BILC and Workshop Overview Peggy Garza BILC Secretary

2015 BILC Conference • Madrid, Spain 3 -7 May • Theme: NATO requirements versus national policies: Bridging the divide at the language school • Study Groups Topics: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Common Challenges Faced by Language Training Managers Assessing NATO Operational Language Performance Bridging the Divide with Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) Beyond the BILC Website: Marketing BILC Events and Courses Forecasting Requirements: From Needs Analysis to Longterm Planning

2015 BILC Professional Seminar • Helsinki, Finland, 4 -9 October • Theme: Increasing proficiency levels: What works and what doesn't • Topics – – – Aptitude vs. Attitude in Language Learning Immersion Programmes as Proficiency Enhancers Blended Learning Applying STANAG to Languages Other than English Best Practices in Classroom Based Assessment

BILC Steering Committee GRB (1966 -1981) DEU (1982 -1996) USA (1997 -2008) CAN (2008 -2014) PLTCE/USA (2014 - 2016) BGR (2016) Chair Keith Wert Senior Advisor Dr. R. Clifford Secretary Peggy Garza Julie J. Dubeau Associate Secretaries Jana Vasilj-Begovic

Testing Seminars Hosted by the Partner Language Training Center Europe (PLTCE) in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany • Language Testing Seminar ‒ 2 weeks ‒ Twice a year • Advanced Language Testing Seminar – 3 weeks – Once a year • Language Standards & Assessment Seminar – 2 weeks – Twice a year

Testing Seminars New Dates in 2016 • Language Testing Seminar ‒ 8 -19 February ‒ 18 -29 July • Advanced Language Testing Seminar – 29 February-18 March • Language Standards & Assessment Seminar – 19 -28 April – 29 November-8 December

Why Have Annual Testing Workshops? • Need for periodic renorming/standardization • Chance to update approaches and knowledge of proficiency testing • Forum for exchanging ideas/lessons learned

STANAG 6001 Testing Workshops • Zagreb, 2009 – Focus on standardization, moderation and validation • Sarajevo, 2010 – Focus on testing speaking • Stockholm, 2011 – Focus on testing writing • Copenhagen, 2012 – Focus on testing listening • SHAPE Mons, 2013 – Focus on Integrating test development stages • Reichenau, 2014 – Focus on item development practices

Background on 2015 Workshop • Theme: Challenges in STANAG 6001 testing • Topics suggested by participants at the 2014 Workshop in Reichenau – Text editing – Authenticity in testing – Level 4

Workshop Format • Plenary sessions – Presentations – Panels • Workshop activities

20 Nations Represented • • • Austria Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Canada Croatia Denmark Estonia France Georgia Germany • • • Hungary Lithuania Netherlands Poland Serbia Slovenia Spain Sweden Ukraine United States of America