How to Test Speaking Skills in Japan

64 Part 2: How can we mark & administer speaking tests? However, it is also important to consider possible negative con sequences related to subtractive marking If you use it too much, you may become overly hypersensitive to mistakes This could lead you to inadvertently penalize effective yet inaccurate speakers So, take this strategy with a grain of salt—it’s a tool that has it’s uses, but don’t go overboard with it In my ex perience, I have found it a good way to help students prevent un conscious use of Japanese, especially pausing sounds like うん or え えと Okay, everyone—I’ll mark you down a point for each time I hear any Japanese. Take care! This approach has worked well for me, as it draws attention to something I don’t want to see Otherwise, I recommend carrots over sticks To summarize, the flexibility afforded by analytic marking schemes is a key advantage, but beware! It can get complex and unwieldy really fast, especially if you are new to oral testing Remember that your overall goal is to keep reliability , validity , and practicality in balance You may feel an urge to load up your marking sheet with all sorts of categories, but eventually you reach a point of diminishing returns If you try to track more constructs than you’re capable of, reliability and validity will suffer, as you will not be able to maintain proper levels of consistency Yes, you needn’t worry about perfection, but also take care to not bite off more than you can chew In general, three to five constructs are plenty, but I would argue that even one or two is enough when you’re new to it Better to do one thing well than to attempt too much and make a hash of things