@article{oai:cur-ren.repo.nii.ac.jp:00001045,
 author = {Takeno, Junichiro and Takeno, Junichiro and Moritoshi, Paul},
 journal = {CHUGOKUGAKUEN Journal, CHUGOKUGAKUEN Journal},
 month = {},
 note = {This paper aims to counter the media’s claim that Japanese are poor at English by re-examining the total mean test scores of Japanese English learners on Education First’s Standard English Test (EFSET) and the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) internet-Based Test (iBT). The authors consider what these scores actually show in order to rebut the media’s claim and to give a fairer, more realistic view of Japanese learners’ English proficiency when compared with those of other countries, particularly those in Asia. These two tests were chosen because they are sometimes cited in the media and because both break down their worldwide results into European, Asian, (Latin) American and the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) regions. After outlining the EFSET and TOEFL iBT and setting out why the media’s comparative use of their scores is invalid, we explain the method of analysis and present and discuss the results to show that the media’s view of Japanese poor English ability is overstated. In the discussion, the concepts of linguistic distance and English as an official language are also taken into consideration.},
 pages = {35--39},
 title = {Re-examining the English Proficiency Level of Japanese EFL Learners},
 volume = {17},
 year = {2018}
}