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OPI & WPT for the Seal of Biliteracy

»»ÆÞ̽»¨ Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) and »»ÆÞ̽»¨ Writing Proficiency Test (WPT) for the Seal of Biliteracy

OPI WPT SOBL logo header

»»ÆÞ̽»¨ is proud to support the Seal of Biliteracy by offering the »»ÆÞ̽»¨ Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) and the »»ÆÞ̽»¨ Writing Proficiency Test (WPT) in 24 less commonly taught languages.

  • The »»ÆÞ̽»¨ OPI & WPT SOBL assessment is appropriate for high school juniors and seniors (Grades 11 & 12).
  • The Seal of Biliteracy forms target the proficiency range of Novice Low to Advanced Mid.
  • The »»ÆÞ̽»¨ OPI & WPT SOBL assessment is available each Spring from January to May.
  • Students, parents, teachers, and schools can order the OPI & WPT for SOBL from Language Testing International (LTI), »»ÆÞ̽»¨'s exclusive licensee of »»ÆÞ̽»¨ assessments. Visit to schedule an »»ÆÞ̽»¨ OPI & WPT for the Seal of Biliteracy.

Languages

»»ÆÞ̽»¨ offers the OPI & WPT SOBL in 24 less commonly taught and assessed languages including: Albanian, Amharic, Bengali/Bangla, Bosnia/Croatian, Bulgarian, Cantonese, Dari, Gujarati, Haitian Creole, Hebrew, Hindi, Malayalam, Pashto, Polish, Swahili, Tamil, Tagalog, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese and Yoruba.

»»ÆÞ̽»¨'s goal is to increase access to the Seal of Biliteracy for learners of less commonly taught/tested languages. If you would like to suggest a language for development, please visit the »»ÆÞ̽»¨ test development request form.

»»ÆÞ̽»¨ Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) for the Seal of Biliteracy

The »»ÆÞ̽»¨ Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) for the Seal of Biliteracy (SOBL) assesses how well a person speaks a language. It is an assessment of the Interpersonal Listening and Speaking mode of communication. It is a 20 to 25-minute one-on-one interview between a certified »»ÆÞ̽»¨ tester and test taker. It is interactive, continuously adapting to each test taker and their speaking abilities. The speaker’s language ability is compared to the criteria outlined in the »»ÆÞ̽»¨ Proficiency Guidelines for Speaking, and then a proficiency rating is awarded.

OPI SOBL Format

  • Phases of the OPI: The OPI begins with a warm-up which consists of greetings, informal exchanges of pleasantries, and conversation openers about topics such as family, hobbies, and school. Based on the warm-up, the OPI tester begins by asking questions that help to identify the proficiency level of the speaker. The tester makes judgments by comparing the test taker’s language to the »»ÆÞ̽»¨ Proficiency Guidelines for Speaking. The interview concludes when the tester identifies enough evidence to support a proficiency rating. The interview ends with a brief exchange of conversation closers.
  • Tasks & Topics: The speaker is presented with tasks and topics that represent the range of proficiency levels from Novice Low to Advanced Mid on the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines for Speaking.
  • Time: The average time to complete a SOBL OPI ranges from 20 to 25 minutes.
  • Format: The one-on-one interview is conducted over the phone by an »»ÆÞ̽»¨-certified OPI Tester.


»»ÆÞ̽»¨ Writing Proficiency Test (WPT) for the Seal of Biliteracy

The »»ÆÞ̽»¨ Writing Proficiency Test (WPT) for the Seal of Biliteracy (SOBL) is an assessment of functional writing ability in a language, addressing the Presentational and Interpersonal modes of communication. It measures how well a person spontaneously writes in a language (without access to revisions and/or editing tools) by comparing the test taker's performance on specific writing tasks with the criteria stated in the »»ÆÞ̽»¨ Proficiency Guidelines for Writing.

WPT SOBL Format

  • Introduction and Warm-Up: The WPT introduction contains directions, information on test taking strategies, and a warm-up activity that targets the Novice proficiency level.
  • Prompts: The »»ÆÞ̽»¨ WPT includes four prompts for written responses dealing with practical, social, and academic topics that are encountered in informal and formal contexts. Each prompt contains two to three tasks.
  • Tasks & Contexts: The writer is presented with tasks and contexts that represent the range of proficiency levels from Novice Low to Advanced Mid on the »»ÆÞ̽»¨ Proficiency Guidelines for Writing.
  • Prompts: The WPT SOBL prompts are written in English; the test taker's responses are written in the target language.
  • Time: The average time test takers typically take to complete all WPT prompts ranges from 45 - 60 minutes, up to a maximun of 90 minutes.
  • Demo: The WPT demo site can be found
Test Administration and Delivery

Schedule a Test or Check on Scores

Language Testing International (LTI) is the exclusive provider of »»ÆÞ̽»¨ assessments. LTI scheduled conducts and reports over 700,000 »»ÆÞ̽»¨ assessments each year.