Background: Four Day ACTFL OPI training has been conducted annually or by-annually at NYU for more than ten years. An important lesson to be learned if how and what to elicit at each proficiency level.
Objective: matching CanDos statements with proficiency levels and designing purposeful questions and tasks to elicit speech with functions at the targeted level: moving from kyaa-kyaa, kaun-kaun, kahaaN-kahaaN, then kab, kaise, kyoN, agar… to?
Novice Proficiency Level:
- greet, thank and say good-bye to people politely
- use memorized phrases to order a cup of coffee or food
- count to 100
- give your name
- tell where you are from
- name concrete objects, such as furniture, plants, animals, tools, food items
- name classes of people, such as men, women, boys, girls, and babies
- name colors
- name sizes of objects or age of people, such as a big boat or a small child
- name family members
Intermediate Proficiency Level:
- introduce yourself, giving your name and basic personal information
- give directions on how to get from one place to another
- describe your health problems to a doctor or nurse
- tell about your family, giving names and simple information about them such as their occupations or what they look like
- arrange to meet someone at a particular time and place and date in the near future
- describe typical routine activities, such as what you usually do on the weekend
- request items, discuss prices, and handle currency in a situation involving a purchase
- ask questions about menu items, order food, and ask for and pay a bill at a restaurant
- describe in detail a particular place, such as a school, park, or store
- talk about things you like to do, such as leisure activities, favorite hobbies or pastimes
- talk about things you expect to do in the future, such as a planned trip or activity
Advanced Proficiency Level:
- describe a sequence of events that happened in the past
- describe things that used to happen in the past, such as things you used to do when you were younger, or people and places you used to know or visit
- compare and contrast two objects, customs or places
- talk about your future plans or goals
- explain a simple process you know how to do, such as making a cake or repairing a tire
- give instructions about what you would like someone to do, explaining the steps involved in carrying out an activity, such as when telling a housekeeper how you would like her to wash the clothes
- give a brief, organized, factual summary of what happened in an event you attended
- give advice to someone faced with making a decision, giving reasons for your advice
- lodge a complaint, giving the reasons and details of why you are dissatisfied
- express personal apologies clearly and appropriately to someone you have offended
- state the advantages and disadvantages of a situation or a decision
- tell someone what you would do in a hypothetical situation, such as if you suddenly received a lot of money
- answer the telephone at home or at work
- describe your job and the organization you work for, direct people to the right building or office; handle simple job-related inquiries
Superior Proficiency Level:
- persuade people to do something they do not want to do or to stop doing something you do not like
- describe a complex object, such as a car or bicycle or computer in detail, using the correct vocabulary
- present arguments on both sides of a familiar issue or topic and evaluate the merits of the arguments
- discuss a professional topic at length
- explain in detail a non-routine, complex process, such as how to do grammatical analysis or how to perform an operation
- present a talk at a professional meeting
- tell someone in detail the possible consequences of a certain situation, for example, if the price of coffee were to rise suddenly, express what you think might happen if something unexpected occurs
- propose a course of action and defend your proposal in such a way that people might be persuaded to accept your idea
- state a personal point of view on a subject, including controversial issues, explaining why you hold your beliefs
- handle formal business situations; talk to dignitaries or influential people; discuss issues in the news.
See for more Spiraling Functions and Tasks by Clementi/Terril
Based on ACTFL Performance Descriptors