Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) for the Assessment of Speaking

Abstract

The skill of speaking, arguably, plays the most essential role in the process of communication among people; thus, the teaching and assessment of speaking deserves special attention. The oral proficiency interview (OPI) has been utilized as a technique for the assessment of speaking for about 70 years and its traditional format has been revised and updated in line with the requirements of contexts and innovations in technology. Accordingly, this paper briefly introduces the OPI and discusses the advantages and disadvantages of the OPI. In addition, the reliability and validity of the OPI for the assessment of speaking skills has also been expounded on with specific reference to its strengths and weaknesses. More precisely, the paper argues that the OPI has the potential to assist foreign language teachers in teaching and testing the speaking skills of their learners as long as its weaknesses are compensated for, reliable rating scales are designed and raters are trained to score the performances reliably.