Rubrics for an ESL Oral Exam
So I’ve decided to give my ESL students an Oral English Exam. How do I grade them? What should I be looking for?
For Part 3 in our ESL Oral Exam Series, let’s talk about what your rubric should look like! Of course, you can tailor your exams to fit your students and your personal goals for the class, but here are the things I’m using grading for and here’s how I communicate my expectations to the class.
What Am I Looking For?
The six main things I usually am looking for are:
Pronunciation
Grammar
Vocabulary Use
Smoothness / Preparedness
Poise / Emotion
Requirements
1-2) Pronunciation and Grammar
Pronunciation and grammar are two basic things to test for, and can really help identify larger English issues a student has. For pronunciation, I’m specifically looking at the sounds I know are difficult. For example, “th,” “r/l,” and vowels. For grammar, I want to see students using the correct verb tense, use “he/she/him/her” correctly, as well as use more complex structures (according to their level).
3) Vocabulary
Vocabulary use is something I emphasize so much in my classes. If students are just using the words, “Beautiful” and “interesting,” then their vocabulary needs work. For higher-level classes, I’m also looking for native use of vocabulary words. For example, the Chinese word for “uncomfortable” and “harmonious” are quite commonly-used. In English however, we generally choose other words instead. I’m looking to see how much they are able to use native vocabulary and think in English.
4) Smoothness/ Preparedness
By “smoothness,” I mean how well the student can communicate in English. Of course, I give leeway for nervousness, because we all get nervous during a test sometimes, but if a student is struggling to put together a sentence or if he’s backtracking and hesitating at simple verbs, it’s a good indication of his ability. In some semesters, I’ve called this “preparedness.” You will always have some students who waltzed into the class on the day of the exam not having prepared anything. I know it. He knows it. I don’t want to give him a high score if he didn’t put the effort in, and having this in my rubric gives me that freedom to take his overall effort into account.
5) Poise/ Emotion
If it’s a presentation, I also grade for poise. If it’s a conversation, often I change this to “emotion.” If they are giving a speech, I want to see that they are speaking confidently, using gestures appropriately, and speaking with enough volume. If they are making a conversation, I want them to speak naturally and act as if it’s a really conversation. When they say, “Hi, Peter! How have you been?” it should have a little emotion and intonation.
6) Requirements
The last section I usually have is “requirements.” This is where they are graded for following directions and meeting the basic requirements for a passing grade. If the conversation was to be two minutes long, and they talked for only thirty seconds, that’s going to be reflected in their grade. If their PowerPoint was supposed to have five slides, and just had one, that will also be reflected in the grade.
ALWAYS let your students know what you expect before exam day. Tell them well in advance what your categories are and make sure they fully understand them. In addition, always give them a chance to practice. This could be in an ungraded presentation or conversation, or in something like a mid-term exam.
If you’d like to read more about ESL Oral Exams, check out these articles for exam ideas and exam day tips!
Part 1: https://www.atlasteaching.com/classroom/5simpleoralenglishexams
Part 2: https://www.atlasteaching.com/classroom/conversationeslexamtips
If you’d like to know how I grade exams, check out Part 4 in our series.