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• The Standard Speaking Test

The Standard Speaking Test is the first independent test in Japan to measure the oral proficiency of English learners, and provides an efficient and accurate alternative to the numerous 'paper and pencil' tests currently available.

The Need for a Speaking Test

Over the last decade or so, an increasing number of ESL educators in Japan have begun to realize that a test to measure oral proficiency is long overdue. The more people go abroad on business or to study, the more apparent it becomes that 'paper and pencil' test performances do not reflect the ability to communicate and must be supplemented with an oral test.

This problem is especially acute in Japan, where the consensus is that learners' oral skills are considerably weaker than the skills required to do well on 'paper and pencil' tests. Despite this, oral proficiency tests have not been used a great deal in Japan due to the following obstacles:

1. In a short interview, it is difficult to elicit ratable speech samples that allow a global assessment of interviewees' speaking proficiency.
2. The assessment criteria are not clear.
3. The assessment scale of speaking proficiency has not been standardized.
4. There is a lack of well-trained testers.

Fully aware of the difficulties involved in the creation of such a test, ACTFL and ALC Press (ALC) have spent a considerable amount of time in overcoming these factors and have pooled their resources and experience to develop the Standard Speaking Test (SST).

What is SST?

The Standard Speaking Test (SST) is an interview test for a global assessment of functional speaking ability. The SST stands on the theoretical foundation of ACTFL OPI and is modeled after it. However, the SST is uniquely designed to meet the special needs of Japanese ESL learners and the ESL situation in Japan.

The SST is both structured in stages and adaptive to the perceived level of the examinee as well as his/her personal and professional interests. The purpose of the interview is to elicit a performance sample that is recorded and evaluated by two evaluators (SST Raters) according to the SST evaluation criteria that are outlined in the SST Manual.

Note:
ACTFL (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) is a national association of foreign language professionals dedicated to furthering foreign language education in all languages and at all levels of instruction.

ALC Press is a publisher which specializes in ESL and JSL materials. It brought OPI to the ESL field in Japan in 1990 and has conducted OPI Trainer Certification Workshops while promoting the spread of OPI in Japan.

Characteristics of SST

1. The SST interview is 10 to 15 minutes long and consists of 5 stages.

Stage 1: Warm-up questions
Stage 2: Single Picture
Stage 3: Role-play with the interviewer
Stage 4: Picture Sequences
Stage 5: Wind-Down questions

There is a flexibility within this structure and each stage is designed to elicit a speech sample. Interviewers have been thoroughly trained in elicitation technique to ensure that the performance of the examinee will lead to the most accurate rating.

2. The SST Levels are from Level 1 (Novice Low) to Level 9 (Advanced).

The following shows the correlation between SST and ACTFL OPI.

ACTFL OPI Levels	SST Levels
Superior	Level 9
Advanced High
Advanced Mid
Advanced Low
Intermediate High	Level 8
Intermediate Mid	Level 7
	Level 6
Intermediate Low	Level 5
	Level 4
Novice High	Level 3
Novice Mid	Level 2
Novice Low	Level 1

N.B.
- SST measures English proficiency primarily at the Novice through Intermediate High levels.
- SST is not designed to discriminate well at levels higher than Intermediate-High, but can suggest when an examinee may be Advanced.
- SST utilizes a 9 point rating scale to finely discriminate from Novice to Advanced level of English proficiency.

3. The SST assessment criteria are reliable.

The SST includes the following four categories of assessment criteria:
- Global tasks and functions performed within the language
- Social contexts and content areas in which English is used
- Accuracy with which the speaker performs speaking tasks within a specified context and content (Factors included in this category are primarily grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and fluency)
- Oral text types and quantity of speech produced during the testing situations

The SST is a criterion-referenced assessment tool scored according to the above specified criteria.

4. The SST interview is rated by 2 or 3 SST Raters.

The SST interviewers do not formally score the candidate's speaking proficiency. The SST certified rater gives an initial rating. Initial rating must be confirmed by another rater. If the two raters do not agree on their rating, the Master Rater gives the third and final rating.

5. Official Examination Fee

10,000 yen, tax excluded (This includes interview fee, official SST rating certificate, evaluations and comments) A special group discount is available for school and companies.