**3. Results**

of French mandatory for grades 10 and 11. The decree let schools choose whether to teach

In 1982, the MEN, supported by the British Council and the Centro Colombo Americano, created the program named "The English Syllabus" (TES). TES introduced a universal English syllabus for grades 6 and 9 and 10 and 11. Under this program, the teaching of English remained mandatory only for grades 6 and 7. According to Valencia (2006), TES was the first time that policy makers established reading comprehension as the main long-term objective

This program was followed by the project "Colombian Framework for English" (COFE) carried by the MEN between 1991 and 1996. As documented by USMA (2009), this project was part of a broader bilateral cooperation program between Colombia and the UK [18]. The MEN

The COFE project came at the same time of a great institutional change in Colombia. In 1991, a new National Constitution was adopted. The new constitution decentralized some responsibilities, the expenditure on education being one of them. Under the new constitution, each local government (Departments and Municipalities) had a budget for, including but not limited to, security, education, planning, and development as well as the monitoring and evalu-

In 1994, the Colombian Parliament voted the General Education Law (GEL), which was developed after the new constitution. The GEL regulated the supply of the public service of education by private and public institutions. The GEL also introduced the notion of school autonomy, created school governance, and gave school communities the ability to define their curriculum and pedagogical processes within a general set of guidelines included in it [19]. In

The GEL included the need for a foreign language as a compulsory subject from third grade onwards. In Article 21, the policy makers make it clear that the objective of this foreign language instruction was the development of elements of conversation and reading in at least one foreign language. This law was the first sign of recognition of the importance of English proficiency for Colombian economic growth and its inclusion in a globalized economy [20]. In 1999, the MEN published the "Curricular Guidelines for Foreign languages" (Lineamientos Curriculares Lenguas Extranjeras) [21] and in 2004, they launched the "National Bilingual Program" (NBP), which was initially designed to run from 2004 to 2019. This program was explicitly designed to improve Colombian human capital to facilitate economic development. It recognized the need of English proficiency in Colombian work force for economic growth and development. The NBP adopted the CEFRL, produced the tools to evaluate students (PRUEBA SABER) and developed projects for public school teachers and standards for the teaching of English. This program was the first in Colombia that established measurable goals. For example, it stated that by 2019, all high school graduates should be at B1 Threshold (pre-intermediate) level, while all university graduates should be at B2 Vantage (intermedi-

this new scenario, a national mandatory English Syllabus was part of the past.

English or French in grades 8 and 9 [16].

62 Multilingualism and Bilingualism

in the teaching of English in Colombia [17].

ation of existing programs.

ate) level.

designed this project to improve the training of English teachers.

The analysis carried out in this section employs the public databases containing the results of a graduation-required standardized test for high school and university undergraduate students: Saber 11 and Saber Pro. These tests are applied by the Colombian Institute for the Evaluation of Education (ICFES) and are comparable in their English component. As indicated above, this test classifies student's English reading comprehension skills according to the CEFRL in the following levels: A1 Breakthrough (beginner user), A2 Waystage (basic user), B1 Threshold (pre-intermediate), and B+, which it is supposed to include the higher levels: B2 Vantage (high intermediate), C1 Effective operational proficiency, and C2 Mastery.

Colombia has a centralized administrative structure (political organization), with 1118 municipalities grouped in 32 departments. Bogota serves as its capital. The five biggest cities are Bogota, Cali, Medellin, Barranquilla, and Cartagena. These five cities account for about 30% of all the people living in Colombia, with 16% of the Colombian population living in Bogota. The rest of the chapter shows results for the national level and for these five municipalities.

#### **3.1. Secondary Education: Saber 11**

**Table 1** shows the main statistics of the variables employed in this subsection. The main source of information is Saber 11 2014 test provided by the Colombian Institute for Educational Evaluation. Information recorded by the Ministry of National Education and the National


**Table 1.** Descriptive statistics higher education, Saber 11 2014.

Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE) about bilingual programs implemented per city and its characteristics is used.

About 32% of the country's high school graduates come from the five biggest Colombian cities, 17% of students that presented Saber 11 in 2014 were from Bogota, 5% were from Cali, another 5% were from Medellin, 3% from Barranquilla, and 2% from Cartagena, and the rest were from other towns and cities. The participation of private high school graduates is uneven across cities. For example, in Bogota, it was around 50% in 2014, while in the rest of Colombia was 20% at most. In the towns such as Cali, it was 55% and in Medellin (was) 44%, Barranquilla 37%, and Cartagena 33%.

Besides, from the goal not being reached, the information also raises a concern regarding the huge gap between the achievements made by students from private schools vs. students from public schools: 17 vs. 2.5% achieved B1 or B+, and 11.6% students from private schools achieved A2 vs. 5.8% from public schools (see **Figure 1**). Since more than two-thirds of secondary students study in public schools (71% or 437,350 students in 2014 according to Saber 11 2014), it generates many doubts as to the efficiency of the actions implemented during the Program for Strengthening the Development of Foreign Language Communication Skills (PFDCLE). Some of the strategies sought to train 9500 teachers, certifying 94 Secretaries of Education in language and methodology; they intended to implement a pedagogical program for learning English called "English, Please!" in 9th, 10th, and 11th grade in public schools, among others. Policy makers designed all these actions directed toward public schools, and

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**Figure 2** shows the results per city. No city achieved the government's goal. On the one hand, the cities that presented the highest percentage of students that classified in B1 and B+ were Bogota (14.3% of 106,950 students) and Barranquilla (12.6% of 17,227 students), while the city with the lowest percentage was Cartagena with 6.8%. On the other hand, almost 50% of students

they did not formally evaluate the effectiveness of these measures.

**Figure 1.** English levels in private and public schools, 2014.

The goal proposed by the Ministry of National Education of 40% of secondary education graduates achieving an intermediate level – B1 or independent user following the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFRL), was not achieved in 2014. Only 41,477 (6.7% of 617,536) students achieved an intermediate level (B1) or independent level (B+) (see **Figure 1**). This striking result is a signal that either the goal was very ambitious or there is a structural problem in the way English is taught in secondary education, or both. Plea for the first reason, is that the English test taken by English teachers in 2013 showed that only 43% achieved a B+ level (MEN, 2014). Therefore, it is quite difficult to expect 40% of students to achieve a B1 or B+ level. Unluckily, no information for basic education is available for doing furthers comparisons, which could give a better idea if young children are achieving the expected English level for their age, and if not, how severe is this deficiency.

**Figure 1.** English levels in private and public schools, 2014.

Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE) about bilingual programs implemented per

About 32% of the country's high school graduates come from the five biggest Colombian cities, 17% of students that presented Saber 11 in 2014 were from Bogota, 5% were from Cali, another 5% were from Medellin, 3% from Barranquilla, and 2% from Cartagena, and the rest were from other towns and cities. The participation of private high school graduates is uneven across cities. For example, in Bogota, it was around 50% in 2014, while in the rest of Colombia was 20% at most. In the towns such as Cali, it was 55% and in Medellin (was) 44%,

The goal proposed by the Ministry of National Education of 40% of secondary education graduates achieving an intermediate level – B1 or independent user following the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFRL), was not achieved in 2014. Only 41,477 (6.7% of 617,536) students achieved an intermediate level (B1) or independent level (B+) (see **Figure 1**). This striking result is a signal that either the goal was very ambitious or there is a structural problem in the way English is taught in secondary education, or both. Plea for the first reason, is that the English test taken by English teachers in 2013 showed that only 43% achieved a B+ level (MEN, 2014). Therefore, it is quite difficult to expect 40% of students to achieve a B1 or B+ level. Unluckily, no information for basic education is available for doing furthers comparisons, which could give a better idea if young children are achieving

the expected English level for their age, and if not, how severe is this deficiency.

city and its characteristics is used.

**Table 1.** Descriptive statistics higher education, Saber 11 2014.

Source: Authors' calculations.

**City Sector Num. of** 

64 Multilingualism and Bilingualism

**students**

**Num. of schools**

Barranquilla Private 6288 265 23.7 33.9 1 241 Barranquilla Public 10,837 274 39.6 44.6 1 207 Bogota Private 53,651 1405 38.2 66.4 1 1255 Bogota Public 52,812 998 52.9 85.3 1 566 Cali Private 16,330 594 27.5 40 1 275 Cali Public 13,488 424 31.8 75.5 1 780 Cartagena Private 4702 155 30.3 52 1 485 Cartagena Public 9470 176 53.8 72.4 1 332 Medellin Private 15,023 371 40.5 95.9 1 929 Medellin Public 18,770 492 38.2 69.1 1 916 Other cities Private 84,171 2944 28.6 37.1 1 474 Other cities Public 331,797 5961 55.7 61.8 1 682

**Mean students per school**

**SD students per school**

**Min. students per school**

**Max. students per school**

Barranquilla 37%, and Cartagena 33%.

Besides, from the goal not being reached, the information also raises a concern regarding the huge gap between the achievements made by students from private schools vs. students from public schools: 17 vs. 2.5% achieved B1 or B+, and 11.6% students from private schools achieved A2 vs. 5.8% from public schools (see **Figure 1**). Since more than two-thirds of secondary students study in public schools (71% or 437,350 students in 2014 according to Saber 11 2014), it generates many doubts as to the efficiency of the actions implemented during the Program for Strengthening the Development of Foreign Language Communication Skills (PFDCLE). Some of the strategies sought to train 9500 teachers, certifying 94 Secretaries of Education in language and methodology; they intended to implement a pedagogical program for learning English called "English, Please!" in 9th, 10th, and 11th grade in public schools, among others. Policy makers designed all these actions directed toward public schools, and they did not formally evaluate the effectiveness of these measures.

**Figure 2** shows the results per city. No city achieved the government's goal. On the one hand, the cities that presented the highest percentage of students that classified in B1 and B+ were Bogota (14.3% of 106,950 students) and Barranquilla (12.6% of 17,227 students), while the city with the lowest percentage was Cartagena with 6.8%. On the other hand, almost 50% of students

**Figure 2.** English levels in secondary education by main cities, others cities, and total.

of each city, except Bogota, had an A-level, this means that they have not developed the communicative competencies of a basic user, such as understanding simple phrases, asking or giving basic personal information, among others. Barranquilla's results might be related with public policy implemented during 2012–2015 "Barranquilla Bilingue" [23, 24].

and it is the most famous tourist destination of the country. This city is a key for international

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**Figure 3.** English levels in secondary education by main cities and others cities and type of school.

**Table 2** shows the main statistics of the variables from Saber Pro 2014 test provided by ICFES. It indicates that 30% of students that presented Saber Pro in 2014 were from Bogota, 7% were from Medellin, 5% were from Cali, 4% from Barranquilla, and 3% from Cartagena, and the rest were from other cities. In other words, 49% of university graduates come from the five biggest cities in the country. The participation of higher education graduates from private institutions is larger, even more than in secondary education. Bogota had the highest participation of private colleges and universities, and Cartagena had the lowest with 58%; in other cities of the country, the percentage is around 46%. Alternatively, the number of higher education institutions available for studying is higher in Bogota than in any of the other main

trade operations and tourism in Colombia.

**3.2. Higher Education: Saber Pro**

and small cities (see **Figure 4**).

Analyzing results from all cities and school sectors at the same time, it is clear that more students from private schools achieved a B1 or B+ level. However, the percentage of students in these levels was distant from the goal proposed by the government (40%) (see **Figure 3**). Barranquilla had 26.6% of students from private schools in B1 and B+, followed by Bogota with 24.5%, Cali with 17.0%, Cartagena 15.9%, and others cities with 11.9%, that does not appear to be a great difference between cities in the achievements attained by students from public schools. Cartagena is an exception because only 1.4% (133 in 9479) of students achieved B1 or B+ compared to the 4% of students who attained an intermediate level in the other main cities considered (Bogota, Barranquilla, Cali, and Medellin). Even though for the whole country, English proficiency is essential, it is of great concern that Cartagena achieved such low percentage in B1 and B+, since this city hosts one of the largest ocean terminals of the country

**Figure 3.** English levels in secondary education by main cities and others cities and type of school.

and it is the most famous tourist destination of the country. This city is a key for international trade operations and tourism in Colombia.

#### **3.2. Higher Education: Saber Pro**

of each city, except Bogota, had an A-level, this means that they have not developed the communicative competencies of a basic user, such as understanding simple phrases, asking or giving basic personal information, among others. Barranquilla's results might be related with public

Analyzing results from all cities and school sectors at the same time, it is clear that more students from private schools achieved a B1 or B+ level. However, the percentage of students in these levels was distant from the goal proposed by the government (40%) (see **Figure 3**). Barranquilla had 26.6% of students from private schools in B1 and B+, followed by Bogota with 24.5%, Cali with 17.0%, Cartagena 15.9%, and others cities with 11.9%, that does not appear to be a great difference between cities in the achievements attained by students from public schools. Cartagena is an exception because only 1.4% (133 in 9479) of students achieved B1 or B+ compared to the 4% of students who attained an intermediate level in the other main cities considered (Bogota, Barranquilla, Cali, and Medellin). Even though for the whole country, English proficiency is essential, it is of great concern that Cartagena achieved such low percentage in B1 and B+, since this city hosts one of the largest ocean terminals of the country

policy implemented during 2012–2015 "Barranquilla Bilingue" [23, 24].

**Figure 2.** English levels in secondary education by main cities, others cities, and total.

66 Multilingualism and Bilingualism

**Table 2** shows the main statistics of the variables from Saber Pro 2014 test provided by ICFES. It indicates that 30% of students that presented Saber Pro in 2014 were from Bogota, 7% were from Medellin, 5% were from Cali, 4% from Barranquilla, and 3% from Cartagena, and the rest were from other cities. In other words, 49% of university graduates come from the five biggest cities in the country. The participation of higher education graduates from private institutions is larger, even more than in secondary education. Bogota had the highest participation of private colleges and universities, and Cartagena had the lowest with 58%; in other cities of the country, the percentage is around 46%. Alternatively, the number of higher education institutions available for studying is higher in Bogota than in any of the other main and small cities (see **Figure 4**).


**Table 2.** Descriptive statistics Saber 11 2014.

Results by cities show the same pattern: there was not a city, which achieved the goal. The city that was closer to reaching the objective was Bogota (18.1%), and then Medellin (17.0%), followed by Barranquilla (14.2%), Cali (13.4%), and at finally, Cartagena with only 7.5% (see **Figure 5**). This value is almost 10 percentage points below the percentage of students from Bogota that attained a B+ in the English module of Saber Pro 2014. This result evidences the vast difference in education outcomes that exists among Colombian cities. On the other hand, cities with the highest percentage of students in A- were Cartagena (24.7%) and Barranquilla (20.9%). Again, as argued before, these results are troublesome for the case of Cartagena.

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**Figure 5.** English levels in higher education by main cities, others cities and total.

**Figure 6** shows that more students from the private sector achieved the B+ level. However, the percentage of students in these levels is far from reaching the goal proposed by the government (20%), except for students from private colleges in Bogota (18.4%) and Medellin (18.4%). Besides that, a relevant difference between the results achieved by persons who studied in the main cities and those who studied in others cities can be seen in **Figure 6**. The average of students that attained a B+ level in main cities was 13.7% and in other cities, it was 5.9%. The gap remains when comparing the outcomes from private and public institutions: 14.5% of students from private institutions from main cities achieved a B+ level and in other cities 5.5%. In public institutions, the average in main cities was 12.9% and in other cities 6.2%. It is also interesting to note that in Cali and other cities, the public institutions are the ones that have a higher percentage of students in B+.

**Figure 4.** English levels in private and public universities, 2014.

**Figure 5.** English levels in higher education by main cities, others cities and total.

**Figure 4.** English levels in private and public universities, 2014.

**City Sector Num. of** 

68 Multilingualism and Bilingualism

Source: Authors' calculations.

**Table 2.** Descriptive statistics Saber 11 2014.

**students**

**Num. of college**

Barranquilla Private 6403 45 142.3 330.1 1 1321 Barranquilla Public 2024 18 112.4 434.6 1 1853 Bogota Private 49,520 108 458.5 771.2 1 4127 Bogota Public 13,130 49 268 630.9 1 3015 Cali Private 7766 53 146.5 345.9 1 1892 Cali Public 3253 26 125.1 358 1 1823 Cartagena Private 3828 47 81.4 153.9 1 662 Cartagena Public 2770 22 125.9 407.6 1 1908 Medellin Private 9632 56 172 296.8 1 1226 Medellin Public 5522 34 162.4 390.6 1 1919 Other cities Private 49,863 152 328 493.3 1 3240 Other cities Public 58,072 67 866.7 1178.3 4 7292

**Mean students per college**

**SD students per college**

**Min. students per college**

**Max. students per college**

> Results by cities show the same pattern: there was not a city, which achieved the goal. The city that was closer to reaching the objective was Bogota (18.1%), and then Medellin (17.0%), followed by Barranquilla (14.2%), Cali (13.4%), and at finally, Cartagena with only 7.5% (see **Figure 5**). This value is almost 10 percentage points below the percentage of students from Bogota that attained a B+ in the English module of Saber Pro 2014. This result evidences the vast difference in education outcomes that exists among Colombian cities. On the other hand, cities with the highest percentage of students in A- were Cartagena (24.7%) and Barranquilla (20.9%). Again, as argued before, these results are troublesome for the case of Cartagena.

> **Figure 6** shows that more students from the private sector achieved the B+ level. However, the percentage of students in these levels is far from reaching the goal proposed by the government (20%), except for students from private colleges in Bogota (18.4%) and Medellin (18.4%). Besides that, a relevant difference between the results achieved by persons who studied in the main cities and those who studied in others cities can be seen in **Figure 6**. The average of students that attained a B+ level in main cities was 13.7% and in other cities, it was 5.9%. The gap remains when comparing the outcomes from private and public institutions: 14.5% of students from private institutions from main cities achieved a B+ level and in other cities 5.5%. In public institutions, the average in main cities was 12.9% and in other cities 6.2%. It is also interesting to note that in Cali and other cities, the public institutions are the ones that have a higher percentage of students in B+.

of the neighboring countries have only recently proposed an English Policy. For example, Chile proposed the National English Strategy 2014–2030 [25], with the English Open Doors Program (PIAP); Peru's English policy has the Gates to the World program (2015–2021) [26] and Uruguay has the English CEIBAL PLAN since 2012. In all three countries, the policies have focused on improving students' performance in English at the initial (primary and sec-

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Colombian results show that it is was not feasible to reach the targets set for 2019. Colombia still needs a labor force that can integrate into a globalized economy. The MEN established in 2015 a new program to assess the situation: "National English Program (2015–2025), Colombia

The National English Program (NEP) established challenging goals for 2025 for the secondary education: 50% of high school graduates should achieve at least a B1 Threshold (pre-intermediate) level. While for higher education, the goals for 2025 are similar to the ones that were not met: 30% of university graduates should be at a B1 Threshold (pre-intermediate) and 25% at a B2 Vantage (high intermediate). In this case, the MEN did not set intermediate goals, which

Although these 2025 goals do not appear to be ambitious, the recent history and results show that Colombian government and society should change their policies drastically to reach them. During 2016 and 2017, the MEN has carried out different programs under the NEP, such as: • English courses and incentives plans for short internships abroad for teachers from 120

• Accompaniment by foreign native English trainers to educational institutions under the

• Creation of English curriculum, which aims at helping structure English learning during

• Deliver the "Colombia Bilingual English Kit" (22,000 in total) to official schools of the country. This kit is a pedagogical tool aimed at strengthening methodologies and classroom practices for teaching English. It contains the Basic English Language Rights (DBA) for grades 6–11, the suggested curriculum and pedagogical principles for teaching English,

The impact of these programs should be evaluated. We presented in this chapter a macro view of the policy, but it is clear that to reach the goals set for 2025, further research to evaluate and

and the basic standards for foreign language competence in English [29].

Julio C. Alonso Cifuentes\*, Diana M. Díaz Mejía and Daniela Estrada Nates

ondary) levels of education.

proved to be useful to reformulate the public policy.

targeted educational institutes [28].

methodology of co-teaching [28].

formulate specific programs is needed.

\*Address all correspondence to: jcalonso@icesi.edu.co

Cienfi and Universidad Icesi, Cali, Colombia

**Author details**

the transition and primary education [28].

Very Well" [27].

**Figure 6.** English levels in higher education by main cities and others cities and type of school.
