இருமொழித் திறன் முத்திரை
The Seal of Bi-Literacy 

பெற்றோர்களுக்கு வணக்கம்!

It’s our pleasure to announce that the Maryland State Board of Education (MSDE) has approved the Seal of Bi-Literacy for the Tamil Language to our Frederick Tamil School (FTS) since May 2022. This can benefit our Tamil students who are studying in High School or any other High School students who are studying the Tamil language outside of our Tamil School of approved counties within Maryland state.  The qualified student will receive the Bi-Literacy seal on their diploma at the end of their high school year (12 th  grade).

Eligibility Criteria & Steps to meet them:
To receive a Maryland Seal of Biliteracy, a student must:

1. Pass the Maryland High School Assessment in English – PARRC English 10 (Meet the assessment requirement as set forth in COMAR 13A.03.02.09 on the Maryland High School English Language Arts/Literacy assessment) ; AND
2. Demonstrate Intermediate to High proficiency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking in Tamil. Students can achieve the same by doing the following two parts. 

Part 1 – Reading & Writing:
3. Reading/Writing Assessment by Tamil Virtual Academy (by Tamil Nadu State Government, India)
4. Passing Higher Certificate Course Grade 1 (HG10)
5. Cost of the exam – $15 (+ any additional registration fee during registration/exam scheduling)
6. The Examination will have two components (Click HERE visit the actual link)
        1. Online exam (Time: 60 Min) – 100 Marks
                        Model Question Paper for Online Exam
        2. Written exam. (Time: 2.30 Hour) – 75 Marks
                        Model Question Paper for Written Exam

FTS is a certified TVA examination center and follows the TVA syllabus from Nilai 8 to Nilai 10. The student must pass the HG10 exam from the TVA assessment. The average passing score from TVA is 40 percent and above. The TVA exam for Reading and Writing will be conducted twice a year between the December-February period and the April-June period. Those who would like to apply for the TVA’s HG10 exam can contact our FTS Board at [email protected]


Part 2 – Testing Listening & Speaking:
Pass the Oral Proficiency Assessments by ACTFL (The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages). Students need to take Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) by LTI (Language Testing International is the exclusive licensee of ACTFL Assessments).
  1. It is an unscripted, approximately, 15-30 minutes conversation over the phone with a Certified ACTFL Tester.
  2. The cost for ACTFL OPI is $159.00 it will approximately last for 30 minutes.


For the Listening and speaking assessments, FTS provides special coaching to undertake the Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) in Tamil which can be scheduled from the ACTFL website. The student must demonstrate Intermediate High or above proficiency in listening and speaking Tamil. You can find more information about OPI at https://www.languagetesting.com/oral-proficiency-interview-opi/.  To receive the OPI training and assistance, please contact our FTS Board at [email protected]

Frederick Tamil School is the Authorized Exam Center for Tamil Virtual Academy (TVA) in the state of Maryland and also the coordinator for the Seal of Biliteracy for Tamil in the state of Maryland.