ALTE is organising another online session of the  ALTE Introductory Course in Language Testing which will take place from Monday 16^th  September to Friday 27^th  September 2024. 

The course will be presented by  Professor Anthony Green (CRELLA, University of Bedfordshire) and Jane Lloyd (Cambridge University Press and Assessment).
The course will consist of a mix of recorded lectures and downloadable exercises, alongside a 'live' element where participants meet for an hour and a half a day over the two week-period.  
The course will provide extensive opportunities for hands-on practice, including in test design, item writing, scoring and quality assurance processes. You will learn most if you prepare fully for this work.

During the course you will learn:

• Principles that inform the decisions that individuals and organisations responsible for language assessment systems have to make about their design, content, implementation and use
• The qualities of language assessments that contribute to their usefulness
• Approaches to the assessment of the skills that language learners need for communicative success
• How to connect tasks found on assessments to the tasks involved in real-world language use
• Practical applications of theoretical and conceptual frameworks in the development and validation of assessments.

Workload
This is an intensive, full-time course that requires:

• A minimum of four hours of independent study each day (reading, carrying out tasks, watching lectures)
• 90 minutes of course meetings each day (discussions and group tasks)
• All the activities of each session must be completed before the live session. Please note that the Session 1 and Session 2 pre reading and tasks must be completed prior to the live meeting on the first day.
• A significant amount time working on course related tasks on the two weekends before the official start date and in the middle of the course.

This course is supported by the following core text: 

Green, A.B. (2020) Exploring language assessment and testing (2^nd edition). Abingdon: Routledge. ISBN-13: 978-1138388789. 
The book is provided by ALTE. You can either choose a physical copy or an e-book. Information about the book will be available after you've registered. 

The book (either a physical copy or the e-book) will be delivered to you a couple of weeks ahead of the course start date. 

Once you register, we will share a detailed programme of the course. 

Additional Event Information:  

For group bookings, ALTE advises to book maximum three places per institution. 

Payment is in full when registering. Payment can only be made online using a Visa, MasterCard or American Express.
If you cannot pay with a credit/debit card please contact the ALTE Services Unit: servicesunit@alte.org. In such a case we will issue an invoice first, and only then
a bank transfer will be possible.

In case of cancellation up until one month before the start of the events, the full amount will be refunded minus an €50 administration fee. If you have received the course book, you do not need to return this if cancelling. However, in the case of cancellation after this date, no refunds can be made.

Use of Personal Data Disclaimer

I agree that by clicking 'Register', the personal data I include in the registration form may be used and held by ALTE staff only for the purposes related to the organisation of the ALTE Introductory course in language testing course.

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Please note that ALTE will never ask you to pay via a third party website.
Please avoid clicking on any links that direct you to a payment website other than WildApricot.

To celebrate the European Day of Languages 2024, ALTE and Bilingualism Matters  are inviting you to the online event ‘Exploring approaches to heritage language testing’.

The event brings together speakers from various places in the world and highlights the importance of learning and testing the heritage languages.

The confirmed speakers of the event are:

• Dr Nick Saville, ALTE
• Irma Torres & Emily Spinelli, Michigan Department of Education, USA
• The City of Edinburgh, UK
• Gen Saylor, Milan High School, Michigan, USA & Dina Vilcu, Babeș-Bolyai University, Romania

The event will take place over Zoom, and the link will be provided once you’ve registered. The programme and more information will be available closer to the date of the event.

We're looking forward to seeing you there! 

The ALTE course in oral assessor recruitment and training is suitable for those of you who are new to recruiting and training oral assessors and those wishing to review their current practices. 

This short course of two 90 minute sessions will look at face-face and online assessor training from assessor and interlocutor perspectives. There will be an introductory overview of the process starting with an initial exploration of an oral assessor ‘s role and responsibilities through to training, standardisation and ongoing quality assurance programmes. In the recruitment and selection section we will consider issues such as conflict of interest, contractual obligation and effective screening processes. The training section will include delivery mode options,  suggestions for content, for example the number and type of exam performances required and  the frequency and timing of training sessions. The final section will look at methods to maintain assessor reliability and consistency and ensure that assessors are adhering to the required standards.  

This  course is designed to be interactive and attendees will work in groups sharing ideas and experiences. You will be asked to complete a short questionnaire  at registration on your  testing context to ensure the course is shaped to your needs. 

The course will be delivered by Cathy Taylor, ALTE expert member. Cathy has 15 years experience in recruiting and training oral assessors.

Payment and Cancellation policy:

For group bookings, ALTE advises to book maximum three places per institution. 

Payment is in full when registering. Payment can only be made online using a Visa, MasterCard or American Express.

If you cannot pay with a credit/debit card please contact the Services Unit: servicesunit@alte.org. In such a case we will issue an invoice first, and only then a bank transfer will be possible.

In case of cancellation up until one month before the start of the events, the full amount will be refunded minus a €50 administration fee. However, in the case of cancellation after this date, no refunds can be made.

Use of personal data disclaimer:

I agree that by clicking 'Register', the personal data I include in the registration form may be used and held by ALTE staff and third parties, only for the purposes related to the organisation of the ALTE Rasch analysis course.

Spam alert 

Please note that ALTE will never ask you to pay via a third party website.
Please avoid clicking on any links that direct you to a payment website other than WildApricot.

Responding to the CEFR Alignment Handbook

Sharing experience of alignment activities and reflecting on lessons learned - a conference organised by ALTE, British Council, EALTA and UKALTA.

Hosted by Blanquerna - Universitat Ramon Llull, Barcelona, 18–19 October 2024.

DRAFT PROGRAMME

For more information about the conference, please see the event's website http://cefralignconfbcn.blanquerna.edu/ 

ALTE's 61^st Meeting and Conference will be hosted by Yunus Emre Institute, and it will take place in Istanbul, Türkiye, from 6^th - 8^th November 2024.

The conference will be organised mainly as a face to face event and will include workshops, plenary presentations and also the Annual General Meeting (AGM) to which Members (Full Members/Associate Members and Individual Expert Members) are encouraged to attend.

Friday 8^th November 2024 will be an open conference day for all those with an interest in the field of language testing. The theme of the conference day is:  The Transformative Power of EDI in Language Assessment. 

The events during the conference day will be live streamed and video recorded, except for the workshops in the afternoon.

Contributions to the host organisers of the event (Yunus Emre Institute) should be paid by each representative from ALTE Members/Associate Members/Individual Expert Members, as follows:

• €50 for in-person attendance;
• *€15 for online attendance

Detailed information on how to send the payment to the host organisation can be found at page 3 of the practical information document. 

PROVISIONAL PROGRAMME

For more information about the practical arrangements of the event, please click on the practical information document. 

The deadline for the registration at the event is Friday 25^th October 2024.

*Online attendance has been arranged for the ALTE Annual General meeting (AGM), Thursday 7^th November, and for the plenary sessions of the ALTE Conference Day, Friday 8^th November. Please note, the workshops on Friday afternoon will not be live streamed or video recorded.

Cancellation policy: If you are not attending the event anymore, please inform the ALTE Secretariat as soon as possible. Refunds for the €50 contribution are possible, but the €15 contribution is non-refundable. Refunds may take 2 to 3 months to process, and bank charges may apply.

The ALTE 61^st Conference Day will take place on Friday 8^th November 2024, Istanbul, Türkiye, hosted by our ALTE Member, Yunus Emre Institute.

 Friday 8^th November 2024 will be an open conference day for all those with an interest in the field of language testing. The theme of the conference day is: The Transformative Power of EDI in Language Assessment.

The sessions during the conference day will be live streamed and video recorded, except for the workshops in the afternoon. 

The registration fee to attend this event for Non-Members is:

• €50 for in-person attendance;
• €15 for online attendance.

Detailed information on how to send the payment to the host organisation can be found at page 3 of the practical information document. 

PROVISIONAL PROGRAMME

For more information about the practical arrangements of the event, please click on the practical information document. 

The deadline for the registration at the event is Friday 25^th October 2024.

Cancellation policy: If you are not attending the event anymore, please inform the ALTE Secretariat as soon as possible.  Refunds for the €50 contribution are possible, but the €15 contribution is non-refundable. Refunds may take 2 to 3 months to process, and bank charges may apply.

ALTE's 62^nd Meeting and Conference will be hosted by CBAC WJEC and it will take place in Cardiff, United Kingdom, from 2^nd - 4^th April 2025.

The first 2 days (Wednesday and Thursday) of the event are open only to representatives of ALTE Full Members/Associate Members and Individual Expert Members.

Friday 4^th April 2025 will be an open conference day for all those with an interest in the field of language testing. 

More information about this event will be available in due course.