lovinglivingcornish administers examinations in revived traditional Cornish according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) of the Council of Europe.
The Chief Examiner is Ian Jackson, MA (Cantab), MA (Oxon), QTS.
The next examinations are scheduled for June 2024. They will be held on a single day at a location in Cornwall. The examinations will be at CEFR Level A1 and CEFR Level A2. Candidates must notify lovinglivingcornish of their candidacy no later than 30 April 2024. A candidacy must be supported by confirmation from a competent Cornish speaker, acceptable to the Chief Examiner, that the candidate is ready to take the examination. There is no fee. The holding of these examinations is subject to there being sufficient demand.
Reasonable adjustments will be made where a candidate who is disabled within the meaning of the Equality Act 2010 would be at a substantial disadvantage in comparison to someone who is not disabled.
Please note these examinations are not regulated by the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual).
Level A1
The contents of the on-line coursebook Cara Kernowek Book One comprise all the grammar and vocabulary specified for the Level A1 examination. There will be a written paper and an oral. Examination materials in Cornish will be spelled in Standard Cornish (KS), with pre-occlusion written as bm and dn.
The time allocated to the written paper will be one hour. When attempting this paper candidates will not be permitted to consult any written or electronic materials of their own and they will not be allowed access to reference books or the internet. Candidates must spell their answers to this paper in Standard Cornish (KS); they must write all diacritical marks; they may write bm or mm, dn or nn, ë or ÿ, êw or ôw, as they prefer. The written paper will be marked out of 100.
The time allocated to each candidate for the oral will be 15 minutes. The oral will take the form of one-to-one conversation with the examiner. It will include discussion of a topic that the examiner will announce to the candidate at the beginning of the oral. This topic will be one of three potential topics published on the lovinglivingcornish website no later than 31 March 2024. Candidates will not be permitted to have any notes with them during the conversation. Nor will candidates be allowed merely to recite from memory; they will be required to demonstrate they can engage in genuine dialogue with the examiner. The oral will be marked out of 50, comprising up to 20 marks for vocabulary, up to 20 marks for grammar, and up to 10 marks for fluency. For high marks it will not be enough to minimize mistakes in any vocabulary and grammar employed; candidates must show they can use a broad range of vocabulary and grammar within the specification.
Level A2
The contents of the on-line coursebooks Cara Kernowek Book One and Cara Kernowek Book Two comprise all the grammar and vocabulary specified for the Level A2 examination. There will be a written paper and an oral. Examination materials in Cornish will be spelled in Standard Cornish (KS), with pre-occlusion written as bm and dn.
The time allocated to the written paper will be two hours. When attempting this paper candidates will not be permitted to consult any written or electronic materials of their own and they will not be allowed access to reference books or the internet. Candidates must spell their answers to this paper in Standard Cornish (KS); they must write all diacritical marks; they may write bm or mm, dn or nn, ë or ÿ, êw or ôw, as they prefer. The written paper will be marked out of 200.
The time allocated to each candidate for the oral will be 30 minutes. The oral will take the form of one-to-one conversation with the examiner. It will include discussion of topics that the examiner will announce to the candidate at the beginning of the oral. These topics will be two of six potential topics published on the lovinglivingcornish website no later than 31 March 2024. Candidates will not be permitted to have any notes with them during the conversation. Nor will candidates be allowed merely to recite from memory; they will be required to demonstrate they can engage in genuine dialogue with the examiner. The oral will be marked out of 100, comprising up to 40 marks for vocabulary, up to 40 marks for grammar, and up to 20 marks for fluency. For high marks it will not be enough to minimize mistakes in any vocabulary and grammar employed; candidates must show they can use a broad range of vocabulary and grammar within the specification.
Results
Candidates who achieve at least 85 per cent will be awarded the Grade ‘Pass with Distinction’ (Cornish ‘Passys gans Gormola’). Candidates who achieve at least 70 per cent but less than 85 per cent will be awarded the Grade ‘Pass with Credit’ (Cornish ‘Passys gans Ger Dâ’). Candidates who achieve at least 50 per cent but less than 70 per cent will be awarded the Grade ‘Pass’ (Cornish, ‘Passys’). Successful candidates will be sent a written certificate in pdf format. Unsuccessful candidates will be notified of a Fail (Cornish, ‘Fyllys’). All candidates will be informed of the actual percentage achieved. But only the Grade will appear on the certificate sent to each successful candidate.
Supplementary provision
The Chief Examiner may make supplementary provision in his/her/their discretion to ensure the integrity and fairness of the examination process.
Specimen papers
Specimen papers for both examinations are available in pdf format on request. Contact Us.