Open Awards Online Functional Skills English Exam

Overview

Our brand new remote Functional Skills exams could be exactly what you're looking for! Have you ever thought that sitting an exam would be so much more comfortable if you could just do it from home? Well now you can! learndirect are proud to be one of the UK's only online providers of remote Functional Skills exams. 

So what does this actually mean?

Remote exams are exams you can do in the comfort of your own home using our virtual classroom technology. This means you won't have to sit in a room with other people to take your exam. You can do your exam on your own, with an invigilator watching via webcam to make sure you are following the exam guidelines. Before your exam you will be sent a handbook with all of the rules and regulations you need to follow and guidance on how we will make your exam as fair as possible. 

Functional Skills Qualifications are recognised as a GCSE equivalent, and accepted by most colleges and universities.

A qualification in Functional Skills English proves you have the practical skills you need to use English in life, study and work.

Our Functional Skills exams are available at Level 1 and Level 2 and are accredited by Open Awards. Open Awards is an Awarding Organisation approved by The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual) – the regulatory body who regulate qualifications, examinations and assessments in England.

NB - Failure to meet the requirements of the exam board during your exam could result in disqualification. 

Modules

Functional Skills English includes two exams and an assessment:

• Reading – This exam will test you on your ability to read for information, including looking at biased pieces of work and will help you to work out how much the opinions of certain authors can be trusted. It also tests you on the different types of layout features and how these can impact the reader.

• Writing – This exam will assess your writing ability on a variety of ways to write certain pieces. This may include letters, newspaper articles, emails and blogs amongst others. This exam will also test your spelling, punctuation and grammar skills. 

• Speaking, Listening and Communicating – An important element of the English is speaking, listening and communicating (SLC). The Functional Skills English qualification includes an assessment on SLC, assessing your skills in the various ways SLC is used on a daily basis. This assessment will be in a group situation.

Requirements

Functional Skills exams are only available in England.

Before you take your exam, you need to have the following equipment:

• A good quality laptop
• An internet connection that can support our virtual classroom technology (we recommend at least 3mbps)
• A clean dictionary (it is very useful if you get a new dictionary, leave it in its packaging and open this when instructed to by the invigilator).
• A webcam (if your laptop does not have one) – this must be capable of producing at least a 480p quality video
• A pen or pencil
• Some paper

Please note: The exam software does not work on Chromebook devices.

Assessment

Once you’re ready to book your exam, please contact upskilluk@learndirect.com.

Exams are available:

• During normal office hours
• Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 5p.m. to 9p.m. inclusive, and
• Saturday mornings from 10a.m. subject to the availability of an invigilator.
• The SLC component is assessed in small groups every Friday.

You must have a quiet room where you will not be disturbed. We will invigilate your exam using online classroom technology.

All instalment plans must be paid and up to date before an exam can be booked. In addition, exams cannot be booked for dates before the final payment is successfully made. For example, if two monthly payments are due in the future, an exam can be booked, but the exam date will be after the final payment is received.

Qualifications

Open Awards

For all our functional skills qualifications and certification we work with Open Awards.

Open Awards are a UK-based Awarding Organisation approved by both Ofqual and as an Access Validating Agency by the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA). They provide a broad range of qualifications from Functional Skills, Vocational Training, Access to Higher Education Diplomas. They are committed to helping provide the highest quality learning experience to help transform lives.

Developing your career

Functional Skills English can help you do develop your career or even to find that job you’ve always wanted. Many employers now look for a level 2 qualification in English before they consider hiring a candidate for a job. Gaining this qualification could be just what you need to give you that boost against the other people applying for the position.

English is also really beneficial for your day to day life skills. You can write a letter to a company if you need to complain or send an email without worrying if your grammar is correct. You can even practice your skills when in a group conversation.

Functional Skills English is also great if you want to help your children with their homework, you’ll learn how to help them get the right answer.

Functional Skills English can even give you the skills you need to go to university. Many universities now have an entry requirement of a level 2 in English, gaining this could be your ticket to studying your degree. You need to check with the university that they accept Functional Skills English before starting your course.