The effect of topics on canditate performance during a speaking test by Panagiota Frytzala

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 3, 2017 11.00-12.00 38 Amalias Ave. Syntagma

Panagiota holds two undergraduate degrees, one from the Ionian_University in Translation and one from the American College of Greece in Marketing andManagement. She also holds an MA in TEFL/TESL from the University of Birmingham, UK.

Panagiota started her career as an EFL instructor in a language school and since 2001 shehas been working in New York College where she first taught ESL and Academic Writingclasses and later became the Head of the English Department for a number of years.Currently, she is a Lecturer in the BA in TESOL in conjunction with the University of_Greenwich at New York College as well as an MA dissertation supervisor.

One of the claims of language tests administered in Greece is that topical knowledge is not tested so that all candidates may stand the same chance of performing well. However, topical knowledge, especially in the form of intercultural knowledge, is one of the constructs that should be tested according to the CEFR.

Within this framework, this presentation, after a brief overview of the relevant theoretical and research background, will focus on a longitudinal study conducted among Greek students who were preparing for the University of Michigan ECCE and ECPE in the hope of shedding light on whether topical knowledge can actually have an effect on candidate performance  in the speaking module of a language test.