ALTE 6th International Conference

Learning and Assessment:
Making the Connections

Bologna, Italy | 3 - 5 May 2017

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Conference proceedings and presentation slides now online

We are pleased to announce the publication of the ALTE 6th International Conference proceedings, with a selection of papers presented at the conference.

Some presentation slides are also available now in the updated conference schedule (underlined presentation titles only). Please note that you may have to download the file and open with your system PDF reader to be able to see the attached slides.

Thank you to all our presenters and delegates!

Thank you to the 500+ people who attended the ALTE 6th International Conference and contributed to its success.

Pictures of the event are now available on our Facebook page.

Practical information for the conference

The joining instructions and floorplans for the conference are now available in the following links:

Joining instructions

Floorplans

About the ALTE 6th International Conference

The ALTE 6th International Conference will provide a unique multilingual forum, sharing insights and practical knowledge gained from teaching and testing a huge range of languages in different contexts around the world.

The conference will consider teaching, learning and assessment:

  • in a globalised economy
  • in a multilingual world
  • in the digital era

Delegates – including researchers, teachers, testing specialists and policy-makers – will discuss:

  • new challenges and opportunities in language education
  • how language assessment can better support language learning and teaching
  • how advances in technology are affecting language education and language assessment
  • how governments and institutions can respond to the fast-changing demands for language skills.

The event will take place in the beautiful, four-star Savoia Regency Hotel, located just outside the historic city of Bologna. Click here for more information about the venue, accommodation options and visiting the city of Bologna.

The European Commission at the ALTE 6th International Conference

We are delighted that the European Commission will be taking an active role in the ALTE 6th International Conference. Presentations include:

  • Connecting policy and practice at European level – Kristina Cunningham (Senior Policy Officer in charge of Multilingualism, Directorate General for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport, European Commission)
  • Erasmus+: Funding opportunities for language education – Lorenza Venturi, INDIRE, Italian National Agencies for the implementation of Erasmus+
  • Linking policy and practice: the example of e-twinning – Donatella Nucci, INDIRE, Italian National Agencies for the implementation of Erasmus+
Erasmus+

In today’s globalised, technology driven and fast-changing world, it is crucial to be able to communicate and to process information in more than one language. We still need to make considerable progress in this field. ALTE has been a valuable partner to the European Commission, in particular through its role in coordinating the European survey on language competences. The findings have contributed to the Education and Training Monitor, which on a yearly basis summarises the European Commission’s analysis of Member States’ progress in modernising and improving their education and training systems.

We share ALTE’s vision on the need to make the connections between learning and assessment – and between research, policy and practice. These are guiding principles behind the EU’s Erasmus programme, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. I hope conference delegates will take the opportunity to discover the different aspects of the current programme, Erasmus+, which covers education, training, youth and sport, and see how it can help them reach their personal and professional goals.

— Tibor Navracsics, Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport

Patronage from the Council of Europe

We are delighted to announce that the ALTE 6th International Conference will take place under the auspices of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Mr Thorbjørn Jagland. ALTE is an international NGO (INGO) with Participatory Status within the Council of Europe, and has contributed greatly to the development of the Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), and more recently also to the Council of Europe’s work on the Linguistic Integration of Adult Migrants (LIAM).

ALTE International Conferences

ALTE International Conferences provide a unique multilingual forum, sharing insights and practical knowledge gained from teaching and testing a huge range of languages in different contexts around the world.

The ALTE 5th International Conference, held in Paris in 2014, brought together more than 300 delegates representing 92 organisations in over 30 countries and has led directly to new collaborative research projects.

Delegates included:

  • language assessment experts and practitioners
  • language teachers from across the profession and in every sector, including education, academia, business and government
  • policy makers at regional, national and supra-national levels
  • educationalists with an interest in language assessment, including school principals, directors of studies and consultants
  • researchers from assessment bodies, examination boards, universities, academic institutions and schools.

“ALTE’s international conferences are all about making connections - and our next conference theme in 2017 explicitly highlights the connections between learning, teaching and assessment at every level, from national policy to classroom practice. This event also seeks to make connections between people from different backgrounds and experiences. We will bring together experts and practitioners working in a wide range of languages and professional contexts from all parts of the globe, giving us the chance to share insights and techniques that might otherwise remain compartmentalised.”

— Dr Nick Saville, ALTE Secretary-General