OCR homepage
This guidance applies to GCSE (9-1) English Language - J351.
The spoken language assessment in the GCSE (9-1) English Language qualification is a separately endorsed component.
Centres are responsible for task setting: candidates deliver a prepared spoken presentation on a chosen topic decided by the teacher and candidate ahead of the assessment.
Each presentation must include the opportunity for the candidate to respond to questions from the audience.
As a guide, the duration of the whole assessment – presentation and questions – should be no more than 10 minutes.
Teachers assess candidates live, using the common assessment criteria in the specification (available from the qualification page), and award either a Pass, Merit or Distinction using a competency approach.
Candidates who don’t reach the Pass standard are recorded as ‘Not Classified’ and this will also be recorded on the certificate.
You’ll need to make arrangements for internal standardisation of assessments.
The recording of each presentation, including questions and feedback from the audience, must be complete and unedited.
You must keep a written record of all candidates’ assessment outcomes. Examples of individual and group record forms are as follows:
You then need to submit grades for the endorsements by the deadline of 15 May for the June series (5 November for the November series).
You can either do this via EDI or within the ‘Coursework and tests’ area of Interchange.
Instead of entering a mark as you do for coursework/controlled assessment, you select the grade - P, M, D or NC (Pass, Merit, Distinction or Not Classified) and submit in the same way.
See below for step-by-step instructions on submitting grades via Interchange:
For students who are retaking the GCSE English Language qualification, at the point of entry, they can choose to either retake the endorsement or carry forward their most recent result.
To carry forward their result, you must use the carry forward entry option J351C.
You’ll need to select and submit audio visual evidence of presentations for a sample of your candidates together with the printout of all candidates’ spoken language grades. You will not receive a sample request. Instead, you should select the sample as follows:
If your centre has fewer than 10 candidates at a particular grade, please include all candidates at that particular grade (if any).
Please include samples from different teachers/teaching groups where possible.
Do not include candidates assessed as ‘Not Classified’ in the sample.
Full details of sample sizes can be found in appendix 2 of the JCQ Instructions for conducting non-examination assessments.
The deadline for the receipt of the sample of audio visual recordings and all candidate outcomes for the Spoken Language endorsement is 15 May for the June series (5 November for the November series).
If you have selected the OCR Repository entry option (J351/03), submit the samples in digital format and upload these to the OCR Repository.
If you have selected the postal moderation entry option (J351/04), send the samples on DVD or USB using the address labels provided.
Audio-visual recordings submitted on DVD or USB memory stick must contain each presentation as a separate file.
The file name for each recording must contain the following:
Audio-visual recordings should be stored in a secure area on the centre’s network before submission.
In order to minimise software and hardware compatibility issues, you must save learners’ work using an appropriate file format:
Once the sample is submitted, we carry out monitoring by assessing samples of presentations from audio visual recordings to ensure the assessment criteria are used correctly and standards have been accurately and consistently applied.
More information about monitoring arrangements can be found in the Spoken Language guidance in the specification and in the support materials provided on the qualification page.
As well as the Head of Centre declaration included in the JCQ NCN Annual Update, centres also need to return the OCR NEA Centre Declaration Form to us. This form confirms they have taken reasonable steps to ensure each learner has had the opportunity to complete the practical activities as described in the relevant section of each specification.