I know that we indicate our mother tongue in our profiles. Would it be possible to have a similar level as a further step in the ladder from Beginners to Advanced? It would look better on our statistics as tutors, I think.
Hi Sanne,
I’m not exactly sure what you’re requesting here…Would you want other languages to appear under the “Native Language” section of your profile?
Presumably if people want to speak to a born-and-raised speaker of a specific language then they’ll use the filters on the tutoring page to select Native Language. I don’t think most other people will care too much as long as they see that you do a good job and have a good reputation (however, I could certainly be wrong!).
Yes, I suppose you are right. People can get the info from our profile. I just wondered about another level for German and English, in my case. I suppose the best way forward is to put them both on Advanced, although I do not feel ‘advanced’, I feel arrived and enjoying where I am 
You bring up a good point, Sanne. Perhaps we should add an “Arrived 1” level, and, if there is enough demand, maybe even an “Arrived 2” to top it all off. 
(For those who don’t get it, I’m kidding :P)
Several students I work with recognise 3 intermediate levels, pre-intermediate, intermediate and upper intermediate. Pre-intermediate seems to correspond to the bottom end of intermediate 1, while upper intermediate seems to be the top of intermediate 2.
Having an advanced 2 level would make sense, as the CEFRL has this level. In fact I’ve seen a Russian scale of language levels which goes all the way up to advanced 3, which is basically “can function as a professor of philology in their target language.” I shouldn’t think many people ever get that high.
@skyblueteapot and @alex, I would really like a third intermediate level, I feel that my German is “mid intermediate” and that my Spanish is low intermediate, but I know that my German is not high intermediate and therefore I have it at intermediate 1, however I feel that my spanish is low intermediate, but its not the same as my German and therefore I class it as “beginner 2” which I don’t like as several native speakers have told me that my spanish is not at a beginner level. This post is actually aimed at the LingQ staff as well, but it kind of backs up helen’s point.
Harry and Helen,
We feel that the best indicator for your ability in a language is the number of words you know. The “level” that you choose is more than anything to help you find lessons that are appropriate. However, we will work on the levels with some coming updates and make any changes that we think are necessary.
We are unlikely to add another intermediate level, as that would mean many of the levels for lessons would be obsolete and it would add a lot more complexity to the system, but Advanced 2 is certainly a possibility. No promises, but we’ll keep your comments in mind as we continue working on improvements.
To most Britons, “speaking another language” corresponds roughly to beginner 2. We do not differentiate the levels of ability above that.
When I joined LingQ, it took me a long time to understand that people could differentiate different levels of being able to speak another language.
http://www.emea.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/Other/2010/03/WC500075218.pdf
in Europa this is the norm.
en Español.
By “most Britons” I mean those who have done the minimum compulsory language learning, which gets you to B2 in French. Most of the people I have ever worked with (computer programmers and engineers) have taken languages no further than that. In fact, they would have considered language study to be a pointless distraction and a hindrance to their “real” studies. (rolls eyes)
Thanks for the link, Jolanda! I’ve been looking for something like that.