2014-04-24_FOCA+LA+Handbook_EN_V8+1

Federal Department of the

Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications DETEC

Federal Office of Civil Aviation FOCA

Division Safety Division - Flight Operations

FOCA ENGLISH LANGUAGE

PROFICIENCY TEST FOR PILOTS

HANDBOOK FOR

ENGLISH LANGUAGE

ASSESSORS

In accordance with the recommendations of ICAO Doc 9835

EU compliant

Edition 8.1 May 2014

DOC 02.01

Published under the authority of the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation 2008-2014

HANDBOOK FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE ASSESSORS FOCA ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY CHECK FOR PILOTS

Doc 02.01 - 2 - 8th Edition / Spring 2014

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FOCA ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY CHECK FOR PILOTS HANDBOOK FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE ASSESSORS

8thEdition / Spring 2014 - 3 - Doc 02.01

INTRODUCTION

The information contained herein has been written and compiled to assist Language Assessors in order to help them become familiar with the different aspects of language assessing and, in particular, the language components used in the ICAO rating scale. It also includes parts of EASA and Swiss national legislation as well as the ICAO recommendations relevant to the system for assessing language proficiency in an aeronautical context in Switzerland.

It collates all information given during Language Assessor training courses and refresher workshops and provides a central reference for all Language Assessors.

It remains the property of the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation for the training and information of its own Language Assessors and must not be used for any other purpose nor sold to 3rd party beneficiaries.

For further information on all items relevant to the examining system, the following contacts are available:

Exam Sessions and Administration:

Centre Name E-mail Zurich Gwen Cavalli [email protected] Lausanne & Romandie Neil Bullock [email protected] Bern & Central Switzerland Adrian Schpbach [email protected] Ticino Gwen Cavalli [email protected]

Pilot Licensing:

Name E-mail FOCA License Office [email protected]

General Enquiries for Legislation and Federal administration;

Name E-mail FOCA [email protected]

This version replaces all previous versions of the same title.



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REFERENCES

We gratefully acknowledge the following works and their authors for the information and help used in compiling this document.

o ICAO DOC 9835 (ICAO, Second edition, 2010). o Practical Language Testing, Fulcher, G, (Hodder 2010). o Language Testing in Practice, Bachman, L., Palmer, A. (OUP 2009). o Fundamental Considerations in Language Testing, Bachman, L. (OUP 1990). o Language Testing & Validation, Weir, C.J. (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005). o Corpus, Concordance, Collocation, Sinclair, J. (OUP 1991). o From Corpus to Classroom: language use and language teaching, OKeeffe, A., McCarthy, M.

and Carter, R. (Cambridge 2007). o ICAO standards and recommended practices (SARPS): part 1: relevant extracts from

Appendixes 1, 6, 10 and 11 (particularly standard RTF phraseology and widely used expressions in the aviation community).

o Do learners talk too much? The waffle phenomenon in interlanguage pragmatics, Edmonson W., & House. J., (1991).

o Vocabulary: Description, Acquisition, and Pedagogy. Schmitt, N. and McCarthy, M. (eds.) (1997) Cambridge: CUP. 20 39.

o Vocabulary: Applied Linguistic Perspectives. (2nd edn.)Carter, R. (1998). London: Routledge. o Working With Words, Gairns R, and Redman, S, (Cambridge, 2008). o Glossary of transcript symbols with an introduction. Jefferson, G. (2004). o Gimsons Pronunciation of English, Alan Cruttenden, (Hodder, 2008). o English Pronunciation in Use, Mark Hancock, (Cambridge 2003). o The Practise of English Language Teaching, Jeremy Harmer, (Pearson, 2009). o Discourse Markers http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/al/contact/ prepared by: Dr Gerard

Sharpling, The Centre for Applied Linguistics, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL, UK. o Business Grammar Builder Paul Emmerson (Macmillan 2002). o BBC Learning English: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish o Cambridge First Certificate & Advanced : Teacher Resource Pack. o English Usage Michael Swan (OUP 2005). o Discourse Markers http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/sites/teacheng/files/discourse_markers.pdf o New Cutting Edge Elementary (Pearson Longman 2005). o New Cutting Edge Pre-Intermediate (Pearson Longman 2005). o International Express Intermediate, (OUP 2005). o International Express Upper Intermediate, (OUP 2005). o www.englishpage.com o English Grammar in Use,Raymond Murphy, (Cambridge 2003). o Essential Grammar in Use, Raymond Murphy, (Cambridge 2003). o Advanced Language Practice, Michael Vince (Macmillan 2002).

Written and Published by the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation 2014



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CONTENTS

CHAPTER SUBJECT PAGE

INTRODUCTION 3

REFERENCES 5

CONTENTS 7

AMENDMENTS 9

Chapter 1 ICAO RECOMMENDATIONS, EASA REQUIREMENTS & FOCA LEGISLATION 11

Chapter 2 LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY EXAMS IN SWITZERLAND 19

Chapter 3 ASSESSING SPEAKING ABILITY THE ROLE OF THE ASSESSOR 27

Chapter 4 ASSESSING LANGUAGE - PRONUNCIATION 33

Chapter 5 ASSESSING LANGUAGE - FLUENCY 39

Chapter 6 ASSESSING LANGUAGE - VOCABULARY 47

Chapter 7 ASSESSING LANGUAGE - STRUCTURE 53

Chapter 8 ASSESSING LANGUAGE - COMPREHENSION 59

Chapter 9 ASSESSING LANGUAGE - INTERACTION 65

Chapter 10 FAQs 69

APPENDIX 1 BASIC V COMPLEX STRUCTURES 75

APPENDIX 2 NOTE TAKING SHEET 77

APPENDIX 3A ICAO RATING SCALE 79

APPENDIX 3B FOCA ADAPTED RATING SCALE 81

APPENDIX 4 GUIDELINES FOR LANGUAGE IMPROVEMENT 87



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Amendments from last version

Page Subject Notes

19 26 Chapter 2 - Language Proficiency Exams In Switzerland Revised



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CHAPTER 1

ICAO RECOMMENDATIONS &

EASA REQUIREMENTS

APPLICABLE TO SWISS AIRSPACE



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ICAO DOC9835 MANUAL ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY REQUIREMENTS FOR AERONAUTCAL COMMUNCATION

The following text has been taken from the above document for the benefit of all stakeholders required to use this handbook.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Chapter 1. Introduction 1. Inadequate language proficiency has played a role in accidents and incidents and led to a review of

ICAO language requirements. Assembly Resolution A32-16 urged the Council to direct the Air Navigation Commission (ANC) to consider this matter with a high level of priority, and complete the task of strengthening provisions related to the use of the English language for radiotelephony communications.

2. Both ICAO phraseologies and plain language are required for safe radiotelephony communications. 3. ICAO has adopted strengthened language proficiency requirements for radiotelephony

communications. 4. All States and organizations have a role to play in improving communications.

Chapter 2. ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) concerning Language Proficiency Requirements 1. The ICAO language proficiency requirements:

i) Strengthen the provisions related to language use in radiotelephony communications, both for the language of the station on the ground and, in airspace where it is required, for English, from the level of Recommendations to Standards.

ii) Establish minimum skill level requirements for language proficiency for flight crews and air traffic controllers.

iii) Introduce an ICAO language proficiency rating scale applicable to both native and non-native speakers.

iv) Clarify the requirement for the use of both plain language and phraseologies. v) Standardize the use of ICAO phraseologies. vi) Recommend a testing schedule to demonstrate language proficiency and provide for service

provider oversight of personnel compliance. 2. Appendix 10 SARPs clarify that ICAO phraseologies shall be used whenever possible. 3. Appendix 1 SARPs describe how language should be used for radiotelephony communication. 4. The language proficiency requirements in Appendix 1 apply equally to native and non-native speakers. 5. Pilots and controllers have been required to demonstrate Operational Level 4 language proficiency in

the use of both ICAO phraseology and plain language since March 2008. 6. A Standard in Appendix 1 stipulates recurrent testing for pilots and controllers who demonstrate

language proficiency below Expert Level 6. 7. Appendixes 6 and 11 stipulate service provider or airline oversight of personnel language proficiency.

Chapter 3. Linguistic Awareness 1. States should ensure that their use of phraseologies aligns as closely as possible with ICAO

standardized phraseologies. 2. Pilots and controllers should be aware of the natural hazards of cross-cultural communication. 3. Native and other expert users of English should refrain from the use of idioms, colloquialisms, and

other jargon in radiotelephony communications and should modulate their rate of delivery. 4. Native speakers must ensure that their variety of English is comprehensible to the international

aeronautical community. 5. Plain language should be specific, explicit, and direct.

Chapter 4. Language Training and Radiotelephony Communications 1. An important first step in the establishment of efficient and cost-effective language learning

programmes are the selection of appropriately and adequately qualified teachers. i) Learning a language is a great deal more complex than the familiar use of our own native-

language in our daily lives often leads us to believe. ii) Language teaching is a professional activity that requires specialized training and is further

distinguished from other teaching activities because of the unique nature of language learning: a complex blend of skill, knowledge and cultural awareness, combining physical components with mental and communicative processes.

2. Aeronautical subject matter experts (SME) should collaborate with language teachers to develop accurate and effective programmes.



i) The SME can ensure accurate and appropriate training content, and the language teacher can ensure that delivery focuses on language learning.

ii) The task of teaching language classes or developing appropriate language learning materials should be guided by language teaching experts and material developers.

3. Flight crews and air traffic controllers need to acquire phraseologies, but aviation English training should not be limited to phraseologies.

4. Language proficiency is an intricate interplay of knowledge, skills, and competence, requiring much more than memorization of vocabulary items.

5. Many factors influence the language learning process. It is difficult to predict how long any particular individual will require to reach the ICAO Operational Level 4 proficiency; as a general rule of thumb, between 100 and 200 hours of language learning contact hours are required for measurable improvement. This number can be reduced by involvement in specific-purpose classes that focus solely on speaking and listening.

6. There are no short cuts in language learning. Time, motivation, and mature effort are always required. 7. Adherence to the standards set by a number of professional language teaching associations best

guarantees effective programmes.

Chapter 5. Compliance with ICAO Language Proficiency Requirements 1. Licensing authorities require a specialized evaluation (or test) of those who do not demonstrate Expert

proficiency. 2. Phraseologies-only testing is not appropriate. 3. Demonstration of actual speaking and listening ability is required.

Chapter 6. Aviation Language Testing 1. Language testing in aviation is seen as high stakes because it involves careers and safety.

i) Language testing is a specialized professional activity. ii) General lack of awareness of the professional requirements for language testing, combined

with the high-stakes nature of language testing, might present a risk if inadequately prepared tests are used.

2. The need for the reliability and validity of language proficiency tests in an aviation context is very high. i) With careers and possibly lives at stake, administrations should turn to language testing

professionals in order to ensure that the tests used or developed for compliance with the ICAO language proficiency requirements will provide reliable and valid results.

ii) All participants and stakeholders testers, test developers, and test users involved in aviation language testing have the responsibility to ensure that the language proficiency tests they select, provide, or develop for the aviation industry are valid, reliable, effective and appropriate.

3. Testing services, rather than a test, are required. 4. Direct, communicative proficiency tests of speaking and listening abilities are appropriate assessment

tools for the aviation industry and will allow organizations to determine whether flight crews and air traffic controllers are able to meet the ICAO language proficiency Standards. i) The ICAO language proficiency requirements require an aviation context for testing. ii) Phraseologies-only testing is not appropriate. iii) Indirect tests of grammatical knowledge, reading or writing are not appropriate. iv) Tests that test proficiency in another specific-purpose context (academics or business) are not

appropriate.

Chapter 7. Aviation Language and Aeronautical Radiotelephony & Communicative Language Functions 1. There are three distinct roles of language as a factor in aviation accidents and incidents.

i) Use of phraseologies; ii) Proficiency in plain language; iii) Use of more than one language.

2. The following supports curriculum development for aviation language programmes: i) Aeronautical communicative language functions; i) Inventory of events and domains; ii) Priority lexical domains; iii) Aviation language tasks.

EASA

EASA is the legislative body of the European Union responsible for aviation safety. As the authority of a member state of EASA, FOCA has an obligation to ensure that the following legal requirements are applied in Switzerland. The requirements came into force on 8th April 2013 and replaced the former recommendations of the Joint Aviation Authority (JAA).



L311/12 EN Official Journal of the European Union 25.11.2011 - FCL.055 Language proficiency

(a) Aeroplane, helicopter, powered-lift and airship pilots required to use the radio telephone shall not exercise the privileges of their licences and ratings unless they have a language proficiency endorsement on their licence in either English or the language used for radio communications involved in the flight. The endorsement shall indicate the language, the proficiency level and the validity date. At the time of writing such legislation does not apply to glider or balloon pilots, those pilots

flying from uncontrolled airfields or those requiring communication with a Flight Information Service.

(b) The applicant for a language proficiency endorsement shall demonstrate at least an operational level of language proficiency both in the use of phraseologies and plain language.

To do so, the applicant shall demonstrate the ability to: To meet the LPR, an applicant for a licence or a licence holder shall demonstrate the ability to:

(1) communicate effectively in voice-only and in face-to-face situations; (2) communicate on common and work-related topics with accuracy and clarity; (3) use appropriate communicative strategies to exchange messages and to recognise and

resolve misunderstandings in a general or work-related context; (4) handle successfully the linguistic challenges presented by a complication or unexpected turn

of events which occurs within the context of a routine work situation or communicative task with which they are otherwise familiar; and

(5) use a dialect or accent that is intelligible to the aeronautical community.

c) Except for pilots who have demonstrated language proficiency at an expert level, the language proficiency endorsement shall be re-evaluated every:

(1) 4 years, if the level demonstrated is operational level (ICAO Level 4) or (2) 6 years, if the level demonstrated is extended level (ICAO Level 5).

(d) Specific requirements for holders of an instrument rating (IR). Without prejudice to the paragraphs above, holders of an IR shall have demonstrated the ability to use the English language at a level that allows them to:

(1) understand all the information relevant to the accomplishment of all phases of a flight, including flight preparation;

(2) use radio telephony in all phases of flight, including emergency situations; (3) communicate with other crew members during all phases of flight, including flight preparation.

(e) The demonstration of language proficiency and of the use of English for IR holders shall be done through a method of assessment established by the competent authority.

Licensing

The following statistics refer to holders of Swiss licences and were current at on 27th February 2014. They are given for information purposes only. For more updated information please contact the licence office at FOCA, Bern.

Total holders of RTF privileges in English = 11949 o Holders of Language Proficiency Level 6 in English = 449 o Holders of Language Proficiency Level 5 in English = 578 o Holders of Language Proficiency Level 4 in English = 7680 o Holders of RTF privileges in English without Language Proficiency = 3252

Licence holders Language Proficiency in a Swiss national language) = 1457

Licence transfers from states outside Switzerland to a Swiss FOCA licence.

The following rules concern language proficiency endorsements for those pilots transferring their licence from outside Switzerland to a Swiss FOCA licence.

For transfer from another EASA state, FOCA accepts a licence in its entirety including all RTF and LPC endorsements, including language proficiency at Level 6.

A licence conversion from a non-EASA state (including US FAA) to an EASA state is a complex process. For this reason where a licence containing a language proficiency endorsement is transferred to



Switzerland from a non-EASA state, an initial language proficiency endorsement of Level 4 only is given by FOCA. The licence holder must then renew or revalidate this in accordance with the language proficiency system in Switzerland. This can either be done through a renewal or revalidation of the Level 4 or through undertaking the higher level exam.

Swiss licence holders taking a Language Proficiency check outside of Switzerland

With effect from 1st January 2014, the following procedure will apply for Swiss licence holders taking a language proficiency exam outside Switzerland:

Language proficiency Level 4 obtained in an EASA Member State: Full acceptance for Initial issue in Swiss licence or Revalidation of same level in licence.

Language proficiency Level 5 obtained in an EASA Member State: Full acceptance for Initial issue in Swiss licence or Revalidation of same Level in licence.

Language proficiency Level 6 obtained in an EASA Member State: Acceptance for Initial Issue at Level 5 only in Swiss licence.

Language proficiency Level 4 to 6 obtained in a non EASA Member State, or stated in the foreign ICAO pilot licence issued by any other national Civil Aviation Authority outside of an EASA-regulated Member State: Acceptance of Level 4 ONLY for initial issue in Swiss licence or revalidation of current Level.

Holders of a Swiss pilot licence with a language proficiency endorsement of Level 4 or 5 wishing to obtain a language proficiency Level 6 are required to take the higher level language proficiency exam in a FOCA Exam Centre in Switzerland. In accordance with ICAO recommendations, where the holder demonstrates a final result of level 6 in both the speaking and listening components of the higher level test, a Level 6 will be issued in the license see Chapter 2 for full details.

Holders of a Swiss licence who consider English to be their first language may apply for an Expert speaker assessment when their current Level 4 or 5 is due for renewal. This includes all transferred licences and licences where the language proficiency check was carried out outside of Switzerland. For details of how to apply and conditions of application, as well as how to access exam dates, see section 2, Language Proficiency exams in Switzerland below.

Pilots should note that the following documents are required by FOCA as a minimum for all the above mentioned applications for Swiss licence holders taking a language proficiency exam outside Switzerland:

Official Certificate of Test result / Level of language proficiency test issued by the respective competent National Aviation Authority.

Or: Official Certificate of Test result / Level of language proficiency test issued by a training organization with

all the results of each part of the test. Information about date and place of the exam, Copy of the Approval Certificate of the training organization

issued by the respective Civil Aviation Authority showing that the organization is officially authorized to conduct ICAO language proficiency tests.

Or: Official Certificate of Test result / Level of language proficiency test signed by a qualified language

assessor/rater with all the results of each part of the test. Information about date and location of the exam. Copy of the language assessor/rater certificate issued by

the respective Civil Aviation Authority showing that he/she is officially approved to conduct ICAO Language Proficiency tests.

Or: Copy of the valid non - EASA / ICAO-licence of the non-EASA country with the language proficiency Level

entered in that licence, together with a copy of the last flight review proficiency check.

Non-Swiss licence holders taking a Language Proficiency check at a FOCA exam Centre in Switzerland.

Holders of non-Swiss licences may take a language proficiency check at a FOCA exam centre in Switzerland, but the holder must first check with the relevant national authority of their licence for all applicable conditions and required documents. Applicants must advise the FOCA exam centre when applying that they have a non-Swiss



licence and that they have the approval of the national authority of the licence to take the exam in Switzerland. They should also advise the exam centre administrator when applying for the exam of the documents required by the national authority. Applicants must also make sure that they have all the required documents before leaving the exam centre or that they receive them as soon as possible thereafter from the FOCA exam centre administrator.

Please note also that many countries do not accept a revalidation or a renewal combined with a flight or simulator check. Again, pilots should check with the relevant authority of the licence before making an application for the exam.



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CHAPTER 2

LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY EXAMS

FOR PILOTS IN SWITZERLAND



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Introduction In accordance with ICAO recommendations and EASA legislation for language proficiency testing in aeronautical communication mentioned in section 1, all candidates in FOCA language proficiency exams are tested for their Speaking Ability and Listening Comprehension only.

The final result is the lowest level achieved of the two parts based on the ICAO rating scale for language proficiency in aeronautical communication. A candidate must achieve a minimum of level 4 in both parts of the exam to pass. If a candidate scores below level 4 in one part of the exam they will be given a no-pass result. Further details and the implications for the candidate are given below.

All applicants for exams are sent documentation detailing the contents of the exams to be taken and are given advice on how best to prepare for the exam. As part of the ongoing test development FOCA aims to have this information available on its website as soon as is practicable, including typical examples of questions and tasks a candidate can expect in the exam. All assessors will be advised when this is available and should disseminate this information to flight schools and colleagues in their immediate region.

The information given in this section of the manual refers to the English language proficiency exams only. Holders of radiotelephony privileges in a Swiss national language (German, French, and Italian) who consider themselves native speakers in the same national language may apply for Expert speaker assessment in their first language. Details can be obtained through the exam centre administrator for the radiotelephony exams.

Exam Centres Language Proficiency exams for pilots in English in Switzerland take place at one of the four nominated radiotelephony centres:

Zurich (Level 4 and Level 5/6) Lausanne (Level 4 and Level 5/6) Bern (Level 4 only) Locarno (Level 4 only)

All exams dates are published annually on the FOCA website. Pilots requiring any further information about the exams should contact their nearest exam centre administrator, details of which are also found with the information on exam session dates.

Listening Comprehension In the listening comprehension component, candidates listen to recordings of simulated unexpected situations in aeronautical communications and must answer multiple-choice questions on each recording. The recordings are generally MP3 or WAV files and driven by a lap top computer. Answers and questions sheets are paper based and candidates are required to note their chosen answers on the given answer sheets by placing an X over the letter that corresponds to the chosen answer. There is no required writing in the exam, although candidates are free to take notes, as it is not a memory test, and there is no computer input from candidates. The listening comprehension test is normally taken as a group.

Speaking Ability In the speaking test candidates interact with the examiners in face-to-face communication. With the introduction of new test material in 2014 the speaking test will also include non-visual interaction with an examiner.

Level 4 exams Pilots must take their initial English Language Proficiency check at Level 4 and may revalidate or renew their

existing Level 4 in a FOCA RTF centre. o Pilots taking their initial English LP exam must first have passed their radiotelephony exam in English. o Trainee pilots must ensure that the application form for their initial LP exam is signed, stamped and

dated by the Head of Training at their flight school. Licence holders with an English level 4 endorsement in their licence that is still current, or with an expiry date

of less than 3 years, may combine their language proficiency check with a flight. For details see section Recurrent Testing in Flight (page 24-25).

Licence holders with an English language proficiency endorsement that has expired for more than 3 years must renew their endorsement in a FOCA exam centre.

The cost of the full Level 4 exam is CHF175 and invoicing is carried out directly by FOCA. Any queries regarding exam fees and invoicing should be made directly to FOCA and not the exam centre administrators.

Application forms and other information are available on line at: http://www.bazl.admin.ch/experten/ausbildung_lizenzen/03167/03168/03196/03621/index.html?lang=en



Level 4 Exam Material Renewal As part of its commitment to good and recommended practice in test development, FOCA is currently renewing all material for the Level 4 exams, both in the exam centres and for recurrent testing. Once FOCA has approved acceptance of all the new test material from the test development team, all authorised FOCA Assessors will receive new material for recurrent testing together with guidelines and information on its use.

Level 4 Exam Results: Pilots taking a level 4 exam receive their result on the day of the exam of either: pass - minimum of Level 4 demonstrated in both parts of the exam, or no-pass - minimum of Level 4 not demonstrated in at least one part of the exam.

Pass Result Pilots obtaining a pass result in a Level 4 exam will have their licence endorsed by FOCA with a Level 4.

Candidates obtaining a pass result and who have a current LP expiry date of less than 4 weeks may ask one of the examiners to sign and endorse their licence to the effect that they have demonstrated Language Proficiency at level 4. This is done to enable the candidate to show a valid language proficiency endorsement, if needed, before the new licence arrives.

No-Pass Result Swiss licence holders who achieve a no pass result shall not exercise the privileges of their license and ratings with immediate effect on receipt of the result until such time as they have a language proficiency endorsement in their licence in either English or the language used for radio communications involved in the flight. They will receive a new licence endorsed with language proficiency not demonstrated. All candidates receiving a no-pass must sign their application form on receiving the result to acknowledge that they have been given the result.

Candidates who obtain a no-pass in the first part (Listening Comprehension) of the Level 4 exam in an exam centre shall not take the speaking part, whether during an initial exam or when re-taking the exam. This is to avoid candidates being obliged to pay the full exam fee.

Re-Testing All candidates who achieve a no-pass result in an exam centre who wish to re-take the exam should normally do so in the same exam centre and must enroll to re-take the full exam. Candidates should also make sure that their application forms for the exam to be re-taken are accompanied by the forms from all previous exams showing the fail result(s).

A candidate who achieves a no-pass in an exam centre and who needs to re-take the exam urgently may apply to re-take the exam in another exam centre. This will usually be for professional reasons only, where not having a valid language proficiency endorsement in the licence would prevent the candidate from carrying out his/her normal professional duties.

Such candidates must apply in writing (e-mail is acceptable) to both the original and required exam centres with justification for their application to re-take the exam in a different centre. Both exam centre administrators must accept the application before the candidate is allowed to enroll and retain the right to refuse the application if there is not sufficient evidence that it is urgent.

Length of time between no-pass result and re-taking of exam There is no time limit for candidates who obtain a no-pass result and the re-taking of the exam, nor is there a limit on the number of times a candidate can re-take the exam.

Candidates should be aware however, that where they achieve a particularly low score in the listening comprehension or where several areas in the speaking ability component were below Level 4, it may be prudent to undertake some training on the advice given by the Assessors before re-taking the exam. Assessors should refer to Appendix 4 for further information about language training.

Higher Level Exams Holders of an English Level 4 endorsement in their licence that is current, or that has an expiry date of less than 3 years, wishing to achieve a level higher than 4, may apply to take the higher level exam at one of the two FOCA exam centres that provide such exams.

Holders of a level 5 endorsement in their licence wishing to achieve a level 6 or who wish to renew a level 5 endorsement must do so at a higher level exam session in one of the two FOCA exam centres. A level 5 endorsement cannot be renewed or re-validated combined with a flight. This is because it is not possible to evaluate all the criteria for assessment of Level 5 and 6 in flight.



Level 6 It is often said that Level 6 is reserved solely for native English speakers. This is not the case. Any candidate, whatever their first or other regularly used language may be, who demonstrates Level 6 criteria in both parts of the LP check will be accorded Level 6. Indeed while the notion of the native speaker of English tends to be used to refer to those whose first language is English, the concept is a complex one. There are, as has been demonstrated, non-native speakers who have great affiliation to a language and may have a higher level of proficiency in that language than native speakers.

The vast number of different varieties of native speaker English (e.g. American, British, Irish, Australian, South African, Singaporean) means that this notion cannot easily be translated, or modeled, into one particular standard although most teaching and exam material used worldwide adopts either American or British English as a model.

Expert Speaker Assessment Any FOCA licence holder, or trainee pilot, who considers that English is his first language or that he considers himself a native English speaker, may apply for an Expert speaker assessment at one of the higher level test sessions. This is to ensure that both of the qualified FOCA Language Assessors making the expert speaker assessment have demonstrated Level 6 Expert speaker themselves and that at least one is an Anglophone first language speaker.

To apply for an expert speaker assessment in English, the applicant, as recommended by ICAO, must include evidence of his considered English speaker status with his application. This may typically be: Passport from an Anglophone country Evidence of long term residence in an Anglophone country Evidence of academic studies in an Anglophone country

Other documentation will be considered on its merit by the exam centre administrator.

The cost of the higher level exam is CHF 250 and invoicing is carried out directly by FOCA. Any queries regarding exam fees and invoicing should be made directly to FOCA and not the exam centre administrators.

Higher Level Exam Results

Pass Result Candidates who achieve a minimum of Level 4 in the higher level exam will be given a pass result and their licence will be endorsed with a specific level. This level will be: 4, 5 or 6 based on whichever level is the lower of the two parts of the exam.

o It should be noted that on the day of the exam a candidate achieving a minimum of level 4 in both parts of the exam will normally only be given an intermediate result of pass and that the final level will be communicated to them by FOCA as soon as is practicable. This is because of the complexity of assessing specific levels for all 6 language areas.

o It may under certain circumstances be possible to give specific results on the day, where for example the candidate requires a certain level for professional duties, but candidates should not put pressure on the exam centre staff to give them the actual level, if it is not possible.

Candidates obtaining a pass result and who have a current LP expiry date of less than 4 weeks may ask one of the examiners to sign and endorse their licence to the effect that they have demonstrated Language Proficiency to a minimum of level 4. This is done to enable the candidate to show a valid language proficiency endorsement, if needed, before the new licence arrives.

No-Pass Result Candidates who do not achieve a minimum of Level 4 in one or both parts of the higher level exam will be given a no-pass result.

As with the Level 4 exams, all Swiss licence holders who achieve a no pass result in the higher level exam shall not exercise the privileges of their license and ratings with immediate effect on receipt of the result until such time as they have a language proficiency endorsement in their license in either English or the language used for radio communications involved in the flight. They will receive a new licence endorsed with language proficiency not demonstrated. All candidates receiving a no-pass must sign their application form on receiving the result to acknowledge that they have been given the result.

Re-testing All candidates who achieve a no-pass result in the higher level exam, who wish to re-take the exam, must do so at a Level 4 exam session and this should normally be in the same regional exam centre. As with a no-pass



result in a Level 4 exam, candidates must enrol to take both parts of the exam. Candidates should also make sure that their application forms for the re-take are accompanied by the form from the failed higher level exam showing the fail result.

A candidate who achieves a no-pass from a higher level exam in an exam centre and who needs to re-take the exam urgently may apply to re-take the Level 4 exam in another exam centre. This will usually be for professional reasons only, where not having a valid language proficiency endorsement in the licence would prevent the candidate from carrying out his/her normal professional duties.

Such candidates must apply in writing (e-mail is acceptable) to both the original and required exam centres with justification for their application to re-take the exam in a different centre. Both exam centre administrators must accept the application before the candidate is allowed to enroll and retain the right to refuse the application if there is not sufficient evidence that it is urgent.

Recurrent Testing In Flight

General In order to save time and money, a pilot has the possibility to renew or revalidate his existing Level 4 language proficiency endorsement in English combined with a flight. The exam must still include both Listening Comprehension and Speaking Ability.

The assessment would normally be done during a check ride which the candidate would need to do anyway for the acquisition, revalidation or renewal of a class, type or instrument rating. One example is a skill test, proficiency check, or training flight for the revalidation of a SEP class rating. For practical and logistical reasons airline pilots may combine the language proficiency check with any flight.

A pilot is free to choose anyone of the language examiners from the existing list published on the FOCA website. He/she must also ensure that the Assessor is qualified and authorised to fly the type of aircraft for which the flight is to be performed. The only exception to this would be the case where a non-flying Assessor performs the language proficiency check from a jump seat. In this instance the Assessor must maintain a listening watch to the radio at all times in order to fully assess the pilots language as if he were a pilot/examiner flying.

Assessors asked to take the LP check from the jump seat must have the relevant operational RTF experience to fully assess the pilots language skills in flight. Non-flying Assessors must also be paid the relevant fee as if they were a pilot/examiner flying, as well as any costs incurred during the flight. The current fee is CHF75.

Such a system allows the examiner to evaluate whether both language proficiency and standard phraseology meet the required levels. Where it is not practicable or even possible to combine the language proficiency check with a flight, a pilot may renew or re-validate his language proficiency endorsement in an exam centre as detailed on Pages 21 & 22.

Part 1: Listening Comprehension and Use of Standard Phraseology

Purpose of the flight The purpose of the flight is to check the pilots ability to understand and follow ATC instructions and to communicate effectively during all phases of the flight, in both familiar/usual and unexpected/unusual situations, by using correct standard phraseology and in transition to and continued use of plain language where necessary.

Flight content If possible, either the departure aerodrome and/or destination should be located in a CTR. The en-route part of the flight should also, where possible, include entry/crossing of an airspace requiring ATC clearance, for instance crossing of a civil or military CTR/TMA.

In all cases the pilot must have the opportunity to demonstrate that he/she is able to handle successfully the linguistic challenges presented when confronted with an unusual situation or unexpected turn of events in communication with ATC.

Flight duration FOCA does not establish any minimum flight time for the purpose of assessing the pilots language skills. It is the Language Assessors responsibility to conduct a flight which is sufficiently long enough to meet the requirements and check the pilots ability to communicate in different situations as detailed above.

Aircraft versus simulator The most realistic and, therefore, the best scenarios will be encountered during flights on aircraft and with real ATC contact. There may, however, be situations where there is no alternative but to conduct the flight on a



simulator. In this case, the Language Assessor shall play the role of ATC and, as far as possible, present the pilot with linguistic challenges he would or could meet during a real flight.

Part 2: Speaking Ability

The speaking ability part of recurrent testing is identical to the face-to-face visual element of the exam in the exam centres. Authorised Assessors receive exam material from FOCA for use during this part of the test. This material is strictly confidential and should be kept in a secure place at all times.

As mentioned above, new test material is currently being developed within FOCA and all authorised FOCA Assessors will receive this material for recurrent testing together with guidelines for and information on its use, as soon as the new material has been accepted by FOCA.

Assessors should remember that this part of the exam should take place as soon as possible after the flight and in a suitable location to enable the candidate to perform as he would under normal exam conditions in an exam centre. Premises used for such exams should be free from external noise and interruption. The examiner and candidate should also be alone in the room. The exam must not be conducted in an area with public access, such as a coffee room or an openly accessible training room.

The Speaking Ability component of this exam in exam centres is always recorded for legal reasons. It is also recommended that Assessors carrying out this examination combined with a flight record the speaking ability component. They should, however, obtain the consent of the candidate first. Advice on conducting of the speaking ability interview for exam centres and recurrent testing in flight is detailed in Chapter 3.

RESULT

Pass Result Pilots obtaining a pass result from a recurrent test in flight will have their licence endorsed by FOCA with a Level 4. Candidates obtaining a pass result and who have a current LP expiry date of less than 4 weeks may ask the Assessor to sign and endorse their licence to the effect that they have demonstrated Language Proficiency at level 4. This is done to enable the candidate to show a valid language proficiency endorsement, if needed, before the new licence arrives.

No-Pass Result Swiss licence holders who achieve a no pass result from a recurrent test in flight shall not exercise the privileges of their license and ratings with immediate effect on receipt of the result until such time as they have a language proficiency endorsement in their licence in either English or the language used for radio communications involved in the flight. They will receive a new licence endorsed with language proficiency not demonstrated. All candidates receiving a no-pass must sign their application form on receiving the result to acknowledge that they have been given the result.

Re-Testing All candidates who achieve a no-pass result in a recurrent test combined with a flight who wish to re-take the exam must do so with the same examiner.

Candidates should also make sure that their application forms for the test to be re-taken are accompanied by the forms from all previous exams showing the fail result(s).

Length of time between no-pass result and re-taking of exam There is no time limit for candidates who obtain a no-pass result and the re-taking of the exam, nor is there a limit on the number of times a candidate can re-take the exam.

Candidates should be aware however, that it may be prudent to undertake some training on the advice given by the Assessor before re-taking the exam. Assessors should refer to Appendix 4 for further information about language training.



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CHAPTER 3

ASSESSING SPEAKING ABILITY

THE ROLE OF THE ASSESSOR



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Assessing Speaking ability the Role of the Assessor

Preparing the Candidate The Pre-Briefing should always be carried out in English.

The Assessor should always ensure the candidate is fit and well enough to take the exam.

The Candidate should always be reminded of the following points: Examination time (10-15 minutes). Minimum requirements for a pass (minimum: level 4 for all 6 areas of ICAO scale). That he/she should give as much language as possible. He/she is not being tested on technical items or personal opinions. He/she should ask and clarify where necessary and that this is a positive point. He /she should explain a word or phrase using other words when unable to find exact

word(s). There is no right or wrong answer, but the answer should be appropriate to the question.

What the candidate can expect from you. You will take notes (positive things as well as negative!) to help decide the result and give

feedback. Result will be given as soon as your decision is made and any debriefing will follow.

Allow the candidate to ask questions before the exam starts.

During the exam The Assessor should....

Be relaxed Maintain regular eye contact with the candidate. Continue note taking throughout the exam. Allow the candidate time to speak. Only interrupt the candidate where necessary.

The Assessor should take care of his/her own behaviour, in particular: Body Language. Verbal cues. Assessment signals (avoid good great). Neutrality, but still professional and human. Use the given list of questions (see Question Techniques below). The delivery speed of his/her own language. Instructions they should be clear. Emphasising and stressing words when confirming or repeating.

The Assessor should also be careful not to intervene when a candidate... Shows limited technical knowledge. Gives a personal opinion. Takes time to think and formulate an answer (but not too long).

A sign that the Candidate is going to continue talking is a filler (er, umi) followed by an intake of breath.

The Assessor must: Retain neutrality and be positive. Not react in a negative way to any answers given. Not give words when the candidate cannot find or remember them. Not give translations or accept non-English words.

Question Techniques The Assessor should ask the questions exactly as they are written on the question sheet. Personal follow-up questions should be used when necessary, for example to clarify a point or to get the candidate to expand on a short answer. Assessors should, however, avoid follow-up questions on technical knowledge, personal opinions or sensitive subjects.

An Assessor should also: Try to elicit a language sample from the candidate if no answer (Would you like me to repeat the

question?) or an inappropriate answer (Let me just ask you the question again?) is given.



Repeat a question verbatim the first time. Paraphrase ONLY after this first verbatim repeat. If no suitable answer is given after repeating, paraphrasing and/or clarifying then move on to the next

question. This should be noted as one instance of lack of comprehension, i.e.an Assessor should not count lack of comprehension for each repeat, paraphrase or clarification by the Assessor.

Clarify what the candidate means if they use non-English words or transpose words from their 1st language, e.g.immatriculation instead of registration, or my meaning instead of my opinion, but do not give translations it is an English exam. The ability for a candidate to paraphrase is an important component of the Level 4 criteria for Vocabulary.

If further questions are needed to follow up a short answer or lack of information, an Assessor may also formulate his/her own questions. However it is very important that an Assessor:

Has allowed candidate time to think and respond appropriately 10 seconds is acceptable for thinking time.

Ensures questions are valid, appropriate and relevant. Avoids closed questions (that give "yes" or "no" or single word answers). Avoids technical questions or potential lists. Elicits ideas, opinions, reason or hypothesis. Asks only short and concise questions. Uses level 4 language.

Use Example

Opinion Why is flying such a passion for some people? What do you think is the best way to improve language skills?

Reason What qualities make a good pilot and why? Why do you think there are two Police cars behind the aircraft?

Cause Why do you think the rate of incidents has increased recently? What was the reason for this incident?

Ideas How do you keep up to date with changes in aviation? What do you think the people at the front of the aircraft are doing?

Hypothesis What could be the consequences of bad language training? If air traffic continues to increase what will be the effect on the major airports?

Feelings

How do you usually feel after a flight? Why do you think people are afraid of flying? Take care to avoid negative ideas that could provoke an emotional influence on the candidate. E.g. Tell me about an aircraft accident you remember!



Here is a list of suitable and non-suitable question forms for follow-up questions.

Examples of open question forms Examples of closed, invalid or inappropriate question forms What, in your opinion, are the main reasons / factors for.? Is that correct/right/ok?

Why do you think that ..? Do you need more clarification?

What do you think X is doing ..? (Follow up with Why / Why not?) Does that help you out?

Can you explain why.? Is there any other information that you need?

How could something like this happen? Is there something you are looking for?

Why is this information important? Why does it rain?

How do you think this happened? Is flying good fun?

What could be done to prevent / improve..? Do you like Concorde?

What do you think caused this incident? Is it fun to fly supersonic?

What might be the reason for? How long have you been flying?

Could you describe what is happening here? Is it far from your house to the nearest airport?

Why does X .? Do women make better pilots?

How would you feel if..? What if you fail this exam?

Tell me how you think this happened? Are you nervous today?

In what circumstances would you? What do clouds do?

Note taking Assessors should take as many notes as possible. The more notes and evidence you have, the easier it is to give a full and comprehensive feedback, particularly in the case of a no-pass. Notes should be as concise as possible but comprehensive enough to note a candidates strong and weak points. Shorthand or symbols are preferred, as are the many abbreviations regularly used in aviation (VOR, LSZH, WX).

A note taking template together with optional symbols is included in Appendix 2 to this document. The form is intended as a guide for Assessors only.

How we assess The 6 language components of the ICAO scale are rated in order so as to make it easier and more logical for Assessors to make their final decision.

Thus, Pronunciation is the first thing that a person hears when he/she is listening. Fluency is then the second most obvious element as it is relatively easy to spot sentence length, pausing, hesitation or conversely, natural flow.

Once identified, Vocabulary and, as such, Structure can be more clearly defined. Then, once the wording is understood, Comprehension and finally Interaction can be finalised.



The relevant linguistic components are described and explained in the following chapters.

Deciding the result Use the Rating Scale descriptors in the scale adapted by FOCA (See Appendix 3B) including the additional

information underneath which has been taken from DOC9835 as well as from direct experience within the examining system. The adapted rating scale also includes percentages relative to adverbs of frequency (sometimes, often, etc.) which has been taken from an idea initially used by Eurocontrol in the ELPAC exam for air traffic controllers. The original ICAO rating scale is also included (see Appendix 3A) for information.

Dont go by gut feeling, base your decisions on facts. Be objective and dont give benefit of the doubt! Be factual in feedback language You said that... You showed that..., You replied...You didnt.... Avoid

the use of subjective expressions such as:I feel, I think, you may have, its possible.

De-briefing Ask the candidate how they feel. Be sure to give them the result immediately (pass, no pass) avoid the word fail.

o Congratulations, you have passed! o Im sorry to tell you that the result is a no pass. You did not reach Level 4 in all 6 criteria.

In the case of a pass: o Congratulate the candidate and allow them any questions. o If the expiry date of their current LP endorsement is less than four weeks, the Assessor may sign the

licence.

In the case of a marginal pass: o Tell the candidate the areas where they passed marginally and then give them the feedback on these

areas. Be sure to give them any advice on improvement (see Appendix 4).Allow them any questions. o If the expiry date of their current LP endorsement is less than four weeks, the Assessor may sign the

licence.

In the case of a no-pass: o Give candidate the feedback on the areas they passed first. They may have only one area below Level 4. o Give them your objective evidence about the areas where they performed below Level 4 (not passed). o Then, give them advice on language improvement (see Appendix 4) and allow them to ask any questions

(See also page 22 time between no-pass result and re-taking of exam) o Advise them of their licence restrictions no flights for which the use of radio is required. o Advise them that they must return to the same examiner for the re-test. o Ensure that they sign the form to acknowledge receipt of the exam result.

interaction

comprehension

structure

vocabulary

fluency

pronunciation



CHAPTER 4


PRONUNCIATION



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PRONUNCIATION

Pronunciation refers to the production of sounds that we use to make meaning. It includes attention to individual sounds such as intonation, enunciation (the physical formation of spoken language) phrasing, stress, timing, rhythm how the voice is projected (voice quality) and, in its broadest definition, attention to gestures and expressions that are closely related to the way we speak a language.

Why is pronunciation important? The way we speak immediately conveys something about ourselves to the people around us. Learners with good pronunciation in English are more likely to be understood even if they make errors in other areas, whereas learners whose pronunciation is difficult to understand will not be understood, even if their grammar is perfect! Many adult learners find pronunciation one of the most difficult aspects of English to acquire, and need explicit help.

Stress Stress refers to the prominence given to certain syllables within words. It is signalled by volume, force, pitch, change and syllable length, and is often the place where we notice hand movements and other gestures when we are watching someone talking. One noticeable feature of English is the reduced nature of unstressed syllables. Thus, not only are stressed syllables longer, louder, more forceful and at a different pitch, but unstressed ones are often different in quality.

Stress is important at three different levels: word level multisyllabic words have one or more syllables that are stressed. sentence level the most important words tend to be stressed. contrastive stress the most important words carry greater stress.

Consider the example below:

He was TOLD NOT to ENTer the RUNway! GO arOUND, I say agAIN, go arOUND!

The stressed syllables are marked with capital letters. Each two-syllable word in this utterance must have one syllable that is stressed. This is word level stress, and it is fixed for any word, although there are some variations between different varieties of English.

Those words which are more important for communicating the speakers meaning, usually the content words (nouns, verbs, adjectives) tend to be stressed, while those which are less important, usually the grammatical words (prepositions, articles, auxiliary verbs), are unstressed. In addition, one of these stressed syllables or words is usually more important than the others, and this is called the tonic.

The tonic is important because it changes according to the speakers intended meaning. So if the speaker wanted to emphasise the fact that it is the runway rather than the taxiway RUN of runway would be more strongly stressed than other stressed syllables in the words spoken.If, however, the speaker wanted to emphasise the fact that he remembers telling him, then he could stress told. Here we see how important pronunciation is when deducing meaning from how the sound is made and subsequently spoken.

Rhythm An important aspect of stress is, in fact, an absence of stress. It is often failure to unstress syllables appropriately that makes learners pronunciation difficult to understand because, unlike other languages, English tends to maintain a rhythm from stressed syllable to stressed syllable by unstressing, and therefore reducing, the syllables in between. This rhythm gives English its characteristic pattern words are often run together when spoken, rather than stressing all syllables.

The reduced vowel (schwa //) is very common in English and deserves special attention. In our example, the a in was, the er in enter and the between enter and runway would all be pronounced with a schwa. This pronunciation accentuates the stressed syllables. This sound is spoken similar to a soft /uh/ such as /bnarn/ (banana) and /ftohgrf/ (photographer).



Intonation

Features of connected speech In English we link and blend sounds between words in a way which is quite distinctive from that of other languages, and these features help us to manage the patterns of stress, unstress and pitch change discussed above. Crucially, learners in whose first language final consonant sounds are rare or not fully pronounced (e.g.: many Asian languages) may find it very difficult to say word-final consonants and therefore to link words in the way that is characteristic of English.

These linking devices are not trivial, as they help learners to avoid the breathy, choppy delivery that can impede communication. This is true not only for speakers of Asian languages, but also for speakers of languages where some vowels cannot be linked in this way for example, Arabic speakers.

Segmental aspects of pronunciation Learning to pronounce the sounds of English in natural speech is a crucial part of learning pronunciation in English. Many learners may have difficulty with particular sounds, sound combinations or with putting particular sounds in particular positions (word-final /z/ for some Vietnamese background speakers, or the /th/ sound for French speakers, for example).

Consonants are made by causing a blockage or partial blockage in the mouth, and these are usually described in terms of: Where the sound is made in the mouth, or place of articulation (tongue, hard palate, alveolar ridge). How the sound is made, or the manner of articulation (tongue between teeth, air forced out /th/ sound). Whether or not the vocal cords vibrate, or voicing. (/z/ voiced sound becomes /s/ un-voiced sound when

vocal cords dont vibrate and air only is forced out).

Vowels are usually described in terms of: Length, although remember that length depends on stress, and that even short vowels in English may

seem rather long when stressed (for example tree tousand) The position in the mouth in which they are made (in terms of their position from high to low and front to

back) The degree to which the lips are rounded, spread or neutral.

English may have many more vowel sounds or longer vowels than learners are used to in their first language and so learners may need a lot of careful listening to vowel sounds, and to think about how to distinguish them, as well as where in the mouth they should make them.An important issue which is not always treated in the reference texts is that adult learners will already have drawn the boundary of what counts as a particular sound in a slightly different place or manner in their first language. An example of this would be the characteristic French /r/ (arrive) sound compared with the English sound (arrive). Sometimes there are two separate sounds capable of distinguishing differences in meaning in English, but not in the learners first language.

An example would be the distinction that is made in English between /l/ and /r/, which is not made in the same way in Chinese. The converse may also be true that is, English may only have one sound, where their first language has two, as in the so-called light / l/ (in land) and dark / l/ (as in roll) in English. Russian distinguishes these as two separate phonemes. Another difficulty may arise when learners do not have the English phoneme at all in their first language and they need to learn it from scratch, although this seems to present less of a problem for learners in the long term.

Assessing Pronunciation Although pronunciation is the first thing you are able to assess it may not always be easy to be as objective as other language areas. Assessors therefore should be looking for a global percentage where pronunciation interferes with ease of understanding, not just the understanding itself. The harder it is to understand someones pronunciation the more difficult the communication is going to be.

Caution should also be shown when assessing a candidate whose own first language strongly influences his pronunciation in English. If the assessor is used to hearing the candidates first language then this influence on his pronunciation should be taken in a more global context against how much poor or mispronunciation would interfere with the ease of understanding for someone who is not used to hearing the candidates first language. The nearer an assessor is to the 25% limit for Level 4 in interference with ease of pronunciation in a candidates language he is used to hearing, the more likely someone not used to the candidates first language will have difficulty in ease of understanding of more than the 25%.ICAO clearly states that pronunciation should be intelligible to an international community of aviation users.



Key elements affecting ease of understanding include: Enunciation the difficulty of physically producing a sound (particularly on multi-syllable words where

syllables can easily be swallowed). Mispronunciation simply incorrect pronunciation pee-lott (pilot). Speed where the brain produces words faster than the body can physically. Incorrect syllable stress ExaMINEr; photoGRAPHer. First language interference th sound (French/German = Z); B/V Spanish.

Frequent Problems Areas in Pronunciation

Problem area Examples

Mispronunciation of vowels

Examiner (mine), Climate (Kl-ee-matt), Moun-tay-neous, Gauge (gorge), Critt-eh-ria, reh-cently, Floo (flow), Horih-

zun (horizon) Incorrect syllable stress

pho-to-GRAPH-er / APP-uh-rent / In-for-MAT-ive / EX-peh-rience

Missed Schwa (the uh unvoiced vowel sound):

Accu-ray-t, Com-fuh-tay-ble, veg-eh-tay-ble / moun-TAY-nee uss /

Logical consonants Legs/Legislation, Jear/gear First language enunciation

Th becomes Z, D French and German) ; L/R sound Asia; B/V sound Spanish

Swallowed, garbled syllables Vocab-ree (vocabulary)

slurring, mumbling incoherent and / or unintelligible pronunciation - poor enunciation



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CHAPTER 5


FLUENCY



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FLUENCY

Typically fluency can be described as the flow of a language. It is the smoothness and ease of how someone speaks.

Good fluency is not the same as being fluent in a language. The word fluent is often used to indicate a general high level of proficiency but is often subjective and unsubstantiated.

Good fluency should include: Stretches of coherent language. Correct word order and phrasing. Few hesitations. Consistent use and variation of discourse markers. An appropriate tempo.

Poor fluency can include: Short pieces or chunks of unlinked or incoherent language. Incorrect word order and/or simple phrasing (with or without a finite verb). Hesitations and long pauses. No or limited use of basic discourse markers (and, but). Speaking too fast / too slow. Distracting fillers (just sounds er, hmm, uh-huh, pfff, aah, etc).

Tempo of speech delivery A slow delivery is evidence of poor fluency and could well inhibit communication and lead to frustration on the part of the listener whilst the person is attempting to get all his language out. Imagine the new PPL (even native speakers unfamiliar with the world of RTF exchanges) on his first solo desperately trying to convey ALL his necessary (and sometimes unnecessary) information to the Controller. In an unexpected situation, speech delivery should be quick enough to convey the required information at an acceptable speed so that the listener can understand quickly what is happening. It should also not be too slow where the delivery aggravates an already worsening situation in preventing quick remedial action. The ICAO Rating Scale calls this an appropriate speed at Level 4.

Again as we saw in phrasing, native speakers are often guilty of speaking too fast, leading to poor fluency and difficulty in comprehension for the listener. Assessors, whilst grading a native speaker at level 6, should also advise them to adapt their language when communicating on the radio, when working with non-native speakers, or in an unexpected (particularly an emergency) situation.

Hesitations and pausing These are natural phenomena of communication delivery in all human beings. Rarely do we all speak with such fluency like we are reading the TV news or giving a keynote address. However too much hesitation and pausing leads to poor fluency. In weaker candidates, this could be due to lack of vocabulary, uncertainty of subject matter or correct grammatical structure. Assessors should limit acceptable filler free thinking time (or silences) to about 10 seconds. Much longer and a candidate should be prompted to see if they would like the question repeated.

Fillers As with hesitations and pausing, we use fillers in our language delivery all the time in whichever language we speak. It is part of natural speech delivery. However, too many fillers lead to poor fluency, and can be very distracting.

Lower level candidates are more likely to use non-lexical fillers, such as: um, er, ah, hmm, i.e. noises, rather than actual words.

Higher level candidates are more likely to use lexical fillers (actual and coherent words or groups of words known as hedging) such as: like, you know, well, you see, I mean, etc.

Whichever fillers a candidate uses, they should not distract the listener from the ease of listening.

Phrasing Fluent language is not just a list of phrases with many parts of important information missing. Good fluency includes correct word order, correct use & order of phrases & clauses and typically when these are linked with discourse markers or connectors.

Sentences should include at least one clause, i.e.: words containing a finite verb, with subject and time conjugation, to give sense and meaning. A phrase is part of a sentence that does not contain a finite verb, i.e. an action that is conjugated to reflect person, number and time.



Clause: Pilots are encouraged to discuss safety issues. Discourse Marker and Phrase: other personnel matters.

Lists of clauses and phrases without key information as well as chunks of unlinked and/or incoherent language make fluency, and ultimately communication, very difficult. In weaker candidates this is evident with a lot of hesitation and use of fillers, missing words and incorrect word order. Coherent meaning and thus effective communication is often difficult to achieve and should be graded accordingly.

Even native speakers of a language simply do not always use coherent and structural phrasing, and this can inhibit good fluency. Though they may have a very high level of vocabulary and use correct grammatical structure, their speed of delivery (too fast) and what we could call, the cultural effect (constructive fillers, incomplete clauses and phrasing), may make for poor fluency. This is particularly noticeable in younger people. It is not uncommon to miss out key elements of a sentence that would otherwise ensure really good fluency, simply because the related speech is relatively informal.

Non-native speakers may pick up this style of speaking quite quickly when studying a language in the same country, as a lot of the time outside the classroom will be taken up with social, and thus informal, activities. Students may feel a lot more at ease in speaking like this, as they may feel less constrained by the rigours of specific and rigid language learning in the classroom. The same is also likely with people whose parents or partner speak the language being learned. Informality will usually prevail over formality in the house!

This can therefore often be easy for an examiner to hear but, conversely, difficult to assess. For higher level testing, examiners, if in doubt, should consult with a native speaker examiner or linguistic specialist to see if a candidates fluency problems are linked to inherited informal speech or are evidence of a lower overall language level. Evidence of the former would be where a high level and range of vocabulary (idiomatic, nuanced and sensitive to register) and grammatical structures are used with relative ease and spontaneity. Evidence of the latter is often found in hesitation, pausing, poor sentence structure, a limited vocabulary range and the over use of non-constructive fillers.

Speakers may not even be aware of the fact that they are doing this, and even when rating a candidate for Level 6 in fluency, examiners should make the candidate aware of this particularly where a high speed of delivery is noted. It is partly for this reason that ICAO have documented in DOC9835 that native speakers should adapt their language accordingly when talking to non-native speakers. It is also not uncommon to find that non-native speakers often find communication with other non-native speakers easier than with native speakers, partly for the reason of high speed of delivery leading to poor fluency and difficulty in comprehension.

Whatever the reason, good fluency in spoken language should flow like a river. Phrasing and sentences should be coherent and cohesive to ensure effective communication.

Discourse markers Discourse markers (these are words like however, although, nevertheless) are referred to more commonly as linking words' and 'linking phrases, or sentence connectors. They may be described as the glue that binds together pieces of speech. They may also show the listener which way the speaker is going with his/her discourse.

Without sufficient discourse markers in a piece of speech, discourse cannot seem logically constructed. Connections between the different sentences and phrases and, as such, rational meaning, would be more difficult to understand.

Care must also be taken, however, to avoid over-use of discourse markers. Using too many of them, or using them unnecessarily, can make a piece of speech sound too heavy and artificial.

What are the different discourse markers that can be used? There are many discourse markers that express different relationships between ideas. The most common types of relationship between ideas, and the sentence connectors that are most often used to express these relationships, are given in the table below. The discourse markers in the table are generally used at the start of a phrase or clause. Sentence connectors do not always begin a completely new sentence; they may be separated from the previous idea with a semi-colon.

There are two particular features of the sentence connectors indicated above:



Sentence connectors can be used to begin a new sentence or a new clause that follows a semi-colon. Some sentence connectors can be placed in different positions within the sentence initial position (e.g.

because he is ill, he needs to rest) and mid-way position' at the start of another clause (e.g. He must rest, because he is ill).

How can sentence connectors be replaced in order to increase variety in language output? In your language output, you will want to spend some time ensuring that you have a sense of variety. In order to do this, you might think of the following:

Use conjunctions as well as/instead of sentence connectors. A conjunction is a word like and, but, etc, which is used to join two ideas together into a complex sentence. Unlike sentence connectors such as However, etc, a conjunction cannot be used at the beginning of a sentence and must come at a mid-point, at the end of one clause and the beginning of another. It is usually possible to rephrase a pair of sentences that use a sentence connector by using a conjunction instead. For example, instead of saying John had an ATPL, however, Francis had a CPL, it might actually be more natural to say He had an ATPL, but, Francis only had a CPL. Similarly, instead of saying English is hard; therefore, one must spend a lot of time practising it, we can say: English is hard so one must spend a lot of time practising it. These are simple examples, but the principle of paraphrase can be extended to other, more complex sentences.

Use conjunctions at least some of the time. Words like and and but may seem boring, but they help to lighten the style. This in turn helps speech to sound less pompous and formal. In any case, it is often helpful to use a variety of structures rather than just saying things in one way. Certainly at higher levels Assessors look for greater variety of discourse markers in speech, rather than just andand but.

Assessors should, however, note that lower level candidates may have rehearsed certain extra discourse markers when preparing for the exam. These may stand out as unnatural or with limited vocabulary range in the rest of the discourse. Conversely, it can also be tedious to listen to someone who uses too many discourse markers. Their speech can seem pedantic, heavy and over-pompous. TV presenters, politicians and business leaders are often guilty of this. You are ideally seeking a light, flowing style, not a heavy or forced one.

It can also be helpful to omit discourse markers if they do not serve any useful purpose. Knowing when to omit the discourse marker is a subtle aspect of language use and comes with more practice and wider reading. Native speakers and high level non-native speakers often do this in natural informal speech and it is not always easy to either notice or assess. This is just one reason why at least one native speaker or linguistic expert should be present to assess language at the highest level.

Typical discourse markers and their uses:

Type of relationship Sentence connectors Position within clause/sentence

Adding something Moreover; In addition; Additionally; Further; Further to this; Also; Besides; What is more.

Initial position

Making a contrast between two separate things, people, ideas, etc.

However; On the other hand; In contrast; Yet. Initial position

Making an unexpected contrast (concession)

Although; Even though; Despite the fact that; In spite of the fact that; Regardless of the fact that.

Initial position : Starts a second/ sub-ordinate

clause

Saying why something is the case Because; Since; As; Insofar as.


clause

Saying what the result of something is

Therefore; Consequently; In consequence; As a result; Accordingly; Hence; Thus; For this reason; Because of this.

Initial position

Expressing a condition

If; In the event of; As long as...; So long as...; Provided that...; Assuming that...; Given that....


clause Making what you say stronger

On the contrary; As a matter of fact; In fact; Indeed. Initial position



Word order (Syntax) Whilst the ideas, vocabulary and structure of language output may be technically correct, and a response may in fact reply to a question, incorrect word order leads to poor fluency and can be difficult for a listener to follow. (see also STRUCTURE sentence patterns).

Example:

Q. Why is team work important in a multi crew environment?

Erm... well all the time it is very important... with two pilots...if one pilot he decides and...er... he wants ....er on his

own...and then... a breakdown...we have .. yes.. a breakdown... and er... do his own thing.... between them in the same

place... or even together... it is that they together always ..fewer problems between the two .. very important.

Here the candidate replies in sort to the question, but with a lot of pausing, incorrect phrasing and disjointed syntax. Simple short phrases with no discourse markers and some clauses without finite verbs make the fluency very disjointed and difficult for a listener to follow. Unconstructive fillers also demonstrate poor fluency.

Another example of typical poor fluency is where a candidate uses English words translated with a transposition and syntax of his own language. Again the sample may be understandable although it takes some work from the listener to really work out what he is saying, particularly if the listener doesnt speak the same first language as the speaker.

Example: Yes, we must de-ice this aircraft, for that the weather prevents not some delays. In this moment we look what we must do for our departure and then, yes, make contact with the ATC

A good example of fluency may be:

Erm, well, you see, of course it is crucial to a two-man operation, because without close co-operation, one crew member

may well decide to do his own thing without the permission or agreement of the other crew member. Here, we can, of

course, see that there could be many resultant problems. We know that this is one of the key roles of CRM and SMS

training.

Adverbial phrases Typical problems of word order are adverbial phrases groups of words that go together to give meaning to an adjective or a verb (action). These1normally come at the beginning or end of a sentence or clause, whereas single word adverbs would come before an action (frequency)2, after an action (intensity)3, or before an adjective4.

Examples:

We go flying every second Thursday of the month1.or Every second Thursday of the month we go flying.

Both are correct , but NOT: We go every second Thursday of the month flying. Here go flying is an action in itself and cannot be split. Non-native speakers often find word order of adverbial phrases difficult.

He often2 instructs new student pilots. NOT He instructs often new pilots. TheAirbus landed heavily3.NOT: The Airbus heavily landed. Concorde made a very4 loud noise.NOT: ...Concorde very made a loud noise.

This is not an exhaustive list of adverb rules, and assessors should consult a good grammar book for further reading.



Frequent Problems Areas in Fluency

Examples Explanation People.in place.. customers. For buying. Just words - no phrases or complete sentences

I see .. er, airplane, vehicleser.. men Clouds. Plane landing Just a list no phrases

There is a man.. Walking.. I think,..erer.. old man. Takes dog.. Near airport.

Accurate although short sentences and no discourse markers. Phrasing inappropriate several key words missing in constructing sentences.

The bird is er .. ah .. er .. flying. He is er.. um.. er.. approaching the helicopter. He has been .. er, uhm in a tree.

Lots of very distracting fillers, although the phra

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