Preliminary mark in Language 2: the s7 evidence file and the Pre-Baccalaureate examinations
What the preliminary mark is
The preliminary mark (note préliminaire) in Language 2 is the school-based mark awarded at the end of s7. It is not one test result: it is a documented judgement built on the whole year's evidence, and it has to withstand scrutiny if the school's marks are moderated or queried. Typically it carries about half of your final L2 grade - the same order of weight as the examinations combined - so s7 is examined territory even though no external examiner sets the tasks.
Formative and summative evidence
- Formative assessment - feedback on drafts, oral practice, peer and self-assessment, portfolio work - shapes learning but is not itself scored into the mark.
- Summative assessment - graded written tests, listening tests, assessed oral tasks and the Pre-Baccalaureate examinations - supplies the numbers.
- Evidence must cover listening, reading, spoken production and interaction, written production and language accuracy. A candidate who writes well but freezes in oral work cannot be assumed strong across the board.
- Teachers work from criteria aligned with the Baccalaureate grids (task achievement, organisation, range, accuracy), so your s7 marks and your final-paper marks should be using the same vocabulary.
The Pre-Baccalaureate examinations
These are sat in s7, in the subjects you will present at the Baccalaureate, before the final session. They rehearse the format and conditions of the real papers and their results are a major summative input to the preliminary mark. They do not replace the year's work: one weak pre-bac is read alongside your other evidence, but a consistent pattern of weakness is not.
Worked example
A candidate's L2 record: oral presentation 14/20, listening test 16/20, written tests 12/20 and 15/20, Pre-Baccalaureate paper 13/20. With skills weighted equally: (14+16+12+15+13)/5 = 70/5 = 14/20, supported by a written average of 13.5. Had the pre-bac been 9/20 while everything else held, the average would fall to 13.2 → 13/20, and the teacher would have to record why the pre-bac sat out of line with the rest of the file.
Traps
- Treating s7 as a formality and planning to catch up in the final session.
- Neglecting listening and oral evidence, because those tasks are harder to schedule.
- Ignoring the criteria until the pre-bac, then discovering that accuracy is weighted heavily.
- Submitting written work that is not authentically yours: an authenticity doubt damages the mark far more than an honest, weaker script.