Every August, world language teachers begin the year with the same challenge: discerning where their students are today, including what they’ve learned last year, what they’ve inevitably forgotten over the summer, and how to help them make meaningful progress over the months ahead. The goal of Back-to-School planning isn’t to prove that students have already […]
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One of the quiet pitfalls in education is that students often begin sorting themselves into categories long before we do. “I’m good at languages.” “I’m bad at languages.” And their parents, I find, sometimes affirm one of the two positions with statements such as: “She’s one of the smart kids.” “He’ll never sound fluent anyway.”
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Why ACTFL Assessments Are the Gold Standard in Higher Education Language Assessment When it comes to language assessment, accuracy of scoring and credibility are non-negotiable. For institutions making key decisions about student placement, waiver, and graduation requirements, ACTFL assessments are one of the most trusted measures of language abilities globally. Delivered exclusively through Language Testing International® (LTI), ACTFL assessments are the only tests that deliver ACTFL scores and […]
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In my line of work, I often have to deal with two sides of education – explaining content to students, and then interpreting matters to parents. The two can often follow similar paths, but because contact with parents can be infrequent and fleeting, I try to give family members a bird’s eye view of the student’s educational plan; meanwhile, the pupil […]
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An FAQ for Educators, Administrators, and Assessment Leaders about the Machine Scoring System for the Spanish AAPPL Presentational Writing and Interpersonal Listening and Speaking As AI becomes more visible in education, machine scoring is gaining attention in language assessment. But one fact is often overlooked: not all automated scoring systems are built with the same […]
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Announcing the Recipients of the 2026 LTI Seal of Biliteracy Achievement Scholarship Each year, Language Testing International® (LTI) proudly recognizes outstanding Seal of Biliteracy recipients through the LTI Seal of Biliteracy Achievement Scholarship. The scholarship celebrates students who have demonstrated exceptional dedication to language learning and who use their multilingual skills to build connections, serve […]
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My fellow educators and I did an interesting exercise at a workshop entitled “Chairing Your Department” that was both cynically eye-opening and kind of hilarious; they had us all put our schools’ description for what a successful graduate of ________ (insert whatever your school’s name is here) can do, the skills they’ve mastered, and the […]
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Schools Need More Than Privacy Claims from EdTech Providers As schools continue expanding their use of digital learning tools and online assessments, one question is becoming impossible to ignore: How do educators know which platforms truly protect student privacy? That question is especially important when younger learners are involved. Schools are increasingly expected to evaluate […]
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Note: This article was written based on a recorded interview with Dr. Lucia Osa-Melero, Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Hispanic Studies at Duquesne University. It was more than fifteen years ago when a simple question sparked what would become a transformative partnership at Duquesne University: Could nursing students take an elective in […]
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I’ve always been a left-brained math and science guy who loves rules, systems, and geometric proofs, which is why I’ve never quite understood my own proclivity towards the humanities, literature, storytelling, and languages. And yet, since the myth of brain hemispheres has long been debunked, why has no one exorcised the lingering haunts that foreign […]
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