Brno Sept 2016 STANAG 6001 Testing Workshop BILC

Brno, Sept. 2016 STANAG 6001 Testing Workshop BILC Update Emilija Nesheva, BILC Secretary 1

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BILC events and courses • • • Annual Conference (May) STANAG 6001 Testing Workshop (September) Professional Seminar (October) Testing Seminars Faculty Development Workshops 3

2016 BILC Conference Riga, Latvia, 22 -26 May • Theme: From goals to outcomes: measuring success • Topics: - Creating courses and validating their effectiveness - Accreditation of courses - Applying quality assurance measures to language programs - Creating coherence across different assessments in a language program - Portability of STANAG 6001 scores to civilian contexts - STANAG 6001 -based training and the Bologna process - (Dis)parities between scales and tests - The impact of digital learning environments on learning success - Challenges of transitioning from traditional to blended learning - Enhancing performance through standardization - Creating templates for success. • Study Groups Topics: - Quality assurance for language programs - Portability of STANAG 6001 certificates to civilian context - Best practices in blended learning - Successful templates for designing, developing and validating courses. 4

2016 BILC Professional Seminar, Budapest, Hungary, 23 -28 October • Theme: Authenticity in training and testing: making it real • Topics - Linking training and testing to real-world target language use Traditional textbooks versus authentic materials Co-operating/partnering with local universities Attaining concordance between linguistic objectives and training outcomes Benefitting from tele-collaboration between training establishments Using social media in training Teaching and learning as two sides of the same coin Language maintenance 5

Testing Seminars Hosted by the Partner Language Training Center Europe (PLTCE), 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

Why Have Annual STANAG 6001 Testing Workshops? • Need for periodic renorming / standardization • Chance to update approaches and knowledge of proficiency testing • Forum for exchanging ideas / lessons learned

BILC 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 • Vilnius, 2015 - Challenges in STANAG 6001 testing

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BILC 2017 Calendar (draft) Date Event 13 -24 February Language Testing Seminar (LTS), ACT 647. 10 Partner Language Training Center Europe; Garmisch, Germany 14 -23 March English Teaching Faculty Development Workshop, ACT. 659. 1 Partner Language Training Center Europe; Garmisch, Germany 24 April - 12 May Advanced Language Testing Seminar (ALTS), ACT 658. 1 Partner Language Training Center Europe; Garmisch, Germany 14 -18 May BILC Conference, ACT 212. 33 Vienna, Austria Theme: TBD 12 -23 June Language Testing Seminar (LTS), ACT 647. 11 Partner Language Training Center Europe; Garmisch, Germany 11 -20 July English Teaching Faculty Development Workshop, ACT. 659. 3 Foreign Languages Department; Shumen, Bulgaria 25 July - 3 August September 19 -28 September October Language Standards & Assessment Seminar (LSAS), ACT 648. 2 Partner Language Training Center Europe; Garmisch, Germany STANAG 6001 Testing Workshop, ACT 212. 34 Location: TBD Theme: TBD English Teaching Faculty Development Workshop, ACT. 659. 2 Partner Language Training Center Europe; Garmisch, Germany BILC Professional Seminar, ACT 212. 35 Tbilisi, Georgia Theme: TBD 7 -16 November English Teaching Faculty Development Workshop, ACT. 659. 4 School of Foreign Languages; Poljče, Slovenia 28 November – 7 December Language Standards & Assessment Seminar (LSAS), ACT 648. 3 Partner Language Training Center Europe; Garmisch, Germany 10

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Questions? • BILC site: www. natobilc. org BILC e-mail address: chairman@natobilc. org • my e-mail address: e. nesheva@mod. bg 12