Introduction to ALTE

ALTE – The Association of Language Testers in Europe – is an association of institutions within Europe, each of which produces examinations and certification for language learners. Each member provides examinations of the language which is spoken as a mother tongue in their own country or region.

The concept of ALTE was initially formed by the Universities of Cambridge and Salamanca late in 1989, and at the first meeting of the association in 1990 there were eight founder members. Since then membership has grown so that there are now 31 members, representing 26 European languages.

With the breaking down of international barriers between European states and increasing opportunities for the members of the workforce to move from one country to another, the need for transferability of qualifications is clear.

Employers and employees alike need to know what language qualifications gained in various countries mean – what the holder of a given certificate can actually be expected to be able to do – and how to make meaningful comparisons between qualifications gained in different states of the European Union. Employers need to know which particular language qualification it is realistic to demand when advertising a post, and employees have an interest in being able to rate their own present level of expertise and future training needs. Since 1990 the members of ALTE have been working together to devise a means of describing and comparing their examinations.

The principal objectives of ALTE are:

- to establish common levels of proficiency in order to promote the transnational recognition of certification in Europe;

- to establish common standards for all stages of the language-testing process: that is, for test development, task and item writing, test administration, marking and grading, reporting of test results, test analysis and reporting of findings;

- to collaborate on joint projects and in the exchange of ideas and know-how.

The first of these objectives is particularly relevant to the needs of the workforce. The goal of establishing common levels of proficiency is being pursued by means of a long-term ALTE Framework Project. The first stage of this project was achieved in 1991 with the production of the first version of a book, containing descriptions of the general language examinations offered by all ALTE members. All the examinations included were described using the same format, and details given of recognition as educational or workplace qualifications, the relative importance attached to different skills, the testing focus of each paper, and the number and types of questions used. With the expansion of the membership of ALTE the original book has been fully revised and updated. The second of ALTEs objectives, that of establishing common standards for all stages of the language-testing process, is addressed in the Examination Systems section of this site. In making comparisons between qualifications in different languages it is important not only to establish the framework of levels on which the examinations can be placed, but to agree on the standards to which they are produced. Under the heading of Examination System, members of ALTE describe how their examinations are developed, and the quality control methods they employ. The Code of Practice specifies the conditions that members agree to.

The information on the language examinations and examination systems on this site exists both to provide information which is of use in itself, and to serve as the descriptive foundation for a definition of the framework of levels of proficiency on which the examinations provided by members of ALTE can be placed.