Techniques to assess oral abilities.

1. Testing Oral Ability
García Hernández,
Elisabet
Revuelta Muela,
Alicia

2. Introduction
▶ First aim ▶ Interact successfully ▶ Comprehension
▶ Production
▶ Problems ▶ Tasks ▶ Must form a representative sample
▶ Elicit a valid sample of oral ability
▶ Ensure valid and reliable scoring

3. Representative tasks. Specify all possible content
▶ Cambridge CCSE Test of Oral Interaction:
▶ Operations (Expressing, describing, eliciting, narration, reporting)
▶ Types of text
▶ Addressees
▶ Topics
▶ Dialect,accent and style
Bygate
(1987)
▶ Bygate (1987):
▶ Informational skills
▶ Interactional skills
▶ Skills in managing interactions
▶ Types of text
▶ Other speakers (addressees)
▶ Topics
▶ Dialect
▶ Accent RP,SA
▶ Style
▶ Vocabulary Range
▶ Rate of Speech
▶ Second group → Split skills:
▶ Informational
▶ Interactional
▶ Management
▶ Help → create tasks → Elicit a
representative sample
Categorisation

4. Include a representative sample of the specified content when
setting tasks
▶ First section → Candidate Teacher
▶ Second section → Candidate
Teacher
Candidate

5. ▶ Aim of the first task → elicit describing, explaining and justifying
▶ Aim of the second task → elicit exchanging opinions and justifying
▶ Oral test → interviewee is influenced by interlocutor
▶ Difficult to answer the task
▶ Candidate → trained → answer properly
▶ Interviewer → assess → according to the specifications

6. Elicit a valid sample of oral ability
▶ 3 formats
▶ Interview
▶ Interaction with fellow candidates
▶ Responses to audio or video recorded

7. Format 1. Interview
Questions
and
requests for
information
▶ Problem → many functions (asking for information) →not represented
▶ Techniques:
Reading aloud
Prepared
monologue
Interpreting
Role play
Pictures
Can you explain to me…?
Can you tell me…?
Production
Comprehension
Make
presentations

8. Format 2. Interaction with fellow candidates
Appropriate language exchanges between equals
▶ Advantages
Better performance
▶ Problem The performance of one candidate can be affected
▶ Advise: To not have more than two candidates interacting
▶ Techniques:
DISCUSSION ROLE
PLAY

9. Format 3. Responses to audio- or video-
recordings
▶ Computer generated or audio-/video-recorded stimuli
▶ Semi-direct format
▶ Aim: To promote RELIABILITY
▶ Advantages: Economical
▶ Disadvantage: INFLEXIBILITY
▶ Good resource: ARELS Examination in Spoken English and
Comprehension

10. Format 3. ARELS & TSE
ARELS TSE (Test of Spoken English)
Described situations Interview elicitation techniques
“You are walking through town one day and you
meet two friends who you were sure had gone to
live in the USA. What do you say?”
Candidates see a simple town plan and are
asked for (a) recommendation for a visit to
one of the buildings, with reasons; (b)
directions to the movie theatre; (c) a
summary of a favourite movie and their
reasons for liking it.
Remarks in isolation to respond to
“There’s a good film on TV tonight”
Simulated conversation
Ann: Hello. What can I do for you?
Ann: Hold on a moment. What’s the name of the
play?
Ann: Never heard of it. When’s it on exactly?
Ann: Well which night do you want to go, and
how much would you like to pay?
Ann: OK. That’s all right. It’ll make a nice
evening out. ‘Bye.

11. PLAN AND STRUCTURE THE TESTING
CAREFULLY
1) Timing → Make the oral test as long as is
feasible.
2) Plan the test carefully.
3) Give the student as many
‘fresh starts’ as possible:
a) More than one format
b) More than one tester
c) Many separate ‘items’
as possible
1) Use a second tester for
interviews.
1) Appropriate tasks and topics.

12. 1) a
2) s
3) s
4) a
5) s
6) Environment → Quiet room with good acoustics.
7) Put candidates at their ease so that they can
show what they are capable of.
8) Collect enough relevant information.
9) Do not talk too much.
10)Select interviewers carefully and train them.
PLAN AND STRUCTURE THE TESTING
CAREFULLY

13. Stage 1 Background
and Overview
▶ Handbook
(study by trainees)
▶ Video example
(interview structure)
Stage 2 Assigning
candidates to levels
▶ Different videos of
candidates (decide levels
→Analytic scale / level
descriptors)
Stage 4 AssessmentStage 3 Conducting
interviews
▶ Pairs of trainees
▶ Conduct 6 interviews (being watched)
▶ Discuss level assigned
▶ Conduct interviews (without being
watched)
▶ No discussion

14. Ensure valid and reliable scoring
1. Create Appropriate scales for scoring
CCSE Test of Oral Interaction ILR descriptors

15. Ensure valid and reliable scoring
● Holistic and analytic scales can be used as a check on each other.
American FSI (Foreign Service Institute)

16. Creating rating scales
▶ Calibrate the scale to be used
▶ Speaking scales ≈ Writing scales / video
recordings
▶ Train scorers
▶ Interviewers → raters → assess / score
▶ Follow acceptable scoring procedures
▶ Raters (fair)
▶ Assess → Scales
▶ X Influenced → Appearance of candidates

17. Assess oral ability

18. REFERENCES
● Hughes, A. (2003). Testing for language teachers.
Testing Oral ability, 113-135.

19. Thank you
for your
attention.