Method

A reliable form of dynamic testing is the pretest-training-posttest design, also known as the sandwich format. This design consists of a pretest during which a child is asked to solve a certain task without any given assistance. After the pretest the child will receive a training session, during which help will be given in the form of instruction and feedback on the basis of the answers the child gives. The training session is followed by a posttest, during which no assistance will be given. This design makes it possible to gain more detailed insight into a child’s ability to learn, the learning potential.  

Another method that provides large quantities of information regarding independent changes in the manner in which a child solves a task is to use the repeated measures approach, which includes instruction at the beginning only. In this situation a child is asked to repeatedly solve the same type of tasks, which enables detailed recording of how a child learns from repeatedly solving a task. This method can also be used to gain more insight into a child’s learning ability.

Ideally, the sandwich format and repeated measures are combined, although his method is labour-intensive. Therefore, this method needs to be adjusted to the situation for every research question.