Langue anglaise - reading comprehension, grammar in context, written expression
L'épreuve d'anglais de la filière langues étrangères comporte trois parties : reading comprehension sur un texte de 150 à 200 mots, language (grammaire et vocabulaire en contexte) et written expression (paragraphe ou lettre de 80 à 120 mots). Les thèmes tournent autour de l'éducation, de la technologie, de l'environnement, du sport et de la santé.
Grammar points that come back every year
- Present perfect vs past simple : present perfect pour une période non terminée ou un résultat présent, avec since, for, already, yet, ever ; past simple avec un repère révolu (yesterday, in 2019, last week).
- Passive voice : be au temps voulu + participe passé ; l'agent n'apparaît avec by que s'il apporte une information utile.
- Reported speech : recul d'un temps (will → would, can → could, present → past), changement des marqueurs (tomorrow → the following day, now → then) et des pronoms.
- Conditionals : type 1 (if + present, will), type 2 (if + past, would), type 3 (if + had + participe, would have + participe).
- Relative clauses : who (personne), which (chose), whose (possession), where (lieu).
- Modals : must (obligation intérieure), have to (obligation extérieure), should (conseil), may/might (possibilité).
Worked example
Direct speech : “I will finish the report tomorrow,” she said. Reported speech : She said (that) she would finish the report the following day. Reasoning : the reporting verb is in the past (said), so the verb of the reported clause shifts one step back - will becomes would ; the pronoun I becomes she because the speaker is a woman ; tomorrow becomes the following day ; that is optional ; there is no question mark and no inversion, since the sentence is not a question.
Traps that cost marks
- Copying full sentences from the text instead of rephrasing the answer.
- Forgetting the -s of the third person singular in the writing task.
- False friends : actually means en fait, not actuellement ; eventually means finalement.
- Writing fewer words than required, or ignoring the requested format (letter, article, speech).
- A paragraph without a topic sentence, without connectors (however, moreover, therefore) and without a conclusion.
- Wrong articles and prepositions, penalised under language accuracy.
For the writing task, plan three moves: a topic sentence stating the opinion, two supporting sentences with one concrete example, then a closing sentence.