telc B2 Listening Teil 2 (DTB B2): Traps and Strategy

How is Hören Teil 2 structured in the DTB B2?

The listening section of the telc B2 Beruf – officially the Deutsch-Test für den Beruf B2 (DTB B2) – takes 20 minutes and has four parts; it is followed by the short exam part „Hören und Schreiben“ with the phone note. In the official test format, Teil 2 is called „Argumentationen nachvollziehen“. So you hear people talking about a topic and giving reasons for their view, and you have to recognise which statement belongs to which conversation.

You mark your answers on the Antwortbogen S30 (the answer sheet). Wrong answers do not cost points, so guessing is always better than leaving a line empty. The details on the structure come from the official Übungstest 1 for the DTB B2 (telc gGmbH, 2020, published by the BAMF); the strategy and traps on this page are our own tips.

Passing does not depend on Teil 2 alone: you need at least 144 of 240 points overall and at least 36 of 60 points in at least three of the four skills; one weaker skill with 24–35 points is compensated. The guide telc B2 Beruf exam explains the whole procedure.

What does Teil 2 test – and how does it differ from Teil 1?

In Hören Teil 1, the focus is on work processes, problems and suggestions: who is supposed to do what, what is the problem, what is proposed? Teil 2 asks something different: which statement hits the core of a conversation? In Übungstest 1, statements a–f are short claims on one shared topic – opinions, demands and observations, roughly like „Wer flexibel arbeitet, braucht klare Regeln“ ("Anyone who works flexibly needs clear rules"). A statement fits best when it reflects what is said or argued overall, not just a side remark.

Our tip: you do not have to understand every detail. For each conversation, pay attention to three things – the topic (what exactly is it about?), the direction (for, against, "yes, but" or a plain observation?) and the reason (why?). With these three keywords you keep track even when people speak fast.

• Topic: the four conversations can share one overall topic but each stress a different aspect, for example costs, health or teamwork.
• Direction: two statements about the same aspect can differ in whether someone supports an idea, rejects it or only likes it under a condition.
• Reason: two people can want the same thing but for different reasons. Then the reason decides which statement fits.

Which strategy helps before, during and after listening?

Before listening: use the minute

1. Read all six statements and shorten each to a keyword plus a direction, for example „Kosten +“, „Gesundheit −“, „nur mit Regeln“ ("costs +", "health −", "only with rules").
2. Sort the statements by sub-topic, for example Kosten (costs), Gesundheit (health), Zusammenarbeit (teamwork). Where two statements end up under the same sub-topic, you will need the more precise distinguishing feature while listening.
3. Only if time is left: underline the word in each statement that limits or strengthens the claim: „immer“, „nur“, „alle“, „sollte“, „muss“ ("always", "only", "all", "should", "must").

While listening: look for the core

1. Listen to the first sentences of a conversation for the topic and see which statements are possible at all.
2. Hold off on your decision until the conversation is over. An objection at the beginning or a side remark in the middle is not yet the core; sometimes the view only becomes clear after a „aber“ ("but") or „unterm Strich“ ("all in all"), and sometimes it comes early.
3. Next to the number, note only a plus, a minus or a question mark and the letter you suspect – that way you stay quick enough for the next conversation.

After each conversation and after training

1. Mark your answer on the Antwortbogen S30 as the task instructions require. The Übungstest does not say how much time is left after the last conversation – so do not count on a final round of corrections.
2. Do not leave any task empty: wrong answers cost no points, and when you are unsure, the statement with the best matching topic and direction is worth choosing.
3. Our tip: if a statement seems to fit two conversations, give it to the one where it matches more precisely and look for the next best one for the other. After an exercise, it is also worth looking at the two leftover statements: why do they fit no conversation?

Our tip: practise the minute before listening separately. Set a timer to 60 seconds and write one short note for each of the six statements. This gets you used to the pace of the reading time.

What traps are there in Teil 2? Ten checking questions

The wrong statements in Teil 2 are often not completely wrong. Frequently the topic is right, but the direction, the scope or the person does not fit. So ask yourself the following questions for every conversation. LexDeutsch wrote all the examples itself.

You already know one more trap from Teil 1: a statement takes over a striking word from the recording but says something different. The guide to Hören Teil 1 explains it; it can appear in Teil 2 as well.

Our own example: one conversation, three possible statements

Topic on the sheet: Arbeitszeitmodelle (working-time models). Conversation (shortened) between Herr Brandt and his colleague Frau Okafor:

• Herr Brandt: „Haben Sie schon gehört? Die Geschäftsleitung überlegt, ob wir freitags ganz frei bekommen und dafür montags bis donnerstags länger bleiben.“ ("Have you heard? Management is considering whether we get Fridays completely off and stay longer Monday to Thursday instead.")
• Frau Okafor: „Ja, und am Anfang war ich sofort begeistert. Drei freie Tage am Stück – wer will das nicht?“ ("Yes, and at first I was thrilled right away. Three days off in a row – who would not want that?")
• Herr Brandt: „Und jetzt nicht mehr?“ ("And not any more?")
• Frau Okafor: „Doch, grundsätzlich schon. Aber ich pendle mit dem Zug aus Hannover. Wenn die langen Tage Pflicht werden, bekomme ich abends keinen Anschluss mehr. Ich bin dafür, wenn jeder selbst wählen kann, ob er mitmacht.“ ("Yes, in principle I still am. But I commute by train from Hannover. If the long days become compulsory, I will not get a connection in the evening any more. I am in favour if everyone can choose for themselves whether to take part.")

Statement a picks up the enthusiasm from the beginning, statement c the train problem from the middle. Both sound plausible, but only statement b sums up what Frau Okafor argues overall. In the exam there are of course six statements for four conversations; here you see three candidates for one conversation.

Which signal words show the position?

In Teil 2 it helps to watch for small words that steer an opinion. The following table collects typical signals from conversations at work.

How do you practise Teil 2 with the LexDeutsch trainer?

In the trainer Hören Teil 2, you hear four conversations just like in the exam and match statements a–f to tasks 28–31. LexDeutsch wrote and recorded the texts and audio itself, in the exam format. You can open the transcript at any time; after checking, the trainer shows for most tasks the place in the transcript where the solution is. You can practise the first three versions of each Teil without registration; further versions are available with VIP.

1. Exam mode: read the statements for exactly one minute before the start, play the recording without a pause and only once, and open the transcript only afterwards.
2. Review: for every mistake, read in the transcript which of the ten checking questions would have helped you, and note its number.
3. Repetition: after a few days, listen to the same version again without the transcript. This time, pay attention only to the signal words.

If you want to know how the other parts are built, read the guides to Hören Teil 3 (presentation or meeting) and Hören Teil 4 (phone messages). Hören B2 Beruf gives an overview of all four parts with sample tasks.