English, the global language?

According to the Education First English Proficiency Index (EF EPI), only 31 out of 112 countries included in a study have a high or very high level of the language.

The EF EPI world ranking is led by the Netherlands, followed by Austria and Denmark.

In the report published once a year by the Swedish company Signum International and which is based on tests of 2 million adults in 112 nations, the Netherlands obtains a score of 663.

In Latin America, Argentina ranks first in terms of proficiency in English as a second language. They are followed by Bolivia and Cuba (positions 41 and 43 worldwide, respectively). Peru is ranked 11th in the region and 56th worldwide.

Argentina obtained 556 points, which places it at the level of high ability in English, according to the index. Meanwhile, Peru obtains a score of 505, which places it at the level of countries with moderate proficiency in the foreign language.

To score very high on the index, you must be able to use English in a variety of social situations, understand advanced texts, and be able to negotiate a contract with a native English speaker. Whereas, in the scores of very low English proficiency, people understand simple commands and can give basic instructions in the language.

The EF EPI report also indicates that men’s English proficiency has surpassed that of women for the first time since the study began in 2014.

It is also noted that, in all regions except Asia, there is the same trend: women’s English remains stable as men’s English improves. Africa is the only place where women are still ahead.

In addition, adults over 30 years of age are improving their English level the fastest since 2015, and adults in their 30s have improved their English three times more than those between 21 and 25 years of age.

It should be noted that the EF EPI information may not be representative of a nation, since it is collected through online exams from people interested in learning English.