skills.
Speaking is situation-based. You do most of the speaking, they're not really gonna help you, nor is it a conversation style. It requires good vocabulary and argumentation abilities.

Overall French is a difficult language with a lot of "exceptions". It's a tough one even for natives. Pronunciation is uneasy for non-native.
So anyone interested should be fully invested, and prepared. It will take a long time to get to a minimum.

But if you score good enough, you have the possibility to get an Ontario nomination, which is a great motivation !
I believe they require CLB7.
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Thanks for sharing your experience but according to the exam guide released in January 2018, you don't lose any point if you answer a question incorrectly. You can confirm that on page 5 of the official exam guide.
 
A

ayboye

Member
Jul 6, 2011
12
2
samikdg said:
Can any of the people who have been able to download the AF books for A1 to C2 provided by DelPiero, upload those on a Google shared drive? The material downloaded from his drive is showing an error and they cannot be unzipped. He is constrained with time, so requesting others who have already received the materials from him to do this please!
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You can download it here.
 
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U

Ussie@11

Newbie
Feb 26, 2018
6
0
helena21 said:
If your goal is to pass TEF then I suggest that you find a good teacher who will learn you basics and then work only on TEF preparation with you. When I was passing the exam there was a girl with me with a very basic knowledge but she still managed to pass TEF with good results. Her teacher really worked with her in techniques for successful TEF completion and managed to teach her well.

There are teachers who only do specific exam preparations and they know how to increase your chances. I took one like that for my husband's IELTS preparation and he is really progressing fast.

Just for a bench, I speak French since forever (but I'm pretty bad with school like knowledge) and I had to prepare for 2 full weeks for the exam is it is really specific. There are unfortunately only 2 books for TEF preparation they are really helpful. The process is basically the same as for IELTS preparation and practice makes perfect. :)
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Dear Helena,
Do you happen to have those 2 books? Can you plz share with me at ussie.khuslen@gmail.com . Any other material or advise would be great too. Thanks a lot!
 
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