The main aim of this resource is to exemplify standards and show how different levels of candidate performance (high, middle and low) relate to the subject's curriculum and assessment objectives.
This resource includes
speaking test criteria
recordings of three speaking tests
transcripts
moderator comments to indicate how the teacher/examiner and candidate perform during the test
moderator comments on where and why marks were awarded.
common mistakes and guidance about how candidates performed in this particular examination series.
Candidate responses have been chosen from June 2024 Component 3 to exemplify a range of answers to a selection of Speaking Assessment topics.
More information about this examination series can be found in the Principal Examiner
Report for Teachers available on the School Support Hub.
After reading the speaking assessment criteria below, you may want to practise marking a speaking test. Listen to the candidate responses below, make a note of the strengths and weaknesses of the candidate and give a mark, before you read the moderator comments and marks.
Please note: Information about the candidate and centre has been removed from the start of the recording to protect the identity of the candidate, however it is very important to include this information when submitting audios for moderation.
The moderator comments in full, for all three levels of candidates' performance, can also be found below for you to download and print.
The teacher/examiner announced the candidate
information in Chinese which is helpful to set the candidate’s mind in the
target language. She clearly indicated this was part one of the speaking exam
and invited the candidate to start the presentation.
Candidate response
The candidate
greeted the teacher/examiner and started her presentation with a
Chinese saying, leading to her topic of the presentation, which was Chinese
people’s eating habit. It is very clear that the candidate has used a series
of conjunctions 首先，此外，但是，不仅…还要，另一个，总的来说
to organise the different aspects of the topic to
achieve a full coverage. There are lots of ideas and opinions supported by
quotations, examples and justifications. The delivery of the presentation was
smooth, steady and fully grabbed the teacher/examiner’s interest. The timing
was about 2 and half minutes which is ideal for the instructed 2 to 3 minutes.
This is a good example of a well-prepared, well-organised and lively presented
performance at Level 5.
For Vocabulary and
Structures, the candidate has used a wide range of precise vocabulary and a
variety of complex structures very accurately. There were plenty of
sophisticated use of vocabulary such as 摄入充足的，系统的健康运作，降低肥胖，高血压和心脏病的风险的法宝之一，有助于预防，改善消化功能，受益匪浅，延年益寿，践行到, etc. Nevertheless, the use of quotations and
idioms were very precise. Therefore, both full marks for Vocabulary and
Structures in this part.
Mark for Content and Presentation = 10 out of 10
Mark for Vocabulary = 5 out of 5
Mark for Structures = 5 out of 5
Total mark awarded = 20 out of 20
Part 2 - Topic conversation
Conduct of the test
Again, the teacher/examiner announced clearly Part
2 of the speaking exam, followed closely by the first question which didn’t
overlap with the content in Part 1, but another aspect of the topic, whether
Chinese cuisine is considered healthy in the candidate’s opinion. There was a
good balance of factual and opinion-based questions that led to a natural and spontaneous
conversation.
Candidate response
The candidate continued the discussion on her chosen topic in this part,
extending to different aspects and examples to support her ideas, able to
defend a point of view, for example, 健康与财富. Most of her responses were at good length which
showed sustained ability to maintain the conversation. There was one question
about 理想的生活环境the teacher/examiner
interrupted while it could still make sense that living in a city in the UK
for university was her ideal living environment. A couple of expressions could
have been better, for example, 这就没有关系了(就没有意义了)，减少减肥的风险. Combine all of the above, a mark of 9 at Level 5
is best fit for Comprehension and Responsiveness for the candidate’s
performance here.
For Vocabulary and
Structures used in this part, again, a wide range of vocabulary generally
accurately and a variety of complex structures such as 排比句，so full marks for both categories.
Mark for Comprehension and Responsiveness = 9 out of 10
Mark for Vocabulary = 5 out of 5
Mark for Structures = 5 out of 5
Total mark awarded = 19 out of 20
Part 3 - General conversation
Conduct of the test
The
teacher/examiner skilfully picked up from the candidate’s previous response
the mentioning of going to university in the UK to form the first question, so
a natural flow from Part 2 to Part 3. Further searching questions such as为什么对这个(专业)特别感兴趣 has
provided scope for the candidate to talk in detail about her future career
option. The second topic area 兴趣爱好 also
linked to the future career nicely. The last topic area for this part was
again picked up from what the candidate replied in Part 2你刚刚说到美国加州的环境不是很好，你认为未来比较理想的城市应该是什么样的？so the
question was not abrupt. The timing of this part was 4 and half minutes in
line with the stipulated time.
Candidate response
There was no
problem of comprehension and the candidate’s responses were natural and
spontaneous even to those unexpected ones. The candidate continued to present
and defend a point of view (我觉得未来的城市应该整合…这样人们不用…)
and contributed at some length. Apart from a couple of sentences needed a
twist, for example, 为了对未来的大学有更大的吸引力 meant 为了将来上大学时更有竞争力, the overall performance worth Level 5 but
the lower mark so 9 is awarded for Comprehension and Responsiveness.
Despite minor slips in vocabulary, such as 达到任何需要的设施,非常支持性的环境,
There was plenty evidence of wide range of precise vocabulary, 经验丰富，知识渊博 难打理 长途跋涉 轻松快捷地, and a variety of complex structures, 从小就对, 对学习医学有更多的帮助 特别是 我小的时候…，可是我现在…
并,通过, etc. Therefore, a mark of 5 is fair for
both Vocabulary and Structures in the performance.
Mark for Comprehension and Responsiveness = 9 out of 10
Mark for Vocabulary = 5 out of 5
Mark for Structures = 5 out of 5
Total mark awarded = 19 out of 20
Total mark awarded for Speaking test =
58 out of 60
Moderator comments - Whole test
How the examiner performance could improve
Sometimes
the teacher/examiner interrupted too soon. When there is an ambiguous
response, it would be better to ask searching questions to provide the
candidate a second chance to clarify their answers.
How the candidate performance could improve
It will be even better if
the candidate could distinguish use of the synonyms, for example, 利用and 使用，关系and意义，吸引力and竞争力，to use advanced
vocabulary more precisely.
The
teacher/examiner greeted the candidate in Chinese and indicated the start of
the speaking.
Candidate response
The candidate started with a greeting to the teacher/examiner and gave
the topic of her presentation, which is ‘My favourite Chinese celebrity’. The
content included a brief biography of the celebrity, the reasons the candidate
liked the celebrity’s movies and what she learned from the celebrity and the
movies. The timing was just within 3 minutes which is in line with the
stipulated 2 to 3 minutes. According to the descriptors of Content and
Presentation, this falls in Level 4 as good coverage and sound
organisation of the topic, with relevant factual points and some ideas and
opinions. The language in the presentation might not always be precise but the
meanings were clear. The delivery was fairly fluent. Therefore, 8 Marks is awarded for Content and Presentation.
For Vocabulary, the candidate has attempted to use some beyond simple
ones, however, quite a lot of them were not precise or even ambiguous, for
example, 电品制片人, 想当为,变了周星驰的偶像,从作为一位无人不知的人变成了全球知道他的名字的人,跟他有很多的热爱, 拿办法移开困难, 不要跟其他人的话变你,some pronunciation lacks clarity, such as 择业（职业），就会自年出域, etc. Therefore,
the candidate’s Vocabulary is more fit at Level 3.
For Structures, some complex structures have been used successfully, such
as 从..变成了，的时候，从…可以学到，像..那样，因为，所以，但是，把，如果，etc. The errors in structures do not impede
communication. Hence, 4 marks is fair for the candidate’s performance in
the presentation.
Mark for Content and Presentation = 8 out of 10
Mark for Vocabulary = 3 out of 5
Mark for Structures = 4 out of 5
Total mark awarded = 15 out of 20
Part 2 - Topic conversation
Conduct of the test
The
teacher/examiner didn’t say 第二部分but did explain that she
will ask some questions based on what the candidate has just said. The
questions were all relevant to the celebrity, to movies and actors, all open
enough for the candidate to develop, such as both sides of being an actor, ‘if
you met the celebrity, what would you say to him?’, from different movie
genres to whether a fan of someone. The questions were kept clear and short,
making them easy for the candidate to understand what was asked. The timing
was just 3 minutes which is shorter than 4-5 minutes as noted in the syllabus.
This could have disadvantaged the candidate as not enough evidence was found
in the shorter timing.
Candidate response
The candidate understood the questions without problem and coped
reasonably well with different questions. The responses were all relevant and
at a reasonable length which makes frequent prompting unnecessary. Some
expressions could have been more precise. The performance in this part is in
Level 4 for Comprehension and Responsiveness, with the short timing and some
expressions not always precise, the lower mark at Level 4 is best fit.
The vocabulary used
in this part was limited, with quite a few ambiguities, for example, 有没有做特别的东西让他现在变了这样很有名, 我都喜欢看热爱的电影和年轻的电影,我会根据周星驰的方面，跑步人, etc. A mark of 3 is awarded.
The candidate demonstrated correct use of some complex structures, 如果，就，让他，令我，有没有，而，根据，一样，etc.
A mark of 4 is awarded.
Mark for Comprehension and Responsiveness = 7 out of 10
Mark for Vocabulary = 3 out of 5
Mark for Structures = 4 out of 5
Total mark awarded = 14 out of 20
Part 3 - General conversation
Conduct of the test
The
teacher/examiner didn’t announce 第三部分but said ‘now we move on
to next part’. Ideally, the teacher/examiner mentions the topic area before
starting the actual questions which will give the candidate some direction of
the conversation ahead. In this part, the teacher/examiner covered two topic
areas, Area A 学校and Area C 旅行和环境保护. The
questions were mostly open style, for example, to invite the candidate to
introduce her school, ‘Tell me about an unforgettable travel’, ‘how should we
protect the environment?’, etc., so it is easy for the candidate to give an
extended answer. The timing of this part was about 5 minutes which is in line
with the 4-5 minutes requirement.
Candidate response
The candidate had no problems understanding the questions and responded
thoughtfully for each question, and was reasonably forthcoming but tended to
follow the teacher/examiner’s lead. The responses were all relevant to the
questions at a good length. Some expressions could have been more precise, 你如果出门的时候要把防晒 , 他们的屋子被热的天气就没了.As whole, the Comprehension and
Responsiveness in this part is awarded the top mark of Level 4 so 8.
For Vocabulary and Structures, the candidate has used a sufficient
range of good vocabulary and structures, such as 善良，耐心，堵车，冰川暖化，一次用的袋子，太阳能，as well as 不会太..但是，热到..，虽然，用了一次就丢了,etc. Both marks achieve Level 4 in this part of the performance.
Mark for Comprehension and Responsiveness = 8 out of 10
Mark for Vocabulary = 4 out of 5
Mark for Structures = 4 out of 5
Total mark awarded = 16 out of 20
Total mark awarded for Speaking test = 45 out of 60
Moderator comments - Whole test
How the examiner performance could improve
The
teacher/examiner could have asked the candidate to clarify some ambiguous
words in the performance to provide a second chance. It is also important to
keep the timings as set in the syllabus so as not to disadvantage the
candidate.
How the candidate performance could improve
The candidate could improve the performance by
improving the pronunciation of some vocabulary as well as to try to be more precise
when expressing ideas. Reading authentic materials more often will also help
to build up vocabulary and learn accurate expressions.
Note re. marking:The same error
should not be penalised repeatedly, for example, the candidate used 和to link two sentences which was wrong. This will
be considered when giving a mark for Structures when it first happens but should
not be counted again in later performance.
The teacher/examiner announced
the candidate’s information and ‘Part one’ in English before asking the
candidate 你今天想说什么话题？which is brief and clear.
It would be even better to include a short greeting in Chinese, to avoid a sudden change from English to
Chinese. For example, 你好，我们开始口语考试，第一部分，你今天想说什么话题？
Candidate response
The candidate greeted to the teacher/examiner and gave the topic of her
presentation, which is always recommended as it shows the focus of the
presentation. The candidate has recited the story of Quyuan, fairly fluently
with a couple of pauses over about 2-minutes. The main issue about the
content here is that there are few ideas or opinions,
just narration of the story, without mentioning other factual points such as
different food, other ways of celebrating, etc. Therefore, the content only
fits the description of ‘Adequate coverage of the topic, generally organised’,
‘Includes some factual points with few ideas or opinions’ at Level 3.
For Vocabulary and Structures, the candidate
has used a sufficient range of vocabulary to recite the story, sometimes
lacks precision, for example, 为了and 为的是。Pronunciation and intonation are generally clear, apart from 屈原，吞并。Some complex structures such as 不仅如此，所以，为了，被，就，etc. with a range of simple structures have been used successfully. This
indicates a mark of Level 4 for both Vocabulary, pronunciation &
Intonation and Structures.
Mark for Content and Presentation = 6 out of 10
Mark for Vocabulary = 4 out of 5
Mark for Structures = 4 out of 5
Total mark awarded = 14 out of 20
Part 2 - Topic conversation
Conduct of the test
The teacher/examiner has
announced the second part of the speaking exam in which she will ask some
questions based on the presentation. The timing of this part was in line with
the suggested 4-5 minutes and the teacher/examiner worked hard trying to get the
most out of the candidate. However, the first handful of questions were asking
what the candidate has already said in the presentation, as a result, the
candidate had to repeat the vocabulary and sentences from the presentation
which will not gain further merit. Furthermore, many of the questions are
closed questions that the candidate could answer with one word or short
phrase. A couple of the questions could have been tidied up and kept brief and
accurate so as not to confuse the candidate.
Candidate response
The candidate understood the questions but
mainly gave short answers, sometimes one word answer, needed prompting and
encouragement to develop topics, such as how people celebrate the festival and
in different regions. There was some delay in response for more complex ideas,
for example, thoughts on Quyuan’s action, etc. There was not much contribution
from the candidate in the conversation. Therefore, for Comprehension and
Responsiveness, a mark at Level 3 is best fit.
For Vocabulary and Structures, apart from
those repeated from Part 1 Presentation, there was a limited range of
vocabulary and structures that could be considered as new evidence. A mark at
Level 3 is fair for the candidate’s performance in this part.
Mark for Comprehension and Responsiveness = 6 out of 10
Mark for Vocabulary = 3 out of 5
Mark for Structures = 3 out of 5
Total mark awarded = 12 out of 20
Part 3 - General conversation
Conduct of the test
The timing of this part was about 5 minutes
so again was in line with the required time. The teacher/examiner announced
this is Part 3 which will include two topic areas as well as the name of the
first topic before starting the first question. This will give candidates some
direction of the conversation ahead which is recommended. The first question
to invite the candidate to introduce her school was an open question, as desired,
the candidate produced an extended answer in good length. Some information
from this answer helped the teacher/examiner to form some good questions for
further discussion later, 不同种族的老师和同学是怎么相处的？The questions in
this part were a mixture of closed and open questions, factual based and
opinion based, which led to a natural conversation.
Candidate response
There was one question on school subjects
that the candidate got confused with and asked for clarification. There were
some hesitations and delay in response, especially in more complex ideas such
as 如何相处. The length of
responses is better than one word, however, still short and needed prompting
and encouragement to develop the answers. Looking at the descriptors in the
Mark Scheme for Comprehension and Responsiveness, the candidate’s performance
hasn’t quite reach Level 4 descriptors yet and so the top mark in Level 3 is
awarded.
The vocabulary that the candidate has used
to answer the questions in this part is mainly basic and simple, so more of a
limited range than a sufficient range. Some vocabulary lacks precision, for
example, 生意as a subject, 集合空间as a place. There
were hesitations when going beyond simple expressions when attempting the
question of 不同种族的老师和同学怎么相处. The Vocabulary mark is at Level 3 instead of
Level 4.
For Structures, while many
of the answers were one sentence or short phrases, generally simple structures
were used accurately. A mark of 3 is awarded.
Mark for Comprehension and Responsiveness = 6 out of 10
Mark for Vocabulary = 3 out of 5
Mark for Structures = 3 out of 5
Total mark awarded = 12 out of 20
Total mark awarded for Speaking test = 38
out of 60
Moderator comments - Whole test
How the examiner performance could improve
The teacher/examiner
could have asked more open questions, avoid closed ones such as 对吗，是吗，是什么, 什么时候，etc. To have a list of possible questions or aspects on each topic to
hand will help to prepare for conducting the speaking exam. Remembering to
keep questions brief and clear will certainly help candidates to get the most
out of themselves.
How the candidate performance could improve
The candidate needs to be reminded to develop their
responses wherever possible, by giving examples and detailed information,
clarifying reasons and justifications, providing opposite views, etc., so that
they can show the maximum of what they can do within the time.
One of the general marking principles at Cambridge is positive marking. Candidates are awarded a certain mark as long as there is enough evidence as described in the Mark Scheme to approve what they can do and should not deduce marks based on what they cannot do. Therefore, candidates should be encouraged to show the best of what they can do and do not worry too much about making mistakes.
Wrong timings will have an impact on the performance of a candidate and so will affect relevant marks. Centres are reminded to keep to the stipulated timings for each part of the speaking exam.
Candidates who have a reasonably good level of language still need to be guided on how to perform in their speaking exam. It is recommended that teachers share the Mark Scheme and discuss the descriptors in each level with their learners in the early stage of the course.
For further details about how candidates performed in this
particular examination series please refer to the Principal Examiner Report
for Teachers (PERT).
For further guidance for Teacher/examiners on conducting the Speaking tests please refer to our Guide to delivering Cambridge IGCSE speaking tests on the School Support Hub.
