ATP GOES VIRTUAL...

Programming began in early Spring, as ATP pivoted to connect virtually with members around the globe.  First, with a panel of testing industry experts who candidly shared their challenges and their strategies as they adjusted to new environments for testing and learning. Next, ATP rolled out its New Word of Testing webinar series focusing on New Psychometrics;  Privacy and the Legal Landscape for Remote Proctoring; and Critical Skills for Learning and Certification During and Post Pandemic.

In the Fall, ATP pivoted once again to take its Security Summit, originally planned as an in-person London event, to a virtual environment. Two days of learning focused on the remote proctoring legal and privacy considerations that have gone from being back-burner issues to boiling points in just a matter of months.

And finally, in late September, ATP made history, convening 1200 attendees, who tuned in from more than 30 countries around the globe, for ATP's first Virtual Global Conference.

ATP's Global Conference incorporated content sessions, keynoters and attendees from around the globe including North and South America, Asia, Australia, Europe, India, the Middle East and Africa. In total there were 133 breakout sessions, 40 coffee conversations and "Peas in a Pod" sessions, 15 workshops, panels and debates, 19 on-demand show cases and 5 keynote sessions. 

"It was an exhilarating experience and an event that I could not have even imagined happening just six months earlier," remarked Conference Chair Jerry Gorham of Ascend Learning. "When I accepted the role of  2020 Conference Chair I had no idea what I was headed into. And when the in-person conference was cancelled in March, I was heart-broken...we were all heart-broken. So many months of planning, so much content that had been collected, and we feared none of it was going to see the light of day...and yet there we were six months later, up and running and showing by example that nothing can stop the learning."

ATP CEO William G. Harris added, "It was a phenomenal display of leadership by an amazing team of ATP volunteers. (Conference Chair), Jerry Gorham, (Co-Chair) Ada Woo, and the entire Conference Planning Committee, along with our meeting planners at Designing Events, cannot be praised enough for the way in which they handled this unprecedented pivot from an historically in-person event to a completely virtual event in six months time."

Harris noted the support of sponsors also contributed to the success.  "Our sponsors are everything to us in normal times...so the idea that so many stood with ATP during this global crisis really says so much about their dedication to the industry, and to the education and the networking that really needs to continue.  Education, in time of crisis, becomes an even greater imperative."

Harris noted that more events are on the way from ATP.  "We are already planning another Summit as we move into the winter months," he reported, and he urged members to keep checking the website at www.testpublishers.org for updates on these events. "It is crucial that we stay on top of shifts and trends in the industry that are happening exponentially right now." He noted that it can quickly become overwhelming as individual organizations deal with the myriad of new regulations, laws, and protocols that are becoming the norm.  He pointed out that, in addition to the virtual events, ATP  has continued to roll out new publications  providing guidance on using video in the testing industry, and on privacy concerns surrounding remote proctoring and eLearning.

"It was a busy Spring, Summer and Fall...but we're not done yet. And some new initiative have come out of the crisis, and that will remain ongoing. In many areas we are just getting started," Harris said.

[Editor's Note:  Presentations from the Global Virtual Conference are now online at this link.]