English Language (1) Test Content: Areas, Standards and Weights
The 3 areas and 8 standards of the English Language (1) specialized test with official weights, questions per standard, how it differs from Level 2, and where to start.
- Questions and time
- 88 questions · 120 minutes
- Pass mark
- 50%
- Exam fee
- SAR 100 for the specialized test
Start with 10 free questions to find what needs more work. No sign-up, with answer explanations.
Try 10 free questions and see your levelPut what you just read into practice
Start with 10 free questions to find what needs more work. No sign-up, with answer explanations.
Try 10 free questions and see your levelLast verified: 31 October 2026. Our sources are the test taker handbook for the English Language (1) specialized test, the standards for English Language Teachers (1) and the Teachers' Professional License page on the Education and Training Evaluation Commission (ETEC) website. All are the 1441 AH trial edition, so check the website before you start. This guide is independent: it is not affiliated with the Education and Training Evaluation Commission (ETEC), Qiyas (the National Center for Assessment) or any government body.
This guide covers the English Language specialized test at Level (1), which ETEC's handbook aims at elementary school teachers. The professional license also needs the General Educational Test, which has its own guide on this site. Before you study, read the section on confirming your level in the registration guide.
Test format
- Questions: multiple choice with four options; each question measures one indicator under one standard.
- Language: the questions and options are all in English.
- Number of questions and time: 88 questions in 120 minutes.
- Calculator: not allowed.
- Wrong answers: no marks are deducted.
Level 1 and Level 2
English has two separate specialized tests. Level (2) has four areas and 11 standards, including separate standards on second language acquisition, TESOL theory, pragmatics and language as a system. Level (1) has none of these.
Level (1) has three areas and 8 standards, and all of them are about teaching young learners: activities for children and gamification, learning resources and learner autonomy, and adapting lessons to children's culture and interests. Its linguistics covers only four branches: sounds and phonics, morphology, syntax and semantics. Level (2) has its own guide.
The three areas and their weights
| Area | Standards | Weight | Questions out of 88 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-instruction | 6.39.1 – 6.39.4 | 40% | 35 |
| Instruction | 6.39.5 – 6.39.7 | 48% | 42 |
| Post-instruction | 6.39.8 | 12% | 11 |
| Total | 8 standards | 100% | 88 |
The weights are from pages 6 and 7 of the handbook. The question counts split 88 questions across those weights, and the full mock exam on this site follows them.
The 8 standards
| Standard | Title | Weight | Questions | What its indicators cover |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6.39.1 | Formulating learning outcomes for young learners | 8% | 7 | writing measurable SMART outcomes for the module and the lesson, and explaining them to children in words they understand |
| 6.39.2 | Designing language learning activities for young learners | 16% | 14 | varied, connected activities, organizing the module and the lesson (warm-up to wrap-up), technology and gamification |
| 6.39.3 | Selecting and designing learning resources for young learners | 8% | 7 | adapting resources to the outcomes, and designing resources that build learner autonomy |
| 6.39.4 | Preparing learning experiences by young learners' culture, abilities, needs and interests | 8% | 7 | adapting lessons to proficiency (scaffolding and differentiation) and to children's culture and interests |
| 6.39.5 | Selecting teaching methods for young learners | 13.5% | 12 | motivation and engagement, linguistic and cultural comparison with Arabic, individual differences, and correcting errors |
| 6.39.6 | Teaching language skills and sub-skills to young learners | 21% | 18 | listening, speaking, reading, writing, vocabulary and grammar (six indicators, one per skill) |
| 6.39.7 | Applying linguistics in teaching young learners | 13.5% | 12 | sounds and phonics, morphology, syntax and semantics (four indicators) |
| 6.39.8 | Developing and selecting assessment tools for young learners | 12% | 11 | formative and summative assessment tools and criteria, and giving appropriate feedback |
The full text of the indicators (27 of them) is in the standards document (pages 9 and 10). This page summarizes them in our own words; keep the English terms as they are, because the questions are in English.
Where to start
Standards 6.39.6 (teaching language skills) and 6.39.2 (designing learning activities) together make up 37% of the test, which is 32 questions out of 88. Give them the most of your time. Next come 6.39.5, 6.39.7 and 6.39.8, which are 35 questions.
Standard 6.39.6 alone has six indicators, about three questions per skill, so a general read is not enough: try each skill on its own. Standards 6.39.1, 6.39.3 and 6.39.4 are 8% each (7 questions), so they come last.
Start with the 10 free questions in the free practice test to find your weakest standards. Every question on the site belongs to a standard and an indicator from this list, so you can practise one standard at a time in the practice area. For the full schedule, see the study plan.
Finished reading? Try a set of questions
Start with 10 free questions to find your weakest units. Keep practising with the full question bank and mock exams from SAR 26.
Sources and references
- ETEC – Test Taker Handbook: Professional Licensing Test for English Language (1) Teachers (areas, weights, sample questions) media.etec.gov.sa
- ETEC – Standards for English Language Teachers (1): 8 specialized standards and indicators media.etec.gov.sa
- ETEC – Test Taker Handbook for English Language (2) Teachers (Level 2, for comparison) media.etec.gov.sa
- ETEC – Teachers' Professional License test page (format, FAQ) etec.gov.sa