Majority of adults believe they are skilled English users

53% of Maltese aged between 25 to 64, perceive themselves as being proficient in English, marking the highest percentage across the 28 member states of the European Union.

For the purpose of this survey, proficient meant the ability to understand and produce a wide range of demanding texts and use the language flexibly, the EU's statistical office Eurostat said.

Together with Austria, Malta also topped the list of English as the most commonly studied foreign language at both primary and secondary level. Whereas the teaching of English at primary and secondary level in Malta is compulsory, the rate of students furthering their English studies at sixth form level falls from 100% to 66%. Italian, the second most studied foreign language in Malta is taken up by 16% of the students at sixth form.

In the EU28 in 2011, 83% of pupils at primary & lower secondary level and 94% of those in upper secondary level general programmes were studying English as a foreign language. The second most commonly studied foreign language at both primary & lower secondary level and upper secondary level was French (19% of pupils in primary & lower secondary level and 23% in upper secondary), followed by German (9% and 21%) and Spanish (6% and 18%).

In the EU28, English was declared to be the best-known foreign language in 2011 amongst the population aged 25 to 64. According to Eurostat, among those stating English to be their best-known foreign language, 20% responded that they spoke it at a proficient level, 35% at a good level and 45% at a fair level. Considering all languages, two-thirds of the total population aged 25-64 stated they knew at least one foreign language.

In 2011, at primary & lower secondary level, English was the most commonly studied foreign language, with shares above 90% of pupils in Malta and Austria (both 100%), Spain and Italy (both 99%), Greece (97%), Croatia (95%), France (93%) and Poland (91%). Among the Member States for which this data is available, French was studied by more than half of pupils at this level in Luxembourg (90%) and Romania (51%), while German was studied by more than a quarter in Luxembourg (100%), Croatia (32%), Denmark (28%), Hungary and Slovakia (both 27%).

In upper secondary education, English remained the most commonly studied language, at over 90% of pupils in all Member States, except Bulgaria, Cyprus, Hungary, Malta and Portugal. The second most commonly studied language in upper secondary education was German in ten Member States, French in nine, Spanish in four, Russian in three and Swedish and Italian in one each.

Among working age adults, the perceived level of language knowledge varied significantly between Member States. In Member States where English is considered to be the best-known foreign language, the highest shares of adults aged 25 to 64 perceiving themselves as being proficient in English were observed in Malta (53%), Sweden (43%), Cyprus (41%), Denmark and the Netherlands (both 36%), and the lowest in Italy (10%), France (13%) and Germany (16%).