Page 193 - Teaching English at Primary Level: From Theory into the Classroom

Assessing Speaking and Interaction

Listen to a description of seven different situations. Write the letter of the picture (A to K) which
matchesthe descriptioninthe giventable.Fourpictures are redundant. Look at the example given.

$ B C
H I

D E
J K

0. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
F G
B

WRþN

Figure 13.3 Example of a Matching Listening Task (Državni izpitni center, 2022)
a particular task. In tasks which contain more items than there are possible
responses, this should be made clear in the instructions.

Discussion
1. Discuss what type of listening tasks would be suitable for the following
objectives:
• Pupils will be able to understand a simple description of a room (class-
room, bedroom, etc.).
• Pupils will be able to understand clock times, days, months and dates.
• Pupils will be able to understand the main point(s) from a short spoken
passage, such as a weather forecast.
2. Look at the listening assessment task in the Cambridge Starters Series and
discuss the aims of the activity. What do learners need to know in order to
be successful in the assessment?

Assessing Speaking and Interaction
Assessing speaking skills is often considered to be one of the greatest chal-
lenges in assessing YLs’ FL competence as it involves the observation of sev-
eral language aspects, such as pronunciation, vocabulary control, grammar
competence, interaction skills, and general fluency. Communication in an FL
is a challenge for most YLs for two main reasons. First, their lexical and gram-

193