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Testing speaking
- 1. Testing speaking Workshop by Michel Fandel, Christiane Klein and Romy Schmit 18 October 2012
- 2. What are the challenges? • Time consuming • Costly in terms of man-power • Difficult to administer • Design • Documenting the performance • Assessing • Marking criteria
- 3. Why test speaking? • We are required to test speaking by the authorities. • We have to give marks for speaking and want to be able to justify our marks. • Speaking is an important skill: we want to encourage learners to practice speaking and to give them meaningful feedback on their performances.
- 4. Why test language learning? (1) ‘Tests are also important instruments of public policy. National examinations, for example, are used to ensure that learners at educational institutions across the country are held to the same standards.’ Douglas, D. [2010:2]
- 5. Why test language learning? (2) ‘Tests also allow other stakeholders, including programme administrators, parents, admissions officers and prospective employers, to be assured that learners are progressing according to some generally accepted standard or have achieved a requisite level of competence in their second language’. Douglas, D. [2010:1-2]
- 6. Why test language learning? (3) ‘Perhaps the most important reason is fairness. We like to make sure all students are treated the same, to give each of them equal opportunity to show us what they’ve learned and what they can do with the language they’ve learned. Tests allow us to present all our students with the same instructions and the same input under the same conditions.’ Douglas, D. [2010:1]
- 7. What do we test? What is ‘speaking’?
- 8. What do we test? What is ‘speaking’?
- 9. What do we test? What is ‘speaking’?
- 10. What do we test? What is ‘speaking’?
- 11. What do we test? What is ‘speaking’? Interactive Productive Informal Informal Spontaneous Rehearsed Interactive Productive Formal Formal Spontaneous Rehearsed Rehearsed
- 12. What do we test? What is ‘speaking’? A1 C2 Formulaic Interactive Productive Entertaining Informal Informal Spontaneous Rehearsed Interactive Productive Informal Formal Spontaneous Professional Rehearsed Professional Rehearsed Academic C2 C2
- 13. What is the place and the use of a scale like the CEFR? • Theoretical model = simplification of reality • Identifies levels of performance • Presents these levels in a logical order • No representation of individual language learners actual progress • Cf.: language scales.pdf
- 14. How do we test? Higly standardized tests How do we assess? e.g. Certifying tests Warm up Main tasks “Long” monologue (description, presentation) Vocabulary,& structure Organisation Pronunciation Interview (can be prepared & rehearsed) Short turns, basic simple language and issues First impression: Maybe pronunciation More complex, in-depth exchange: Interactive speaking
- 15. How do we test? Regular classroom observations How do we assess? Electronic portfolio Issues • Fairness • Number of observations or samples • Documentation and administration • Getting the whole picture • Giving feedback and justifying mark
- 16. Marking grids Cf.: LUXEMBOURG MARKING DESCRIPTORS FOR SPEAKING ACROSS THE CEFR LEVELS.pdf
- 17. Bibliography and Sources (1) • Csépes, I. & Együd, G. (2003) Into Europe – The Speaking Handbook. British Council – Teleki László Foundation The Into Europe series can be downloaded from: http://www.lancs.ac.uk/fass/projects/examreform/ • Douglas, D. (2010) Understanding Language Testing. Hodder Education • Luoma, S. (2004) Assessing Speaking. CUP
- 18. Bibliography and Sources (2) • http://www.cambridgeesol.org/index.html http://research.cambridgeesol.org/fitness- purpose/examples-speaking-tests • http://www.cityandguildsenglish.com/ http://www.cityandguildsenglish.com/SESOL http://www.cityandguildsenglish.com/Sample_spo ken_examination_videos • http://www.ielts.org/ http://www.ielts.org/test_takers_information/test_ sample/speaking_sample.aspx • http://www.trinitycollege.co.uk/site/?id=369 http://www.trinitycollege.co.uk/site/?id=2071 http://www.trinitycollege.co.uk/site/?id=1861
Editor's Notes
- CHALLENGES – WE ARE AWARE OF THEM; WE HAVE NO PERFECT SOLUTIONS; WE PROPOSE IDEAS; INVITE YOU TO SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE AND EXPERTISE WITH UStime consuming: 25 students x 7 minutes = 175 minutes (+/- 4 lessons)costly in terms of man-powerdifficult to administer whilst being in charge of a whole classinterlocutingassessingdesign => what are we testing? how is supposed to be tested?documenting the performance: justification for the markassessing real timelatermarking criteria => how objective are they?
- LAWThese marks are of interest to various stakeholders apart from the test takers: parents, prospective employers …How frequently do you use your foreign languages and which skills do you use the most?
- LAWTestssetstandardse.g. Final examse.g. Épreuvescommunes
- TESTS SET STANDARDS => FAIRNESSe.g. Proficiency tests => topredictwhatlearnerswillbeableto do withthelanguage in communicativesituationsoutsidetheclassroome.g. Achievement tests => todetermineiflearnersaremakingadequateprogress (syllabusbased tests)
- TESTS SET STANDARDS => FAIRNESSReliabilitySecond opinion (evaluation vs. assessment)
- InteractiveInformalSpontaneous
- ProductiveInformalPrepared
- InteractiveFormalSpontaneous / prepared
- ProductiveFormalPrepared
- Number of observations or samplesDocumentation and administrationrecordingscanweaskstudents to do thishow authenticisspeaking to berecordedGetting the wholepicture => several observations (5-6)Giving feedback and justifying mark => markinggrids