Speaking assessment: handling a follow-up you did not prepare
In a school-based speaking assessment, a student gives a two-minute talk on «Η ζωή στην πόλη και στο χωριό». She has prepared statistics about transport and housing in Athens and a comparison with her grandparents' village. The teacher then asks a follow-up she did not anticipate: «Εσύ προσωπικά πού θα προτιμούσες να ζήσεις σε δέκα χρόνια και γιατί;» She pauses, then says: «Δεν ξέρω. Και τα δύο είναι καλά.» The teacher waits. The assessment criteria reward interaction, justification and range of language, not just accuracy.
1. Why is «Δεν ξέρω. Και τα δύο είναι καλά» a weak response under these criteria, and what should she do instead?
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It is weak because it closes the interaction: no justification, no personal stance, minimal language range, and it hands the initiative back to the examiner. Under criteria rewarding interaction and justification, she should take a position - even a provisional one - and support it. For example: «Σε δέκα χρόνια θα προτιμούσα να ζήσω στην πόλη, γιατί εκεί υπάρχουν περισσότερες ευκαιρίες δουλειάς, αλλά μου λείπει η ησυχία του χωριού. Ίσως ιδανικά θα ήθελα να δουλεύω στην πόλη και να περνάω τα σαββατοκύριακα στο χωριό.» This answers the question, gives a reason, adds a nuance and keeps the exchange going.
2. She genuinely has not decided. How can she say so without losing marks?
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She can express genuine uncertainty as a position rather than a blank: «Δεν έχω αποφασίσει ακόμα, αλλά κλίνω προς...» or «Εξαρτάται - αν βρω δουλειά στην πόλη, θα μείνω εκεί· αν όχι, θα γυρίσω στο χωριό.» This uses conditional structures, shows awareness of trade-offs, and still answers the question. The examiner is assessing whether she can sustain and develop a position in Greek; hedging with reasons demonstrates more advanced interaction than a flat refusal. A useful formula: state the uncertainty, then give the two competing considerations, then say which currently weighs more.
3. How should she use the pause before answering? Give a concrete strategy and a phrase to gain time in Greek.
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Use the pause deliberately, not as silence: take a breath, decide the position, then signal thinking with a natural phrase while formulating, e.g. «Λοιπόν, καλή ερώτηση...» or «Ας το σκεφτώ λίγο...» These are acceptable interactional fillers that sound natural rather than evasive, provided they are short and followed by content. The strategy is: choose a position first, then attach one reason and one example before speaking. Rehearsing this sequence in practice means the pause shrinks. Long fillers or repeated «εεε» without content do not earn credit; a two-second pause followed by a structured answer is better than immediate fluent emptiness.