Mayor elated by Baguio’s English proficiency status
Mayor Benjamin Magalong is elated by Baguio City’s achievement as the city with the highest English proficiency in the country based on the 2023 English Proficiency Index of international education company EF Education First (EF).
“We are proud to have achieved such status. We commend our educators — our principals, professors, teachers including the non-academic personnel both in the public and private sectors — for a job well done in providing our students quality education not only in the English subject but also in all aspects of learning,” the mayor said.
He also credited the students and parents who give importance to education and strive to pursue academic excellence and this is aligned with his administration’s resolve to empower the youth in leadership, decision-making and in shaping city’s development thrusts
The mayor said it is noteworthy that the accomplishment was realized while the academic sector was still recovering from the learning challenges brought by the pandemic and other upheavals.
Baguio City and the Cordillera Region topped the country’s lists of cities and regions with very high English proficiency, according to the 2023 EF English Proficiency Index.
Based on the results of EF’s “in-depth country-specific analysis” of 19 Philippine cities, Baguio City got the highest score with 619 followed closely by Dumaguete City with 618 and Davao, 609.
Among the 18 regions tested, CAR topped the list with a score of 616 followed by Davao region with 606 and Eastern Visayas, 596.
Manila was at seventh place with 587 while National Capital Region was at fourth place with a score of 593.
The Philippines ranked 20th among 113 countries worldwide by retaining its overall score of 578 from the 2022 index and made it to the list of countries with high English proficiency. The Netherlands was number one globally.
Among 23 countries in Asia, the Philippines placed second to topnotcher Singapore which also ranked second globally.
It is impressive that the country maintained its score as EF’s analysis showed that most best performing countries posted decreased average scores attributed to the impact of the pandemic.
According to the index, English proficiency had been highest among Filipinos under the age group of 26 to 30.
The index which ranks English-language skills in countries where English is not the native language was based on the standardized test results of 2.2 million participants from the 113 countries.
The participants took the EF Standard English Test, said to be “an online, adaptive English test of reading and listening skills designed to categorize the participants’ language abilities into the six levels established by the Common European Framework of Reference.”
EF is an “international education company offering study abroad, language learning, cultural exchange and academic programs around the world.” – Aileen P. Refuerzo
