Tool provides instant translation to make certifications more inclusive
March 31, 2022 – Making certifications more inclusive by improving access for non-native English speakers is critical to business upskilling. That’s according to online assessment provider Questionmark, which today announced it has won the 2022 IT Certification Council’s (ITCC) Innovation Award for pioneering a real-time translation tool. The ITCC Innovation Award recognizes innovations in testing, processes, or service, within the IT certification industry.
Currently, 20% of the United States (US) population speaks a language other than English at home.1 While their English skills will often be strong enough for business use, some aspects of a question in an exam may be less clear than it would be to a native speaker.
The nature of technology certification means that new content and assessments are often produced in English, which can put non-native English speakers at a disadvantage. Offering real-time translation not only helps to make certification assessments more accessible, but can also boost the talent pool for critical technical roles and support business upskilling.
To help make SAP® certifications more accessible for consultants, Questionmark developed the idea for “Instant Translate”, a tool which allows participants to translate particular text within questions or items into different languages in real-time. SAP certifications can help consultants attain more job opportunities and higher compensation – enabling businesses to achieve competitive advantages and digital transformation.
Leveraging its partnership with SAP, Questionmark’s new translation tool can increase inclusivity and diversity by making the exam more digestible to non-native English speakers, who can be disadvantaged by taking exams in a secondary language.
John Kleeman, Founder of Questionmark, said: “Crucial certifications must be underpinned by robust assessments. However, it’s just as important that these tests are fair. The final result should truly reflect a test-taker’s ability. Language barriers can lead to performance results that are lower than the candidate deserves. This award and recognition by the ITCC show that Questionmark has made crucial progress in making business-critical certifications more inclusive.”
[1] https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2013/demo/2009-2013-lang-tables.html
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About Questionmark
Questionmark unlocks performance through reliable and secure online assessments.
Question mark provides a secure enterprise-grade assessment platform and professional services to leading organizations around the world, delivered with care and unequalled expertise. Its full-service online assessment tool and professional services help customers to improve their performance and meet their compliance requirements. Questionmark enables organizations to unlock their potential by delivering assessments which are valid, reliable, fair and defensible.
Questionmark offers secure powerful integration with other LMS, LRS and proctoring services making it easy to bring everything together in one place. Questionmark’s cloud-based assessment management platform offers rapid deployment, scalability for high-volume test delivery, 24/7 support, and the peace-of-mind of secure, audited U.S., Australian and European-based data centers.