📚 Aptis Dual Standards: Aligned to CEFR and China's Standards of English Language Ability | 普思考试的双标准：同时对应CEFR与中国英语能力等级量表
Aptis is one of the few international English tests that is reported against two proficiency frameworks at the same time: the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and China's Standards of English Language Ability (CSE, 中国英语能力等级量表). For learners, teachers and schools in China, this dual standard raises practical questions. What does an Aptis B2 actually mean? How does it translate into CSE levels? And can one score be trusted by both a European university and a Chinese employer? This guide explains both frameworks, how the alignment between them is produced, and what the correspondence really means in practice.
普思考试是少数同时对标两套能力框架的国际英语考试：欧洲语言共同参考框架（CEFR）与中国英语能力等级量表（CSE）。对中国考生、教师和学校而言，这种双标准带来的是非常实际的问题：普思的B2究竟代表什么水平？换算成CSE是几级？一个分数能否同时被欧洲高校与中国用人单位认可？本文将系统梳理两套框架的结构、对接的方法学，以及这些对应关系在真实场景中的含义。
1. What Is Aptis? | 什么是普思考试
Aptis is an English language assessment suite developed by the British Council and launched in 2012. Its defining feature is modularity: candidates can sit a Grammar and Vocabulary core component and combine it with Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing in almost any configuration. This means an institution can test only listening and reading for placement, or all four skills for a full certification.
普思考试（Aptis）由英国文化教育协会（British Council）研发，于2012年正式推出。它最鲜明的特点是模块化：考生可以先考语法与词汇核心模块，再自由搭配阅读、听力、口语、写作。这意味着机构可以只测听力和阅读用于分班，也可以四项全考用于完整认证。
The suite has several versions. Aptis General covers the full range from A1 to C1 and is the most common version for schools and universities. Aptis for Teachers is designed around classroom language and is used in teacher-training and professional-development contexts, including in several Chinese provinces. Aptis for Teens targets younger learners. Aptis Advanced extends the range up to C2 for high-level academic and professional purposes. Aptis ESOL is the regulated version, recognised by Ofqual in the UK and accepted for certain UK visa routes as a Secure English Language Test.
普思考试包含多个版本。Aptis General覆盖A1至C1的完整区间，是学校与高校最常用的版本。Aptis for Teachers围绕课堂教学语言设计，常被用于教师培训与专业发展场景，在中国多个省份已有应用。Aptis for Teens面向低龄学习者。Aptis Advanced将测量上限延伸到C2，服务于高阶学术与职业需求。Aptis ESOL是受监管版本，在英国由Ofqual认可，并作为安全英语语言测试（SELT）被英国部分签证类别接受。
Results are reported both as a numeric scale score and as a CEFR level for each skill. The computer-delivered components usually produce results within 48 hours, which makes Aptis attractive for placement testing and short-notice admissions decisions.
成绩同时以数值量表分与CEFR等级两种形式报告，且按技能分别呈现。机考模块通常48小时内出分，这使普思在分班测试和临期录取决策中很有吸引力。
2. What Is the CEFR? | 什么是CEFR
The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages was published by the Council of Europe in 2001, with a major Companion Volume update in 2018 and 2020. It describes language ability across six levels: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2, grouped into three broad bands - A (basic user), B (independent user) and C (proficient user).
欧洲语言共同参考框架由欧洲委员会于2001年发布，并在2018至2020年推出重要的《补充卷》更新。它用六个等级描述语言能力：A1、A2、B1、B2、C1、C2，并归为三大阶段——A（基础使用者）、B（独立使用者）、C（熟练使用者）。
Crucially, the CEFR is not a test. It is a reference framework built from "can-do" descriptors: statements of what a learner can do in real communicative situations. A test such as Aptis claims alignment with the CEFR only after a formal standard-setting study has placed its cut scores onto the framework.
关键在于，CEFR本身不是考试，而是一套以"能做"描述语构建的参考框架——描述学习者在真实交际情境中能够完成什么任务。像普思这样的考试，只有在完成正式的标准设定研究、把分数线锚定到框架之上后，才有资格声称与CEFR对标。
The CEFR has become the international lingua franca of language proficiency. University admissions offices, employers, publishers and curriculum designers across the world use it as a common reference point, which is why a CEFR level is far more portable than a raw score on any single test.
CEFR已成为国际语言能力的通用语言。全球的高校招生办、雇主、出版社和课程设计者都把它当作共同参照点，这也是为什么CEFR等级比任何单一考试的原始分数都更具可迁移性。
3. What Is the CSE? | 什么是中国英语能力等级量表
China's Standards of English Language Ability is a national standard developed under China's Ministry of Education, with the National Education Examinations Authority playing a leading role. It was officially released in April 2018 and came into force on 1 June 2018 as a national language standard.
中国英语能力等级量表是中国教育部指导下研制的国家标准，国家教育考试院（NEEA）在其中发挥主导作用。该量表于2018年4月正式发布，并于2018年6月1日起作为国家语言文字规范实施。
The CSE sets out nine levels organised into three stages: 基础 (levels 1 to 3), 提高 (levels 4 to 6) and 熟练 (levels 7 to 9). Unlike the CEFR's four-skill focus, it describes ability across listening, reading, speaking, writing, and also translation and interpreting - a distinctive feature that reflects the needs of Chinese learners and the Chinese curriculum.
CSE共设九个等级，分三个阶段：基础（1至3级）、提高（4至6级）、熟练（7至9级）。与CEFR聚焦听说读写四项技能不同，CSE的描述范围涵盖听力理解、阅读理解、口头表达、书面表达，还包括笔译与口译——这一特色反映了中国学习者的实际需求与国内课程体系。
Beyond skills, the CSE also describes language knowledge (grammar, vocabulary, phonology, discourse), pragmatic knowledge, and learning strategies. Its descriptors are written in Chinese and framed around the experience of Chinese learners, which makes them unusually readable as a self-assessment tool for students in China.
除技能之外，CSE还描述语言知识（语法、词汇、语音、篇章）、语用知识以及学习策略。其描述语以中文撰写，并围绕中国学习者的经验构建，因此对中国学生来说，作为自我评估工具时格外易读好用。
4. Why Two Frameworks? The Logic of a Dual Standard | 为什么需要双标准：对标逻辑
The dual standard exists because two different audiences need two different reference points. Internationally, the CEFR is the currency of admissions, mobility and employment. Domestically, the CSE connects English ability to China's own educational stages - compulsory education, senior secondary study, the gaokao, CET-4 and CET-6, and English majors' TEM-4 and TEM-8.
双标准之所以存在，是因为两类不同的受众需要两类不同的参照点。在国际层面，CEFR是升学、流动与就业的通用货币；在国内层面，CSE把英语能力与中国自身的教育阶段连接起来——义务教育、高中阶段、高考、大学英语四六级，以及英语专业的专业四级、专业八级。
For a test like Aptis, alignment with both frameworks creates a bridge. A Chinese learner can look at a CSE descriptor written in Chinese and immediately understand what an Aptis B2 means for them, while an overseas university can read the same result as a familiar CEFR band.
对普思这样的考试而言，同时对标两套框架等于架起一座桥。中国学习者可以对照中文撰写的CSE描述语，立刻理解普思B2对自己意味着什么；而海外高校读取同一份成绩时，看到的是他们熟悉的CEFR等级。
There is also a policy dimension. China has actively encouraged the international connection of its own standards, and the CSE has been linked to major international tests - IELTS being the first high-profile case - so that Chinese ability descriptions can be understood abroad and international results can be interpreted at home.
这背后还有政策维度。中国一直积极推动本土标准与国际接轨，CSE已与多个国际主流考试开展对接研究——雅思是最早受到广泛关注的一例——从而使中文的能力描述能被国际理解，也使用户在国内能读懂国际考试成绩。
5. CEFR and CSE Side by Side | CEFR与CSE结构对照
The two frameworks differ in level count, scope and purpose. The table below summarises the main structural differences.
两套框架在等级数量、覆盖范围和用途上都不同。下表汇总了主要结构差异。
| Dimension / 维度 | CEFR | CSE 中国英语能力等级量表 |
| Levels / 等级数 | 6 (A1-C2) | 9 (1-9) |
| Stages / 阶段 | A / B / C | 基础 / 提高 / 熟练 |
| Skills covered / 覆盖技能 | Listening, reading, speaking, writing, plus mediation | 听、说、读、写、笔译、口译 |
| Owner / 发布机构 | Council of Europe | 中国教育部 / 国家教育考试院 |
| Nature / 性质 | Reference framework, not a test | 国家标准，非考试 |
| Descriptor language / 描述语语言 | English (plus translations) | 中文 |
Because the level counts differ, the mapping is never a simple one-to-one ratio. A single CEFR band often spans two CSE levels, and the boundaries do not fall at mathematically equal intervals.
正因为等级数量不同，对应关系绝不是一个简单的等比换算。一个CEFR等级通常横跨两个CSE等级，而且分界线并不落在数学上等距的位置。
6. How Aptis Reports Results | 普思考试的成绩报告方式
Aptis reports a CEFR level for each skill tested and, when all four skills are taken, an overall CEFR level. Alongside the level, candidates receive a numeric scale score. The Grammar and Vocabulary core is reported on a scale of 0 to 50, and the reading and listening components are also scaled, with cut scores mapping the scale to CEFR bands.
普思会为每项已考技能报告一个CEFR等级；如果四项技能全部参加，还会给出一个总体CEFR等级。除等级之外，考生还会得到一个数值量表分。语法与词汇核心模块按0至50分报告，阅读和听力模块同样采用量表分，并通过分数线把分数锚定到CEFR等级区间。
Speaking and writing are assessed by trained raters using CEFR-based rating scales, which means the reported level already carries an explicit CEFR interpretation. There is no separate CSE score printed on an Aptis report. The CSE connection appears through a published concordance: a table that tells you which CSE level corresponds to each Aptis or CEFR level.
口语与写作由受过培训的评分员依据基于CEFR的评分量表评定，因此报告出的等级本身就带有明确的CEFR解释。普思成绩单上不会单独印出一个CSE分数。CSE的关联通过公开发布的对接表体现：这张表告诉你每一个普思等级或CEFR等级对应哪一个CSE等级。
Aptis General spans A1 to C1, while Aptis Advanced extends to C2. This matters when interpreting a result: if a candidate sits Aptis General and scores at the top of the scale, the report cannot distinguish between a strong C1 and a C2 performance, because the test was not designed to measure above its ceiling.
Aptis General覆盖A1至C1，Aptis Advanced则延伸到C2。这一点直接影响到成绩解读：如果考生参加的是Aptis General并在量表中取得最高段成绩，报告无法区分"扎实的C1"与"C2水平"，因为该版本的设计上限并不覆盖C2。
7. How the Alignment Is Established |
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