MARKING CRITERIA - SPEAKING

POINTS

There 20 points to get at the STANAG 6001 English exam in speaking. 10 points for Task 1 (briefing) and 10 points for Task 2 (discussion).

To pass the exam you need to obtain 70%, that is 14 points out of 20. It doesn't matter how many points you receive for each task, the total score counts, so you can receive 4 points for your briefing and 10 points for the discussion and still pass. It means you will have level 3 in speaking on your certificate. If you obtain 12 or 13 points you will have 2+ on your certificate.

You can see the original marking sheets used at the exam on the Central Examination Board's website www.wsnjo.wp.mil.pl in the model exam.

I simplified it a little to show you the general principles behind marking. It looks like this:

It means that each of the following elements is evaluated separately:

• fluency,

• grammar and vocabulary,

• pronunciation,

• structure (briefing)/interaction (discussion),

• and task achievement  

Each of these elements can evaluated by matching one of the bands of points: 9-10, 8, 7, 5-6 or fewer.

The points for each element are not added, the lowest number of points counts as the result for this task.

For example:

• fluency - 8 points

• grammar and vocabulary -7 points

• pronunciation - 8 points

• structure (briefing)/interaction (discussion) - 6 points

• and task achievement - 6 points 

The final score for this task is 6 points.

WHAT IS EVALUATED?

How are these elements assessed? The summary below is an attempt to answer this question:

In TASK 1 (briefing), the following elements are evaluated:

• fluency (how smoothly your speech flows)

• language resources and accuracy (grammatical correctness and range of vocabulary)

• pronunciation (pronouncing words in a way that does not hinder understanding)

• production (clear and logical structure of your speech)

• task achievement (covering all points, relevance)

In TASK 2 (discussion) the following elements are evaluated:

• fluency (how smoothly your speech flows)

• language resources and accuracy (grammatical correctness and range of vocabulary)

• pronunciation (pronouncing words in a way that does not hinder understanding)

• interaction (active, natural discussion with equal participation of both candidates, logical references to each other’s questions)

• task achievement (covering all points, relevance)

WHAT CAN CAUSE A NEGATIVE ASSESSMENT of a task (not more than 6 points for a task)?

• speech tempo too slow, struggling to find the right words

• grammatical errors in simple and complex language

• wrong choice of vocabulary, simplistic vocabulary

• frequent pronunciation errors which do not hinder understanding

• the structure of the speech is not clear enough, making it an effort to follow by a listener, lack of consistent sequencing, linking not always logical

  lack of active participation and initiative in the discussion, responses

• irrelevant to questions

• task achieved only partially, not all points covered, irrelevant information provided

Now, knowing what and how is evaluated at the exam you should be more ready to develop your exam preparation and passing strategy. 

Good luck and keep up the good work!

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