ASSESSMENT OF ORAL

ACTIVITIES
PLANNING A SCORING GRID
 CLEAR CRITERIA
EASY TO EXPLAIN TO THE STUDENTS

EASY TO UNDERSTAND

EASY TO APPLY BY BOTH TEACHERS

AND STUDENTS
 criteria to be considered for a general
oral assessment scoring grid
1) Task achievement
coverage of required points
- relevance of information
2) Accuracy
- vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation mistakes
3) Fluency and Interaction
- efficiency of communication
4) Vocabulary Range and Register
- variety of vocabulary
- appropriateness of word usage
 VOCABULARY
TASK ACCURACY FLUENCY AND RANGE &
ACHIEVEMENT INTERACTION REGISTER
-COVERAGE of grammar mistakes EFFICIENCY VARIETY of
required points vocabulary mistakes vocabulary
pronunciation
of
-RELEVANCE of COMMUNICATION APPROPRIATENESS
mistakes
information of word usage and style

5 -all points covered -no mistakes / -easy and effective -adequate and
-totally relevant few minor mistakes communication very rich vocabulary
information in long turns /complex sentences

4 -most points covered -few major mistakes -effective communication -rich and
-mostly relevant in short turns / simple, less mostly adequate
information elaborate sentences vocabulary

3 -some points covered -some major -communication -mostly adequate

-information of some mistakes in hesitant and brief utterances but not rich vocabulary
relevance

2 -few points covered -many major -difficulty in communicating, -basic vocabulary

-information of little mistakes hesitant and brief utterances -mostly inappropriate
relevance sometimes difficult
to understand
1 -no points covered -many major -little or no communication, -basic vocabulary
-information of no mistakes hindering hesitant and brief utterances -totally inappropriate
relevance communication mostly difficult to understand
MAJOR GRAMMAR MISTAKES
= MISTAKES IN BASIC GRAMMAR

e.g. wrong formation of tenses and moods

He could have been able of doing it

(He could have done it = He would have
been able to do it )
 MINOR GRAMMAR MISTAKES
e.g. occasional wrong plurals :
childrens (children)
homeworks (homework)
occasional use of plural instead of singular
the news are good (is)
 MAJOR VOCABULARY
MISTAKES
= MISTAKES IN BASIC VOCABULARY
e.g. -Professor Higgins is learning
phonetics to foreign students. (is teaching)
-wrong association of words :
a large amount of students (number)
 ANY MISTAKE THAT
HINDERS COMMUNICATION /
PREVENTS UNDERSTANDING
IS A MAJOR MISTAKE
If, after teaching a certain structure,
you choose to organize an oral activity
as a follow-up activity, aimed at
testing this very structure, then
mistakes in using that specific structure
will definitely be major mistakes.
 CUSTOMIZING THE GENERAL GRID

GENERAL CRITERIA PARTICULAR TASK

GENERAL SCORING GRID CUSTOMIZED SCORING GRID

 TASK 1
COMMENTING UPON
PICTURES
LOOK AT THESE PICTURES. THEY SHOW DISAGREEMENT
BETWEEN FAMILY MEMBERS. COMPARE AND CONTRAST
THE PICTURES SAYING WHICH SITUATION SEEMS MORE
STRESSFUL AND WHY. (student A)

WHICH ARE THE MAIN CAUSES OF TENSION BETWEEN FAMILY MEMBERS?

(student B)
LOOK AT THESE PICTURES. THEY SHOW PEOPLE CELEBRATING SOME
SPECIAL EVENT. COMPARE AND CONTRAST THE TWO PICTURES
SAYING WHICH EVENT SEEMS MORE PERSONAL AND WHY. (student B)

Which of these two events would you like to attend and why ?
(student A)
WE NEED TO ADAPT THE
PREVIOUSLY PRESENTED
GENERAL SCORING GRID
TO THE SPECIFIC TASK
(= COMMENTING UPON
PICTURES )
 TASK ACHIEVEMENT
(commenting upon pictures)
Comparing and contrasting
Making suppositions and deductions
Describing
Expressing opinion
Answering the question(s)
Giving relevant information
( time limit )
 EFFICIENCY OF
COMMUNICATION
(= PUTTING IDEAS ACROSS)

LONG / BRIEF UTTERANCES

COMPLEX / LESS ELABORATE SENTENCES
ASSERTIVE / HESITANT UTTERANCES
COHERENCE / LOGICAL SEQUENCE OF
IDEAS
 VOCABULARY RANGE
Language of comparison and contrast
Relevant, suggestive, adjectives /
nouns / verbs to describe people /
situations / feelings / attitudes etc.
Structures expressing opinion,
suppositions, deductions
Rephrasing content / avoiding
repetition
TASK ACHIEVEMENT FLUENCY VOCABULARY
RANGE&REGISTER

-COVERAGE of required -EFFICIENCY of -VARIETY of

points communication vocabulary
-RELEVANCE of -APPROPRIATENESS
information of word usage and style

- COMPARING AND LONG / BRIEF Language of

CONTRASTING UTTERANCES comparison and contrast
- MAKING Relevant, suggestive,
SUPPOSITIONS ASSERTIVE / adjectives / nouns / verbs
AND DEDUCTIONS HESITANT to describe people /
- DESCRIBING UTTERANCES situations / feelings /
- EXPRESSING attitudes etc.
OPINION COHERENCE / Structures expressing
- ANSWERING THE LOGICAL SEQUENCE opinion, suppositions,
QUESTION(S) OF IDEAS deductions
-GIVING RELEVANT Rephrasing content /
INFORMATION avoiding repetition
-( TIME LIMIT )
 ACCURACY
WRITE DOWN THE MISTAKES AS YOU
HEAR THEM
PREPARATION

PERFORMANCE

ASSESSMENT
 PRESENTING
THE CUSTOMIZED SCORING GRID
TO THE STUDENTS

PREPARATION

PERFORMANCE

ASSESSMENT
 TASK 2

ASSESSING
LINGUISTIC
COMPETENCES
Examenul de bacalaureat national 2014 Proba C de evaluare
a competentelor lingvistice ntr-o limb de circulatie
international studiat pe parcursul nvtmntului liceal

Proba oral la Limba englez

Toate filierele, profilurile si specializrile/calificrile

Model

1. Answer the following question: What kind of clothes do you

like?

2. Describe a happy memory from your childhood.

3. Give your opinion on the following statement: Being in the

public eye is not for everyone. Use relevant arguments and
examples to support your ideas.
 SUBJECT 1
Answer the following question: What kind
of clothes do you like?

TASK ACHIEVEMENT :
-giving a short, to the point answer

-accounting for it (briefly explaining

choice / preference)
 SUBJECT 2
Describe a happy memory from your childhood.

TASK ACHIEVEMENT :
- NARRATING PAST EVENTS
-DESCRIBING
FEELINGS/PEOPLE/SITUATIONS
-EXPLAINING FEELINGS / SITUATIONS /
ATTITUDES
 SUBJECT 3
Give your opinion on the following
statement: Being in the public eye is not
for everyone. Use relevant arguments
and examples to support your ideas.
(= COMMENT UPON A STATEMENT)
 SUBJECT 3
TASK ACHIEVEMENT :
- EXPLAINING / REPHRASING THE MEANING
OF THE STATEMENT
- EXPRESSING AGREEMENT/DISAGREEMENT
- PRESENTING ARGUMENTS
- SUPPORTING ARGUMENTS
- CONTRADICTING ARGUMENTS
- DRAWING A CONCLUSION
- SUMMARIZING THE MAIN POINTS
 SUBJECT 1, SUBJECT 2,
SUBJECT 3
VOCABULARY RANGE AND REGISTER :

STRUCTURES EXPRESSING OPINION,

AGREEMENT/DISAGREEMENT, PREFERENCE
STRUCTURES JUSTIFYING OPINION, AGREEMENT /
DISAGREEMENT, PREFERENCE
RELEVANT / SUGGESTIVE ADJECTIVES, NOUNS,
VERBS, ADVERBS TO COMMENT UPON PEOPLE /
FEELINGS / SITUATIONS / ATTITUDES
APPROPRIATE LINKERS
REPHRASING CONTENT TO AVOID REPETITION
USING FORMAL STYLE
 SUBJECT 1, SUBJECT 2,
SUBJECT 3

FLUENCY / EFFICIENCY OF
COMMUNICATION :

COHERENCE / LOGICAL SEQUENCE OF

IDEAS
ASSERTIVE / HESITANT, COMPLEX /
SIMPLE UTTERANCES
 TASK 3

ASSESSING ORAL SKILLS IN THE

ENTRANCE EXAM FOR BILINGUAL
CLASSES
 THE STUDENTS HAVE TO READ A
TEXT AND SOLVE 4 READING
COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

THE STUDENTS HAVE TO PRESENT

ORALLY THEIR ANSWERS TO THESE
QUESTIONS
 TASK ACHIEVEMENT
ANSWERING TO THE POINT BY

USING INFORMATION FROM THE TEXT

QUOTING INFORMATION FROM THE TEXT
REPHRASING INFORMATION FROM THE TEXT
ACCOUNTING FOR THE INFORMATION PROVIDED
INFERRING GENERAL MEANING
STATING THE AIM OF THE TEXT / AUTHOR
STATING THE MAIN POINTS OF THE TEXT
 ACCURACY

Mistakes in :
tense formation and use, if clauses,
indirect speech, passive voice, basic
modals, plural of nouns, comparison of
adjectives and adverbs, use of the article,
word order, basic/most frequently used
phrasal verbs
 VOCABULARY RANGE AND
REGISTER :
- variety of vocabulary
- appropriateness of word usage

REPHRASING, AVOIDING REPETITION

PROVIDING SYNONYMS, ANTONYMS, WORD
FAMILIES TO (PRE)INTERMEDIATE
VOCABULARY
APPROPRIATE BASIC LINKERS
USING FORMAL STYLE
 FLUENCY / EFFICIENCY OF
COMMUNICATION :

COHERENCE / INCOHERENCE
LOGICAL / ILLOGICAL SEQUENCE OF
IDEAS
ASSERTIVE / HESITANT UTTERANCES
 Customized scoring grid for bilingual classes oral
entrance exam
Task achievement Accuracy Fluency Vocabulary Range
ANSWERING TO THE -tense formation - COHERENCE / -REPHRASING
POINT BY INCOHERENCE INFORMATION
- USING
and use
INFORMATION -if clauses
- indirect speech - LOGICAL / -AVOIDING
FROM THE TEXT
- QUOTING ILLOGICAL REPETITION
- passive voice SEQUENCE OF
INFORMATION
FROM THE TEXT
- basic modals IDEAS -PROVIDING
- REPHRASING - plural of nouns SYNONYMS,
INFORMATION - comparison of -ASSERTIVE / ANTONYMS,
FROM THE TEXT adjectives and HESITANT WORD FAMILIES
-ACCOUNTING FOR UTTERANCES TO
THE
adverbs
INFORMATION -use of the article PREINTERMEDIATE
PROVIDED - word order VOCABULARY
-INFERRING - basic/most
GENERAL -APPROPRIATE
MEANING
frequently used BASIC LINKERS
-STATING THE AIM phrasal verbs
OF THE TEXT - FORMAL STYLE
-STATING THE MAIN
POINTS OF THE
TEXT