Overview of “Splendid Speaking” Website (http://splendid-speaking.com)

• Main Author: Peter Travis
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kanda University of International Studies 2011-03-01
• Series: Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal
• Subjects: online speaking
• Online Access: http://sisaljournal.org/archives/mar11/travis/

It is natural for adult learners preparing for upper-intermediate and advanced speaking examinations like the Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English (CAE), the Business English Certificate (BEC) or International English Language Teaching System (IELTS) to feel daunted by the Speaking examination. Having their spoken English assessed ‘live’ in a high stakes situation can be quite stressful. To perform at their best in the exam learners need to be able to contribute fully to the various task formats within their spoken exam.Students preparing for these exams need to have regular practice in responding fully to questions, working cooperatively with a partner, and generally taking the opportunity to showcase their use of English. In our experience there was little in the way of freely-available structured materials for advanced speaking skills online. We decided we would like to help learners preparing for their respective exams as well as general upper intermediate to advanced students wishing to develop their speaking skills. We launched splendid-speaking.com in 2006.