PGR Events
Upcoming Events
Coming Soon
Previous PGR Network Events in 2026:
- On Tuesday, 23 June 2026, participants met online for a session themed “Career Development and Future Directions in Language Assessment.” We were delighted to host Dr Sathena Chan, Director of IHEAR at the University of Bedfordshire and Associate Professor in Language Assessment (CRELLA), who offered insightful perspectives on her journey in language assessment and research, with a particular focus on career development, current trends in the field, and her vision for the future of UKALTA as the association’s new president.
- On 24 February 2026, participants met online for a session themed “Assessing Multimodal Language Uses: Task Design, Performance, Processing, and Rating.” We were delighted to host Professor Tineke Brunfaut, who offered insightful perspectives on task development and rating in multimodal language testing, with a particular focus on integrated skills.
Previous PGR Network Events in 2025:
- On 24 October 2025, participants met online for a session themed “Applying Generative AI in Language Assessment and Learning.” We were delighted to host Dr Jing Xu, Dr Hye-won Lee, and Dr Yasin Karatay from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, who offered insightful perspectives and expert guidance.
- On 1 July 2025, PGR and ECR UKALTA members connected online to under the theme “Exploring Language Testing Through Experience.” We were honoured to welcome Richard Spiby, Head of Assessment Research at the British Council, who generously shared his expertise and insights in language assessment with us.
Previous PGR Network Events in 2022:
On 16 May 2022, PGR and ECR UKALTA members came together online to discuss how to prepare for conference presentations. Our three invited speakers presented their top tips on writing a winning proposal for a conference presentation, on presentation skills, and on dealing with Q&A sessions. This was followed by a Q&A session with attendees.
Invited speakers:
Professor Tineke Brunfaut – Professor in Linguistics and English Language at Lancaster University.
On 16 May 2022, PGR and ECR UKALTA members came together online to discuss how to prepare for conference presentations.
Fit for the Road? Staying well and building personal resilience in your academic life , presented by Professor Lynda Taylor
UKALTA PGR Network – Health and wellbeing – Taylor – 9 Feb 2022
Undertaking a PhD and establishing yourself in an academic career can be a lengthy and daunting journey. Both processes can take several years of focused commitment and there can be significant stress and challenge along the way. Sometimes challenges are due to unexpected health problems or unforeseen obstacles, or they may simply be due to the persistent and competing pressures of ordinary daily life, i.e. our academic studies, our working life, our family responsibilities, etc. This session will give us a chance to consider some of these issues, how they affect our academic journey as PGRs/ECRs and what measures we can adopt to support one another in successfully navigating that experience to achieve our goals. The session begin with some input on wellbeing and resilience, during which Lynda will share something of the ‘ups and downs’ of her own academic career journey; after that, there will be plenty of time for questions and discussion together.
Previous PGR Network events in 2021:
6 October 2021: Quantitative and Qualitative Methods for Language Testing and Assessment Research, 9.30-11.30am (BST)
The first formal event organised by the PGR Network, on 6 October 2021 postgraduate (PG) and early-career researcher (ECR) UKALTA members came together online to discuss methodological and practical considerations related to the field of language testing and assessment. The event was opened with papers by two invited speakers, followed by presentations by UKALTA PGs and ECRs.
Plenary speakers Dr Vahid Aryadoust and Dr Chihiro Inoue spoke about quantitative and qualitative methods for language testing respectively. Please click for access to a recording of the talks on YouTube:
- Dr Vahid Aryadoust – Assistant Professor at the Department of English Language and Literature, Nanyang Technological University, speaks about quantitative methods for language testing.
- Dr Chihiro Inoue – Senior Lecturer at CRELLA, University of Bedfordshire, speaks about qualitative methods for language testing.
19 May 2021: The inaugural gathering of the new UKALTA PGR Network.
This event gave rise to regular ‘coffee meetings’ – informal gatherings for UKALTA PGRs and ECRs to meet peers and discuss their research.
