Taiwan made progress in an international English proficiency test for non-native speakers last year, but its average score still fell below the world average, according to Chun Shin Ltd, the test’s representative in Taiwan.
More alarming was that Taiwan’s progress was also slower than the global average, as evidenced by the widening gap since 2008, said Benjamin Wang (王星威), president of Chun Shin Ltd.
Taiwanese scored an average of 539 in last year’s Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC), an increase of 6 points over the 2008 figure. However, this was still 27 points behind the world average, a growth of 7 points from 2008’s deficit of 20 points, Wang said.
Among Asian countries, Taiwan ranked sixth in TOEIC scores last year, trailing India, the Philippines, China, Turkey and South Korea, but nevertheless ahead of Japan (7th), Thailand (8th) and Hong Kong (9th).
China made the most significant progress in the English -proficiency test, scoring 710 points last year, representing a year-on-year gain of 74 points. China’s ranking has advanced to third from sixth in 2008.
“According to our research, China’s social elites have made remarkable progress in English language ability in recent years. Local professionals intending to pursue a career in China should not ignore this trend,” Wang said.
One encouraging finding was that the average score of local test takers aged under 20 was 14 points higher than the world average for this age group, indicating that the government’s ongooing efforts to promote English education is gradually paying off, Wang said.
By profession, those in travel, hospitality, medical and healthcare services were among the poorest performers, Wang said, adding that the government should work to improve the English proficiency of workers in these sectors to facilitate its goal of promoting the tourism and biomedical industries.
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