Introducing our Academic Advisory Group

Ensuring our assessments support every learner

Designing assessments that support every learner requires expert insight, experience and research. That’s why we work closely with globally recognised experts in English language assessment: our Academic Advisory Group.

Building on decades of Cambridge research and assessment expertise, the group supports the design, development and innovation of our exams and tests. Their insight helps ensure that Cambridge English assessments give learners the skills and confidence they need to succeed now and in the future.

Learn more about the experts behind the Academic Advisory Group.

Aek Phakiti

Aek Phakiti is Professor of TESOL in the Sydney School of Education and Social Work at the University of Sydney. His research focuses on language testing and assessment, second language acquisition, and the cognitive and strategic processes involved in academic reading, listening and writing. He also investigates the role of AI in language education and applied linguistics research. His recent book, Language Testing and Assessment: From Theory to Practice (2025, Bloomsbury), provides a comprehensive overview of contemporary theories and practices in the field. Outside academia, he enjoys painting, creating bonsai and penjing, designing aquascapes, gardening, and playing tennis.

Benjamin Kremmel

Benjamin Kremmel is a senior scientist at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, and the head of Language Testing Research Group Innsbruck (LTRGI). His research interests are in language assessment and SLA, particularly vocabulary learning and assessment, language assessment literacy, remote proctoring, access arrangements, as well as language testing and migration. He was the guest co-editor of the 2024 Language Testing Special Issue on “Open Science Practices in Language Assessment” and is the series co-editor of Applied Linguistics Press’ “Syllabi in Applied Linguistics”. Benjamin is an EALTA Expert Member and the recipient of the 2023 TOEFL Essentials New Scholar Award.

Beverley Baker

Beverly Baker is Associate Professor and Director, Language Assessment, at the Official Languages and Bilingualism Institute at the University of Ottawa, Canada, where she holds the Research Chair in Language Assessment Literacy. She works and publishes widely in the areas of language test validation, language teacher development, multilingual assessment and language assessment competency development. She also consults widely with professional organisations and governments on language testing issues. She is a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of Language Assessment Quarterly. She is currently Treasurer of the International Language Testing Association and Co-Chair (with Heike Neumann) of the 2026 Language Testing Research Colloquium in Montreal.

Dr Guoxing Yu

Dr Guoxing Yu is Professor of Language Assessment at University of Bristol (UK). Currently he is the co-editor of two book series: 英语教师专业素养丛书（外语教学与研究出版社), and Research and Practice in Language Assessment (Palgrave Macmillan), and two journals: Artificial Intelligence in Language Education, and Language Assessment Quarterly. He has published in journals such as Applied Linguistics, Assessing Writing, Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, Assessment in Education, Language Assessment Quarterly, Language Testing, Oxford Review of Education, and Studies in Educational Evaluation. He has completed several IELTS-funded research projects.

Elvis Wagner

Elvis Wagner is an Associate Professor of TESOL at Temple University, where he coordinates both the PhD in Applied Linguistics program and the World Languages Education program. His research examines how to make L2 assessment more authentic and representative of real-world language use, focusing on how L2 listeners process and comprehend unscripted, spontaneous spoken language, and how this type of language differs from the scripted spoken texts learners often encounter in the L2 classroom and on L2 tests. He was co-editor of Language Assessment Quarterly from 2022-2025, and was also a co-editor of The Routledge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition and Listening (2024). He co-wrote (with Gary Ockey) the book Assessing L2 Listening: Moving Towards Authenticity (2018). His article, “Vido Listening Tests: What are They Measuring?” won the ILTA “Best Article in Language Testing” award for 2008.

Erik Voss, Ph.D

Erik Voss, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Applied Linguistics and TESOL program at Teachers College, Columbia University. His research interests include language assessment and technology and validation research. His work has appeared in peer-reviewed journals including Language Testing, Language Assessment Quarterly, TESOL Quarterly, Foreign Language Annals, and Linguistic Landscape, and he has contributed chapters to major edited collections on language assessment and technology. Prof. Voss has served on the board of the Midwest Association of Language Testers (MwALT) and the International Language Testing Association (ILTA). Professor Voss is an associate editor of Language Assessment Quarterly Journal and former Editor-in-Chief of New York State (NYS) TESOL Journal. His research group hosts the annual Artificial Intelligence Research in Applied Linguistics (AIRiAL) conference in New York City.

Fymyio Nakatsuhara

Fumiyo is Professor of Language Assessment and Director of the Centre for Research in English Language Learning and Assessment (CRELLA) at the University of Bedfordshire. She is an expert member of the European Association for Language Testing and Assessment, a founding steering committee member of the UK Association for Language Testing and Assessment, and a former chair of the British Association for Applied Linguistics: Testing, Evaluation and Assessment Special Interest Group. In 2025, she was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences. Her research in relation to IELTS and Cambridge English assessments includes validation of the video-conferencing mode of the IELTS Speaking Test, exploration of the academic speaking construct in the digital age, and the development of a practical checklist for assessing and teaching interactional competence.

James Enos Purpura

James Enos Purpura is Professor Emeritus in the Applied Linguistics Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. He has published books, articles, and monographs on grammar assessment, meaning assessment, cognition and assessment, learning-oriented assessment, and scenario-based assessment. Jim was ILTA President, LAQ editor, co-editor of two book series, and member of the U.S. DOD Language Testing Advisory Panel. He is currently an ALTE “expert member,” and a member of the Cambridge English Academic Panel, and the Oxford English Assessment Academic Advisory Panel. Jim did a Fulbright in Siena. He received the 2023 Alan Davies Lecture Award fom ILTA. He remains Director of TC’s Scenario-Based Language Assessment Lab.

Karen Ottewell

Karen Ottewell is Acting Director of the Language Centre and Director of Academic Development and Training for International Students at the University of Cambridge. A Professor of Contrastive Rhetoric and Written Articulacy, she specialises in academic literacy, assessment design, and postgraduate writing development. With a strong international background and a PhD in German Literature alongside an Ed.D. focused on written articulacy, Karen has a long-standing record of supporting scholars in Englishmedium academic environments. She is also CoFounder of the English Language Standard Advisory Authority (ELSAA).

Lia Plakans

Lia Plakans is a Professor of Multilingual Education at the University of Iowa in the United States. Her scholarship investigates reading and writing in English as an additional language and the assessment of multilingual English Learners. She has published over 30 research articles/ book chapters and two books. She teaches in the K12 EL Endorsement pre-service teacher program and Language, Literacy, and Social Studies Education doctoral program. She serves as the Department Executive Officer for Teaching and Learning in the College of Education at the University of Iowa.

Lynda Taylor

Lynda Taylor is Visiting Professor at CRELLA with over 35 years’ experience in language teaching, learning and assessment, in both business and academia. Formerly an Assistant Research Director with Cambridge Assessment, she worked on IELTS and many of Cambridge's other English proficiency tests at all levels. She has advised on test development projects worldwide and has taught and supervised students at Masters and PhD level. Her research interests include the testing of speaking and writing skills, ethics in language assessment, testing accommodations for learners with special needs, and the development of language assessment literacy. She has published widely in peer review journals, handbooks and encyclopaedia, and authored or edited many volumes in CUP's Studies in Language Testing series. From 2020-2025 she served 2 terms as President of the UK Association for Language Testing and Assessment (UKALTA).

Nick Saville

Nick Saville is Director of Thought Leadership at Cambridge University Press & Assessment (English) and Secretary-General of the Association of Language Testers in Europe (ALTE). He holds an MA TEFL, MA (Cantab) and a PhD in language assessment specialising in test impact. He has 45 years’ experience in language education having started as an English teacher at the University of Cagliari in 1980 and has specialised in language assessment since 1987. He has held several senior management roles in Cambridge, including 20 years as Director of Research and Validation during which he chaired the Joint Research Committee for IELTS. His current interests include plurilingualism and assessment, LOA, and uses of AI in language education.

Professor Paula Winke

Professor Paula Winke teaches language-teaching methods, language assessment, and individual differences in SLA at Michigan State University, USA. She co-founded the East Coast Organization of Language Testers (ECOLT) and is a past-president of the Midwest Association of Language Testing (MwALT). She co-edited “Language Testing” 2019-2024. She received the “TESOL Distinguished Researcher” award in 2012 and the “Paul Pimsleur Award for Research in World Language Education” in 2021. She has won article of the year awards from CALICO (2009), AAAL (2020), and ILTA (2025). Paula is currently co-editing the Applied Linguistic Press open-access book series "Syllabi in Applied Linguistics" with Benjamin Kremmel.

Quynh Nguyen

Quynh holds a PhD in Applied Linguistics from the University of Melbourne, Australia. She is the founding director of the Center for Testing and Assessment at the University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi (ULIS-VNU). She is currently the Director of Assessment and Quality Control at ULIS-VNU. She is also the Immediate Past President of the Asian Association for Language Assessment (AALA). She has participated as a key person in many national and international projects on education and assessment. She reviews for some journals on second language acquisition and teacher education, and has presented and published on second language education and assessment. She is also a consultant on curriculum design, assessment and bilingual education for several organisations and institutions.