Buzz
Though still in the 'moderate' category, Vietnam has progressed in English language usage compared to itself. Findings from an international private education organization survey revealed.
On January 18th in Hanoi, the private education organization EF announced the results of the third edition of the English Proficiency Index (EF EPI).
According to these results, Vietnam has made progress in English over the past 6 years.
In 2012, Vietnam ranked 31st out of 54, but by 2013, it rose to 28th out of 60 countries and territories.
Vietnam's 28th position is the last place in the 'moderate proficiency' group, according to the survey analysis.
Other countries and territories in the region such as China, Thailand, and Taiwan have positions lower than Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Malaysians and Singaporeans, with rankings 11 and 12, are quite proficient in English.
This ranking table is based on the results of a test taken by 750,000 adults from 60 countries and territories in 2012.
Mr. Minh Tran, the director of this survey project, stated that this is a free online test, and participants voluntarily want to assess their English proficiency.
To 'meet the standard' for participation in the survey, each country must have a minimum of 400 tests.
While not specifying exact numbers, Mr. Minh Tran affirmed that the number of tests from Vietnam participating in the survey is much larger than the minimum requirement.
This index and ranking table serve as a reference for learners as well as policy development.
Global Dynamics
This report presents some other findings as follows:
While most European countries are proficient in English or actively striving for that goal, France is completely in a different orbit (ranked 35th and declining).
The top 7 countries proficient in English are all small European nations with small land areas.
In Asia, particularly Indonesia and Vietnam have significantly improved their proficiency in English over 6 years. China has also improved but at a slower pace. South Korea and Japan have made significant investments, but their English proficiency has slightly declined.
The Middle East and North Africa are the weakest regions, except for the exception of the United Arab Emirates.
More than half of the Latin American countries are in the bottom half of the rankings. In Mexico and Guatemala, proficiency in foreign language usage has decreased.
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Source: Travel Guide Mytour - According to Vietnamnet
MytourJanuary 21, 2014
