“Mundtlig eksamen er en kunst” – Danske gymnasieelever til mundtlig eksamen i Historie og Engelsk

Abstract

Danish and Norwegian high school students are assessed in oral examinations, delivering a presentation and a discussion with two teachers of the discipline, in order to graduate. Oral exams are high stakes since average grades determine entrance into higher education. In an ethnographically inspired case study, the article examines students’ perceptions of a good oral exam performance in History and English and how they navigate to deliver it. The article contributes to sparse research in oral exams and suggests a rhetorical framework to provide an outsider’s perspective on a traditional Danish assessment: Students must persuade the assessors that they should pass the exam. The analysis finds that students struggle to identify what constitutes a good exam performance and navigate analytically and explicitly to estimate what a fitting response is. Models of a good performance are indistinct in class, and even though this is not stated, it is essential to respect disciplinary boundaries.