The Use and Impact of Pre-Task Planning Time in the Monologic Task of LanguageCert Speaking Tests

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Oliver

Extensive monologic speaking tasks are widely used in language learning and testing, with pre-task planning time enabling different strategies such as note-making. Although planning time is supported in assessment literature for face validity and fairness, evidence for consistent links between planning and performance remains mixed. This study compares scores of LanguageCert IESOL B2 test-takers who made notes during planning time versus those who did not, and examines perceptions of planning-time use. Results show no improvement on rating criteria; most candidates use planning time to generate main propositions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages18

Reading Time45 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Background and Study Scope

Task types and task planning in L2 speaking assessment

Theoretical models of task planning

Study focus and research aims

| |
Language Education & Assessment
ISSN 2209-0959
[https://www.castledown.com/journals/lea/](https://www.castledown.com/journals/lea/) | | | --- | --- | --- | | Language Education & Assessment, 6(1), 1–18 (2023) [https://doi.org/10.29140/lea.v6n1.1180](https://doi.org/10.29140/lea.v6n1.1180) | | | | The Use and Impact of Pre-Task Planning Time in the Monologic Task of LanguageCert
Speaking Tests | | | | LEDA LAMPROPOULOU
LanguageCert, Greece [leda.lampropoulou@peoplecert.org](leda.lampropoulou@peoplecert.org) | | | | Abstract
Extensive oral tasks or monologues of different types (e.g., presentations, storytelling) are often used as second language acquisition tasks in the fields of language learning and language testing. Pre-task planning time is a common provision to test-takers who may use different strategies to prepare their response. High-stakes tests, such as the LanguageCert IESOL suite of tests, include planning time prior to monologic tasks and offer test-takers the opportunity for note-making. While the language assessment literature supports planning time for reasons of face validity and fairness, research studies do not consistently support correlations between planning and performance. The current study examined the differences between the scores of test-takers who used note-making as a strategy and those who did not. The research questions investigated: (i) whether test-takers who make notes during planning time in the monologue task of an L2-English B2 speaking task are awarded higher scores on their spoken performances than test-takers who do not and (ii) test-takers’perceptions oftheir use of planning time. The findings suggest that making notes did not improve test-takers’ performance against any of the rating criteria used in the assessment. It also revealed that most test-takers use their planning time to generate their main propositions.
Keywords: speaking exams, oral tests, planning time, pre-task planning, LanguageCert exams | | | Copyright: © 2023 Lampropoulou. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Data Availability Statement: All relevant data are within this paper. Background and Study Scope This study has two related focuses. Firstly, it examines whether using note-making during pre-task planning time creates gains for test-takers which are transferable into scoring. Secondly, it aims to provide insights into test-taker perceptions oftheir use and focus during planning time. In this regard, the background and research literature, and in particular, oral assessment task types and task planning, are first explored; following this, the study is outlined and pedagogical implications are discussed. Second language (L2) assessments use various task types, frequently in combination, to operationalise the construct of speaking to measure, as accurately as possible, test-takers’ L2 spoken ability. Brown (2004) placed these on a continuum of a five-level taxonomy. According to that, the simplest tasks in terms of cognition and ease of completion involve mere repetition of oral input and are classified as imitative. In between task types range from intensive and responsive to interactive, with the length of the expected response, turns, and exchanges adding to the tasks’ complexity. Extensive language production tasks such as story narration and both formal and informal presentations were classified as the most complex and demanding. Brown’s (2004) taxonomy included planning in the design of the extensive production tasks, a practice also reflected in L2 speaking assessments, such as the speaking tests in the LanguageCert International English for Speakers of Other Languages (IESOL) suite of exams. Ellis (2009) and Foster and Skehan (1996) explo

FAQs

Does note-making during pre-task planning improve monologic speaking scores?

No. The findings indicate that making notes did not improve performance against any of the rating criteria used in the assessment.

What planning-time perceptions were examined in the study?

The research investigated test-takers’ perceptions of how they used planning time and what they focused on during that period.

How does the study connect pre-task planning time to broader task-planning theory?

It frames the investigation within models such as the trade-off hypothesis and the cognition hypothesis, which predict different relationships between planning, complexity, and performance.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Oliver