What can you do with a B1 level in English?

A B1 level of English would be sufficient for interactions with English speakers on familiar topics. In the workplace, people at a B1 level of English are able to read simple reports on familiar topics and write simple emails on subjects in their field. However, a B1 level is not adequate to function fully in the workplace in English.

B1 level English skills

The official can-do statements are broken down into smaller chunks for teaching purposes. This more detailed skill breakdown can help you assess your own English level, or help a teacher assess a student’s level. For example, a student at the B1 level in English will be able to do all the things that a student in level A2 can do, and in addition he will be able to:

• Discuss your personal and professional hopes and dreams for the future.
• Arrange a job interview and interview for a job in your area of expertise.
• Talk about your television viewing habits and favorite programs.
• Describe your education and your plans for future training.
• Talk about your favorite music and music trends and plan a night out to listen to live music.
• Talk about maintaining a healthy lifestyle and give and get advice about healthy habits.
• Talk about relationships and dating, including meeting people through social media.
• Go to a restaurant, order food, engage in polite dinner conversation and pay for your food.
• Participate in negotiations in your area of expertise, if you have help understanding some points.
• Discuss workplace safety issues, report an injury and explain rules and regulations.
• Discuss polite behavior and respond appropriately to impolite behavior.

Although progress will depend on the type of course and the individual student, students can expect to reach the B1 level in English with 400 hours of cumulative instruction.

Skills in detail:

Listening:

• Can understand straightforward factual information about common everyday or job related topics, identifying both general messages and specific details, provided speech is clearly articulated in a generally familiar accent.
• Can understand the main points of clear standard speech on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure etc., including short narratives.
• Can generally follow the main points of extended discussion around him/her, provided speech is clearly articulated in standard dialect.
  Can follow a lecture or talk within his/her own field, provided the subject matter is familiar and the presentation straightforward and clearly structured.
• Can follow in outline straightforward short talks on familiar topics provided these are delivered in clearly articulated standard speech.
• Can understand simple technical information, such as operating instructions for everyday equipment.
• Can follow detailed directions.
• Can understand the information content of the majority of recorded or broadcast audio material on topics of personal interest delivered in clear standard speech.
• Can understand the main points of radio news bulletins and simpler recorded material about familiar subjects delivered relatively slowly and clearly.
• Can understand a large part of many TV programmes on topics of personal interest such as interviews, short lectures, and news reports when the delivery is relatively slow and clear.
• Can follow many films in which visuals and action carry much of the storyline, and which are delivered clearly in straightforward language.
• Can catch the main points in TV programmes on familiar topics when the delivery is relatively slow and clear.

Reading:

• Can read straightforward factual texts on subjects related to his/her field and interest with a satisfactory level of comprehension.
• Can understand the description of events, feelings and wishes in personal letters well enough to correspond regularly with a pen friend.
• Can scan longer texts in order to locate desired information, and gather information from different parts of a text, or from different texts in order to fulfil a specific task.
• Can find and understand relevant information in everyday material, such as letters, brochures and short official documents.
• Can identify the main conclusions in clearly signalled argumentative texts.
• Can recognise the line of argument in the treatment of the issue presented, though not necessarily in detail.
• Can understand clearly written, straightforward instructions for a piece of equipment.

Speaking:

• Can communicate with some confidence on familiar routine and non-routine matters related to his/her interests and professional field.
• Can exchange, check and confirm information, deal with less routine situations and explain why something is a problem.
• Can express thoughts on more abstract, cultural topics such as films, books, music etc.
• Can exploit a wide range of simple language to deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling.
• Can enter into unprepared conversation of familiar topics, express personal opinions and exchange information on topics that are familiar, of personal interest or pertinent to everyday life (e.g. family, hobbies, work, travel and current events).
• Can follow clearly articulated speech directed at him/her in everyday conversation, though will sometimes have to ask for repetition of particular words and phrases.
• Can enter unprepared into conversations on familiar topics.
• Can follow clearly articulated speech directed at him/her in everyday conversation, though will sometimes have to ask for repetition of particular words and phrases.
• Can maintain a conversation or discussion but may sometimes be difficult to follow when trying to say exactly what he/she would like to.
• Can express and respond to feelings such as surprise, happiness, sadness, interest and indifference.
• Can follow much of what is said around him/her on general topics provided interlocutors avoid very idiomatic usage and articulate clearly.
• Can express his/her thoughts about abstract or cultural topics such as music, films.
• Can explain why something is a problem. Can give brief comments on the views of others.
• Can compare and contrast alternatives, discussing what to do, where to go, who or which to choose etc.
• Can generally follow the main points in an informal discussion with friends provided speech is clearly articulated in standard dialect.
• Can give or seek personal views and opinions in discussing topics of interest.
• Can make his/her opinions and reactions understood as regards solutions to problems or practical questions of where to go, what to do, how to organise an event (e.g. an outing).
• Can express belief, opinion, agreement and disagreement politely.
• Can follow much of what is said that is related to his/her field, provided interlocutors avoid very idiomatic usage and articulate clearly.
• Can put over a point of view clearly, but has difficulty engaging in debate.
• Can take part in routine formal discussion of familiar subjects which is conducted in clearly articulated speech in the standard dialect and which involves the exchange of factual information, receiving instructions or the discussion of solutions to practical problems.
• Can follow what is said, though he/she may occasionally have to ask for repetition or clarification if the other people’s talk is rapid or extended.
• Can explain why something is a problem, discuss what to do next, compare and contrast alternatives.
• Can give brief comments on the views of others.
• Can generally follow what is said and, when necessary, can repeat back part of what someone has said to confirm mutual understanding.
• Can make his/her opinions and reactions understood as regards possible solutions or the question of what to do next, giving brief reasons and explanations.
• Can invite others to give their views on how to proceed.
• Can deal with most transactions likely to arise whilst travelling, arranging travel or accommodation, or dealing with authorities during a foreign visit.
• Can cope with less routine situations in shops, post office, bank, e.g. returning an unsatisfactory purchase.
• Can make a complaint.
• Can deal with most situations likely to arise when making travel arrangements through an agent or when actually travelling, e.g., asking passengers where to get off in unfamiliar destinations.
• Can exchange, check and confirm accumulated factual information on familiar routine and non-routine matters within his field with some confidence.
• Can describe how to do something, giving detailed instructions.
• Can summarise and give his or her opinion about a short story, article, talk, discussion interview, or documentary and answer further questions of detail.
• Can find out and pass on straightforward factual information.
• Can ask for and follow detailed directions
• Can obtain more detailed information.
• Can provide concrete information required in an interview/consultation (e.g. describe symptoms to a doctor) but does so with limited precision.
• Can carry out a prepared interview, checking and confirming information, though he/she may occasionally have to ask for repetition if the other person’s response is rapid or extended.
• Can take some initiatives in an interview/consultation (e.g. to bring up a new subject) but is very dependent on the interviewer in the interaction.
• Can use a prepared questionnaire to carry out a structured interview, with some spontaneous follow up questions.
• Can deliver short, rehearsed announcements on a topic pertinent to everyday occurrences in his/her field which, despite possibly very foreign stress and intonation, are nevertheless clearly intelligible.
• Can give a prepared straightforward presentation on a familiar topic within his/her field which is clear enough to be followed without difficulty most of the time, and in which the main points are explained with reasonable precision.
• Can take follow up questions, but may have to ask for repetition if the speech was rapid.

Writing:

• Can convey information and ideas on abstract as well as concrete topics, check information and ask about or explain problems with reasonable precision.
• Can write personal letters and notes asking for or conveying simple information of immediate relevance, getting across the point he/she feels to be important.
• Can write personal letters giving news and expressing thoughts about abstract or cultural topics such as music, films.
• Can write personal letters describing experiences, feelings and events in some detail.
• Can take messages communicating enquiries, explaining problems.
• Can write notes conveying simple information of immediate relevance to friends, service people, teachers and others who feature in his/her everyday life, getting across comprehensively the points he/she feels are important.
• Can reasonably fluently sustain a straightforward description of one of a variety of subjects within his/her field of interest, presenting it as a linear sequence of points.
• Can give straightforward descriptions on a variety of familiar subjects within his field of interest.
• Can reasonably fluently relate a straightforward narrative or description as a linear sequence of points.
• Can give detailed accounts of experiences, describing feelings and reactions.
• Can relate details of unpredictable occurrences, e.g., an accident.
• Can relate the plot of a book or film and describe his/her reactions.
• Can describe dreams, hopes and ambitions.
• Can describe events, real or imagined.
• Can narrate a story.
• Can briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions, plans and actions.
• Can write straightforward connected texts on a range of familiar subjects within his field of interest, by linking a series of shorter discrete elements into a linear sequence.
• Can write straightforward, detailed descriptions on a range of familiar subjects within his field of interest.
• Can write accounts of experiences, describing feelings and reactions in simple connected text.
• Can write a description of an event, a recent trip – real or imagined.
• Can narrate a story.
• Can write short, simple essays on topics of interest.
• Can summarise, report and give his/her opinion about accumulated factual information on familiar routine and non-routine matters within his field with some confidence.
• Can write very brief, reports to a standard conventionalised format, which pass on routine factual information and state reasons for actions.

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