EXTENDED PRODUCTION TASKS

EXTENDED PRODUCTION TASKS

Extended production tasks aim to elicit responses that will be longer than a sentence or utterance.Unlike limited production or selected responses tasks which are item-based,extended production tasks are prompt-based. They can be either independent or passage-based. An essay prompt can be an example of independent extented production task. Writing an essay about the given and read passage can be an example of passage-based extended production task.

EXTENTED PRODUCTION TASKS

They can be divided into three categories.

Extended Production Tasks With Written Responses

Extended Production Tasks With Spoken Responses

Portfolios

Extended Production Tasks With Written Responses

• They can range in length from several sentences to an entire essay even to full-length research papers.
• One example of written task format is recall tasks.In recall tasks,students are allowed to read or listen to the passage several times and even take notes before writing a detailed summary.That's why they involve both language ability and memory.

Extended Production Tasks With Written Responses

• Another example of written task format is written summaries.As the name suggests,they are the summaries of reading or listening passages.The difference between recall tasks and written summaries is the test takers can refer to the passage or their notes while writing.They don't depend on the writer's memory.They are more suitable for curricilum-related assessment purposes.
• Recall tasks yield detailed responses whereas written summaries yield main ideas.

Extended Production Tasks With Written Responses

• Another example of written task format is dictation.It integrates with listening ability with writing ability.
• It has been viewed as an indicator of language proficiency since it has been used to assess knowledge of lexical bundles and particular syntactic feature.

Extended Production Tasks With Written Responses

• Another example of written task format is note-taking.The main diffirence with dictation is the goal not to write every heard word.
• We need to ask two questions while creating a dictation or note-taking task;
• 1.How many times the passage should be repeated
• 2.How quickly or slowly it should be read.

The answers depend on the language ability that the teachers wish to make.Here authenticity is important as well.For example,if the examinees could listen to the pasage several times outside the test,it would be authentic to listen to the passage several times during the test as well.

Extended Production Tasks With Written Responses

• Even native speakers may have difficulty to keep up with the fast speech,so it is important to consider the extent to which students will need extra time to write.

EXTENTED PRODUCTION TASKS WITH SPOKEN RESPONSES

These tasks can vary greatly in terms of;The amount of preparation time provided The amount of input about which learners are to speak The format of the task. They can be as short as a few utterances,a short monolog of 30 seconds,a very short conversation. They can also include a lengthy conversation , a speech or a presentation. The length is depended on the target language use domain task in which the assessment is based.

EXTENTED PRODUCTION TASKS WITH SPOKEN RESPONSES

The most typical extended production speaking task is perhaps the interview.Interviews can be highly-scripted with specific prompts which must be asked.Follow-up questions may not be allowed or may be required. They can be freee-formed with no set list of prompts. They can be open-ended which it is necessary to specify what sort of things (topics,functions,structures) will be discussed or elicited. It is thought that interviews are not authentic and does not reflect the normal conversation.In real world with spoken interaction,Person A does not ask questions and Person B answers them.This lack of authenticity has led to interest in alternative speaking assessment.

One approach to provide authenticity to interviews is group oral interview.Pairs or small groups of students discuss one or more specific topics. To decide the number of students in a group depends on many factors such as; The proficiency levels of the students Differences between their levels Their talkativeness Their shyness How long the interview will last How many raters are available to score the interactions How many interviewees a rater can evaluate at the same time. In order to make group oral more useful,it must be implemented with the testing context,the students need to be familiar with the testing format.

EXTENTED PRODUCTION TASKS WITH SPOKEN RESPONSES

Another speaking task format is role-play tasks.They provide assessing learners' ability to engage various types of speech acts or to perform a lot of language functions than to discuss in a group. Roles and background information are given on rola cards. Role-plays are really good to display speaking ability.

EXTENTED PRODUCTION TASKS WITH SPOKEN RESPONSES

Another speaking task format is monolog.In monolog,responses are recorded. The students are expected to respond to a prompt or prompts without seeing them before. Narrating a story told by a series of pictures , describing a picture , interpreting graphs are the examples of monolog.

EXTENTED PRODUCTION TASKS WITH SPOKEN RESPONSES

Another speaking task format is reading-aloud.It is best to test pronunciation ability including stress,rhytm,intonation, connected speech and reading fluency.

PORTFOLIOS

Portfolios are collections of student work from a course.They are useful for showing a student's development and improvement. They can assess both writing and speaking. They are anxiety free so they can show performance well. Writing portfolios include many drafts so by comparing the final work and the drafts , we can see how the student achieved during the course.

PORTFOLIOS

Portfolios can be used to assess students' speaking ability,as well.This is done by recordings but it is necessary to train teachers and students in how to record,copy etc. Recordings may include; Regular spoken journal entries Interactions with native speakers Interactions with other students outside the class Speaking activities in class.

TRANSLATION AS A TASK FORMAT

Translation is a good way to assess the ability to translate.As a means of assessing reading,writing,speaking,listening,grammar,vocabulary, it can involve any or all of these areas.

Regardless of whether it is written or spoken , it is essential to keep in mind why this specific task format is being used for assessment.We need to ask ourselves what information we expect about a student's language ability before deciding on the task type.

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AYSEL ERGÜL ALAGÖZ202637111094