Malaysia has highest level of English proficiency in Asia, overtaking Singapore who fell behind to 12th position

06 November 2013| last updated at 05:00PM

Malaysia has highest level of English proficiency in Asia

By A. Azim Idris

PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia has the highest English language proficiency level in the entire Asian region, according to a latest research by Swiss-based international education company EF Education First (EF).

The nation also climbed two notches higher to 11^th place from 13th position last year in the EF English Proficiency Index which saw over 60 countries being surveyed. The results revealed that Malaysia, which was placed in the ‘High Proficiency’ category, had overtaken Singapore who fell behind to 12^th position in the world ranking. Malaysia scored 58.99 points in the survey while neighbouring Singapore received a 58.92 score.Sweden topped the list of the ‘Very High Proficiency’ category with Norway and Netherlands trailing in second and third place the country respectively.

Other countries listed as among the best were Estonia, Denmark, Austria and Finland.

EF, in a press release entitled ‘The World’s Top 60 Countries in English According to The EF English Proficiency Index’ posted on its website on Tuesday, said this year’s country rankings were based on tests taken by 750,000 adults from 60 countries in 2012.

The seven countries with the strongest English, the EF said, were all small European nations “whose size compels them to adopt an international outlook.”

The analysis of evolving English proficiency over a six-year period (2007 to 2012 inclusive) uses test data from nearly five million adults.

EF Academic Affairs and Research Network head Dr. Christopher McCormick said: “Comparison of countries with their neighbours, trading partners, and rivals provides a fascinating study in divergent national priorities and educational policies worldwide,”

Other key findings in the survey also concluded that some Asian countries, such as Indonesia and Vietnam, have transformed their English proficiency over the six-year period.

“China has also improved, although less dramatically. Japan and South Korea, despite enormous private investments, have declined slightly,” the statement said.

The EF also found that English language skills were improving in Brazil, Russia, India, and China.

“This year, India and Russia have moved ahead of China, and Brazil is closing in fast.

“While the rest of Europe is already proficient in English or steadily working towards that goal, France is on an entirely different trajectory.”

However, the EF found that the Middle East and North Africa were the weakest regions in English.

“These oil-rich nations have staked their futures on developing knowledge economies before their oil production peaks. An exception to the region’s lackluster performance is the United Arab Emirates, which has improved significantly.”