Berlin Abitur English (3rd subject / GK) study guide
Berlin Abitur English (3rd subject / GK) · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Berlin Abitur English Grundkurs is the basic-course written examination in English taken as the third subject (drittes Prüfungsfach) within the Berlin Abitur. Candidates are typically upper-secondary students at a Berlin Gymnasium, Integrierte Sekundarschule with gymnasiale Oberstufe, or a berufliches Gymnasium who have completed the Grundkurs in English and want the subject to count toward the Abitur average rather than, or in addition to, their two advanced subjects. The Berlin Abitur English (3rd subject / GK) study guide has 7 sections and about 3,398 words.
01Reading and Text Analysis (Leseverstehen / Textanalyse)
The reading paper gives you one or more authentic texts - usually a newspaper commentary, a speech or a magazine feature, sometimes a literary extract or two shorter texts on one issue. Part of the task is comprehension (Anforderungsbereich I/II): prove you have understood content, structure and stance.
506 words, about 3 min02Listening Comprehension (Hörverstehen)
The listening paper uses two or three authentic recordings - a news item, an interview, a podcast extract or a speech - at natural speed and in different varieties of English. Each recording is normally played twice, with a pause before the first playing and between the two.
475 words, about 2 min03Language, Grammar and Vocabulary in Context (Sprachliche Mittel)
The Berlin written Abitur has no isolated grammar section. Grammar, vocabulary and register are assessed where they are used - in the analysis essay, the writing task and the mediation task - as part of the sprachliche Leistung (Ausdrucksvermögen and Sprachrichtigkeit).
541 words, about 3 min04Writing and Text Production (Textproduktion / Schreiben)
Writing is the productive core of the exam: an analysis essay plus at least one choice task (comment, letter to the editor, article, blog post, speech manuscript, email, review). Markers assess task realisation (text type, role, addressee, purpose), structure and argumentation, cohesion and range, accuracy and register - not how strongly you feel about the topic.
480 words, about 2 min05Intercultural and Socio-Cultural Knowledge (Landeskunde / Cultural Studies)
Cultural studies is not a separate paper. It is tested through texts that presuppose contextual knowledge and through the requirement to relate a text to its historical, political and social background.
459 words, about 2 min06Mediation / Language Transfer (Sprachmittlung)
Mediation means transferring a message between languages so that it works for a specific reader in a specific situation - not translating. The Berlin Grundkurs paper typically supplies a German source text and an English-language scenario (an email to a partner school, a letter to a newspaper, a briefing for colleagues, a blog comment), occasionally the reverse direction.
462 words, about 2 min07Speaking and Oral Interaction (Sprechen / mündliche Prüfung)
The oral examination in English usually lasts about twenty minutes after roughly twenty minutes of preparation on a task: a short text, a cartoon, a statement or a statistic. It has two parts - a monologue presenting and analysing the material, and a Prüfungsgespräch in which the examiners probe, challenge and extend.
475 words, about 2 min