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CELPIP Speaking is scored on four dimensions and sixteen named factors. Here is the full list, and the three factors that separate a rated Level 8 answer from a Level 9.
Almost every guide tells you CELPIP Speaking is scored on four things. That is true, and it is not enough to act on.
Inside those four dimensions, CELPIP publishes sixteen named factors, four in each. Knowing the four tells you what the areas are called. Knowing the sixteen tells you what to change.
| Content and Coherence | Vocabulary | Listenability | Task Fulfillment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of ideas | Word choice | Rhythm, pronunciation, and intonation | Relevance |
| Quality of ideas | Suitable use of words and phrases | Pauses, interjections, and self-correction | Completeness |
| Organization of ideas | Range of words and phrases | Grammar and sentence structure | Tone |
| Examples and supporting details | Precision and accuracy | Variety of sentence structure | Length |
Listenability is the one people have not met before. It means how easy you are to listen to. Notice what is inside it: your rhythm and pronunciation, your pauses and self-corrections, your grammar, and how varied your sentences are. Grammar is one factor inside one dimension, one of sixteen in all.
No weighting is published. CELPIP names the four and does not say how they are added together, so nobody can honestly tell you that one is worth more than another, or that they are equal. If you have seen a percentage attached to any of them, it was invented.
🎥 The same question answered twice, and only three things change (11:28)
All sixteen factors, then one Task 1 question answered twice at 90 seconds each. Both answers are polite, both use the full time, both are complete. One scores higher, and only three things are different between them.
Jump to: 0:27 the sixteen things · 4:55 the sixteen as CELPIP publishes them · 6:08 why no weighting is published · 7:21 does getting cut off lower your score · 7:50 precision · 9:02 examples and supporting details · 9:26 variety of sentence structure · 10:26 the three that change your Level
In our experience marking practice answers, the same three factors separate a Level 8 answer from a Level 9 again and again.
They are precision and accuracy, examples and supporting details, and variety of sentence structure.
A typical Level 8 answer has some awkward expressions and words used slightly wrong.
A Level 9 answer uses many phrases that fit the situation exactly, like a co-op placement or a reference letter, and can still lean on general ones like really good, pretty expensive, a good thing or a great help.
Those general phrases are the lesson. They are not wrong. They are simply not exact, and exactness is the factor.
| Imprecise | Precise |
|---|---|
| a really good university | a university with a strong co-op program |
| pretty expensive | around four hundred a month more than here |
| a good thing | it means you can start earning right away |
| a great help | she can put your resume in front of the hiring manager |
A typical Level 8 answer has ideas that are logical but not developed, and it repeats them with basic transitions.
A Level 9 answer attaches a detail to each idea: the bus route, the monthly cost, a person who can help.
Development is not more ideas. It is saying one more thing about the idea you already have.
This is the smallest of the three changes and it is the easiest to see.
A typical Level 8 answer controls simple sentences well. The word simple is the important one there.
A Level 9 answer adds some complex sentences, joined with words like because, when and although.
Even then, a Level 9 answer can lean on and and also to join everything. More kinds of sentence would lift it further.
So the fix is small and specific. Join some of your sentences with when, because, although, if, while, after instead of putting and between everything.
| One dimension at a time | Joined |
|---|---|
| I moved to Halifax. My sister was already living there. | I moved to Halifax because my sister was already living there. |
| It was raining. I decided to walk anyway. | Although it was raining, I decided to walk anyway. |
| I finished the course. I applied for the job. | Once I finished the course, I applied for the job. |
This part matters as much, because it is where people spend effort that earns nothing.
Tone is usually fine at both levels. A friendly, helpful tone is common in Level 8 answers too. So being polite is not the reason an answer stays at 8.
Length is usually fine at both levels. Plenty of Level 8 answers speak for the full time and include a closing, and plenty of Level 9 answers end without one.
A closing is still worth having when you have the time. It is just not the reason an answer stays at 8. The three factors above are.
Length is a named factor inside Task Fulfillment. Speaking for the full time is credited by name in the rated samples.
But be careful with the number you may have seen. No figure is published for how much silence costs you, and any specific number of seconds is somebody's guess.
What matters more is this: an answer that is cut off mid-sentence can still score at the top of the scale, as long as it has done everything the task asked before time is up.
So the thing to avoid is stopping early with time still on the clock. Being interrupted by the timer is not a fault.
Number of ideas, quality of ideas, organization of ideas, examples and supporting details.
Do: open with your main idea in one line. Give each idea one concrete detail. Keep one clear order and follow it.
Avoid: long backstories before the point. Jumping between ideas. Saying the same idea twice in different words.
Word choice, suitable use of words and phrases, range of words and phrases, precision and accuracy.
Do: choose the exact word for the situation. Paraphrase the prompt rather than repeating it. Rotate key words so you are not saying problem six times.
Avoid: words you cannot control. A rare word used slightly wrong reads as a lack of control, and precision is the factor being scored, not difficulty.
Rhythm, pronunciation and intonation. Pauses, interjections and self-correction. Grammar and sentence structure. Variety of sentence structure.
Do: keep a steady pace and pause at idea breaks. Mix sentence lengths and joining words. Correct yourself quickly and move on.
Avoid: long chains of filler. One very long sentence held together by commas. Every sentence built the same way.
Relevance, completeness, tone, length.
Do: answer the question that was asked. Cover every part of the task. Match your voice to the person you are speaking to. Use the time you are given.
Avoid: answering a nearby question instead of the real one. Missing one instruction inside a prompt that contains two.
Record one, listen back, and score yourself against the three that move.
| Not yet | Getting there | There | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Precision | general words throughout | precise in places, vague in others | every claim has an exact word or number |
| Development | ideas stated and left | one detail on some ideas | one detail on every idea |
| Sentence variety | mostly and, so, then | some joining words | when, because, although, if, once, while |
If all three sit in the left column, work on precision first. It is the fastest of the three to change.
1. Find your general words (5 min). Record any 60-second answer, listen back, and write down every general phrase you used. Good, nice, a lot, very, pretty, a long time, some people. Replace three of them with something exact.
2. Join your sentences (5 min). Take a transcript of one of your answers and rewrite five sentence pairs using when, because, although, if, once. Read both versions aloud.
3. One detail each (5 min). Take any three ideas you have used before and add one specific thing to each. A number, a name, a place, a time.
Related: Fast Planning for Tasks · Listenability Toolkit for rhythm, pausing and self-correction · Vocabulary for Speaking for precision.