About the competition
The Olympiad is an international event which promotes learning English language, challenges students around the globe to compete in English language knowledge and improves the co-operation between teachers. It is open to students 6 – 19 years old from the whole world. The Olympiad will be run in three rounds: preliminary round, semi-final round and final round.The first round and the second round (10% of the highest scores from each participating test center in the first round) will be held within the students’ country. Hippo Global Association will select the winners of the second round to participate in the final round in Italy in October 2023.
regular and special levels
The participants will compete in 9 categories (6 regular* and 3 special**) based on the Common European Framework ( CEFR ) and will be taking Gatehouse Awards exams.
regular levels
| levels | Classroom | Preliminary round test | Preliminary round semi-final test |
|---|---|---|---|
LITTLE HIPPO |
Students born in 2013 & younger | CEFR Pre A 1 Young Learners | CEFR A 1 Young Learners |
HIPPO 1 |
Students born in 2011 & younger | CEFR A 1 Young Learners | CEFR A 2 Young Learners |
HIPPO 2 |
Students born in 2010 & younger | CEFR A 1 | CEFR A 2 |
HIPPO 3 |
Students born in 2008 & younger | CEFR A 2 | CEFR B 1 |
HIPPO 4 |
Students born in 2006 & younger | CEFR B 1 | CEFR B 2 |
HIPPO 5 |
Students born in 2004 & younger | CEFR B 2 | CEFR c 1 |
special levels
Special categories are aimed at students who are considered bilingual according to the Hippo Olympiad regulations as well as for English/American international schools and the schools where the majority or all subjects are taught in English.
| levels | Classroom | Preliminary round test | Preliminary round semi-final test |
|---|---|---|---|
HIPPO S10 |
Students born in 2011 and younger | CEFR B1 | CEFR B2 |
HIPPO S15 |
Students born in 2008 and younger | CEFR B2 | CEFR C1 |
HIPPO S19 |
Students born in 2004 and younger | CEFR C1 | CEFR C2 |
Subscription instructions
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Students studying in pre-university education can be enrolled from 6 to 19 years old.
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Pay the participation fee of:
170 Shekels subscription fee only (without training).
270 Shekels subscription fee with one month training (12 training hours). -
Participation in the name of the school the student is enrolled in.
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The student is committed to the place and date of the test for which he will be nominated.
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Contest fees are non-refundable (so please make sure you are serious about participating before paying the fees).
Olympic stages
registration stage
From the period (December 15 to April 5) WEB EECTL
The first stage
(First test) (7-8 April 2023) The Olympiad will be held remotely for all participants
The second stage
(The second test) (May 11-12, 2023) The Olympiad will be implemented at Palestine level for qualified students from the first stage.
regional stage
(June 20-23, 2023) will be held in Istanbul, and some qualified students from the second stage will participate in this stage.
the final stage
It will be held in the month of (October 2023). The first participants who obtained high grades in the second stage participate in this stage.
Participant Awards
Certificates of participation for All participants.
Certificate of Participation for All semi-finalists.
Certificate of Participation for All finalists.
Certificate of Participation for All finalists.
Certificate of Participation for All schools and participating coordinators
Interactive exam forms
Preliminary round
Hippo Little
Hippo 4 / S10
Hippo 5 / S15
Semi-final round 2020
Hippo Little
Hippo 4 / S10
Hippo 5 / S15
FAQ
A: EECTL Palestine. You can communicate with us through the contact details on the website.
A: No, when developing the exam globally, we have considered all the curricula that exist for all stages of education worldwide.
A: No, when developing the exam globally, we have considered all the curricula that exist for all stages of education worldwide.
A: The competition is organized in three rounds : The first round is the Preliminary Round includes all students wishing to participate . The second round is the Semi-final Round. The third round is the Final Round.
A: The tests for the preliminary round of the Olympiad will consist of three parts: a test of reading comprehension (multiple choice questions), a test of listening comprehension and a Use of English test.
A: Yes. The reading and the listening test samples will be available on the Olympiad website.
A: Certainly, The tests for the preliminary round of the Olympiad will consist of three parts: a test of reading comprehension (multiple choice questions), a test of listening comprehension and a Use of English test. The tests are the same for all the participants of a category. There is only one correct answer to every question.
level as shown in the table below,
| Test type | LITTLE HIPPO | HIPPO 1 | HIPPO 2 | HIPPO 3 | HIPPO 4 | HIPPO 5 & SPECIAL 1 | HIPPO SPECIAL 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| READING | 30 questions (1 point each) | 30 questions (1 point each) | 34 questions (1 point each) | 34 questions (1 point each) | 34 questions (1 point each) | 40 questions (1 point each) | 40 questions (1 point each) |
| Allowed Time | 20 minutes | 30 minutes | 30 minutes | 35 minutes | 40 minutes | 45 minutes | 45 minutes |
| Listening | 20 questions (1 point each) | 20 questions (1 point each) | 22 questions (1 point each) | 22 questions (1 point each) | 22 questions (1 point each) | 22 questions (1 point each) | 22 questions (1 point each) |
| Allwowed Time | 20 minutes | 20 minutes | 20 minutes | 20 minutes | 20 minutes | 20 minutes | 30 minutes |
| Use of English | 20 questions (1.5 point each) | 20 questions (1.5 point each) | 20 questions (1.5 point each) | 20 questions (1.5 point each) | 20 questions (1.5 point each) | 20 questions (1.5 point each) | 20 questions (1.5 point each) |
| Allowed Time | 20 minutes | 20 minutes | 20 minutes | 20 minutes | 30 minutes | 30 minutes | 30 minutes |
A: After the preliminary round tests have been marked, the top 10% of participating students from each participating zone will be invited to the semi-final round. The list of semi-finalists will be expanded to include all the students whose number of points is the same as the number of points of the last students in the first 10%.
A: The number of questions are different according to the test level as shown in the table below,
| Test type | LITTLE HIPPO | HIPPO 1 | HIPPO 2 | HIPPO 3 | HIPPO 4 | HIPPO 5 & SPECIAL 1 | HIPPO SPECIAL 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| READING | 30 questions (1 point each) | 40 questions (1 point each) | 34 questions (1 point each) | 34 questions (1 point each) | 40 questions (1 point each) | 40 questions (1 point each) | 40 questions (1 point each) |
| Allowed Time | 20 minutes | 30 minutes | 30 minutes | 35 minutes | 40 minutes | 45 minutes | 45 minutes |
| Writing | 30 questions (1.5 point each) | *free-writing task (essay) + 30 questions (1.5 point each) | *free-writing task (essay) + 30 questions (1.5 point each) | *free-writing task (essay) + 30 questions (1.5 point each) | *free-writing task (essay) + 30 questions (1.5 point each) | *free-writing task (essay) + 30 questions (1.5 point each) | *free-writing task (essay) + 30 questions (1.5 point each) |
| Allwowed Time | 45 minutes | 45 minutes | 45 minutes | 45 minutes | 45 minutes | 45 minutes | 45 minutes |
The essay will be assessed only in case two or more candidates have the same scores on both the reading and the writing test. The essay should be (100 – 200 words depending on the chosen category) .
A: In the final round of the Olympiad, the candidates will be taking a Gatehouse Awards exam, all 4 skills included ( Reading , Writing , Listening and Speaking ) . The test samples / past papers are available on The Website. The exam level for the final round will be one CEFR level higher than the one in the preliminary round that is the same as the semi-final round test.
A: No. There aren’t any negative marks.
A: No, this global contest is designed to consider all levels of students, by grading the difficulty of the questions, and considering the distribution of the number of questions to suit the levels of all students.
A: The tests are designed based on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment, and abbreviated in English as CEFR or CEFRL.
A: CEFRL is an abbreviation of the “Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment”. In language teaching, different European countries used many different syllabuses. So, the Council of Europe decided to create a Framework, it describes how people can use the language.
A : The “Global Scales” in CEFRL have three levels, and each level is divided into two stages :-
1: Basic User ( A )
A1 : beginner
A2 : elementary
2: Independent User
B1 : intermediate ( B )
B2 : upper intermediate
3: Proficient User ( C )
C1 : Effective Operational Proficiency or advanced
C2 : Mastery or proficiency.
For each level, the CEFRL describes what a learner can do in the four skills : reading, listening, speaking and writing.
A: The special categories are aimed at students who are considered bilingual according to the Hippo Olympiad regulations (the ones who were born or have lived and attended school for at least 3 years in an English-speaking country as well as those who live in a non-English speaking country but attend English/American International school ) as well as the schools where all subjects are taught in English. These students can compete in one of the special two categories.
A: The test time is determined according to each task in each level.
A: No. The test is paper-based multiple choice.
A: Yes,he could. The students of lower grades than the ones in the table can also compete if they feel prepared for the level. The age limit for the Olympiad is 19 or as long as the students are in high school.
A: Upon enrollment, the schools that meet the governing criteria are identified.
A: The school will be notified of its selection as a test center by sending an email to the school.
A: There are many benefits:
• Honoring the best schools participating in the contest.
• Placing the school logo on the contest website.
• Recording the participation of the school in a global contest.
• Recoginising the school level compared to the level of other schools locally, and the level of students globally in English language.
