Olympic host Beijing takes English test

Beijing: English is one hurdle that Beijing officials want their citizens to overcome before the city hosts the 2008 Olympic games.

According to the websites of the Beijing Organising Committee for the 2008 games and the Beijing Education Examination Authority, a special examination system will be set up to help people learn English.

The Beijing English Testing System (BETS) will be conducted for the first time on May 27-28 this year. Anybody who lives and works in Beijing, regardless of age, gender, profession, schooling, nationality and residence, can sign for the exam.

The exam is one of the several measures that the Beijing municipal government has taken to inspire residents to learn and speak English. Test questions will be jointly prepared by the Cambridge English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and the Organising Committee for Beijing Residents Speaking English Activities.

The test questions will follow international language proficiency testing standards, according to the test’s designers.

Exams will be arranged twice in a year and those who pass can obtain two certificates -one jointly issued by the Leading Group of Beijing English Testing System, the Foreign Affairs Office of the Beijing Municipal People's Government and Beijing Education Examination Authority; the other one issued by Cambridge ESOL.