INTERACTIVE PHASE
22
INTERACTIVE TASK This phase provides the opportunity for candidates to demonstrate their ability to initiate and take control over the interaction through the use of questioning techniques and functions associated with requesting information, seeking clarification and encouraging further detail.. In addition to general functions such as requesting information, the language functions listed for the particular grade should arise naturally from each task prompt. In this phase, the emphasis is placed upon the candidate’s ability to use functional language rather than upon the accurate use of the grammatical structures listed for the grade. It is important that, once the examiner has set up the situation, the candidate takes responsibility for the interaction. The interaction will take the form of multiple turns, with the examiner’s turns being much shorter than those of the candidate. In some cases this may involve role-play but the examiner and candidate are free to ‘be themselves’ so as to create as authentic an exchange as possible. At the Advanced stage, the actual tasks have been designed to provide the candidates with the opportunity of demonstrating not only their ability to express the functions of the grade but also their control of the grammatical items listed for all grades up to and including Grade 9. (See Grammar Reference) Sample exchange in the Interactive phase at Grade 10
Examiner: -. The situation my friend’s in with her eighty-year-old mother is quite difficult. (Possible functions: developing an argument, defending a point of view, expressing beliefs, expressing opinions tentatively)
Candidate: - What is specifically the problem she or he’s having in? Examiner: - She lives with her mother who has decided to get married. Candidate: - How does she feel about that? Has your friend raised any objections to that marriage? Examiner: - I must say that her supposed future step-father isn’t with good intentions. Candidate: -…..........
23
Grade 10 - Sample Interactive prompts Below are some sample Interactive Prompts for Advanced Stage. Please note these are samples and will not be used in an actual examination. The examiner will introduce this phase by saying: ‘In this task, I'll start by telling you something. You'll have to ask me questions to find out more information. It's your responsibility to maintain the conversation. Are you ready?’ 1. The situation my friend’s in with her eighty-year-old mother is quite difficult. (Possible functions: developing an argument, defending a point of view, expressing beliefs, expressing opinions tentatively) 2. Sometimes I’m not sure if some of the surprising things that keep happening to me are a result of chance – or whether there is more to it. (Possible functions: expressing beliefs, deducing, summarising ideas, expressing opinions tentatively) 3. I remember reading a story about an old woman having just a few coins stolen from her home. The story ended in a very surprising way. (Possible functions: deducing, expressing beliefs, summarising information,) 4. Recently I had to take an examination. I hadn’t been in that situation for years so it was a really strange experience, but not altogether unpleasant. (Possible functions: deducing, summarising information, developing an argument, expressing opinions tentatively) 5. My daughter wants to go to school in this country but is not sure how much help she would get with choosing a career. (Possible functions: summarising information, ideas and arguments, expressing beliefs, expressing opinions tentatively) 6. Recently I made a decision that I may live to regret. I invested quite a lot of money in a scheme I don't know much about. (Possible functions: deducing, expressing opinions tentatively; developing an argument) 7. I've never believed that dreams were related in any way to reality but after the one I had the other night, I'm not so sure. (Possible functions: deducing, expressing beliefs, defending a point of view, expressing opinions, summarising ideas) 8. There's a plan to close down our small village post office. We've started a campaign to stop this from happening. (Possible functions: developing an argument, defending a point of view, expressing beliefs, expressing opinions tentatively, summarising ideas and arguments)
24
9. My nephew had a serious motorbike accident last spring and how he was treated made me change my opinions of the health service. (Possible functions: developing an argument, defending a point of view, expressing beliefs, expressing opinions tentatively) 10. I'd never been inside a prison before - last year was the very first time. (Possible functions: expressing beliefs, expressing opinions tentatively, deducing, summarising ideas) 11. I went to a party the other week. I'd been looking forward to it for ages but it didn't quite turn out as I'd expected. (Possible functions: deducing, expressing opinions tentatively, summarising ideas) 12. A boy I know can't decide what job to do so he's thinking of joining the army for a year or two. His parents were asking me what I thought about it. (Possible functions: expressing beliefs, expressing opinions tentatively, developing an argument, summarising arguments) 13. A local newspaper is offering a prize to the person who can give up their mobile phone for the longest period of time. I'm thinking of having a go. (Possible functions: deducing, summarising ideas and arguments, defending a point of view, developing an argument) 14. My neighbours' 16 year-old son has just got a job, with no experience, as a waiter in a very smart restaurant and they've invited me for a meal there. (Possible functions: deducing, defending a point of view, summarising ideas, expressing opinions tentatively) 15. My brother's changing his job and has to move to another part of the country which means the children changing schools. I told him I didn't think it was a good idea but he does have his job to consider. (Possible functions: summarising ideas and arguments, defending a point of view, developing an argument, expressing opinions tentatively)
25
USEFUL FUNCTIONS FOR THE INTERACTIVE TASK A.- DEVELOPING AN ARGUMENT Example of a non-debatable thesis statement: Pollution is bad for the environment. This thesis statement is not debatable. First, the word pollution means that something is bad or negative in some way. Further, all studies agree that pollution is a problem, they simply disagree on the impact it will have or the scope of the problem. No one could reasonably argue that pollution is good. Example of a debatable statement: At least twenty-five percent of the federal budget should be spent on limiting pollution. This is an example of a debatable thesis because reasonable people could disagree with it. Some people might think that this is how we should spend the nation's money. Others might feel that we should be spending more money on education. Still others could argue that corporations, not the government, should be paying to limit pollution. Another example of a debatable thesis statement: America's anti-pollution efforts should focus on privately owned cars. In this example there is also room for disagreement between rational individuals. Some citizens might think focusing on recycling programs rather than private automobiles is the most effective strategy. Example of a statement that is too broad: Drug use is detrimental to society. There are several reasons this statement is too broad to argue. First, what is included in the category "drugs"? Is the author talking about illegal drug use, recreational drug use (which might include alcohol and cigarettes), or all uses of medication in general? Second, in what ways are drugs detrimental? Is drug use causing deaths (and is the author equating deaths from overdoses and deaths from drug related violence)? Is drug use changing the moral climate or causing the economy to decline? Finally, what does the author mean by "society"? Is the author referring only to America or to the global population? Does the author make any distinction between the effects on children and adults? There are just too many questions that the claim leaves open. The author could not cover all of the topics listed above, yet the generality of the claim leaves all of these possibilities open to debate.
26
Example of a narrow or focused statement: Illegal drug use is detrimental because it encourages gang violence. In this example the the topic of drugs has been narrowed down to illegal drugs and the detriment has been narrowed down to gang violence. This is a much more manageable topic. Narrowed debatable statement 1: At least twenty-five percent of the federal budget should be spent on helping upgrade business to clean technologies, researching renewable energy sources, and planting more trees in order to control or eliminate pollution. This statement narrow the scope of the argument by specifying not just the amount of money used but also how the money could actually help to control pollution. Narrowed debatable thesis 2: America's anti-pollution efforts should focus on privately owned cars because it would allow most citizens to contribute to national efforts and care about the outcome. This statement narrows the scope of the argument by specifying not just what the focus of a national anti-pollution campaign should be but also why this is the appropriate focus. Qualifiers such as "typically," "generally," "usually," or "on average" also help to limit the scope of your claim by allowing for the almost inevitable exception to the rule. Types of Claims Claims typically fall into one of four categories. Thinking about how you want to approach your topic, in other words what type of claim you want to make, is one way to focus your opinion on one particular aspect of you broader topic. Claims of fact or definition: These claims argue about what the definition of something is or whether something is a settled fact. Example: What some people refer to as global warming is actually nothing more than normal, long-term cycles of climate change. Claims of cause and effect: These claims argue that one person, thing, or event caused another thing or event to occur. Example: The popularity of SUV's in America has caused pollution to increase. Claims about value: These are claims made about what something is worth, whether we value it or not, how we would rate or categorize something. Example:
27
Global warming is the most pressing challenge facing the world today. Claims about solutions or policies: These are claims that argue for or against a certain solution or policy approach to a problem. Example: Instead of drilling for oil in Alaska we should be focusing on ways to reduce oil consumption, such as researching renewable energy sources.
B.- DEFENDING A POINT OF VIEW Well, the things is,…
First,… then,… lastly …
Let me explain…
…, that’s why…
The main reason why… is that… They are quite a few reasons why… C.- EXPRESSING BELIEFS I believe that…
I shall…
Don’t you think the colour
According to my beliefs, I would say that…
I’m thinking of…
Wouldn’t you say that…?
I’m determined to…
I have heard that…
I’m planning to…
It is rumoured that…
I really mean to…
I feel suspicious about…
I’m definitely going to… I’ve decided to…
D.- EXPRESSING OPINIONS TENTATIVELY I strongly agree/ strongly disagree
I don’t agree that…
it is undeniable that…
I couldn’t agree less…
I’m certain that…
In my opinion, I would Say that…
You are incorrect…
I would argue that…
Do you really think that..
This can’t be true…
I feel that…
The way I see it,…
I hold the view that…
As far as I’m concerned,
I’d say that…
My impression is that…
I agree that…
What I think is…
I have the feeling that…
I reckon…
28
You are right in saying…
It seems to me that…
I have no doubt
That seems to be correct…
To my mind,…
I support the view
E.- SUMMARISING ARGUMENTS all in all as has been said finally in brief
in essence in summary that is
as a result certainly hence
in short on balance to conclude
Might be
Can’t be
Could be
F.- DEDUCING: Must be
Jane’s light is on. They might be training for a tournament It might be a pet pit. The cart must be too heavy. She must be at home. It can’t be August. She can’t be out It must be in America It could be a local fair. It must be very frightened They must be at school. OTHER USEFUL FUNCTIONS TO HELP THE CONVERSATION GOING A.- STARTING A DISCUSSION Why don’t we start by … ?
Shall we … first?
Let’s begin with … (shall we?)
We could start by talking about …
B.- INVOLVING THE OTHER PERSON What do you think (about) …? Do you agree with that? What would you say?
29
C.- STALL FOR TIME (WHEN YOU'RE ASKED A DIFFICULT QUESTION) That's such a good question
That's tricky one
Let me see...
That's a difficult question
I'd have to think about that
Well…
D.- BE VAGUE AND / OR IMPRECISE Once in a blue moon
From time to time
More or less
In a hour so …
Loads of.. (mistakes)
About (eight)-ish
Bits and pieces
That kind of thing
Sort of / kind of
In a way E.- GIVE ADVICE / MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS ABOUT PLACES It's a must / a must see
Don't miss... /Make sure you go to .....
It's good value for money
You should try -ing....
It's a bit overrated / overpriced
I suggest going..../ that you go there
It's not all it's cracked up to be.
Watch out for …
I found it a bit dull /touristy
One thing to be wary of is …
If I were you I'd go to .... F.- SUGGESTING THINGS TO DO I hope you will … You could go to the … You really must … / You absolutely have to … How do you fancy …? What / How about … ? G.- SUGGESTING WHAT TO BRING It would probably be a good idea … Don’t bother … H.- REFERRING TO QUESTIONS
30
As for (X) itself You asked about You wanted to know whether … I.- TALKING ABOUT POSSIBILITIES You will be able to … You should manage to … We might be able to … J.- APOLOGISING I’m very sorry but … I’m afraid there won’t be … Unfortunately, I don’t think … K.- BRINGING THE DISCUSSION TO AN END So let’s decide which … Shall we make a decision? Anyway, we have to decide
31
