What language teachers want - considering the evaluation of 18th biennial conference

Abstract

Professional learning (PL) is an essential ingredient in the professional and personal lives of contemporary educators. PL can take many forms but large-scale conferences remain a touchstone in many fields, including languages education. In this paper, we review the evaluation of the 18th biennial conference of the Australian Federation of Modern Language Teachers Association (AFMLTA) in 2011. Through an online questionnaire a very high percentage of delegates (83%) provided feedback on the conference in a range of areas. We provide a preliminary analysis of this feedback and discuss implications for future planning of similar events, within the context of new demands and the changing landscape of languages teaching and learning in Australia, and language teachers' professional learning wants and needs.