The global adult English skills assessment ranking (EF EPI) announced by EF Education First in Hanoi on November 14 shows that Vietnam is in the average group in terms of English proficiency, reaching 53,

Evaluation report on the scope of 5 centrally run cities, including: Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Hai Phong and Can Tho.

According to the report, from 2011 to present, Vietnam has had a clear growth in English proficiency.

Mr. Minh N.Tran (Yale University), Senior Research Director of EF, said that this year’s ranking of Vietnam decreased by 7 places but considering the larger total number of participating countries, it is possible to evaluate the level of

English proficiency assessment scores by gender.

Sweden leads the way, Singapore is the only Asian country in the top 3

Sweden has the highest EPI index with 70.72 points.

Mr. Minh N.Tran commented that there are three reasons that helped Singapore reach the top 3. The first is thanks to the vision of leader Lee Kuan Yew.

Second, Singapore focuses on investing in teachers.

Third, Singapore is still investing and updating programs, teaching methods, and information technology in schools even though English is already a common language.

`Thanks to the above three things, Singapore has a high English proficiency index. However, everything has its price. Because they are too focused on English, their people gradually forget their mother tongue,` Mr. Minh N

Mr. Minh N.Tran shared at the announcement of the global English skills rankings in Hanoi on the morning of November 14.

In response to international experts’ sharing, Ms. Tran Thi Hai Yen, Principal of Tran Phu High School (Hanoi), pointed out barriers to teaching and learning English in schools, including teacher recruitment,

However, the school still tries to come up with measures to improve the English skills of both teachers and students, such as: connecting with centers that can teach additional English, and being ready to welcome delegations.

Ms. Yen said the school is trying to change parents’ awareness so that they can accompany their children in learning English;

EF Education First, founded in 1965, is the world’s largest educational organization focusing on languages, academics and cultural experiences.

In 2018, the EF EPI index was released based on a database of 1.3 million people taking the EF SET test.

Duong Tam