Testing your Language Proficiency

There is a free web site (http://www.cambridgeinstitute.net) where you can test your proficiency in a language. They offer English, German and Spanish. The test is difficult! I did not even score at the highest level when I took it in English... I think the evaluation of my current level in Spanish was pretty accurate though.

I also took the English test and learned a few things.  Some of their sentences were awkward, not presented with the best English, and some actually contained English errors.  Some sentences contained expressions that appeared to be aimed at a UK reader; I'd never heard those expressions.  No wonder you scored less than you expected.

Furthermore, I found the website to be very slow; in the end, no score was provided. 

Thanks for this link, Steven. I started the English proficiency test and concur with Diana: the site responds slowly and some of the questions seem awkward from the perspective of US English. But since Cambridge is a UK university that is not surprising. Since I have begun chatting with native Spanish speakers I have become acutely aware of the differences between US and UK English.

The site is pretty obscure: to receive your score, you have to click an icon and then provide your email address (after which they email you your score). And I do agree with you guys: the site is irritatingly slow and some of the phrases awkward.

I was hoping to eventually take some sort of formal test (oral and written) to determine my proficiency level in Spanish. 

If and when I go to Madrid to attend the Don Quixote Spanish Language immersion class, they will test me for my proficiency to determine what group I belong. Steven, I think you already belong to one of the highest levels in Spanish. I think of you as one of the tutors here at RS. Is your French still better than your Spanish? A whole lot better? Or are they comparable?

Aurora: Just out of curiosity, what is the cost of attending the DQ school in Madrid?

I have been Skyping with a teacher in a Spanish language school in Granada. I need to ask her what school she teaches at.

Thanks for your encouragement, Aurora, but my Spanish is still far, far away from my level in French. My handicap is that I've had no contact with Spanish speakers but, thanks to Dan, I am now connected on Conversation Exchange and starting to get time with them. 

I am interested in hearing about those classes/schools the two of you mentioned. I can easily get to Madrid (not so sure about Grenada) and I would be very interested in an immersion class.

I forgot how much it will cost. You can google Don Quixote Madrid.

http://www.donquijote.org. The schools look good and Marbella would probably be the best option for me personally. I feel a bit ill at ease though looking at photos of the students - none of which look older than about 20. I'm afraid I would be the "abuelito"...

Jorge y yo tenemos siete nietas y un nieto.. The oldest one is a Spanish student in high school, We were discussing "Faulkner" last night and I find that I was learning more from her than her learning from me. Being with young people is always exciting to me. They are surprised that I get very excited with new ideas still. Really it's not the age that matter. I remember my mother, God bless her soul, could not understand why I like thoughts, ideas and great conversations

Good words. Good words. Thanks.

Or in the words of my favorite songwriter,
"He's losing his hearing,
but he don't care what most people say."

Because he can't hear them?

I always assumed "he don't care what people say" because he is old. I have found that the older I have gotten, the less I care about what a lot of people say. One of the few advantages that I can see about getting older!