Experts discuss language teaching and testing at Shanghai conference

More than 300 experts and scholars in language teaching and testing from China and countries including the United Kingdom, the United States, France, and New Zealand discussed the latest trends and research results at the 6th International Conference on Language Testing and Assessment, which was held in Shanghai from Oct 15 to 17.

The participants are from universities, research institutions, examination organizers, and educational policy making departments around the world.

"The conference is aimed at strengthening the collaboration between the Chinese and the English language testing communities and building a unified platform for cooperation," said Nie Qing, vice-president of Shanghai University, which organized the event with the China Association for Language Testing and Assessment.

In her speech, Nie acknowledged the achievement of the Research Center of Foreign Language Education of Shanghai University in teaching and assessment research of Chinese and English as foreign languages.

In 2018, the center took the lead in implementing new standards of stratified college English teaching that features output-oriented and skill-based training assisted by artificial intelligence, Nie said.

The event's symposiums and parallel sessions were marked by discussion on research topics related to the use of the Chinese English Proficiency Scale in English teaching, diagnostic language assessment, language assessment standards and their application, the development of teachers' assessment skills, and online language assessment.

The workshops were centered on topics like formative young learner assessments, leveraging and validating technology in assessment for learning, structural equation modeling and its use in language testing, and understanding language tests and designing self-assessment tools.