Speaking

Rating Scale

Overall Communicative Language Control & Resources Delivery/

Effectiveness Grammar Vocabulary Intelligibility*

5 Conveys information and ideas, and • Minor occasional • Sufficient productive • In both interactive context
asserts a viewpoint very comprehensibly errors do vocabulary to and longer utterances,
Expresses ideas readily, including not impede convey ideas with speaks at a reasonable
details and complexities comprehensibility some precision, rate with infrequent pauses
• Shows functional though occasionally • Voice and intonation
Sustains talk quite independently
Exceeds Standard

control of grammar uses words not contribute positively

without interlocutor support
quite on target to intended meaning
Understands interlocutor speech
without grammatical or lexical • Range of vocabulary and tone/tenor of the
simplification at normal pace conveys some interaction
subtlety of • Features of L1 are evident
Highly Interactive Participant: often expression and
spontaneously elaborates on new but deviations in sounds
stance on a topic and stress rarely create
topics and can contribute substantially
to topic development; self-initiates misunderstandings
• Sufficient linguistic resources combine with
topic commentary and easily initiates cohesive devices to create an interactive
exchanges participant with some independence

4 Conveys information, ideas, and • Some errors occur • Shows productive • In interactive context,
viewpoint comprehensibly but rarely impede control of a range of speaks at a reasonable
Expresses ideas generally and with comprehensibility vocabulary though rate with infrequent pauses
some supporting details • Shows functional does not always • In longer responses,
grammatical control use the exact “right” pausing is more noticeable
Sustains talk, usually without
with pauses mainly word
interlocutor restating or clarifying details • Voice and intonation
at phrase/clause • Self-corrects and
Exceeds Standard

Understands interlocutor speech at contribute positively to

normal pace boundaries paraphrases to intended meaning
convey intended
Active Participant: spontaneously meaning • Features of L1 are evident
elaborates and contributes to topic but deviations in sounds or
development and shows involvement • Shows some stress do not interfere with
in interaction; self-initiates topic awareness communication or result in
commentary and initiates exchanges of register or many misunderstandings
appropriateness of
certain words
• Lack of sufficient cohesive devices
(grammatical and lexical) causes some
awkwardness
* Pauses (filled and unfilled) and hesitations referred to are those that appear to be due to lack of language rather than
those needed occasionally by any speaker to conceptually plan what one wants to say.

Last Update: 02/11/20 MichiganAssessment.org

 Overall Communicative Language Control & Resources Delivery/
Effectiveness Grammar Vocabulary Intelligibility*

3 Conveys information, ideas, and • Some errors occur • Enough vocabulary • In interactive context,
viewpoint comprehensibly, though at but still generally to convey generally speaks at a reasonable
times may struggle a bit comprehensible intended meaning rate with infrequent pauses
Expresses ideas generally though • Shows functional but occasionally or hesitations
supporting details may not always be grammatical control has errors in • In longer responses,
clear with pauses mainly word choice and pausing is more noticeable
at phrase/clause morphology
Sustains talk; interlocutor occasionally • Features of L1 are evident
needs to summarize or restate for boundaries • Uses circumlocution but deviations in sounds or
clarification, particularly with regard to and fillers to cover
Standard

stress do not interfere with

longer test-taker responses; interlocutor some vocabulary communication or result in
does not strain to understand test taker gaps many misunderstandings
Generally Understands ideas but may • Self-monitors
have to negotiate the meaning of details and attentive to
Active Participant: spontaneously correction
elaborates and contributes to topic
• Lack of sufficient cohesive devices
development; initiates exchanges
(grammatical and lexical) causes some
awkwardness; lack of sustained clarity or
some incoherence in longer responses

2 Conveys information, ideas, and • Shows some • Some vocabulary • Rate of delivery (uneven
viewpoint in a general manner but knowledge of control but or slow) together with
unable to say fully or exactly what he or basic grammar insufficient to pauses and hesitations are
she might want to say and syntax, but express meaning distracting
Attempts to Express ideas, though frequent attempts beyond basic idea • L1 features may create
detail may be difficult to understand due at self-correction, • Frequency of word strain on listener; certain
to language constraints pauses, awkward choice errors words or phrases may
chunking, and/or often obscures need repetition or slower
Can Sustain involvement but only with
missing grammatical communication of articulation to promote
a patient interlocutor who must clarify
elements disrupt specific details intelligibility
ideas
communication
Understands interlocutor input or • Some
support when it is clear and general, but • Pauses and self-monitoring and
hesitations often not
Below Standard

communication breakdowns may result self-correction

if interlocutor conveys too many details
or complexity in restatements
Somewhat Interactive Participant:
sustains involvement in an interaction
and does some elaboration and
initiation
at phrase or clause
boundaries
• May rely on use of
phrase strings or
disconnected clause
units
• High frequency of errors (grammar, syntax,
morphology, vocabulary)
• Lack of sufficient grammar and/or vocabulary
restricts communication beyond the basic or
general idea and causes lack of sustained
clarity and general coherence
• May rely on use of phrase strings or
disconnected clause units so discourse
produced is often not cohesive

* Pauses (filled and unfilled) and hesitations referred to are those that appear to be due to lack of language rather than
those needed occasionally by any speaker to conceptually plan what one wants to say.

ECCE Speaking Rating Scale

2
 Overall Communicative Language Control & Resources Delivery/
Effectiveness Grammar Vocabulary Intelligibility*

1 Conveying ideas can take time, is • Shows knowledge • Inadequate range • Slow delivery of language
challenging, and usually unsuccessful of basic clauses, of productive • High frequency of pauses
Unable to Express oneself but many contain vocabulary restricts (some quite lengthy
pauses (filled and what can be and awkward) results
Unable to Sustain involvement,
unfilled) and are expressed in disfluent speech and
and needs interlocutor support
rendered as phrasal • Inadequate range disrupts communication
for interpretation, synthesis, and
chunks of receptive
restatement of ideas and to provide • Phonological variation due
clarification; rarely independent in an • Pauses and vocabulary so that to L1 transfer may cause
Below Standard

interaction hesitations are interlocutor may unintelligibility

Difficulty in Understanding and weak not commonly at need to reformulate
receptive skills phrase or clause and rephrase to be
boundaries understood
Not an Interactive Participant:
elaboration and topic initiations are • High frequency of errors (grammar, syntax,
rarely successful morphology, vocabulary) can impede
comprehensibility
• Lack of vocabulary; in particular, seems to
restrict communicative effectiveness; lack
of sufficient language control and resources
affects comprehensibility

* Pauses (filled and unfilled) and hesitations referred to are those that appear to be due to lack of language rather than
those needed occasionally by any speaker to conceptually plan what one wants to say.

ECCE Speaking Rating Scale

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