A very basic test to see if we can communicate at a low level. This can be online or in-person. I will run through the first one or two chapters of the DKEFE level one book. As long as you go through it without making any mistakes we can work out where to start you in the series. If you make mistakes you'll probably be asked to start from the first book. That's not for the prurpose of teaching, but for testing. A good student will typically finish the initial book in about four lessons, and I will have a good understanding of their strengths and weaknesses.
My experience is that students that accept starting at a lower level invariably do much better than those that demand to start at a higher level. If a student wants to start at a level I think is too high, it is unlikely I will accept them.
Students can broadly be divided into four categories:-
Absolute beginners.
We will use the DKEFE Junior series of books.
Lower intermediate.
We start at the DKEFE level one series and supplement the books with materials I developed to accompany the course.
Intermediate.
To start here you must pass an assessment. You are allowed to make one mistake per page. Any more than that and it is recommended that you start from the first series to catch elementary and rudimentary errors.
High level learners.
Advanced students that repeatedly make low-level mistakes normally fall into two categories.
Some have a misunderstanding that needs correcting. They just need a small explanation of their mistakes and they can put them right almost instantly.
Others have ingrained mistakes and tend to speak without a lot of conscious awareness of what they are saying. They require a series of lessons and they must be prepared to put in the work in and out of the lesson, to achieve their aim.