CILS B2 case studies
CILS B2 · Put your knowledge to work in context.
CILS - Certificazione di Italiano come Lingua Straniera - is the Italian-language certification suite issued by the Università per Stranieri di Siena, one of Italy's state universities specialised in teaching Italian to non-native speakers. The B2 level sits in the upper-intermediate band of the Common European Framework of Reference: a candidate at this level is expected to understand the main ideas of complex texts, interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers possible without strain, and produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects. The CILS B2 case studies are 5 cases and about 3,083 words.
1Ascolto: decidere tra Vero, Falso e Non dato quando il parlante è ambivalente
Giulia is practising the Ascolto paper. In the task she hears - once only, as in the real exam - a radio interview with the director of a small town library that runs a «biblioteca dei semi»: members borrow vegetable seeds and return seeds at harvest.
646 words, about 3 min2Lettura: distinguere «non indolore» da «sbagliato» in un editoriale
Marco is working on a Lettura task. The passage is a short editorial about a city that closed its historic centre to private cars.
605 words, about 3 min3Analisi delle strutture: periodo ipotetico misto e scelta del pronome
Elena is reviewing a cloze from her coursebook. The sentence: «Se il Comune il piano lo scorso anno, oggi più piste ciclabili e molti cittadini la bici per andare al lavoro.» Her three candidate answers are: A.
583 words, about 3 min4Produzione scritta: rispettare i vincoli quando la bozza è troppo lunga e troppo informale
Davide has 30 minutes left for the first writing task. The rubric says: write a formal email of about 120–140 words to the secretary of a language school.
609 words, about 3 min5Produzione orale: gestire una lacuna lessicale e una domanda di follow-up ambigua
Sofia is sitting the oral exam. She draws two topics and must choose one: (1) «Il volontariato nella società di oggi»; (2) «I social network e le relazioni personali».
640 words, about 3 min