The emphasis on English education in China only emerged after 1979, 3 years after the end of Cultural Revolution, China adopted the Open Door Policy, and the United States and China established strong diplomatic ties. One estimate (in 2007) of the number of English speakers in China is over 200 million and rising, with 50 million secondary school children now studying the language. [1]
However, online test score data from the 2018 EF English Proficiency Index ranks the nation at 47th out of the 88 countries measured, with an overall score of 'Low proficiency.' It suggested that internet users in cities and provinces like Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin, and Jiangsu had a generally decent command of the language while those in other cities were limited to basic vocabulary. [2] [3] A 2017 article from The Telegraph also suggests that less than 1 percent of people in China (some 10 million) speak English conversationally. [4]
According to a report on China Daily , many students start learning English in kindergarten before they start school. [5] Most schoolchildren are taught their first English lesson in third grade in primary school. Despite the fact that it is common to learn English at an early age, some have criticized the pedagogy for being geared towards only the skills being tested. Therefore, skills such as learning grammar rules become more focused on memorization. However, creative skills such as writing are still an important part of English education in China. The methods, which focus on testing students' memorization of grammar rules and vocabulary, have been criticized by Western educationalists and linguists as fundamentally flawed. [6] Furthermore, students are seldom able to put newly learned English words into use. This problem arises because Mandarin is the official and dominant language in China, while English often has little use in the country. This problem is further reinforced through the national Band 4 examination, where 80% of the test is the writing component and 20% of the test is listening, while an additional speaking component is only required for English major students. However, Guangdong Province has started requiring all students to take the English speaking exam for the National College Entrance Examination as of 2010.
China's first contact with the English language occurred between Chinese and English traders, and the first missionary schools to teach English were established in Macau in the 1630s. [1] From late 1840s, English was popular, and widely used in Shanghai, several books to teach English to local residence were published. [7] [8] Between 1911 and 1949, English was taught in missionary schools and thirteen Christian colleges. [9] After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Russian was originally the primary foreign language. [10] English began to transition into the education system during the 1960s as a result of the Sino-Soviet split. Because of the condemnation of the English language during the Cultural Revolution, English education did not return until Richard Nixon visited China in 1972. The only textbooks for English instructions were translations of Mao Zedong's works until the Cultural Revolution ended in 1976, and the Gaokao was restored in 1978. [11]
In 1978 about 500,000 people in China were subscribed to the magazine Learning English, and in 1982 the BBC program Follow Me had about 10 million households in China as viewers. [12]
Once China established the open door policy under Deng Xiaoping, the popularity of English and other languages began to thrive. English became very popular between the late 1970s to 1990s in areas that dealt with trading and tourism [13]
In 2021 journalist Li Yuan (Chinese :袁莉; pinyin :Yuán Lì) in The New York Times wrote that there was a trend countering English language education in China. [12]
The College English Test (CET) is the primary English language test in China. As of 2011, employers have made scores in the CET 4 and CET 6 requirements for employment, and The Lowdown on China's Higher Education stated that in China "CET 4 and CET 6 National English examinations have become the symbol of English proficiency in reading and writing." [14]
There is also the Public English Test System (PETS).
Tourism in China is a major industry, producing 11.04% of the GDP and contributing direct and indirect employment of up to 28.25 million people. [15] [16] Nonetheless, not many employees in the hospitality sector speak English. One source indicates that it's more common in premium-grade hotels "while less expensive hotels might have few or no staff members who speak English". Bilingual guide services are readily available, however. [17]
Recently, online education has been gaining momentum in China, including online one on one English education. [18] Many Chinese companies, such as Magic Ears, are recruiting teachers from the U.S. and other English-speaking countries. [19] Leading players such as New Oriental Education & Technology Group and TAL Education Group have gone public in the US and seen their shares soar. Now, online start-ups are gaining ground with parents who grew up in the internet era and see advantages in digital learning. Beijing-based VIPKid has expanded to 200,000 students and just[ when? ] raised venture money at a valuation of more than US$1.5 billion. [20] The virtual teaching business is booming. Both VIPKid and DaDa were founded in 2013 and have continued to grow since then. VIPKid had more than 500,000 students in China and 63 other countries and 60,000 North American teachers, while Dada had more than 100,000 students and 10,000 teachers. Their competitors have grown too: companies like Magic Ears and QKids are also connecting teachers to Chinese children working on learning English. [19]
In 2021 the Chinese authorities banned the use of foreign-based teachers for online tutoring, forcing VIPkid to end its foreign-based tutoring service for Chinese students. [21]
In bilingual education, students are taught in two languages. It is distinct from learning a second language as a subject because both languages are used for instruction in different content areas like math, science, and history. The time spent in each language depends on the model. For example, some models focus on providing education in both languages throughout a student's entire education while others gradually transition to education in only one language. The ultimate goal of bilingual education is fluency and literacy in both languages through a variety of strategies such as translanguaging and recasting.
Language education – the process and practice of teaching a second or foreign language – is primarily a branch of applied linguistics, but can be an interdisciplinary field. There are four main learning categories for language education: communicative competencies, proficiencies, cross-cultural experiences, and multiple literacies.
English as a second or foreign language refers to the use of English by individuals whose native language is different, commonly among students learning to speak and write English. Variably known as English as a foreign language (EFL), English as a second language (ESL), English for speakers of other languages (ESOL), English as an additional language (EAL), or English as a new language (ENL), these terms denote the study of English in environments where it is not the dominant language. Programs such as ESL are designed as academic courses to instruct non-native speakers in English proficiency, encompassing both learning in English-speaking nations and abroad.
The College English Test, better known as CET, is a national English as a foreign language test in the People's Republic of China. It examines the English proficiency of undergraduate and postgraduate students in China. It is meant to ensure that Chinese undergraduates and postgraduates reach the required English levels specified in the National College English Teaching Syllabuses (NCETS). This test has existed in China for 26 years and now 18 million people take it annually. It includes two levels, CET4 (四级) and CET6 (六级), and prefers American English.
Language immersion, or simply immersion, is a technique used in bilingual language education in which two languages are used for instruction in a variety of topics, including maths, science, or social studies. The languages used for instruction are referred to as the L1 and the L2 for each student, with L1 being the student's native language and L2 being the second language to be acquired through immersion programs and techniques. There are different types of language immersion that depend on the age of the students, the classtime spent in L2, the subjects that are taught, and the level of participation by the speakers of L1.
Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called Bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all Europeans claim to speak at least one language other than their mother tongue; but many read and write in one language. Being multilingual is advantageous for people wanting to participate in trade, globalization and cultural openness. Owing to the ease of access to information facilitated by the Internet, individuals' exposure to multiple languages has become increasingly possible. People who speak several languages are also called polyglots.
Minority (non-Japanese) students can be found throughout the entire Japanese education system. An incomplete list of possible cultural and or language minorities represented in Japanese schools include:
Language proficiency is the ability of an individual to use language with a level of accuracy which transfers meaning in production and comprehension.
English-language learner is a term used in some English-speaking countries such as the United States and Canada to describe a person who is learning the English language and has a native language that is not English. Some educational advocates, especially in the United States, classify these students as non-native English speakers or emergent bilinguals. Various other terms are also used to refer to students who are not proficient in English, such as English as a second language (ESL), English as an additional language (EAL), limited English proficient (LEP), culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD), non-native English speaker, bilingual students, heritage language, emergent bilingual, and language-minority students. The legal term that is used in federal legislation is 'limited English proficient'.
Dual language is a form of education in which students are taught literacy and content in two languages. Most dual language programs in the United States teach in English and Spanish, but programs increasingly use a partner language other than Spanish, such as Arabic, Chinese, French, Hawaiian, Japanese, or Korean. Dual language programs use the partner language for at least half of the instructional day in the elementary years.
Mute English is a term coined in the People's Republic of China to describe a phenomenon where people cannot speak English well and have a poor listening comprehension as a second language, typically through the traditional method of English language teaching where English is only taught as a subject. The phrase is a calque of the Chinese phrase "哑巴英语". The phenomenon is sometimes referred to as Dumb English.
Multilingual education (MLE) typically refers to "first-language-first" education, that is, schooling which begins in the mother tongue, or first language, and transitions to additional languages. Typically, MLE programs are situated in developing countries where speakers of minority languages, i.e. non-dominant languages, tend to be disadvantaged in the mainstream education system. There are increasing calls to provide first-language-first education to immigrant children from immigrant parents who have moved to the developed world. Offering first-language-first education to immigrant children in developed countries has gained attention due to the unique challenges these students face. When students move to a new country, language and cultural barriers can affect their academic progress and well-being. Some suggest that providing instruction in their first language initially, as part of multilingual education (MLE) programs, could help ease their transition. By recognizing and respecting their linguistic and cultural backgrounds, these programs aim to create a supportive learning environment where students feel more comfortable and confident. While this approach may contribute to the preservation of heritage languages, implementing MLE programs present other potential benefits and challenges.
EF Education First is an international education company that specialises in language training, educational travels, academic degree programmes, and cultural exchanges. The company was founded in 1965 by Bertil Hult in the Swedish university town of Lund. The company is privately held by the Hult family.
The EF English Proficiency Index attempts to rank countries by the equity of English language skills amongst those adults who took the EF test. It is the product of EF Education First, an international education company, and draws its conclusions from data collected via English tests available for free over the internet. The index is an online survey first published in 2011 based on test data from 1.7 million test takers. The most recent edition was released in November 2023.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to second-language acquisition:
Language power (LP) is a measure of the ability to communicate effectively in a given language, specifically one that is not native to the speaker.
Quanguo Waiyu Shuiping Kaoshi is a series of foreign language tests administered in Mainland China for educators who did not major in foreign languages. The National Education Examinations Authority (NEEA) of China developed these tests. Performance on the WSK determines whether one is permitted to take training, studies, or additional studies within one's major in institutions outside of China.
The Public English Test System is a test developed by the National Education Examinations Authority (NEEA) of the People's Republic of China. The PETS is the edition of the Quanguo Waiyu Shuiping Kaoshi (WSK) for the English language. It is available in five levels: PETS-1 through PETS-5. PETS testing is open to persons of all professions, ages, and academic backgrounds.
Teaching English as a second (TESL) orforeign language (TEFL) and teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) are terms that refer to teaching English to students whose first language is not English. The terms TEFL, TESL, and TESOL distinguish between a class's location and student population, and have become problematic due to their lack of clarity. TEFL refers to English-language programs conducted in countries where English is not the primary language, and may be taught at a language school or by a tutor. For some jobs, the minimum TEFL requirement is a 100-hour course; the 120-hour course is recommended, however, since it may lead to higher-paid teaching positions. TEFL teachers may be native or non-native speakers of English.
VIPKid, also known as VIPKID, is an online teaching and education company.
Around 10 million people - in a total population of 1.3 billion - speak English. That's fewer than one in 100.