Special Circumstances
I’d like to take a Cambridge exam but I have hearing or speaking difficulties…..
Are you thinking of taking a Cambridge exam? Most exams include a listening and a speaking test. If you are deaf, or have difficulties hearing or speaking, Cambridge ESOL may be able to help!
What should I do?
You must apply for Special Arrangements through your nearest Cambridge ESOL centre as soon as possible. In the case of IELTS, you must apply through your IELTS centre.
What will the Cambridge ESOL centre do?
Your centre will tell you the latest dates for application. These are usually several months before the exam.
The centre will ask for full details of your particular difficulty and will make all the necessary special arrangements for you to take the exam.
Some centres may not have the necessary equipment or space (for example, a separate room), but they will do their best to help you to find another centre where you can take the exam.
The Centre may ask you to provide a medical certificate.
What Special Arrangements can I ask for?
There are several Special Arrangements you can ask for. Please read through the following sections carefully, and make sure that you or your teacher asks for all the necessary arrangements to be made.
1. Hearing Aids, headphones and other equipment
For most Cambridge exams, you have to do a listening test. In a typical test, you read some questions which are printed on a question paper. You then listen to a recording on a CD and write your answers to the questions on a separate answer sheet.
Here are some ways in which we can help you if you have difficulties hearing.
If you normally use a hearing aid, you may use it in the exam, but remember to tell your centre before the test.
If you can hear with the help of headphones or special amplification equipment, you may ask the centre for permission to use this type of equipment to hear the recording.
The supervisor (the person who will give you your Listening Test) must be able to hear and control the recording. This means they will listen to an external loudspeaker or use a second pair of headphones. You are not allowed to use a Walkman or personal stereo to listen to the recording.
If you are using special equipment, the Centre will give you your exam in a separate room.
2. Hearing-impaired (lip-reading) versions of Listening Tests
For some exams, you can ask for a hearing-impaired (lip-reading) version of a listening test. From the drop-down menu, choose the exam you are thinking of taking. You will see if you can apply for a hearing-impaired (lip-reading) version of your exam.
Instead of playing a recording, the supervisor will read out to you the same material as on the CD. You will hear each text three times (or twice in the case of IELTS). The supervisor will pause (stop reading) from time to time during the second reading. This will give you time to write your answers.
- It is important that you can lip-read a person who is speaking English.
- It may be possible for you to practise lip-reading with the person who will give you your listening test before you take the exam. Ask your Centre.
- You should practise with sample papers before the exam (see below).
3. Possible arrangements in Speaking Tests
For most ESOL Speaking Tests (except IELTS), you take the speaking test with a partner.
If you have hearing or speaking difficulties, you can ask to:
- have extra time if it takes you longer than usual to say things or to understand what people say to you
- take the test with a partner who is not a candidate (for example a friend who is not taking the exam). This may help you to lip-read what he or she is saying more easily
- take the test without a partner (i.e. in the parts of the test which usually ask both candidates to talk to each other, you talk to the examiner instead).
If you would like to take a speaking test without a partner, check if there is a single candidate version of the speaking test for the examination you are taking. From the drop-down menu, choose the exam you are thinking of taking.
You are not allowed to use signing in a speaking test.
4. Exemptions and Endorsed Certificates
If you have severe hearing (and/or speaking) difficulties and these Special Arrangements are not enough (for example if you cannot lip-read), you can ask for exemption from taking either the listening test or the speaking test in certain exams. These means you do not have to take the listening test or the speaking test.
You can apply for exemption in KET, PET, FCE, CAE, CPE, BEC, IELTS and ILEC.
You can only have exemption from one paper, except for IELTS, (see below).
If you are allowed exemption from either the listening test or the speaking test and pass the other parts of the exam, this sentence will be printed on your certificate.
'The candidate was exempt from satisfying the full range of assessment objectives in the examination.'
This is called an endorsement.
For IELTS you can ask for exemption from either or both the Speaking and Listening modules. In this case, your Test Report Form will have the following sentence printed on it:
'Due to extreme speaking and/or hearing difficulties this candidate was exempt from taking the Speaking and/or Listening modules and the overall band score reflects this.'
NB: For all ESOL exams, you must apply for exemption before taking an examination.
Ask your centre for further information.
Where can I get more information?
If you would like information or advice, please contact your centre.
