1
www.bycelesenglish.com copyright ©
2
www.bycelesenglish.com copyright ©
3
What is a linguistic mediation?
It is a task in which you will have to:
1. Understand the main ideas of the material you receive.
The material you will receive can be in English or Spanish, depending on
the community where you are sitting the exam. You need to decode the
original message, understand it and be ready to transmit it.
2. Select the most important information.
You do not need to transfer all the information you read. You need to
summarise the main points and explain the most relevant details. You are
not supposed to include your opinion unless the instructions ask you to do
so.
3. Adapt the information to the target reader/listener.
You need to read the instructions carefully to see if you need to produce a
formal or informal text/speech. If the receiver of the information is a
friend of yours (usually the case), you will need to produce an informal
piece of information. However, if the reader/addressee (destinatario) is a
person with a higher rank or the organiser of an event/the director of a
museum/the headmaster of a school, you will need to produce a fairly
formal piece of information.
The last step is....your production:
www.bycelesenglish.com copyright ©
7
www.bycelesenglish.com copyright ©
8
MEDIATION NUMBER 1
TOPIC: SAVING ENERGY - ENVIRONMENT
INPUT LANGUAGE: SPANISH
OUTPUT LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
TASK: WRITTEN
Your friend John has just arrived from England, and he seems
worried about the price of electricity. He is interested in saving
some energy but does not know exactly how.
You have just read this information and are eager to share the main
information with him.
WRITE AN EMAIL DESCRIBING THE MAIN IDEAS AND OFFER SOME
ADVICE/RECOMMENDATIONS. (120-140 words)
www.bycelesenglish.com copyright ©
9
www.bycelesenglish.com copyright ©
10
Hey John! Glad to hear from you! To tell you the truth..trying to save
energy is not a piece of cake..but I will give you some tips to save energy!
First of all, remember to plug just the necessary devices…and don’t leave
the mobile charger plugged after you use it. You know we have many
different electricity companies here in Spain..and you are free to choose
the one you want..so you´d better start comparing them so that you can
get the most convenient price.
Another thing, in case you have to buy any appliance, make sure you
check the labels on them. I mean, A++ or A+++ seem to be the best
options. And don´t forget to use LED bulbs, they will make all the
difference!
Hope these tips will come in handy!
Take care!
Mary.
(136 Words)
Useful Idioms/Phrases which can be used in your Mediations:
a piece of cake = very easy
make all the difference = to improve a situation
come in handy = to be useful
www.bycelesenglish.com copyright ©
