Hi all.
So many of you have been asking me how to give marks for speaking. As mentioned a thousand times on this blog, I am not an examiner and as far as I know, the marking criteria are confidential. There are so many people teaching and marking in the dark and today's post will help to shine some light on the matter. Take note that I am playing it by ear and am just giving you a sample of what I use to assess my students, since my guess is as good as anyone else's as there has yet to be any formal training for layman teachers like us.
I am providing my own version here in the hope that it will help my fellow colleagues, and I do apologise if it may seem too simplistic a way to assess speaking for this new CEFR-aligned syllabus.
Anyway, remember to use this as a guide only, as it is NOT a true reflection of how the exams syndicate marks this paper. We are ardently waiting to be called for training on this matter as it is highly ludicrous to expect teachers to teach blind and assess even blinder. Yes, yes, harsh words, I do implore your forgiveness but you do see our conundrum, right?
I have only heard that they have 6 marks for each category and that there are 3 categories for Part 1 (individual speech) and an additional one for Part 2 (group discussion).
Part 1:
CATEGORY HIGHEST 6 - 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1 LOWEST
1. Able to understand and perform task
On topic (6) ------------------------ Out of topic (1)
2. Able to organise ideas well:
Uses linkers fluently (6) --------------- No linkers, lacks fluency (1)
3. Able to show good command of language:
High grammatical accuracy and good use of low frequency words (6) --------------------------------------------- Low accuracy and poor vocab (1)
For Part 2 there is an additional category:
4. Able to contribute well to the discussion:
Confident and proactive speaker (6) ---------------- Passive speaker (1)
Therefore, the highest marks a student can obtain is
Part 1: 6+6+6 = 18
Part 2: 6+6+6+6= 24
Total: 42/42
You will then need to convert it to x/90 which is 25% of the total score of 360.
As an illustration:
Andy's marks ~
Part 1: 3+4+3 = 10
Part 2; 3+4+3+4 = 14
Total: 24/42
Converted to : 24 x 90 / 42 = 51.4/90
Ok... whatever assessment criteria that you choose to use at the moment, all you have to do is convert it to x/90. Then you will get the final total after adding with the other 3 papers of x/90 each to get a grand total of x/360. At this point you can determine the band according to the 9 bands previously outlined but I will mention again here.
Basic user: Band 1.0 (1 - 35), Band 2.0 (36 - 81), Band 2.5 (82 - 122)
Independent user: Band 3.0 (123 - 163), Band 3.5 (164 - 210), Band 4.0 (211 - 257), Band 4.5 (258 - 293)
Proficient user: Band 5.0 (294 - 330), Band 5+ (331 - 360)
Stay tuned for the next blog post. I will compile a list of possible questions for you to use in your classrooms, and I am preparing sample scripts so your students can memorise and roleplay the simulation as the foundation of preparing them for this exam. Memorising is an old teaching tool, but it still works wonders, just ask China and General Mao. hehe. Have a nice day!
