Spring Break
SPEAK evaluates speaking ability, but how well?
International graduate teaching assistants must score 50 or higher in order to be considered proficient communicators; some international students disagree on test's validity - administrators assure its value
Aleks Cherednichenko
Issue date: 8/8/07 Section: News
Currently several hundred international graduate teaching assistants are employed by the university. All are required to take the Speaking Proficiency English Assessment Kit test, administered by the English Language Institute, before being hired as teaching assistants.
"About 15 years ago the Oregon state legislature mandated that international graduate teaching assistants show that they are proficient in spoken English, so we have been administering this test for a long time," said Deborah Healey, director of the ELI.
SPEAK is strictly an institutional test, and is only valid at OSU. The Test of Spoken English, administered by the ETS, can be taken instead of the SPEAK test and is recognized internationally.
"The SPEAK test is done nationally," said Bruce Rettig, associate dean of OSU graduate school. "Anyone who's incoming as a teaching assistant has to be tested on the ability to speak and listen."
In the past the university has received complaints from students who said that their TA's didn't speak adequate English. The SPEAK test is seen as a safeguard against future complaints. "The scores from the test are provided to university departments, which are responsible for who they choose to hire," Healey said. "This protects both the students, and the TA's from any wrongful accusations."
The SPEAK test consists of several parts and is usually 25 minutes in length. Rashi Dashottar, a graduate student in civil engineering, has taken the test in the past.
"You sit in front of the computer and a story is presented to you in pictures," he said. "You then have to form your own story to go along with the pictures."
There is a map-reading section, where the test-taker is responsible for giving directions. "You also have to answer a question on a general topic like globalization or economics," Dashottar said.
SPEAK scores are then reported at increments of five. "A score requirement for a TA would be somewhere between 50 and 55, for a lab technician it could be 45 to 50," Healey said. "If the department decides to hire someone with an inadequate score, they are responsible for any possible complaints or complications."
"The test is just a guarantee that the department has an accurate assessment of a candidate's English abilities," Rettig said.
Christopher Bell, associate dean of the College of Engineering, has not had any complaints about graduate assistants within the college. "I don't think I ever had an undergraduate student come in and complain to me," he said. "If this is an issue, it's not a common one, at least not in the College of Engineering."
"The [SPEAK] test gives us a better understanding of how well a TA will perform in a classroom setting," Healey said.
Dashotter, however, doesn't think that the test accurately assesses one's communication abilities. "Whatever English we speak [during the test] is basic and standard, it's not how you would really communicate with your English friends," he said. "[The test] helps, but if you go out and speak with a real person, it doesn't really help with the conversation."
"About 15 years ago the Oregon state legislature mandated that international graduate teaching assistants show that they are proficient in spoken English, so we have been administering this test for a long time," said Deborah Healey, director of the ELI.
SPEAK is strictly an institutional test, and is only valid at OSU. The Test of Spoken English, administered by the ETS, can be taken instead of the SPEAK test and is recognized internationally.
"The SPEAK test is done nationally," said Bruce Rettig, associate dean of OSU graduate school. "Anyone who's incoming as a teaching assistant has to be tested on the ability to speak and listen."
In the past the university has received complaints from students who said that their TA's didn't speak adequate English. The SPEAK test is seen as a safeguard against future complaints. "The scores from the test are provided to university departments, which are responsible for who they choose to hire," Healey said. "This protects both the students, and the TA's from any wrongful accusations."
The SPEAK test consists of several parts and is usually 25 minutes in length. Rashi Dashottar, a graduate student in civil engineering, has taken the test in the past.
"You sit in front of the computer and a story is presented to you in pictures," he said. "You then have to form your own story to go along with the pictures."
There is a map-reading section, where the test-taker is responsible for giving directions. "You also have to answer a question on a general topic like globalization or economics," Dashottar said.
SPEAK scores are then reported at increments of five. "A score requirement for a TA would be somewhere between 50 and 55, for a lab technician it could be 45 to 50," Healey said. "If the department decides to hire someone with an inadequate score, they are responsible for any possible complaints or complications."
"The test is just a guarantee that the department has an accurate assessment of a candidate's English abilities," Rettig said.
Christopher Bell, associate dean of the College of Engineering, has not had any complaints about graduate assistants within the college. "I don't think I ever had an undergraduate student come in and complain to me," he said. "If this is an issue, it's not a common one, at least not in the College of Engineering."
"The [SPEAK] test gives us a better understanding of how well a TA will perform in a classroom setting," Healey said.
Dashotter, however, doesn't think that the test accurately assesses one's communication abilities. "Whatever English we speak [during the test] is basic and standard, it's not how you would really communicate with your English friends," he said. "[The test] helps, but if you go out and speak with a real person, it doesn't really help with the conversation."
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