Elicited Imitation (EI) is a way to assess language ability. It has been used by language researchers for many years. In an EI test, learners listen to a sentence. After a short pause, they try to repeat the sentence exactly. If the learner says the sentence correctly, it shows they have understood the grammar, vocabulary, and structure. For example,
| Prompt: | “The children are playing in the park.” |
| Learner’s response: | “The children are playing in the park.” |
EI is not just about memory. The sentences are often long or complex. This means learners must understand the sentence, not just copy it. If the sentence is too long for short-term memory (usually more than 8–10 syllables), the brain must rebuild the sentence using grammar and vocabulary knowledge.
EI can show grammar understanding, listening ability, pronunciation and fluency and general speaking skills. Researchers have found that good EI test results often match the results of other speaking tests like IELTS or TOEFL.
A full EI test includes about 30 sentences of different lengths and difficulties. Learners repeat each sentence only once. Their responses are recorded, and then someone checks how close their sentence is to the original. Some sentences might include common grammar patterns (e.g., past tense, modals) vocabulary from daily life, different sentence types (questions, negatives, etc.)
Traditionally, teachers or trained raters listened to each response and give it a score from 0 to 4 using a rubric such as the Ortega scale.
| Score | Description |
| 4 | Exact repetition. The sentence is repeated perfectly or with only 1 small error. |
| 3 | Mostly correct. There are 1–2 small errors, but the meaning is still clear. |
| 2 | Partially correct. The learner gets about half the sentence right but makes key mistakes. |
| 1 | Minimal attempt. The learner tries but gets very little correct. |
| 0 | No response or not understandable. The sentence is missing or completely unclear. |