How to Test Speaking Skills in Japan

114 Part 3: Three speaking test ideas Variation Ideas

It’s quite easy to increase the difficulty of this test format by limiting the number of takes students are allowed to make The opposite holds true for making things easier—just add takes For example, a one-take exam would really increase the challenge factor (and pres sure), while a four or five take test would feel much more relaxed One thing to consider when reducing takes is that you lose a bit of the evaluative collaboration that takes place when students listen and self-assess a performance This is strong learning exercise in its own right, so keep that in mind when making your decision Ulti mately it will depend on where your priorities lie The 3-minute recording length can also be played with I’ve found that this amount of time is long enough to provide a good sample of ability while still making it possible to complete the tran script within a 90-minute class In other words, it’s a good balance of practicality and reliability However, if you’d like students to talk longer, that is certainly possible They will then need to finish the transcript for homework Again, the advantage here is that longer recordings will help you assess less rehearsed and more spontaneous speaking ability Follow-up activities Noticing tasks Students can look for and fix any errors in their English transcripts, be they about grammar, usage, or even pronunciation You can also review class material by having students search for key vocabulary items Any breakdowns can also be reflected upon What went wrong? What are some better ways for avoiding these sorts of prob lems? Finally, students can share what they learned with other class-