Oral Testing of Accuracy and Fluency

JoAnn Miller, Editorial Macmillan

miller@efltasks.net

www.efltasks.net

Fluency The ability to produce written and / or spoken

language with ease Speak with a good but not necessarily perfect

command of intonation, vocabulary and grammar

Communicate ideas effectively Produce continuous speech without causing

comprehension difficulties or a breakdown in communication

Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics

Accuracy

Ability to produce grammatically correct sentences

May not include the ability to speak or write fluently.

Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics

An example: foreign visitors

Tour of factory—fluency; must be prepared for unexpected questions and explanations

Formal presentation of a product—accuracy; time to plan, rehearse

What is a task?

A goal-oriented activity in which learners use language to achieve a real outcome.

Learners use whatever target language resources they have in order to solve a problem, do a puzzle, play a game, or share and compare experiences.

Fluency in Tasks

“Learners need opportunities to process language for communicative purposes as receivers and producers.

“These opportunities should be unfettered by the perceived need to conform to teacher expectations in terms of the production of specific language forms.”

Dave Willis, “Accuracy, fluency and conformity” Challenge and Change in Language Teaching, J. Willis and D. Willis, ed. Heinemann, 1996. P. 50

Accuracy in Tasks“Whenever learners are involved in

communication they are concerned with accuracy…making the best use of their language systems…

“In spontaneous communication [they] have little time to reflect on the language they produce.

“ If…they are given time to prepare what they have to produce, there will be a concern for formal accuracy…”

Dave Willis, “Accuracy, fluency and conformity” Challenge and Change in Language Teaching, J. Willis and D. Willis, ed. Heinemann, 1996. P. 50

Speaking Fluency: “concerns the learner’s

capacity to produce language in real time without undue pausing or hesitation.”

Accuracy: “how well language is produced in relation to the rule system of the target language.”

Peter Skehan, “Second language acquisition research and task-based instruction”, Challenge and Change in Language Teaching, J. Willis and D. Willis, ed. Heinemann, 1996. P. 22.

Implications

“Teachers should balance issues of fluency and accuracy depending on the specific needs of learners and the resources of time and materials for instruction.”

Miriam Eisenstein Ebsworth, “Accuracy Vs. Fluency: Which Comes First in ESL Instruction?”, ESL Magazine. 1:2, 24-26. March/April 1998.

The teaching situation

Private, multi-level (high school, university, post-grad) university in Mexico (17 campuses throughout country)

Institutional EFL programs Total 35,000+ students Groups of 25-30 in language lab Native and non-native teachers with varying

abilities and experience

Grading Objective grading required as much as

possible (by government, school and parents)

Each course: 2 written exams in classroom (functions, structures, vocabulary, reading, writing); 2 exams in lab (listening comprehension and oral production)

Oral Exam

Accuracy

Role play 5 minutes+

preparation Perform for teacher 1-2 minutes

maximum

Fluency

Role play with teacher and another student

No preparation Cues only

Oral Exam Organization

Students (pairs) given role cards as they enter classroom

Told to prepare—when finish exam, can leave

Can use any reference or ask questions

Come to the front of the class, talk only to teacher

Perform Either stay together

or separate for second role-play

5 point scale

Accuracy1 ---Little or no language

produced.2 --Poor vocabulary, serious

mistakes in grammar, poor pronunciation.

3 --Adequate vocabulary, mistakes in grammar, adequate pronunciation.

4 --Good vocabulary, occasional errors in grammar, good pronunciation.

5 --Wide vocabulary, very few errors in grammar, very good pronunciation.

Fluency1 ---Little or no communication.2 ---Very hesitant and brief

utterances, sometimes difficult to understand.

3 ---Communicates ideas, but hesitantly and briefly

4 ---Effective communication, but does not elaborate on response.

5 ---Easy and efficient communication. Elaborates on responses.

I. Pair Roleplay. Used to grade accuracy. (5 points)

Instructions: • Give each pair of SS a roleplay card. Give them at

least 5 minutes to prepare their talk. • Call pairs of Ss to the front. They perform without

written notes. • Grade them based on the following scale: [5-point

scale presented here.]

Note: Please take S's level into account. A Course 1 student cannot produce as much language as a Course 3 student. To get 3 points, the student should be able to use structures and vocabulary taught in the course he/she just finished. However, expect errors since the student has not fully acquired the material. To get 5 points, the student may still make a few isolated errors, but will speak much above a typical student at the same level.

II. Roleplay with the teacher. Use to grade fluency. (5 points)

Instructions: Choose one of the situations given below. If three people are needed in the situation, keep

the pair together. If not, separate Ss and grade individually.

S does not see situations. Explain the situation to the S and perform your part

of the roleplay. Grade S on the following scale: [5-point scale

presented here.]

Note: Students should be graded considering their course level.

Student A: Imagine you are at a meeting and not in an exam. All of your classmates are at the meeting too. Your partner doesn’t know anyone. Tell him who the people are.

Student B: Imagine you are at a meeting and not in an exam. All of your classmates are at the meeting too. You don’t know anyone. Ask your partner who the people are.

Student A: Tell your partner about an accident you or some member of your family had. When he/she tells you, ask some intelligent questions or make relevant comments.

Student B: Tell your partner about an accident you or some member of your family had. When he/she tells you, ask some intelligent questions or make relevant comments.

Student A: You are making a survey about what people think they will be able to do with telecommunications in twenty years. Ask your partner at least three questions about the topic.

Student B: Your partner is making a survey. Answer his/her questions.

II. Roleplay with the teacher. Use to grade fluency. (5 points) (Do not show these questions to the Ss. )

1. Keep students together. Ask them what they plan to do when they finish school. Then ask them to tell you the pros and cons of that job.

2. Separate students for a moment. You are going to give one student a message for the other student. For example, ask Student A to tell Student B you are going to meet him/her after class. Then have the student pass on the message. Make the messages a little bit complicated. When you finish, give Student B messages for Student A.

3. Separate students. Tell student to imagine his girlfriend / her boyfriend is angry. Ask him / her what he / she will do. Then ask a “what if” question: What if he doesn’t believe you? What if he goes out with someone else?, etc.

II. Oral Exam (10 points)

Role Play 1: 5 4 3 2 1 0

Role Play 2: 5 4 3 2 1 0

Total Oral points: ___/10

Part I is the listening comprehension exam. It is on the same page.

Thank you very much….

JoAnn Miller

miller@efltasks.net

miller@room20.org

www.efltasks.net

www.room20.org

www.salondemaestros.com