An online meeting on language testing issues with the representatives of the NATO Bureau for International Language Co-ordination

On November 25, 2020, within the framework of the NATO Defence Education Enhancement Program (DEEP), researchers from the Language Testing and Research Centre of the Foreign Languages Education and Research Centre of the National University of Defence of Ukraine named after Ivan Cherniakhovskyi participated in the first online working meeting on the development of language tests "Virtual Meeting #1 on STANAG 6001 Testing".

Peggy Garza, Chair of the English Language Programs Department at the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies (Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany), Greta Keremidchieva, Chair of the Working Group on Distance Education of the Consortium of Military Academies and Research Institutes of the NATO Partnership for Peace Program, and Anna Guncheva, Head of the Testing Team at Rakovski National Defence College (Bulgaria), Andrea Marinesky representative from the National Defense Foreign Languages Testing Center (Romania) participated in the online meeting.

During the online meeting, participants discussed the issues of organizing and administering of language testing in each country, the language tests development, and the online cooperation between the NATO Bureau for International Language Co-ordination representatives and higher military educational institutions and military training units of higher educational institutions of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine.

This meeting allowed using best practices and advanced approaches of leading experts from the NATO Bureau for International Language Co-ordination for developing and improving foreign language tests in accordance with the NATO Standard STANAG 6001 requirements, which ensure better validity, reliability, and rationalization of test development process.

The conducted event enables clarifying plans for joint action with partner language training centers, as well as the transparency of the language testing system.