PAU English Canary Islands 2027: exam format, marking and tips

If you’re taking the PAU in the Canary Islands (formerly the EBAU), the English exam is very different from those in other regions such as Madrid or Andalusia: there are no sentence transformations and, instead, you have to complete a conversation and react to real-life situations. What’s more, in the comprehension question you have to copy from the text, the exact opposite of what you’re asked to do in Madrid, for example. If you prepare with exams from elsewhere, you’ll be practising things you won’t be asked to do.

In this guide I explain what the Canary Islands PAU English exam is like, based on the official marking criteria for the 2026-2027 school year: the six questions, how much each one is worth, what loses you marks, how the composition is marked, how to split the 90 minutes, and a worked example of each part. All explained from my experience preparing students for official exams. Let’s get started! 🙂

If you’re looking for an overview of the test (what the PAU is, how much English counts towards your mark or what level you need), you’ll find it in my guide to the PAU English exam.

What the Canary Islands PAU English exam is like

The exam lasts 90 minutes, is marked out of 10, is taken without a dictionary, and both the questions and your answers are in English. There is only one option: all six questions are compulsory, and the first three are based on a text with numbered lines (about 400 words long in recent exams).

The reference level is B1 on the Common European Framework. Notice that more than half the mark (questions 4, 5 and 6) depends on what you write, and half of questions 4 and 5 is also marked as comprehension. Grammar isn’t tested separately, but it counts in everything you write.

Question 1: True or False (1.5 marks)

You get three statements, and for each one you write TRUE or FALSE and copy the evidence from the text. Each is worth 0.5, and there are only two possible outcomes: either everything is right, or it scores 0. It scores 0 if:

• You get true or false right, but the justification is wrong (or the other way round).
• You don’t copy a justification or only write the line number.
• The justification is incomplete: unfinished or with ellipsis.
• You copy more than necessary.

And a detail in the criteria that many students miss: you have to write the full word, TRUE or FALSE. No T or F.

Look at this example, with a text written for this guide:

(6) The first visitors arrived on the island in the 1960s, when there were only two small hotels. (7) Today, more than a million tourists come every year, and most of them stay for less than a week.

Statement: Most tourists spend a long time on the island. FALSE.

• ✅ Today, more than a million tourists come every year, and most of them stay for less than a week. (the sentence that proves it)
• ❌ The first visitors arrived on the island in the 1960s, when there were only two small hotels. Today, more than a million tourists come every year, and most of them stay for less than a week. (the first sentence isn’t needed: you’re copying more than necessary)
• ❌ Today, more than a million tourists come every year, and most of them… (unfinished, with ellipsis)
• ❌ They stay for a short time. (your words, not the text’s)
• ❌ Line 7. (the line number doesn’t count)

My tip: copy the sentence that proves the answer, no more and no less, without cutting it off halfway and without changing a single comma.

Question 2: Short questions (1.5 marks)

You’re asked three questions about the text and you answer by copying the fragment that contains the answer: a maximum of 10 words, or a number. Each answer is worth 0.5, and it scores 0 if:

• You copy a fragment that doesn’t answer the question.
• You copy more than 10 words.
• You paraphrase or answer in your own words.

Be careful, because this is the opposite of other regions: in Madrid, for example, you lose marks if you copy. Here you lose marks if you don’t. With the text above:

Question: How many places to stay were there when tourism started?

• ✅ only two small hotels
• ❌ There were two hotels. (not a literal copy from the text)
• ❌ The first visitors arrived on the island in the 1960s, when there were only two small hotels. (more than 10 words)

Before you write, count the words in the fragment you’re going to copy. If there are more than 10, keep the part that answers the question exactly.

Question 3: Vocabulary (1 mark)

You’re given four definitions, each with the lines of the text you have to look in, and you write the word or expression from the text that matches. Each correct answer is worth 0.25.

The key is in one phrase of the criteria: you have to identify the word keeping its morphological structure. In other words, you copy it exactly as it appears: if it’s plural in the text, plural; if it’s a verb in -ing or in the past, as it is. For example, if the definition is «getting bigger» and the text has growing, the answer is growing, not grow.

Another trick: look at the form of the definition. If it’s an adjective («very old»), look for an adjective; if it’s a plural noun («people who visit a place»), look for a plural noun.

Question 4: Complete a conversation (1.5 marks)

You get a dialogue between you and another person with six gaps in your part, and you have to fill them so that the conversation makes sense. There’s no minimum or maximum number of words. Each gap is worth 0.25:

The golden rule: if the gap ends in a question mark, you have to write a question. If there’s no punctuation mark, it’s up to you. And always read what the other person says straight afterwards: that’s the clue that tells you what to write.

An example, written for this guide:

An example, written for this guide:

You: Are you coming to the beach with us on Saturday?
Friend: I’d love to, but I don’t have a way to get there.
You: (1) ________________________?
Friend: Really? That would be great! What time would you pick me up?

• ✅ Why don’t we give you a lift? (it’s a question, and it fits with pick me up)
• ❌ We can take you in our car. (the idea fits, but the gap asks for a question)
• ❌ What time is it? (it’s a question, but it doesn’t fit the reply)

Question 5: Comment on a situation (1.5 marks)

You get five everyday situations and choose three. For each one you write what you would say, in 10 to 25 words. You’re usually asked for a specific function: complaining, apologising, turning down an invitation, accepting a proposal, giving advice, expressing disappointment… Each situation is worth 0.5:

• The top mark goes to an answer that fits the situation, has no errors and shows a good command of ideas, structures and vocabulary. Each error lowers the mark, and a correct but very basic answer gets a maximum of 0.3.
• It scores 0 if it doesn’t fit the situation, has fewer than 10 words or has more than 4 errors.
• If you go over the limit by more than 10 words (that is, more than 35), you lose 0.1.
• If you answer more than three situations, only the first three are marked.

Situation: You borrowed your friend’s jacket and accidentally spilled coffee on it. Apologise.

• ✅ I’m really sorry, but I spilled coffee on your jacket. I’ll take it to the dry cleaner’s tomorrow, I promise. (20 words: it apologises, explains and offers a solution)
• ❌ Sorry, I spilled coffee on your jacket. (it fits, but it has 7 words: it scores 0)

My tip: use a two-part structure. The function (I’m really sorry, I’m afraid I can’t, Would you mind…) and a detail or a solution. That way you reach 10 words easily and show range.

These are the functions that come up most in questions 4 and 5, with useful expressions and the KSE post where you can revise them:

Question 6: Composition (3 marks)

You choose one of the two topics and write a composition of 140 to 180 words. The criteria mention three types of text: the email, the for and against essay and the opinion essay. If you choose the email, don’t sign it.

How the composition is marked

The rubric has five areas with four aspects each. That’s 20 aspects, each worth 0.15:

And these are the rules that can cost you the most:

• If you go completely off topic, the composition scores 0.
• If you go over 180 words, only the first 180 are marked. Anything after that doesn’t count, even if it’s your conclusion.
• Spelling: up to 3 spelling and punctuation errors are allowed. From the fourth, you lose the 0.15 for that aspect (for students with dyslexia or dysorthography, from the seventh).
• Vocabulary copied from the text loses marks in the vocabulary area.

If you’re short of words

If you don’t reach 140 words, the maximum mark goes down:

In other words, stopping at 135 words costs you at least half a mark before anyone has even read your text. Aim for between 150 and 170.

Example of a for and against essay

Task (written for this guide): Tourism: advantages and disadvantages for the place where you live.

Tourism is one of the most important industries in many places, and the Canary Islands are a good example. However, it has both positive and negative effects on local people.

On the one hand, tourism creates thousands of jobs in hotels, restaurants and shops. It also brings money that can be used to improve roads, beaches and public services. Moreover, meeting visitors from other countries helps local people become more open-minded and practise other languages.

On the other hand, too many tourists can damage the environment, especially beaches and natural parks. In addition, many flats are now rented to visitors, which makes housing more expensive for the people who live there all year round. As a result, young people often find it difficult to leave their parents’ home.

In conclusion, tourism is necessary for the economy, but it should be controlled. In my opinion, the key is to find a balance between visitors’ needs and residents’ quality of life.

Why it works:

• A for and against structure: an introduction to the topic, a paragraph of advantages, another of disadvantages and a conclusion with a personal opinion.
• Varied linkers: However, On the one hand, Moreover, On the other hand, In addition, As a result, In conclusion. There are more in my B2-level connectors.
• Structures that add to the grammar mark: a relative clause with which referring to the whole sentence, the passive (can be used, are rented), should be controlled and find it difficult to.
• Specific ideas (jobs, housing, the environment) instead of generalisations.
• 159 words, within the range.
• It’s written to simulate a B2 level, without reaching C1: above the B1 reference level, with realistic vocabulary for a student in their final year of Bachillerato.

If you get an email, there’s a worked example in my guide to the Madrid PAU English exam, and an opinion essay in the Andalusia one.

Vocabulary for the most common topics

The texts and composition topics tend to revolve around current issues: technology, the environment, tourism, health… If you have vocabulary ready, question 3 will be easier and your composition will be much richer:

For question 3, what helps most is understanding how words are formed: have a look at my posts on word formation and false friends, and for questions 4 and 5, the 50 most common phrasal verbs will make your answers sound much more natural.

How to split the 90 minutes

There’s no official split, but this is the one I recommend:

In the Canary Islands, checking is worth more than in other regions: in questions 4 and 5 every error costs you, and in the composition spelling has a limit of three mistakes. Ten minutes of checking can be worth half a mark.

How it differs from other regions

If you’ve seen exams from other regions (or my guides to Madrid and Andalusia), these are the differences that affect you most:

The reading and the writing are fairly similar everywhere, but questions 2, 4 and 5 are very specific to the Canary Islands. Practise them with exams from here.

Typical mistakes in the Canary Islands PAU English exam

• Writing T or F instead of the full word, or justifying with the line number.
• Copying too much in the true or false justification.
• Paraphrasing in question 2 (here you have to copy) or going over 10 words.
• Changing the form of the word in question 3 (singular for plural, a different tense…).
• Not writing a question when the gap in the conversation ends in ?.
• Writing fewer than 10 words for a situation, or answering all five.
• Going over 180 words in the composition: your conclusion may not be marked.
• Signing the email.

Frequently asked questions

Can you use a dictionary in the Canary Islands PAU English exam?

No. The exam is taken without a dictionary or any other material.

Is there a listening test in the Canary Islands PAU English exam?

No. It’s a written test: comprehension of a text, a conversation, situations and a composition.

When is the Canary Islands PAU in 2027?

According to the English subcommittee, the ordinary session will be held on 1, 2, 3 and 4 June 2027, and the extraordinary session on 29 and 30 June and 1 July.

Are the answers in the answer key the only valid ones?

No. The subcommittee has made it clear that the answer keys are open and can be expanded during marking with other equally valid answers. That said, in questions 1, 2 and 3, where you copy from the text, there’s very little room for variation.

What happens if I answer all five situations in question 5?

Only the first three are marked. Choose before you write.

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Good luck with the PAU and, until then, don’t forget to keep smiling! 🙂