Are Malaysians ahead in English proficiency?

When it comes to English proficiency, Malaysia apparently is on top of the list, according to annual survey results by Education First. However, observers believe that such findings may skewed because it contradicts with other surveys that are found reliable.

Flaws in the research method of EF:

• No random sampling of participants hence it can be assumed that most online test takers had a good command of English.
• Neighbouring countries that are known to have strong command of the language have been excluded in the survey.
• Since the test is purely online and is open to the public, the criteria set may not be followed strictly by test takers.

With that said, EF's survey does attempt to standardise the measurement of English proficiency among countries however"... there is no guarantee that this particular proficiency score corresponds to the academic and economic goals set by an individual nation."

Grammatical correctness does not necessarily translate to effective communication skills

Effective communication skills is perceived as an advantage in securing jobs. The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) conducted a survey among its members and found that 60 per cent identified low English proficiency as the main problem with young recruits.

Similarly, Jobstreet surveyed senior managers and companies last year and found out that 55% of respondents believe that poor command of the English language was the main culprit for unemployment among undergraduates.

Low proficiency in English could also hamper reading levels and science literacy. Two international assessments  --- PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) and TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) showed that science literacy and reading ability among Malaysians have been declining steadily.

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Written byLyn Cacha

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• English a ‘must pass’ in SPM as early as 2016