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FCE/CAE Bulletin 10 10/1/08 12:50 Page 2

Reviewing FCE and CAE

Bulletin 10, January 2008
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Experts in Language Assessment

General Update
Over the last two years, Cambridge ESOL has carried out a thorough review of the FCE and CAE
examinations and will be introducing updated versions of these examinations from December 2008.
The last four bulletins have focused on the Reading, Writing, Use of English and Listening papers,
and the bulletin previous to these, Bulletin 5, contains an overview of the full FCE and CAE
December 2008 Specifications. Bulletin 10 now follows with a detailed description of the Speaking
papers, along with a rationale for the changes, and advice on preparing students for the exams.
Bulletins 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 are available at:

www.cambridgeesol.org/exams/fce.htm and www.cambridgeesol.org/exams/cae.htm

FCE Paper 5 Speaking (from December 2008)

• The standard format for the updated FCE is two candidates and two examiners. One examiner,
the interlocutor, interacts with the candidates as well as assessing the interaction.
The other examiner, the main assessor, does not join in the interaction.

• The Speaking test consists of four parts and lasts 14 minutes for a pair of candidates.

• The test aims to assess the candidates’ ability to produce spoken English in a variety of tasks.

PART 1 INTERVIEW 3 MINUTES

The interlocutor asks each candidate a series of questions by addressing a question to Candidate A,
then the same or a different question to Candidate B. The questions relate to the candidates’ own
lives and focus on areas such as work, leisure time and future plans. The questions are designed to
elicit a range of tenses.

The focus of this part of the test is on general interactional and social language arising out of the
conversation between the interlocutor and each candidate. This short social exchange is a natural
way to begin an interaction, and it gives candidates time to settle before dealing with the more
specific tasks in Parts 2, 3 and 4.

PART 2 INDIVIDUAL LONG TURNS 4 MINUTES

The interlocutor gives each candidate a one-minute speaking task. In turn, the candidates are asked
to compare two photographs in response to a task that is read out by the interlocutor. A prompt is
also printed on the page in the form of a question. The listening candidate is asked to comment
briefly (for about 20 seconds) after their partner’s long turn.

This part tests the candidate’s ability to produce an extended piece of discourse which may involve
comparing, describing and expressing opinions.
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Experts in Language Assessment

PART 3 COLLABORATIVE TASK 3 MINUTES

This part of the test consists of a two-way discussion between the candidates, developed around a
topic-based visual stimulus. These visuals can be either photographs or artwork and are supported
by spoken and written prompts. The candidates are given a task which involves discussing each
visual in turn in order to express and justify opinions, evaluate and speculate, and work towards
reaching a negotiated conclusion towards the end of the task. Tasks are designed to be accessible
to the candidates and do not require specific knowledge of the world.

This part forms the basis for the questions in Part 4 and tests the candidate’s ability to sustain an
interaction, exchange ideas, express and justify opinions, agree and/or disagree, make suggestions,
speculate, evaluate and work towards a negotiated outcome.

PART 4 DISCUSSION 4 MINUTES

The interlocutor leads the discussion to explore further the topics and issues of the Part 3
collaborative task. The interlocutor may specifically invite one of the candidates to respond or ask
an open question of the pair.

This part tests the candidate’s ability to engage in a more in-depth discussion, exchange
information, express and justify opinions and agree and/or disagree.

Assessment
Candidates are assessed according to the following criteria: Grammar and Vocabulary; Discourse
Management; Pronunciation; Interactive Communication.

CAE Paper 5 Speaking (from December 2008)

• The standard format for the updated CAE is two candidates and two examiners. One examiner,
the interlocutor, interacts with the candidates as well as assessing the interaction. The other
examiner, the main assessor, does not join in the interaction.

• The Speaking test consists of four parts and lasts 15 minutes for a pair of candidates.

• The test aims to assess the candidates’ ability to produce spoken English in a variety of tasks.
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Experts in Language Assessment

PART 1 INTERVIEW 3 MINUTES

The interlocutor asks each candidate a series of questions by addressing one question to Candidate
A, then the same or a different question to Candidate B. The questions relate to the candidates’ own
lives and focus on areas such as work, leisure time and future plans. The questions are designed to
elicit a range of tenses.

The focus of this part of the test is on general interactional and social language arising out of the
conversation between the interlocutor and each candidate. This short social exchange is a natural
way to begin an interaction, and it gives candidates time to settle before dealing with the more
specific tasks in Parts 2, 3 and 4.

PART 2 INDIVIDUAL LONG TURNS 4 MINUTES

The interlocutor gives each candidate a one-minute speaking task. In turn, the candidates are asked
to compare two pictures from a set of three in response to a two-pronged task. The candidates are
given both spoken and written prompts alongside the visual stimuli. The listening candidate is
asked to comment briefly (for about 30 seconds) after their partner’s long turn.

This part tests the candidate’s ability to produce an extended piece of discourse, which may involve
comparing, describing, expressing opinions and speculating.

PART 3 COLLABORATIVE TASK 4 MINUTES

This part of the test consists of a two-way discussion between the candidates in response to a two-
pronged task based on visual and written stimuli, e.g. several photographs, artwork or computer
graphics with spoken and written prompts. Candidates engage in a discussion and work towards
reaching a negotiated conclusion towards the end of the task.

This part forms the basis for the questions in Part 4 and tests the candidate’s ability to engage in a
discussion, exchange ideas, express and justify opinions, agree and/or disagree, make suggestions,
speculate, evaluate and work towards a negotiated outcome.

PART 4 DISCUSSION 4 MINUTES

In this part of the test, the interlocutor directs the interaction by asking candidates questions that
widen the scope of the topic or issues in Part 3 and may be more abstract in nature. The interlocutor
may specifically invite one of the candidates to respond or ask an open question of the pair.

This part tests the candidate’s ability to engage in a more in-depth discussion, exchange
information, express and justify opinions and agree and/or disagree.
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Experts in Language Assessment

Assessment
Candidates are assessed according to the following criteria: Grammatical Resource; Vocabulary
Resource; Discourse Management; Pronunciation; Interactive Communication.

Rationale for the format of the Speaking Papers

The paired format provides the opportunity for a wide range of interaction types and language
functions. The different parts of the test give candidates the chance to interact with the interlocutor
and each other, as well as speak on their own for an extended period. Throughout the test, the
interlocutor uses a scripted framework, thus ensuring fairness and reliability by standardising the
Speaking tests.

In Part 1, candidates interact with the interlocutor, not with each other. The interlocutor’s spoken
prompts for the Part 2 and Part 3 tasks will also appear in written form on the visuals page, thus
helping candidates to remember and focus on what they have to do in the task.

In Part 2, at CAE, the listening candidate’s response time to the interlocutor’s question related to
their partner’s task will be extended to 30 seconds to allow for a longer response than that required
for FCE (20 seconds).

In CAE Part 3, candidates are expected to work towards a negotiated outcome during their
discussion and will no longer be asked to report back on the outcome. Three minutes provides
enough time for candidates to evaluate and/or discuss all the visuals, work towards the outcome of
their discussion and make their final decisions. There is no right or wrong answer to the tasks, so
candidates can feel free to express their own reactions to and interpretations of the visuals during
their discussion.

In both FCE and CAE Part 4, the interlocutor widens the scope of the discussion from Part 3, giving
candidates the opportunity to produce more extended responses by answering the interlocutor’s
questions. Interlocutors will be provided with additional prompts, e.g. ‘What do you think?’ and ‘Do
you agree?’ to allow them to elicit a reaction from the other candidate.

The presence of two examiners, both of whom award the candidates marks independently, also
ensures fairness in assessment. The interlocutor awards a mark for global achievement while the
assessor awards analytical marks for four different criteria at FCE, and for five different criteria
at CAE.
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Experts in Language Assessment

Preparing for the Speaking Papers

Candidates are expected to take a full and active part in the test. It is important, therefore, that
candidates seek as many opportunities to practise their spoken English as possible, inside and
outside the classroom. ‘Exam training’ can help with nervousness, and candidates certainly benefit
from being familiar with the different parts of the test, but this is no substitute for a genuine interest
in the language. Candidates who put themselves in a position where they need to use English on
a regular basis will be helped by this.

It is essential that candidates are given plenty of practice in class in participating in pair and group
activities. This will help them interact effectively with their partners by showing sensitivity to turn-
taking, initiating discussion and responding appropriately to their partner’s and the interlocutor’s
comments and questions.

Candidates should be made aware that they need to listen carefully to the interlocutor’s
instructions, and refer to the written questions on the visuals page to remind them of what they
have to do in the Part 2 and Part 3 tasks. They should also be encouraged to react to the visuals
and relate them to the task rather than simply describe them.

Training candidates to paraphrase if they do not know or cannot remember a word, and to extend
their responses rather than give a one-word answer will help them participate effectively in the
Speaking test. It would also be valuable to raise candidates’ awareness of the need to speak clearly,
since examiners are unable to assess candidates they cannot hear.

Here are some suggestions for activities which may be used in the classroom. The activities have
been organised by part, although some activities may be suitable for preparation of more than one
part of the test:

Part 1

• Provide opportunities for students to practise talking about themselves (their likes and dislikes,
personal/educational history, present circumstances, plans and hopes for the future, etc.).

• Give students written examples of less effective candidate responses and ask them to improve on
them. Example:

Examiner: What do you hope to be doing in five years’ time?

Candidate: Er… I don’t know.
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Experts in Language Assessment

Part 2

• Help students choose pairs of thematically-linked visuals and practise comparing them. They can
then go on to talk about the theme in a more general way. Students should time themselves to
check that they are able to sustain a turn for a full minute.

• Ask students to group pictures from newspapers and magazines into sets and imagine what they
might be asked to talk about in a Part 2 task in the exam.

• Help students gain confidence and project their voices by asking them to give a short one-minute
presentation to a group on a topic of their choice. The other students listen carefully, then ask a
question based on the presentation.

Part 3

• Give students practice in taking part in discussions in small groups, so that they all have the
opportunity to take the floor. Students with a quieter disposition should be encouraged to
develop strategies to ensure they are able to take their turn. All students should be encouraged
to invite opinions from others. Suitable thematic areas for discussion can be found in FCE and
CAE coursebooks.

• Encourage students to interpret the pictures that they see in coursebooks or magazines. Tell
students that it does not matter if their partner interprets a picture in a different way but that this
forms part of the discussion.

• Act out a scenario with one of your students in which you either constantly interrupt what they are
saying or say almost nothing at all. Tell the students that they should deal politely with your
interruptions or try to encourage you to say something. Students can then repeat the exercise in
pairs or groups.

• Ask students to keep a notebook in which they list items of functional language, e.g. ways of
interrupting politely or asking for an opinion. Encourage them to use as many different ways of
doing these things as possible to avoid repetition.

• Photocopy an article from a newspaper and get students to discuss the article in small groups.
When they have finished, they can compare their ideas with those of another group.

Part 4

• Provide students with as many opportunities as possible to give their opinions on a range
of issues and to expand on their views.

• Divide students into groups of three and give them a controversial statement to discuss, e.g.
‘Money should be abolished’. This will encourage them to express opinions about topics they
may not have thought of.

• Set up a regular debating session in class and give students the opportunity to argue for or
against a particular topic, e.g. ‘Global warming will mean the end of the world as we know it.’
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