Integrated Skills in English (ISE) Syllabus from 1 February 2010

ABOUT THE EXAM Different than Trinity Graded Exams in Spoken English that was taken by 8 th graders in previous years. Designed to assess all language skills: – Reading – Writing – Speaking – Listening Allows candidates to word process part of work

ISE Exam is a 4-Skill Exam ComponentSkill InvolvedSkills Assessed Portfolio of candidate’s written work put together during class or individual study Writing with readingWriting Reading & Writing Exam taken under controlled conditions Writing with readingWriting & Reading Oral Interview (including portfolio discussion) between candidate and native speaker examiner Writing with reading with speaking & listening Speaking & listening

ABOUT THE COMPONENTS This year your 8th grade class will take ISE 1 ISE LEVELPORTFOLIOEXAMINTERVIEW ISE I3 tasks2 tasks

COMPONENTS Portfolio – Collection of candidate’s best work – Structure: Each level contains 3 tasks to be included in portfolio Tasks are divided into 3 sections (correspondence, factual writing, creative/descriptive); with 5 task options in each section Students choose 1 task from each section to display different types of writing Each class will complete many tasks during the year and at the end of the year students may select their best work in each category to be included in their portfolio

(Portfolio Cont’d) – Preparation Students work must be from current task lists for the appropriate level No plagiarism & must cite quotes Use of word processor encouraged; high level of accuracy expected Teachers allowed to give one piece of feedback per task, using feedback form (sample appendix 2) However, teachers MUST NOT correct their students’ work. Teachers may give guidance during preparation in form of feedback form Display functional, grammatical & lexical items for level (and preceding levels) Student revisions encouraged but should not be included in portfolio Cover sheet must be included (appendix 1), containing word counts. Tasks over word limits will not be graded You must be organized, with a folder to save all your Trinity materials, when you have selected the final tasks for your portfolio, Trinity will provide a color-coded wallet. Must be ready no later than one day before visit of examiner

Appendix 2

Appendix 1

Controlled Writing Exam Component Test of reading and writing skills Taken on a specific date near the end of 3 rd trimester (exact date to be determined) Exam starts promptly at 10:00 am. No external resources (dictionaries, etc) allowed Use blue/black pen, no white out/corrector pen Tests functional, grammatical and lexiconal skills Structure – ISE 1 test includes 2 tasks (reading into writing/ writing) – Each task has equal weight; no student choice involved – ISE hour 30 minutes total. Task words, Task words.

The Interview Component With Trinity Examiner Involve real-life situations to exchange information, share ideas & opinions and debate topical issues Includes topic discussion and discussion of portfolio and conversation. The interview lasts 8 minutes.

About Assessment During examiner’s visit, portfolio assessed & interview conducted & assessed Controlled written exam (exam) graded by Trinity Examiners in UK Standard American or UK spelling allowed but must be consistent ISE level & preceding levels considered

Portfolio Assessment Writing skills assessed on 5-point scale (A-E) prior to interviews Criterion is task fulfillment. This includes: – Overall achievement of communicative aim – Text organization – Propriety of format, style and register/tone – Accuracy & range of functions, grammatical structures and lexis – Effect on reader Accuracy expected: assumed candidate had access to spell-check, dictionaries, etc Additional text beyond limit will not be marked & will affect grade Assessment recorded on marksheet; candidates not informed of portfolio results at interview Plagiarized portfolios not graded; marked with “U” and sent to Trinity Problematic portfolios marked “N” and sent to Trinity Tasks do not have equal weight (table p. 17; next slide)

Summary of calculation of overall result

Exam Assessment Assesses reading and writing skills 2 criteria: – Task fulfillment Overall achievement of communicative aim Text organization Appropriacy of format, style, & register/tone Effect on reader – Accuracy and range Of specified functional, grammatical and lexical requirements of level And of spelling & punctuation 10% tolerance applied to excesses of word length Reading into writing tasks: candidates base response on text but use own words No report form is issued; results issued on summary slip Tasks have equal weight

Interview Assessment Assesses speaking and listening skills One criterion: task fulfillment – Coverage of communicative skills – Coverage of language functions listed – Coverage, accuracy & appropriacy of grammatical, lexical and phonological items listed – Fluency and promptness of response appropriate for level – Examiner selects one of 4 levels of performance A: distinction (excellent performance) B: merit (good performance) C: pass (satisfactory performance) D: fail (unsatisfactory performance)

Results Forms & Certificates Examination Report forms – Completed by examiner immediately after interview – Provides: Assessment of overall performance in each interview phase Indication of key areas for improvement Overall result stated as pass or fail – Not a confirmed result - only concerns interview – Sample at appendix 5 Marksheets – Assessments for portfolio & interview components – Indication of key areas for improvement – For internal use only Calculation of Overall Results – Done by Trinity Online – See p. 17 for weighting Results Summary Slips – Each candidate receives via their center confirming provisional results of interview and giving details of overall marks for portfolio & exam – Sent with certificate – To pass overall, must pass exam AND portfolio & interview – 3 levels of pass: Pass with distinction Pass with merit pass Certificates – Successful candidates receive 6-8 weeks after interview – Gives name, qualification at what level, name of teacher/school, level of pass in both sections

ISE I Candidate Profile – Understand main points of clear standard English that they hear or read on familiar matters in work or school

ISE I Portfolio Works selected for portfolio fall into the following categories. Correspondence – Such as letter or – Example: you want to join a fitness center; write to manager about why you want to join, your level of fitness and past activities Factual writing – such as report, article or review – article of teen magazine about new fashions and your opinion of same Creative/descriptive writing – Such as story, diary or description – Write diary entry about best day of your life: what happened, why it was so good

ISE I Controlled Written Exam 2 tasks, equal weight. 1.5 hours Format – Task 1. reading into writing: approx. 150 words – Task 2. writing: approx 150 words Sample

ISE I Interview Sample on website Sample topic form appendix four 8 minutes with 2 phases, topic & conversation Communicative skills: – 1.Topic show understanding with appropriate responses give information about topic make sequence of events clear answer questions, informally discuss topic ask at least one question use ISE I functions and items – 2.conversation respond to questions appropriately provide information/opinions where appropriate start to initiate and maintain conversation ask examiner at least one question about portfolio and at least one about subject discuss portfolio

ISE I Interview Procedure Examiner greets candidate Examiner asks for topic form and candidate says what he will talk about Topic phase: examiner selects discussion point and asks questions or comments to promote conversation until all 4 points on topic form have been covered. Candidate asks examiner at least one question about topic. Examiner then moves on to portfolio discussion in which examiner spends about 2 minutes on contents. Then he/she selects one of the subject areas listed for ISE I and engages candidate for 2 minutes

ISE I Interview Guidance Prepared topic: gives candidates opportunity to display command of language while discussing self-selected and relevant topics – Topic should be of personal interest, not from list of ISE subject areas or from portfolio – Shouldn’t be same as peers; teachers should monitor – 4 minutes, no more – No written script – Anticipate questions, prepared to give examples & clarifications – Topic form completed prior to interview with four points for discussion Example appendix 3 – Topic prepared as whole; discussion points wont be discussed in any particular order – Candidate may bring pictures, photos, etc, relevant to topic (no animals or dangerous objects) Conversation: discuss portfolio and participate in genuine exchange – Prepare to discuss details from portfolio, provide examples and clarifications – Discussion of subject area from list provided; candidate must be prepared to discuss all areas on list – Candidates encouraged to talk as much as possible – No memorization

Appendix 3

Language & General Skill Requirements

RESULTS To overall pass, must get a pass in both controlled written exam and portfolio and the interview