Third-year students at state-run and other public middle schools fall short of the levels in all four English-language skills.
Third-year students at state-run and other public middle schools fall short of the levels in all four English-language skills cited by the education ministry as targets, based on the yardsticks used in the practical English proficiency test known as Eiken, according to a recent ministry survey.
The ministry’s goal seeks to ensure 50 percent of middle school students reach the level of grade 3 on the Eiken test (where grade 1 is the highest) or higher levels when they finish their studies.
However, middle school students fall short of the targeted levels for the four English skills — listening, speaking, reading and writing. Students who achieved the equivalent of Eiken grade 3 in listening and reading proficiency were only in the 20 percent range.
The survey of middle school students was the first of its kind conducted by the Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry.
The survey was conducted between the end of June and July last year on about 60,000 third-year students at about 600 public middle schools, and about 90,000 third-year students at about 500 public high schools.
Source: Yomiuri Image: Bank Image
Join the Conversation