With the holidays approaching, all of us at Avant want to express our thanks and appreciation to all of you teachers and administrators who have given so much of yourselves through COVID, and continue to deal with many challenges. Thank you!
 
I have not written for some time and want to update you on recent happenings at Avant.
 

NEW ACCURACY AND RELIABILITY RESEARCH

We strive relentlessly to deliver rigorous assessments that are scored accurately and reliably. We recently released a report on the Reliability and Accuracy of STAMP Speaking and Writing tests based on research that we conducted on data from over 20,000 STAMP 4S and STAMP WS tests. I hope that you will take the time to read the results of the study which shows very high rates of both reliability and accuracy. We welcome a comparison with any tests in our field.
 
Another gauge of the rigor and accuracy of STAMP is that it is used to provide data to evaluate the efficacy of language learning programs. For many years CIEE and other international exchange programs have used Pre- and Post-STAMP testing to measure efficacy. Duolingo has begun using STAMP test data to measure the effectiveness of their app in increasing the English proficiency of their independent learners. Duolingo recently released a report documenting this research based on STAMP data.

AVANT STAMP RECOMMENDED FOR COLLEGE CREDIT BY ACE

We are very honored that the American Council on Education (ACE) recently recommended all STAMP tests to qualify students for college credit.  ACE is the same educational body that has provided credit recommendations to institutions of higher education for College Board Advanced Placement (AP) Examinations, Cambridge Assessments, and ACT subject tests. This year we have seen an increasing number of universities integrate STAMP credits into their language programs through the development of pathways. A recent addition is the University of Texas at Arlington which released this announcement.
 

NEW LANGUAGE ASSESSMENTS

We are very excited to announce the launch of several new language assessments. We recently launched the Receptive (interpretive) test of ASL and will release the Expressive (productive) section soon. We are proud to have partnered with Bridges Oregon, a non-profit organization supporting the deaf and hard of hearing and a leader in delivering and rating ASL interpreter assessments. In addition to helping Avant develop the test, Bridges personnel will support the rating of the tests. In addition, we recently launched the STAMP WS test in Ukrainian and Cabo Verdean and will launch STAMP for Latin soon.
 

DUAL LANGUAGE PROGRAM SUPPORT

Finally, to address the broad and varied needs of the growing number of Dual Language Immersion programs we are creating a new and comprehensive program incorporating our STAMP 4Se assessments for younger learners, Avant MORE Professional Learning, and additional services. For those of you who will be at the ACTFL conference stand by for a big announcement and visit us at booth #2215.
 
Very Happy Holidays to you all,
David