13/12/2019
The Ministry of Education of the Dominican Republic (MINERD) has adopted a new online English test from experts Cambridge to help them improve secondary level teachers’ standards of English – as part of a major education reform project.
Linguaskill is an online test developed by a team of experts from Cambridge Assessment English, a department of Cambridge University. It uses the latest cutting-edge technologies to give fast and accurate English levels of individuals and groups of candidates.
The test will help ensure that English teachers in secondary level have the English language skills they need to support their students. It’s part of a wider plan from MINERD that is designed to train and develop the skills English teachers across the country.
Mercedes Muratorio Regional director of Americas at Cambridge Assessment English said:
“The Dominican Republic is delivering a ground-breaking reform programme that will ensure teachers have the skills and support they need to raise English language standards across schools. It’s an honour to be part of this project and we’re really impressed with the Ministry’s rigorous approach to teacher development. Thanks to the expertise and commitment of Saint George School, our Authorised Exam Centre in Dominican Republic, we will work to help ensure teachers get access to Linguaskill along with a raft of training, development courses and support materials. This will help them improve their teaching ability which will be a huge benefit to standards in classrooms across the country.’
The new measures will be put in place under a new three year agreement that was signed between representatives of Cambridge Assessment English, Cambridge University Press (CUP) and officials from MINERD. Linguaskill will be used to determine the level of English of the teachers, which will help find suitable courses and support materials.
Deputy Minister Rafael Darío Rodríguez explained that the agreement represents a historic step for the Dominican Republic, since it will take the teaching of the English language to teachers and high school students of the highest grades, which will contribute to raising the skills of the beneficiaries, as well as expand their knowledge in the face of the demands of an increasingly globalised world.
Linguaskill is a quick and convenient online test designed to help organisations check the English levels of individuals and groups of candidates. It tests all four language skills: speaking, writing, reading and listening. It provides accurate results within 48 hours aligned to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), the international standard for describing language ability. The test has been developed by a dedicated team of experts in Cambridge and trialled by speakers of over 40 languages from 50 countries to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the results.