Why do you need to know what the levels of the English language are? Pre-Intermediate is the level that all those who have already left Beginner courses behind, but cannot yet say that he speaks English at a solid intermediate level. And you need to know the peculiarity of this intermediate level at least in order to control the process of your training, to be able to choose the most suitable textbooks, manuals, courses. In fact, the line between Pre-Intermediate and Intermediate is quite thin, some courses generally omit intermediate levels, offering groups only for beginners, mid-range students and advanced ones. However, if you need to pass any exam, this difference will be really very noticeable.
For example, in order to successfully pass the exam in English, you must have an Intermediate or Upper-Intermediate level. This exam does not require anything super complicated, only the most general grammar and vocabulary, but knowledge must be reliable. The level of English Pre-Intermediate in this case will be clearly insufficient, because it is notable for some instability. There is knowledge, but it is still too sketchy. There is no freedom or confidence in answering grammar questions, nor in reading, nor in listening, although everything seems very familiar.
To understand the difficulty of dividing a language into levels, try to answer the question: how is knowledge generally accumulated from lower to higher levels? Getting acquainted with phonetics and pronunciation, we must inevitably master a certain set of words, even the simplest grammatical constructions, etc. In essence, when studying a language, we do not move up the steps, stepping from one to the other, but plunge into a pond, going deeper and seeing in front of him the same thing that was in the beginning, but in a wider perspective.
Pre-Intermediate versus Beginner and Intermediate levels
At the previous level, Beginner or Elementary, we get acquainted with a wide variety of topics, such as greeting, self-talk, characteristics of people; everyday vocabulary is acquired (clothing, furniture, food, etc.) The student learns the rules of reading, at the end of the initial course he can really read, but only quite simple texts, the reading of the rest is difficult to call it that, it is more likely to parse texts with a dictionary, and not reading. A novice can fill out a questionnaire or write a birthday greetings to a friend by e-mail, but a thorough letter with a retelling of all local news will require intense effort. His reading style is reminiscent of the reading of a child who has only learned how syllables are put into words, and still spends quite a lot of effort on the reading process itself, and not on understanding. And even if she reads fluently, she encounters many seemingly read, but completely incomprehensible places. Beginner's knowledge is enough to communicate with gestures and words at the airport, store, on the street. Any interlocutor will understand you, but also understand that your knowledge is very shallow and will try to speak slower and easier.
At the Pre-Intermediate level, all the same knowledge is deepened, emphasis is placed on grammar and further expansion of the dictionary. The main thing at the end of this level is to learn the structure of the language, since the active movement “in breadth” is already beginning at the next level, it’s not without reason that Intermediate is sometimes called functional in the West because it represents a reliable knowledge base that provides a lot of opportunities, including for working or study at a university. You need to be prepared for this, therefore, at the Pre-Intermediate level, basic ideas about grammar are accumulated, which are finally fixed at the Intermediate level. All other skills, such as reading, speaking, develop, but it is at this level that different students clearly show their inclinations and abilities. Someone understands that he has excellent hearing and a certain artistry - he perfectly recognizes the nuances of pronunciation and reproduces them, someone, on the contrary, has a strong logical mind and clicks grammar tasks like nuts, but cannot connect two words in spoken language. In any case, it is felt that the student has not yet reached the “fireproof amount”. If at this moment he stops his studies, he will inevitably forget most of what he taught, and subsequently he will have to start all over again.
If at the elementary level the student understands only clear and slow speech on familiar topics, at the middle level, he can listen to and understand any popular TV shows, then Pre-Intermediate, the level that is intermediate between them, is very difficult to characterize unambiguously. Yes, you can already understand fluent speech, but selectively. You can talk about your musical tastes, but find it difficult to justify your preferences. You can read not only fairy tales, but also adult literary works. Although this reading can hardly be called a pleasure, you will have to do some translation of incomprehensible words and analysis of complex constructions, since even the most fascinating detective stories by Agatha Christie, written in a fairly simple and clear language, cause difficulties for students with a level of Pre-Intermediate.
Vocabulary at various levels is approximately:
- Beginner - 1000 words;
- Pre-Intermediate - 1200 words;
- Intermediate - 1,500 words.
Of course, these figures are very arbitrary. Some courses offer such Pre-Intermediate, at the end of which you will know about 1800 words. In any case, in order to freely communicate or read as native speakers do, you need to know about 8 thousand words. If you know more, then we are talking about special knowledge or erudition. 1,500 words - this is enough for everyday everyday communication or confident, but not yet free reading.
Pre-Intermediate - the level at which you can:
- Pronounce familiar words clearly and clearly.
- It is grammatically correct to build sentences in spoken and written language.
- Tell about yourself, describe a situation or person, express an opinion.
- Ask the person to explain an incomprehensible place.
- Feel confident in everyday life and on tourist trips.
- Capture the basic meaning of any text, including scientific articles.
- Read literary works written in simple language with a dictionary.
- Distinguish all sounds, hear well-known words in fluent speech. It’s good to understand clear, not too fast speech.
- Write a pretty informative letter to a friend using simple grammar constructions.
- Fill out the form, questionnaire, questionnaire.
Pre-Intermediate - level at which it is impossible:
- Free to read literary works, "about which you have long dreamed of."
- Understand the nuances of the style of a particular author.
- Talk with friends about complex philosophical topics.
- To understand people who have any particular pronunciation, for example, with fluent, accent-distorted speech.
- Maintain a simple conversation on a topic that you "didn’t go through," for example, discuss with your motoring neighbor his new car if you typed your vocabulary on travel texts.
- Confidently make a scientific report, make a presentation and answer the questions of the audience.
Of course, as mentioned above, all these skills depend on the course, purpose and orientation of training. For example, people with a general level of Pre-Intermediate can successfully communicate on working topics, for example, in the IT field. Of course, this is possible subject to the study of specific vocabulary. And although everything else, such as watching popular movies, will be difficult, in certain situations a person with a level of English Pre-Intermediate will feel confident.