On Monday 22 August 2016, Prof. Sarah Howie gave the opening keynote address entitled “Assessment for political accountability or towards educational quality” to an audience of several hundred delegates at the 42nd International Association for Educational Assessment (IAEA) Conference held in Cape Town (21-26 August 2016). Hosted by UMALUSI, the Council for Quality Assurance in General and Further Education in South Africa, the theme of the conference was “Assessing the Achievement of Curriculum Standards - An on-going Dialogue”. The focus of Prof. Howie’s keynote was the context of South African education - on its challenges and how to tackle the challenges facing assessment both globally and, more particularly, in South Africa.

 

Prof. Howie was introduced by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Umalusi and Chair of the local organising committee, Dr Mafu Rakometsi. The other keynote speakers were Prof. Norman Webb of Wisconsin Center for Education Research at University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dr Brian Stecher of RAND Education, California and Dr Michael Chilala of the Zambia Examinations Council, Zambia. The conference drew delegates from all over the world and ended on Friday 26 August 2016.