Lecture: Where we have been and where we should go

In this speech, the author covers a lot of ground. In the first half of his speech, the author gives a brief summary of the last 40 years of the history of language testing, from his perspective. The author reviews these years more or less by decade. Additionally, he discusses the evolution of the profession of language testing during this period, and that will take them up to the present day. The second half of his talk evaluates the larger context in which language testers work at the moment, and what it means for them as language testers. In doing so, the author discusses the kind of work they will be doing, and how language testers as individuals and as a profession can maximize their role in the world in which they work.