Proficiency levels (ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines 2024 / 2012)
| Major level | Can typically... | Text type | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| Novice (Low, Mid, High) | Communicate with memorised words and phrases; lists; simple personal information | Words, phrases, lists | Most common, familiar, everyday |
| Intermediate (Low, Mid, High) | Create with language; ask and answer simple questions; handle simple transactions | Discrete sentences, strings of sentences | Familiar, predictable, personal |
| Advanced (Low, Mid, High) | Narrate and describe in all major time frames; handle a situation with a complication | Paragraphs | Concrete, community, work, events |
| Superior | Support opinions, hypothesise, discuss abstract and unfamiliar topics | Extended discourse | Abstract, professional, academic |
| Distinguished | Tailor language to audience, persuade, use cultural and historical references | Extended, sophisticated discourse | Global, nuanced |
High sublevels mean the learner performs at the next level much of the time but cannot sustain it.
The FACT/FACT-A lens for tasks
Check each task against the target level on:
| Element | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced |
|---|---|---|---|
| Functions | List, name, identify | Ask and answer, describe simply, handle transactions | Narrate, describe in detail, explain, compare |
| Contexts / content | Self, immediate environment | Daily life, personal interests | Community, work, current events |
| Text type | Words, phrases | Sentences, strings | Paragraphs |
| Accuracy | Understood with difficulty by sympathetic listeners | Understood by sympathetic listeners | Understood without difficulty by non-sympathetic listeners |
Proficiency vs performance
- Proficiency: what a learner can do spontaneously in unrehearsed, real-world contexts (rated with an OPI, AAPPL, STAMP and similar).
- Performance: what a learner can do with practised language in familiar contexts after instruction (rated with ACTFL Performance Descriptors, unit assessments).
Curriculum targets performance unit by unit; proficiency grows over years. Do not label a unit test score as a proficiency level.
Three modes of communication
| Mode | Definition | Example tasks | Not this mode |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interpretive | One-way understanding of authentic texts (reading, listening, viewing) without negotiating with the author | Read a menu and choose a meal; watch a weather report and decide what to wear | Translating word by word; vocabulary lists |
| Interpersonal | Two-way, spontaneous exchange with negotiation of meaning (speaking or writing) | Plan a weekend with a partner; text-chat to arrange a meeting | Memorised skits; prepared dialogues |
| Presentational | One-way, prepared production for an audience (speaking or writing) | Record a video tour of your town; write a blog post | Unprepared conversation |
World-Readiness Standards (the 5 Cs)
Communication (the three modes), Cultures (practices, products, perspectives), Connections (other subjects), Comparisons (language and culture), Communities (use beyond the classroom, lifelong learning).
Unit design (backward design)
- Theme and essential question ("How do families celebrate?").
- Unit can-do statements for each mode, at the target performance level.
- Integrated Performance Assessment (IPA): interpretive task -> interpersonal task -> presentational task, linked by one authentic context, each with a rubric.
- Learning episodes that build the language and culture for the IPA.
- Authentic materials for the interpretive task.
Typical targets (US programmes; vary widely)
| Programme | Typical end target (speaking) |
|---|---|
| Elementary FLES, 3-5 years | Novice Mid-High |
| Middle school, 2-3 years | Novice High |
| High school, levels 1-2 | Novice Mid-High |
| High school, levels 3-4 / AP | Intermediate Low-Mid (AP: Intermediate Mid-High) |
| Dual-language immersion, grade 5 | Intermediate Mid-High |
| College, 4 semesters | Intermediate Mid-High |
| College major | Advanced Low-Mid |
| Seal of Biliteracy | Intermediate Mid (many states) |
Time needed (US Foreign Service Institute estimates for English speakers to reach ILR 3 / Superior)
| Category | Examples | Class hours |
|---|---|---|
| I | Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch | 600-750 |
| II | German, Indonesian, Malay, Swahili | ~900 |
| III | Russian, Hindi, Greek, Turkish, Vietnamese, Polish | ~1,100 |
| IV | Arabic, Mandarin, Cantonese, Japanese, Korean | ~2,200 |
FSI learners are adults studying full time with small classes; school programmes take longer.
academic-english-eap-course-planner
Plan English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses: pre-sessional, in-sessional, foundation, IELTS preparation and discipline-specific EAP, with syllabus strands (academic reading, lecture listening and note-taking, essay and report writing, paraphrase, summary and synthesis, referencing and plagiarism, seminars and presentations, academic vocabulary, critical thinking), a 10-week pre-sessional outline, exit assessment, IELTS-CEFR alignment and academic style (formality, hedging, cohesion, reporting verbs). Estimates study hours and weeks to close an IELTS gap from overall or per-skill scores (IELTS rounding, minimum per skill, priority skills, feasibility before a deadline), and checks learner texts for contractions, informal words with academic alternatives, unhedged claims, 'you', And/But/So starts, rhetorical questions and missing citations.
adult-literacy-esl-lesson-builder
Build lessons for adult ESL learners who are developing literacy (LESLLA learners: pre-literate, non-literate, semi-literate, literate in a non-Roman script): learner profiles and sensitive initial assessment, principles (oral language first, known to new, systematic phonics with adult-relevant text, repetition, classroom skills, respect for experience), a lesson routine (oral warm-up, review, new grapheme, blending, segmenting, decodable text, writing, functional literacy, Language Experience Approach), a phonics sequence for adults, sight words, functional literacy targets (forms, signs, medicine labels) and portfolio assessment. Checks whether a reading text is decodable with the letter-sound patterns and sight words taught so far, catching untaught digraphs, listing non-decodable words with the untaught part, and suggesting the most useful next patterns.
authentic-material-lesson-adapter
Turn authentic material (news articles, podcasts, videos, songs, menus, timetables, adverts, social media posts, forms, infographics) into language lessons by grading the task rather than the text. Selects texts for interest, relevance, exploitability, coverage, cultural load and rights; finds the 4-6 words to pre-teach, words to gloss on the page and words learners can ignore, plus names and cultural references to explain, with reading time by level; and builds a lesson shape (lead-in, pre-teach, gist or scanning, graded detail task, language focus on chunks and register, response) with task ideas per material type and level from A1 to C1. Covers copyright, fair dealing and fair use, Creative Commons and attribution.
can-do-statement-writer
Write and review can-do statements for language courses, units, lessons and learner self-assessment, CEFR or NCSSFL-ACTFL style: action (observable verb) + text or situation + level-specific conditions, learner ('I can') and descriptor ('Can') versions, progressions of one activity from A1 to C1, and coverage of reception, production, interaction and mediation. Includes a verb bank by mode and level and condition and text-type banks. Lints statements for teacher-centred phrasing, knowledge instead of use (learn, know, understand the passive), missing context, two skills in one statement, vague quality words, grammar items as outcomes, overlong statements and missing modes in a set.
cefr-aligned-syllabus-builder
Build language course syllabuses aligned to the CEFR (A1-C2, plus levels, Companion Volume 2020): entry and exit levels, guided learning hours and course length (with an L1-distance adjustment), syllabus type (topic, functional-notional, task-based, skills-based, multi-strand), unit-by-unit can-do outcomes, grammar from a core inventory by level, vocabulary, functions, pronunciation, balance of reception, production, interaction and mediation, recycling and assessment points. Checks a syllabus for units without can-do statements, core grammar for the level not covered, items above the course level, skills missing from most units and units with no vocabulary or functions.
classroom-management-for-esl-coach
Coach ESL/EFL teachers in classroom management: the instruction sequence (attention, group first, graded imperatives, demonstration, ICQs, hand out, start, check), ICQ examples, online instructions, routines for the first weeks (class agreement, L1 use, phones, lateness, homework, seating), strategies for L1 use in tasks, dominant and quiet learners, mixed levels, large classes, fast finishers, low motivation, disruptive young learners and teens, cultural expectations, classroom language to teach early and teacher presence. Checks planned instructions for length, missing ICQs, useless ICQs like 'Do you understand?', no demonstration, long sentences, filler and missing grouping or timing, and builds seating plans that keep named learners apart, seat learners who need the front, mix first languages and alternate stronger and weaker learners.