For Centres in England.
GCSE English / English Language
Level 1/Level 2 Certificate in English Language
Functional Skills English
Speaking and Listening Moderation Notes and
Guidelines: 2013-14
1
2
GCSE English/English Language
Speaking and Listening Guidelines
The controlled assessment must contain at least three Speaking and Listening tasks. These
should be based on the exploration of ideas, texts and issues in scripted and improvised
work. The three tasks must cover the following areas:



Communicating and adapting language
Interacting and responding
Creating and sustaining roles
Task Setting
Candidates are required to complete a minimum of three Speaking and Listening tasks.
Exemplar tasks will be provided by WJEC on the secure website (Resources PDF Download
> Controlled Assessment Materials > GCSE English/English Language/English Literature),
but centres may design their own tasks to suit their centre-specific circumstances, providing
these tasks follow the guidance from WJEC. Tasks should be replaced on a regular basis.
The tasks will need to cover the following:






Presenting and listening to information and ideas
Responding appropriately to the questions and views of others
Making a range of effective contributions
Reflecting and commenting critically on their own and others’ use of language
Participating in a range of real-life contexts in and beyond the classroom, adapting
talk appropriately to situation and audience
Selecting and using a range of dramatic techniques and creative approaches to
explore ideas, texts and issues in scripted and improvised work
Centres must ensure that two of the three tasks are of a functional nature.
Functional
A functional task is one that should have a ‘defined outcome’. For example, a discussion
would need to have a focus such as coming to a decision or summarising conclusions.
‘Real-life’ tasks where students are given the opportunity to engage purposefully with areas
of experience which are familiar to them via school/college or community offer fruitful task
setting possibilities in this respect, giving candidates of all abilities the opportunity to work
within a framework that they are comfortable with and so show what they can do.
Please note that not all discussions based on non-literary stimuli are to be considered as
functional unless there is a clearly defined audience, purpose and outcome. For further
help and guidance please refer to the Principal Moderator’s Report available on the website
and the DVD commentary available on the secure website.
3
Task Taking
Candidates should complete all work under formal supervision. Preparation work may be
completed under limited supervision. Candidates’ access to resources such as stimulus
material for discussions or role play and users of language beyond the classroom will be
determined by the centre in line with WJEC guidelines.
Teacher support should be limited to explanation of tasks, details of which should be
recorded as part of the assessment. If teacher intervention is used, for example to prompt or
question a candidate, this should also be noted and taken into consideration when the
assessment is made.
The work of individual candidates may be informed by working with others, for example in
discussion groups and role-play activities, but each candidate must provide responses
sufficient to be assessed individually.
It is expected that an individual response/presentation will last up to five minutes, although
this might be longer if questions are asked. Group discussions and role-play could be rather
longer, depending on the nature of the topic and the ability of the candidates.
Task Marking
Candidates should be assessed by a teacher either directly at the time of the response or by
viewing an electronic visual recording of a candidate’s response. Reference should be made
to the criteria to place a candidate’s response in the appropriate band area.
The three tasks must involve individual contributions, interaction and response to group
discussion, and creating and sustaining roles. Two tasks must be of a functional nature.
The total mark will be reached by adding the three marks (out of 40) together, and then
dividing by three to produce a final mark (also out of 40).
The assessment of Speaking and Listening will feature regularly on the agenda of the annual
round of CPD meetings held in the autumn term. Reference will be made to exemplar
material, including standardisation DVDs. If you do not have a copy of the DVD, please
email gcseenlish@wjec.co.uk to request one. A representative from each centre will be
expected to attend each year’s meeting.
Sample of Records and Unit 4 Form (Outline of Activities)
Details of Speaking and Listening tasks for each teaching group must be given on the
Outline of Activities forms, and submitted by 5 November for November entries and 5
May for June entries (forms attached). From June 2013, all GCSE English/English
Language units will only be offered in November and June to centres in England due to the
change to linear assessment.
It is the centre’s responsibility to download these forms from the WJEC open website
(www.wjec.co.uk) and forward them to the Speaking and Listening moderator. Please be
aware that your Speaking and Listening moderator will be different to your moderator for the
Unit 3 controlled assessment.
4
It is a requirement that centres put in place systems of recording and internal moderation.
The form of records is not prescribed by WJEC but the board has produced a simple
assessment sheet which is very straightforward to use and which has already been adopted
by a number of participating centres (form attached).
A sample of records for this unit will need to be submitted to the moderator for each series a
centre is planning on cashing in their results. Therefore centres need to submit their outline
of activities and sample of records by 5 November for the November series. In June the
submission deadline is 5 May.
Moderation
Moderation will take place at two levels:
1. Centres are required to ensure that internal moderation has taken place before
final submission of marks, so that standards applied are in line with those
established in exemplar material, and so that a reliable overall rank order has
been established within the centre. Suitable methods of achieving this will
depend on the individual centre’s organisation and policy. However, a sample of
each teacher’s candidates must be reassessed by another teacher.
Training DVDs will be produced on a regular basis. All staff teaching GCSE
English/English Language, Functional Skills English and/or Level 1/Level 2
Certificate in English Language must meet to discuss the training DVDs, as
an aid to task setting, assessment, and standardisation of marking.
2. Statistical analysis of results in each component will be carried out each year. If
an ‘atypical profile’ for the Speaking and Listening element is discovered, the
centre will be notified and discussion undertaken to clarify the situation. This
could lead to an advisory visit or, in the most serious cases, a moderation visit.
Advisory visits will be made by Consultative Moderators, who will assess a group
of candidates undertaking a range of tasks. The person responsible for internal
moderation should also assess the same candidates. Discussion of marking
standards will be an integral part of the visit. Should there be concerns, an
additional visit could be made in the following year, or, for very serious cases, a
formal moderation visit would be made.
Although WJEC does not feel it appropriate to be prescriptive about the nature of
the recording and internal moderation systems adopted by centres, it is important
to emphasise that discussion of whatever systems are in place should provide a
major focus of discussion with the consultative moderator, and that candidates’
records should be available for viewing on the day.
Task Setting Guidance
Please refer to the GCSE English/English Language specifications for guidance on task
setting.
5
Centre Visits
Advisory Visits:
Consultative Moderators will be appointed with responsibility for a group of centres. A
programme of advisory visits will be arranged for the autumn term. These visits will cover:
(a) All centres in the first year of the course;
(b) Centres selected so that all centres are visited at least once every three years;
(c) Centres where statistical analysis of marks across all three components in the
previous year’s examination reveals an atypical profile for Speaking and Listening;
(d) Centres where the Consultative Moderator has concerns after an advisory visit in the
previous year.
The emphasis of these visits will be on advice and guidance. The moderator will contact
the centre in September/October to arrange a mutually convenient time for the visit in
November, which will last about two hours and focus on a group 6-8 students taking part in
Speaking and Listening assignments. Students should be seen in more than one activity
and thus bring different criteria into play.
The activities undertaken on the day must ensure that the full range of assessment areas
are covered. For example, for GCSE English/English Language, ‘Communicating and
Adapting Language’, ‘Interacting and Responding’ and ‘Creating and Sustaining Roles’ must
all be seen.
A teacher must be present throughout the visit.
The format for the visit will be agreed between the centre and moderator, to include the
following aspects:
(i)
(ii)
Discussion of marking standards, based upon assessment of a group of at least
six students by a teacher (preferably the person responsible for internal
moderation) and the moderator;
Discussion of the content of the Speaking and Listening element of the course;
methods of recording, task-setting and internal moderation.
This part of the monitoring process is entirely distinct from moderation arrangements and will
not affect the actual assessments that are in progress for these students. Your consultative
moderator will generally not be the person who will make a moderation visit, should one
prove necessary.
Combined GCSE and FS or Level 1/Level 2 Certificate Advisory Visits
For GCSE centres also entering students for the Functional Skills and/or Level1/Level 2
Certificate qualification the advisory visit will cover both these and the differing requirements
of GCSE English. Given this, it is expected that the combined visit should last about two and
a half hours and be split between the qualifications. A teacher (preferably the person
responsible for internal moderation) should be present throughout.
Those centres who are going to receive a visit for Functional Skills Entry Level will be
contacted separately.
6
Assessment Exercise: Selection of Students for an Advisory Visit
Since the purpose of the assessment exercise is to provide a focus for discussion of the
application of criteria and of marking standards, to inform marking rather than to moderate
marks, the selection of students is not a major issue. They could be from a single teaching
group (indeed, the activity could be part of a normal teaching session); alternatively the visit
could be integrated with internal moderation procedures. If students are from different
groups, it will obviously be important that they can work effectively together. In the school
setting it would be acceptable to use Year 10 students, although this would generally apply
to new centres.
It is not necessary to cover the ability range of the entry (which will be a key requirement for
moderation visits), and the centre could suggest looking at a particular grade area. However,
it will normally be helpful to have something of a range within the group.
A minimum of six students is stipulated, and it is certainly not necessary to involve more.
However, it may be that the centre wishes to use activities based for example on two groups
of four students. Where the visit takes place in the context of a larger group, it is important
that the moderator and the teacher can focus on the selected students and that others'
contributions do not provide a distraction. Please note that to have tasks running
simultaneously is unhelpful for observation.
Conduct of Visits
Although not a requirement of the specification, consultative moderators appreciate the use
of student name tags to aid with the assessment process. It is also helpful for the teacher to
introduce the moderator and explain the purpose of the visit to help put the candidates at
ease.
Open Website - www.wjec.co.uk/englishgcse
There are a number of documents on the WJEC open website relating to Speaking and
Listening, including:




Specifications
Outline of Activities form and record keeping exemplar form
Teachers’ Guide
GCSE Examiners’ Reports
We also recommend that you sign up to the WJEC GCSE English e-bulletin and/or follow us
on Twitter. Further information on how you can subscribe can be found here:
www.wjec.co.uk/englishgcse
Secure Website (www.wjecservices.co.uk)
GCSE
The Speaking and Listening tasks for GCSE English and English Language are available for
download from the secure website, along with the S&L DVD Commentary.
7
To access them, log in and click on 'Resources PDF Downloads', then 'Controlled
Assessment Material' and ‘GCSE English/English Language/English Literature’.
Functional Skills
The Speaking, Listening and Communication generic tasks for Levels 1 & 2 and Entry Level
are available on the secure website, along with the SLC DVD Commentary.
To access them, log in and click on 'Resources PDF Downloads' and then 'Controlled
Assessment Material'. The Functional Skills English Level 1 & 2 SLC tasks that are available
for the November and May assessments can be found under 'Functional Skills - English'.
8
Level 1/2 Certificate in English Language
Speaking and Listening Guidelines
The controlled assessment must contain at least three Speaking and Listening tasks. These
should be based on the exploration of ideas, texts and issues in scripted and improvised
work. The three tasks must cover the following areas:



Individual Presentation with questions
Pair work
Group work
Task Setting
Candidates are required to complete a minimum of three Speaking and Listening tasks.
Exemplar tasks will be provided by WJEC but centres may design their own tasks to suit
their centre-specific circumstances, providing these tasks follow the guidance from WJEC.
Tasks should be replaced on a regular basis. The tasks will need to cover the following:






Presenting and listening to information and ideas
Responding appropriately to the questions and views of others
Making a range of effective contributions
Reflecting and commenting critically on their own and others’ use of language
Participating in a range of real-life contexts in and beyond the classroom, adapting
talk appropriately to situation and audience
Selecting and using a range of dramatic techniques and creative approaches to
explore ideas, texts and issues in scripted and improvised work
One task may be based on literary material.
Task Taking
Candidates should complete all work under formal supervision. Preparation work may be
completed under limited supervision. Candidates’ access to resources such as stimulus
material for discussions or role play and users of language beyond the classroom will be
determined by the centre in line with WJEC guidelines.
Teacher support should be limited to explanation of tasks, details of which should be
recorded as part of the assessment. If teacher intervention is used, for example to prompt or
question a candidate, this should also be noted and taken into consideration when the
assessment is made.
The work of individual candidates may be informed by working with others, for example in
discussion groups and role-play activities, but each candidate must provide responses
sufficient to be assessed individually.
9
It is expected that an individual response/presentation will last up to five minutes, although
this might be longer if questions are asked. Group discussions and role-play could be rather
longer, depending on the nature of the topic and the ability of the candidates.
Task Marking
Candidates should be assessed by a teacher either directly at the time of the response or by
viewing an electronic visual recording of a candidate’s response. Reference should be made
to the criteria to place a candidate’s response in the appropriate band area.
The three tasks must involve individual contributions, interaction and response to group
discussion, and creating and sustaining roles. One task may be based on literary
material.
The total mark will be reached by adding the three marks (out of 40) together, and then
dividing by three to produce a final mark (also out of 40).
The assessment of Speaking and Listening will feature regularly on the agenda of the annual
round of CPD meetings held in the autumn term. Reference will be made to exemplar
material, including standardisation DVDs. If you do not have a copy of the DVD, please
email gcseenlish@wjec.co.uk to request one. A representative from each centre will be
expected to attend each year’s meeting.
Sample of Records and Unit 4 Form (Outline of Activities)
Details of Speaking and Listening tasks for each teaching group must be given on the
Outline of Activities forms, and submitted by 5 November for November entries and 5
May for June entries (forms attached) Level 1/2 Certificate in English Language will be
offered in November and June.
It is the centre’s responsibility to download these forms from the WJEC open website
(www.wjec.co.uk) and forward them to the Speaking and Listening moderator.
It is a requirement that centres put in place systems of recording and internal moderation.
The form of records is not prescribed by WJEC but the board has produced a simple
assessment sheet which is very straightforward to use and which has already been adopted
by a number of participating centres (form attached).
A sample of records for this unit will need to be submitted to the moderator for each series a
centre is planning on cashing in their results. Therefore centres need to submit their outline
of activities and sample of records by 5 November for the November series. In June the
submission deadline is 5 May.
Moderation
Moderation will take place at two levels:
Centres are required to ensure that internal moderation has taken place before final
submission of marks, so that standards applied are in line with those established in
exemplar material, and so that a reliable overall rank order has been established
within the centre. Suitable methods of achieving this will depend on the individual
10
centre’s organisation and policy. However, a sample of each teacher’s candidates
must be reassessed by another teacher.
Training DVDs will be produced on a regular basis. All staff teaching GCSE
English/English Language, Functional Skills English and/or Level 1/Level 2
Certificate in English Language must meet to discuss the training DVDs, as
an aid to task setting, assessment, and standardisation of marking.
Statistical analysis of results in each component will be carried out each year. If an
‘atypical profile’ for the Speaking and Listening element is discovered, the centre will
be notified and discussion undertaken to clarify the situation. This could lead to an
advisory visit or, in the most serious cases, a moderation visit. Advisory visits will be
made by Consultative Moderators, who will assess a group of candidates
undertaking a range of tasks. The person responsible for internal moderation should
also assess the same candidates. Discussion of marking standards will be an integral
part of the visit. Should there be concerns, an additional visit could be made in the
following year, or, for very serious cases, a formal moderation visit would be made.
Although WJEC does not feel it appropriate to be prescriptive about the nature of
the recording and internal moderation systems adopted by centres, it is important
to emphasise that discussion of whatever systems are in place should provide a
major focus of discussion with the consultative moderator, and that candidates’
records should be available for viewing on the day.
Task Setting Guidance
Please refer to the Level 1/2 Certificate Language specifications for guidance on task
setting.
Centre Visits
Advisory Visits:
Consultative Moderators will be appointed with responsibility for a group of centres. A
programme of advisory visits will be arranged for the autumn term. These visits will cover:
(e) All centres in the first year of the course;
(f) Centres selected so that all centres are visited at least once every three years;
(g) Centres where statistical analysis of marks across all three components in the
previous year’s examination reveals an atypical profile for Speaking and Listening;
(h) Centres where the Consultative Moderator has concerns after an advisory visit in the
previous year.
The emphasis of these visits will be on advice and guidance. The moderator will contact
the centre in September/October to arrange a mutually convenient time for the visit in
November, which will last about two hours and focus on a group 6-8 students taking part in
Speaking and Listening assignments. Students should be seen in more than one activity
and thus bring different criteria into play.
11
The activities undertaken on the day must ensure that the full range of assessment areas
are covered.
A teacher must be present throughout the visit.
The format for the visit will be agreed between the centre and moderator, to include the
following aspects:
(iii)
(iv)
Discussion of marking standards, based upon assessment of a group of at least
six students by a teacher (preferably the person responsible for internal
moderation) and the moderator;
Discussion of the content of the Speaking and Listening element of the course;
methods of recording, task-setting and internal moderation.
This part of the monitoring process is entirely distinct from moderation arrangements and will
not affect the actual assessments that are in progress for these students. Your consultative
moderator will generally not be the person who will make a moderation visit, should one
prove necessary.
Combined GCSE and FS or Level 1/Level 2 Certificate Advisory Visits
For GCSE centres also entering students for the Functional Skills and/or Level1/Level 2
Certificate qualification the advisory visit will cover both these and the differing requirements
of GCSE English. Given this, it is expected that the combined visit should last about two and
a half hours and be split between the qualifications. A teacher (preferably the person
responsible for internal moderation) should be present throughout.
Those centres who are going to receive a visit for Functional Skills Entry Level will be
contacted separately.
Assessment Exercise: Selection of Students for an Advisory Visit
Since the purpose of the assessment exercise is to provide a focus for discussion of the
application of criteria and of marking standards, to inform marking rather than to moderate
marks, the selection of students is not a major issue. They could be from a single teaching
group (indeed, the activity could be part of a normal teaching session); alternatively the visit
could be integrated with internal moderation procedures. If students are from different
groups, it will obviously be important that they can work effectively together. In the school
setting it would be acceptable to use Year 10 students, although this would generally apply
to new centres.
It is not necessary to cover the ability range of the entry (which will be a key requirement for
moderation visits), and the centre could suggest looking at a particular grade area. However,
it will normally be helpful to have something of a range within the group.
A minimum of six students is stipulated, and it is certainly not necessary to involve more.
However, it may be that the centre wishes to use activities based for example on two groups
of four students. Where the visit takes place in the context of a larger group, it is important
that the moderator and the teacher can focus on the selected students and that others'
12
contributions do not provide a distraction. Please note that to have tasks running
simultaneously is unhelpful for observation.
Conduct of Visits
Although not a requirement of the specification, consultative moderators appreciate the use
of student name tags to aid with the assessment process. It is also helpful for the teacher to
introduce the moderator and explain the purpose of the visit to help put the candidates at
ease.
Open Website - http://www.wjec.co.uk/index.php?subject=51&level=187
There are a number of documents on the WJEC open website relating to Speaking and
Listening, including:




Specifications
Outline of Activities form and record keeping exemplar form
Teachers’ Guide
GCSE Examiners’ Reports
We also recommend that you sign up to the WJEC GCSE English e-bulletin and/or follow us
on Twitter. Further information on how you can subscribe can be found here:
http://www.wjec.co.uk/index.php?subject=51&level=187
13
Functional Skills English Levels 1 & 2
Speaking, Listening and Communication Guidelines
For English Speaking, Listening and Communication there is one controlled assessment
component which is marked, standardised and awarded as a single entity.
The controlled assessment at all levels will contain a number of tasks/sub-tasks, to ensure
coverage of the skills standards.
Time Limits
Candidates will have a maximum of one hour to complete Speaking, Listening and
Communication at both Levels 1 and 2. Extra time will be allowed to those candidates who
qualify for it under the existing regulations. Candidates must provide an individual response
for assessment.
Task Setting
WJEC-set controlled assessment tasks will be reviewed annually to ensure that they
continue to set an appropriate challenge.
For both levels 1 and 2, Speaking, Listening and Communication will be internally assessed
and based on a variety of tasks, to include presenting information and contributing to group
work.
Tasks must be selected from a number of comparable tasks provided by WJEC. Centres
have the opportunity to contextualise some elements of the tasks to best-suit their centrespecific circumstances.
Generic Speaking, Listening and Communication tasks will be published on the WJEC
secure website in April of each year. At this time, dates will also be released for the available
windows of assessment.
Please refer to the Functional Skills English specification for further guidance on task setting.
Task Taking
For Speaking, Listening and Communicating at Levels 1 and 2, candidates are permitted up
to five hours preparation time within the four-week assessment window for each series, in
addition to the one hour to complete the controlled assessment tasks. The preparation must
be undertaken under limited supervision. Research and/or preliminary notes will be
permitted in the assessment session(s) although candidates may not use scripts in their
assessed work.
Teacher support should be limited to explanation of the tasks, details of which should be
recorded as part of the assessment. If teacher/tutor intervention is used, this should be
noted and taken into consideration when the assessment is made.
The work of individual candidates may be informed by working with others in the preparatory
stage, for example in discussion groups, but each candidate must provide responses
sufficient to be assessed individually.
14
At Level 1, candidates are required to complete two tasks within the Speaking, Listening and
Communication component. This will be two discussions selected from the list provided by
WJEC. It is expected that discussions could be longer, depending on the ability of the
candidates, but centres should allow between three and ten minutes for each task.
At Level 2, candidates are required to complete two tasks within the Speaking, Listening and
Communication component. At Level 2 this will be one discussion and one presentation
selected from the list provided by WJEC. It is expected that an individual presentation will
last between three and ten minutes, to include opportunities for questions to be asked.
Group discussions could be longer, depending on the ability of the candidates, but centres
should allow between five and fifteen minutes at Level 2.
Task Marking
After the completion of the assessment session, the work will be marked internally according
to mark schemes/assessment criteria provided by WJEC.
A common mark scale /40 will be used with pre-set pass marks of 20 and 30 for Level 1 and
2 respectively. This reflects the element of differentiation by outcome in assessment of
Speaking, Listening and Communication and facilitates internal standardisation and (if
required) external moderation.
Each candidate will be awarded a level for Speaking, Listening and Communication which
will then be fine-tuned (to reflect their position within a level) by the award of a mark on the
following scale:
Grade Marks
0 – 19
U
20 – 29
1
30 – 40
2
Outline of Activities Form
The way the generic Speaking, Listening and Communication tasks have been/will be
contextualised in each teaching group should be outlined in the Outline of Activities form
(this is in addition to the Unit 4 Outline of S&L Activities form for any GCSE classes) and
must be submitted to the consultative moderator each year by 1 December for November
entries and 24 May for June entries. Forms can be accessed here:
http://www.wjec.co.uk/uploads/publications/19294.doc
They are also included at the end of this document.
It is the centre’s responsibility to download the FSE3 forms from the WJEC website
(www.wjec.co.uk) and forward them to the Speaking, Listening and Communication
moderator.
Moderation
The moderation of Speaking, Listening and Communication will occur at two levels:
(i)
Centres are required to ensure that internal moderation has taken place
before marks are finalised, so that standards applied are in line with those
established on exemplar material, and so that a reliable overall rank order has
been established within the centre. Suitable methods of achieving this will
15
depend on the individual centre's organisation and policy. However, a
sample of each teacher's candidates must be re-assessed by another
teacher.
Common training DVDs will be used in standardising centres’ assessment of
Speaking, Listening and Communication. All staff teaching Functional
Skills English must meet to discuss the training DVD, as an aid to task
setting, assessment, and standardisation of marking. If you have not received
the DVD, please email gcseenglish@wjec.co.uk to request a copy.
(ii)
If the Consultative Moderator has serious concerns after an advisory visit, the centre will
receive a moderation visit in the same year.
Centre Visits
Advisory Visits:
Consultative Moderators will be appointed with responsibility for a group of centres. A
programme of advisory visits will be arranged in the autumn term. These visits will cover:
a)
b)
c)
All centres in the first year of the course;
Centres selected so that all centres are visited at least once every three
years;
Centres where the Consultative Moderator has concerns after an advisory
visit in the previous year.
The emphasis of these visits will be on advice and guidance. The moderator will contact
the centre in September/October to arrange a mutually convenient time for the visit in
November/December, which will last about two hours and focus on a group of at least four
students taking part in the Speaking and Listening assignment. Students should be seen
in more than one activity and thus bring different criteria into play.
The format for the visit will be agreed between the centre and moderator, to include the
following aspects:
(i)
(ii)
Discussion of marking standards, based upon assessment of a group of at least
four students by a teacher (preferably the person responsible for internal
moderation) and the moderator.
Discussion of the content of the Speaking, Listening and Communication
component (for example, methods of recording, task-setting and internal
moderation).
This part of the monitoring process is entirely distinct from moderation arrangements and will
not affect the actual assessments that are in progress for these students. Your consultative
moderator will generally not be the person who will make a moderation visit, should one
prove necessary.
Combined GCSE and FS or Level 1/Level 2 Certificate Advisory Visits
For GCSE centres also entering students for the Functional Skills and/or Level1/Level 2
Certificate qualification the advisory visit will cover both these and the differing requirements
of GCSE English. Given this, it is expected that the combined visit should last about two and
16
a half hours and be split between the qualifications. A teacher (preferably the person
responsible for internal moderation) should be present throughout.
Those centres who are going to receive a visit for Functional Skills Entry Level will be
contacted separately.
Selection of Students for Advisory Visits
The Speaking, Listening and Communication requirements for Functional Skills are very
specific (and different from those for GCSE). It is intended, therefore, that the assessment
exercise for this should be kept separate, with one small group employed to accommodate
both Group Work (needed for both Level 1 and Level 2) and Presentation (Level 2 only). To
this end, it is assumed that a group of four students should be sufficient, with two students
representing each of the two levels.
Clearly, task setting will need to take into account the ability range involved in the activities
as well as ensuring compatibility between the individuals making up the group. While the
audience for the presentations could, helpfully, include some of those from the GCSE
assessment, thought needs to be given to ensuring that none of those involved are inhibited
by the presence of other students not in the Functional Skills group.
As with GCSE visits, the purpose of the assessment exercise is to provide a focus for the
discussion of the application of criteria and of marking standards, that is, to inform marking
rather than to moderate marks. The students, therefore, can be selected from any year
group involved with the Functional Skills assessments.
Recording and Internal Moderation
For each of Levels 1 and 2 Speaking, Listening and Communication will be internally
assessed and based on best achievement from a variety of tasks. It is a requirement,
therefore, that centres put in place systems of recording and internal moderation. The form
of records is not prescribed by WJEC but the board has produced a simple assessment
sheet which is very straightforward to use and which has already been adopted by a number
of participating centres (form attached).
Although WJEC does not feel it appropriate to be prescriptive about the nature of the
recording and internal moderation systems adopted by centres, it is important to emphasise
that whatever systems are in place should provide a major focus of discussion with the
consultative moderator and that candidates’ records should be available on the day.
Open Website - http://www.wjec.co.uk/englishfunctionalskills
There are a number of documents on the WJEC open website relating to Speaking,
Listening and Communication including:



Specifications
Outline of Activities form
FS Teacher Guide
We also recommend that you sign up to the WJEC Functional Skills English e-bulletin or
follow us on Twitter. Further information on how you can subscribe can be found here:
www.wjec.co.uk/englishfunctionalskills
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Secure Website (www.wjecservices.co.uk)
The Speaking, Listening and Communication tasks for Levels 1 & 2 are available on the
secure website, along with the SLC DVD Commentary.
To access them, log in and click on 'Resources PDF Downloads' and then 'Controlled
Assessment Material'. The Functional Skills English Level 1 & 2 SLC tasks that are available
for the November and May assessments can be found under 'Functional Skills - English'.
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GCSE ENGLISH / ENGLISH LANGUAGE - Speaking and Listening Record Form
Centre:
Candidate's Name:
Centre No:
Candidate's No:
Context
1
2
3
1
2
Communicating and adapting language
Interacting and responding
Creating and sustaining roles
Date C
o
n
t
e
x
t
Description of activity
Teacher comment
Mark / 40
3
Two tasks must be of a functional nature and one non-functional. Please indicate here which tasks fulfil these requirements:
Functional tasks:
Final Mark *
Non-functional task
* Average of 3 marks above
Declaration by Teacher:
I confirm that the candidate's work was conducted under the conditions laid out in the specification.
Teacher's signature:
Date:
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FUNCTIONAL SKILLS ENGLISH
Speaking, Listening and Communication
Example of Recording Method
Student Name:
Teaching Group:
Context
1
Group work
2
Presentation
Date
Description of activity
Teacher comment
Level/mark
Context
1
2
Overall comment and final level/mark:
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LEVEL 1 / LEVEL 2 CERTIFICATE IN ENGLISH
LANGUAGE
S and L
SPEAKING AND LISTENING: OUTLINE OF ACTIVITIES
Centre Name __________________________________ Centre No. _______________
Teacher's Name ________________________________________
Please read the notes overleaf before completing this form.
Outline below three activities which have been used as evidence for the assessment of Speaking and
Listening in your teaching group. Please number them 1-3. To meet specification requirements one of
these activities must be an individual presentation with questions, one must be pair work and one must be
group work. One task may be based on literary material.
Forms (one per teaching group) must be returned to the consultative Speaking and Listening Moderator by
5 May for summer entries and 1 Dec for November entries.
Signed ______________________________________________ Date ______________
PLEASE COMPLETE THE TABLE OVERLEAF TO INDICATE HOW ACTIVITIES FULFIL CRITERIA
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Notes
1.
In view of the range of work which may contribute to the assessment of Speaking and Listening, you
are asked to outline three activities which you have used as evidence for this assessment, rather
than to make a comprehensive list.
2.
Where appropriate, the activity should be briefly contextualised.
Content
Activity number*
Literature-based
task ()
(max 1)
Individual
presentation
Pair work
Group work
Please enter number of activity (as listed overleaf) which fulfils each context or purpose coverage
requirement.
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Level 1/2 Certificate- Speaking and Listening Record Form
Centre:
Candidate's Name:
Centre No:
Candidate's No:
Context
1
2
3
1
2
Individual Presentation and questions
Pair work
Group work
Date C
o
n
t
e
x
t
Description of activity
Teacher comment
Mark / 40
3
* Average of 3 marks above
Declaration by Teacher:
I confirm that the candidate's work was conducted under the conditions laid out in the specification.
Teacher's signature:
Date:
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GCSE Eng/Eng Lang
GCSE ENGLISH / ENGLISH LANGUAGE
SPEAKING AND LISTENING: OUTLINE OF ACTIVITIES
Centre Name
Unit 4
Centre No.
Teacher's Name
Please read the notes overleaf before completing this form.
Outline below three activities which will be used as evidence for the assessment of Speaking and Listening
in your teaching group. Please number them 1-3. To meet specification requirements one of these activities
must involve communicating and adapting language; one must involve interacting and responding; one
must involve creating and sustaining roles. Two activities must involve tasks of a functional nature; one
activity must be a non-functional task.
Forms (one per teaching group) must be returned to the consultative Speaking and Listening Moderator by
10 January for January entries and 5 May for June entries.
Signed
Date
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PLEASE COMPLETE THE TABLE OVERLEAF TO INDICATE HOW ACTIVITIES FULFIL CRITERIA
Notes
1.
In view of the range of work which may contribute to the assessment of Speaking and Listening, you
are asked to outline three activities which you expect to be used as evidence for this assessment,
rather than to make a comprehensive list. You may include work still to be undertaken.
2.
Where appropriate, the activity should be briefly contextualised.
Content
Communicating
and adapting
language
Activity number*
Functional coverage
Activity number*
Functional 1
Interacting and
responding
Functional 2
Creating and
sustaining roles
Non-Functional
*Please enter number of activity (as listed overleaf) which fulfils each context or purpose coverage
requirement.
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Functional Skills English
Speaking, Listening and Communication
Outline Of Activities
FSE3
Centre Name: _________________________________ Centre No.: _________________
Teacher's Name : ________________________________________
Please read the notes overleaf before completing this form.
Outline below how the two activities for each level (as appropriate) have been contextualised in your
teaching group for the assessment of Speaking, Listening and Communication. For Level 1 candidates, the
activities should be group discussions, whereas to meet the specification requirements for Level 2, one of
these activities must be a presentation and one must be a group discussion.
Forms (one per teaching group) must be returned to the consultative Speaking, Listening and
Communication Moderator by 1 December for November entries and 24 May for May entries.
Signed ______________________________________________ Date _____________
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Notes
1. In view of the range of work which may contribute to the assessment of Speaking, Listening and
Communication, you are asked to outline the two contextualised activities which will be used as
evidence for this assessment. You may include work still to be undertaken.
2. Where a teacher is responsible for more than one teaching group, there is no need to submit a
separate form for each group. A single form may be returned on behalf of the centre as a whole,
providing it reflects the approach across teaching group.
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GCSE, FS and Level 1/Level 2 Certificate Speaking and Listening Calendar of Activities
WJEC
Moderator
September
Initial contact with centres
October
Advisory visit date agreed
Centre
Advisory visit date agreed
4 Oct – Nov entries
deadline (FS and Level
1/Level 2 Certs)
November
7 week window for advisory
visits
7 week window for advisory
visits
5 Nov – Deadline for
submission of S&L marks to
be submitted to WJEC for
GCSE and Level 1/2.
Deadline for the Outline of
Activities form to be
submitted to the moderator
December
1 Dec - Deadline for the
Outline of Activities form to
be submitted to the
moderator
January
February
Moderation visits take
place (where necessary)
by Principal Moderator
21 Feb - June entries
deadline (GCSE/Level
1/Level 2 Certs)
Moderation visits take
place (where necessary)
March
21 March - June entries
deadline (FS only)
April
May
5 May – Deadline for
submission of S&L marks to
be submitted to WJEC for
GCSE and Level 1/Level 2
Certs). Deadline for the
Outline of Activities form
and sample of records to be
submitted to the moderator
Despatch of advisory
visit moderator reports
to centres
24 May – Deadline for
submission of S&L marks to
WJEC for FS and deadline
for the Outline of Activities
form to be submitted to the
moderator
June
Complete report on sample
of records and outline of
activities form/s.
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