This document outlines the design of a speaking test to assess English language skills for Chilean high school students. It includes 3 tasks: 1) answering personal questions about a famous Chilean athlete, 2) describing the characteristics of a sport based on a picture, and 3) discussing options related to physical activity and reaching an agreement with a partner. The document provides details on test specifications, task descriptions, rubrics for scoring each task based on fluency, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar and more. Students will be evaluated on their ability to communicate effectively through speaking.

1. Facultad de Educación
Pedagogía Media en Inglés
Speaking Test
Bryan Abos-Padilla V.
Camila Muñoz F.
June 12th
, 2015

2. 1
Index
I. Introduction
II. Test Specifications
III. Task Descriptions
1) Task I
2) Task II
3) Task III
IV. Rubrics
1) Rubric Task I
2) Rubric Task II
3) Rubric Task III
V. Piloting
1) Fixed instructions
2) Fixed rubric
VI. Appendixes
1) Appendix I
2) Appendix II
3) Appendix III
2
3
5
5
7
8
9
9
10
11
12
13
13
14
14
15
16

3. 2
I. Introduction
The presentassignmentdealswith the design of a test which assesses the productive skill of
speaking of a sample group of students who attend to an Industrial High School from Biobio
Region. The examination aims to evaluate the test takers oral competence trough the
performance of three different tasks related to a common topic that is Sports, Healthy life and
Physical activity. The assignment includes the main specifications of a test which follows Luoma
and Fulcher’s structures, besides of the rubric to the scoring process, in a way of supporting the
correct design of a speaking test.

4. 3
II. Test Specifications
Test Purpose The purpose of thistest isto assessthe speakingability of a particular sample
group of students through different tasks. The student group is divided in
pairs,where the test takers have to perform the tasks answering to personal
questions, describing pictures and making decisions. All the previously
mentioned activities are related to a common topic.
Descriptionof the
examinees
The examinees are students from the 9th
grade sample class of an Industrial
High School from Bio-Bio Region. The course is composed mainly by males,
due to the technical oriented education of the institution, and the level of
English of the learners is generally low, showing particular weakness in the
productive rather than receptive skills.
Test Level The examinationisaface-to-face paired interaction test, designed for Upper
Basic Englishasa ForeignLanguage students,takingintoaccountthe contents
and their proficiency level in the test design.
Definitionof
construct
The test takers have to use the language ability acquired in their English
lessons, using a correct structure and syntax in an organized way when
speakingandreferringtoa particulartopic.Studentshave to be able to speak
cohesively, using an appropriate register in order to accomplish the main
purpose of this test.
Definitionof
suitable language
course book or
textbook
The sample group of students to which is oriented this test attend to an
Industrial High School, whose lessons and contents are coherent with the
national curriculum of the Chilean Ministry of Education (MINEDUC) and do
not supportthe Englishsubjectwithalanguage course ortextbook,butrather
in worksheet prepared by the teacher and class activities.
Numberof
sections
The test consistsof three tasks.Inthe first task, the main aim is that students
have to answer personal questions given by the teacher individually. In the
secondtask,studentshave todescribe aspecificsportbasedona picture, and
in the third task, students have to discuss and reach an agreement on two
different options related to the topic of healthy life and physical activity.
Time for each
section
The total time for the test is ten minutes, divided into three different tasks.
Test takers have to conduct the test in pairs, having two minutes each to
performthe firsttask,one minute andthirtyseconds each for the second and
both have a total of three for the final task.
Weightingforeach
section
The test counts witha total of 96 points,consideringthe three speakingtasks.
The ideal score that testtakersshouldobtainin each task is thirty two points,
according to the specifications and elements that will be assess in the
students’ final performance.
Target Language
situation
There isa commontopicto each taskthat is relatedtoSports,Physical activity
and Healthylife.The targetlanguage connectswiththe ability to speak about
these topics, in different context and situations, using the vocabulary and
expressions acquired in previous lessons, formulating complete responses,
describing in detail a specific topic and giving opinion as well as expression
personal ideas.

5. 4
Text types The test countswithdifferenttexttypesaspicturesrelatedtodifferent sports
and physical activities, and it also includes role play, question and answer,
description and discussion or conversation.
Language ability This test will assess the oral competence of the students, focusing on the
speaking skill, through their performance in the three tasks.
Language
elementstobe
tested
The main elements that will be evaluated by conducting this test are related
to the development of speaking skills such as Fluency, Pronunciation and
Grammar, focusing primarily on the ability of communicating the message
effectively and vocabulary related to the topic, which have higher scores in
relation to the rest of the language elements.
Test Tasks Before starting the examination, there is a warm up activity where the
teacheraskssome questionstothe testtakersinorder to reduce theiranxiety
and to provide aconfidentenvironment to conduct the test. The first section
consists of a role play where students have to randomly choose a famous
Chilean athlete and answer some personal questions about it. The second
sectionisaboutthe descriptionof aparticularsport basedona picture,where
testtakershave to talk aboutthe maincharacteristics of that sport. Finally, in
the third section, both test takers have to discuss the pros and cons of two
options shown on a set of pictures and come to a final agreement.
Test Methods In the first task, test takers speak individually and in turns, answering to the
questions given by the teacher. In the second task, test takers speak for a
fixedperiodof time describing a particular topic and finally, in the third task,
test takers speak together, discussing a common theme and reaching a final
agreement is compulsory.
Rubrics The assessingtool usedtoevaluate the testtakersproductive skill of speaking
isan analyticrubric,since thistype of device bestdescribesthe ideal outcome
that test takers have to show when conducting the oral examination,
providing detailed information of their performance. Moreover, analytic
rubricsfacilitate the assessorduty,because its structure is easy to follow and
to apply, if they are well known at the moment of scoring the test.

6. 5
III. Tasks Description
1) Task I: Personal Information
o Context:Televisionshowinterview
o Topic: Sports– Athletes
o Task Instruction:You will be randomlyassignedwithafamousathlete topersonify (refer
to appendix I).Imaginethatyouare the interviewee atatelevisionshow,where I(the
teacher) will be the hostandI will askyousome questionsregardingyourpersonal
informationandthe sportyoupractice.If youdo notknow any piece of informationabout
the athlete youwere given,youare allowedtomake upyour answers.
o AthletesOptions:
Gymnastics – Tomas Gonzales(Chilean)
Tennis– FernandoGonzales(Chilean)
Tennis– NicolasMassu(Chilean)
Soccer – Mark Gonzales(Chilean)
Soccer – ClaudioBravo(Chilean)
Boxing– CarolinaCrespita Rodriguez(Chilean)
Swimming–Kristel Köbrich(Chilean)
o Questions: There are four general and equal question for both test takers, and two
different for each one.
1. What is yourname?
2. What is yourprofession?
3. What is yoursport about?
4. How longhave you beenpracticingthissport?
Student A: Why did you choose to practice this sport? / What other sport would you
practice? Why?
StudentB: What isyour biggerachievementin your career? / What aspect do you like the
most from your sport?

7. 6
o Task Specifications
Task Orientation The task orientation is guided. The test takers have to listen to
the questions given by the teacher and answer creatively,
making up their answers if necessary.
Interactional Relationship The task is one wayinteractional.Itisanindividual performance
and there is an evident communication between the teacher
(the host of the television show) and the test taker (the
interviewee).
Goal Orientation The goal orientationisconvergent. The test taker has to be able
to answerthe questionsgivenbythe teacherregardingthe topic
and without losing their role, in this case a famous Chilean
athlete.
InterlocutorStatus and
Familiarity
In the case of this task, even though there is an examination
where the testtakersare infrontof the teacher and the context
is an imaginary TV show interview, the interlocutor status is
high, whether the familiarity is completely low.

8. 7
2) Task II: Description
o Context: Describe a sport based on a picture
o Topic: Sports characteristics
o Task Instruction: Describe the main characteristics of the sport that appear in the
picture. Refer to the number of players, the place where it is played, general rules and
equipment used to practice the sport.
o Sport Options: There are different sports for each test taker (refer to appendix II).
Basketball
Soccer
Tennis
Baseball
Hockey
Volleyball
o Task Specifications
Task Orientation The task orientation is open, because the test takers are
providedwithaspecifictopictotalkabout, communicatingtheir
knowledge and ideas, using the known vocabulary and
expressions of the topic. The final outcome depends directly
upon the speaker.
Interactional Relationship Non-interactional. The test takers in turns have to describe the
characteristics of a particular sport in a limited period of time.
There isno interaction among the students or with the teacher,
being a kind of monologue in this task.
Goal Orientation The orientation of the goal is communicative or convergent,
since the test takers have to speak referring to a definite topic,
which in this case is a particular sport.
InterlocutorStatus and
Familiarity
There is no interlocutor in this task, due to the test takers have
to speak in turns, without interacting either with the other
students or with the teacher. The familiarity level is low.

9. 8
3) Task III: Agreement
o Topic: Physical activity
o Task Instruction: In pairs, you have to reach an agreement on two different options
shownon the pictures (refer to appendix III), discussing the pros and cons of each one.
Option A: The nutritionist suggests you to do physical activity to improve your health
condition. Discuss: Would you prefer to exercise in the gym or to play a sport? Why?
Option B: The physical education teacher offers you to join a school team to increase
your creditsinthe subject.Discuss:Wouldyoupreferto join a team that practice indoor
or outdoor? Why?
Option C: Youwina radiocontestwhere twoticketswere offeredtonextyear’sOlympic
Games. Discuss: If you have to choose, would you prefer to assist to the summer or
winter Olympic Games? Why?
o Task Specifications:
Task Orientation The orientation in this task is guided when the test takers have to listen
carefully to the instructions given by the teacher. However, the
orientation becomes open when test takers discuss with their partner
the pros and cons on two different options to finally reach an
agreement on the pictures given.
Interactional Relationship This task is two ways interactional. Both test takers have to interact by
discussingand sharingtheir ideas and opinions on the topic, in order to
get to an agreement and chose only one option.
Goal Orientation The orientation is convergent, since the test takers have to speak to
each other, discusstheir opinions and interact among them. The task is
a pair performance by an agreement.
Interlocutor Status and
Familiarity
There is high status when the teacher set the task to the test takers.
However, there is a medium interlocutor status when the students
have to interact with each other, expressing their opinions on the
topic, since they know each other before taking the test. The familiarity
level is high in relation to the student who is interacting with, and low
in relation to the teacher.

10. 9
IV. Rubrics
1) Task 1
Rating Unratable Minimal performance Basic performance Average performance Appropriate performance
0 1 2 3 4
Task Completion No attempt tocomplete
the task
Student was not able to
answer personal
informationquestions about
the character or the sport
he/she practice
Student put a minimal effort
in order to complete the task,
answers are frequently
inappropriate
Student’s completion of
the taskis incomplete;
answers about the
character are mostly
appropriate but
undeveloped
Student completes the task;
answers about the character
are appropriate and
adequatelydeveloped.
Communication of
Message
(x 2)
No attempt toconvey
message
Responses barely
comprehensible and
frequently inappropriate
Responses mostly
comprehensible, requiring
some interpretation on the
part of the listener
Responses
comprehensible, requiring
minimal interpretationon
the part of the listener
Responses readily
comprehensible, requiring
no interpretation on the part
of the listener
Fluency No attempt tospeak in
the target language
Speech halting anduneven
with long pauses or
incomplete thoughts
Speech choppy and/or slow
with frequent pauses; little
attempt to keep conversation
or presentation flowing
Some hesitationbut
manages tocontinue and
complete thoughts
Speech continuous with few
pauses or stumbling
Pronunciation No attempt tospeak in
the target language
Major pronunciation errors,
mayprevent
comprehension
Frequent pronunciation
errors, may hinder
comprehension
Occasional pronunciation
errors which do not
impede comprehension
Very little or no
pronunciation errors.
Vocabulary
(x 2)
No attempt touse the
target language
Inadequate and inaccurate
use of vocabulary. Lack of
competence about the
sport-relatedvocabulary
Somewhat inadequate and
inaccurate use of vocabulary
and too basic for this level.
Little competence about the
sport-relatedvocabulary
Adequate andaccurate use
of vocabulary for this level.
Adequate knowledge
about the sport-related
vocabulary
Rich use of vocabulary with
frequent attempts at
elaboration. Clear
competence about the
sport-relatedvocabulary
Grammar No attempt tospeak in
the target language
Almost no correct
grammatical structures,
impeding comprehension
Frequent grammatical errors Some minor grammatical
errors that doesn’t
interfere with
comprehension
No or almost nogrammatical
errors
Adapted from: Loveland High School World Languages and Cultures
lhswlc.wikispaces.com/file/view/Level+1+Speaking+Rubric

11. 10
2) Task 2
Rating Unratable Minimal performance Basic performance Average performance Appropriate performance
0 1 2 3 4
Task Completion No attempt tocomplete
the task
Student was not able to
provide characteristics of
the sport
Student put a minimal effort
in order to complete the
task, answers are frequently
inappropriate
Student’s completion of the
taskis partial; characteristics
of the sport provided are
mostlyappropriate but
undeveloped
Student completes the task;
characteristics of the sport
provided are appropriate
and adequatelydeveloped.
Communication of
Message
(x 2)
No attempt toconvey
message
Responses barely
comprehensible and
frequently inappropriate
Responses mostly
comprehensible, requiring
some interpretation on the
part of the listener
Responses comprehensible,
requiring minimal
interpretation on the part of
the listener
Responses readily
comprehensible, requiring
no interpretation on the part
of the listener
Fluency No attempt tospeak in
the target language
Speech halting anduneven
with long pauses or
incomplete thoughts
Speech choppy and/or slow
with frequent pauses; little
attempt to keep
conversation or
presentation flowing
Some hesitationbut
manages tocontinue and
complete thoughts
Speech continuous with very
few pauses or stumbling
Pronunciation No attempt tospeak in
the target language
Major pronunciation errors,
mayprevent
comprehension
Frequent pronunciation
errors, may hinder
comprehension
Occasional pronunciation
errors which do not impede
comprehension
Very little or no
pronunciation errors.
Vocabulary
(x 2)
No attempt touse the
target language
Inadequate and inaccurate
use of vocabulary. Lack of
competence about the
sport-relatedvocabulary
Somewhat inadequate and
inaccurate use of vocabulary
and too basic for this level.
Little competence about the
sport-relatedvocabulary
Adequate andaccurate use
of vocabulary for this level.
Adequate knowledge about
the sport-relatedvocabulary
Rich use of vocabulary with
frequent attempts at
elaboration. Clear
competence about the
sport-relatedvocabulary
Grammar No attempt tospeak in
the target language
Almost no correct
grammatical structures,
impeding comprehension
Frequent grammatical
errors, requiring some
interpretation on the part of
the listener
Some minor grammatical
errors that doesn’t interfere
with comprehension
No or almost nogrammatical
errors. No comprehension
interference
Adapted from: Loveland High School World Languages and Cultures
lhswlc.wikispaces.com/file/view/Level+1+Speaking+Rubric

12. 11
3) Task 3
Rating Unratable Minimal performance Basic performance Average performance Appropriate performance
0 1 2 3 4
Task Completion No attempt tocomplete
the task
Rudely interrupts his
interlocutor. Student does
not wait for his/her turn to
speak. No agreement
reached.
Sometimes interrupts his
interlocutor. Not oftenwait
for his/her turn to speak.
Does not provide his
interlocutor with chances to
reply. No agreement
reached
Foment the dialogue with his
interlocutor. Rarely
interrupts him/her, but when
it happens, it does not feel
like a smoothtransition.
Agreement reached
Foment the dialogue with
his interlocutor. Rarely
interrupts him/her, but
when it happens, it feels like
a smooth and polite
transition. Agreement
reached
Communication of
Message
(x 2)
No attempt toconvey
message
Interaction barely
comprehensible and
frequently inappropriate
Interaction mostly
comprehensible, requiring
some interpretation on the
part of the listener
Interaction comprehensible,
minimal misinterpretation
observed on the part of the
listener
Interaction readily
comprehensible, requiring
no apparent
misinterpretation on the
part of the listener
Fluency No attempt tospeak in
the target language
Speech halting anduneven
with long pauses or
incomplete thoughts
Speech choppy and/or slow
with frequent pauses; little
attempt to keep
conversation flowing
Some hesitationbut
manages tocontinue and
complete thoughts
Speech continuous with very
few pauses or stumbling
Pronunciation No attempt tospeak in
the target language
Major pronunciation errors,
mayprevent
comprehension
Frequent pronunciation
errors, may hinder
comprehension
Occasional pronunciation
errors which do not impede
comprehension
Very little or no
pronunciation errors.
Vocabulary
(x 2)
No attempt touse the
target language
Inadequate and inaccurate
use of vocabulary
Somewhat inadequate and
inaccurate use of
vocabulary and too basic for
this level
Adequate andaccurate use
of vocabulary for this level.
Rich use of vocabulary with
frequent attempts at
elaboration.
Grammar No attempt tospeak in
the target language
Almost no correct
grammatical structures,
impeding comprehension
Frequent grammatical
errors, requiring some
interpretation on the part of
the listener
Some minor grammatical
errors that doesn’t interfere
with comprehension
No or almost nogrammatical
errors. No comprehension
interference
Adapted from: Loveland High School World Languages and Cultures
lhswlc.wikispaces.com/file/view/Level+1+Speaking+Rubric

13. 12
V. Piloting
The speaking test was applied to two students from the sample 9th
grade from an
Industrial High School from Biobío Region. Both during and after the appliance of the test
presented some problems regarding the designing and the content of its instructions. These
problems were founded particularly on task 1 and 3 and also in the evaluation device that is an
analytic rubric.
The main issue regardingthe firsttask wasthat the sample test takers did not knew some
of the athletesfeatured in the task. One of the students got “Carolina Crespita Rodriguez” as the
athlete she hadto portray,and did not knew who she was. Despites we give her the opportunity
to make up the background story for the character, she was not really sure of whether her
answers made any sense, which made her nervous and affect her final performance. Therefore,
we decided to let them know in advance the options they were going to be given, in order to
eliminate two that they might not be sure about. That way, the test takers’ probabilities of
choosing an unknown athlete will be diminished.
On the other hand, the third task presented an issue in terms of agreement.
Communicationwasverywelldeveloped,butthe studentsdidnotreachedagreement, since they
had very different opinions on the topic that they were given. In spite of their remarkable
performance onthe speakingtask,accordingtothe rubric test takers should have been punished
withlowscore on the task completionpart. Inorderto achieve the main aim of this evaluation, it
is important to note that not reaching an agreement is not result of any linguistic problem, but
rather a matterof opinionthatdoesnotconcern speakingability. Therefore, both the instruction
and the rubric need tobe modified,inordertoallow discrepanciestobe accepted as a possibility.
As statedbefore,inordertofix the issuesregardingthe taskperformance segment of the
rubric, it was deleted the statements that refer to reaching an agreement, focusing only on turn
takingand conversational skills. In contrast, and since the problem with task 1 was related to the
instructionsandnotwiththe rubric,it wasleftas itwas initiallyplanned, along with the rubric for
task 2.

14. 13
1) Fixed instructions
Task 1:
SevendifferentChilean athletes will be shown to you, from which you have to eliminate
twothat you mighthave trouble withwhenexplaining the sport or his/her personal information.
You will be randomly assigned with one of the remaining options. Imagine that you are the
interviewee at a television show, where I (the teacher) will be the host and I will ask you some
questionsregardingyourpersonalinformationandthe sport you practice. If you do not know any
piece of informationaboutthe athleteyouwere given,youare allowedto make up your answers.
Task 3:
In pairs,youhave to reach an agreement on two different options shown on the pictures
(refer to appendix III), discussing the pros and cons of each one. It is not compulsory to reach an
agreement,soyoucan agree to disagree.The taskaimisto see yourconversational skills and turn
taking abilities, therefore you can have different opinions.
2) Fixed rubric
Task 3:
Rating Unratable Minimal
performance
Basic
performance
Average
performance
Appropriate
performance
0 1 2 3 4
Task
Completion
No attempt to
complete the
task
Rudely interrupts
his interlocutor.
Student does not
wait for his/her
turn to speak.
Sometimes
interrupts his
interlocutor. Not
often wait for
his/her turn to
speak. Does not
provide his
interlocutor with
chances to reply.
Foment the
dialogue with his
interlocutor.
Rarely interrupts
him/her, but when
it happens, it does
not feel like a
smooth transition.
Foment the
dialogue with his
interlocutor.
Rarely interrupts
him/her, but when
it happens, it feels
like a smoothand
polite transition.
Adapted from: Loveland High School World Languages and Cultures
lhswlc.wikispaces.com/file/view/Level+1+Speaking+Rubric

15. 14
VI. Appendixes
1) AppendixI
Samplesof the famousChileanathletesandthe sportstheyplay that will be used to perform task
one, related to personal questions.
Tomas Gonzalez -Gymnastics Fernando Gonzalez -Tennis
Mark Gonzalez -SoccerCrespita Rodriguez -Boxing

16. 15
2) AppendixII
Samples of the pictures of different sports that will be used to perform task two.

17. 16
3) AppendixIII
Samplesof picturesthatshowimaginarysituationsthatwill be usedintaskthree aboutreaching
an agreement.
o Option A
o Option B
o Option C