Now that my students have (more or less) adjusted to me and our new textbook, I am seeing great improvements in my classes... in French 1 and 2 Honors, they have also adjusted to my new method of testing, where all 4 skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking) are weighted equally.
For their speaking piece, they record themselves with the program Audacity (already installed on all the computers) in our Language Lab. I distribute 3 to 4 speaking prompts to them the night before, and in the lab, I give them each a different single prompt at random. They cannot bring in their prepared notes, but they have a small amount of time to jot down new ones before they must record. After a couple go-rounds of trial and error, the kids have truly embraced the concept and execution of this part of the French curriculum, which has had results far beyond my initial expectations. I try and stress to them how impressive they are, but, of course, it's "normal" to them now, and they tell me I'm making a big deal over nothing. I believe my favorite direct quote is "Geez, Madame, we're just speaking French!"
HOWEVER, I know that any person with ears (regardless of whether they speak French or not) can listen to what they have produced and be impressed. My French 1 Honors class has recorded a short greeting for you, which I have included below, along with 4 samples of their last speaking test. I hope to incorporate this aspect of testing across the board, in my other classes, starting in January.
Greeting
Antoinette
Isabelle
Jacqueline
Maryse
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