Florence, Tuscany -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/12/2010 -- Scuola Leonardo da Vinci (http://www.scuolaleonardo.com/index.html) is proud to announce the opening of the preparation course for the winter session of Accademia Italiana di Lingua (AIL) exams on March 1st.

The Italian language school Leonardo da Vinci is a founder member of AIL, the professional association of schools, institutions and experts in the field of teaching Italian as a foreign language (http://www.acad.it).

The AIL exams (http://www.scuolaleonardo.com/Italian-language-exam-courses.html) will take place in all Leonardo da Vinci schools (Florence, Milan, Siena, Rome) on March 26th.

The AIL suite of exams has a wide choice of diplomas reflecting the very different needs and abilities of students. The AIL certificates (Diploma di Lingua Italiana Firenze) cover basic exams for those beginning to learn Italian, through to advanced certificates for those who have attained a high level of fluency. The AIL exams are internationally recognized by schools and institutions (such as Bildungsurlaub program) as proof of ability to use Italian. These certificates never expire, and will not need to be renewed — they are an achievement for life.

All AIL exams are aligned to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, an internationally recognized benchmark of language ability. The framework uses six levels to describe language ability from A1 to C2. Once you have passed one of our exams, there is a clear pathway ahead for you as your abilities and confidence improve. AIL tests are also based around real language skills, such as writing a letter or understanding an announcement, which will give you confidence to use Italian in real situations.

Scuola Leonardo da Vinci offers all five/six general Italian language exams: DELI (A2) recognizes the ability to deal with everyday written and spoken Italian at a basic level. DILI (B1) is dedicated to students who can use everyday written and spoken Italian at an intermediate level. DILI (B2), that is upper-intermediate level, is an ideal exam for students who want to use Italian especially for study purposes (i.e. attending courses in an Italian university).

DALI (C1), for advanced users of Italian, and DALI (C2), for students at proficiency level, are aimed at someone who can use written and spoken English for most professional and social purposes. Both DALI C1 and C2 are widely recognized for work or study purposes. Scuola Leonardo da Vinci also offers two different levels of professional exams, intermediate (DILC) and advanced (DALC), aimed at people who needs to speak and write Italian in a business environment.

The preparation course for all levels of exams will last 4 weeks from 1st March to March 26th. The total number of lessons is 120 (30 lessons per week). Four lessons a day Monday through Friday (Standard Course) to improve the students’ general knowledge of Italian language plus 2 lessons a day focused on mock examinations, exam drills and such.

Further information about the AIL Italian language Certification (http://www.scuolaleonardo.com/Italian-language-exam-courses.html) are available on http://www.scuolaleonardo.com.