Why do ESB?

Everyone needs to be able to do presentations these days, throughout school and beyond. The best way to develop the necessary skills and confidence is to practice and do it, with a group of the same age. ESB assessments provide the opportunity to do exactly that, not just alone with an examiner, but with the audience you choose.

Our school syllabuses provide progression from Key Stage 1 to A Level standard in spoken English. All senior grade assessments are nationally accredited on the QCF. The assessments take place in a group situation so that there is plenty of interaction between speakers / listeners.

We also offer Workshops for pupils and INSET for teachers.

All ESB assessments include specific tasks to fit National Curriculum Speaking and Listening requirements.

The syllabuses are designed to be progressive and in each syllabus there is a common core of presentation skills and interactive questions and discussion.

• Assessment is external, carried out on-site at your school (centre) by a visiting examiner.
• All ESB assessors are independent of the centres where they assess.
• ESB uses the term ‘examiner’ for Junior and Senior Grades in schools.

The tasks are lively and flexible and our examiners work in a supportive and friendly way, promoting a secure atmosphere for the group so that each student truly benefits from the ESB experience.

With inclusion now firmly embedded in all schools, you may also be interested in the Entry Level Foundation (ELF) syllabus in Oral Communication Skills. In mixed ability classes, some students (or even one or two) may benefit from a slightly different syllabus to enable them to achieve a nationally recognised qualification via the ELF qualifications. It is possible to integrate candidates either singly or in small groups alongside their peers who are taking the ESB Schools graded examinations – they already work together, they can also be assessed together. Please contact us for further advice, or download the ELF syllabus on the right.

ESB Schools series provides graded assessments for progression from Key Stage 1 to Advanced level (Level 3) standard in Spoken English.

Accreditation on the QCF applies to Grades from Level 1–Level 3 (01-08), i.e. ESB Junior 4 to ACSE/ACLA. See table.