Speaking
The oral exam is one of the parts in which the students get most nervous. However, if you know how to prepare for the CAE Exam you don’t have anything to worry about. The key is to learn technical vocabulary about the different topics they may ask you. To memorize these words and expressions, you can use GoConqr flashcards, which help you to retain information thanks to its combination of textual and visual elements.
Here are a few more tricks that may help you:
- Talk about personal experiences: if they ask about topics that you don’t truly understand, you can explain personal experiences related to them. For example, if you have to talk about the current environmental situation but you don’t know much about it, you can explain that at home you recycle and explain some anecdote related to it. (They want to test your English, not your knowledge of global warming!)
- Make up stories: examiners of the CAE Exam don’t evaluate if what you say is true or false. Therefore, sometimes it may be simpler to invent things that use the vocabulary you have mastered rather than talk about your personal life.
- Change the subject if you do not know what to say: in case you go blank, you can turn to a completely different topic as a last resort. You will probably get a lower mark for not sticking to the content, but it is preferable to keeping quiet.
Use of English
The big secret to prepare for the CAE Exam’s Use of English is to practice at home until you get the hang of it. At GoConqr you can find grammar and spelling Notes that can help you prepare the Use of English. If you combine these notes with the daily practice of online exams, after a few months you’ll have no problem succeeding in this part of the CAE Exam. You must also take into account these points:
- Do not leave any questions unanswered: incorrect answers don’t subtract points in the Advanced, so you don’t lose anything by trying. Maybe luck is on your side!
- Write the answers on the official exam paper in time: when the time limit of the CAE exam ends, it ends. There are no extensions or exceptions. Using a blank sheet for rough work is a good idea, but leave enough time to write the answers on the official exam paper.
Reading
There is only one way to study this part: reading. Reading a lot. There are no more secrets. However, you must read English texts of a level according to the CAE Exam. You will find these writings in the online library of GoConqr, where we have many documents related to the CAE Exam that you can read online or print. You only have to search according to the type of resource that best suits your needs. Once you have found the texts you were looking for, you must try them to spend at least one hour a day reading them. In this way, your reading comprehension will improve exponentially in the coming months.
As you read, you can apply the following tips to improve the quality of your study:
- Underline words that you don’t understand: every time you read a word that you don’t understand, you have to underline it and look up its meaning.
- Learning to read diagonally: before reading a text in depth, you must read it diagonally and try to capture its most important points. At first it will be difficult, but with practice you will gradually improve. It is an efficient method to be more productive and manage your time more efficiently.
Listening
As you advance levels in the Cambridge English exams, the listening section become more complicated to understand. We recommend watching movies and television series in original version and with subtitles in English, so your ears become accustomed to hearing the different types of English-speaking accent. For example, in the series ‘The Wire’ – besides being one of the best TV shows – many characters use a slang difficult to understand, so viewing it can serve as study and entertainment at the same time.
In addition, we recommend practicing with the tests of GoConqr since in the Listening of the Advanced the multiple choice exam mode prevails.
Writing
Writing is the section of the CAE exam where you have more freedom to boost your creativity, since you have a blank page to demonstrate your vocabulary and try to impress with your writing style. In GoConqr groups you can interact with other users who also want to prepare for the CAE Exam and exchange written texts with them to have some feedback. In this way, you will absorb different writing styles and enrich your own.