EUGENE, ORE. – Avant Assessment and the National African Language Resource Center (NALRC) at Indiana University Bloomington are partnering to provide language assessments in Swahili and Yoruba on Avant’s proprietary STAMP (STAndards-based Measurement of Proficiency) platform. The STAMP 3 Skill tests will measure Reading, Speaking, and Writing domains.
“This is a significant partnership that will change the way language is assessed for students at the NALRC and programs teaching African languages around the country,” said Avant Assessment Co-Founder and CEO, David Bong. “Our STAMP assessments will identify a test taker’s level of proficiency in a fully online environment.” Avant now delivers assessments in five African languages and plans to add additional ones.
Previously, there wasn’t a formal mechanism for testing student proficiency in Swahili and Yoruba. Through this partnership, the STAMP test will provide data for program development enabling educators to improve language-learning outcomes and make more informed decisions on curriculum and training.
This partnership will also offer students recognition for demonstrating a high level of language fluency, allowing heritage speakers to demonstrate proficiency in their languages and give them the opportunity to qualify for their State Seals of Biliteracy or the Global Seal of Biliteracy.
“This partnership is really significant because students in the African language learners community haven’t really had an opportunity to be tested for language proficiency,” said NALRC Executive Director, Antonia Schleicher. “These assessments will also offer these students a sense of pride and achievement for their native language and culture.”
About NALRC: The National African Language Resource Center at Indiana University Bloomington was established in 1999. It is a federally funded, nonprofit national foreign language center dedicated to the advancement of African language teaching and learning in the United States. For more information, visit https://nalrc.indiana.edu
About Avant Assessment: Co-founded in 2001 by David and Sheila Bong, and Dr. Carl Falsgraf of the University of Oregon, Avant Assessment is a leading language proficiency testing company that Avant assesses real-world proficiency by pairing innovative computer-adaptive technology with human scoring. Avant’s assessments are based on and aligned to the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines. Each assessment is designed to inspire learners to grow and teachers to be more effective. For more information go to avantassessment.com.