The preliminary work of the Scottish "School-Based Assessment of Communicative Foreign-Language Skills in Secondary Classes 3 and 4" to train teachers to undertake increased testing responsibilities under recent educational reforms is explained. The models of communicative competence and performance being developed for use with classroom teachers are presented. An account is given of the foreign language assessment practices observed and the evaluation of the data in terms of the extent to which the assessment practices currently in use appear to elicit evidence about pupils' communicative foreign language proficiency. The general pattern of oral testing, including test management, scoring, examiner behavior, and the dimensions of communicative performance being tested, observed during preliminary visits to six cooperating schools and the attitudes of teachers concerning the teaching and assessment of communicative skills are described. The future action research strategy of the project is also outlined. (Author/MSE)