ALL parts of an English language exam are a challenge. But for many learners the speaking element can present a dilemma. Candidates from cultures where the norms of spoken language use are very different can have great difficulty performing in these types of tests. The role of the teacher has to be to help students demonstrate their speaking ability.
Sue, Hobbs, a teacher and trainer at the Swan School of English, Oxford, England, has some suggestions on how teachers can prepare students for speaking tests.
There are many classroom activities a teacher can use to help untie these tongue-tied learners. Anyone facing the unknown feels apprehensive. Assisting students in learning as much as possible about the examination is essential.
Once they are familiar with the exam, the teacher can then "arm" the students with words and strategies to release their potential. For tests where candidates are expected to interact, lessons focusing on discourse markers and functional phrases, such as agreeing and disagreeing, recapping, asking for clarification and giving reasons, will be of great help. With a sufficient range of these at their disposal, candidates can concentrate better on the content of what they say. A set of cards with these phrases on can be used in different ways to help students learn how to use and remember them.
A common problem for tongue-tied learners is that they may be used to having such a presentation either memorized or written down to merely read out, both of which are, of course, unacceptable in an exam. Brainstorming lexis of common themes, taken from past exams, is a powerful tool.
Encouraging practice outside the classroom is always a good thing for reticent speakers. Where recording facilities are available, students can speak without the pressure of an audience and closely examine their language performance to find areas for improvement. Finally, a technique may be crazy but works: having conversations in your head in English can go some way towards normalizing the act of speaking.
Culturally tongue-tied students do not necessarily have to fear speaking exams — especially if they have a teacher who is ready and prepared for the challenge.
