Test, Teach, Test – Why do the first test?
Many teachers find this particular framework confusing as they don’t really get the rationale behind the first test. In our TEFL program, we have helped hundreds of candidates to get a better grasp on this framework and trained them to adapt it more effectively.
To begin with, it is important to understand that the first test is not considered as a typical test where you mark and grade your learners; however, it is more of a stage where you get to observe how your learners use the target language so you could build your lesson on their existing knowledge.
For example, if you wanted to check whether your learners could control various exponents used to make polite requests, you could give them a multiple choice test with items such as:
3. It’s very hot in here. Would you mind ……. the window.
a. to open. b. opening c. open d. if you open e. that I open
TTT is a useful approach as it enables teachers to identify the specific needs of learners concerning a language area and address this need suitably. It can be particularly useful at intermediate levels and above, where learners may have seen language before, but have specific problems with it, and also in mixed level classes to help identify objectives for each individual.
