The Public English Test System (PETS; ) is a test developed by the
National Education Examinations Authority (NEEA) of
Mainland China. The PETS is the edition of the ''
Quanguo Waiyu Shuiping Kaoshi'' (WSK)
for the English language. It is available in five levels: PETS-1 through PETS-5. PETS testing is open to persons of all professions, ages, and academic backgrounds.
[Wu, Mei, p. 48.]
The tests were designed in 1996 as a way to test persons outside of the college and university system; the
University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate (UCLES) gave professional and technical support to the development. In 1999 pilot tests of the PETS occurred in several cities. The first mass-offering of the PETS was in 2003.
[
The testing levels are:
* PETS-5: Advanced level,][ sufficient for studying and/or working outside of China, sufficient for equivalent to an English major at a Chinese university after two years of studying English.][
* PETS-4: Upper intermediate level, equivalent to that of a non-English major student at a Chinese university after three years of studying English.][
* PETS-3: Intermediate level, equivalent to that of a non-English major student at a Chinese university after two years of studying English.][
* PETS-2: Lower intermediate level, equivalent to that of a student entering university in China.][
* PETS-1: Elementary level,][Liu, Jianda, p]
135
equivalent to completion of three years of English instruction, or what someone would have at the junior high school level.
There is also a PETS-1B, which is below PETS-1.[
]
See also
* College English Test
The College English Test (), better known as CET, is a national English as a foreign language test in the People's Republic of China. It examines the English proficiency of undergraduate and postgraduate students in China. It is meant to ensure ...
(CET)
* English education in China
The emphasis on English education in China only emerged after 1979 when the Cultural Revolution ended, China adopted the Open Door Policy, and the United States and China established strong diplomatic ties. One estimate (in 2007) of the number o ...
* General English Proficiency Test (the test in Taiwan)
References
* Liu, Jianda (刘建达;刘建达
"
Archive
National Key Research Center for Linguistics and Applied Linguistics (外国语言学及应用语言学研究中心), Guangdong University of Foreign Studies. Retrieved on March 15, 2015. Guangdong University of Foreign Studies). "The Public English Test System" (Chapter 10). In: Cheng, Liying and Andy Curtis. ''English Language Assessment and the Chinese Learner''. Routledge, March 17, 2010. , 9781135213879. Start: p
132
Notes
External links
* ''China Public English Test System (PETS), Levels 1-5: Level Criteria, Test Specifications and Sample Materials''. National Education Examinations Authority, 1999
See profile at
Google Books.
*
各類語言檢定證照等級對照表
- National Kaohsiung First University of Science and Technology Center for Language Education (語言教學中心) - Comparison chart between different English and other foreign language tests.
{{Language tests
Education in China
English language tests