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4 Three-way conversation 4 minutes The topic area from Part 3 is
between the candidates opened up by discussing wider
and the Interlocutor issues.
Explaining, summarising,
developing the discussion
The CAE Speaking test is conducted with pairs of candidates by two Examiners: an Interlocutor
and an Assessor. The test takes approximately 15 minutes and is divided into four parts.
Part 1 social interaction (about 3 minutes)
Part 2 individual long turns with reciprocal brief responses (about 4 minutes)
Part 3 two-way collaborative task, turn-taking and negotiating the outcome to an opinion/
reasoning/problem-solving activity (about 4 minutes)
Part 4 three-way discussion on the issues raised in Part 3. The questions become broader and
often more abstract as the discussion develops. (about 4 minutes)
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The Speaking test is marked out of 40, with marks awarded by the Assessor on a scale of 0-5 for
four separate criteria: Grammar and Vocabulary, Discourse Management, Pronunciation and
Interactive Communication. The Interlocutor provides a mark for Global Achievement for each
candidate on a scale of 0-5 at the end of the test. Combining the analytical marks of the Assessor
and a global mark from the Interlocutor gives a balanced view of candidate performance. Raw
marks are later scaled to the mark out of 40.
" Materials
The test materials for the June 2004 session comprised eighteen Part 2 tasks and eight Part 3 and
4 tasks. Two Part 2 tasks were shared tasks: that is, each candidate is given the same task but
the visual stimuli are different.
All tasks are designed to elicit language of a suitably advanced level and range. The tasks are
open and speculative, ranging beyond pure description, and give candidates the chance to
demonstrate their range of language.
" Candidate Interaction
Candidates observed by Team Leaders were, on the whole, at ease when the test began, even
when paired with candidates they did not know. Candidates who know each other well and those
who have only just met perform equally well in Part 1. After a brief exchange of information with the
Interlocutor, candidates ask each other one or two questions about topics of general interest. The
Interlocutor then goes on to ask candidates further questions.
Occasionally, candidates are reluctant to interact with each other and feel that they need to
address the Interlocutor or the Assessor. On the other hand, some over-enthusiastic candidates
sometimes tend to dominate the interaction. However, when doing the Part 3 task, most
candidates realise that they are expected to talk to each other, and invite their partner to contribute
to the interaction, as well as take an active part in the interaction themselves. Any candidate not
taking up the opportunity to interact in Parts 1 and 3 is invited by the Interlocutor to make a more
extended contribution in Part 4.
" Candidate Performance
Candidates performance in the Speaking test is often affected by their failure to listen carefully to
what they are asked to do, or to raise the level of their performance above the purely descriptive or
mundane, particularly in Parts 2 and 3. Most CAE candidates are well prepared and highly
motivated, both of which have a positive effect on their performance. In addition, the structure of
the test gives candidates ample opportunity to demonstrate their capabilities. Candidates who fail
to take up these opportunities will not do so well in the Speaking test.
The Four Parts
Part 1
This part worked equally well with candidates who knew each other and those who did not. The
strongest candidates were those who were able to develop the interaction by picking up comments
made by their partner to produce a natural and more extended conversation (particularly in the
second section of Part 1, where candidates are invited to ask each other about something), and
those who made an attempt to answer the questions fully without pausing for too long to think
about what they were going to say.
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Part 2
Stronger, well-prepared candidates took full advantage of their opportunity to talk for one minute in
Part 2, although weaker or less committed candidates sometimes failed to listen carefully and do
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