Updated 2021
Dear Kim,
I would like to take celbanprep but do not understand. Why are there two levels for writing with celbanprep?
N
Dear N,
What a great question! I give people the answer all the time, but have not written about it specifically.
When I first started teaching CELBANPrep I saw that many people did not know where to start or how to create an organized report. So I focused on teaching the test taking strategy of time management. That became CELBANPrep Lessons 1-4.
Then I created four more lessons, each addressing the different types of questions IENs were asked on the exam. Lessons 5-8 of CELBANPrep focused on writing in a nursing context. (Back in 2009 both of the CELBAN Writing Tasks were various medical reports.)
Over time, I began to see differences in how fast people progressed through the lessons. People with a 7 in IELTS did very well, progressing at a quick speed. But people coming to CELBANPrep with a 5 or 6 struggled. There were many common errors they made with their writing:
- articles,
- verb tense consistency,
- agreement errors,
- punctuation errors,
- sentence structure, and
- medical collocations (vocabulary).
That is what inspired me to create the CELBAN Grammar Intensives.
Another factor I saw was that some people had lots of time to practice, and posted assignments weekly, others took much longer to do so.
The Birth of 2 Levels for CELBANPrep Writing
In witnessing all of this, the next intuitive step was to separate each of the sections into parts. That gave birth to the two levels:
In this way if people came to CELBANPrep with a high score (7 in IELTS) and lots of time, they could complete CELBANPrep Writing Level One within 1-3 months.
If people came to CELBANPrep with a lower score (5 or 6 in IELTS), or had less time, they could take their time and complete CELBANPrep Writing Level One over 3-6 months. This plan allowed IENs with this score to take time with the Grammar Intensives.
In this way the individual needs of all IENs are filled. Someone who works at a fast pace can complete the course within a few months. Someone who needs more time had support for up to 6 months, and monthly extensions are available for after that should he/she need support for a longer period of time.
And that is why CELBANPrep Writing has two levels, to adapt to to the individual needs of IENs across Canada.
2021 Update
Changes to the CELBAN Writing task has changed.
- Prior to 2019 both task were writing a medical report.
- Now, CELBAN Writing has two different task.
- Task One is a persuasive writing piece about a medical controversial topic.
- Tast Two remains the same, writing a medical report.
The symmetry with CELBANPrep Writing Levels 1 and 2 is in perfect alignment. Now:
- CELBANPrep Writing Level 1 prepares you for CELBAN Writing Task 1, while
- CELBANPrep Writing Level 2 prepared you for CELBAN Writing Task 2.
What that means is that even with the changes in format to the CELBAN exam: CELBANPrep prepares you for CELBAN Writing because what you learn is transferable skills that can eb applied anytime you write anything: even the IELTS!
Sincerely,
Kim
Dear Kim 
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dear kim im agustin i would like to ask for help in celban i was planning to take my celban this month and i feel like the CELBAN resources is not enough so i woul like to ask if you could help me
Dear Agustine,
Thanks for writing! In reply I have three questions:
1. Is this the first time taking the CELBAN?
2. What is your score on the IELTS?
3. How much time do you have to prepare?
Consider this: the required scores are high: 7, 8, 10. If your scores on the IELTS are around a 5 how long do you think it will take for you to improve your grammar and skills so that you can get scores that high?
Because you have found Dear Kim, I recommend you read more, check out the books available through Amazon, and through CELBANPrep University at http://www.celbanprep.ca.
So, consider these things even before you consider what resources to use.
Sincerely,
Kim
Dear Kim,
I’d like to take your writing courses, but I have only one month to study. Is there any way to finish the course in a month? If I need to choose only one of them, I prefer to have level two course rather than level one.
Is it possible to take only level two course in my situation? or do you have any suggestion to prepare writing test in a month?
Dear Jin,
Thank you for your question. Many people ask this question when they have an exam date looming. One month is a very short amount of time to prepare; there are CELBAN Preparation Guides available internationally on Amazon for speaking, reading and listening that can help you in that amount of time.
Do your best to prepare. Get your score. Read your feedback about what you need to strengthen. And if you have to take the CELBAN test again, the consider investing in the online courses and classes available through CELBANPrep University.
In all reality the course for CELBANPrep Writing takes a minimum of one month for each level: and there are two levels. (There is a specific set of skills that are taught and honed in level one, which are applied to level two. And Level One prepares you for Writing Task 1, while Level Two prepared you for Writing Task 2.)
CELBANPrep Writing has not been designed simply to allow you to become familiar with the exam, like other exam prep courses. ***CELBANPrep has been created to give you the skills so that you increase your score.***
So Jin:
With only one month before the exam the choice is up to you as to whether you are going to keep this date and to what degree you will be prepared for the exam.
In all situations and circumstances, I hope for the very best outcome for you!
Sincerely,
Kim
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