If you have clicked on the title of this article, you probably know what Delta Module 1 is, why one should take it, and what it looks like. Just a quick reminder: Delta (or Diploma in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) is the highest qualification for an English teacher. It consists of 3 modules, the first one being overloaded with language analysis, teaching approaches, language systems, terminology and what not.

I have just got my Pass with Merit for the exam taken in June 2019 and feel like sharing some bits of my story with you.

I did Module 1 three years after doing CELTA. It took me a year of speedreading and some massive changes of classroom practices. Three months after the exam, my desk is still a mess and the walls are covered in notes and mindmaps. It was good fun, though.

Before applying or even preparing, I checked all the technical details, from price to place. Here is what I found out.

When?

Module 1 is held worldwide twice a year, in June and December. Having taken mine on June 3rd, 2019, I had to wait for the results till the 15th of August.

Where?

Although you can prepare for the whole thing on your own, you will still have to go to one of the Cambridge-authorized centres to sit an exam. I am lucky to have one in my city, so my journey was a 40-minute ride to the downtown. You can have a look at all 269 centres here.

What to start with?

When the idea of doing Module 1 struck me, I went to explore the first place which might even come to your mind when you get into thinking about any of the Cambridge exams -- Cambridge English website. There I got the exam overview, Delta syllabus, the Handbook and sample papers. Since the exam format was changed in 2015, they now have only one set of sample papers available. You’ll be extremely fortunate to come across something of later years. However, the website option is just right to get a brief idea of the exam requirements.

Got it. What next?

Then it was time for a reading list. To be honest, I was a bit discouraged with all those enormously lengthy lists which I could find. Some of them contained up to 60-70 books and seemed like no picnic at all. Don’t get me wrong: I do love reading. I’m a sucker for reading! But what about moderation?

Analysis was my next step. I scrutinized a dozen of lists and highlighted the books which were repeated in most of them. Then, I divided them into categories: Methodology, Testing and Assessment, Lexis, Grammar, Phonology and some more. I was trying not to have more than two books in each category. After that the list seemed manageable. I will definitely share it, as well as some book reviews, with you in the next post. Hope it will come in handy.

Stay tuned!