The six parts at a glance
| Part | What you hear | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| 1 · Problem Solving | Two people work through an everyday problem | ~8 |
| 2 · Daily Life Conversation | An informal chat between friends, family or coworkers | ~5 |
| 3 · Listening for Information | Two speakers: one has information the other wants | ~6 |
| 4 · News Item | A short, broadcast-style news report | ~5 |
| 5 · Discussion | Three speakers, on video: the only video part | ~8 |
| 6 · Viewpoints | A longer monologue arguing a single position | ~6 |
A short unscored practice task plays first; the six scored parts then add up to 38 scored questions, and no clip is ever repeated. To see what a given number of correct answers is worth, use the CELPIP Listening score calculator.
How the six parts work
Part 1: Listening to Problem Solving. You hear two people work through an everyday problem — a mix-up with an order, a scheduling clash — and answer questions about the problem and how they resolve it.
Part 2: Listening to a Daily Life Conversation. An informal conversation between friends, family or coworkers. The questions focus on details, plans and how the speakers feel, so tone matters as much as facts.
Part 3: Listening for Information. Two speakers, where one has expertise the other wants: a customer and a salesperson, or a new employee being walked through a procedure. Most prep sites call this a monologue. Paragon's own specification says two speakers, so track who is stating a fact and who is merely assuming one.
Part 4: Listening to a News Item. A short, broadcast-style news report packed with names, numbers and quotes. The trick is to catch the who, what and when the first time through.
Part 5: Listening to a Discussion. Three speakers weigh options and disagree, and this is the only part of the Listening test shown on video. The challenge is tracking who said what, so label each speaker by their position on screen before the clip starts.
Part 6: Listening to Viewpoints. The most demanding part: a longer monologue in which one speaker argues a position with reasons and evidence. You have to separate the speaker's own conclusion from the views they merely report.
Every clip plays exactly once. On the Listening Test, the whole game is catching it the first time.
How Listening is scored
All the questions are multiple choice, and the section is scored automatically by computer. Each answer is right or wrong with no penalty for guessing, so never leave one blank. Your total is converted to a CELPIP level from 1 to 12 that lines up one-to-one with the Canadian Language Benchmarks — a Listening level of 9 is CLB 9.
- A short, unscored practice task runs first — your one chance to set the headphone volume before scoring begins.
- You may take notes on an erasable board throughout, which matters because nothing is ever replayed.
- The voices and situations are everyday Canadian — phone calls, workplace chats and news-style clips.
How to practice effectively
Because the audio plays once, the single most valuable habit is fast, selective note-taking: capture anchors like dates, names and numbers rather than full sentences. Preview the questions whenever you can so you know what to listen for, and train yourself to let go of a missed answer instead of chasing it into the next clip.
Practice with realistic, single-play audio from the start. Each set on this page mirrors the real pace and the everyday Canadian voices you will hear on test day, and your weekly chart keeps you on a steady rhythm rather than cramming.
