Session 4

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Some facts and questions about Speaking Performance◦ Most of the time an interlocutor (another speaker) is

involved– that is, aural intake is involved◦ Therefore, a speaker’s listening skill affects her

productive speaking performance◦ Therefore, how can we be sure a test is a valid test of

speaking – and not really more about listening?◦ Authentic speech is mostly open-ended and creative –

so how do we design test tasks for speaking that guide a test-taker to produce specific target forms (e.g. tag questions; past tense; etc.)

◦ And if we allow for S freedom of choice, how do we evaluate the product?

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1. Imitative – ability to parrot back a word or phrase

2. Intensive – production of short stretches of oral language (for narrow band of grammatical, phrasal, lexical, phonological relationships)

3. Responsive – includes interaction and test comprehension, but at limited level

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4. Interactive – longer, more complex, multiple exchanges and/or multiple participants

a. Transactional (exchanging information)b. Interpersonal (maintaining social

relationships)

5. Extensive (monologue) – speeches, oral presentations, story-telling, etc.

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Differences among phonemes/allophonic variants

Chunks of language of different lengths Stress patterns, words in stressed and

unstressed positions; rhythmic structure, intonation contours

Reduced forms of words and phrases Adequate number of lexical units for

pragmatic purposes Fluent speech at different rates of delivery

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Self-monitored oral production, using various strategic devices (pauses, fillers, etc.) to enhance clarity of message

Grammatical word classes, systems, word order, patterns, rules, elliptical forms

Speech in natural constituents: in appropriate phrases, pause groups, breath groups, sentence constituents

Particular meaning in different grammatical forms

Cohesive devices in spoken discourse

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Appropriately accomplish communicative functions according to situations, participants and goals

Use appropriate styles, registers, pragmatic conventions, conversation rules, etc.

Convey links and connections between events, feelings, information, etc.

Convey facial features, body language, and other nonverbal cues along with language

Use a battery of strategies (e.g. rephrasing, checking for understanding, etc.)

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Swing of the pendulum:

The rejection of the Audiolingual Method and overemphasis on Fluency led to a decline in accuracy, especially in phonology. Many now agree that Repetition Tasks do have their place in the ELT plan.

Example:Ss hear: Repeat after me:

beat (pause) bit (pause)

OR I bought a boat yesterday. (pause)

The glow of the candle is growing.

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2Acceptable pronunciation

1comprehensible, partially correct pronunciation

0 silence, seriously incorrect pronunciation

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In pairs, choose one phonological point that you think is especially difficult for Vietnamese learners.

You can ask for words, phrases and/or sentences

Include at least 3 repetition items/sets Practice doing the test - one of you is the

Teacher, one is the Student Perform the test for the class.

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Ss need to produce short stretches of discourse (no more than a sentence)

Many tasks are cued to lead Tts to narrow band of possibilities

These are variously described as: Limited response tasks Mechanical tasks Controlled response tasks

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EXAMPLE: Ss hear:

◦ Tell me he went home.◦ Tell me that you like rock music.◦ Tell me that you aren’t interested in music.◦ Tell him to come to my office at noon.◦ Remind him what time it is.

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Ss read a diagnostic passage of about 150 words

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S reads dialogue in which one speaker’s lines have been omitted

S is given time to read through to get gist and think of appropriate lines to fill in

Then Test Administrator reads written lines and S responds

Example:In a department store:Salesperson: May I help you?Customer: _______________________Salesperson: Okay, what size do you wear?Customer: ______________________Etc.

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In pairs, think of a language function or discourse situation you would like your Ss to be tested on

Design a short Dialogue Completion Task (5 to 7 exchanges)

Practice it together to check on validity (is it producing the target language performance you want?)

Write out 2 copies of the “test” Administer it to two people in class

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Pronunciation

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Grammar

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In pairs, look at the set of pictures given to you to build a test around.

Think of target language/performance you could test with it.

Design a short test (directions, prompts, etc.)

Practice it on each other to check validity As a pair, give your test to another pair

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Involving brief interaction with an interlocutor, offering greater opportunity for creativity than interactive tasks

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From 1-2 questions to a whole battery of questions

From simple (What is this called in English?) to complex (What are the steps governments should take, if any, to stem the rate of deforestation in tropical countries?)

First question is the “display question” – designed to elicit a pre-determined correct response

Other questions are “referential questions” – in which Ss are given opportunity to produce more meaningful language

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What do you think of the weather today? What do you like about the English language? Why did you choose your academic major? What kind of strategies have you used to help

you learn English? Have you ever been to the United States

before?◦ What other countries have you visited?

Why did you go there? What did you like best about it? If you could go back, what would you like to do or see?

What country would you like to visit next, and why?

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Do you have any questions for me? Ask me about my family or job or interests. If you could interview the prime minister or

president or prime minister of your country, what would you ask that person?

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Giving Instructions and Directions◦ How do you make a popular native dish from your

country?◦ How do you access email on a PC?◦ How do I get from ____ to ____?

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Paraphrasing◦ T reads a short story … S must paraphrase

◦ A more authentic task in this category is if the text is presented as phone message … which the S must “pass on”

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Relatively long stretches of interactive discourse

Typically with an interpersonal focus

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Every effective interview should have these stages:1. Warm-up – to set topic and tone – get the student

ready and relaxed (not scored)2. Level-check – to confirm level of S through pre-

planned questions eliciting grammar, discourse structure, vocabulary at expected level (primary scoring)

3. Probe – designed to challenge Ss to reach heights of their ability (may or may not be scored)

4. Wind-down – encourages S to relax, tells S when/how to get scores, etc. (not scored)

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Clearly specifying administrative procedures of the assessment (practicality)

Focusing the questions and probes on the purpose of the assessment (validity)

Appropriately eliciting an optimal amount and quality of oral production from the test taker (biased for best performance)

Creating a consistent, workable scoring system (reliability)

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Role Play – can be used to elicit certain language that is hard to elicit otherwise◦ For example:

Pretend that you’re a tourist asking me for directions.

You’re buying a necklace from me in a flea market, and you want to get a lower price”

Difficulties: Since results are relatively unpredictable, scoring can be difficult.

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Discussions and Conversations◦ Can be especially useful as ways to elicit and

observe abilities such as: Topic nomination, maintenance, termination Attention getting, interrupting, floor holding, control Clarifying, questioning, paraphrasing Comprehension signals (nodding, “uh-huh”, “hmm”) Negotiating meaning Intonation patterns for pragmatic effect Kinesics, eye contact, proxemics, body language Politeness, formality, sociolinguistic factors

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Assessment games◦ 1. Tinkertoy game (behind screen1, blocks in a

set structure; behind screen2, loose blocks; S1 looks behind screen1 and tells S2 how to construct structure using blocks behind screen2 (alternative: with “messenger” who delivers S1’s instructions to S2)

◦ 2. Crossword puzzles◦ 3. Information gap grids◦ 4. City maps with pre-determined routes needing

directions

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Developed in the 1950s for the USA government to test oral communication skills with direct testing through an interview

Very influential in evolution of oral testing models

Format still used to test proficiency in many languages

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Oral Presentations Picture Cued Story-Telling Retelling a Story, News Event Translation (of Extended Prose)

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Evaluation of oral presentation

Assign a number to each box according to your assessment of the various aspects of the speaker’s presentation.

3 Excellent2 Good1 Fair0 Poor

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Content:□ The purpose or

objective of the presentation was accomplished.

□□□□□□□

Delivery:□ The speaker used

gestures and body language well.

□□□□□□□□

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