Jordanians speak out against English Proficiency Index findings

AMMAN — Many Jordanians doubt the results of the 2021 Education First English Proficiency Index (EF EPI), which ranks countries or regions by the skill level of their adult English speakers. 

Jordan was ranked 11th in the region, and 90th globally, according to the report. 

The EF EPI reports that Jordan is a “very low proficiency” country, a description for countries whose residents can introduce themselves simply by name, age and country of origin, understand simple signs and have the ability to give basic directions to a foreign visitor.

Published annually, the EF EPI is the world’s largest ranking of countries or regions by adult English skills. The reports identify the most common weaknesses and highlight the most effective strategies for improving English proficiency, according to its website. 

Globally, the Netherlands topped the ranking followed by Austria, Denmark, Singapore and Norway; meanwhile, Lebanon topped the ranking regionally, followed by Tunisia, the UAE, Morocco and Bahrain, all according to the index. 

However, “the test-taking population represented in this Index is self-selected and not guaranteed to be representative”, according to the EF EPI website. 

Wafa Khatib, an English professor at a Jordanian university, said that she highly doubts the findings of the index. 

“I believe that Jordan is one of the leading countries regionally in the English language,” Khatib told the Jordan Times. 

“In fact, in Jordan, we have one of the best language education programmes in the world,” she added. 

Nour Kirdani, an English teacher at a school in Amman, said that “students in public and private schools and universities receive English language classes in the four domains of reading, writing, speaking and listening”. 

Jordanians always score well in the TOFEL and ILETS international English language tests, according to Kirdani. 

Faris Abdel Rahman, a Jordanian living in the UAE, is also sceptical of the findings. 

“I’ve been living in the UAE for almost seven years and I believe that Jordanians in Jordan receive a fair level of English education,” Abdel Rahman said. 

According to the EF EPI website, this edition of the index is based on test data from individuals who took the EF Standard English Test (EF SET) or an English placement test in 2020.

The EF SET is an online and adaptive English test of reading and listening skills. It is a standardised and objectively scored test designed to classify test takers’ language abilities into one of the six levels established by the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), according to the website. 

“The ranking was based on test results of two million adults in 112 countries and regions,” the report said.