French students rank 69th out of 109 countries in English. Is it genetic? wonders Le Monde

French students still lousy in English! This is the title of a Le Monde article on the most recent TOEFL results. France ranks 69th out of 109 countries. In Europe, French students ranked 25th. Only Cyprus, Monaco and Italy managed worse results in oral expression. Writing for Le Monde, Maryline Baumard points out that these terrible results hamper French students who want to study in the USA. For those of you who are familiar with the French system for selecting and training language teachers, none of this is particularly surprising, as the 2002 the European Assessment of English skills had also placed France last. Poor teacher training has a profound negative impact, on students and teachers alike. And yet any attempt at reform results in immediate strikes. French readers may be interested in my article about English language teaching and inequality in France (first published in Cahiers Pédagogiques).