PEIC YL Breakthrough case studies

PEIC YL Breakthrough · Put your knowledge to work in context.

PEIC YL Breakthrough is an early-level English certificate from Pearson designed for young learners, typically children in their first years of English study. It sits at the entry stage of the Pearson English International Certificate Young Learners suite, so it suits a child who can understand and produce simple words and short phrases about familiar topics: family, school, food, animals, colours, numbers and everyday routines. The PEIC YL Breakthrough case studies are 5 cases and about 3,483 words.

The hall, the laptop and the 3.5-mark drop

Fourteen learners aged nine and ten sat a mock listening paper in the school hall on a Friday afternoon. The recording was played through a laptop's internal speakers on a table at the front.

696 words, about 3 min 2

Nine of eleven correct answers are the same word twice

She reads aloud fluently and with expression, borrows two books a week from the class shelf, and can retell a whole story in her own words at home. On a mock reading paper she scored 14 out of 20.

664 words, about 3 min 3

Twenty-eight words and 'I have finished'

Given a model, twenty minutes and a dictionary, he writes six or seven accurate sentences: correct 'there is/are', consistent past simple, full stops in the right places. In a timed mock he had ten minutes and this unseen prompt: 'Write a note to your friend Sam.

692 words, about 3 min 4

Two minutes about the dog, one word about everything else

In class she is one of the first to raise a hand, describes her dog for two minutes without prompting, and corrects other children's answers. In a mock oral with a teacher she does not know, she gave one-word answers - 'Yes', 'Blue', 'Seven', 'No' - to eleven of fourteen questions, looked at the table throughout, and said 'What?' twice.

721 words, about 4 min 5

One place left: the fast one or the slow one

Two eleven-year-olds are being considered for the same slot in a six-week exam group. Ana talks fast and a lot: in a mock oral she filled every silence, described the picture in nine sentences, and produced 'goed', 'buyed', 'he don't like' and 'a apple'.

710 words, about 4 min