HIPPO INTERNATIONAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE OLYMPIAD
OVERVIEW
Hippo International English Language Olympiad (hereinafter referred to as The Olympiad) is open to Primary 1 (7 years old) to Secondary 4 (16 years old) from the whole world. Students participating in The Olympiad will take their tests at an approved venue (state school and schools that are part of the formal education system, as well as private schools.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of The Olympiad is to promote the English language, challenge students around the globe to compete in English language knowledge, and to improve cooperation between teachers. The Olympiad encourages the development of a shared sense of identity and integration, serves as a role model for young people living together as one community.
The main goal is to create and nourish friendly relations, international understanding and a spirit of sporting competitiveness between young people interested in English language from all around the world.
FORMAT OF THE TEST
The Olympiad will run in three(3) rounds namely: preliminary round, semi-final round & final round. The scheduled exam topics are as follows:
Singapore/Hong Kong/Macau/China/India:
PRELIMINARY ROUND
SEMI-FINALS ROUND
FINALS ROUND – 19 Sep – 21 Sep 2021 (in Venezia-Jesolo, Italy)*
* To be finalised
CANDIDATES REGISTRATION and FEES
Every participating school needs to appoint one of their staff as The Olympiad person-in-charge officer (PICO). The PICO will be in charge of applications and will need to ensure that all The Olympiad examination regulations are adhered to.
For Hippo 2021 Online Applications, all schools will receive login details for the Hippo Online Platform where they will have to register the candidates by entering the required details. After the registration end date, no further amendments can be made.
OLYMPIAD – REGULAR and SPECIAL CATEGORIES
The participants will compete in 9 categories (6 regular and 3 special) based on the Common European Framework. The categories will be as follows:
| Category | Age | Preliminary Round Level | Semi Final and Final Round |
| LITTLE HIPPO | Students born in 2011 and younger | CEFR Pre A1 Young Learners | CEFR A1 Young Learners |
| HIPPO 1 | Students born in 2009 and younger | CEFR A1 Young Learners | CEFR A2 Young Learners |
| HIPPO 2 | Students born in 2008 and younger | CEFR A1 | CEFR A2 |
| HIPPO 3 | Students born in 2006 and younger | CEFR A2 | CEFR B1 |
| HIPPO 4 | Students born in 2004 and younger | CEFR B1 | CEFR B2 |
| HIPPO 5 | Students born in 2002 and younger | CEFR B2 | CEFR C1 |
| HIPPO S10 | Students born in 2009 and younger | CEFR B1 | CEFR B2 |
| HIPPO S15 | Students born in 2006 and younger | CEFR B2 | CEFR C1 |
| HIPPO S19 | Students born in 2002 and younger | CEFR C1 | CEFR C2 |
OLYMPIAD – PRELIMINARY ROUND
The preliminary round will consist of three(3) parts namely:
READING – a test of reading comprehension (MCQ) questions
LISTENING – a test of listening comprehension
USE OF ENGLISH – a test on the use of English
There is only one (1) correct answer to every question. There are no negative marks and ranking is based on the average number of marks achieved on all three(3) The breakdown of questions per point per minute are as follows:
Reading
| Little Hippo | Hippo 1 | Hippo 2 | Hippo 3 | Hippo 4 & S10 | Hippo 5 & S15 | Hippo S19 | |
| Number of questions | 30 | 30 | 34 | 34 | 34 | 40 | 40 |
| Points per question | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Duration | 20 min | 30 min | 30 min | 35 min | 40 min | 45 min | 45 min |
Listening
| Little Hippo | Hippo 1 | Hippo 2 | Hippo 3 | Hippo 4 & S10 | Hippo 5 & S15 | Hippo S19 | |
| Number of questions | 20 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 |
| Points per question | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Duration | 20 min | 20 min | 20 min | 20 min | 20 min | 20 min | 30 min |
Use of English
| Little Hippo | Hippo 1 | Hippo 2 | Hippo 3 | Hippo 4 & S10 | Hippo 5 & S15 | Hippo S19 | |
| Number of questions | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
| Points per question | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Duration | 20 min | 20 min | 20 min | 20 min | 30 min | 30 min | 30 min |
OLYMPIAD – SEMI FINAL ROUND
The semi-final round will consist of two(2) parts :
READING – a test of reading comprehension (MCQ) questions
WRITING – a test of a free-writing task (100-200 words) & 30 MCQ questions
There is only one(1) correct answer to every question. There are no negative marks. Ranking is based on the average number of marks achieved on both reading and the writing test.
The breakdown of questions per point per minute are as follows :
Reading
| Little Hippo | Hippo 1 | Hippo 2 | Hippo 3 | Hippo 4 & S10 | Hippo 5 & S15 | Hippo S19 | |
| Number of questions | 30 | 40 | 34 | 34 | 40 | 40 | 40 |
| Points per question | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Duration | 30 min | 30 min | 35 min | 40 min | 45 min | 45 min | 50 min |
Writing
| Little Hippo | Hippo 1 | Hippo 2 | Hippo 3 | Hippo 4 & S10 | Hippo 5 & S15 | Hippo S19 | |
| Number of questions | 30 | Free-writing task (essay) + 30 | Free-writing task (essay) + 30 | Free-writing task (essay) + 30 | Free-writing task (essay) + 30 | Free-writing task (essay) + 30 | Free-writing task (essay) + 30 |
| Points per question | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Duration | 45 min | 45 min | 45 min | 45 min | 45 min | 45 min | 45 min |
OLYMPIAD – FINAL ROUND
In the final round, candidates will be taking a Gatehouse Awards exam, all four(4) skills included. The test samples / past papers are available on http://www.hippo-olympiad.org. 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.
In addition to the four-skill GA examinations, candidates take a Use of English test consisting of 30 questions. The results of this test will be used for final round ranking purposes and will not affect the GA examination qualification score.
All candidates need to be accompanied by their English language teacher from their school. Parents who wish to accompany their child(ren), need to make their own travel and accommodation arrangements as the hotels where the students are accommodated are booked exclusively for the Olympiad participants.
The programme of the final round will be available on http://www.hippo-olympiad.org one(1) week before the final round at the latest and will include the Olympiad final round schedule as well as sightseeing options.
AWARDS
PRELIMINARY ROUND
Perfect Score – Award (Full marks) – qualifies as a significant award for IJHS
Gold Award (Top 8%) – qualifies as a significant award for IJHS
Silver Award (Next 12 %)
Bronze Award (Next 20%)
Honorable Mention Certificate (Next 10%)
Certificate of Participation (Next 50%)
SEMI-FINAL ROUND
FINAL ROUND – INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNISED CERTIFICATE IN ENGLISH (SCORE OF 50% MINIMUM)
MARKING and RANKING
The tests of Reading and Listening are marked by an OMR device and for that reason need to be properly filled in. Candidates are required to use a pen while completing the OMR form. An OMR sample form will be available on the website two weeks before the preliminary round of the Olympiad at the latest.
In case an OMR form is not properly filled and the OMR device cannot read it, Global Hippo Association keeps the right to disqualify the candidate if the identity of the candidate cannot be established.
In the semi-final round, the essay will be marked only if two or more candidates have the same number of points on both the reading and writing test. The ranking list for all categories as well as the names of the candidates who qualified for the final round will be available on http://www.hippo-olympiad.org.
Participants with the top marks will win a contest package to Italy. However, they must purchase their own air ticket to Italy and have an accompanying parent / teacher.
LIABILITY
By applying for the Olympiad, the participants accept the conditions of the Olympiad, organisation of the Olympiad, marking criteria, assessment and prizes.
The personal data of the participants will be used only for the purposes of the Olympiad and will not be disclosed to third parties except for the need of the Olympiad.
