The Role of English in connecting people, culture and commerce worldwide:
English is the Global language of communication with nearly 375 million people whose mother tongue is English and close to 750 million people, who speak English as their second language. English is the official language in many countries worldwide including India, where it is the second official language. With globalization, decentralization of world trade and commerce as well as the sudden boom in the field of Information Technology, people are able to communicate across continents effortlessly. In this scenario English languageplays a major role, as it bridges the gap between non-native English speakers and native speakers.
India is not far behind when it comes to usage of English. In India, English is the 2nd official language of both the Central as well as the State Governments.
In the last 5 years alone, the number of English medium schools has increased from 1.5 crores to 2.9 crores in India. English is either the first or the second language taughtbythe majority of our schools and colleges. This gives our students’fluency in English language and as a result, they have the advantage of choosing International colleges and universities for their graduate, post-graduate and doctorate degrees. Moreover, each year the number of Indian students travelling abroad to pursue their higher education has increased drastically. In the year 2014, a staggering 2.5 lakh students of Indian origin flew to English speaking countries like USA, UK, Australia and Singapore. By this we can comprehend the role of English in the field of education alone.
Various tests and exams to check English competency:
As a student or an individual trying to migrate to an English speaking country, it is necessary to gather information about the different English language proficiency tests accepted by the country or region you are planning to emigrate either for studies or for obtaining a PR visa. Many countries like the United States, UK and Australia have standardized tests as part of their visa evaluation process and university application acceptance process. You might have seen or heard acronyms like TOEFL, IELTS, CAE, CPE, iTEP, PTE or FCE on websites, from friends/relatives, on advertisement hoardings, on print media etc.,It can get really confusing which course to choose from out all those available in the market. These tests are conducted by famous education institutes like Cambridge, IDP, Boston Educational Services, ETS, Pearson etc.,
The most important among these tests are the IELTS and TOEFL. The results from thesetwo tests are recognizedand accepted by hundreds of universities across USA, UK, Australia, Canada, Singapore, New Zealand and many other countries.