O-Level English · Paper 4

O-Level English Paper 4: Oral Communication

Time

About 20 min

Marks

30

Weighting

20%

Paper 4 is spoken. You watch a short video clip and give a planned response of up to two minutes. Then you discuss a topic with the examiners.

What the examiners mark

• You give a clear view and support it with reasons.
• You use real examples from your own experience.
• You speak fluently, with accurate grammar and a range of vocabulary.

Suggested timing

Preparation	10 min
With the examiners	About 10 min

The sections

Section	How you answer	Marks	On Zippy
Planned response	Spoken	15	2 pages and a guide
Spoken interaction	Spoken	15	2 pages and a guide

Planned response

Spoken15 marksSpeaking lessons

Watch a short video clip and speak about it for up to two minutes.

How to answer

1. Read the prompt, then select details from the clip that help you answer it.
2. Use the preparation time to plan a view, two reasons and one example.
3. Start with your view in the first sentence.
4. Develop each reason with an observation or example and explain its relevance to the prompt.
5. Practise aloud with a timer. Cut repeated points and finish within two minutes.

Example

The clip shows a crowded hawker centre, with used trays left on tables. The question asks how you would encourage people to return their trays.

Answer: I would start with the school, because habits begin young. Pupils who clear their trays in the canteen will clear them outside too. At my school the trays must go back, and the tables stay clean now.

It answers the question, gives a reason and ends with a real example.

Common mistakes

Mistake	What helps
Describing the clip instead of answering the question.	Say your view in the first sentence, before anything else.
Stopping after twenty seconds.	Explain why your example supports your view. Practise the response aloud to check its length.
A speech learnt by heart that does not fit the question.	Practise building answers from a pattern, not from a script.

Open 2 pages and a guideThe Shared FootpathHow It Is Marked

Spoken interaction

Spoken15 marksSpeaking lessons

Talk with the examiners about a topic and share your views and experiences.

How to answer

1. Answer the question directly in your first sentence.
2. Give a reason for your view.
3. Add a short example from your own life.
4. When challenged, consider the alternative view. Explain whether it changes or limits your answer.
5. Speak naturally and let the examiners lead.

Example

Examiner: "Some people say phones should be banned in schools. What do you think?"

Answer: I do not think a full ban is needed. Phones help us check timetables and look things up. But they should stay away during lessons. In my school they live in locked pouches during class, and nobody misses them.

It gives a clear view, a reason and a real example from school.

Common mistakes

Mistake	What helps
One-word answers.	Develop the answer with a relevant reason or example. A follow-up may need a comparison or qualification instead.
A story you memorised that does not fit the question.	Keep a few true examples ready and pick the one that fits.
Drifting away from the question as you talk.	End each answer by linking back to what was asked.

Open 2 pages and a guideSharing Public SpaceHow It Is Marked

Format, marks and weighting from the SEAB syllabus.

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