Events

Our conference aim was to bring clarity to the many changes in education, offering keynote speakers and workshops to give the heads-up on the why and the what and the how of the changes. So we were delighted to welcome around 200 educators at the conference, taking valuable time out of their holidays to talk all things assessment, all education professionals interested in discussing how effective assessment practice is a vital component of learning, teaching and system improvement.

Thank you:

• to all delegates who were interested to attend our conference, attentive to the issues raised by our speakers and workshop presenters.
• to all our keynote speakers and workshop presenters, who made their knowledge and experience available to others so that we can add to the our growing body of understanding of what makes good assessment practice.
• to our sponsors, Evaluation Associates | Te Huinga Kākākura Mātauranga and  Massey University who contributed in many ways to making the conference a success, 
• to Ormiston Junior College for generously allowing us to use the school as a wonderful venue, to NZCER for their ongoing support for NZAI and to The Conference Company for running our conference with their usual friendly and professional efficiency.

We’re so happy you joined us for this abundance of assessment knowledge and innovation.

STOP PRESS!!

NZAI’s new (ish) initiative, what we’re calling NZAI Collaborative Improvement Community, has reached a milestone already. At the April 2026 Assessment Conference NZAI had much pleasure in introducing our first CIC report, called Solving problems, improving outcomes, moving forward. 

The report brings together eight school improvement stories. While the initiatives differ in size, setting and focus, they share a commitment to deliberate problem-solving, evaluative thinking and strengthening outcomes for their learners. 

The first section presents the eight case studies. The accounts describe how schools defined problems or focus areas, designed and implemented change strategies and gathered emerging evidence of impact. 

The second section synthesises insights across the eight stories, identifying recurring patterns and common themes.

You can find out about CIC and download the report on our Collaborative Improvement Community page here on our website.

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 Please feel free to dive into our archive of keynote addresses and workshop presentations from previous years. There’s a storehouse, in fact a treasure trove of illustrations of effective assessment practices that support improved learning.

And while you’re on our website, go to our publication Assessment to Improve Learning: Principles, practices and proof, distributed to all schools in 2021 and available online through the link.  You’ll be able to make connections with conference themes. 

Please don’t hesitate to be in touch if you have queries. Email us at info@nzai.org.nz.