Yzabelle Bostyn
THESE are the areas of Spain who speak the best English, according to a new study.
While learning English is an important part of the Spanish school curriculum, some regions seem to have better language skills than others.
According to a study by Education First (EF), Galicia and Madrid have the best English levels in Spain while Extremadura and La Rioja have the worst.
Photo: Alejandro Pinero Amerio/Unsplash
Vigo, in Galicia was Spain’s top English speaking city with a score of 585, while the region clocked in at 564.
The results are calculated using three separate English tests from 2.1 million people worldwide.
In Spain, the top age group for English speakers were 26-30 year olds.
Meanwhile, the Spanish capital got 551 points, followed by Catalunya, the Basque Country, Navarra and Aragon.
In comparison, the lowest scoring region was Extremadura with 501 points.
It is followed by La Rioja, Castilla-La Mancha, Murcia and the Balearic Islands.
EF’s worldwide ranking studied 2.1 million non-native English speakers from 116 countries and regions.
Globally, Spain took 36th position, with a score of 538 points and ‘moderate proficiency’.
Ahead of Spain were countries like Belarus, Kenya, Argentina, Romania and Honduras.
The Netherlands took the top spot with 636 points, followed by Norway (610) and Singapore (609).
At the other end of the scale was Yemen, with a score of 394 and ‘very low proficiency’.
In terms of capital cities, Madrid fared better with ‘high proficiency’ but still fell to 39th place, with 553 points.
Love this Yzabelle. I am happy to give English classes to anyone in Extremadura – for free. I have a home here. Even though I am Scottish I speak with (what they say is) “the very best English accent.” This is because my father had me educated in English Public Schools and Oxford Uni! I also worked with a member of the Royal Family for 10 years. Very posh, lol! My knowledge of Spanish is probably around 60%, so I will learn more in the process also :-) x