Recently, the experience of a nanjing examiner, wang, has aroused enthusiasm among parents. In his 2024 examinations, he took two examinations in english, achieving 135 and 138 scores, respectively, and was eventually successfully admitted to the university of readan with a higher score of 138. This case has led many parents to focus on the “two-yearly” policy for advanced examinations in english and has raised some concerns: has the reform of the english-language examinations instead increased the burden on children
At a press conference in april 2025, the ministry of education made it clear that foreign language subjects (including english) remained an important component of the examination and would not be abolished in the short term but would optimize the form of the examination. In practice, english does not quit the examination, which has been officially confirmed on several occasions. The rumour of so-called “exit” is in fact an erroneous reading of some reform measures。
Reform of the english language in the upper examination is proceeding steadily everywhere. Since 2021, the english language examination has been increased in beijing with a total of 50 points for the oral and hearing examinations, which are scheduled twice a year, with the highest scores being added to the total score. A similar “two-year examination” mechanism has been piloted in guangdong and ningxia。
The central objective of these reforms is to move english language education from the “should try” model to the “application” model in the past. Traditional english learning tends to emphasize grammar, vocabulary, reading and writing, while neglecting practical capacities, especially hearing. The english language reform now aims at reversing this phenomenon。
The data show that the average score for the beijing english-speaking high examination was 44. 53 (50 full) in 2024, up from 42. 02 in 2021. This indicates a gradual improvement in the practical use of english by students. Last year, however, the beijing high examination had a very low success rate, with only 7 per cent passing through the haydam region and 3 per cent passing through the city as a whole. This reflects the fact that the new forms of examination are more demanding for students。
The test concepts of the english-language test papers for the high examination are also being clarified and optimized. Some of the test concepts are unclear and counterproductive, such as individual selections and short text misalignment, and have been gradually withdrawn from the high examination papers. They are replaced by new types of topics, such as grammatical blanking and reading follow-up, which allow for a better examination of the language skills of students in the real context。
To read the follow-up article, for example, it requires candidates to continue writing after reading the narrative, based on the meaning of the story, the circumstances of the content, and the relationship of the person. The combination of this type of subject examines reading and writing skills, which can fully stimulate creative thinking among students and avoids the tendency to recite templates and scripts in the past。
The reformed english-language examination focused more on the creation of real situations. In the high examination, the title “recommending a chinese ap to foreign friends” and reading and understanding material on “external translation of chinese culture” began to appear. This means that students need not only the english language itself, but also the ability to speak chinese well in english。
These changes pose new challenges for students. English has heard that the examination lasts approximately 35 minutes and covers the selection, recording, transliteration, reading and answering of five main questions. This form of examination requires candidates not only to “understand” but also to “speak” and to have a good linguistic ability and an epidemiology。
It was pointed out by teachers that english had heard that the examination was really about the ability to use the language, including the correct pronunciation, the correct understanding of the hearing, the well-bridled speech, and the stupendous incipient mentality. These capabilities must rely on scientific, systematic and continuous training, rather than be achieved overnight。
The importance of english proficiency in the job market remains significant. According to iupu recruitment data for 2024, 65 per cent of jobs in popular industries such as foreign enterprises, cross-border electricians, etc., specifically require an english 4-6 certificate. The data on admission to overseas positions in china for 2024 show that persons above the 7th grade earn 40 per cent more than the 6th grade. This indicates that the demand for practical use of english continues in society。
At the same time, multilingual education in foreign languages is being developed. In addition to english, the ministry of education has opened japanese, russian, german, french, spanish and other languages in higher education. In order to take care of the reality of small languages, it is easier to test small language papers than english by 5 to 10 percentage points. This provides students with more choice space。
It was pointed out that once learning english was cancelled, it would be the same as the piano, and ordinary people would never learn it. This sentence points to the key issue of equity in english education. If the english language is completely out of the mainstream evaluation system, it may exacerbate inequalities in educational resources。
The current reform of the english language at the end of the examination is in fact a search for a balance that neither overemphasizes the test function of english nor negates its importance as an instrument of international communication. It is about giving english back to the very nature of its language tools, allowing students to use it flexibly in real situations。
For students and parents, the most practical response to the reform of the english-language baccalaureate is to refocus on learning. Moving from mere backwords, grammaticals to an overall development of hearing skills. Teachers have suggested that students should develop a read-and-reading habit, so that learning about what they hear is integrated into subjects such as reading, writing, etc。
Li chunfang, a teacher at the beijing hoang district centre for studies and research, suggested that, in addition to making arrangements with schoolteachers to study and prepare for the examination, training should be strengthened after school to enhance the accuracy of speech, tone and grammar to ensure that language norms are correct and clear. These capacities need to be built up over a long period of time and cannot be achieved overnight。
A number of new learning tools are also emerging, such as sis-fai companions, who can correct pronunciation in real time and perform oral simulation scores in high school. There are also educational materials such as " 100 chinese stories in english " , which help students adapt to the growing chinese culture-related propositions in english。
The trend towards reform in english is clear: more diverse in form, more practical in content and more comprehensive in evaluation. This is both a higher demand for pupils' english proficiency and a guide to the way education is taught。
