DOHA: The British Council yesterday launched in Qatar its latest English proficiency assessment tool called Aptis.
Since its global launch, Aptis is now present in more than 50 countries and over 35,000 tests taken to date.
“Companies are increasingly driving demand for English in the region, and this is in particular the case for multinationals. Industries such as IT and software development, maritime and airfreight, telecommunications, banking and finance, as well as tourism and hospitality have the highest need for English-speaking employees,” said Philip Rylah, Director Examinations, Mena.
“Three quarters of English speakers today are second language speakers and half of employees in international companies globally use English every day at work.” Rylah added that the ability to communicate in English provided access to greater opportunities for individuals and companies in the Middle East alike.
Aptis is a business-to-business English assessment service available to organisations not individuals, and is the latest addition to the British Council’s English and Examinations portfolio of products, allowing the Council to offer a complete solution for organisations’ English development needs.
Andrew Mackenzie (pictured), Head of Assessment Services at the British Council, said: “The British Council has seized an opportunity to develop something that was not yet available. Up until now, organisations wanting a flexible and adaptable assessment tool to benchmark the English language proficiency of their students or employees have chosen products that are often an imperfect fit. This is because they are looking for very specific and niche solutions. Aptis will allow these organisations to effectively and easily assess the English language levels that are relevant to their requirements.” Aptis is a flexible and adaptable English test for adults, which can be used to assess ability in all four English skills (speaking, listening, reading and writing).
It can also be customised to test one or more specific skills, which allows organisations to test the skills relevant to their needs. The content of Aptis can be adapted to suit a specific domain, such as for teaching or travel and tourism, as well customised to suit specific cultural contexts and variants of English. Aptis can be delivered by computer, telephone, or pen and paper, and results are available in as little as 24 hours.
Leading the industry in technology, Aptis uses a revolutionary new interactive platform, which develops, manages, delivers and monitors the test simultaneously. This platform also enables organisations to administer the test themselves, at a time that suits them.
The innovative marking system of Aptis is task-based rather than test-based. This means in one task several people in different locations around the world mark different items within the test, all through the online platform.
The Peninsula
