JEDDAH: King Abdul Aziz University (KAU) is holding an English language teaching conference and expo from Jan. 28. Best practices in leadership, technology and assessment are the focus of the three-day international event. Organizers are expecting more than 2,000 delegates to attend the ELT Saudi Conference & Expo 2020.
KAU President Abdulrahman Al-Youbi will inaugurate the conference. It will feature a leadership summit, an expo, panel discussions and more than 30 distinguished speakers, along with 80 breakout sessions.
The speakers come from major universities, corporations, publishing houses and accreditation agencies, including the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority and Microsoft, among others.
“The conference aims to advance and harness best practices in the profession, to hone our own professional precision and to spur the pace of our ever-evident powerful national momentum in line with (the reform plan) Saudi Vision 2030, which emphasizes the crucial role of education in the nation’s progress,” said Al-Youbi.

Yousef Al-Turki, KAU vice-president for graduate studies and research and chair of the conference’s supervisory committee, said the event aimed to enrich English-language teaching in line with Ministry of Education goals to improve the quality of learning outcomes of students in Saudi Arabia and globally. The scale, scope and organizational format of the conference represented a leap forward, said Abdullah Al-Bargi, who is dean of the English Language Institute and chairman of the organizing committee.
“We have worked relentlessly to make our dream come true to bring together the world’s most renowned experts in our field in one place to share their thoughts and expertise for better learning.”