2023-01-16
by Hermes cApStAn

How fair is it to deliver your exams only in English?

In the 21st century, “accessibility” often includes language, but translating a test into the strongest language of all test takers may not be realistic. Nevertheless, passing or failing a test should not depend on reading proficiency. Tests and exams are a gate for life chances and—unless being proficient in the language of the test is …

Read More
2022-12-30
by Hermes cApStAn

Walking at a Brisk Pace, by cApStAn’s co-founder Steve Dept  

With the epic backdrop of geopolitical turmoil and environmental urgency, it may seem awkward to dwell on our minute successes. What with the barbaric invasion of Ukraine? What with the courageous revolt of the Iranian people in general and of Iranian women in particular? What about the denial of the right to education for Afghan …

Read More
2022-11-25
by Hermes cApStAn

cApStAn’s Steve Dept and Devasmita Ghosh reporting from  the 75th WAPOR conference 2022 in Dubai, UAE 

The World Association for Public Opinion Research, WAPOR, is an international professional association for survey research whose members recognise the centrality of public opinion in shaping and serving society. The 75th edition of WAPOR’s annual conference was held in Dubai, UAE, from November 10 to 13, 2022. Our founding partner Steve Dept contributed to one of …

Read More
2022-11-25
by Hermes cApStAn

cApStAn founding partner Steve Dept at WAPOR 2022 on how to focus on cross-cultural and cross-language comparability in survey questionnaires

The World Association for Public Opinion Research, WAPOR, is an international professional association for survey research whose members recognise the centrality of public opinion in shaping and serving society. The 75th edition of WAPOR’s annual conference was held in Dubai, UAE, from November 10 to 13, 2022. cApStAn’s founding partner and strategic partnerships director Steve Dept was …

Read More
2022-11-23
by Hermes cApStAn

Just out: the new ITC/ATP guidelines on tech-based assessment. Proud to have been a part of this!

It has been a privilege for cApStAn to work on the test translation and adaptation section of the Guidelines for Technology-Based Assessment of the International Test Commission (ITC) and the Association of Test Publishers (ATP). Quoting cApStAn co-founder Steve Dept “this monumental resource was compiled, reviewed, carefully edited, discussed with some of the most knowledgeable experts in the field, is packed …

Read More
2022-10-18
by Hermes cApStAn

cApStAn joins forces with ACER and OAT to implement PISA 2025

For the 9th consecutive time, cApStAn will guide the translation and adaptation teams of all PISA participants in translating assessment instruments so that they remain comparable internationally. In this cycle, cApStAn will provide training and support to 90+ translation teams and ensure linguistic equivalence across 120+ locales (a locale is language-country combination). PISA 2025 is …

Read More
2022-10-06
by Hermes cApStAn

Latest “IEA Insider” now out featuring article by cApStAn LQC co-founder Steve Dept

The latest edition of the International Education Association (IEA)’s newsletter, the IEA Insider, is just out! It is released annually at their General Assembly and this issue features an article by cApStAn founder Steve Dept. In the article Steve talks about cApStAn’s experience with machine translation (MT) and (human) post-editing, and reflects on the role …

Read More
cApStAn LinkedIn followers
2022-07-14
by Hermes cApStAn

Thank you to our 1,000+ LinkedIn followers!

We are delighted to announce that we have crossed the 1,000 follower mark on our LinkedIn account. An important milestone for a very niche language service provider operating in the highly specialised linguistic quality assurance field. We thank our followers for their interest in what we do and for their support. It means a lot …

Read More
2022-07-01
by Hermes cApStAn

cApStAn’s new website has launched!

Et voilà! We are now online! After months of hard work we are delighted to announce the launch of our new website, which reflects our mission, values and brand, and showcases the best of our linguistic services and the great team behind it all. The new features are tailored to help you find the right …

Read More
2022-06-27
by Hermes cApStAn

Second Project Meeting of COORDINATE (COhort cOmmunity Research and Development Infrastructure Network for Access Throughout Europe)

The leads of the 12 work packages of the COORDINATE project are meeting today in the historical Academy Building of the University of Groningen, the Netherlands, in the very room where doctoral students defend their PhD dissertations. Thirty-five researchers and field practitioners from the 19 project partner institutions and organisations, all committed to collecting data …

Read More
2022-06-12
by Hermes cApStAn

cApStAn in Paris at a FLIP+ meeting, a space to share knowledge and best practices in e-assessments

cApStAn co-founder Steve Dept was in Paris on June 9-10, 2022, at a meeting of the FLIP+ Association, a group of public institutions who switched from pencil-and-paper to computer-based assessment (CBA) for their national examinations, or who are introducing digital central assessments for the first time. The acronym? The first four participants were France, Luxembourg, …

Read More
PISA 2022 OECD
2022-04-20
by Hermes cApStAn

PISA 2022 LAUNCH EVENT in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on 11-12 April 2022

The role of international assessment programmes in the development of New Uzbekistan In September 2021, Uzbekistan celebrated the 30th anniversary of its independence. If there is one Central Asian country that is determined to implement far-sighted reforms and achieve sustainable development goals, then it is Uzbekistan. The progress towards a free civil society with a …

Read More