This is telc.
The beginning of the 21st century has been characterised by the removal of barriers – e.g. the expansion of the European Union, with further countries queuing up to join.. With the introduction of a common currency we have succeeded in increasing mobility throughout Europe - and yet there is still one major barrier: language. This is something experienced every day, not only by the many people who travel around the world for business or private reasons. The language barrier affects all the more the millions of people who find themselves forced to leave their own country and culture and their own language in order to settle in a new country with a different culture and a different language. And unable to communicate, these people often remain cut off from the world around them.
The German Adult Education Centres [Volkshochschulen] make an important contribution to solving such problems by running integration courses and they are the major partner of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees [Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge]. And through our subsidiary, telc GmbH, we ensure that immigrants in Germany are able to assess and prove their language skills on the basis of objective, scientifically proven, communication oriented testing procedures. And yet the telc system of language examination does far more than this. The examinations are available not only to immigrants, but to all people who need to prove their language skills whether for academic purposes, for the workplace or just for personal affirmation. telc language examinations, which are fully in line with the skill definitions and the communicative approach of the Common European Framework of Reference of the Council of Europe, are available on five levels, and at the present time can be taken in nine European languages. Within just a few years, they have been accepted in nearly twenty European countries – and rightly so!
Prof. Dr. Rita Süssmuth
President of the German Adult Education Centre Association [Deutscher Volkshochschulverband]
As a leading provider of language testing procedures, telc is a recognised authority in the field of language certificates and test systems in most European countries. telc represents the most comprehensive system of language tests in Europe, offering communication-based examinations in the major European languages including English and French, Italian, Czech, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish – and of course for German, in particular examinations for migrants taking part in integration courses.
Success in telc examinations opens many doors in important areas of modern life. The chances this creates range from greatly improved opportunities in the labour market to better communication when on vacation.
At the present time telc offers over forty different language examinations. telc Certificates enjoy a high degree of recognition inasmuch as they provide meaningful proof of a person’s actual language skills. With the aid of test items based on the latest research and by providing a high degree of test reliability, telc tests the candidate’s competence level in the most important communication skills, for example the different types of listening comprehension (global, selective and detailed understanding). And at the same time maximum use is made of test items that reflect a maximum degree of authenticity.
The telc team of experts ensure that test development is always carried out according to strict quality management procedures so that both candidates and licensed examination centres can rest assured that all test materials have been developed in line with the latest research in the fields of language teaching and language testing.
More details regarding the milestones of the telc success story can be found here.