How would you like to feel in your EOI Mediation Test? I bet you’d like to feel confident, to feel you have it under control, and at the same time use mediation strategies as well as nice structures that you know are going to raise your score in the test.
Would you like that? Of course you would, right?
Here I’m going to show you how to prepare for your mediation exam using a simple, yet very effective strategy with clear, specific examples that you will be able to apply in your next EOI Mediation Test… even if you had it tomorrow.
Can you believe it? Well, it’s 100% true. And you’re going to see it for yourself in no time!
So, let’s get STARTED!
Imagine yourself for a minute in the exam, and you have just been given your mediation card with your task.
It’s called FOOD WASTE: A CURRENT CHALLENGE
Look, this is really, really simple.
In your Mediation card you can see this infographic:
And in your card, you can read the following CONTEXT:
You are having a coffee with a friend who is concerned about food waste, as she is very careful planning her shopping and her weekly meals, but she says she can’t help throwing a good amount of food every week.
She goes shopping every ten days to a big supermarket as she is pretty busy and that saves her time.
You found this infographic and you decide to give her some tips so she can do better at reducing her food waste.
OK… Now you are probably wondering… what do I need to do now?
EASY PEASY!
STEP 1: READ THE CONTEXT CAREFULLY
The first step is to read the context carefully and underline the bits of information that are key to help your interlocutor.
- Their specific situation
- The purpose of the mediation
- The restrictions (what exactly it is that they need)
Let’s look at our context here:
You are having a coffee with a friend who is concerned about food waste, as she is very careful planning her shopping and her weekly meals, but then she says she can’t help throwing a good amount of food every week.
She goes shopping every ten days to a big supermarket as she is pretty busy and that saves her time.
You found this infographic and you decide to give her some tips so she can do better at reducing her food waste.
SO FAR SO GOOD, RIGHT?
STEP 2: INFORMATION SELECTION
The second step to succeed in your mediation test is to select well the information you are going to transmit to your interlocutor, in the source text, the infographic, the brochure, etc.
REMEMBER that the essence of mediation is as simple as helping someone understand something that they can’t understand for themselves.
STEP 3: STRATEGIES
As you could see, there are some sections in the infographic that you won’t need to mention. This strategy is called LEAVING OUT NONESSENTIAL or UNNECESSARY INFORMATION.
So, this is basically about highlighting the sections that refer to things your friend is not doing and could start doing to reduce the amount of food she throws away.
Which takes us to the strategy HIGHLIGHT SPECIFIC INFORMATION.
And in this particular case, we are going to HIGHLIGHT two things:
- WHERE AND HOW TO DO THE SHOPPING.
- THINGS SHE CAN DO TO THROW LESS.
NOW, to explain the information you’ll need to use some mediation strategies.
In this particular case you will probably:
PARAPHRASE by using your own words to explain things
CLARIFY BY GIVING EXAMPLES like instead of going to a big supermarket you could buy locally at street markets.
EMPHASIZING by using emphatic structures to transmit the key ideas we want to express
PIECE OF CAKE, RIGHT?
STEP 4: LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS
We mediate having a purpose in mind. Sometimes we have to explain something, other times we have to give advice, and on other occasions we have to explain a new concept.
So we need to use specific structures for each purpose.
If we are going to give advice we’ll need to say something like:
- “In your particular case I’d advise you to
- Or… ”It may be a good idea to…”
- Or even… “According to the text, one of the best things you could do is to…”
- Or you could even use a cleft sentence like “What you could definitely do is to buy locally”
Grammar structures are the tool you need to fulfill the purpose of the mediation.
STEP 5: CLARITY
You are going to be evaluated on CLARITY. And how do we evaluate this?
Really simple:
- Did the interlocutor understand the message you gave them?
- Did you transmit all the essential bits of information they needed?
- Was your message clear and to the point?
STEP 6: CONCLUSION & FAREWELL
To do a mediation that’s worth a 10, you need to end it with style. Your own style, I mean, but this means giving it the closing the situation deserves.
Something like…
Well, I really hope the information I gave you has been useful, and please know I’ll be here for you if you need further explanations.
Or…
I hope this was useful for you, but please, let me know if there’s something you didn’t understand because I’m here to help you.
EASY, RIGHT?
Well, you’ll see that with the guide that I gave you, you’ll be able to plan your mediation task with examples like this.
As you can see, it’s much easier than you think to know what to do in your mediation exam. And, if you want to know the NO-NOs in your MEDIATION TEST, you can read the article “WHAT NOT TO DO IN YOUR MEDIATION TEST”
And as many of you already know at EOI Por Libre we have created an exclusive mobile APP where you can find videos, audios with their scripts about the EOI exam topics, speaking plans, readings, listenings and writing exam tasks to prepare for your EOI Exam.
And I’m sure you’re gonna love it!
You can download it TOTALLY FREE just by clicking this link and start using the free resources to prepare effectively, to save time and find guides, strategies and exam tasks that can’t be found anywhere else.
And remember, PERFECT PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT… Keep up with the hard work and see you soon!
