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English Language Teaching (ELT) uses very specific teaching techniques and evaluation tools. Students are usually divided into classes by their level of ability in the target language, and ELT instructors should always know each students' strengths and weaknesses. Teachers should also make clear goals for their students and use a variety of activities to get an accurate reflection of their ability and progress in English.

Reception Skills
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Use several different ways to test students' understanding of topics. Reading comprehension practice and exams allow for a variety of topics to be studied and discussed in the target language. This also allows you to engage students in class by using a reading passage of particular interests (for example, vacation destinations, or television programs). Grade students based on their ability to explain a text after reading, and answer comprehension questions about what they have read. Listening comprehension also plays a very important part in learning a language. Students must be able to function in a native environment where the other party will speak at a normal, conversational pace, and may not understand their native language. Have students listen to a passage (an interview, song or story) and then answer multiple choice questions based on what they have heard. Incorporate other skills by asking them to write (in complete sentences) what they have heard, or to respond to an audio interview in writing.

Use of English Skills

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Many English language tests for academic skills ask students to identify proper English usage in particular situations. Cambridge ESOL Examinations test Use of English by providing a word, and having the student conjugate it to the correct form (whether noun, adjective or verb tense). Teachers must evaluate the accuracy at which students can do this. Because of the intricacies of English, this is often the most difficult skill for students, so teachers must incorporate opportunities for success. Students should also be able to tell the difference between homophones, and homonyms and when to use them. Teachers may use the Use of English portion of exams to test the students' vocabulary by providing a variety of simple sentences with one word missing; the missing word must be the same for all sentences in a selection. Teachers can evaluate students based on their ability to answer correctly, and also their ability to follow the directions of the activity.

Production Skills
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Production skills (speaking and writing) can prove difficult if students are not challenged with varied activities. Teachers can test production skills by giving oral exams where students must answer questions (asked by the teacher orally) in a detailed and timely manner on an individual basis. Another option for testing speaking skills is to provide students with a guided conversation. Choose a topic (political, entertainment, current events) and divide students into partners. In Cambridge ESOL Examinations, students are graded on their ability to produce a coherent and informed viewpoint under pressure (a skill referred to as fluency). You can also test writing for fluency by assigning students a timed essay question. Grade them on their ability to formulate an argument, organize their thoughts in the target language, and use the appropriate technical structure and style of English. For less experienced

students, teachers may choose to test short answer skills by having the students respond to a question argument in a few sentences.