July
17
why do you bother with exams?
Another fairly common question is why I bother taking exams. Isn’t it enough knowing that I speak language, do I really need a piece of paper to prove it? The answer is yes and no.
No, I don’t really need the proof. But as is the case so often in our world today, a piece of paper with a qualification can go a long way and often times further than years of experience. As it is the case with the CPE exam that I will be taking later this year, I do need proof of my language abilities. However the DELE Spanish exam that I took a couple of months ago, was just for myself and I don’t need it for anything. Yet. ‘Yet’ being the operative word, you just never know what the future holds and when something like that comes in handy.
More importantly though, taking an exam is a good way to get you to focus and study. Knowing you have an exam coming up, will make you sit down and study, no matter whether you need it for your career tomorrow or not. And even more so, preparing for an exam that tests all four key skills (reading, listening, writing and speaking) will help you identify your weaknesses and you can focus on those.
I generally work with a tutor so that I don’t waste any time on a problem of a classmate. This is not callous, rather it’s using my time efficiently. In fact that is why studying a language at home or over Skype is much faster than years of classes. You don’t have any classmates to bail you out if you don’t know an answer, it’s all on you and it ensures that you have understood completely. A good tutor can identify your weaknesses and you can take the time where you need it and skip stuff you already know.
I’m lucky that I don’t really have exam anxiety, but the nerves always play a role. Though I believe being able to perform when it counts is another skill that is very important in life and a little bit of practice never hurts, especially when you don’t have the pressure of needing to pass.
And at the end of the day, looking at a certificate does make you feel good about yourself and what you have achieved whether it advances your career or not. And there is nothing wrong with that either.
the wannabe polyglot 
That’s exactly the view point that I come to the matter of exams as well – it’s great to have experience with something, to be able to effectively use it in real world situations. But sometimes, in certain circumstances, that pesky piece of paper is an easier way of proving competence, and the process of getting it can help smooth the rough edges.
Glad to know I’m not the only one who looks at it that way…
Yes exactly. I think one of the main issues is that language competence is so subjective. There are people at barely A2 who call themselves fluent and others at a C1 who say their abilities are pretty good.
There’s no right or wrong really, but without a standardized exam, it is very hard to properly assess your level.
🙂 I’d fully agree with you, but I’d like to remark that life can get in the way. I paid 60 Euros for my JLPT 3 exam, then broke up with my boyfriend at the time and couldn’t care less about exam results. At some point, when you lose that sensation of stress and ambition, exams don’t really do as good a job as they used to. I just took up the blogging because I wouldn’t be ambitious to do anything for an exam anymore. I feel the only person expecting something out of an exam is myself. But knowing that other people are watching me, expecting me to show results, is a huge motivation. 😉
I also think you’d want to assess yourself when you’re very ambitious or have yet another goal. If the only goal for you is learning the language to, for example, be able to read books or watch movies in that language, you won’t be bothered taking exams, as you’ll have proof that you have reached your goal simply by being able to do what you set out to do.
Yeah I agree with you, exams aren’t the be all to end all. In my case though, knowing an exam is coming up is the best way to study. It helps me to have a goal or a deadline to make me put in the work. At the end of the day I think whatever keeps people motivated is the way to go, whether that’s studying for an exam or being accountable on a blog or something else.
Agreed. 🙂
I love that we’ve got the same blog theme, by the way! 🙂 Not for our language blogs, but I have another blog that has it. 🙂
Haha, it’s a nice theme, isn’t it? Can I ask what you’re other blog is about?
Hmm… just thoughts and inspiration. http://thoughtsarelikequicksand.wordpress.com/
Thanks! I’ll have a look around, looks interesting. 🙂
🙂