Chapter 9: Interpersonal Speaking: Conversation

Exam Section II, Task 3

Summary

  • You’ll be asked to participate in a simulated conversation
  • You’ll need to get a short response (20s) five times- your answers will be recorded

How it Works

  • Before the conversation, you’ll be given some information (an introduction that sets the scene, an outline for the conversation, and some guidelines on what to say)
  • It is a very fast-paced exercise
  • You’ll hear a recording of a person speaking. The person will pause, and you’ll hear a beep- the beep is your cue to begin speaking. You need to speak for 20 seconds and your response will be recorded
  • Your response should be consistent with the general guidelines in the outline of the conversation that you were given. Then you’ll hear another beep, which is your cue to stop speaking (the recording of your response ends at the beep). Then the recording of a person speaking will begin again and the process will be repeated.
  • In total, you’ll have to speak five times, each time for 20 seconds.
  • The conversation task is the only part of Section II of the AP French Exam that does not allow time to prepare. Improvisation is the key. The conversation is graded based on the overall 5 responses together.

Strategies and Tips

Before You Begin to Speak
  1. Read the intro- there is a specific context to the conversation
  2. Read the outline of the conversation- it will give you the subject of conversation and trigger vocabulary ideas
  3. Underline the action words that describe what you have to do, for ex.:

   

  1. Respond and give details…
  2. Show enthusiasm and accept…
Speaking
  1. ==Respond== as soon as you hear the beep
  2. ==Correct yourself== if you make a crucial mistake- for the most part ==keep going== rather than try to correct each little mistake
  3. ==Respond as completely as you can== (give details and questions)
  4. If you ==do not understand the question==, think about something to say. No matter what you must speak. If all fails, say: Tu peux répéter ? Then try to continue from there.
  5. The conversation is ==informal==- tu, te, toi…
  6. Do not respond to a ==preceding question== in the next one
  7. Try to keep the conversation ==alive and interesting==. Make it sound as ==natural and authentic== as possible.
  8. Match your ==tone to the information== you are giving.
  9. At the end of the conversation, ==say goodbye and wrap up== the conversation.

Scoring Guidelines-

https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/pdf/ap19-sg-french-language.pdf