Scholar Advice

The performance will have 50 marks (25% of the total mark).

1. This will take the form of discussion with the visiting examiner, which will last for approximately 20 minutes and cover both Language and your Portfolio.
   The discussion will be recorded, but the recording is only used for control purposes by the SQA. The examiner will assess your performance from the discussion.

2. Try to build up a bank of material you can use for talking. Remember to learn good phrases and idioms from your reading and coursework throughout the year and also to use materials from essays. Learn phrases and structures to express opinions and use general discussion techniques. On-going preparation is the key to success.
   Try to develop good pronunciation and intonation in Spanish by listening carefully to your teacher or tutor and any listening materials used in class. (Your teacher or tutor could probably provide materials for you to listen to at home and there is a host of materials available on the web. Films and TV programmes are also good for developing your listening and talking skills) Try to use complex sentences.
   Practise speaking aloud in Spanish as much as possible, so that you become used to hearing your voice. You could practise with your teacher (or assistant) or tutor, fellow students, members of your family or on your own. It is also useful to record yourself speaking. These recordings can be helpful if you are trying to memorise material.

3. You will have to complete a form for the Visiting Examiner in which you give details of topics you have studied during the year. When listing the topics, it makes sense to write down the ones you are happiest talking about. This form is sent to the Visiting Examiner well before the test.
   If you study a new topic after you have completed the form, you can still use it for the talking assessment, although it does not appear on the original form. Try to decide the order in which you would like to use the topics for the test. You can start with the Language Units and then move onto the Portfolio or, if you prefer, take the topics in the other order. The examiner should take his/her cue from you.
   It is useful to have some on-going discussions with your teacher in Spanish about your progress with your work on the portfolio. This will help you have material prepared for your discussion with the Visiting Examiner. Be prepared to use and adapt other learned material to fit in with the flow of the discussion. Your class teacher or another teacher or tutor should also give you a practice talking test.

4. The tests usually take place between mid-February and the end of March. You will be given a time for your test by the school, after the Visiting Examiner has arranged a suitable date.
   The Visiting Examiner normally meets all the candidates and their teacher or tutor before the tests begin. During this short meeting, the examiner will briefly go over the conduct of the test and answer any questions you may have. The examiner may also speak a little in the foreign language with your teacher or tutor, so that you can hear his/her accent. Remember that the examiners are usually practising teachers or university lecturers, who are familiar with carrying out talking assessments.
   When you come to take the test, the examiner will start the recording. Normally he/she will talk for about 30 seconds in Spanish and then ask you about some personal matters to allow you time to settle. It is helpful to have prepared some material about what you have been studying at school during the year, what you hope to do when you leave school and about your hobbies and interests. This is a warm-up, before you start discussing the topics you have studied.

Remember that you are expected to engage in a discussion with the Visiting Examiner, not make a presentation to him/her. If it looks like you are making a presentation, the examiner will interrupt your flow and ask questions.

The examiner will then ask you which topics you have been studying and which one(s) you have found most interesting. This will also involve discussing your progress towards the portfolio piece. They will then start a discussion on these topics.
It is a good idea to have prepared a short opening presentation where you indicate the aspects of the topic which have interested you and the discussion should flow from there.
The examiner is not testing your knowledge of the topic as such, but your ability to sustain a discussion in Spanish. They will be hoping you can show you have read the texts in Spanish, however! Absolute excellence is not required. You should communicate readily and fairly correctly, with a reasonable amount of idiom and variety of structure, and be prepared to take the initiative. About halfway through the test, the examiner will change the discussion to the other area. The test will end after approximately 20 minutes. REMEMBER…

• Preparation for the talking assessment is on-going throughout the course. Be as well prepared as possible.

• You are encouraged to use learned material, but be prepared to adapt it.

• The examiner is there to take part in a discussion.

• They will try to put you at your ease and be as encouraging as possible.

• If you realise you have made a mistake, it is perfectly alright for you to correct yourself.

• If you forget a word, ask the examiner for help, provided you ask in Spanish.

• If you 'blank' completely, it will be obvious to the examiner, who will use his/her experience to try to continue the conversation, perhaps asking some easier questions, so that you regain your confidence, or by changing to another topic.

• It is perfectly all right for you to ask the examiner questions and about his/her opinions.