Interpersonal and Presentational Speaking
Domain 4, Interpersonal and Presentational Speaking, tests spoken German recorded in response to prompts: a simulated conversation or interview, and a presentational task such as describing a picture sequence, giving an opinion, or narrating an experience. Raters judge task completion, comprehensibility, fluency, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and register.
What raters actually hear
Comprehensibility matters more than accent elimination. Control vowel length and umlauts (Stadt/Staat, schon/schön), final devoicing, and stress: native Germanic stems stress the first syllable, but inseparable prefixes (be-, ge-, ver-, er-) are unstressed, and -ieren verbs stress the -ie- („studieren,“ „telefonieren“). Pause at clause boundaries rather than mid-phrase, and use German fillers („also,“ „na ja,“ „ich meine“) instead of English „um.“ When a word is missing, circumlocute: „das Gerät, mit dem man Kaffee kocht“ for a coffee machine.
Structure and interaction
For presentational tasks, signpost: „Zunächst ..., außerdem ..., zum Schluss ...“. For interpersonal tasks, use the answer-reason-question move: „Ich gehe gern schwimmen, weil ... Und du?“ Ask for clarification rather than freezing: „Wie bitte? Könntest du das wiederholen?“ In formal scenarios, hold Sie and Konjunktiv II („Könnten Sie mir sagen ...?“).
Worked example
Prompt: A friend wants to go hiking this weekend; you don't want to. Persuade him to choose another plan. Model: „Weißt du, ich bin eigentlich nicht so gern in den Bergen unterwegs, weil mir die Strecke zu lang ist. Wie wäre es stattdessen mit einem Ausflug an den See? Da könnten wir schwimmen und danach im Café sitzen. Was hältst du davon?“ Reasoning: it acknowledges the friend, states a position with a reason in verb-final order, proposes a concrete alternative with Konjunktiv II („wäre,“ „könnten“), and returns the turn with a question. A bare „Nein, ich will nicht“ fails the persuasive function even if the grammar is correct.
Traps that cost marks
- Delivering a memorized essay that does not answer the actual prompt.
- Flat list intonation with no thought groups, which lowers fluency scores.
- Rushing and swallowing endings that carry case and agreement.
- Choosing du for an official or Sie for a peer.
- Stopping at the first unknown word instead of paraphrasing around it.
- Filling silence with English words or long pauses rather than a German repair phrase.