Quickly place young learners at the right level, differentiate between students in mixed ability classes and plan your lessons with confidence.
The Oxford Young Learners Placement Test is an accurate online test to measure young learners’ English language level. The mix of age-appropriate tasks with a child-friendly and intuitive design means your students enjoy a positive testing experience, while giving you an accurate result. The test is automatically marked and instantly delivers a range of reliable results: CEFR level (pre-A1 to B1) and numerical score.
What it tests
The test is designed for young learners aged 7-12 years and is in two sections. The Language Use section tests students’ knowledge of vocabulary, functional language and grammar across 18 questions. The Listening section assesses listening for detail and gist, using short and extended listening across 12 questions. Both sections test British English.
Reliable and valid
The test has been written by international young learner assessment experts and pretested on primary school children worldwide. The results were used to ensure that only questions meeting our high validation standards are included in the test. The questions were then reviewed and benchmarked against the CEFR can-do statements and the data from the benchmarking and pretesting calibrated to ensure the test gives an accurate level and reliable result.
Supporting teachers
A dedicated lesson plan for test day makes it easy to motivate students to take the test and reduces your preparation time. Introduce the test using photocopiables and word games. Keep fast finishers engaged with a fun activity.
Child-friendly
Bright colours, characters and comic strip dialogues make the test enjoyable and put the young learner at ease. The task types are specifically designed to match the cognitive abilities of young learners and reflect tasks they are used to in Primary courses.
The test measures at four CEFR levels, pre-A1 to B1. Each level has a child-friendly club name: Count down (pre-A1 (A0)), Lift off (A1), Zoom (A2) and Orbit (B1), so each child feels a sense of achievement when you place them in a club. Download a club resource sheet for each student to cut out and colour in. Present them with a customised student report card showing level and club name, and keep parents up to date at the same time.
How it works
The test is computer-adaptive, which means that it selects an easier or more difficult question depending on whether the response to the previous question was right or wrong. Each student gets a testing experience at just the right level of challenge. Students are never told if they get a question wrong, leading to a positive testing experience.
The test is taken online with a child-friendly login system, and takes about 35 minutes to complete. Answers are automatically marked after each question giving you an instant result once the test ends.
Test scores
View scores in a variety of ways: by CEFR level (pre-A1 to B1), or by an overall numerical score. Separate scores are also given for the Language Use section and Listening section. This helps you easily spot whether your learners are stronger or weaker in one of these areas and target your teaching accordingly. A three star system at each level helps you to differentiate better between borderline students and supports your placement decision.
Simple to administer
User-friendly management tools make it easy to administer the test, and to manage the results. You can create different groups for testing and then print a login slip for each student.
All the results are shown in one table. You can then sort the results, download the data and place students at the right level.
