Canadian Language Benchmark 4

Listening: Basic Level

Global Performance Descriptor

• Learner can follow, although with considerable effort, simple formal and informal conversations and other listening texts/discourse on topics of immediate personal relevance at a slower to normal rate of speech.
• Can recognize many topics by familiar words and phrases.
• Can follow simple, short, direct questions related to personal experience and general knowledge.
• Can understand many common everyday instructions and directions related to the immediate context.
• Can follow simple, short, predictable phone messages.
• Often requests repetition.
• Needs a little assistance (such as speech modification or explanation).

Performance Conditions

• Listening texts are short monologues, presentations and dialogues (several exchange turns) on familiar everyday topics.
• Speech is clear and at a slow to normal rate.
• Learner has been adequately briefed for focused listening.
• Communication is face to face or video- and audio-mediated (e.g., tape).
• Instructions are clear and explicit, used with some visual clues. They are mostly simple and compound clauses containing longer phrases of location, movement and manner.
• Some tasks require oral or physical response.
• Some tasks are in a “guided” writing format (e.g., circle or match items, fill-in blanks).
• Learner may require an occasional repetition.

Competency Outcomes and Standards

I. Social Interaction

What the person can do

• Identify specific factual details and inferred meanings in dialogues of casual small talk, introductions, leave-taking, and in short phone calls.

Examples of tasks and tests

• Identify correctly specific factual details and inferred meanings in a videotaped small talk; introductions or leave-taking; or in a taped phone conversation by responding correctly to comprehension questions.

Performance Indicators

• Identifies specific factual details and inferred meanings in video- and audio-mediated listening texts/discourse as required.

II. Instructions

What the person can do

• Follow sets of sequentially presented four- to five-clause everyday instructions and directions relating to movement and position in space, manner, frequency and duration.

Examples of tasks and texts

In the middle cabinet, top shelf. On the diagonal between the upper left and lower right corner. A quarter of the way from the centre in each direction.

• Locate items on diagrams, maps and in real space following verbal directions.
• Correct the order of steps in a recipe following verbal directions.

Performance Indicators

• Follows instructions and directions relating to movement and position in space, manner, frequency and duration.

III. Suasion (getting things done)

What the person can do

• Demonstrate comprehension of mostly factual details and some inferred meanings in persuasive oral texts.

Examples of tasks and texts

• Public announcements, commercials, infomercials.
• Identify meanings, according to task requirements (e.g., true/false, answer the question, circle the correct answer, etc.).

Performance Indicators

• Identifies main intent, main idea, factual details, words and expressions, and inferred meanings in persuasive oral texts as required.

IV. Information

What the person can do

• Demonstrate comprehension of mostly factual details and some inferred meanings in a story about obtaining goods or services; a report or a forecast; a news item.

Examples of tasks and texts

• Listen to a story about shopping, getting an appliance repaired, arranging travel, etc.; a weather report/forecast, traffic report; a radio/TV news item.
• Complete a related task (e.g., true/false).

Performance Indicators

• Identifies factual details and inferred meanings in a listening text as required.
• Gets the gist, detail, key words and expressions as required.