The most recent analysis of the Educational Economics Laboratory (LEE) of the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, showed that during 2021, 78% of job vacancies in the country required English to hire. However, in the same period, 49.8% of those evaluated in Saber 11 had the lowest level in this language.
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“The average score in this area in 2021 was 49.8 out of 100 points; the highest since 2019 but lower than domestic records”, says the report from the Javeriana University.
The analysis also highlights that students from private schools tend to perform better in English than those who are part of official institutions. In addition, the gap would be increasing and by 2021 it stood at 10.2%.
The cities where the best levels in English are recorded are: Bogotá, San Andrés, Cundinamarca, Quindío, Boyacá, Santander, Risaralda, Caldas and Norte de Santander. In contrast, Amazonia, Orinoquía and a part of the Pacific registered lower performance in this language.
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Performance in English in the country
Educational Economics Laboratory– Javeriana University
“Although it cannot be concluded that English is the area with the lowest performance, compared to the rest of the areas evaluated in the tests, it has been presenting a worrying downward trend in the last three years.s”, the report explains.
The gap is also regarding gender: “The score difference between men and women widened between 2020 and 2021 against women, going from 1 to 1.7 points; also the highest in the last eight years.”
On the other hand, when the Saber Pro figures presented by higher education students are analyzed, the level increases. Nevertheless, the average does not exceed 52% of the maximum score.
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“It must be taken into account that the command of English provides better job opportunities and in entrepreneurship, improves the competitiveness, research and development of the countrys”, says Luz Karime Abadía, co-director of LEE Javeriana.
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