Newsroom
International conference on the social and educational impact of language assessment
17 April 2008
The 3rd Association of Language Testers in Europe International Conference was held in Cambridge last week, and featured over 150 presentations and workshops, as well as 6 plenary sessions. The conference attracted leading experts on assessment, applied linguistics and sociolinguistics from around the world, and was addressed by two Members of the European Parliament, Hannu Takkula, MEP for Finland and Vice-Chair of the European Parliament Committee on Culture and Education and Richard Howitt, MEP for Eastern England. There was also a keynote speech by Margaret Kuzma of the European Commission, on the European lndicator of Language Competences.
Over 500 delegates attended the conference, which was hosted by Cambridge ESOL to mark the UN International Year of Languages 2008, as well as the 150th Anniversary of Cambridge Assessment. Delegates came from more than 30 countries.
Speaking after the event, Dr Michael Milanovic, Manager of ALTE and and Chief Executive of Cambridge ESOL said ‘I am delighted by the success of this conference. ALTE holds international conferences every three years, and they are becoming an important part of the calendar for the language assessment and teaching communities.’
