mhmm interaction uh yeah : oral interaction in language proficiency interviews

Abstract

The description and analysis of oral language use is a daunting task. In this study, I have attempted to look not only into oral language but also to probe a bit deeper into the interaction taking place between an interviewer (S) and an interviewee (Int) in a typical oral proficiency interview (OPI). An OPI has been described many times, but apparently no description of this particular S/Int interaction has been made. Nevertheless, the practitioners of the art, or skill if you will, of OPI make a variety of claims about the relative effectiveness of various strategies in testing. It would seem that most of these are primarily based on anecdotal evidence. This study may be the beginning of a look at what interaction is occurring, particularly in the Finnish setting.

This study presents the analysis of three actual test interviews carried out by trained interviewers working for the National Certificate (NC) of Language Proficiency (of Finland). All three interviews were at the Advanced Level in the NC scaling system.

In my study, I concentrated on the testing research of the late 1990s with its eclectic focus. I chose those factors identified in studies as most pertinent to interaction: speech act, discourse analysis, lexicality contra grammaticality, floor, back channelling, overlapping, introspection, repairs and repetitions, accommodation, and negotiation of meaning. In results differing somewhat from certain earlier studies, I identified various forms of the multiplicity of interaction which did occur in these interviews. In fact, it was shown that these OPI proceeded to a great extent under the control, initiation, and interaction of the candidates. The interviewers managed their task well, eliciting a broad and varied language sample from each candidate.