'Testing' a t&p relief valve can mean different things in different applications. For the average homeowner, you should be concerned mainly with unrestricted movement of the (in this case) silver tab and shaft it is connected to, and the discharge tube location / condition. I personally prefer the tube to discharge outdoors to prevent water damage in case the valve does open, but you should check your local building codes as that's not always allowed believe it or not!
The only way to truly test those valves is to connect them to a device that will bring them to the pressure that they should relieve, and then the temperature at which they should relieve, but you would never do this for your typical home valve as it would be far less expensive to simply replace the valve periodically.
Don't forget that part of your regular testing and maintenance should include flushing the buildup from the bottom of your water heater. This will extend the life and make the heater more efficient. Like the t&p valve, however, once you open the drain valve it may not close again without leaking. They are generally very easy to replace, so no big deal, just put a good quality brass valve in instead of the cheap plastic thing many home heaters have from the factory. I'm sure there are many posts here already to explain this further, but you're welcome to write and ask for details if you like.
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