Test of Spoken English

Test of Spoken English
Categories
1.Give an opinion.

2. Describe something physical.

3. Define

Specific tasks

1.Give an opinion about animals in the zoo.
2. Giving a personal description.
3. Defining a technical term.

Interactive Speaking

- Interpersonal tasks;
- Most of the time, tasks have long duration;
- Interview; Role Play; Discussions and Conversations; Games.

Interview: “ A test administrator and a test-taker sit down in a direct face-to-face exchange and proceed through a protocol of questions and directives”.
• Stages of an interview (Michael Canale; 1984):
1. Warm-up
2. Level check
3. Probe
4. Wind- down

Role Play: “While role play can be controlled or ‘guided’ by the interviewer, this technique takes test-takers beyond simple intensive and responsive levels to a level of creativity and complexity that approaches real-world pragmatics.”
Discussions and Conversations: “As formal assessment devices, discussions and conversations with and among students are difficult to specify and even more difficult to score. But as informal techniques to assess learners, they offer a level of authenticity and spontaneity that other assessment techniques may not provide.”

source: http://www.letras.ufmg.br/arado/freebooks/english/speak2.htm